E/2007/27 E/CN.6/2007/9 5. The Working Group recalled its mandate as defined in paragraph 4 of Council resolution 1983/27, which stated that the Working Group should perform the following functions: (a) Consideration of all communications, including the replies of Governments thereon, if any, with a view to bringing to the attention of the Commission those communications, including the replies of Governments, which appeared to reveal a consistent pattern of reliably attested injustice and discriminatory practices against women; (b) Preparation of a report, based on its analysis of the confidential and non-confidential communications, which would indicate the categories in which communications were most frequently submitted to the Commission. 6. The Working Group noted that a number of communications of a general nature had been submitted, as opposed to communications alleging specific cases of discrimination or injustice against individual women and girls. 7. The Working Group discerned the following categories in which communications had most frequently been submitted to the Commission: (a) Sexual violence against women, in particular girls, including rape and gang rape, committed by private individuals, law enforcement personnel and military personnel, as well as the failure by the State to provide adequate protection to victims and bring perpetrators to justice promptly; (b) Other forms of violence against women and girls, including domestic violence, marital rape, forced and early marriage and harmful traditional practices, such as female genital mutilation, with a lack of due diligence by States adequately to investigate, prosecute and punish the perpetrators and/or a lack of specific legislation in those areas; (c) Abuse of power, impunity, lack of due process, arbitrary detention and failure to grant a fair trial; (d) Inhumane treatment in detention and inadequate conditions of imprisonment for women; (e) The impact of armed conflict and situations of insecurity, in particular on women and girls belonging to vulnerable groups, such as internally displaced women and girls, with resulting heightened exposure to, inter alia, sexual violence, torture, abduction and arbitrary killing, and the failure of States to abide by international humanitarian law, as well as international human rights law, and to protect and assist them; (f) Serious violations of the human rights of women and girls, including trafficking, torture, killings, forced prostitution and sexual slavery; (g) Physical and psychological threats and pressure of victims of violence, their families and witnesses by Government officials in order to force retraction of complaints or testimony; (h) Differential application of punishments in law based on sex, including cruel, inhuman or degrading forms of punishment; (i) Impact of legislation and practices that discriminates against women in the areas of: 50 07-28248