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UN HUMAN RIGHTS COUNCIL ANNUAL
FULL-DAY DISCUSSION ON WOMEN'S HUMAN RIGHTS
Discussion Focuses on Violence against Women and Identifying Effective Ways to Address this Issue, and on Setting Priorities for the Future
5 June 2013 - The Human Rights Council held its annual full-day discussion
on women’s human rights with two panel discussions, one which looked at various
aspects of violence against women and identifying effective ways to address the
issue, and the second which took up setting priorities for the future and
strengthening of the work of the Human Rights Council and other
inter-governmental bodies and processes in the area of violence against women.
Navi Pillay, United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, in her opening
statement, said before the 1990s violence against women was largely considered
a private matter, not a human rights issue of concern to the international
community. The real turning point came in 1993 with the Vienna Declaration and
Programme of Action, which framed violence against women as an issue of
international concern. In the years that followed, States’ obligations to
address violence against women had been codified and spelt out in international
and regional treaties. Nevertheless, violence against women remained
unacceptably widespread. The lack of genuine commitment and adequate resources
for systematic and comprehensive intervention to address violence and
inequality were key problems.
Rashida Manjoo, Special Rapporteur on violence against women, its causes and
consequences, and moderator of the discussion, said at the beginning of the panel
on violence against women and identifying effective ways to address it that
there were significant challenges in trying to address the problem of violence
against women as a human rights issue and that the discussion would help them
reflect upon those challenges.
The panellists in the first panel discussion were Patricia Schulz, Member of
the Committee for the Elimination of Discrimination Against Women; Florence
Butegwa, Representative to Ethiopia and Representative to the African Union and
United Nations Economic Commission for Africa from United Nations Women; Simone
Cusack, Senior Policy and Research Officer of the Australian Human Rights
Commission, author and expert on gender stereotyping; Fatma Khafagy,
Ombudsperson for Gender Equality, Egypt; and Juan Carlos Areán, Member of the
Secretary-General’s Network of Men Leaders and Senior Program Director at the
Family Violence Prevention Fund.
Patricia Schulz, Member of the Committee for the Elimination of Discrimination
Against Women, said that the Committee insisted on including women in
decision-making processes in all fields as a way of combating violence against
women and girls. Regarding rape, the Committee had developed a specific
reasoning and its views were contributing to the discussion on appropriate
legislation and practical measures. Ms. Schulz said that the influence of the
Committee was growing and that the Convention gave them the best holistic
approach to eliminating discrimination against women. A legal framework and a
monitoring mechanism were in place; the only element missing was resources.
Florence Butegwa, Representative to Ethiopia and Representative to the African
Union and United Nations Economic Commission for Africa from United Nations
Women, said that there were positive trends in Africa, particularly in terms of
legislation, and the Convention had significantly contributed to bringing about
progressive changes in legislation. Other positive developments were the
adoption of national plans of action for the elimination of violence against
women, more frequent public debates on the matter, increased awareness of
related issues, and better reporting from women. Nonetheless, many challenges
still remained.
Simone Cusack, Senior Policy and Research Officer of the Australian Human
Rights Commission, Author and Expert on Gender Stereotyping, said that gender
stereotyping contributed to violence against women and influenced how justice
was carried out in cases where women had been subjected to sexual violence. It
was important to have binding legal standards which made stereotyping unlawful
and could provide a set of standards against which States measured their
progress. Addressing gender stereotyping and improving their understanding of
States’ obligations in that area were key elements in combating violence
against women.
Fatma Khafagy, Ombudsperson for Gender Equality, Egypt, said that female
genital mutilation had been practised for centuries in many countries.
Communicating with religious leaders, having a law which criminalized the act,
and involving men in the fight against female genital mutilation had
contributed to stopping that practice. National legislation gave impunity to
the perpetrators of honour crimes in many countries, but non-governmental
organizations had helped to bring about a reform of the penal code in many
cases. Demystifying the justification of using religion and tradition and using
international instruments had contributed to the progress made in that area.
Juan Carlos Areán, Member of the Secretary-General’s Network of Men Leaders and
Senior Program Director of the Family Violence Prevention Fund, said that
policies and laws were important but their implementation remained a major
challenge. Sometimes men reproduced the patterns of domination and hierarchy
which were being fought, so as a man part of his work was to challenge other
men. Civil society campaigns had been set up in many countries to engage men.
Convincing men to fight against patriarchy and gender stereotypes was key to
combating violence against women.
In the ensuing discussion, delegations highlighted some of the measures they
were taking to combat violence against women. Speakers said that violence
against women was a flagrant violation of human rights and arose in various
forms, both in the developing and in the developed world. Several speakers
stressed that all relevant actors must be engaged in the combat against
violence against women and girls. It was important to have an effective legal
and institutional framework, but implementation and monitoring were also
crucial in that respect. Empowering women and fighting gender stereotypes were
central to preventing violence against women, including sexual and domestic
violence, and to promoting democracy and development.
Speaking in the discussion in the first panel were Chile on behalf of the Group
of Caribbean and Latin American Countries, Lithuania, Canada, South Africa,
Brazil, Estonia, Norway on behalf of Nordic Countries, Iran, Sierra Leone,
United States, Greece, European Union, Qatar, Senegal, Algeria for the Arab
Group, Maldives, Slovenia, United Kingdom, Iceland, Croatia, Malaysia, Poland,
Switzerland, Australia, Austria, Russian Federation, Saudi Arabia, Argentina
and Indonesia.
