Existing legal standards and practices regarding violence against women in three regional human rights systems and activities being undertaken by civil society regarding the normative gap in international human rights law 2015, para. 57
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With regard to violence against women cases, merits decisions of the Commission and the jurisprudence of the Court have been influenced by the relevant international and regional instruments. These rulings have generated legal standards addressing crucial issues applicable to the rights of women in key areas, including the right of women to live free from all forms of discrimination and violence; the obligation of States to act with due diligence; access to justice for women victims of discrimination and violence; the economic, social and cultural rights of women; and the reproductive rights of women. Some of the most important standards include the duty of States to exercise due diligence to prevent, promptly investigate and sanction all forms of violence against women committed by either State or non-State actors; the obligation to provide effective and impartial judicial avenues for victims of all forms of violence against women; the holding of rape as a form of torture when it is committed by State agents; the obligation of States to take action to eradicate discrimination against women and stereotypical patterns of behaviour that promote their unequal treatment in their societies; and the recognition of multiple forms of discrimination and violence that indigenous women can suffer based on grounds of sex, race, ethnicity and economic position. Most of the Commission's recommendations have traditionally centred on the following themes: violence, the duty to act with due diligence, access to justice, and the different facets of discrimination, including its structural, systemic and intersectional nature.
Legal status
Non-negotiated soft law
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Special Rapporteur on violence against women, its causes and consequences