A/HRC/27/29 political and public affairs (see A/47/38(Supp), para. 9, and A/HRC/20/33, paras. 9–10). Different forms of violence, such as stigmatization, sexual harassment and intimidation, may be used to target human rights defenders and marginalized groups in order to prevent them from effectively exercising their rights to freely participate in political and public affairs (see A/HRC/26/29). A. Women and equal political participation 47. The equal rights of women to participate in the public and political life of their countries are recognized in a number of international human rights instruments (see A/HRC/23/50, paras. 14 and 16). The most detailed explanation of the scope of women’s political and public participation rights is provided in General Comment No. 23 of the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women, which interprets articles 7 and 8 of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women. 48. Article 7 of the Convention states that women’s right to equal participation in political and public life encompasses the right to vote in all elections and public referenda and to be eligible for election to all publicly elected bodies; to participate in the formulation and implementation of government policy; to hold public office and to perform public functions at all levels of government; and to participate in non-governmental organizations and associations concerned with the public and political life of the country. 49. Article 8 refers to the obligations of States to take all appropriate measures to provide equal opportunities to women to represent their governments at the international level and to participate in the work of international organizations. 50. In its General Comment No. 23, the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women notes the slow progress in achieving gender equality and identifies a number of barriers to the equal political participation of women stating that “societies in which women are excluded from public life and decision-making cannot be described as democratic” (para. 14). 51. The Committee also observes that traditional cultural values and religious beliefs, an absence of social services, men’s failure to equally share caring and household tasks, violence against women, women’s economic dependence on men, gender stereotyping that offers a narrow vision of “women’s political concerns” and the low level of representation of women in the professions from which politicians are recruited, have all played a significant part in the systematic exclusion of women from public life (paras. 10–12). 52. Women’s rights to vote and to stand for elected office have been subjected to restrictions or conditions that either do not apply to men or that indirectly discriminate against women. Examples of these kinds of discriminatory restrictions include limiting voting or representational rights to individuals who have a specific level of education, who possess a certain amount of property or who are literate (A/HRC/23/50). 53. In addition, prevailing negative sociocultural stereotypes concerning women’s political participation and discrimination against women in the family and community, including limitations on women’s freedom of movement, assembly and association, may prevent women from exercising their rights to vote, to run for public office and to take an active part in political and public life.40 40 12 Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women, General Recommendation No. 23, paras. 10–12.