The following national human rights institute and non-governmental
organizations also took the floor: Canadian Human Rights Commission, Südwind,
Canners International Committee, Minority Rights Group, France Libertés - The
Danielle Mitterrand Foundation, and International Humanist and Ethical Union.
A second panel was held on setting priorities for the future and the
strengthening of the work of the Human Rights Council and other
inter-governmental bodies and processes, in the area of violence against women.
Flavia Pansieri, Deputy High Commissioner for Human Rights, in her opening
statement, said that a lot of progress had been made in the 20 years since the
adoption of the Vienna Convention but there was much work ahead. The debate
would now focus on the linkages within the mechanisms of the Human Rights
Council, the United Nations system and other inter-governmental processes. The
Human Rights Council had been instrumental in outlining legal doctrines and
procedures, had given visibility to the issue of violence against women, and
had been key in underlining that private violence was a public problem. Yet
there were problems that included implementation and the general lack of
attention paid to women’s rights issues in country-specific mandates. This
could be remedied by explicitly placing gender discrimination and violence
against women into the agenda of the various mechanisms and in the Special
Procedures.
The panellists in the second panel discussion were Zainab Bangura, Special
Representative of the Secretary-General on Sexual Violence in Conflict;
Patience Stephens, Director of the Intergovernmental Support Division, United
Nations Women; Sandeep Chawla, Deputy Executive Director, United Nations Office
on Drugs and Crime; and Marilou McPhedran, Institute for International Women’s
Rights at the University of Winnipeg Global College, Canada.
Zainab Bangura, Special Representative of the Secretary-General on Sexual
Violence in Conflict, said that sexual violence in conflict continued to be one
of the worst forms of discrimination against women. Fundamental shifts in
attitudes and fighting stigmatization of victims must be done from inside of
the communities and must involve all its members, particularly those with voice
such as journalists or teachers. Only when women’s rights were fully understood
as human rights, the fight against sexual violence in conflict would achieve
success.
Patience Stephens, Director of the Intergovernmental Support Division, United
Nations Women, said that the debate today was a “call to duty” because women’s
rights were fundamental to human rights. States were recognizing the complexity
of the new approaches to tackling violence against women. Looking forward,
violence against women was not a single issue but an amalgam of social ills and
its complexity must be and was recognized by the human rights bodies charged
with ending it.
Sandeep Chawla, Deputy Executive Director, United Nations Office on Drugs and
Crime, said that the Compendium of United Nations Standards and Norms dealt
with a number of areas including violence against women. This year, the Crime
Commission adopted a resolution which would go to the General Assembly on
taking action against gender related violence against women and girls. Apart
from a lack of comprehensive legislation in countries, there were weaknesses
within the criminal justice system at the level of police prosecution and
prisons. There were also challenges in the area of data and relevant data
collection.
Marilou McPhedran, Institute for International Women’s Rights at the University
of Winnipeg Global College, Canada, said that the modern rule of law should
include women’s human rights. They needed to see greater coherence in global
governance as a whole in the United Nations system, such as through balancing
complementary processes in the Human Rights Council and in the Security
Council. Due attention had to be paid to root causes of conflict including
unequal distribution of income.
In the discussion in the second panel, speakers said that violence against
women was a scourge with many faces which was present in many countries and
regions. Addressing sexual violence in conflict and combating impunity for
crimes of femicide required the most urgent action. As women and children were
those most adversely affected by conflicts, it was essential to identify
threats against them and to involve women in peace negotiations. The role of
men and boys was also crucial and their engagement should be placed at the
centre of developing anti-violence strategies. Efforts by the Human Rights
Council in combating violence against women had to be complemented by those of
other United Nations system and States’ mechanisms. Capacity building for
authorities dealing with violence against women and tackling the socio-economic
and root causes of the problem was essential in fighting this phenomenon.
Speaking in the discussion in the second panel were Ethiopia, Algeria, Gabon on
behalf of the African Group, Libya, Peru, Spain, International Committee of the
Red Cross, Venezuela, Belgium, Egypt, Portugal, Thailand, Germany, Morocco,
Norway, Finland, China, United Arab Emirates, Chile, the Joint United Nations
Programme on HIV/AIDS, the Organization of the Islamic Conference, Mauritania,
Maldives, Paraguay, Kuwait, Turkey, Montenegro, India, International Labour Organization,
Russian Federation, Estonia and Switzerland.
The following national human rights institutions and non-governmental
organizations also took the floor: International Coordinating Committee of
National Human Rights Institutions, Action Canada for Population and
Development, Femmes Africa Solidarité, World Young Women’s Christian
Association, Worldwide Organization for Women, and Maarij Foundation for Peace
and Development.
In closing remarks, Ms. Manjoo, Special Rapporteur on violence against women,
its causes and consequences and moderator of the discussion, said that more
work should be invested in the implementation of the due diligence principle.
With the cutbacks in social services due to economic crisis and austerity
measures, valuable experience and expertise was being lost in both State and
non-State sectors which would be hard to regain. The Commission on the Status
of Women had begun to lose its relevance because of practices of States in its
deliberations and the dismissal by civil society organizations of the value of
the Commission; this body, which had been created in 1947, needed to be
strengthened and the international community should not be afraid to bring new
issues into its discussions. Economic dependency was the crucial factor that
kept women in abusive relationship and this was the best argument for women’s
empowerment in social, economic and political spheres.
