Japan's efforts to improve women's human rights will come up for a U.N. review this month at the Commission on the Elimination of Discrimination Against Women, or CEDAW, the implementing body of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women. The review will be based on the latest report submitted by the Japanese government under the treaty.
Japan ratified the convention in 1985, but it has yet to approve the protocol, which sets rules for redressing complaints of rights violations filed by women in member countries and for conducting direct U.N. investigations in which CEDAW members visit the countries involved. As of April, the protocol had been approved by 51 nations, including the United States and European states.
In its reviews of countries that have not yet ratified the rules, CEDAW normally attaches a summary comment calling for an early accession. It is certain that the coming review of Japan will carry a similar comment. The government should take the recommendation seriously and adopt the protocol as soon as possible. Further delay of its ratification will put Japan's commitment to women's rights on the line.