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Violence against women: Twenty years of developments to combat violence against women 2014, para. 23
- Paragraph text
- In general recommendation No. 19, the Committee establishes that gender-based violence, which impairs or nullifies the enjoyment by women of human rights and fundamental freedoms under general international law or under human rights conventions, is discrimination within the meaning of article 1 of the Convention and links gender-based violence to the different rights and substantive areas covered by the Convention. In practice, the Committee invokes several substantive provisions in the Convention to address the issue of violence against women, including article 5 on stereotyping and the consequences thereof; article 11 on sexual harassment; article 12 on sexual and reproductive health violations; and article 16 on matters relating to marriage and family relations. The adoption of the Optional Protocol to the Convention, in 1999, and the subsequent jurisprudence thereunder further reinforce the Committee's position that violence against women equates to discrimination based on sex, which disproportionately affects women. It is important to note that these developments do not explicitly articulate violence against women as a human rights violation in and of itself.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on violence against women, its causes and consequences
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Gender
- Violence
- Person(s) affected
- Families
- Women
- Year
- 2014
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Violence against women: Twenty years of developments to combat violence against women 2014, para. 6
- Paragraph text
- Prior to, and during, the United Nations Decade for Women, from 1975 to 1985, the issue of violence against women in general, and more specifically domestic violence, was high on the agenda of women's rights activists. Advocacy at the World Conferences on Women, held in Mexico City and Copenhagen in 1975 and 1980 respectively, served as a catalyst for the adoption in 1985 of General Assembly resolution 40/36 on domestic violence. The Third World Conference on Women, held in Nairobi in 1985, and the Expert Group meeting on violence in the family, held in Vienna in 1986, further highlighted the global nature and concern regarding violence against women. In May 1991, the Economic and Social Council adopted resolution 1991/18 on violence against women in all its forms, in which it recommended the development of a framework for an international instrument that would explicitly address the issue of violence against women. The Council also urged Member States to adopt, strengthen and enforce legislation prohibiting violence against women and to take appropriate administrative, social and educational measures to protect women from all forms of physical and mental violence.
- 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
- Families
- Women
- Year
- 2014
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Pathways to, conditions and consequences of incarceration for women 2013, para. 19
- Paragraph text
- In some countries, women are imprisoned for leaving their homes without permission. Many of these women leave in an attempt to escape violence in the home, including forced marriages, forced prostitution, and physical or sexual violence by a family member.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on violence against women, its causes and consequences
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Violence
- Person(s) affected
- Families
- Women
- Year
- 2013
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Continuum of violence against women from the home to the transnational sphere: the challenges of effective redress 2011, para. 32
- Paragraph text
- Honour-related violence and killings against women intersect with discrimination and inequalities within both the family and community spheres. Statistics from the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) suggest that approximately 5,000 women are murdered each year by family members in honour-related violence. Since the establishment of the mandate, violence and murder of women in the name of honour have been reported on in the course of visits to Algeria, Afghanistan, the Islamic Republic of Iran, the Netherlands, the Occupied Palestinian Territory, Pakistan, Sweden, and Turkey. As described by the Secretary-General in his 2006 in-depth study on all forms of violence against women, crimes committed in the name of honour often have a collective dimension, with the family as a whole considered to be injured by a woman's actual or perceived behaviour. They are also public in character and influence the conduct of other women. This collective element makes it extremely difficult to separate the victim from actual or potential perpetrators unless she is willing to break all family relations and start a life outside her social frame of reference.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on violence against women, its causes and consequences
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Violence
- Person(s) affected
- Families
- Women
- Year
- 2011
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Adequacy of the international legal framework on violence against women 2017, para. 47
- Paragraph text
- Civil society organizations added that a new treaty could make clear the necessity to ensure consistency across different domestic legal regimes. In some States, domestic violence might be a criminal offence, but it was still intrinsically accepted through other procedures, such as mediation and conciliation in family law proceedings.
