|
28
January 2008
Prof. Yakin Ertürk, the Special Rapporteur of the United
Nations Human Rights Council on Violence against Women, its Causes and
Consequences, will conduct an official visit to Saudi Arabia, at the
invitation of the Government, from 4 to 13 February 2008.
During the visit, the Special Rapporteur will meet with
Government authorities, civil society representatives, United Nations
officials and individual victims of violence against women. The Special
Rapporteur plans to visit Riyadh, Jeddah and Damam to gather first-hand
information on the question of violence against women in the country. The
Special Rapporteur will discuss with the Government and civil society the
types of violence against women in Saudi Arabia as well as the initiatives
undertaken by the Kingdom to address issues pertaining to her mandate.
The visit of the Special Rapporteur on Violence against
Women takes place right after the examination on 17 January 2008 by the
Committee on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women of
the combined first and second State report of Saudi Arabia on the
implementation of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of
Discrimination Against Women.
Based on the information obtained during the visit, Ms.
Ertürk will present a succinct preliminary note to the seventh session of the
United Nations Human Rights Council. She will present a full report
containing her findings and recommendations to a later session of the Human
Rights Council.
Ms. Ertürk, Professor of Sociology at Middle East
Technical University in Ankara, Turkey, was appointed Special Rapporteur on
Violence against Women in 2003.
For more information on the role and function of the
Special Rapporteur, please visit the webpage: http://www2.ohchr.org/english/issues/women/rapporteur/index.htm
|
