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Adequacy of the international legal framework on violence against women 2017, para. 49
- Paragraph text
- In that regard, civil society organizations stressed the importance of having a document that was legally binding and that clearly delineated the responsibilities of the sovereign bodies with regard to providing reparation for and preventing gender-based violence. In particular, prevention of gender-based violence must be promoted to a jus cogens principle in order to build momentum around efforts related to protecting women and girls from violence. Such a document needed to address gender stereotypes and stigma attached to victims, and violence against women ought to be addressed by challenging its root causes, such as poverty, disability and vulnerability.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on violence against women, its causes and consequences
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Gender
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Violence
- Person(s) affected
- Girls
- Women
- Year
- 2017
Paragraph
Adequacy of the international legal framework on violence against women 2017, para. 50
- Paragraph text
- As previously highlighted, many civil society organizations stated that particular importance should also be given to improving implementation strategies and monitoring regimes: there should be a monitoring of State practice in implementing the principles on violence against women as a human rights issue (prevention, prosecution, protection and policy). This monitoring could be carried out by independent organizations engaging with an international treaty body. A treaty could also require States parties to create or nominate a national independent monitoring body on violence against women, which would include frameworks for respective responsibilities in federal States with sufficient resources and the ability to adjudicate cases of violence against women and girls. The treaty could establish a new global gender observatory or international watch centre. It should include a requirement for States to accept more country visits as part of monitoring, as well as ensure consultation with survivors as part of the reporting process and monitoring. Furthermore, more importance should be given to ensuring improved data collection and including a requirement for States to disseminate reports. According to some civil society organizations, any new treaty body should have the power to make general recommendations.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on violence against women, its causes and consequences
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Gender
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Violence
- Person(s) affected
- Girls
- Women
- Year
- 2017
Paragraph
Adequacy of the international legal framework on violence against women 2017, para. 53
- Paragraph text
- Another key aspect was secondary protection for women and girls after violence had taken place to avoid further violence and secondary victimization. In that regard, there should be accessible shelters and durable housing solutions, especially for indigenous women and women in rural areas. In addition, the reception of refugee and migrant women needed to be in facilities which were safe (where they would not be mixed with men and therefore in danger).
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on violence against women, its causes and consequences
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Humanitarian
- Movement
- Violence
- Person(s) affected
- Girls
- Persons on the move
- Women
- Year
- 2017
Paragraph
Adequacy of the international legal framework on violence against women 2017, para. 66
- Paragraph text
- The Secretary-General could be asked to convene a high-level panel on intensifying efforts to prevent and eliminate all forms of violence, especially violence and discrimination against indigenous women and girls. States could increase regional monitoring and interregional cooperation; the Great Lakes treaty processes have been praised in that regard.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on violence against women, its causes and consequences
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Violence
- Person(s) affected
- Ethnic minorities
- Girls
- Women
- Year
- 2017
Paragraph
Adequacy of the international legal framework on violence against women 2017, para. 72
- Paragraph text
- The universal and overall acceptance, incorporation and implementation by States of international and regional instruments are vital steps to consolidate national legal frameworks addressing the elimination of violence against women. This includes not only the ratification of the main international and regional conventions on gender-based violence against women, but also the elimination of all those discriminatory laws and harmful practices which prevent the full enjoyment by women and girls of their human rights.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on violence against women, its causes and consequences
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Gender
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Violence
- Person(s) affected
- Girls
- Women
- Year
- 2017
Paragraph
Adequacy of the international legal framework on violence against women 2017, para. 84
- Paragraph text
- The submissions received from civil society organizations on the adequacy of the existing legal framework represent a great diversity of responses. These views, together with those of the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women and regional mechanisms, have been an extremely enriching contribution to the debate on the adequacy of the legal framework on violence against women. Almost all submissions emphasized the role of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women as a dynamic, living instrument that encompasses violence against women as a form of discrimination against women and the progressive interpretation of the Convention through the adoption of successive general recommendations on violence against women by the Committee, as well as other related subjects, such as the core obligations on States to implement the Convention, access to justice (general recommendation No. 33 (2015) on women’s access to justice) and the rights of women and girls in conflict and post-conflict situations (general recommendation No. 30 (2013) on women in conflict prevention, conflict and post-conflict situations), along with all the other general recommendations. A significant number of submissions pointed out that the lack of a specific global treaty on gender-based violence against women had important symbolic value and further indicated that a new treaty could have an important role in galvanizing implementation at the State level. That symbolic value and potential to act as a catalyst for change was particularly compelling in the broader Asia-Pacific and Middle East regions, which were the only ones that did not have a specific regional treaty on violence against women.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on violence against women, its causes and consequences
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Gender
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Humanitarian
- Violence
- Person(s) affected
- Girls
- Women
- Year
- 2017
Paragraph
Adequacy of the international legal framework on violence against women 2017, para. 86
- Paragraph text
- The Special Rapporteur highlights that, apart from the Committee, a variety of international and regional human rights bodies and independent experts are working on the issue of violence against women. These bodies have all developed a rich jurisprudence, general comments and recommendations relating to the right of women and girls not to be subjected to violence, which in certain circumstances may amount to torture or cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment, denial of the right to health and other human rights. There are regional treaties and treaty bodies looking specifically at gender-based violence in Africa, the Americas and Europe. There are also independent experts in Africa and the Americas. However, these instruments need more incorporation and implementation, including through sustained funding of expert monitoring mechanisms to carry out their work, to facilitate coordination and to share best practices, information and insights. This urgency to support existing good work is even more compelling given the high priority dedicated to the eradication of violence against women in the Sustainable Development Goals.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on violence against women, its causes and consequences
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Gender
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Violence
- Person(s) affected
- Girls
- Women
- Year
- 2017
Paragraph
Adequacy of the international legal framework on violence against women 2017, para. 91
- Paragraph text
- The Special Rapporteur supports the interpretation of violence against women as a form of discrimination against women and girls and a human rights violation. Therefore, the option of creating a separate treaty would expose the existing legal framework under the Convention on violence against women to the risk of isolating provisions aimed at addressing gender-based violence against women from the structural causes of discrimination against women.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on violence against women, its causes and consequences
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Gender
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Violence
- Person(s) affected
- Girls
- Women
- Year
- 2017
Paragraph
Adequacy of the international legal framework on violence against women 2017, para. 96f
- Paragraph text
- [The Special Rapporteur makes the following specific recommendations:] States should repeal all provisions and procedures that are discriminatory against women and girls, and that thereby facilitate and allow for the toleration of any form of gender-based violence against them, including legislation justifying harmful practices against women, but also abrogate or modify those gender-neutral laws and policies which may prevent women and girls from fully enjoying their human rights in both the private and public spheres;
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on violence against women, its causes and consequences
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Gender
- Violence
- Person(s) affected
- Girls
- Women
- Year
- 2017
Paragraph
Adolescents and youth 2012, para. 20
- Paragraph text
- Emphasizing that the full implementation of the United Nations Global Plan of Action to Combat Trafficking in Persons will contribute to address all factors and root factors that foster demand and make adolescents and youth, especially young women and girls, vulnerable to trafficking, as well as the protection and rehabilitation of victims and will, inter alia, promote, as appropriate, increased ratification and full implementation of the United Nations Convention against Transnational Organized Crime and its Protocol to Prevent, Suppress, and Punish Trafficking in Persons, Especially Women and Children,
- Body
- Commission on Population and Development
- Document type
- Resolution
- Topic(s)
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Violence
- Person(s) affected
- Adolescents
- Children
- Girls
- Women
- Youth
- Year
- 2012
Paragraph
African Youth Charter 2006, para. 1l
- Paragraph text
- 1. States Parties acknowledge the need to eliminate discrimination against girls and young women according to obligations stipulated in various international, regional and national human rights conventions and instruments designed to protect and promote women's rights. In this regard, they shall: l) Enact and enforce legislation that protect girls and young women from all forms of violence, genital mutilation, incest, rape, sexual abuse, sexual exploitation, trafficking, prostitution and pornography;
- Body
- African Union
- Document type
- Regional treaty
- Topic(s)
- Gender
- Harmful Practices
- Violence
- Person(s) affected
- Girls
- Women
- Youth
- Year
- 2006
Paragraph
African Youth Charter 2006, para. 1m
- Paragraph text
- 1. States Parties acknowledge the need to eliminate discrimination against girls and young women according to obligations stipulated in various international, regional and national human rights conventions and instruments designed to protect and promote women's rights. In this regard, they shall: m) Develop programmes of action that provide legal, physical and psychological support to girls and young women who have been subjected to violence and abuse such that they can fully re-integrate into social and economic life;
- Body
- African Union
- Document type
- Regional treaty
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Gender
- Violence
- Person(s) affected
- Girls
- Women
- Youth
- Year
- 2006
Paragraph
Agenda setting of the work of the Special Rapporteur 2015, para. 15
- Paragraph text
- Trafficking is a feature of armed conflict as well as of post-conflict situations and usually has a strong gender dimension. For instance, men and boys are trafficked for the purpose of supplying combatants to supplement fighting forces. Armed conflicts also increase the risk of women and girls being sexually exploited, which includes being abducted and forced into sexual slavery and/or forced prostitution. Those victims may be transported across international borders before being sold and trafficked to other regions or countries. They can also be trafficked for the purposes of forced labour for armies and armed groups. In addition, arranged marriages or false promises of domestic work abroad that are expected to provide children with a better life often render them vulnerable to trafficking for the purposes of commercial sexual exploitation and forced labour, including domestic servitude. Furthermore, paramilitary groups can wreak havoc on communities during armed conflicts, often forcing children to become soldiers and workers, including in the illegal drug trade.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on trafficking in persons, especially in women and children
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Gender
- Humanitarian
- Violence
- Person(s) affected
- Boys
- Children
- Girls
- Women
- Year
- 2015
Paragraph
Agenda setting of the work of the Special Rapporteur 2015, para. 18
- Paragraph text
- Trafficking of children is on the increase globally, with girls being affected the most. The recently released Global Report on Trafficking in Persons 2014 also notes significant regional differences concerning child trafficking, with children comprising a majority of detected victims of trafficking in Africa and the Middle East.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on trafficking in persons, especially in women and children
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Violence
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Girls
- Year
- 2015
Paragraph
Agenda setting of the work of the Special Rapporteur 2015, para. 19
- Paragraph text
- The mandate's work has confirmed that girls and boys are trafficked for a variety of reasons, including for purposes of sexual exploitation, such as in prostitution and in the production of child pornography. Furthermore, they are trafficked for forced and exploitative labour in farms and factories and on fishing boats, for forced criminal activities, for forced and organized begging, and for domestic servitude in private households. While much trafficking of children involves movement across international borders, many countries experience the phenomenon of internal child trafficking.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on trafficking in persons, especially in women and children
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Violence
- Person(s) affected
- Boys
- Children
- Girls
- Year
- 2015
Paragraph
Agenda setting of the work of the Special Rapporteur 2015, para. 22
- Paragraph text
- Women are significantly involved in trafficking in persons, both as victims and offenders. Data regarding women are among the most interesting findings in the UNODC Global Report on Trafficking in Persons 2014, which confirms that women and girls are disproportionately exploited not only for the purposes of sexual but also labour exploitation. In some regions, such as in South and East Asia, in Africa and the Middle East, women are even the majority of people exploited as forced labour.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on trafficking in persons, especially in women and children
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Violence
- Person(s) affected
- Girls
- Women
- Year
- 2015
Paragraph
Agenda setting of the work of the Special Rapporteur 2015, para. 24
- Paragraph text
- With regard to perpetrators, while the majority of traffickers are men, women constitute 28 per cent of convicted trafficking offenders. It is not uncommon for women victims of trafficking to be convicted for offences connected with, or arising out of, their trafficking situation, as a result of coercion by their perpetrators to undertake criminal activities. In those situations, they often come to the attention of the authorities primarily as offenders, whilst they should rather be identified as victims of trafficking. On the other hand, in some cases women start out as victims of trafficking and, as a means of escaping their own victimization, turn into perpetrators, undertaking the most visible and dangerous criminal tasks. In that regard, the mandate has noted the involvement of women traffickers in areas such as the recruitment and controlling of children for forced labour and domestic servitude, and of women and girls for sexual exploitation (A/HRC/23/48/Add.2 and A/HRC/26/37/Add.4).
