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Re(gion)alizing Women's Human Rights in Latin America

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  03 September 2009

Elisabeth Jay Friedman
Elisabeth Jay Friedman
Affiliation:
University of San Francisco
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Abstract

Between 1993 and 2000, nearly every democracy in Latin America passed a law prohibiting domestic violence. Between 2001 and 2006, five countries strengthened their legislation, and Brazil passed its first law. What explains these advances with respect to women's rights? While other work has focused on domestic or international factors, this article brings to light the role of the region. It reveals that the two inter-American women's rights organizations have been active in both establishing regional norms and promoting their national adoption and implementation. While this suggests that regional governance can promote women's social rights, there is no automatic institutionalization of these norms. Case studies on Chile and Brazil illustrate the impact of national context.

Type
Research Article
Information
Politics & Gender , Volume 5 , Issue 3 , September 2009 , pp. 349 - 375
Copyright
Copyright © The Women and Politics Research Section of the American Political Science Association 2009

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