BANDAR SERI BEGAWAN, 2 December 2013 – The ASEAN Commission on the Promotion and Protection of the Rights of Women and Children (ACWC) agreed on a plan of action at its Special Meeting convened on 26-27 November 2013 in Brunei Darussalam.
Subsequent to the adoption of the Declaration on the Elimination of Violence Against Women and Elimination of Violence Against Children in ASEAN by the Leaders at the 23rd ASEAN Summit on 9 October 2013, the ACWC discussed strategies to implement the eight areas of commitments reflected in the Declaration. A framework of actions was discussed based on the corresponding projects under the ACWC Work Plan 2012-2016. An inter-sectoral consultation meeting with other relevant ASEAN bodies and dialogue session with civil society organisations were planned for February 2014 to socialize the Declaration and explore their potential contribution to its implementation.
Progress of completed, on-going and planned projects under the Plan was reviewed at the Meeting. Follow-ups to the projects completed this year were discussed, notably the launching of the publication of ASEAN best practices in eliminating violence against women and violence against children which was planned for 11 December 2013 in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Recommendations of the Regional Workshop on Promoting the Rights of ASEAN Women and Children through Effective Implementation of the Common Issues in CEDAW and CRC Concluding Observations with Focus on Girl Child which was held on 20-22 August 2013 in Da Nang, Viet Nam, were also discussed.
Moving forward, the Social Service Agencies Conference and Training were planned for April 2014 in Singapore. The Workshop on the Promotion of Access to Justice for Women Victims of VAW Trafficking Cases was scheduled for 3-5 February 2014 in Brunei Darussalam. The Regional Conference on the Social Impact of Climate Change on Women and Children in ASEAN was scheduled for March 2014 in Cambodia.
Meanwhile, preparation for the annual public campaign to stop violence against women in commemoration of the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women on 25 November next year was discussed. The Regional Study on Strengthening Economic Rights of Women with regard to Feminization of Poverty Particularly Women’s Rights to Land and Property was also planned to begin next year.
On 27 November, the ACWC visited “Pusat Bahagia” which is an institution responsible for conducting programmes and activities to support persons with disabilities / people with special needs (intellectual, physical, visual and hearing impairment).
The eighth ACWC meeting was scheduled for 17-20 February 2014 at the ASEAN Secretariat, Jakarta, Indonesia.