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Despite the fact that the United Nations Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) is considered to be one of the most widely signed and ratified international human rights treaties, it seems that its implementation is confronted with significant problems. In particular, tensions arise between the endorsement of women's rights and the culture and tradition of each Member State. This may lead to different interpretations of women's rights according to each cultural background (cultural relativism), at the expense of universality of human rights. This tension is illustrated by the considerable number of reservations to the Convention, which impede its actual implementation. In this framework the article focuses on India. Being a relatively early signatory of CEDAW, with a great variety of religions and languages, different traditions and long cultural history, India offers a great example of the dimensions that the implementation of the Convention may have. The article, after examining first the cultural and constitutional background in India, seeks to clarify how the international protection of women's rights and Cultural Relativism interact here. For this purpose the paper discusses the reservations of India to CEDAW and its legal nature. Finally, it outlines the newest developments in India and makes explicit how the culture and legal regimes may determine one another.

Despite the fact that the United Nations Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) is considered to be one of the most widely signed and ratified international human rights treaties, it seems that its implementation is confronted with significant problems. In particular, tensions arise between the endorsement of women's rights and the culture and tradition of each Member State. This may lead to different interpretations of women's rights according to each cultural background (cultural relativism), at the expense of universality of human rights. This tension is illustrated by the considerable number of reservations to the Convention, which impede its actual implementation. In this framework the article focuses on India. Being a relatively early signatory of CEDAW, with a great variety of religions and languages, different traditions and long cultural history, India offers a great example of the dimensions that the implementation of the Convention may have. The article, after examining first the cultural and constitutional background in India, seeks to clarify how the international protection of women's rights and Cultural Relativism interact here. For this purpose the paper discusses the reservations of India to CEDAW and its legal nature. Finally, it outlines the newest developments in India and makes explicit how the culture and legal regimes may determine one another. Reprinted by permission of Nomos Verlagsgesellschaft

Despite the fact that the United Nations Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) is considered to be one of the most widely signed and ratified international human rights treaties, it seems that its implementation is confronted with significant problems. In particular, tensions arise between the endorsement of women's rights and the culture and tradition of each Member State. This may lead to different interpretations of women's rights according to each cultural background (cultural relativism), at the expense of universality of human rights. This tension is illustrated by the considerable number of reservations to the Convention, which impede its actual implementation. In this framework the article focuses on India. Being a relatively early signatory of CEDAW, with a great variety of religions and languages, different traditions and long cultural history, India offers a great example of the dimensions that the implementation of the Convention may have. The article, after examining first the cultural and constitutional background in India, seeks to clarify how the international protection of women's rights and Cultural Relativism interact here. For this purpose the paper discusses the reservations of India to CEDAW and its legal nature. Finally, it outlines the newest developments in India and makes explicit how the culture and legal regimes may determine one another. Adapted from the source document.