Search Tips
sorted by
30 shown of 42 entities
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
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
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. 11
- Paragraph text
- In the African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights, the member States stress the interdependence of rights and introduce unique features, such as the protection of community and group rights, and the imposition of duties on individuals. The Charter was the first human rights instrument to entrench the right to development. Specific references to women are included in the Charter, for example, in article 2, which prohibits discrimination, including on the basis of sex, and article 18 (3), which obliges States to eliminate all discrimination against women and to ensure the protection of the rights of women as stipulated in international declarations and conventions. The Charter incorporates principles related to culture, group rights and respect for the family environment. Article 60 of the Charter mandates the African Commission to draw inspiration from international law in its promotion and protection of human rights. Some scholars have argued that despite having minimal provisions on the rights of women, the Charter by inference imposes a duty on member States to abide by international human rights standards on women's rights. The Charter has been criticized by some for being unrealistic and overambitious and for ignoring women's human rights, while others have praised it for protecting all human rights, both individual and collective.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on violence against women, its causes and consequences
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Equality & Inclusion
- Gender
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Social & Cultural Rights
- 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
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. 12
- Paragraph text
- In the African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights, the member States stress the interdependence of rights and introduce unique features, such as the protection of community and group rights, and the imposition of duties on individuals. The Charter was the first human rights instrument to entrench the right to development. Specific references to women are included in the Charter, for example, in article 2, which prohibits discrimination, including on the basis of sex, and article 18 (3), which obliges States to eliminate all discrimination against women and to ensure the protection of the rights of women as stipulated in international declarations and conventions. The Charter incorporates principles related to culture, group rights and respect for the family environment. Article 60 of the Charter mandates the African Commission to draw inspiration from international law in its promotion and protection of human rights. Some scholars have argued that despite having minimal provisions on the rights of women, the Charter by inference imposes a duty on member States to abide by international human rights standards on women's rights. The Charter has been criticized by some for being unrealistic and overambitious, and for ignoring women's human rights, while others have praised it for protecting all human rights, both individual and collective.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on violence against women, its causes and consequences
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Equality & Inclusion
- Gender
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- Families
- Women
- Year
- 2015
- 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
Reparations to women who have been subjected to violence 2010, para. 17
- Paragraph text
- The Basic Guidelines and Principles affirm that the modality of reparation must be proportional to the gravity of the violation and can include the following forms: restitution, as those measures to restore the victim to his/her original situation before the violation, including restoration of liberty, enjoyment of human rights, identity, family life and citizenship, return to one's place of residence, restoration of employment and return of property; compensation for any economically assessable damage, as appropriate and proportional to the gravity of the violation including physical or mental harm, lost opportunities including employment, education and social benefits, and material and moral damages; measures of rehabilitation, including medical and psychological care as well as legal and social services; measures of satisfaction including, among others, the verification of the facts and full and public disclosure of the truth, the search for the whereabouts of the disappeared, public apologies, judicial and administrative sanctions against persons liable for the violations, commemorations and tributes to the victims; and guarantees of non-repetition, including measures which contribute to prevention such as ensuring effective civilian control of military and security forces, protecting human rights defenders, providing human rights education and reviewing and reforming laws contributing to or allowing gross violations of international human rights law.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on violence against women, its causes and consequences
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- Families
- Year
- 2010
- 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
Gender-related killings of women 2012, para. 33
- Paragraph text
- Studies in Honduras and Costa Rica show that more than 60 per cent of femicides are perpetrated by an intimate partner or male family member. In Peru, 70 per cent of acts of femicide are carried out by a former or current intimate partner. In Mexico, 60 per cent of the women who were murdered by their intimate or ex-intimate partners had previously reported domestic violence to public authorities. In some cases in Nicaragua, while the crimes were perpetrated by persons unknown to the victim, the murders were planned and paid for by the partner or ex-partner.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on violence against women, its causes and consequences
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Health
- Violence
- Person(s) affected
- Families
- Women
- Year
- 2012
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Reparations to women who have been subjected to violence 2010, para. 81
- Paragraph text
- In Opuz v. Turkey, the Court awarded the applicant non-pecuniary damages for the anguish and distress suffered on account of the killing of her mother and the authorities' failure to undertake sufficient measures to prevent the domestic violence perpetrated by her husband and to give him deterrent punishment. It also awarded costs and expenses for the proceedings before the court, less the amount received by way of legal aid from the Council of Europe. The weaknesses in relation to reparations include: the Court's dismissal of the claim of pecuniary damages which was based on the deprivation of economic support from her mother; the failure to treat the applicant as her mother's successor; the failure to compensate the applicant for material harm ensuing from the violation of her right not to be subject to inhuman or degrading treatment by her husband; and the non-recognition of other forms of reparation and the lack of guarantees of non-repetition and forward-looking recommendations. By not linking the reforms required to avoid the broad problem of impunity with the concept of reparation, the Court missed the opportunity to suggest a broader agenda to deal with the structural problem of domestic violence. Because the Council of Europe's Committee of Ministers plays a crucial role guaranteeing the implementation of the judgments and, as such, is the body mandated to address structural problems (such as impunity or lack of effective investigations) in member States of the Council of Europe, it too can play an essential role in ensuring adequate reparations.