- 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
- Families
- Year
- 2017
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Vision-setting report 2016, para. 44
- Paragraph text
- The mandate holder considers that the universal and full acceptance and incorporation by States of both international and regional instruments are crucial for the establishment and improvement of existing national legal frameworks on the elimination of violence against women, including by the elimination of discriminatory family laws and penal laws, also with regard to harmful practices that hinder the enjoyment by women and girls of their rights.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on violence against women, its causes and consequences
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Violence
- Person(s) affected
- Families
- Girls
- Women
- Year
- 2016
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
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. 33
- Paragraph text
- With respect to substantive law, States are required to provide for adequate civil remedies; ensure that all forms of violence against women and domestic violence are criminalized and appropriately punished; and recognize in law that being a family member or ex-spouse of a victim of violence against women and domestic violence is an aggravating circumstance that must be taken into consideration in the determination of the penalty. As regards investigation, prosecution and procedural aspects, States must ensure that all forms of violence against women and domestic violence are appropriately punished; ensure that culture, custom, religion or so-called honour are not accepted as justification for any act of violence; ensure that victims have access to special protection measures during investigation and judicial proceedings; implement risk assessment protocols to enhance the protection of victims; ensure that law enforcement agencies respond promptly to calls for assistance and that they manage dangerous situations adequately; and introduce preventive and protective legislation, including emergency barring orders.
- 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
- Families
- Women
- Year
- 2015
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Closing the gap in international human rights law: lessons from three regional human rights systems on legal standards and practices regarding violence against women 2015, para. 34
- Paragraph text
- With respect to substantive law, States are required: to provide for adequate civil remedies; to ensure that all forms of violence against women and domestic violence are criminalized and appropriately punished; and to recognize in law that being a family member or ex-spouse of a victim of violence against women and domestic violence is an aggravating circumstance that must be taken into consideration in the determination of the penalty. As regards investigation, prosecution and procedural aspects, States must ensure that all forms of violence against women and domestic violence are appropriately punished; ensure that culture, custom, religion or so-called "honour" are not accepted as justification for any act of violence; ensure that victims have access to special protection measures during investigation and judicial proceedings; implement risk assessment protocols to enhance the protection of victims; ensure that law enforcement agencies respond promptly to calls for assistance and that they manage dangerous situations adequately; and introduce preventive and protective legislation, including emergency barring orders.
- 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
- Families
- Women
- Year
- 2015
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Gender-related killings of women 2012, para. 116d
- Paragraph text
- [In cases involving gender-related killings, the international and regional human rights systems have included some of the following standards regarding the due diligence obligations of States:] Ensure comprehensive reparations for women victims of violence and their relatives, including measures that are designed to address institutional and social factors;
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on violence against women, its causes and consequences
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Gender
- Violence
- Person(s) affected
- Families
- Women
- Year
- 2012
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Gender-related killings of women 2012, para. 116c
- Paragraph text
- [In cases involving gender-related killings, the international and regional human rights systems have included some of the following standards regarding the due diligence obligations of States:] Include in the obligation of access to justice a requirement to treat women victims and their relatives with respect and dignity throughout the legal process;
- 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
- Families
- Women
- Year
- 2012
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Gender-related killings of women 2012, para. 56
- Paragraph text
- In some South Asian countries, a widespread practice is that of dowry-related murders. This term covers the deaths of young brides who are murdered, or driven to suicide by continuous harassment and torture perpetrated by the groom's family in an effort to extort dowry payment or an increased dowry of cash or goods. The most common manifestation of this practice is the burning of the bride. These incidents are often presented as, and accepted to be, accidents, such as death as a result of an "exploding stove".
