Confidentiality and safety of women that use the Inquiry procedure

Although the OP CEDAW does not specifically state that a request for an inquiry must not be anonymous, it holds that a the Committee can only act on ‘reliable’ information and this would most likely result in needing to identify complainants (‘victims of the violation’) to prove the reliability of the information. Also, the principle that a state must have a fair opportunity to answer to the charges laid against it leads to such conclusion.

Article 11 of the OP CEDAW Convention states that state parties must take all appropriate measures to ensure that any individual or group of individuals that use the OP CEDAW are not subjected to ill-treatment or intimidation as a result of using the OP CEDAW. In cases where women fear that they may suffer reprisals they should inform the Committee of this at the time of making their complaint or request for any inquiry and request interim measures to protect their safety if appropriate.