- 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
- 2010
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Vision-setting report 2016, para. 72
- Paragraph text
- Discriminatory laws, in particular discriminatory provisions in constitutions, family laws, nationality laws and penal codes, perpetuate the lower status of women and their oppression in society, thereby fuelling violence against women and girls, given that there is little to deter perpetrators from committing these crimes. or because recourse for victims is inadequate. It is against this backdrop that the prevalent and multiple grave forms of violence by fundamentalist and extremist actors committed in recent times are built. The Special Rapporteur intends to explore the link between these discriminatory laws and violence against women and girls, and to make recommendations for law reforms, in particular with regard to family and penal laws, and other national laws and practices that regulate family relationships and the private sphere, with a view to curtailing violence against women and girls.
- 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
Modalities for the establishment of femicides/gender-related killings watch 2016, para. 83b
- Paragraph text
- [The Special Rapporteur recommends the following modalities for the establishment of a national femicide watch and/or observatories on violence against women:] States should systematically collect relevant disaggregated data on all forms of violence against women, in particular on femicide or the gender-related killing of women, which could include the killing of children in this regard. States should disaggregate data on femicide under two broad categories, which could include subcategories in line with their national realities, namely, intimate partner femicide or family-related femicide, based on a relationship between the victim and the perpetrator, and other femicides;
- 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
- Children
- Families
- Women
- Year
- 2016
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Modalities for the establishment of femicides/gender-related killings watch 2016, para. 54
- Paragraph text
- The Domestic Violence Fatality Review collects data about all domestic violence-related homicides and suicide deaths in Washington State, United States of America. Community review teams examine the events leading up to these deaths and take an in-depth look at how community systems responded to domestic violence. They identify gaps in laws, policy, practice, training and resources and, on that basis, make policy recommendations to strengthen the community response to domestic violence, increase safety and choices for survivors and their children, hold abusers accountable and prevent violence before it begins. In addition to in-depth case reviews, the project collects data on all domestic violence-related homicide and suicide deaths. Its definition of a domestic violence fatality is specific to intimate partner violence and includes homicides by any current or former intimate partner; friends, family, new partners or police officers killed by abusers in the context of intimate partner abuse; abusers killed by victims, police or someone intervening; and suicides of abusers following a domestic violence homicide or assault. The Review combines information about domestic violence fatalities with other state-wide data sources, including death certificates, court records and census data, to produce a rich analysis on a wide range of issues. Examples of its research and data analysis include the connection between domestic violence history and suicide, the disproportionate rates of domestic violence homicide by race, domestic violence homicide victims' past use of child support enforcement and pregnancy rates among victims killed by intimate partners.
