Summary
With respect to candidates for office, there should be no restrictions on candidates based on sex.
Obligations
Election Parts
Issues
Quotes
- 1. State Parties shall respect and ensure the rights set forth in the present Convention to each child within their jurisdiction without discrimination of any kind, irrespective of the child's or his or her parent's or legal guardian's race, colour, sex, language, religion, political or other opinion, national, ethnic or social origin, property, disability, birth, or other status. 2. State Parties shall take all appropriate measures to ensure that the child is protected against all forms of discrimination or punishment on the basis of the status, activities, expressed opinions, or beliefs of the child's parents, legal guardians, or family members.
- Every individual shall be entitled to the enjoyment of the rights and freedoms recognized and guaranteed in the present Charter without any distinction of any kind such as race, ethnic group, color, sex, language, religion, political or any other opinion, national and social origin, fortune, birth or other status.
- Indigenous and tribal peoples shall enjoy the full measure of human rights and fundamental freedoms without hindrance of discrimination. The provisions of the Convention shall be applied without discrimination to male and female members of these peoples.
- Each State Party to the present Covenant undertakes to respect and to ensure to all individuals within its territory and subject to its jurisdiction the rights recognized in the present Covenant without any distinction of any kind, such as race, colour, sex, language, religion, political or other opinion, national or social origin, property, birth or other status.
- All persons are equal before the law and are entitled without any discrimination to the equal protection of the law. In this respect, the law shall prohibit any discrimination and guarantee to all persons equal and effective protection against discrimination on any ground such as race, colour, sex, language, religion, political or other opinion, national or social origin, property, birth or other status.
- The enjoyment of the rights and freedoms set forth in this Convention shall be guaranteed without discrimination on any ground such as sex, race, colour, language, religion, political or other opinion, national or social origin, association with a national minority, property or official capacity, place of birth or other status.
- The present Convention is applicable, except as otherwise provided hereafter, to all migrant workers and members of their families without distinction of any kind such as sex, race, color, language, religion or conviction, political or other opinion, national, ethnic or social origin, nationality, age, economic position, property, marital status, birth or other status.
- Each State party to the present Charter undertakes to ensure to all individuals subject to its jurisdiction the right to enjoy the rights and freedoms set forth herein, without distinction on grounds of race, colour, sex, language, religious belief, opinion, thought, national or social origin, wealth, birth or physical or mental disability. 2. The States parties to the present Charter shall take the requisite measures to guarantee effective equality in the enjoyment of all the rights and freedoms enshrined in the present Charter in order to ensure protection against all forms of discrimination based on any of the grounds mentioned in the preceding paragraph. 3. ...Each State party pledges to take all the requisite measures to guarantee equal opportunities and effective equality between men and women in the enjoyment of all the rights set out in this Charter.
- The enjoyment of the rights and freedoms set forth in this Convention shall be secured without discrimination on any ground such as sex, race, colour, language, religion, political or other opinion, national or social origin, association with a national minority, property, birth or other status.
- For the purposes of the present convention, the term 'discrimination against women' shall mean any distinction, exclusion, or restriction made on the basis of sex which has the effect or purpose of impairing or nullifying the recognition, enjoyment of exercise by women, irrespective of their marital status, on a basis of equality of men and women, of human rights and fundamental freedoms in the political, economic, social, cultural civil or any other field.
- The States Parties to this Convention undertake to respect the rights and freedoms recognized herein and to ensure to all persons subject to their jurisdiction the free and full exercise of those rights and freedoms, without any discrimination for reasons of race, color, sex, language, religion, political or other opinion, economic status, birth, or any other social condition.
- No distinctions are permitted between citizens in the enjoyment of these rights on the grounds of race, colour, sex, language, religion, political or other opinion, national or social origin, property, birth or other status.
- Thus, article 2, paragraph 1, of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights obligates each State party to respect and ensure to all persons within its territory and subject to its jurisdiction the rights recognized in the Covenant without distinction of any kind, such as race, colour, sex, language, religion, political or other opinion, national or social origin, property, birth or other status. Article 26 not only entitles all persons to equality before the law as well as equal protection of the law but also prohibits any discrimination under the law and guarantees to all persons equal and effective protection against discrimination on any ground such as race, colour, sex, language, religion, political or other opinion, national or social origin, property, birth or other status.
- [Member states should] protect and promote the equal civil and political rights of women and men, including running for office and freedom of association.
- Everyone is entitled to all the rights and freedoms set forth in this Declaration, without distinction of any kind, such as race, colour, sex, language, religion, political or other opinion, national or social origin, property, birth or other status. Furthermore, no distinction shall be made on the basis of political, jurisdictional or international status of the country or territory to which a person belongs, whether it be independent, trust non-self-governing or under any other limitation of sovereignty.
- [Member states should] protect and promote the equal civil and political rights of women and men, including running for office and freedom of association.
- ...[S]ignificant segments of the population [should not be] disenfranchised (prevented from voting) by: (1) unreasonable criteria restricting eligibility, such as the use of distinctions based on race, color, gender, religion, nationality, ethnic origin, social group, past political affiliations, literacy, property ownership and ability to pay.
- Unreasonable restrictions [on voter registration] include: gender.
- It is however required that that citizenship be defined in law respecting the right to non-discrimination; that is no distinctions based on race, colour, sex, language, religion, political or other opinion, national or social origin, property, birth or other status.
- The right to vote and to be voted for should be accepted as a birth right in accordance with the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Discrimination Against Women.
- There should be no restrictions on candidates for reasons such as race, sex, religion, political affiliation, ethnic origin, or economic status.
- Three other instruments prohibit discrimination against women, or their exclusion from the political process. These are the Declaration on the Elimination of all Forms of Discrimination against Women (art. 7) and the Convention on the Political Rights of Women (arts. I- III). Finally, as regards fair and equal access to participation, the International Convention on the Suppression and Punishment of the Crime of Apartheid prohibits legislative and other measures calculated to percent a racial group or groups from participation in the political life of the country (art. II (c)).
- Unreasonable restrictions include those based on race, sex, religion, ethnic origin, past political affiliations, language, literacy, property, or ability to pay a registration fee.
- Gender discrimination in this regard is prohibited by the Declaration on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women (art. 4 (a) and (c)), the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (art. 7 (a) and (b)) and the Convention on the Political Rights of Women (arts. II and III). The combined application of the above provisions establishes the broadest reasonable pool of candidates for election, thereby yielding assurances of genuine choice for voters and of the individual rights of candidates to stand for election and to enter public service.
- Provisions concerning candidate qualifications must be clear and must not discriminate against women or particular racial and ethnic groups. Disqualification should be subject to independent review.
- Consensus exists that certain criteria to limit who has the right to vote are unacceptable. Based on Article 2 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, and other international human rights instruments, the following criteria cannot be employed to restrict who in a society has the right to vote: Race, Color, Sex, Language, Religion, Political or Other Opinion, National or social origin, or Ownership of property. Similarly, there is agreement that the right to vote cannot be refused to an individual because he or she is illiterate or lacks financial resources. In addition, based on international standards and practices the right to vote should not be denied based on a person's physical disabilities or sexual orientation.
- In addition, almost all OSCE participating States have ratified international treaties or other documents promoting equality between men and women, including in particular the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR).