A/HRC/FMI/2011/2 national or racial characteristics of a group and on the basis of sex. The full realization of freedom from discrimination in the enjoyment of human rights is essential if minority women are to participate fully and meaningfully in society. 11. The Declaration on the Rights of Persons Belonging to National or Ethnic, Religious and Linguistic Minorities, which is inspired by article 27 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, is the primary international standard relating to the rights of minorities. All of the rights contained in the Declaration apply equally to minority women. The Declaration indeed states that “persons belonging to minorities have the right to participate effectively in cultural, religious, social, economic and public life”. 12. Article 3 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights states that the States parties to the Covenant undertake to ensure the equal right of men and women to the enjoyment of all civil and political rights set forth in the Covenant. Furthermore, article 27 establishes that, “in those States in which ethnic, religious or linguistic minorities exist, persons belonging to such minorities shall not be denied the right, in community with the other members of their group, to enjoy their own culture, to profess and practise their own religion, or to use their own language.” In its general comment No. 28, on equality of rights between men and women, the Human Rights Committee stated that “the rights which persons belonging to minorities enjoy under article 27 of the [International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights] in respect of their language, culture and religion do not authorize any State, group or person to violate the right to the equal enjoyment by women of any Covenant rights, including the right to equal protection of the law.”2 At the same time, the existence of such entrenched gender roles or local customs does not relieve the State of its responsibility to respect, protect and fulfil the rights of minority women. 13. The Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women is the primary international legal instrument relating to the rights of women. Although the Convention does not explicitly mention minority women or include provisions relating to multiple or intersecting forms of discrimination against women, all of the rights contained therein apply to minority women. Of particular relevance are articles 5, 10, 11 and 13, which affirm women's rights to non-discrimination in education, employment and economic and social activities, respectively. Article 7 further creates an obligation for States to take all appropriate measures to eliminate discrimination against women in the political and public life of the country. Equally, the Forum will take fully into account the relevant provisions of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, the International Convention on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination and other human rights treaties, as well as the work of the treaty bodies monitoring their implementation by State parties. 14. In its general recommendation No. 25, on the gender-related dimensions of discrimination, the Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination emphasized that “data which have been categorized by race or ethnic origin, and which are then disaggregated by gender within those racial or ethnic groups, will allow the States parties and the Committee to identify, compare and take steps to remedy forms of racial discrimination against women that may otherwise go unnoticed and unaddressed.” At previous sessions, the Forum has consistently pointed to the need for States to recognize, first and foremost, the existence of minority groups within their territory. This recognition can then be best supported by disaggregated data that would help to reveal the range of issues relevant to minority women’s rights and hence assist in the development of targeted intervention. Disaggregated data collection is therefore indispensable to ensure that 2 4 CCPR/C/21/Rev.1/Add.10, para. 32.