Male violence against women knows no geographical boundaries, no age limit, no class distinctions, no race, nor cultural differences. It manifests itself in multiple forms and involves a wide variety of perpetrators that range from intimate partners and family members, work colleagues and social or community acquaintances to strangers and institutional actors such as police, health, professional teachers, and soldiers. Yet male violence against women is still invisible and the voices of women victims are still silenced.

Although equality between women and men is guaranteed in the constitution of 139 countries and territories all too often women are denied justice and protection from violence.

Impunity concerning perpetrators of acts of violence is the norm, even if these acts have to do with Femicide. Femicide is an extreme manifestation of violence against women as it has to do with killing women only because they are women. Such acts an ultimate act of violence which is experienced on a continuum of violence, while a lack of accountability for such crimes is the norm.

The discrimination and violence that are reflected in gender-related killings of women encompass structural, institutional, interpersonal, and individual factors. Thus, an understanding of gender killing requires taking into account the political, social and economic context within which it takes place. This includes male responses to women’s empowerment, the political, legal and societal reaction to such killings, the principle of the continuum of violence and patterns of structural discrimination and inequality that continue to form part of the reality of women’s lives.

What is the most important concerning impunity to acts of violence, in particular, femicide which has become a global concern, is that it compounds the effects of this violence as a mechanism of control.

When the state fails to hold the perpetrators accountable, impunity not only intensifies the subordination and powerlessness of the targets of violence, but also sends a message to society that male violence against women is both acceptable and inevitable.

This explains the reasons why violence continues to be one of the most pervasive global problems in the world.

The most important reason why there is no progress in dealing with this global pandemic of alarming proportions is that violence against women as stated in the Beijing platform Action of 1995 is a manifestation of the historically unequal power relations between men and women which have led to domination over and discrimination against women by men and to the prevention of women’s full advancement.

Male violence against women refers to a structural system of patriarchal values by which violence against women and girls is tolerated, legitimized and even trivialized. It aims at ensuring men domination over women, through different forms and levels of violence, in order to control women and girls, their bodies and their sexuality. It is part of a broader system of patriarchy, where men establish and keep on developing strategies to control all sectors of society thus disempowering women.

The prevention and eradication of male violence against women rests on addressing women’s inequality and patriarchy. Women’s inequality is both cause and consequence of male violence against women and vice versa. Male violence against women shapes women’s place in society. At the same time, inequality between women and men creates the conditions for male violence against women and legitimizes it.

The structure of capitalism which brings different forms of exploitation and oppression also fuels patriarchal structures and men’s domination over women as it exacerbates economic inequalities and discrimination.

This situation is deplorable more so because, in recent years, we have had some very positive developments. We now have a powerful tool to combat this scourge. This is the Council of Europe Convention on preventing and combating violence against women and domestic violence. This Convention is the first international legally binding instrument open to any country in the world to provide for a comprehensive set of measures to prevent and combat violence against women and domestic violence. It recognizes violence against women as a violation of human rights and as a form of discrimination.

We all know that despite having strong instruments and analyses, we do not see change on the ground. We all know why. What is really needed is political will which is difficult to find unless it is a feminist political will and democratic processes. We need political will to accelerate implementation, change mentalities and ensure women’s and girls’ rights. The world community has agreed on new SDG’s, which comprise again a commitment to end violence against women. To transform this declaration into action, the UN system needs to play a bigger role and to hold member states accountable. The women’s organizations should be consulted at all levels and all steps and funded in a sustainable way. They should lobby governments for accountability on measures and policies adopted by them to combat this scourge.

Let us all, affiliate and associate organisations, members of the IAW, as well as individual members, try to hold governments accountable on their will to end male violence against women and girls.

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Background

Established in 1997, following the 1995 Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action highlighting states’ commitment to taking action for ending Violence Against Women, the EWL Observatory consists of professionals, human rights defenders and NGO activists. The Observatory aims to keep Violence Against Women high on EU states’ agendas, acting as a ‘watchdog’ of policy and practice developments and developing innovative approaches whilst keeping the scourge of Violence Against Women visible. Through visibility and action, the Observatory aims to ensure that the reality ‘on the ground’ of Violence Against Women cannot be forgotten or hidden from view. This work has ensured that the Observatory is influential at European and national level.