- 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
- Children
- Families
- Year
- 2016
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Modalities for the establishment of femicides/gender-related killings watch 2016, para. 38
- Paragraph text
- The point of departure of UNODC in relation to data on gender-related killings is the International Classification of Crime for Statistical Purposes, endorsed by the Statistical Commission in March 2015 and the Commission on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice in May 2016. The latter entity established an international statistical standard for data collection, drawn both from administrative records and survey-generated data. The classification adopted does not specify crimes but rather focuses on the motivation behind the crime. In other words, the crime classification framework is based on behavioural descriptions instead of legal codes. Femicide therefore falls under the classification of intentional homicide, namely, unlawful death inflicted upon a person with the intent to cause death or serious injury. Three classification criteria are applied once a particular act of killing is to be classified, which further characterize the intentional homicide and can be used to define it in more detail. These criteria are the situational context, the relationship between victim and perpetrator and the mechanism of killing. Of importance for femicide is that interpersonal homicide, namely, homicide committed by an intimate partner or family member, including a former partner, spouse or family member, other interpersonal homicide (i.e., relating to neighbour or property disputes, revenge-related killings or brawls or mass shootings) and homicide relating to other criminal activities and sociopolitical homicides, fall under the criterion of situational context. Within the additional disaggregation of a relationship between the victim and perpetrator, the intimate partner of a family member and other perpetrators known to the victim and perpetrators unknown to the victim are recorded. Lastly, within the disaggregation of "mechanism of killing", the type of weapon or other means used is recorded.
- 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
- Year
- 2016
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Violence against women: Twenty years of developments to combat violence against women 2014, para. 75
- Paragraph text
- A brief analysis of the mandates and principles of organizations associated with engaging men and boys in efforts to counter violence against women reveals a series of internal contradictions which compromise the understanding of the foundational principles linked to women's human rights. This is reflected in several ways, including reaffirmation of patriarchal norms of men as "protectors" and, by extension, women as "victims"; reinstatement of the family as the principal referent for analysis; depoliticization of the understanding of both gender equality and gendered violence; reinforcement of the public/private dichotomy; instrumentalization of arguments for the elimination of violence against women; conceptual confusion over men, masculinity and gendered roles; and the justifications and contradictions in the shift to men and boys and its supposed link to binding international law obligations.
- 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
- Boys
- Families
- Men
- Women
- Year
- 2014
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Violence against women as a barrier to the effective realization of all human rights 2014, para. 66
- Paragraph text
- A brief analysis of the mandates and principles of organizations associated with engaging men and boys in efforts to counter violence against women reveals a series of internal contradictions that compromise the understanding of the foundational principles linked to women's human rights. This is reflected in several ways, including the reaffirmation of patriarchal norms of men as protectors and, by extension, women as victims; the reinstatement of the family as the principal referent for analysis; the depoliticization of the understanding of both gender equality and gendered violence; the reinforcement of the public-private dichotomy; the instrumentalization of arguments for the elimination of violence against women; the conceptual confusion over men, masculinity and gendered roles; and the justifications and contradictions in the shift to men and boys and its supposed link to binding international law obligations.
- 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
- Boys
- Families
- Men
- Women
- Year
- 2014
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
State responsibility for eliminating violence against women 2013, para. 57
- Paragraph text
- The provision of social services by State authorities is common to all regions, but there is no information on whether this is underpinned by human rights norms and standards, especially in respect of women's rights to equality, non-discrimination and bodily integrity. The general consensus, in many regions, is that in cases relating to violence against women, a social welfare approach is the norm. In many country missions the Special Rapporteur witnessed how State-run services, particularly social services or "social-work centres", often operate with an explicit focus on family reconciliation or reunification. In such countries, the norm is to resolve cases of partner/spousal/domestic violence through reconciliation and not through accountability measures, such as through prosecution and punishment of perpetrators. These institutions often show inadequate and inappropriate responses to the protection needs of women victims, with employees lacking understanding of the complex nature of abusive relationships and failing to respond adequately, sometimes to the point of jeopardizing victims' safety.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on violence against women, its causes and consequences
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Violence
- Person(s) affected
- Families
- Women
- Year
- 2013
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
State responsibility for eliminating violence against women 2013, para. 56
- Paragraph text
- In some countries, judicial sentences focus on treatment for perpetrators rather than on the protection of victims. Psychosocial and addiction treatment programmes are ordered along with suspended sentences, even in high-risk cases in some instances. The Special Rapporteur heard testimonies of court decisions being influenced by patriarchal views among judges who feel that they need to be sensitive with men when deciding on a spousal/partner violence case, due to men's roles as "breadwinners" and the need to take into account the financial support needs of the family. This is a consideration for some judges when they are deciding on whether to incarcerate a male perpetrator. However, these kinds of considerations or concerns regarding the offenders' family finances are not considered in cases involving drug offences, robbery or other crimes; which the criminal justice system apparently deems much more serious than violence against women crimes. These challenges indicate an urgent need for comprehensive judicial training on violence against women.