The Human Rights Council, at the end of the morning meeting, will hold a midday
meeting today to continue its interactive dialogue with the Special Rapporteur
on the situation of human rights in Eritrea, to be followed by the general
debate on human rights situations that require the attention of the Human
Rights Council. At the end of the afternoon meeting, the Council will next meet
at 9 a.m. on Thursday, 6 June to adopt the Universal Periodic Review outcomes
of France, Tonga and Romania.
Panel One: Taking Stock of Efforts to Eliminate Violence Against
Women, from the Vienna Declaration and Programme of Action to the Fifty-Seventh
Session of the Commission on the Status of Women
Opening Statement
NAVI PILLAY, United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, said
that there could be no equal societies, development and peace if women and
girls remained discriminated against and marginalised. The focus of this year’s
discussion was violence against women, the most pervasive expression of gender
based discrimination and an impediment of women’s enjoyment of human rights on
an equal basis with men. Before the 1990s violence against women was largely
considered a private matter, not a human rights issue of concern to the
international community. Thanks to the struggle of the women’s movement and the
groundbreaking work of the Committee for the Elimination of Discrimination
Against Women, the world had witnessed a conceptual shift in the 1990s. The
real turning point came in 1993 with the Vienna Declaration and Programme of
Action, which framed violence against women as an issue of international
concern. The Conference provided momentum for the adoption of the Declaration
on the Elimination of Violence Against Women and the establishment of the
mandate of the Special Rapporteur on violence against women in 1994. In a
matter of a few years the international community unequivocally affirmed that
violence was not a private matter and that women were not exposed to violence
because of an innate vulnerability or intrinsic weakness.
In the years that followed, States’ obligations to address violence against
women had been codified and spelt out in international and regional treaties
and in innovative jurisprudence by national and international courts and
mechanisms. While commemorating developments, the international community must
acknowledge that violence against women remained unacceptably widespread. Key
problems were the lack of genuine commitment and inadequate resources for
systematic and comprehensive intervention to address violence and inequality.
The world should also guard against arguments that tried to justify or condone
violence and discrimination in the name of tradition and religion. The experts
present today were at the forefront of the struggle for women’s human rights
and would share their reflections on challenges and gaps. This was particularly
important as the international community embarked on processes that would set
the future women’s rights agenda.
Statements by Panellists
RASHIDA MANJOO, Special Rapporteur on violence against women, its causes and
consequences and moderator of the discussion, said that the discussion
would help everyone reflect upon the challenges facing women in terms of the
realization of their rights. There were significant challenges in trying to
address the problem of violence against women as a human rights issue. She said
that fund constraints were not a valid excuse for the gaps which existed in the
tackling of the problem.
Ms. Manjoo asked what were the challenges and gaps as observed in the work of
the Committee in addressing violence against women as a human rights issue?
PATRICIA SCHULZ, Member of the Committee for the Elimination of
Discrimination Against Women, said that the Committee had identified issues
which had not been part of the Convention during its drafting because at the
time they were considered taboo issues. The Committee had since issued
recommendations to States parties and had also institutionalized the
participation of non-governmental organizations in its work. The Committee
insisted on including women in decision-making processes in all fields as a way
of combating violence against women and girls. Women in conflict and
post-conflict situations and women refugees were particularly vulnerable.
Regarding rape, the Committee had developed a specific reasoning and its views
were contributing to the discussion on appropriate legislation and practical
measures. Ms. Schulz said that the influence of the Committee was growing, even
though States parties did not always implement the Committee’s recommendations.
She stressed, however, that implementation was absolutely crucial. The problem
was that many States parties were late and irregular in reporting back to the
Committee, and as a result of the high number of new ratifications there was a
backlog. Nevertheless, the Convention gave them the best holistic approach to
the elimination of discrimination against women. A legal framework
theoretically capable of delivering, despite being somewhat complex, and a
monitoring mechanism were in place. The only element currently missing was
resources, concluded Ms. Schulz.
FLORENCE BUTEGWA, Representative to Ethiopia (OIC), and Representative to
the African Union and the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa, from
UN Women, said she would refer to the situation in Africa, with which she
was familiar. There were some positive trends in Africa, particularly in terms
of legislation. Thirty-six countries had legislation on violence against women
either in general or specific forms of violence, particularly violence within
the family, sexual violence or offences, or harmful traditional practices. The
interaction between the CEDAW Committee and States parties had contributed a
lot in terms of making progressive changes in legislation. Another area of
positive changes was in terms of countries adopting national plans of action for
the elimination of violence against women, some of them transferring this to
national development plans. What was interesting and very encouraging was that
in some countries such as Liberia and South Africa, they were seeing national
action plans as multisectoral, which reflected a better understanding of the
complexity of violence against women as a social problem. Another development
was the adaptation of the international standards within the region. The
African Union had a protocol that was very specific in terms of prohibition and
spelling out the obligation of the State in terms of elimination and response
to violence against women. The International Conference of the Great Lakes
focused on sexual violence in the context of conflict, making it a crime. They
were also seeing better public debate and the level of awareness had improved,
and there was also better reporting from women. That did not mean that there
were not many challenges and there was a lot to be concerned about. They were
not seeing a lot of State resources going towards combating violence against
women. States and their development partners were not investing and dealing
with violence against women in a dynamic social context.