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on trafficking in persons, especially in women and children
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Violence
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Girls
- Men
- Women
- Year
- 2015
Paragraph
Agenda setting of the work of the Special Rapporteur 2015, para. 25
- Paragraph text
- Some forms of trafficking mostly involve women and girls, who comprise the vast majority of people trafficked for sexual purposes and for labour exploitation in domestic servitude. Moreover, women are also trafficked for the purpose of forced and servile marriages (A/HRC/21/41).
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on trafficking in persons, especially in women and children
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Economic Rights
- Violence
- Person(s) affected
- Girls
- Women
- Year
- 2015
Paragraph
Agenda setting of the work of the Special Rapporteur 2015, para. 51
- Paragraph text
- Finally, the Special Rapporteur will be guided by the best interests of the child in all actions concerning trafficked girls and boys, whether undertaken by public or private institutions, courts of law, administrative authorities or legislative bodies. She expects to look into existing identification, protection and assistance gaps in relation to children who have been trafficked for various purposes, with the aim of providing insights on issues such as the procedures for determining the best interests of the children, access to justice, provision of unconditional assistance and effective remedies including compensation for such children.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on trafficking in persons, especially in women and children
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Civil & Political Rights
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Violence
- Person(s) affected
- Boys
- Children
- Girls
- Year
- 2015
Paragraph
Agenda setting of the work of the Special Rapporteur 2015, para. 52
- Paragraph text
- In continuation of the broad interpretation of trafficking in persons adopted by the mandate, the Special Rapporteur will embrace and further develop a comprehensive understanding of trafficking for any illicit purpose. This includes - but is not limited to - trafficking in adults and children for sexual purposes, for labour exploitation, for exploitative adoption and for participation in armed conflicts; trafficking in women, men and children for forced labour and other forms of exploitation, such as exploitation in criminal or illicit activities, or forced and organized begging; trafficking in women and girls for forced and servile marriages, sexual exploitation and forced labour, including domestic servitude; and trafficking in persons for the removal of organs (A/HRC/26/37, para. 36).
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on trafficking in persons, especially in women and children
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Violence
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Girls
- Men
- Women
- Year
- 2015
Paragraph
Approach, vision and work methods 2014, para. 11
- Paragraph text
- The Special Rapporteur will integrate a gender perspective throughout her work, as mandated by resolution 7/13. She considers that sensitivity to the ways in which the phenomena of the sale and sexual exploitation of children affects boys and girls differently is essential for proposing effective recommendations. In this respect, she will take into consideration the gender dimension of sexual exploitation which, according to available data, disproportionately affects girls. The Special Rapporteur will take into account the different needs and opportunities of boys and girls through, among other things, the collection and analysis of disaggregated data and propose gender-specific recommendations for their care and recovery.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the sale and sexual exploitation of children, including child prostitution, child pornography and other child sexual abuse material
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Gender
- Violence
- Person(s) affected
- Boys
- Children
- Girls
- Year
- 2014
Paragraph
Assessment of the status of implementation of the Programme of Action of the International Conference on Population and Development 2014, para. 13
- Paragraph text
- Expresses deep concern about the pervasiveness of gender-based violence, in particular violence against women and girls, and reiterates the need to further intensify efforts to prevent and eliminate all forms of violence against women and girls and harmful practices, including child, early and forced marriage and female genital mutilation, and recognizes that violence against women and girls is one of the obstacles to achieving the empowerment of women and that women's poverty and lack of political, social and economic empowerment, as well as their marginalization, may result from their exclusion from social policies for and the benefits of sustainable development and can place them at increased risk of violence;
- Body
- Commission on Population and Development
- Document type
- Declaration / Confererence outcome document
