A/RES/63/155
and at the 2005 World Summit, 7 and noting the attention paid to the elimination of
all forms of violence against indigenous women in the United Nations Declaration
on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples adopted by the General Assembly in its
resolution 61/295 of 13 September 2007,
6F
Recalling the inclusion of gender-related crimes and crimes of sexual violence
in the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court, 8 as well as the recognition
by the ad hoc international criminal tribunals that rape can constitute a war crime, a
crime against humanity or a constitutive act with respect to genocide or torture,
7F
Recalling also Security Council resolution 1325 (2000) of 31 October 2000,
and welcoming the adoption of Council resolution 1820 (2008) of 19 June 2008 on
women and peace and security,
Deeply concerned about the pervasiveness of violence against women and girls
in all its different forms and manifestations worldwide, and reiterating the need to
intensify efforts to prevent and eliminate all forms of violence against women and
girls throughout the world,
Recognizing that violence against women is rooted in historically unequal
power relations between men and women and that all forms of violence against
women seriously violate and impair or nullify the enjoyment by women of all
human rights and fundamental freedoms and constitute a major impediment to the
ability of women to make use of their capabilities,
Recognizing also that women’s poverty and lack of empowerment, as well as
their marginalization resulting from their exclusion from social policies and from
the benefits of sustainable development, can place them at increased risk of
violence, and that violence against women impedes the social and economic
development of communities and States, as well as the achievement of the
internationally agreed development goals, including the Millennium Development
Goals,
Recognizing further that the empowerment of women, by ensuring their full
representation and full and equal participation at all levels of decision-making, is
important in eliminating violence against women and girls,
Acknowledging the need to address violence against women holistically,
including through the recognition of linkages between violence against women and
other issues such as HIV/AIDS, poverty eradication, food security, peace and
security, humanitarian assistance, health and crime prevention,
Expressing its appreciation for the high number of activities undertaken by
States to eliminate all forms of violence against women, such as enacting or
amending legislation relating to acts of violence against women and adopting
comprehensive national action plans to combat such violence,
Recognizing the important role of civil society, in particular women’s
organizations, in the efforts to eliminate all forms of violence against women,
Stresses that “violence against women” means any act of gender-based
1.
violence that results in, or is likely to result in, physical, sexual or psychological
harm or suffering to women, including threats of such acts, coercion or arbitrary
deprivation of liberty, whether occurring in public or in private life;
_______________
7
8
2
See resolution 60/1.
United Nations, Treaty Series, vol. 2187, No. 38544.