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on violence against women, its causes and consequences
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Harmful Practices
- Violence
- Person(s) affected
- Families
- Youth
- Year
- 2012
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Gender-related killings of women 2012, para. 49
- Paragraph text
- United Nations treaty bodies have expressed concerns that honour-related crimes often go unreported, are rarely investigated and usually go unpunished, and that when they are punished the sentences are far less than those for equally violent crimes without the "honour" dimension. Reduced sentences are justified on the basis of the necessity of murdering such women, to defend the misconceived notion of family honour.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on violence against women, its causes and consequences
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Violence
- Person(s) affected
- Families
- Women
- Year
- 2012
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Gender-related killings of women 2012, para. 44
- Paragraph text
- Honour killings remain underreported and underdocumented globally. The United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) has estimated that 5,000 women globally are murdered by family members each year in honour killings. With widespread urbanization, the proliferation of media and the changing roles of women, it has become difficult for such crimes to go unnoticed, and such killings are becoming more visible.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on violence against women, its causes and consequences
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Gender
- Harmful Practices
- Violence
- Person(s) affected
- Families
- Women
- Year
- 2012
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Gender-related killings of women 2012, para. 38
- Paragraph text
- A study in Zimbabwe found that of the 42 cases of femicide involving women older than 50, most of the women had been accused of witchcraft by male relatives prior to the killing. A study conducted in Ghana found that many poor, often elderly, women were accused of witchcraft and subsequently murdered by male relatives, or subjected to a range of physical, sexual and economic abuses.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on violence against women, its causes and consequences
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Harmful Practices
- Violence
- Person(s) affected
- Families
- Women
- Year
- 2012
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Gender-related killings of women 2012, para. 31
- Paragraph text
- As with all forms of intimate-partner violence, intimate-partner femicide is likely to be significantly underreported. Studies have shown that in some countries between 40 and 70 per cent of female murder victims are killed by an intimate partner. In many countries the home is the place where a woman is most likely to be murdered, whereas men are more likely to be murdered in the street.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on violence against women, its causes and consequences
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Violence
- Person(s) affected
- Families
- Men
- Women
- Year
- 2012
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Gender-related killings of women 2012, para. 14
- Paragraph text
- In this report, the Special Rapporteur addresses the topic of gender-related killings of women whether they occur in the family or the community or are perpetrated or condoned by the State. Globally, the prevalence of different manifestations of such killings is increasing, and a lack of accountability for such crimes is the norm. Terms such as femicide, feminicide, honour killings and crimes of passion, among others, have been used to define such killings.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on violence against women, its causes and consequences
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Gender
- Violence
- Person(s) affected
- Families
- Women
- Year
- 2012
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Gender-related killings of women 2012, para. 106
- Paragraph text
- The use of inexact categories for the classification of murders, such as the category "others", results in misidentification, concealment and underreporting of femicides-in particular those that do not occur in a family situation. Another common practice is the use of stereotypical and potentially prejudicial categories, including "crime of passion" or "mistress".
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on violence against women, its causes and consequences
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Health
- Violence
- Person(s) affected
- Families
- Year
- 2012
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Multiple and intersecting forms of discrimination and violence against women 2011, para. 45
- Paragraph text
- In addition, religious, traditional and cultural practices are sometimes instrumentalized both to justify and to perpetrate discrimination and violence against women. Moreover, the prerogatives of patriarchy often include perpetrating violence against women in contexts including in family settings and war situations.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on violence against women, its causes and consequences
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Violence
- Person(s) affected
- Families
- Women
- Year
- 2011
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Multiple and intersecting forms of discrimination and violence against women 2011, para. 21
- Paragraph text
- It has been acknowledged that violence results from a complex interplay of individual, family, community and social factors, and that, even though all women are at risk of violence in every society in the world, not all women are equally vulnerable to acts and structures of violence. Representing both the universality and the particularity of women's risk of violence requires the social location and bodily attributes of individuals and groups to be explicitly accounted for.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on violence against women, its causes and consequences
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Gender
- Violence
- Person(s) affected
- Families
- Women
- Year
- 2011
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Reparations to women who have been subjected to violence 2010, para. 48
- Paragraph text
- There is a broader question regarding the concept of family that is embraced in reparations programmes. In this regard, polygamous unions, de facto unions, same-sex unions and more extensive culturally contingent support mechanisms, should be adequately represented to reflect the real web of dependencies and the harms entailed by their disruption.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on violence against women, its causes and consequences
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Violence
- Person(s) affected
- Families
- LGBTQI+
- Year
- 2010
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Reparations to women who have been subjected to violence 2010, para. 35
- Paragraph text
- Judicial arenas for obtaining reparations are, however, riddled with difficulties. Procedural obstacles that victims of sexual violence have traditionally encountered in the judicial arena can amount to an experience of re-victimization, exposing women not only to psychological harm but also to reprisal, stigma and communal and family ostracism. Crucial here are both the evidentiary standards relied upon and the degree of confidentiality upheld during the reparations process.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on violence against women, its causes and consequences
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Violence
- Person(s) affected
- Families
- Women
- Year
- 2010
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Adequacy of the international legal framework on violence against women 2017, para. 30
- Paragraph text
- In addition, several organizations highlighted that there was a normative gap at the international level and persistent obstacles to the protection of women subjected to gender-based violence, for example the normalization of sexual violence against women or an emphasis on preserving marriages and family rather than addressing men’s impunity for family violence. Concern was expressed about the spiral of fundamentalism and extremism that was currently contributing to exacerbating violence against women.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on violence against women, its causes and consequences
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Gender
- Violence
- Person(s) affected
- Families
- Men
- Women
- Year
- 2017
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Closing the gap in international human rights law: lessons from three regional human rights systems on legal standards and practices regarding violence against women 2015, para. 16
- Paragraph text
- Importantly, in the preamble of the Protocol it is made explicit that positive African values are based on the principles of equality, freedom, dignity, justice, solidarity and democracy. This clarification is important in the area of violence against women, as research indicates that violence, including wife beating, is considered or perceived to be one of the values of African families in some societies.