- Topic(s)
- Gender
- Harmful Practices
- Violence
- Person(s) affected
- Girls
- Women
- Year
- 2014
Paragraph
Certain forms of abuses in health-care settings that may cross a threshold of mistreatment that is tantamount to torture or cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment 2013, para. 80
- Paragraph text
- Persons with disabilities are particularly affected by forced medical interventions, and continue to be exposed to non-consensual medical practices (A/63/175, para. 40). In the case of children in health-care settings, an actual or perceived disability may diminish the weight given to the child's views in determining their best interests, or may be taken as the basis of substitution of determination and decision-making by parents, guardians, carers or public authorities. Women living with disabilities, with psychiatric labels in particular, are at risk of multiple forms of discrimination and abuse in health-care settings. Forced sterilization of girls and women with disabilities has been widely documented. National law in Spain, among other countries, allows for the sterilization of minors who are found to have severe intellectual disabilities. The Egyptian Parliament failed to include a provision banning the use of sterilization as a "treatment" for mental illness in its patient protection law. In the United States, 15 states have laws that fail to protect women with disabilities from involuntary sterilization.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Health
- Violence
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Girls
- Persons with disabilities
- Year
- 2013
Paragraph
Challenges and achievements in the implementation of the Millennium Development Goals for women and girls 2014, para. 8
- Paragraph text
- The Commission also reaffirms the commitment to the full and effective implementation of and follow-up to all relevant resolutions of the General Assembly, in particular the Declaration on the Elimination of Violence against Women, as well as relevant resolutions of the Economic and Social Council and its subsidiary bodies, and recalls relevant resolutions of the Human Rights Council, in the area of gender equality, the empowerment of women and human rights of women and girls. It also reaffirms its previous agreed conclusions, including, inter alia, on women and the economy and on the elimination and prevention of all forms of violence against women and girls.
- Body
- Commission on the Status of Women
- Document type
- CSW Agreed Conclusions / Declaration
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Gender
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Violence
- Person(s) affected
- Girls
- Women
- Year
- 2014
Paragraph
Challenges and achievements in the implementation of the Millennium Development Goals for women and girls 2014, para. 30
- Paragraph text
- The Commission strongly condemns all forms of violence against women and girls. It expresses deep concern that discrimination and violence against women and girls continue to occur in all parts of the world and that all forms of violence against women and girls are impediments to the development of their full potential as equal partners with men and boys in all aspects of life, as well as obstacles to the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals.
- Body
- Commission on the Status of Women
- Document type
- CSW Agreed Conclusions / Declaration
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Gender
- Violence
- Person(s) affected
- Boys
- Girls
- Men
- Women
- Year
- 2014
Paragraph
Challenges and achievements in the implementation of the Millennium Development Goals for women and girls 2014, para. 42e
- Paragraph text
- [The Commission urges Governments, at all levels [...] to take the following actions:] [Realizing women's and girls' full enjoyment of all human rights]: Fully engage men and boys, including community leaders, as strategic partners and allies in the elimination of all forms of discrimination and violence against women and girls both in the family and in society, design and implement national policies that aim to transform those social norms that condone violence against women and girls, and work to counteract attitudes by which women and girls are regarded as subordinate to men and boys, including by understanding and addressing the root causes of gender inequality such as unequal power relations, social norms, practices and stereotypes that perpetuate discrimination against women and girls, and engage them in efforts to promote and achieve gender equality and the empowerment of women and girls;
- Body
- Commission on the Status of Women
- Document type
- CSW Agreed Conclusions / Declaration
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Gender
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Violence
- Person(s) affected
- Boys
- Girls
- Men
- Women
- Year
- 2014
Paragraph
Challenges and achievements in the implementation of the Millennium Development Goals for women and girls 2014, para. 42l
- Paragraph text