- 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
- Men
- Women
- Year
- 2013
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
State responsibility for eliminating violence against women 2013, para. 47
- Paragraph text
- States have amended or passed new laws at the criminal and civil law levels, either relating to gender equality in general with violence against women as one aspect, or specific laws on violence. The latter laws use a range of terminology and are applicable to family violence, domestic violence, intimate partner violence, trafficking, sexual violence, and female genital mutilation respectively. Most responses reflect developments in the sector of domestic violence, both civil and criminal law remedies, and trafficking. The trend towards gender neutrality in laws, as well as a shift in focus from violence against women specifically, is visible in developments in some countries. Also, law reform initiatives do not necessarily reflect international law developments, whether in respect of equality, non-discrimination, or bodily integrity rights, among others. Despite the existence of laws, reporting, prosecution and conviction rates remain low for acts of 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
- Violence
- Person(s) affected
- Families
- Women
- Year
- 2013
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
State responsibility for eliminating violence against women 2013, para. 24
- Paragraph text
- As regards the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women, article 2 refers to the obligation of States to pursue by all appropriate means and without delay a policy of eliminating discrimination against women. However, there is no specific provision pertaining to a State's responsibility to act with due diligence in eliminating violence against women. In an attempt to address the defect, the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women issued interpretative guidelines in the form of two general recommendations. General recommendation No. 12 (1989) highlights the obligation of States to protect women from violence in the family, workplace, or any other area of social life under articles 2, 5, 11, 12 and 16 of the Convention. In general recommendation No. 19 (1992), the Committee stated that "gender-based violence may breach specific provisions of the Convention, regardless of whether those provisions expressly mention violence" (para. 6). The Committee reiterated "that discrimination under the Convention is not restricted to action by or on behalf of Governments" and that "States may also be responsible for private acts if they fail to act with due diligence to prevent violations of rights or to investigate and punish acts of violence, and for providing compensation" (para. 9). Interpreting within specific articles in the Convention a cumulative prohibition on gender-based violence, the Committee recommended in its general recommendation No. 12 that States include in their periodic reports information concerning legislative and other measures in force to protect women from violence, the existence of support services for women, and statistical data on the prevalence of all forms of violence against women.
- 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
- Families
- Women
- Year
- 2013
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Pathways to, conditions and consequences of incarceration for women 2013, para. 78
- Paragraph text
- Many women in prison have little meaningful contact with their family members, more especially their children. There are several reasons for limited contact, including the mother's incarceration in a prison located a distance from the family and the logistical and financial costs involved in arranging visits, a prison's restrictions on contact or communications with family members and the greater likelihood that the family of a female prisoner will shun or reject her, compared to families of male prisoners. Also, prison regulations and institutional barriers may be partially at fault for limited family contact. For example, most detainees in Latvia are not allowed to telephone their families or receive visits.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on violence against women, its causes and consequences
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Movement
- Violence
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Families
- Women
- Year
- 2013
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Pathways to, conditions and consequences of incarceration for women 2013, para. 77
- Paragraph text
- The legal basis for the protection of the family unit can be found in the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, article 23 (1) of which provides: "The family is the natural and fundamental group unit of society and is entitled to protection by society and the State." In addition, article 17 (1) states that no person "shall be subjected to arbitrary or unlawful interference with his privacy, family, home or correspondence". A fundamental premise with respect to the right to maintain contact with the world outside of prison is that, like free persons, those deprived of their liberty enjoy all the human rights guaranteed by international law, subject only to those restrictions that are an unavoidable consequence of the confinement.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on violence against women, its causes and consequences
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Civil & Political Rights
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Person(s) affected
- Families
- Year
- 2013
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Gender-related killings of women 2012, para. 96
- Paragraph text
- Legislative advances have been made by Lebanon regarding honour crimes. In August 2011, Lebanon repealed article 562 of its Criminal Code. That article had mitigated the sentences of people who claimed they killed or injured their wife, daughter or other relative to protect the family honour. The Lebanese courts almost invariably refused to accept the alleged notion of honour to justify these crimes, and article 562 was rarely used by the judges. Nevertheless, women's organizations in Lebanon argued that enacting a comprehensive law for the protection of women from family violence was an effective strategy to prevent killings of women in the first place.