Discussion
Chile, speaking on behalf of the Group of Latin American and
Caribbean Countries, said that discrimination and violence against women
was an economic burden which had been tackled by various normative, structural
and multi-sectoral initiatives over the years. Lithuania said violence
against women was a flagrant violation of human rights that arose in different
forms and all relevant actors must be engaged in a comprehensive manner. Canada
said it worked actively to end all forms of violence against women and added
that boys and men had an important role to play. South Africa said that
there was a direct link between the fight against poverty and human rights, and
women’s empowerment was central to this. Brazil said combating violence
against women was a problem common to both developed and developing States and
it had recently introduced progressive measures, particularly with regard to
women of African decent. Estonia said that since its independence in
1991 it had introduced comprehensive gender equality measures that shattered
myths and stereotypes. Norway, speaking on behalf the Nordic
Countries, said that the promotion and protection of reproductive rights
was central to mitigating violence against women and girls. Iran said it
was shocking that 7 out of 10 women in the world were still affected by
violence in some way and that the world’s measures to tackle this had failed. Sierra
Leone said that while policies and laws tackling violence against women
were commendable, the key problem at this stage was implementation. United
States said that it took a comprehensive approach at home and abroad in
ending violence against women and girls. Greece said that it had a
strong legal and institutional framework with respect to tackling domestic
violence and promoting women’s access to justice. The European Union
said violence against women, including sexual violence, was a global epidemic
that was particularly acute in conflict and post-conflict situations. Canadian
Human Rights Commission said indigenous women in Canada were
disproportionately affected by violence, including murder. Südwind said
that gender equality in Iran was nothing but fiction and violence against women
was carried out with impunity. Canners International Committee was
amazed at the strength of women despite the litany of violence, discrimination
and prejudice that men continued to mete against them.
Statements by Panellists
RASHIDA MANJOO, Special Rapporteur on violence against women, its causes and
consequences and moderator of the discussion, asked what would be the best
way of tackling gender stereotyping.
SIMONE CUSACK, Senior Policy and Research Officer of the Australian Human
Rights Commission, Author and Expert on Gender Stereotyping, said that
there was no doubt that gender stereotyping contributed to violence against
women, particularly women who did not conform to gender “laws”. Stereotyping
also influenced how justice was carried out in cases where women had been
subjected to sexual violence, particularly stereotypes that women were
inherently untruthful and inclined to fabricate allegations of violence. As an
example of best practices, Ms. Cusack mentioned a legal case from Canada. In
that case, a court’s decision to acquit a man of sexual assault in the
workplace had been overturned by the High Court, which found that the lower
court’s ruling had been influenced by stereotypes such as that men had a strong
libido and could not control their hormonal urges. Ms. Cusack also stressed the
importance of having binding legal standards which made stereotyping unlawful
and also provided a set of standards against which States could measure their
progress. Addressing gender stereotyping and improving our understanding of
States’ obligations in that area were key elements in combating violence
against women, concluded Ms. Cusack.
RASHIDA MANJOO, Special Rapporteur on violence against women, its causes and
consequences and moderator of the discussion, asked for examples of good
practices in how culture, religion and tradition could be used to promote the
human rights approach to addressing violence against women.
FATMA KHAFAGY, Ombudsperson for Gender Equality, Egypt, said that female
genital mutilation had been practised for centuries in many countries. Certain
religions such as Islam had been used to justify it, although it was also
practised among populations which did not have those specific religions, for
example Christians in Egypt. Communicating with religious leaders both at
national and regional level had contributed to stopping that practice. It was
also important to have a law which criminalized the act, especially in
countries where female genital mutilation was practised by medical doctors. The
involvement of young men in the fight against female genital mutilation had
also contributed to stopping that practice. Many effective measures had been
taken to reduce the rate of female genital mutilation among the young
population, and results had been encouraging. Honour crimes constituted another
area in which tradition was used to justify crimes against women. In several
countries national legislation gave impunity to the perpetrators of such
crimes. Non-governmental organizations had helped to make a real difference on
the ground in that respect. As a result, the penal code was being modified in
certain countries in Africa and statistics were becoming available. Ms. Khafagy
said that demystifying the justification of using religion through
awareness-raising and making use of international instruments had contributed
to the progress which had been made.
RASHIDA MANJOO, Special Rapporteur on violence against women, its causes and
consequences and moderator of the discussion, agreed that the empowerment
of women, and accountability as a norm for addressing all violations of human
rights and societal transformation were key. Could Mr. Juan Carlos Arean
elaborate on the role of men and boys in addressing violence against women?
JUAN CARLOS AREAN, Member of the Secretary-General’s Network of Men Leaders,
Senior Program Director at the Family Violence Prevention Fund, said that
as a member of civil society who had worked in non-governmental organizations
for many years, it was interesting to reflect and take as a reference the
Vienna Declaration. He firmly believed that policies and laws were of course
important, but it was only part of the equation. One of the big challenges was
their implementation and part of that was changing social norms and winning the
hearts and minds of men. If this panel had been held 20 years ago, there
probably would not have been any men taking part. They had to be careful
however about it not being the flavour of the year and had to recognize that
there were reasons why they were talking about engaging men. It was not about
doing so as a goal, but about engaging them to further the human rights of
women. Sometimes men reproduced the patterns of domination and hierarchy. As a
man, part of his work was to challenge other men. How they could contribute was
the key challenge. A lot had happened in the last 20 years. Philosophically, 20
years ago they saw men only as the problem but more and more they were seeing
men and boys as part of the solution. Reference was made to the
Secretary-General’s Network of Male Leaders of which he was part, and a global
alliance of non-governmental organizations working on the issue called Men
Engaged. Civil society campaigns had also been set up in many countries to
engage men. They had to be very holistic in their approach of working with men
and there was no single strategy or solution. A key concept in his opinion was
to win the hearts and minds of men, convincing them that fighting against
patriarchy and gender stereotypes was something that would also benefit them.
Discussion
Qatar said that women’s rights had been central to the human rights
agenda for two decades but that violence against women was nevertheless
increasing world wide. Algeria, speaking on behalf of the Arab Group,
said that tackling underlying causes of violence against women was key in the
march toward liberalization. Austria said that it was organizing a side
event called Vienna+20 that would look at two decades of human rights action in
combating violence against women. Senegal said criminal sanctions had
been codified in Senegalese law against female genital mutilation, rape and
other acts of violence against women. Maldives said it had passed a bill
addressing domestic violence in 2012 and a draft sexual harassment bill was
being prepared. Slovenia said putting an end to the impunity of men in
their commission of gender-based violence was a central theme of its actions in
combating violence against women. Poland said much progress had been
made in combating violence against women and domestic violence at home and
abroad and it was willing to share its experience in regard to anti-violence
campaigns.
Switzerland said gender stereotypes and structural inequality were the
roots of violence against women and that domestic violence and rape within
marriage had to be criminalized world wide; what could be done to weaken
cultures of impunity such as that which tended to exist, even in Switzerland? Australia
said that it had a plan to safeguard Australian women against violence, some of
which it felt could be applied internationally in the spirit of sharing good
practice. Russian Federation said it was working hard to implement
measures and draft progressive laws that would tackle violence against women;
it was concerned about violence against children adopted from Russia. The United
Kingdom said that a coordinated international approach across the three
pillars of the United Nations was paramount and it would hold a debate on
violence against women in conflict situations in its role as chair of the
Security Council this month. Croatia said the International Criminal
Court had to contribute to the fight against the use of rape as a weapon of
war. Iceland said that lesbians were at particular risk of violence and
hoped that United Nations mechanisms would continue to recognize and prioritize
this. Malaysia said community awareness was key and supported practical
strategies, which involved men that advanced the rights of women and girls. Minority
Rights Group highlighted the plight of slave and ex-slave women in
Mauritania, whom it said were denied rights whole scale and were especially
victimized. France Libertes: the Danielle Mitterand Foundation said that
Saharan women were at particular risk of violence from the State of Morocco. International
Humanist and Ethical Union said that sexual and violent abuse of women and
girls was rife and cited a case in the Maldives which it said exemplified this.
Saudi Arabia said that it attached high importance to women’s rights
based on the teaching of Islamic Sharia, which criminalized all injustices
against women, and that efforts to protect women and safeguard their dignity
should continue. Argentina said that gender equality was vital to
democracy and to development. In order to eradicate violence, Argentina had
adopted a series of measures, including introducing new legislation and
amending its criminal code. Indonesia said that strategies to prevent
domestic violence were being formulated and continued to be implemented in
Indonesia. Measures taken included establishing a special service for victims
of crimes, particularly women and children.
Concluding Remarks by Panellists
FATMA KHAFAGY, Ombudsperson of Gender Equality, Egypt, in concluding
remarks, said that sometimes family laws contributed to causing violence
against women within the family environment. Unless that issue was addressed,
it would be very difficult to address the problem of violence against women in
other environments, such as the workplace and the public domain. In the African
region there had been increased reporting of incidents of violence against
women, which was a positive sign.
FLORENCE BUTEGWA, Representative to Ethiopia (OIC), and Representative to
the African Union and the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa, from
UN Women, commenting on what more in general needed to be done, said that
one of the things that United Nations Women was doing with the United Nations
Economic Commission for Africa was a regional study on the socio-economic cost
of violence and women. As long at the public and Government did not understand
the cost to the economy, family and social fabric, there was not much intent on
investing in work on violence against women and this work required a lot of
support. In relation to the economic crisis and whether that was affecting the
work on violence against women, they had to accept that for many countries the
economic situation was very difficult and decisions were having to be made but
they also had to look at those decisions in the context of the totality of
where the priorities were. They needed to focus on implementation and
documenting the things that worked so that other countries could learn from
those countries that were making positive changes.
SIMONE CUSACK, Senior Policy and Research Officer of the Australian Human
Rights Commission, Author and Expert on Gender Stereotyping, in concluding
remarks, said that a really important part of implementation was moving beyond
policies and programmes focused on individual change, and focusing on a more
systemic cultural change in addressing violence against women. Efforts to
address violence against women would only succeed if they were underpinned by
gender equality. Safeguards had to be put in place by States to protect persons
that were not seen to be in the norm and progress in this area had been very
uneven. On prioritizing efforts in times of economic crisis, it was reminded
that women’s right to life, health and security could not be superseded by
perpetrators. On good practices in addressing stereotyping, there were good
practices and also an emerging body of scholarship. However, there were also
many bad examples and missed opportunities. There were positive examples of the
work done by some organizations, working hard to debunk notions that equated
masculinity and violence.
JUAN CARLOS AREAN, Member of the Secretary-General’s Network of Men Leaders,
Senior Program Director at the Family Violence Prevention Fund, addressed
the lack of funding and said there was a tension in the new attention to men
and boys in that it might take funds away from women’s programmes. This was of
course to be avoided. Money was tight but should always be found. A broad
analysis of masculinity and patriarchy should take a less intellectual and more
emotional approach to engagement. Additionally, attending to the spirit of men
could be a way to engage some among them; all major religions have values that
opposed discrimination against women (as well as the contrary on occasion) and
faith leaders could be useful in engaging men on women’s rights issues.
PATRICIA SCHULZ, Member of the Committee on the Elimination of
Discrimination Against Women, said that reproductive and sexual autonomy of
women was paramount. Turning to funding, Ms. Schulz said that the distribution
of money was a political question and spoke on the funding of international
development and the United Nations system as a whole. There was still a fight
for funding. There continued to be stark underreporting by States and the
treaty bodies needed strengthened mechanisms to improve this. Reform would
determine whether the treaty bodies system could function or not; it was not at
present efficient and this had to change.
Panel Two: Setting Priorities for the Future: Strengthening the Work
of the Human Rights Council and Other Inter-Governmental Bodies and Processes
in the Area of Violence Against Women
Opening Statement
FLAVIA PANSIERI, Deputy High Commissioner for Human Rights, said she was
pleased with the theme of the day’s debate – violence against women – because a
lot of progress had been made in the 20 years since the adoption of the Vienna
Convention. There was much work ahead. The debate would now focus on the
linkages within the mechanisms of the Human Rights Council, the United Nations
system and other inter-governmental processes. A consultation was held in order
to understand how to promote a human-rights based approach to combating
violence against women. The Human Rights Council had been instrumental in
outlining legal doctrines and procedures, had given visibility to the issue of
violence against women, and had been key in underlining that private violence
was a public problem. Several commissions of inquiry had over the years been
held into aspects of the problem. These advances made by the Council could be
seen in the focus that was placed on the gender dimension of the general human
rights agenda. Yet there were problems. These included implementation and the
general lack of attention paid to women’s rights issues in country-specific
mandates. This could be remedied by explicitly placing gender discrimination
and violence against women into the agenda of the various mechanisms and in the
Special Procedures. The issue of “double jeopardy” where discrimination and
violence against women intersected with other human rights challenges had to be
better understood.
There were synergies between the Human Rights Council and other
inter-governmental processes; duplication of work was avoided and closer
cooperation between them was promoted. Through closer synergies, different
streams of work could be built on and reinforced, resulting in strengthened
support and guidance to States and other stakeholders on steps to eliminate
violence against women, as well as into coherent and comprehensive national and
international scrutiny of the implementation of commitments. The Office of the
High Commissioner stood ready to develop a strategy to facilitate
implementation.
Statements by Panellists
ZAINAB BANGURA, Special Representative of the Secretary-General on Sexual
Violence in Conflict, said that sexual violence in conflict continued to be
one of the worst forms of discrimination against women. Consequences of rape
and other forms of sexual violence were long-lasting and devastating and it was
important to note that sexual violence was not just an opportunistic act of
individuals, but was being systematically employed as a weapon of war.
Survivors were the ones dealing with shame and stigmatization, while shame
should be of perpetrators and not their victims. Prosecution of this crime led
to prevention and, hand in hand with ending impunity for this crime, barriers to
accessing justice for victims must be brought down. Fundamental shifts in
attitudes and fighting stigmatization of victims must be done from inside of
the communities and must involve all its members, particularly those with voice
such as journalists or teachers. The resolutions of the United Nations Security
Council concerning sexual violence in conflict provided a framework to combat
this crime and address impunity. Getting to the root causes of the problems was
essential and this required respect for the rights of women and girls, their
participation in political and public life and their involvement in crafting
solutions to gender-based violence. Only when women’s rights were fully
understood as human rights would the fight against sexual violence in conflict
achieve success.
RASHIDA MANJOO, Special Rapporteur on violence against women and moderator
of the discussion, said that violence against women remained endemic and
effective fulfilment of the State’s obligation in terms of its responsibility
to protect its citizens included recognizing the problem, modifying laws and
policies to prevent harm and protect the rights of citizens, addressing the
root causes of violence, punishing and rehabilitating the perpetrator,
reporting to international bodies in terms of steps taken, and monitoring its
own measures. The State also had an obligation to investigate all forms of
violence against women. When preparing her report, Ms. Manjoo said that she had
been confronted with a lack of response from States. It was necessary to create
a framework in which to discuss the responsibility of States to act with due
diligence, separating individual and systemic due diligence.
PATIENCE STEPHENS, Director of the Intergovernmental Support Division of
United Nations Women, said the debate today was a “call to duty” because
women’s rights were fundamental to human rights. United Nations Women undertook
three mandate areas that meant it could work very closely with the Human Rights
Council. States were recognizing the complexity of the new approaches to
tackling violence against women. Looking back to the Vienna Convention of 20
years ago, there were difficult negotiations toward agreement on areas
including, for example, culture and traditions, intimate partner violence,
sexual and reproductive rights, and lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender
rights. Agreement could not be reached on the status of these minority groups.
The role of the family was also contentious and all references to the family
were removed because it could not be agreed what constituted a family. Looking
forward, violence against women was not a single issue but an amalgam of social
ills and its complexity must be and was recognized by the human rights bodies
charged with ending it.
Discussion
Peru said that violence against women was a scourge with many faces
which was present in many countries and regions and Ethiopia said that
it affected not only the individual but the society as a whole. Venezuela
believed that exchanging good practice and synergies could help in eradicating
violence against women at national, regional and global levels. Algeria
said that empowerment of women and their participation in all walks of life was
crucial for eradicating this widespread phenomenon and Libya said that
there was still a lot to be done in ensuring participation of women in social,
economic, public and political life, on equal footing with men.
Femmes Africa Solidarité expressed concern about the extent of sexual
violence and violence against women in the Central African Republic and in the
Democratic Republic of the Congo where they had become genuine weapons of war.
Addressing sexual violence in conflict and combating impunity for crimes of
femicide required the most urgent action, stressed Spain. Because women
and children were those most adversely affected by conflicts, it was essential
to identify threats against them and to involve women in peace negotiations,
said Gabon on behalf of the African Group. International
Committee of the Red Cross said that many victims of sexual violence in
conflict could not access health services and justice systems and due
consideration must be given to their personal preferences for privacy and
security.
Belgium stressed that the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of
Discrimination Against Women was a crucial instrument which charted the way
forward in eradicating violence against women and called on all States to
ratify this treaty and its Optional Protocol. International Coordination
Committee of National Institutions for the Promotion and Protection of Human
Rights said that national human rights institutions had a special role to
play, especially in promoting empowerment of women and girls and supporting
their participation in political and public life. Egypt said that
capacity building for authorities dealing with violence against women, and
tackling the socio-economic and root causes of the problem, such as poverty and
illiteracy, were essential in fighting this phenomenon and Action Canada for
Population and Development stressed due diligence standards which could
contribute to the implementation of the responsibility of States to ensure
accountability for violence against women.
Statements by Panellists
RASHIDA MANJOO, Special Rapporteur on violence against women and moderator
of the discussion, said that the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime
had adopted resolutions on violence against women. Could Mr. Chawla share some
good practices and challenges regarding effective accountability for acts of violence
against women, and provide any recommendations on strengthening synergies
between the Office on Drugs and Crime and the Human Rights Council?
SANDEEP CHAWLA, Deputy Executive Director, United Nations Office on Drugs
and Crime, said that as far as the Commission for Crime Prevention and
Criminal justice was concerned, the Compendium of United Nations Standards and
Norms was the driving force in the United Nations system for looking at
emerging forms of crimes. These standards and norms dealt with a number of
areas including violence against women and worked well as although they had
soft law status they allowed countries to make national assessments, helped the
development of regional and sub-regional strategies, and acted as a body for
good practice internationally. On violence against women, there was a need to
concentrate more on what was being done about it. In 2012 the Crime Commission
adopted practical measures and strategies to tackle violence against women.
More effort was needed in implementing these strategies. This year, the Crime
Commission adopted a resolution which would go to the General Assembly on
taking action against gender related violence against women and girls. Apart
from a lack of comprehensive legislation in countries, there were weaknesses
within the criminal justice system at the level of police prosecution and
prisons. There were also challenges in the area of data and relevant data
collection. It had to be recognised that dealing with violence against women
meant addressing issues that had historically been built into societies.
RASHIDA MANJOO, Special Rapporteur on violence against women and moderator
of the discussion, asked Ms. McPhedran for her observations on how the
United Nations system in general and the Council in particular had approached
the issue of violence against women. What were the lessons learned and what
continued to provide challenges?
MARILOU MCPHEDRAN, Institute for International Women’s Rights at the
University of Winnipeg Global College, Canada, said that the modern rule of
law should include women’s human rights. They needed to see greater coherence
in global governance as a whole in the United Nations system, such as through
balancing complementary processes in the Human Rights Council and in the Security
Council, and resolutions for example. There was growing concern that as needed
as such resolutions were, they may be used to undermine women’s contribution as
leaders in peace and security. Resolutions from the Security Council and the
Human Rights Council had to integrate civil society leadership and protections
for women human rights defenders. Due attention had to be paid to root causes
of conflict such as unequal distribution of income. Women’s economic
empowerment was key in eliminating violence against women. Research had
concluded that autonomous feminist movements were key to change. Ms. McPhedran
also underlined that gender alliance was critical. If they were to stop
violence against women, then they had to do it together, as full and complete
members of the human race.
Discussion
Portugal said stopping violence against women must be reflected in the
post-2015 development agenda; mitigating processes from due diligence through
to punishment had to be strengthened. Thailand said efforts by the Human
Rights Council in combating violence against women had to be complemented by
those of other United Nations system and States’ mechanisms. Norway said
the post-2015 development agenda was highly relevant in this discussion as
women’s human rights must be front and centre of it. Finland said the
role of men and boys was crucial and their engagement should be placed at the
centre of developing anti-violence strategies. China said violence
against women was a chronic problem in human society and the world community
had to adopt measures that recognized the link between poverty and violence
against women.
United Arab Emirates took stock of 20 years of progress since the Vienna
Conference and said a true solution had yet to be found although work to eliminate
the problem had to go on. Chile said the report on creating linkages and
synergies showed that the Human Rights Council was making progress and it
believed that the best way forward was a holistic approach. Paraguay
recounted the milestones of the last 20 years but said that the reality of the
plight of women around the world showed that there was much to be done.
Morocco said it had promoted gender equality at the national level for
many years and several measures had been taken. Mauritania said it had
the moral courage to recognize its slave past, contrary to the politicized
claims of some actors, and was implementing ambitious plans aimed at rooting
out this legacy. Maldives updated the Council on the measures it had
taken to reform its legal framework and justice system which it said were in
urgent need of strengthening. Kuwait said it condemned all forms of
violence and drew its support for international norms from its constitutional
focus on the primacy of the family.
The Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS said women living with
HIV were more vulnerable to violence and sexual violence against women was rife
in conflict and post-conflict situations. The Organization of Islamic
Cooperation said regional strategies were effective with respect to
implementation and it was working hard toward the elimination of violence
against women. World Young Women’s Christian Organization said it worked
hard to support victims of violence against women, including those raped, and
it condemned early forced marriage which it said was a prevailing context for
sexual violence. Worldwide Organization for Women said the sexual
exploitation of women who had become refugees as a result of the conflict in
Syria was increasing. Maarij Foundation for Peace and Development said
the gender perspective should be included in all work of the Human Rights
Council to reduce violence against women and strengthen equality. Germany
asked the panellists their view of regional protocols and what they had to say
about gender and caste-based discrimination.
Turkey said that addressing both causes and consequences of violence
against women must involve an integrated approach involving all segments of the
society and the Council of Europe Convention on preventing and combating
violence against women and domestic violence would have a positive impact
internationally. India stressed the need to combat discriminatory
practices and violence against women that were rooted in traditions and
customs, while Montenegro suggested that the principles of gender
equality be promoted within the International Monetary Fund and other
international financial institutions, where gender policies were still not
mandatory. Russian Federation believed that every State was free to
choose a strategy to combat violence against women and said that the structure
of United Nation Women should provide assistance only at the request of States.
International Labour Organization drew the attention of the Council to
the daily harassment and violence suffered by women involved in the informal
economy and said that the International Labour Organization was considering a
new set of international labour standards to address gender-based violence at
work. Estonia said that rape and sexual violence could constitute crimes
against humanity and it was vital for all States to eradicate sexual violence
in conflict and end impunity for this crime. Switzerland mentioned the
importance of treaty bodies and the Committee on the Elimination of
Discrimination against Women in particular in providing valuable guidance to
States in their actions to eradicate violence against women.
Concluding Remarks
ZAINAB BANGURA, Special Representative of the Secretary-General on Sexual
Violence in Conflict, in concluding remarks, said that violence, especially
sexual violence, was a major issue because it affected not only individuals but
also families and whole societies. Ms. Bangura shared her experience in meeting
victims of sexual violence and said that during a recent visit to Africa she
was appalled to see that very young children had been subjected to rape. She
also said that in Syria fathers killed their daughters who had been raped and
called that an “honour killing”. Victims of sexual violence were younger and
younger, so it was necessary to take concerted action to educate and empower
women in order to protect them from being subjected to violence in the future.
This was a battle they could not afford to lose, said Ms. Bangura.
SANDEEP CHAWLA, Deputy Executive Director, United Nations Office on Drugs
and Crime, in concluding remarks, said that a handbook had just been
published on police responses to incidents of violence against women, while
another handbook for prosecutors dealing with cases of violence against women
was being developed. There was a need for better coordination in the criminal
justice system to better prevent and respond to violence against women. Good
practices from certain countries in the world included specialized courts and
specially trained staff, and that information should be passed on. More
flexibility was needed within the United Nations system so that agencies could
collaborate more easily and efficiently. There should be closer cooperation in
the joint preparation of reports and more use of the experience and expertise
of the Special Rapporteurs of the Secretary-General in several areas,
particularly in the Crime Commission.
PATIENCE STEPHENS Director of the Intergovernmental Support Division of
United Nations Women, said in concluding remarks that violence against
women was complex and strongly inter-sectoral and had to be strongly addressed
in all inter-sectoral governmental bodies. United Nations Women had pushed for
the placement of gender equality as one of the standalone goals in the
post-2015 development agenda. Without State action, they were synergizing and
strategizing in vain. While the United Nations system was working in these
areas, the fact remained that the ball was in the court of Member States and other
stakeholders. Synergy was meant to stimulate implementation. They must sustain
and implement all agreed conclusions. They needed to put teeth to the agreed
conclusions. Currently, they had some very important advances that been made;
these needed to be translated into change on the ground.
MARILOU MCPHEDRAN, Institute for International Women’s Rights at the
University of Winnipeg Global College, Canada, said in concluding remarks
that there was a need for increased cooperation in the United Nations system.
To progress, the international community had to be able to rely on the
integrity of a Universal Periodic Review process that could not be used to
undermine international human rights law and States’ legal obligations. They
must always be mindful of the bigger picture for women and girls. Due attention
had to be paid to root causes of a conflict. If they were serious about the
rights of marginalised peoples, women being in the majority, then they had to
face the hierarchical treatment of human rights in the human rights system.
Women needed to be able to bring their concerns to the institutional tables to
bring about change. There was merit in regional instruments in addressing
violence against women and they needed to see more of these.
RASHIDA MANJOO, Special Rapporteur on violence against women, its causes and
consequences and moderator of the discussion, said in her closing remarks
that more work should be invested in the implementation of the due diligence
principle. With the cutbacks in social services due to economic crisis and
austerity measures, valuable experience and expertise was being lost in both
State and non-State sectors which would be hard to regain. The Commission on
the Status of Women had begun to lose its relevance because of practices of
States in its deliberations and the dismissal by civil society organizations of
the value of the Commission; this body, which had been created in 1947, needed
to be strengthened and the international community should not be afraid to
bring new issues into its discussions. Economic dependency was the crucial
factor that kept women in abusive relationship and this was the best argument
for women’s empowerment in social, economic and political spheres.
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