- [The Commission urges Governments, at all levels [...] to take the following actions:] [Realizing women's and girls' full enjoyment of all human rights]: Eliminate all forms of violence against all women and girls in public and private spaces through multisectoral and coordinated approaches to prevent and respond to violence against women and girls and exercise due diligence, investigate, prosecute and punish the perpetrators of violence against women and girls and end impunity, and provide protection as well as universal access to comprehensive social, health and legal services for all victims and survivors, to ensure their full recovery and reintegration into society and, bearing in mind the importance for all women and girls to live free from violence, to address the structural and underlying causes of violence against women and girls through enhanced prevention measures, research and strengthened coordination and monitoring and evaluation;
- Body
- Commission on the Status of Women
- Document type
- CSW Agreed Conclusions / Declaration
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Violence
- Person(s) affected
- Girls
- Women
- Year
- 2014
Paragraph
Challenges and achievements in the implementation of the Millennium Development Goals for women and girls 2014, para. 42n
- Paragraph text
- [The Commission urges Governments, at all levels [...] to take the following actions:] [Realizing women's and girls' full enjoyment of all human rights]: Strengthen bilateral, regional and international cooperation for the full and effective implementation of the United Nations Convention against Transnational Organized Crime and the Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking in Persons, Especially Women and Children supplementing the United Nations Convention against Transnational Organized Crime including by implementing the United Nations Global Plan of Action to Combat Trafficking in Persons, and take appropriate measures to raise public awareness of the issue of trafficking in persons, particularly women and girls, including the factors that make women and girls vulnerable to trafficking; to discourage, with a view to eliminating, the demand that fosters all forms of exploitation, including sexual exploitation and forced labour; to review and adopt laws, regulations and penalties necessary to deal with this issue and publicize them to emphasize that trafficking is a serious crime; and encourage media providers, including Internet service providers, to adopt or strengthen self-regulatory measures to promote the responsible use of media, particularly the Internet, with a view to eliminating the exploitation of women and children;
- Body
- Commission on the Status of Women
- Document type
- CSW Agreed Conclusions / Declaration
- Topic(s)
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Violence
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Girls
- Women
- Year
- 2014
Paragraph
Challenges and achievements in the implementation of the Millennium Development Goals for women and girls 2014, para. 42v
- Paragraph text
- [The Commission urges Governments, at all levels [...] to take the following actions:] [Realizing women's and girls' full enjoyment of all human rights]: Adopt targeted measures to ensure girls' safety and an environment free from sexual harassment in school and in the commute to and from school, including by improving transportation, strengthening infrastructure by providing separate and adequate sanitation facilities, improved lighting, playgrounds and other safe environments; conducting violence prevention activities in schools and communities; and establishing and enforcing penalties for all forms of violence and harassment against girls;
- Body
- Commission on the Status of Women
- Document type
- CSW Agreed Conclusions / Declaration
- Topic(s)
- Education
- Gender
- Violence
- Person(s) affected
- Girls
- Women
- Year
- 2014
Paragraph
Challenges and lessons in combating contemporary forms of slavery 2013, para. 10
- Paragraph text
- Servile marriage and domestic servitude are two forms of contemporary slavery that disproportionately affect women and girls. In a previous report, the Special Rapporteur defined servile marriage as an arrangement "in which a spouse is reduced to a commodity over whom any or all the powers of ownership are attached" (A/HRC/21/41, summary). Practices such as polygamy and "bride price", especially when coupled with the prevalence of domestic violence, are possible indicators of servile marriage. Women's bodies are directly tied to a family's honour in many cultures, and if a girl refuses to marry, "she can be subject to character assassination or kidnapping by the man or his family to force her into marriage or to rape her" (ibid., para. 71). There is little to no legal protection for women in these situations in many countries. Some countries have gone so far as to enact legislation that acquits perpetrators of rape if they marry their victim. If a woman enters into a servile marriage, she essentially becomes a slave to her husband and his family.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on contemporary forms of slavery, including its causes and consequences
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Harmful Practices
- Violence
- Person(s) affected
- Families
- Girls
- Women
- Year
- 2013
Paragraph