Disability Rights International, Human Rights Watch, and Women Enabled International Submission to the United Nations Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women: Review of Serbia

January 28, 2019

This submission to the United Nations Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women (“CEDAW Committee”), ahead of its review of Serbia, highlights areas of concern that Disability Rights International, Human Rights Watch, and Women Enabled International hope will inform the CEDAW Committee’s consideration of the Serbian government’s compliance with the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (“CEDAW”).

This submission focuses on violations of sexual and reproductive health and rights, particularly forced and coerced reproductive health interventions performed on women with disabilities and violence in Serbian institutions, in violation of articles 1, 2, 12, and 23 of CEDAW. This submission provides a detailed account of violations of sexual and reproductive rights, particularly forced reproductive health interventions, in Serbian institutions, documented by Human Rights Watch in 2015 and in follow-up interviews in 2018-2019 and Disability Rights International’s Belgrade office (MDRI-S) in 2016 and 2017. It also outlines relevant human rights standards, including recent concluding observations on Serbia from CEDAW and other mechanisms. The submission concludes with suggested questions for the CEDAW Committee’s interactive dialogue with Serbia, as well as proposed recommendations for Serbia in its concluding observations.