- 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
- Families
- Women
- Year
- 2015
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Modalities for the establishment of femicides/gender-related killings watch 2016, para. 83h
- Paragraph text
- [The Special Rapporteur recommends the following modalities for the establishment of a national femicide watch and/or observatories on violence against women:] In every case, the personal information that has been provided by the victims and the family members should be incorporated only into databases with their informed consent with regard to its possible use. This information should be protected in accordance with international standards on the protection of privacy.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on violence against women, its causes and consequences
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Health
- Violence
- Person(s) affected
- Families
- Women
- Year
- 2016
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Gender-related killings of women 2012, para. 48
- Paragraph text
- The Special Rapporteur on violence against women has raised concerns about the phenomenon of self-immolation, reported in Afghanistan and the Islamic Republic of Iran, whereby women and girls attempt suicide by setting themselves on fire because they feel they are "dishonouring" the family.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on violence against women, its causes and consequences
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Violence
- Person(s) affected
- Families
- Girls
- Women
- Year
- 2012
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Modalities for the establishment of femicides/gender-related killings watch 2016, para. 68
- Paragraph text
- At the regional level, in Opuz v. Turkey, the European Court of Human Rights decided that Turkey was in breach of the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms for failing to protect the applicant and her mother from the violent attacks of her spouse in circumstances that resulted in the murder of the mother.
- 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
- Families
- Women
- Year
- 2016
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Modalities for the establishment of femicides/gender-related killings watch 2016, para. 37
- Paragraph text
- UNODC is leading global efforts to improve and compare crime and criminal justice data. Its report, entitled "Global study on homicide 2013", contains a section on interpersonal homicide. The approach of UNODC is that, given the numerous challenges of comprehensively measuring gender-related violence, exploring intimate partner and family-related homicide is one way of gaining a clearer understanding of the killing of women because of gender motives.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on violence against women, its causes and consequences
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Gender
- Violence
- Person(s) affected
- Families
- Women
- Year
- 2016
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Continuum of violence against women from the home to the transnational sphere: the challenges of effective redress 2011, para. 31
- Paragraph text
- Many women are subjected to violence by their husbands, but also by their husbands' families. For examples, in countries where "bride price/dowry" is still practised, spouses and in-law family members believe they have purchased the bride and are therefore entitled to subject their "property" to violence and other forms of ill-treatment.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on violence against women, its causes and consequences
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Harmful Practices
- Violence
- Person(s) affected
- Families
- Women
- Year
- 2011
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Modalities for the establishment of femicides/gender-related killings watch 2016, para. 27
- Paragraph text
- The gender-motivated killing of women is a clear violation of women's rights, including the right to life, freedom from torture and to a life free from violence and discrimination. It is a global phenomenon that takes place in both the private and public spheres and results from, among other things, intimate partner violence, armed conflict, dowry disputes and the protection of family "honour". The gender-motivated killing of women is often the final and most serious consequence of pervasive discrimination, in particular acts of violence.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on violence against women, its causes and consequences
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Gender
- Violence
- Person(s) affected
- Families
- Women
- Year
- 2016
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
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. 15
- Paragraph text
- Importantly, in the preamble of the Protocol it is made explicit that positive African values are based on the principles of equality, freedom, dignity, justice, solidarity and democracy. This clarification is important in the area of violence against women, as research indicates that violence, including wife-beating, is considered or perceived to be one of the values of African families in some societies.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on violence against women, its causes and consequences
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Gender
- Violence
- Person(s) affected
- Families
- Women
- Year
- 2015
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph