A/HRC/21/41
United Nations
General Assembly
Distr.: General
10 July 2012
Original: English
Human Rights Council
Twenty-first session
Agenda item 3
Promotion and protection of all human rights, civil,
political, economic, social and cultural rights,
including the right to development
Report of the Special Rapporteur on contemporary forms of
slavery, including its causes and consequences,
Gulnara Shahinian
Thematic report on servile marriage*
Summary
The Special Rapporteur provides an overview of her activities and focuses her
thematic report on the issue of servile marriage, in which a spouse is reduced to a
commodity over whom any or all the powers of ownership are attached. The Special
Rapporteur discusses the root causes of servile marriage, which include gender inequality,
ideas of family honour, poverty, conflict and cultural and religious practices. She also
outlines the various forms of servile marriage, as defined in the Supplementary Convention
on the Abolition of Slavery, the Slave Trade, and Institutions and Practices Similar to
Slavery, and highlights the need to view such marriages as forms of slavery so as to better
inform and shape actions to prevent servile marriage and support victims. The Special
Rapporteur recommends that the Human Rights Council develop a more comprehensive
approach to the issue of servile marriage and that States enact legislation to prevent servile
marriage, provide support to victims and launch campaigns to raise awareness of servile
marriage and its negative impact.
*
GE.12-15167
Late submission.