Justice for Pacific & Caribbean Women & Girls

Equality & Justice Alliance (EJA) Group of Experts Meeting 

• Aruna Narain, Supreme Court Judge of Mauritius and CEDAW Committee Member, Mauritius
• Chaloka Beyani, Professor of Law at the London School of Economics and former UN Special Rapporteur on the Human Rights of Internally Displaced Persons, U.K.
• Aileen McColgan, Professor of Law at the University of Leeds and Barrister at 11KBW, U.K.
• Marion Bethel, Attorney and CEDAW Committee Member, Bahamas
• Florida Kabasinga, Managing Partner at Certa Law Chambers, Rwanda
• Dianne Hubbard, Director of the Gender Research & Advocacy Project at the Legal Assistance Centre, Namibia
• Sharon Murdock, Legislative Drafter at the Office of Legislative Counsel, Northern Ireland
• Vrinda Grover, Supreme Court Advocate, India
• Hansdeep Singh, Co-Founder of ICAAD, U.S.A.

SFC has also commissioned ICAAD to provide legal research regarding how gender bias and stereotyping link to GBV in the Pacific Island region. This has been part of ICAAD’s ongoing 6 year initiative on TrackGBV and a presentation/ report will be delivered at the EJA Commonwealth Asia High-level Dialogue in Malaysia later this year. 

Compacts of Free Association (COFA) 

On May 17, 2019, ICAAD Advisor Erin Thomas’ publication: Compacts of Free Association in FSM, RMI, and Palau: Implications for the 2023-2024 Renewal Negotiations was cited by the President of Palau, Tommy Remengesau Jr., in an op-ed published in The Hill. In her piece, Erin points to critical issues stakeholders have raised regarding human trafficking, adoption policies, and COFA migrant rights among other important human rights issues. 

Some of the above-mentioned policy gaps span several of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG), particularly 10 (reduced inequalities) and 17 (partnership for the goals). Holistically, the existing COFA agreements represent the type of inequity that SDG 10 seeks to address. SDG 17 promotes inclusive and participatory decision-making at the international, national, and local levels. Developing transparency on both sides will allow for a more equitable process and outcome for the renewal negotiations.