Search Tips
sorted by
30 shown of 91 entities
7 columns hidden
Title | Date added | Template | Original document | Paragraph text | Body | Document type | Thematics | Topic(s) | Person(s) affected | Year |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Compendium of good practices in the elimination of discrimination against women 2017, para. 70 | Aug 19, 2019 | Paragraph | Community education programmes are a key component of the implementation strategy. In this case, a robust pilot project on public legal education included community training on the decision and the related girls’ rights and police obligations; awareness-raising events including drama/theatre and panel discussions; rights-training for children; a smartphone application giving details on the steps to take in rape investigations; and public awareness materials, including billboards, radio and television programmes, social media outreach and short videos on the Internet. These measures have been replicated in other parts of the country. | Working Group on the issue of discrimination against women in law and practice | Special Procedures' report |
|
| 2017 | ||
Compendium of good practices in the elimination of discrimination against women 2017, para. 71 | Aug 19, 2019 | Paragraph | While the ongoing efforts of project partners have ensured sustained impacts, the context of endemic sexualized violence against girls and women continues to be an issue. Those regions of the country that face heightened security issues present challenges, and it remains to be demonstrated whether there can be shifts in public sentiment regarding rape of women. A highly active civil society ensures that courts continue to be used to push for progress on the implementation of girls’ rights and on State responsibility for protecting children against sexual violence. However, it is unclear whether civil society organizations bear a disproportionate burden vis-à-vis the State, and whether the enabling context for such organizations will be maintained. Challenges include ensuring ongoing sources of funding for the project and decreasing reliance on overseas funding. | Working Group on the issue of discrimination against women in law and practice | Special Procedures' report |
|
| 2017 | ||
Compendium of good practices in the elimination of discrimination against women 2017, para. 86 | Aug 19, 2019 | Paragraph | The Constitutional Court used its power to assess implementation of its own judgment, issuing two further orders on the rights of displaced women. In 2008, the Court handed down a decision that was considered a global pioneer in the treatment of sexual violence during internal armed conflict. It identified 10 risks that forcibly displaced women faced, including extreme risk of sexual violence, and 18 gender facets of displacement, including patterns of discrimination and violence. Accordingly, the Court ordered the Government to create and implement 13 programmes with a gender-sensitive approach, including violence prevention, the right to health and education and access to land, justice and reparations. The Court also took an intersectoral approach, highlighting heightened risks faced by girls, indigenous, black and community women leaders, and women with disabilities. The Court ordered the allocation of sufficient resources to guarantee implementation of the programmes, refusing to recognize lack of budget as valid justification for non-compliance. | Working Group on the issue of discrimination against women in law and practice | Special Procedures' report |
|
| 2017 | ||
Compendium of good practices in the elimination of discrimination against women 2017, para. 68 | Aug 19, 2019 | Paragraph | In its decision, the Court recognized that the girls’ constitutional rights had been violated and that the police had failed to act with due diligence as agents of the State. The police force was ordered to implement article 244 of the Constitution, requiring them to train staff to the highest possible standards of competence and integrity and to respect human rights and fundamental freedoms and dignity. Police officers were ordered to investigate the perpetrators of the 11 applicants and to ensure effective investigations in all child rape claims. As at early 2016, 80 per cent of such cases had resulted in convictions, while others were pending before courts and additional investigations had been initiated. The judgment has been referenced in other cases, including an important class action suit by victims of post-election violence, and the high courts have issued further progressive decisions on related grounds. | Working Group on the issue of discrimination against women in law and practice | Special Procedures' report |
|
| 2017 | ||
Compendium of good practices in the elimination of discrimination against women 2017, para. 69 | Aug 19, 2019 | Paragraph | What makes this case study a uniquely good practice is that, rather than ending with a court decision, the coalition of organizations involved continued to work together to expand that decision into a comprehensive movement for change. The 160 Girls Project developed as a result of the case centres on training and education programmes involving police, shelters, social workers and community members to ensure a multi-level long-term impact. A rape investigation training programme for police was developed that included a peer-to-peer train-the-trainers element with international police officers and ongoing training from equality lawyers and the national human rights commission. Research has shown positive impacts, including documented attitudinal changes and increased professionalism in the handling of child rape cases. Furthermore, training programmes have been developed for shelter workers on documenting sexual violence cases and the rights of victims. | Working Group on the issue of discrimination against women in law and practice | Special Procedures' report |
|
| 2017 | ||
Compendium of good practices in the elimination of discrimination against women 2017, para. 36 | Aug 19, 2019 | Paragraph | Research overwhelmingly indicated that the presence of women in rural governance has had positive impacts on key gendered concerns, including the improvement of health services, water and sanitation facilities, and microcredit schemes for women. Issues related to discrimination and violence against women were also being addressed by women representatives. Additional research showed significant impacts on attitudinal changes and in the elimination of gender stereotypes, demonstrated in shifts in the organization of labour in households, women’s self-perception and increased societal support for girls’ education and future aspirations. These correlations increased in villages where women chairs had been elected a second time. | Working Group on the issue of discrimination against women in law and practice | Special Procedures' report |
|
| 2017 | ||
Compendium of good practices in the elimination of discrimination against women 2017, para. 93 | Aug 19, 2019 | Paragraph | In one State in the Western Europe and others group, indigenous women and girls continued to be the target of racially motivated sexual and gender-based violence that began with colonization, as affirmed in a 2015 inquiry report by the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women, in which the Committee noted grave and systemic violations of indigenous women’s rights, exacerbated by entrenched discrimination that impeded access to justice. In a rural, predominantly indigenous region of the State, a series of high-profile cases, including the acquittal of federal police officers for sexual assault and the death of an indigenous man in police custody, had led to the mobilization of civil society organizations and public outcry, precipitating a government review of the police force in 2010. Local women’s organizations lobbied for inclusion in order to push for an improved response by the justice system to violence against women. | Working Group on the issue of discrimination against women in law and practice | Special Procedures' report |
|
| 2017 | ||
Compendium of good practices in the elimination of discrimination against women 2017, para. 66 | Aug 19, 2019 | Paragraph | The following case study from the African region elucidates the myriad factors required to develop and maintain a good practice in addressing violence against girls, as well as the attendant impacts on the right to health, safety and access to justice, among others. The background to the case begins with a constitutional reform process undertaken with high levels of public engagement, resulting in 2010 in a robust new constitution that included strong equality provisions, the incorporation of international and regional human rights treaties and the creation of an ameliorating environment for public interest litigation. | Working Group on the issue of discrimination against women in law and practice | Special Procedures' report |
|
| 2017 | ||
Compendium of good practices in the elimination of discrimination against women 2017, para. 88 | Aug 19, 2019 | Paragraph | The active involvement of internally displaced women and civil society organizations was essential throughout the process. Displaced women brought hundreds of tutelas before tribunals to demand their rights and participated in public hearings convened by the Constitutional Court or civil society organizations sharing their experiences and perspectives. The Court’s decisions were informed by formal submissions by such organizations, presenting experiences of women and girls forcibly displaced around the country. | Working Group on the issue of discrimination against women in law and practice | Special Procedures' report |
|
| 2017 | ||
Compendium of good practices in the elimination of discrimination against women 2017, para. 67 | Aug 19, 2019 | Paragraph | In 2011, a social worker who founded a local shelter for girl survivors of sexual violence and an international human rights lawyer initiated a coalition with local, regional and international civil society organizations, feminist lawyers and the national human rights commission to file a case seeking to hold the police accountable for failure to address rampant sexual violence against girls. The 160 Girls case was brought to the High Court in 2012. With the support of the shelter, 11 applicants were chosen from more than 160 victims of child rape who had been denied access to justice. The remaining victims were represented by the twelfth applicant, which was the rape shelter itself. It was the first case brought to the High Court under the equality provisions laid out in the 2010 Constitution. The decision was instrumental in establishing the failure of the police to meet national and international standards to conduct prompt, effective, proper and professional investigations into complaints, thereby preventing access to justice. With the use of relevant international human rights instruments and progressive interpretation of constitutional rights and State obligation, the jurisprudence was precedent-setting. The seminal contribution of the decision lay in establishing the rights of the child and the delineation of the scope of State obligation in protecting children from violence, and the duty to investigate and apply existing rape laws. | Working Group on the issue of discrimination against women in law and practice | Special Procedures' report |
|
| 2017 | ||
Eliminating discrimination against women in the area of health and safety, with a focus on the instrumentalization of women's bodies 2016, para. 98 | Aug 19, 2019 | Paragraph | In the context of women's and girls' health and safety, equality means the provision of differential services, treatment and medicines in accordance with their specific biological needs, throughout their life cycle. In many countries there is discriminatory exclusion and neglect of women in providing the highest attainable standard of health for women. Discrimination is particularly evident regarding women's right to reproductive and sexual health. It is exacerbated in the case of women members of marginalized groups. Discrimination against women and girls leading to the violation of their right to health and safety denies their right to human dignity. | Working Group on the issue of discrimination against women in law and practice | Special Procedures' report |
|
| 2016 | ||
Eliminating discrimination against women in the area of health and safety, with a focus on the instrumentalization of women's bodies 2016, para. 100 | Aug 19, 2019 | Paragraph | Women's access to health services in many countries is not autonomous, affordable and effective, elements which are essential for States to respect, protect and fulfil women's and girls' rights to life, health, privacy, equality and human dignity. A major barrier is lack of affordability as a result of exclusion from insurance for treatments specifically needed by women and girls or exclusion of groups of women such as migrants. Non-affordability severely discriminates against women living in poverty. Barriers also include restrictive legislative requirements, biased and stigmatized provision of services and conscientious objection to providing services. | Working Group on the issue of discrimination against women in law and practice | Special Procedures' report |
|
| 2016 | ||
Eliminating discrimination against women in the area of health and safety, with a focus on the instrumentalization of women's bodies 2016, para. 34 | Aug 19, 2019 | Paragraph | Many girls are exposed to a wide variety of practices which are harmful to their health and well-being, such as female genital mutilation, discrimination in food allocation resulting in malnutrition and discrimination in access to professional health care. Furthermore, early marriage and adolescent pregnancy have a long-lasting impact on girls' physical integrity and mental health. Pregnancy and childbirth are together the second leading cause of death among 15- to 19-year-old girls globally, putting them at the highest risk of dying or suffering serious lifelong injuries as a result of pregnancy. For example, up to 65 per cent of women with obstetric fistula, which is a severely disabling condition and often results in social exclusion, develop this condition as adolescents. | Working Group on the issue of discrimination against women in law and practice | Special Procedures' report |
|
| 2016 | ||
Eliminating discrimination against women in the area of health and safety, with a focus on the instrumentalization of women's bodies 2016, para. 78 | Aug 19, 2019 | Paragraph | Criminalization of behaviour that is attributed only to women is discriminatory per se and generates and perpetuates stigma. The threat of criminal punishment restricts women's access to sexual and reproductive health-care services and information and acts as a deterrent to health-care professionals, thus barring women's and girls' access to health-care services. | Working Group on the issue of discrimination against women in law and practice | Special Procedures' report |
|
| 2016 | ||
Eliminating discrimination against women in the area of health and safety, with a focus on the instrumentalization of women's bodies 2016, para. 68 | Aug 19, 2019 | Paragraph | Menstruation is surrounded by stigma, resulting in the ostracism of and discrimination against women and girls. In some cultures menstruating women and girls are considered to be contaminated and impure and restrictions and interdictions during menstruation are imposed on them. Women and girls may continue to harbour internalized stigma and are embarrassed to discuss menstruation even where there are no restrictions. They live with a lack of privacy for cleaning and washing, a fear of staining and smelling and a lack of hygiene in school toilets or separate sanitation facilities. | Working Group on the issue of discrimination against women in law and practice | Special Procedures' report |
|
| 2016 | ||
Eliminating discrimination against women in the area of health and safety, with a focus on the instrumentalization of women's bodies 2016, para. 105d (i) | Aug 19, 2019 | Paragraph | [The Working Group recommends that States:] Adopt a holistic approach towards women's health and safety by looking at their full life cycle from childhood to old age as interconnected phases with distinct considerations and needs, and in this regard: Take effective measures to prevent child marriage and adolescent pregnancies and provide girls with comprehensive education based on scientific evidence on matters of health, including sexuality; | Working Group on the issue of discrimination against women in law and practice | Special Procedures' report |
|
| 2016 | ||
Eliminating discrimination against women in the area of health and safety, with a focus on the instrumentalization of women's bodies 2016, para. 108i | Aug 19, 2019 | Paragraph | [The Working Group recommends that States:] Provide age-appropriate, comprehensive and inclusive sexuality education based on scientific evidence and human rights, for girls and boys, as part of the mandatory school programmes. Sexuality education should give particular attention to gender equality, sexuality, relationships, gender identity, including non-conforming gender identities, and responsible parenthood and sexual behaviour to prevent early pregnancies and sexually transmitted infections; | Working Group on the issue of discrimination against women in law and practice | Special Procedures' report |
|
| 2016 | ||
Eliminating discrimination against women in the area of health and safety, with a focus on the instrumentalization of women's bodies 2016, para. 105c | Aug 19, 2019 | Paragraph | [The Working Group recommends that States:] Take into account the impact of women's safety on their physical and mental health and protect women and girls from violence at home, on their way to or at school and in other public spaces and in health facilities; | Working Group on the issue of discrimination against women in law and practice | Special Procedures' report |
|
| 2016 | ||
Eliminating discrimination against women in the area of health and safety, with a focus on the instrumentalization of women's bodies 2016, para. 106f | Aug 19, 2019 | Paragraph | [The Working Group recommends that States:] Combat stereotyping and empower girls to take care of their own health and safety from a young age, both at school and at home, and inform and empower women regarding their own bodies at all stages of their lives; | Working Group on the issue of discrimination against women in law and practice | Special Procedures' report |
|
| 2016 | ||
Eliminating discrimination against women in the area of health and safety, with a focus on the instrumentalization of women's bodies 2016, para. 23 | Aug 19, 2019 | Paragraph | Central among women's and girls' health needs are those relating to their reproductive and sexual health. Substantive equality requires that States attend to the risk factors that predominantly affect women. For instance, since only women can become pregnant, a lack of access to contraceptives is bound to affect their health disproportionately. Equality in reproductive health requires access, without discrimination, to affordable, quality contraception; maternal health care, including during childbirth and the post-partum period; access to safe termination of pregnancy; access to effective screening and early treatment for breast and cervical cancer; and special attention to the high rate of HIV infections among young women and treatment to prevent mother-to-infant transmission. | Working Group on the issue of discrimination against women in law and practice | Special Procedures' report |
|
| 2016 | ||
Eliminating discrimination against women in the area of health and safety, with a focus on the instrumentalization of women's bodies 2016, para. 24 | Aug 19, 2019 | Paragraph | Equality also requires health policy to be based solely on women's health needs and not to be influenced by instrumentalization and politicization. Political contestation around rights to reproductive and sexual health remains a global challenge, resulting in women paying a high price in terms of their health and lives. In adopting the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, States committed to ensuring universal access to sexual and reproductive health-care services, including for family planning, information and education, and the integration of reproductive health into national strategies and programmes. A strong commitment to women's sexual and reproductive rights in international and national law, policies and programmes is crucial for achieving gender equality and ensuring women's and girl's right to health and well-being. | Working Group on the issue of discrimination against women in law and practice | Special Procedures' report |
|
| 2016 | ||
Eliminating discrimination against women in the area of health and safety, with a focus on the instrumentalization of women's bodies 2016, para. 105d (iii) | Aug 19, 2019 | Paragraph | [The Working Group recommends that States:] Adopt a holistic approach towards women's health and safety by looking at their full life cycle from childhood to old age as interconnected phases with distinct considerations and needs, and in this regard: Allow pregnant girls and adolescents to terminate unwanted pregnancies, as a measure of equality and health, so that they can complete their school education and protect them from the high risk to life and health, including from obstetric fistula, in continuing to bring a pregnancy to term; | Working Group on the issue of discrimination against women in law and practice | Special Procedures' report |
|
| 2016 | ||
Eliminating discrimination against women in the area of health and safety, with a focus on the instrumentalization of women's bodies 2016, para. 54 | Aug 19, 2019 | Paragraph | Indigenous women experience a complex spectrum of mutually reinforcing human rights abuses which is influenced by intersecting forms of discrimination and marginalization, reinforced by patriarchal power structures and past and present forms of violations of the right to self-determination and control of resources. These intersecting forms of discrimination have profound health consequences for indigenous women, especially for their reproductive and sexual health. The Special Rapporteur on the rights of indigenous peoples has reported (see A/HRC/30/41) about the barriers to reproductive and sexual health services encountered by indigenous women as well as past and recurrent human rights violations in relation to their sexual and reproductive rights. For example, indigenous women experience disproportionately higher levels of maternal mortality, indigenous girls are overrepresented among pregnant teenagers and indigenous women have lower rates of contraceptive use and higher rates of sexually transmitted diseases, including HIV/AIDS. Historically, there have also been instances of serious violations of indigenous women's rights to reproductive health in the context of the denial of the rights of indigenous peoples to self-determination and cultural autonomy. Those violations include forced sterilization of indigenous women and attempts to force them to have children with non-indigenous men as part of policies of cultural assimilation. Indigenous women may also face barriers to preventive care services that support their right to health, such as screening for ovarian and breast cancer. | Working Group on the issue of discrimination against women in law and practice | Special Procedures' report |
|
| 2016 | ||
Eliminating discrimination against women in the area of health and safety, with a focus on the instrumentalization of women's bodies 2016, para. 35 | Aug 19, 2019 | Paragraph | Adolescent girls are particularly exposed to gender-based violence in the family and on their way to or at school, with extremely harmful impacts on their physical and mental health. In its resolution 70/137 the General Assembly called upon all States to improve the safety of girls on the way to and from school, taking steps to ensure that all schools are accessible, safe, secure and free from violence and providing separate and adequate sanitation facilities that provide privacy and dignity. | Working Group on the issue of discrimination against women in law and practice | Special Procedures' report |
|
| 2016 | ||
Eliminating discrimination against women in the area of health and safety, with a focus on the instrumentalization of women's bodies 2016, para. 44 | Aug 19, 2019 | Paragraph | There is growing concern about the feminization of poverty and the disparate impact of global economic crises, austerity measures and climate change on women's health and safety. Gender inequality persists in all regions, and women and girls continue to be overrepresented among the world's population living in poverty. Women and girls, particularly those living in the global South, are disproportionately burdened by the costs of these rapid changes, to the detriment of their personal health and well-being. | Working Group on the issue of discrimination against women in law and practice | Special Procedures' report |
|
| 2016 | ||
Eliminating discrimination against women in the area of health and safety, with a focus on the instrumentalization of women's bodies 2016, para. 47 | Aug 19, 2019 | Paragraph | The Special Rapporteur on the rights of persons with disabilities has called on States to guarantee women with disabilities safe participation in matters affecting their lives, especially in relation to sexual and reproductive rights and gender-based violence, including sexual violence, matters which are cited in a recent study as high-priority concerns for women and girls with disabilities. | Working Group on the issue of discrimination against women in law and practice | Special Procedures' report |
|
| 2016 | ||
Eliminating discrimination against women in the area of health and safety, with a focus on the instrumentalization of women's bodies 2016, para. 105d (ii) | Aug 19, 2019 | Paragraph | [The Working Group recommends that States:] Adopt a holistic approach towards women's health and safety by looking at their full life cycle from childhood to old age as interconnected phases with distinct considerations and needs, and in this regard: Address the gender discrimination that exists in some cultures in the provision of food to the girl child, including through the empowerment of women and girls; | Working Group on the issue of discrimination against women in law and practice | Special Procedures' report |
|
| 2016 | ||
Eliminating discrimination against women in the area of health and safety, with a focus on the instrumentalization of women's bodies 2016, para. 75 | Aug 19, 2019 | Paragraph | Overmedicalization may result in reduced access to or affordability of services needed by women and a barrier to developing adequate alternative services which can be competently provided by nurses, midwives or auxiliary nurses, either at clinics or at home. Such "task shifting", particularly in places where there are few qualified doctors, would make services more accessible. Similarly, restricting authorization for the use of contraceptives to a medical practitioner is a barrier to access. Allowing pharmacists to provide contraceptives, including emergency contraceptives, over the counter is essential for effective availability, especially for economically disadvantaged women or adolescent girls. | Working Group on the issue of discrimination against women in law and practice | Special Procedures' report |
|
| 2016 | ||
Eliminating discrimination against women in the area of health and safety, with a focus on the instrumentalization of women's bodies 2016, para. 95 | Aug 19, 2019 | Paragraph | Restrictions in many countries on girls' and women's access to unbiased, quality education, including evidence-based comprehensive sexuality education, and information about where and how to obtain essential health services prevent women from making free and informed decisions about their health and safety and hence obstruct proper, informed access to health care. This is particularly true for adolescents and marginalized women facing multiple and intersectional forms of discrimination. Such restrictions are manifestations of censorship that limit women's and girls' choices. | Working Group on the issue of discrimination against women in law and practice | Special Procedures' report |
|
| 2016 | ||
Eliminating discrimination against women in the area of health and safety, with a focus on the instrumentalization of women's bodies 2016, para. 99 | Aug 19, 2019 | Paragraph | The Working Group found that instrumentalization and politicization of women's biological functions in many countries subjects legislation and policies regarding women's and girls' health and safety to patriarchal agendas, especially regarding reproductive and sexual health and mental health. The Working Group found manifestations in all regions of instrumentalization, taboos regarding menstruation and breastfeeding and stereotypes which result in harmful practices such as female genital mutilation or which have a negative impact on women's body image, leading to their seeking invasive cosmetic procedures. | Working Group on the issue of discrimination against women in law and practice | Special Procedures' report |
|
| 2016 |