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Gender integration
Treaty body members are encouraged to apply a gender perspective in the
conduct of their work by giving consideration to the differentiated concerns of
women and men.25 This aims at fighting discrimination on the basis of sex as well
as on other grounds, such as sexual orientation and gender identity. A gender
perspective can be integrated by using gender-sensitive language, by raising
gender-related questions during the constructive dialogues and, when relevant,
by issuing concluding observations that take into account the different impact
on women and men of certain violations or situations. The secretariat supports
members in this endeavour by systematically integrating a gender perspective in
the analysis of State party reports and in the preparation of any draft documents
for consideration by the treaty bodies.
D. Media relations
Treaty body members are becoming increasingly solicited and engaged with the
media, including social media. Some treaty bodies hold press conferences after
a session or issue press releases after reviewing State party reports and adopting
views on individual communications and general comments/recommendations.
The media also request interviews with members, particularly in relation to specific
country situations and on occasions such as Human Rights Day on 10 December.
Webcasting of public sessions of treaty bodies is becoming more common, as is
the uploading of such sessions and interviews with members on social media. The
General Assembly, in its resolution 68/268, specifically referred to the aim of
making the human rights treaty bodies more accessible and more visible through
webcasts and video archives (para. 22).
Treaty body members should be aware of the importance of engaging with the
media and know how to use them. Treaty bodies often deal with very sensitive
issues. Representatives of States as well as other stakeholders, such as CSOs,
often have very specific views on the human rights situation in their own countries.
Messages might be misunderstood, misinterpreted or even manipulated in ways
that can distort the work of the treaty bodies. On occasion, engagement with
the media can put individuals cooperating with the treaty bodies at risk. At
the same time, treaty body work can be technical and involve processes and
procedures which are not sufficiently understood by the media, or the general
public. Consequently, treaty body members are increasingly expected to be able
to present very complex issues using clear and simple messages that are not open
to distortion.
25
ee, for instance, General Assembly resolution 57/202 of 18 December 2002, in which the Assembly “encourages
S
the efforts of the human rights treaty bodies to monitor more effectively the human rights of women, bearing in mind
the workshops on gender integration, and reaffirms that it is the responsibility of all treaty bodies to integrate a
gender perspective into their work” (para. 22).
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