During the 57th UN Commission on the Status of Women, the department managed to stage a special parallel signing ceremony on 11 March 2013 at the UN Women headquarters in New York, where we registered South Africa's commitment, signed by President Jacob Zuma, to the United Nations -Commit to ending violence against women and girls| campaign. The ceremony was led by Ms Michelle Bachelet, the Under- Secretary-General and Executive Director of UN Women. South Africa was commended for its solo stance in Africa on the issue of sexual orientation and gender identities, as well as the matter of sexual and reproductive rights for women and girls.