On July 30, 2002, the U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee approved the so-called Treaty for the Rights of Women, which is officially known as the Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW), by a vote of 12-7. The treaty will now be sent to the full Senate for a vote on ratification. A total of 169 nations have already ratified CEDAW; the United States is one of the few hold-outs, along with countries such as Afghanistan and Iran.

Ratification in the United States has been stalled for several years. Pockets of opposition remain, but the outlook for ratification is brighter than at any time since the early 1990s.

Find out more about the Treaty for the Rights of Women (CEDAW)