E/2008/27 E/CN.6/2008/11 situations, as well as the failure by the State to prevent such violations, provide adequate protection and medical and psychological care to victims, bring perpetrators to justice promptly and provide adequate compensation; (b) Other forms of violence against women and girls with a lack of due diligence by States to adequately investigate, prosecute and punish the perpetrators and/or a lack of specific legislation in these areas; (c) Abuse of power, impunity, bribery and corruption, lack of due process, arbitrary detention, including mistreatment of women human rights defenders, and failure to grant a fair trial; (d) Trafficking in women, inhumane treatment in detention and inadequate conditions of imprisonment for women; (e) The impact of armed conflict and situations of insecurity, especially in conflict zones, in particular on women and girls belonging to vulnerable groups, such as elderly women, indigenous women, rural women and women with disabilities, who experience multiple forms of discrimination 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 torture, killings and extrajudicial executions; (g) Physical and psychological threats and pressuring 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 discriminate against women in the areas of: (i) Civil and political rights, especially the right to freedom of expression; (ii) Procedural guarantees; (iii) Personal status, including religious and minority status, as well as equal recognition before the law. 7. During its consideration of all communications, including the replies of Governments thereon, and of whether any of these appeared to reveal a consistent pattern of reliably attested injustice and discriminatory practices against women, the Working Group expressed its concern about: (a) Rape and other forms of sexual violence against women and girls as well as mistreatment of women human rights defenders; (b) The climate of impunity, abuse of power and corruption, in many cases where violence against women, especially sexual violence, is perpetrated or condoned by law enforcement personnel and military personnel; 50 08-29062