Search Tips
sorted by
30 shown of 107 entities
Violence against women: Twenty years of developments to combat violence against women 2014, para. 41
- Paragraph text
- One of the five priority areas of the United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women (UN-Women) is ending violence against women. The efforts of UN-Women in this regard include standard setting, technical assistance, financial assistance, education, advocacy, data collection and coordination. The entity supports Member States as they set global standards for achieving gender equality and works with governments and civil society to design laws, policies, programmes and services needed to implement these standards, including in developing and implementing national action plans to end violence against women. UN-Women also participates in a number of joint programmes with partner agencies at the country level and coordinates the Secretary-General's UNiTE campaign and the COMMIT initiative. The Inventory of United Nations activities to prevent and eliminate violence against women describes the efforts of 38 United Nations entities, the International Organization for Migration and six inter-agency partnerships. UN-Women has also developed the Virtual Knowledge Centre to End Violence against Women and Girls, an online resource centre.
- 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
- Movement
- Violence
- Person(s) affected
- Girls
- Persons on the move
- Women
- Year
- 2014
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Manifestations and causes of domestic servitude 2010, para. 91
- Paragraph text
- The work at the expert and regional levels has only led to limited recognition of the problems by intergovernmental United Nations bodies with a human rights or human rights-related mandate. The Commission on the Status of Women has called on member States to develop measures to prevent the labour and economic exploitation and sexual abuse of girls employed as domestic workers and ensure that they have access to education and vocational training, health services, food, shelter and recreation. The Programme of Action of the World Conference against Racism, Racial Discrimination, Xenophobia and Related Intolerance urges States to pay special attention to protecting people engaged in domestic work (contained in A/CONF.189/12, para. 67). As part of the universal periodic review, a number of States have made recommendations to their peers to improve the protection of domestic workers. Such references to a serious, widespread and global human rights concern are far and between. There is nothing similar to the General Assembly's Declaration on the Elimination of Violence Against Women (resolution 48/104), which opened another socially constructed "private sphere" filled with human rights violations to the persistent scrutiny of the international community.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on contemporary forms of slavery, including its causes and consequences
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Violence
- Person(s) affected
- Girls
- Women
- Year
- 2010
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Gender perspectives on torture and other cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment or punishment 2016, para. 30
- Paragraph text
- Many States use the criminal justice system as a substitute for weak or non-existent child protection systems, leading to the criminalization and incarceration of disadvantaged girls who pose no risk to society and are instead in need of care and protection by the State. The Special Rapporteur recalls that the deprivation of liberty of children is inextricably linked with ill-treatment and must be a measure of last resort, used for the shortest possible time, only when it is in the best interest of the child and limited to exceptional cases (A/HRC/28/68). Accordingly, the lack of gender-centred juvenile justice policies directly contributes to the perpetration of torture and ill-treatment of girls. There is an urgent need for policies that promote the use of such alternative measures as diversion and restorative justice, incorporate broad prevention programmes, build a protective environment and address the root causes of violence against girls. Failure to support girls in detention with adequate and complete information about their rights in a comprehensible manner and to provide assistance with reporting complaints in a safe, supportive and confidential manner further aggravates mistreatment.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Gender
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Violence
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Girls
- Year
- 2016
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Adequacy of the international legal framework on violence against women 2017, para. 66
- Paragraph text
- The Secretary-General could be asked to convene a high-level panel on intensifying efforts to prevent and eliminate all forms of violence, especially violence and discrimination against indigenous women and girls. States could increase regional monitoring and interregional cooperation; the Great Lakes treaty processes have been praised in that regard.
- 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
- Ethnic minorities
- Girls
- Women
- Year
- 2017
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Adequacy of the international legal framework on violence against women 2017, para. 50
- Paragraph text
- As previously highlighted, many civil society organizations stated that particular importance should also be given to improving implementation strategies and monitoring regimes: there should be a monitoring of State practice in implementing the principles on violence against women as a human rights issue (prevention, prosecution, protection and policy). This monitoring could be carried out by independent organizations engaging with an international treaty body. A treaty could also require States parties to create or nominate a national independent monitoring body on violence against women, which would include frameworks for respective responsibilities in federal States with sufficient resources and the ability to adjudicate cases of violence against women and girls. The treaty could establish a new global gender observatory or international watch centre. It should include a requirement for States to accept more country visits as part of monitoring, as well as ensure consultation with survivors as part of the reporting process and monitoring. Furthermore, more importance should be given to ensuring improved data collection and including a requirement for States to disseminate reports. According to some civil society organizations, any new treaty body should have the power to make general recommendations.
- 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
- Girls
- Women
- Year
- 2017
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Sexual and reproductive health and rights of girls and young women with disabilities 2017, para. 30
- Paragraph text
- While United Nations human rights instruments, mechanisms and agencies have recognized that the forced sterilization of persons with disabilities constitutes discrimination, a form of violence, torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment, the practice is still legal and applied in many countries. Across the globe, many legal systems allow judges, health-care professionals, family members and guardians to consent to sterilization procedures on behalf of persons with disabilities as being in their “best interest”, particularly for girls with disabilities who are under the legal authority of their parents. The practices are often conducted on a purported precautionary basis because of the vulnerability of girls and young women with disabilities to sexual abuse, and under the fallacy that sterilization would enable girls and young women with disabilities who are “deemed unfit for parenthood” to improve their quality of life without the “burden” of a pregnancy. However, sterilization neither protects them against sexual violence or abuse nor removes the State’s obligation to protect them from such abuse. Forced sterilization is an unacceptable practice with lifelong consequences on the physical and mental integrity of girls and young women with disabilities that must be immediately eradicated and criminalized.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the rights of persons with disabilities
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Harmful Practices
- Health
- Violence
- Person(s) affected
- Girls
- Persons with disabilities
- Year
- 2017
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Compendium of good practices in the elimination of discrimination against women 2017, para. 67
- Paragraph text
- 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.
- Body
- Working Group on the issue of discrimination against women in law and practice
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Violence
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Girls
- Year
- 2017
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Vision-setting report 2016, para. 58
- Paragraph text
- At the Special General Assembly of the Kigali International Conference Declaration, on the role of security organs in ending violence against women and girls (see para. 19 above), 12 Member States signed the Declaration following the high-level international conference on the same topic, which was held in Kigali in 2010. Since then, 43 States have taken part in activities to implement the Declaration, which includes a commitment "to recruit and promote more women officers at all echelons of the security organs".
- 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
- Girls
- Women
- Year
- 2016
- 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
Vision-setting report 2016, para. 32
- Paragraph text
- At the sixtieth session of the Commission on the Status of Women, the Special Rapporteur called upon all Members States and other stakeholders to send her their views and proposals on any actions needed to improve the current framework addressing violence against women and girls, and also to consider the Declaration on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women and its call for the development of specific guidelines for its more effective implementation.
- 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
- Girls
- Women
- Year
- 2016
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Vision-setting report 2016, para. 30
- Paragraph text
- In 2003, the Committee, pursuant to article 8 of the Optional Protocol to the Convention, undertook an inquiry into the abduction, rape and murder of women in and around Ciudad Juarez, State of Chihuahua, Mexico, and recommended that the Government investigate thoroughly and punish the negligence and complicity of public authorities in, the disappearances and murders of women. In 2012, the Committee conducted an inquiry with regard to the Philippines on the implementation of an order issued by the Mayor of the City of Manila on 29 February 2000, on the provision of sexual and reproductive health rights, services and commodities in the City of Manila. The Committee recommended that the State party ensure the immediate implementation of the Reproductive Health Act (adopted on 21 December 2012) and its Implementing Rules and Regulations, including provisions that guaranteed universal access to the full range of reproductive health services and information for women (CEDAW/C/OP.8/PHL/1, para. 51 (b)). In 2013, the Committee conducted an inquiry on Canada, based on allegations of severe of violence, including disappearances and murder, suffered by aboriginal women and girls. The Committee recommended that the State ensure that all cases of missing and murdered women were duly investigated and prosecuted (CEDAW/C/OP.8/CAN/1, para. 217 (a)). These examples show how jurisprudence can be an important tool for transformative change.
- 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
- Ethnic minorities
- Girls
- Women
- Year
- 2016
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Modalities for the establishment of femicides/gender-related killings watch 2016, para. 33
- Paragraph text
- In 2013, the Commission on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice initiated a resolution on the gender-related killing of women that was adopted by the General Assembly (resolution 68/191). For the first time, this issue was placed at the highest level of the international political agenda. It its resolution, the Assembly expressed its deep concern for the alarming proportion of different manifestations of the gender-related killing of women and girls and for their high level of impunity and called for renewed action. It urged Member States to exercise due diligence to prevent and investigate acts of violence against women and eliminate impunity. Recognizing the key role of the criminal justice system in preventing and responding to the gender-related killing of women and girls, the Assembly also invited Member States to strengthen their criminal justice response. Furthermore, it requested the Secretary-General to convene an open-ended intergovernmental expert group meeting to discuss ways and means to more effectively prevent, investigate, prosecute and punish the gender-related killing of women and girls, with a view to making practical recommendations, drawing on current best practices. That expert group meeting, held in Bangkok in November 2014, resulted in a set of recommendations on practical steps against the gender-related killing of women (see UNODC/CCPCJ/EG.8/2014/2), to which the Special Rapporteur provided input.
- 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
- 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. 14
- Paragraph text
- The Protocol includes provisions on violence against women, based largely on the Declaration on the Elimination of Violence against Women, but with additions that are both context-specific and progressive. Article 1 of the Protocol provides a broad definition of violence against women, which includes explicit reference to the deprivation of fundamental freedoms in private or public life, and defines harmful practices as all behaviour, attitudes and/or practices which negatively affect the fundamental rights of women and girls, such as their right to life, health, dignity, education and physical integrity. Article 4 is comprehensive with regard to the legal and non-legal measures to be taken by member States in addressing violence against women, including the enactment of specific legislation; the imposition of appropriate sanctions/punishment when violence occurs; the provision of adequate budgetary resources; the adoption of public education and awareness-raising measures, including to address negative elements in attitudes, traditions and culture in order to eliminate harmful cultural and traditional practices; and the provision of relevant services, including justice, health care and shelters.
- 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
- Violence
- Person(s) affected
- Girls
- 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. 15
- Paragraph text
- The Protocol includes provisions on violence against women, based largely on the Declaration on the Elimination of Violence against Women, but with additions that are both context specific and progressive. Article 1 of the Protocol provides a broad definition of violence against women, which includes explicit reference to the deprivation of fundamental freedoms in private or public life, and defines harmful practices as all behaviour, attitudes and/or practices which negatively affect the fundamental rights of women and girls, such as their right to life, health, dignity, education and physical integrity. Article 4 is comprehensive with regard to the legal and non-legal measures to be taken by member States in addressing violence against women, including the enactment of specific legislation; the imposition of appropriate sanctions/punishment when violence occurs; the provision of adequate budgetary resources; the adoption of public education and awareness-raising measures, including to address negative elements in attitudes, traditions and culture in order to eliminate harmful cultural and traditional practices; and the provision of relevant services, including justice, health care and shelters.
- 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
- Violence
- Person(s) affected
- Girls
- Women
- Year
- 2015
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Violence against women: Twenty years of developments to combat violence against women 2014, para. 26
- Paragraph text
- In their resolutions on violence against women, several United Nations bodies call upon States to exercise due diligence to prevent and investigate acts of violence against women and girls and to punish the perpetrators. States are broadly called upon to develop civil and criminal measures to address offender accountability; to ensure victim safety; and to provide redress and justice measures that victims can access effectively.
- 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
- Girls
- Women
- Year
- 2014
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Violence against women: Twenty years of developments to combat violence against women 2014, para. 7
- Paragraph text
- The United Nations explicitly recognized violence against women as a human rights violation at the World Conference on Human Rights, held in Vienna in 1993. The Vienna Declaration and Programme of Action, adopted by the Conference, noted that "the human rights of women and of the girl-child are an inalienable, integral and indivisible part of universal human rights". Emphasizing that the elimination of violence against women in all areas of life, both public and private, was central to the attainment of women's human rights, the Conference called on governments and the United Nations to take the steps necessary for the realization of this goal, including by integrating the human rights of women "into the mainstream of United Nations system-wide activity", through the activities of the treaty bodies and relevant mechanisms, including the promotion of how to make effective use of existing procedures, and the adoption of new procedures to "strengthen implementation of the commitment to women's equality and the human rights of women." Furthermore, in 1993, the General Assembly adopted the Declaration on the Elimination of Violence against Women (resolution 48/104), as recommended by the Economic and Social Council, and in 1994, the Commission on Human Rights adopted resolution 1994/45, establishing the mandate of the Special Rapporteur on violence against women, its causes and consequences.
- 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
- Children
- Girls
- Women
- Year
- 2014
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
State responsibility for eliminating violence against women 2013, para. 33
- Paragraph text
- In 2010, the United Nations Development Fund for Women (now integrated into the United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women (UN-Women)) produced the National Accountability Framework to End Violence against Women and Girls as a tool to assist Member States in their national-level efforts at monitoring laws, policies and programmes. This framework draws on and expands on many of the issues raised in the 1999 report of the first Special Rapporteur on violence against women. It includes a checklist of key elements for promoting national accountability to end violence against women. The 10 broad questions are: (a) Are various forms of violence against women and girls addressed? (b) Are data collection, analysis and dissemination systems in place? (c) Do policies and programmes reflect a holistic, multisectoral approach? (d) Are emergency "Frontline Services" available and accessible? (e) Is national legislation adequate and aligned with human rights standards? (f) Do decrees, regulations and protocols establish responsibilities and standards? (g) Is there a National Action Plan and are key policies in place and under way? (h) Are sufficient resources regularly provided to enforce laws and implement programmes? (i) Are efforts focused on women's empowerment and community mobilization? (j) Are monitoring and accountability systems functional and participatory?
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on violence against women, its causes and consequences
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Gender
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Person(s) affected
- Girls
- Women
- Year
- 2013
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
State responsibility for eliminating violence against women 2013, para. 20
- Paragraph text
- The previous mandate holder also highlighted the lack of State accountability for social structural deficiencies, such as ongoing gender discrimination, that create environments that are conducive to acts of violence against women. This theme was addressed in more detail by the current mandate holder in the 2011 report on multiple and intersecting forms of discrimination that contribute to and exacerbate violence against women (A/HRC/17/26). In that report the Special Rapporteur argues that while laws, policies and resources are crucial to address effectively violence against women and girls, efforts must be coupled with renewed will and actions to combat the structural and systemic challenges which are a cause and consequence of such violence. Also, in order to prevent and eliminate violence against women and girls, such violence has to be understood as an element which affects women through their life cycle and is underpinned by a complex interplay of individual, family, community, economic and social factors. This requires recognizing that State responsibility to act with due diligence is both a systemic-level responsibility, i.e. the responsibility of States to create good and effective systems and structures that address the root causes and consequences of violence against women; and also an individual-level responsibility, i.e., the responsibility of States to provide each victim with effective measures of prevention, protection, punishment and reparation.
- 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
- Girls
- Women
- Year
- 2013
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Violence against women with disabilities 2012, para. 15
- Paragraph text
- In its resolution 17/11, the Human Rights Council requested OHCHR to prepare a thematic analytical study on the issue of violence against women and girls and disability in consultation, inter alia, with the Special Rapporteur on violence against women, its causes and consequences. The resulting report (A/HRC/20/5 and Corr.1) was based on the submissions received from Member States, United Nations agencies and programmes, national human rights institutions and non-governmental organizations.
- 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
- Girls
- Women
- Year
- 2012
- 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. 66
- Paragraph text
- The lack of sufficient specialized shelters for women and girls victims of violence contributes to their invisibility and silencing. Even when government-run shelters are available, the Special Rapporteur has noted in most of her country missions the crucial role played by non-governmental organizations in managing shelter facilities and offering psychological, medical and legal assistance to women victims of violence. Whether privately funded or receiving governmental grants, these centres are usually insufficient in number, lack human and material resources, and are commonly concentrated in areas that are not accessible to all women. While commending the work of civil society organizations, the Special Rapporteur has noted that the due diligence obligation to protect women from violence rests primarily upon the State and its agents. It is therefore the responsibility of States to ensure accessibility and availability of effective protection and support services to victims of domestic violence. Further, the Special Rapporteur has raised concern at the lack of policy guidelines across health, psychosocial and legal sectors ensuring coordinated, prompt and supportive services to victims.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on violence against women, its causes and consequences
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Health
- Violence
- Person(s) affected
- Girls
- Women
- Year
- 2011
- 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. 45
- Paragraph text
- The Special Rapporteur's visits to El Salvador, Kyrgyzstan and Zambia - all three source, transit and destination countries for human trafficking - indicated strong commonalities with regard to trafficking of women and children. In Kyrgyzstan, trafficking of women and children became increasingly common during the country's transition period and continues to be a problem. While there are no reliable statistical data with respect to the prevalence of trafficking, a Government report noted that 98 per cent of trafficking victims are women and girls between 15 and 30 years of age. Offers of false employment in urban areas lure young women and girls from rural areas to move to cities, or abroad, where they are forced into sexual exploitation. One young woman interviewed during the visit, who had come to Bishkek to seek employment, was lured to a house in the outskirts of the city where she was locked up for months and forced to have sex with clients. Due to fear of retaliation, she had not reported the case to the police and was even afraid to walk the streets. Similarly, in El Salvador the Special Rapporteur found that the majority of victims of trafficking were women and girls transferred from rural to urban areas in the country. Insufficient measures to ensure victim and witness protection, lack of support services and ineffective responses by law enforcement officials contributed to underreporting of the phenomenon.
- 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
- Girls
- Women
- Youth
- Year
- 2011
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Certain forms of abuses in health-care settings that may cross a threshold of mistreatment that is tantamount to torture or cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment 2013, para. 80
- Paragraph text
- Persons with disabilities are particularly affected by forced medical interventions, and continue to be exposed to non-consensual medical practices (A/63/175, para. 40). In the case of children in health-care settings, an actual or perceived disability may diminish the weight given to the child's views in determining their best interests, or may be taken as the basis of substitution of determination and decision-making by parents, guardians, carers or public authorities. Women living with disabilities, with psychiatric labels in particular, are at risk of multiple forms of discrimination and abuse in health-care settings. Forced sterilization of girls and women with disabilities has been widely documented. National law in Spain, among other countries, allows for the sterilization of minors who are found to have severe intellectual disabilities. The Egyptian Parliament failed to include a provision banning the use of sterilization as a "treatment" for mental illness in its patient protection law. In the United States, 15 states have laws that fail to protect women with disabilities from involuntary sterilization.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Health
- Violence
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Girls
- Persons with disabilities
- Year
- 2013
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Child participation 2012, para. 57
- Paragraph text
- In Yemen, the Children's Parliament has democratically elected representatives from all governorates and includes orphans, children with disabilities and young people belonging to marginalized groups. It regularly meets Government departments and non-governmental organizations. In 2008, it produced a public report on the situation of children in Yemen. In 2010, it carried out a national campaign to illustrate the impact of early marriage on the lives and health of young girls, which has led to a review of Yemeni legislation.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the sale and sexual exploitation of children, including child prostitution, child pornography and other child sexual abuse material
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Health
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Girls
- Youth
- Year
- 2012
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Irregular migration and criminalization of migrants, protection of children in the migration process and the right to housing and health of migrants 2011, para. 34
- Paragraph text
- The Special Rapporteur focused on the enjoyment of rights to health and to adequate housing for migrants. He recalled the applicable international legal framework and discussed the main challenges encountered by migrants in the enjoyment of these rights, with particular attention to the situations of migrant women and girls and children.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the human rights of migrants
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Health
- Movement
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Girls
- Persons on the move
- Women
- Year
- 2011
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Violence against indigenous women and girls; rights of indigenous peoples in relation to extractive industries 2012, para. 29
- Paragraph text
- A holistic approach to combating violence against women and girls therefore should include, in accordance with the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, advancing indigenous peoples' autonomy and self-governance (articles 5 and 18); strengthening indigenous peoples' traditional justice systems (articles 34 and 35); increasing indigenous peoples' access to justice (article 40); and improving indigenous peoples' economic and social conditions (article 21). Stated comprehensively, tackling violence against indigenous women must in some way go along with advancing indigenous peoples' self-determination. As Special Rapporteur and others have stressed, the right to self-determination, which is affirmed for indigenous peoples in article 3 of the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, is a foundational right, without which the full range of indigenous peoples' human rights, both collective and individual, cannot be fully enjoyed. Enhancing indigenous self-determination is conducive to successful practical outcomes; studies have shown that indigenous peoples who effectively manage their own affairs tend to fare better across a range of indicators than those who do not.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the rights of indigenous peoples
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Gender
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Person(s) affected
- Ethnic minorities
- Girls
- Women
- Year
- 2012
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Criminalisation of sexual and reproductive health 2011, para. 22
- Paragraph text
- The Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women has strongly disapproved of restrictive abortion laws, especially those that prohibit and criminalize abortion in all circumstances (see CEDAW/C/CH/CO/4, para. 19). It has also confirmed that such legislation does not prevent women from procuring unsafe illegal abortions and has framed restrictive abortion laws as a violation of the rights to life, health and information. The Committee on the Rights of the Child is also concerned about the impact of highly restrictive abortion laws on the right to health of adolescent girls. The Committee against Torture has further stated that punitive abortion laws should be reassessed since they lead to violations of a woman's right to be free from inhuman and cruel treatment. The Human Rights Committee concluded that equality between men and women required equal treatment in the area of health and the elimination of discrimination in the provision of goods and services and addressed the need to review abortion laws to prevent rights violations (see CCPR/C/21/Rev.1/Add.10, paras. 20, 28 and 31). The former Special Rapporteur on the right to health called for removal of punitive measures against women who seek abortions (see E/CN.4/2004/49, para. 30).
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right of everyone to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Health
- Person(s) affected
- Adolescents
- Girls
- Women
- Year
- 2011
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Gender perspectives on torture and other cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment or punishment 2016, para. 37
- Paragraph text
- The overuse of imprisonment and disproportionately long sentences in relation to the seriousness of the offence are major causes of overcrowding, resulting in conditions that amount to ill-treatment or even torture. In particular, the non-violent nature of crimes committed by the majority of women and girls and the minimal public risks posed by most female offenders make them ideal candidates for non-custodial sanctions.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Violence
- Person(s) affected
- Girls
- Women
- Year
- 2016
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Gender perspectives on torture and other cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment or punishment 2016, para. 33
- Paragraph text
- The Special Rapporteur recalls that States are prohibited from returning anyone to a situation where there are substantial grounds to believe that the person may be subject to torture or ill-treatment. The prohibition of refoulement is absolute and an important additional source of protection for women, girls, and lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender persons who fear such treatment in their countries of origin.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Person(s) affected
- Girls
- LGBTQI+
- Women
- Year
- 2016
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Gender perspectives on torture and other cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment or punishment 2016, para. 18
- Paragraph text
- A variety of obstacles to accessing justice, including poverty and discrimination, increase the likelihood of women being detained, while systematic or institutionalized societal discrimination contributes to legitimizing and replicating discrimination and violence against women and girls deprived of liberty. Women in prison face multiple forms of discrimination in accessing gender-sensitive and appropriate services across different aspects of the prison regime, such as health care, educational opportunities, rehabilitation services and visiting rights. The adoption of the United Nations Rules for the Treatment of Women Prisoners and Non-custodial Measures for Women Offenders (the Bangkok Rules) filled a gap in international standards by recognizing and addressing the gender-specific needs and circumstances of female offenders and prisoners. The Bangkok Rules supplement but do not replace relevant provisions in the United Nations Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners (the Nelson Mandela Rules) and the United Nations Standard Minimum Rules for Non-custodial Measures (Tokyo Rules). Their swift and full implementation by States would contribute significantly to reducing torture and ill-treatment against women in custody, as would gender-sensitive non-custodial measures and the consideration of gender-specific circumstances in sentencing female offenders, including in cases of women convicted of killing abusive domestic partners.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Gender
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Person(s) affected
- Girls
- Women
- Year
- 2016
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Justiciability of the right to education 2013, para. 58
- Paragraph text
- This as well as available case law is helpful in safeguarding girls’ right to education. For instance, the Supreme Court of Colombia has upheld the pregnant girl’s right to education, nullifying any contrary regulation by school, as has the Botswana Court of Appeals.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right to education
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Education
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Person(s) affected
- Girls
- Women
- Year
- 2013
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph