A/HRC/35/29
their human rights. By 2004, tribunals had received tutelas submitted by 1,150 displaced
families, accumulated in a dossier by the Constitutional Court that led to a judgment
declaring that the humanitarian emergency caused by forced displacement had created an
unconstitutional state of affairs characterized by massive human rights violations associated
with systemic failures in State assistance to displaced persons. Accordingly, the Court
ordered the Government to adopt structural measures, a measure that has spawned a lengthy
implementation process.
86.
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.
87.
In 2015, the Court issued an order declaring the persistence of failures in the
assistance, protection and access to justice for women victims of sexual violence. That
decision consolidated the constitutional framework to address the gendered impact of
armed conflict on the forced displacement of women in the country. That protection
framework — effectively transforming a government response to forced displacement using
a gender perspective — is a pioneering example globally. That extraordinary achievement
was partly due to the longstanding efforts by Latin American women’s movements to
strengthen the capacities of the constitutional courts in the field of women’s rights.
88.
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.
89.
Women and civil society organizations responded to the Constitutional Court’s
request to participate in the design and implementation of the decisions. This resulted in the
collective development of indicators to monitor the 2004 order and the establishment of a
working group to monitor compliance with the orders, which was essential in assessing the
implementation of the decisions and in providing technical assistance for the
implementation of government programmes. Civil society organizations also operated
numerous programmes that provided humanitarian, legal and psychosocial support to
displaced women and their families. Those organizations also used international human
rights mechanisms to keep a spotlight on displaced women, and carried the topic into recent
peace negotiation processes. The 2016 peace agreement addressed many of the demands in
the three decisions, contributing to their sustainability.
90.
Despite this extraordinary protection framework, implementation has faced
challenges. Women victims of sexual violence still faced barriers to filing reports and
receiving adequate care and protection, particularly in remote areas. There was still
heightened violence against displaced women linked to the illegal exploitation of mining
resources or on the basis of their sexual orientation. Continued efforts were needed to
ensure ongoing progress in a complex and dynamic context.
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