The Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW Committee) and the United Nations Special Rapporteur on Violence against Women have agreed on a cooperative framework to promote the enforcement of General Recommendation no. 35. The framework emerged through the joint efforts of the CEDAW Committee and the United Nations Special Representative of the Secretary-General on Sexual Violence in Conflict. This unique program is further guided by Sustainable Development Goal no. 5: the advancement of gender equality. Together, they are seeking to promote measures against sexual violence at the national level. In addition, they are working to harmonize research and data-sharing efforts with the goal of ensuring member-state compliance.

In 2017, the CEDAW Committee adopted General Recommendation no. 35, updating General Recommendation no. 19. This new recommendation reinforces and strengthens the language against gender-based violence found in General Recommendation no. 19. For instance, the definition of violence was expanded to include transgressions against reproductive and sexual health. Moreover, General Recommendation no. 35 further details the responsibilities of the state in preventing violence against women, calls for the repeal of laws that condone such practices, and discusses how social norms and culture impact gender-based violence.

Compiled from: Launch of CEDAW General Recommendation No. 35 on gender-based violence against women, updating General Recommendation No. 19, United Nations; Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women and Office of the Special Representative of the Secretary-General on Sexual Violence in Conflict Join Forces to Address the Root Causes of Sexual Violence, Office of the Special Representative of the Secretary-General on Sexual Violence in Conflict; Framework Of Cooperation Between The CEDAW Committee And The Special Rapporteur On Violence Against Women (SRVAW), Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (February 11, 2019).