A/HRC/41/33
United Nations
General Assembly
Distr.: General
15 May 2019
Original: English
Human Rights Council
Forty-first session
24 June–12 July 2019
Agenda item 3
Promotion and protection of all human rights, civil,
political, economic, social and cultural rights,
including the right to development
Women deprived of liberty
Report of the Working Group on the issue of discrimination against
women in law and in practice*
Summary
In the present report, the Working Group on the issue of discrimination against
women in law and in practice analyses the causes of deprivation of liberty of women from a
gender perspective to provide an understanding of the ways in which women are uniquely
and disproportionately affected by deprivation of liberty, owing to structural discrimination
throughout their life cycle. While deprivation of women’s liberty manifests differently in
different contexts, there are common underlying causes: the persistence of patriarchal
systems which shape gender stereotypes and forms of discrimination that normalize them.
The report contains recommendations to support States in developing and implementing
comprehensive measures that are aimed at legal, institutional, social and cultural
transformation.
* Agreement was reached to publish the present report after the standard publication date owing to
circumstances beyond the submitter’s control.
GE.19-07966(E)