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Wednesday, November 2, 2011
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Nature of the Case

Petition filed by the Center for Reproductive Rights and Advocacia Cidadã pelos Direitos Humanos before the Committee on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women to “ensure to women appropriate services in connection with pregnancy, confinement and the post-natal period, granting free services where necessary” under Art 12 (2) of the UN Convention; Scope of right to sexual and reproductive health in the context of maternal mortality; Non-discrimination and equality.

Enforcement of the Decision and Outcomes

The Committee established that the State should submit information to the Committee on any action taken regarding this case by February 2012.  It should also publish and disseminate the Committee’s views and recommendations in this case. In April 2013, the Brazilian government established an Interministerial Group (Portaria n. 35) with representatives of the Ministry of Health, the Ministry of Foreign Relations, the Secretary for Human Rights, the Secretary for Racial Equality and the Secretary on Gender Policies in order to implement the recommendations. In 2014, the Brazilian government agreed with the Committee that it would pay compensation to Alyne Pimentel’s mother. The compensation was paid during an official ceremony still in 2014 (Plataforma DHESCA Brasil, Relatorio sobre Mortalidade Materna, 2014. Available at: http://www.dhescbrasil.org.br/attachments/1010_missao_baixada_fluminense_dhssr.pdf).

Significance of the Case

This was the first case on maternal mortality to be brought before CEDAW. The Committee’s approach of referencing art 12 of ICESCR and General Comment 14 on the Right to Health developed by the ESCR Committee, in relation to capturing the scope of the rights and obligations at issue in this case was an important step forward in increasing coherence in international human rights law on women’s economic, social and cultural rights.   Further, the CEDAW Committee’s inclusion of factors affecting Alyne’s access to health services, such as poverty and race were an important step in further developing an intersectional understanding of women’s ESCR.

Groups Involved in the Case

Center for Reproductive Rights and Citizens’ Advocacy for Human Rights (ADVOCACI)

Ruling