Dear Senator,

I am writing to urge you to vote in the Senate Foreign Relations Committee for sending the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) to the full Senate for ratification. CEDAW is the most comprehensive U.N. treaty aimed at eliminating discrimination against women in education, family life, health care, employment, politics, economics, and employment. It is imperative that the United States ratifies this treaty to best ensure that basic rights are respected for women around the world.

Ratification of CEDAW by the United States will send a strong message that the United States is serious about protecting women's rights around the world. Failure to send CEDAW to the Senate for a vote would raise legitimate questions about U.S. resolve on women's rights and weaken the United States' efforts to promote respect for women's rights in other nations.

Critics of CEDAW have argued, among other things, that CEDAW infringes on U.S. sovereignty, promotes abortion, interferes with the notion of family, and will legalize prostitution. Their concerns are unfounded:

· Sovereignty. CEDAW is not a "self-executing" treaty, and thus legislation would need to be passed in order to implement its obligations. Ratification of CEDAW alone would not give the United Nations or any other body the power to enforce CEDAW in the U.S.

· Abortion. CEDAW does not take a position on abortion. The U.S. State Department itself says that CEDAW is "abortion neutral." Many countries that have criminalized abortion have ratified CEDAW, such as Ireland and Rwanda. Moreover, the United States has already said that it would insist on an "understanding" to CEDAW making clear that it does not include a right to abortion.

· Family Interference. CEDAW does not interfere in the proper role of parents in childrearing, but rather calls for recognition of the "common responsibility of men and women in the upbringing and development of their children" and "to promote what is in the best interests of the child." This is consistent with U.S. law.

· Prostitution. CEDAW does not require legalization of prostitution. The CEDAW Committee has recommended the decriminalization of prostitution in specific countries (such as China) where prostitution and trafficking in women and children are rampant, not for all countries in general.

Finally, by becoming a party to CEDAW, the United States would signal its support for the United Nations' efforts to advance women's human rights. Failure to ratify this treaty would undermine the United Nations as a standard-setting and investigative body. CEDAW provides an important opportunity for the United States to show it is engaged in international efforts to protect women's human rights.

We sincerely hope that you will show leadership on the important issue of women's human rights by voting in favor of sending CEDAW to the full Senate for ratification.

Sincerely,