- 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
- 2012
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Gender-related killings of women 2012, para. 28
- Paragraph text
- It is argued that the term feminicide could be usefully adopted when holding governments to account at the international level, as it highlights the impunity and the institutional violence aspect of such crimes, which are caused by States' acts or omissions. Institutional violence against women and their families is present in all aspects of States' responses to the killings of women. This can include: tolerance, the blaming of victims, lack of access to justice and effective remedies, negligence, threats, corruption and abuse by officials. Under this scenario, femicide/feminicide is a State crime tolerated by public institutions and officials, due to the inability to prevent, protect and guarantee the lives of women, who have consequently experienced multiple forms of discrimination and violence throughout their lifetime.
- 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
- 2012
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Gender-related killings of women 2012, para. 102
- Paragraph text
- In 2010, El Salvador passed the Integral Law for a Life Free of Violence for Women, which defines and classifies two types of femicide: when the perpetrator of the death of a woman is motivated by hatred or contempt based on gender; and aggravated femicide, when the perpetrator is a civil servant, government official or member of the police or army, when two or more persons are involved, when the killing is committed in the presence of any of the victim's members of the family, when the victim is a minor or with a disability, or when the aggressor has abused any authoritarian power held in the family, work or educational environment.
- 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
Multiple and intersecting forms of discrimination and violence against women 2011, para. 81
- Paragraph text
- There is a need for a holistic approach to both physical and ideological restrictions as an issue in the human rights discourse around violence against women. Mainstream human rights discourse has demonstrated its capacity to acknowledge as a human rights violation the violence that flows from physical restrictions which are created and/or maintained by the State, communities, families or individuals. The same cannot be said, however, for the violence of ideological restrictions which may be deployed to justify physical violence against women or to restrict women's choices in ways that make submission to violent acts necessary to access resources and to demonstrate community membership. Ideological constraints help either to normalize the differential vulnerability based on the violence inherent in the context, the personhood of the women involved, or some combination of the two.
- 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
- 2011
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Multiple and intersecting forms of discrimination and violence against women 2011, para. 66
- Paragraph text
- Situating violence along a continuum allows for an appropriate contextualizing of violence in that the deprivation of water, food, and other human rights can be just as egregious and debilitating as family violence. Although these forms of violence are by no means the same, they can be viewed as parallel and similar when considering their interrelationship. Similarly, if a woman experiences violence in her home and is then denied security and protection by the legal system, she is encountering more than one form of violence. Hence, the response required to ensure that women's lives are free of violence must occur on multiple levels, from the individual to the institutional, from the local to the transnational, and in times of peace to times of post-conflict.
- 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
- 2011
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Multiple and intersecting forms of discrimination and violence against women 2011, para. 30
- Paragraph text
- Even in contexts where women are able to successfully acquire access to resources such as for example land, they continue to face the challenge of access to other resources for its care. For illustration purposes, we can look at the issue of access to water. Women and their families experience multiple challenges relating to security and health when they have to travel considerable distances and spend several hours a day collecting water, which is often polluted and dangerous to their health and well-being. At the same time they are also at risk of sexual and other forms of violence. Furthermore, with the privatization of water for profit, water has become a commodity for the global market. This is a form of structural violence in that water is being forcibly taken away as a public good, despite the recognition by the United Nations that water is a human right. Such a scenario illustrates both interpersonal and structural violence directly related to survival, bodily integrity and health, as women risk their lives daily for water, which is a basic need.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on violence against women, its causes and consequences
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Health
- Water & Sanitation
- Person(s) affected
- Families
- Women
- Year
- 2011
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph