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<p class="MsoNormal"><b><font face="Calibri" size="2"><span style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold; FONT-SIZE: 11pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 115%">IANWGE LAUNCHES SPECIAL WEBSITE FOR THE 30<sup>th</sup> ANNIVERSARY OF CEDAW</span></font></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><font face="Calibri" size="2"><span style="FONT-SIZE: 11pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 115%">18<sup>th</sup> December 2009 marks the 30<sup>th</sup> anniversary of the adoption of the<b><span style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold"> United Nations Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW). </span></b> A working group** of the United Nations’ Inter-Agency Network on Women and Gender Equality (IANWGE) has come together to plan a number of activities in 2009 to celebrate this important anniversary<b><span style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold">, including a special anniversary website, which they invite you to visit</span></b>: <a href="http://www.unifem.org/cedaw30" target="_blank">www.unifem.org/cedaw30</a>. </span></font></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><font face="Calibri" size="2"><span style="FONT-SIZE: 11pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 115%">The website contains: </span></font></p>
<p style="MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: normal"><font face="Symbol" size="2"><span style="FONT-SIZE: 11pt; FONT-FAMILY: Symbol"><span>·<font face="Times New Roman" size="1"><span style="FONT: 7pt 'Times New Roman'"> </span></font></span></span></font><b><span style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold">Examples of CEDAW’s successful implementation</span></b> from around the world, which serve to illustrate how national partners and the global community can work together to ensure gender equality is a reality for all women and girls. </p>
<p style="MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: normal"><font face="Symbol" size="2"><span style="FONT-SIZE: 11pt; FONT-FAMILY: Symbol"><span>·<font face="Times New Roman" size="1"><span style="FONT: 7pt 'Times New Roman'"> </span></font></span></span></font>A <b><span style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold">calendar of regional and country level events </span></b>being organized by the UN and its partners to celebrate the Convention’s 30th anniversary. </p>
<p style="MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: normal"><font face="Symbol" size="2"><span style="FONT-SIZE: 11pt; FONT-FAMILY: Symbol"><span>·<font face="Times New Roman" size="1"><span style="FONT: 7pt 'Times New Roman'"> </span></font></span></span></font>Information on the <b><span style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold">global anniversary celebration</span></b> at UN headquarters in New York on 3rd December, 2009.</p>
<p style="MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: normal"><font face="Symbol" size="2"><span style="FONT-SIZE: 11pt; FONT-FAMILY: Symbol"><span>·<font face="Times New Roman" size="1"><span style="FONT: 7pt 'Times New Roman'"> </span></font></span></span></font>Electronically available <b><span style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold">publications</span></b> <b><span style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold">and resources</span></b> on CEDAW. </p>
<p style="MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: normal"><font face="Symbol" size="2"><span style="FONT-SIZE: 11pt; FONT-FAMILY: Symbol"><span>·<font face="Times New Roman" size="1"><span style="FONT: 7pt 'Times New Roman'"> </span></font></span></span></font><b><span style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold">Background information on the Convention and its Optional Protocol.</span></b></p>
<p style="MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: normal"><font face="Symbol" size="2"><span style="FONT-SIZE: 11pt; FONT-FAMILY: Symbol"><span>·<font face="Times New Roman" size="1"><span style="FONT: 7pt 'Times New Roman'"> </span></font></span></span></font>A link to <b><span style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold">Inter Press Service’s special CEDAW website</span></b>, which features articles on CEDAW’s implementation and interviews with CEDAW experts from around the world. </p>
<p style="MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: normal"><font face="Calibri" size="2"><span style="FONT-SIZE: 11pt"> </span></font></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><font face="Calibri" size="2"><span style="FONT-SIZE: 11pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 115%">Please visit the site and share this announcement with your colleagues around the world. The working group encourages you to post a link to the CEDAW<font color="#1f497d"><span style="COLOR: #1f497d"> </span></font>anniversary site on your organization’s website to help increase its visibility among your constituencies. The website will be updated every couple of weeks until the anniversary with new success stories so please keep checking back on the site for new information. </span></font></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><font face="Calibri" size="2"><span style="FONT-SIZE: 11pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 115%">For further information on the website, please contact<font color="#1f497d"><span style="COLOR: #1f497d"> <a href="mailto:jessica.hughes@unifem.org" target="_blank">jessica.hughes@unifem.org</a>. </span></font></span></font></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><font face="Calibri" size="2"><span style="FONT-SIZE: 11pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 115%">** The working group is composed of OHCHR and UNIFEM (co-chairs), UNICEF, UN-DAW, UNDP and UNFPA. </span></font></p></div>