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Implementing international human rights recommendations to improve obstetric care in Brazil
Author(s) -
Yamin Alicia E.,
Galli Beatriz,
Valongueiro Sandra
Publication year - 2018
Publication title -
international journal of gynecology and obstetrics
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.895
H-Index - 97
eISSN - 1879-3479
pISSN - 0020-7292
DOI - 10.1002/ijgo.12579
Subject(s) - commission , human rights , medicine , government (linguistics) , reproductive health , convention , convention on the elimination of all forms of discrimination against women , reproductive rights , health care , public relations , public administration , international human rights law , law , political science , environmental health , population , philosophy , linguistics
In 2011, the UN Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women ( CEDAW ) issued a groundbreaking decision in the case of Alyne da Silva Pimentel Teixeira versus Brazil involving the maternal death of a young Afro‐Brazilian woman. The CEDAW addressed systemic failures in the Brazilian health system that combined to violate Alyne's rights to life, health, and access to maternal health services. Almost 5 years later, after significant back and forth between the concerned parties, a technical follow‐up commission was created with the support of the Center for Reproductive Rights, and was welcomed by the government of Brazil. The technical follow‐up commission was precedent‐setting, seeking to move beyond identifying gaps in “compliance” and concentrate instead on issues that might catalyze re‐engagement by national level stakeholders, both governmental and non‐governmental, with the aim of advancing CEDAW 's recommendations through not only the creation, but also the effective implementation, of policies and programs that promote women's sexual and reproductive rights in practice, including their rights to safe motherhood. Here, the human‐rights‐based framework of the technical follow‐up commission is described, in addition to their findings related to legal and policy frameworks, evidence‐based programing, and monitoring and oversight of providers.