Observatory November 2016

An introduction session saw each participant provide a brief biography, including reference to ‘most admired feminists’ … I listed Elizabeth Cady Stanton, Matilda Joslyn Gage and my grandmother, Maud Helen McIlroy Needham … whilst others referred to women from their own countries, writers, activists, historical figures, politicians … We then had a discussion on the purpose of the meeting – principally the Istanbul Convention, its content, its (potential) impact, and action being taken at present to ensure its ratification and implementation.

We moved into workshops on the media – including social media – and violence against women, culture and tradition underpinning violence against women, rape and other sexual offences (including marital rape), sexual harassment, and the role of the justice system.

Plenary sessions included feedback from the various groups, and reports from each participant on the greatest impediments confronting women and the will toward ending violence against women. For the United Kingdom, (lack of) access to justice is a principal problem – cut backs to legal aid make it difficult for women to gain justice at myriad levels, including in family law (custody/residency, access/visitation, and property rights, as well as employment issues. Discrimination, sexual and sexist harassment   (including bullying) are difficult to pursue – employment tribunals cost money, with a lodging fee necessary before a case can be commenced. There are problems, too, with the way tribunals and judges (fail to) ‘see’ these forms of violence against women: too often, still, sexual and sexist harassment are classed as ‘banter’ (joking) by decision-makers.

Conclusion

The brainstorming session for actions in 2017 to advance the Istanbul Convention including proposals for demonstrating in Brussels at the European Parliament and the Commission;  holding ‘sister’ demonstrations throughout the EU;  ensuring that at a particular time, on one day throughout the EU women engage in some action – suiting the style and content of the action to what they see as most pressing in their country and community. The Observatory resolved to establish a small working party to develop these ideas and to return to participants and organisations with a proposal, so that everyone can work together toward the goal of highlighting the importance of the Istanbul Convention and the vital need for its ratification so that positive, pragmatic and principled actin can and will be taken – by all states.

JAS © December 2016

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Last year in the Palais des Nations in Geneva I saw a photo exhibit of indigenous women. They looked great and seemed to have a good life and many friends.

Therefore I was shocked at the figures presented yesterday (20 September) during a panel discussion on Violence Against Indigenous Women and Girls, including those with disabilities  (vaiw). The aim of this panel was to assess the development of legal and policy responses to violence against indigenous women, based on art. 22 of the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, and identify good practices and challenges in addressing structural forms of vaiw.

Adam Abdelmoula, director of the Human Rights Council and Treaty Mechanism Division, Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, opened the discussion. He said that there was ample evidence that indigenous women and girls are at disproportinate risk of physical, emotional and sexual violence, of being married as children, of being trafficked, of undergoing forced sterilization, or of being exchanged for a bride price in some parts of the world. They suffer from discrimination, both within and outside their communities because of their unequal position in society. Vaiw can not be separated from broader violations of indigenous peoples’ rights, including rights to their lands and resources. This is another cause for violence.

Access to justice is a key to reduce vaiw. That is impeded in various ways, but sometimes it is a success, as the Sepur Zarco case in Guatemala showed that access to justice for the gravest violations of women’s rights could be achieved: for the first time in the history of Guatemala, sexual violence committed during the military conflict in the 1980s has been successfully prosecuted, leading to the conviction of two former members of the military to 360 years in jail for the murder, rape and sexual enslavement of indigenous women. Yet, not many indigenous women get past the barriers to justice, because they don’t know their rights and the services and protections available to them, because those services do not exist, because of sheer discrimination, or because of  mistrust in the judicial system. No wonder that they don’t trust the system, they are often treated as offenders, and they are not believed if they come to complain. There are not many data available, but those we have are alarming. In Australia 2% of the female population are identified as Aborginal, yet indigenous women make up one third of the female prison population.

The panelists added to this sad story: The President of the Sámi Parliament of Norway, Ms Aili Keskitalo, said that 48% of Sámi women had experienced some kind of violence during their life, as opposed to 29% of the members of the general public. The issue of vaiw cannot be solved in isolation. The reasons for that violence can be found in gender imbalance, and power and lack of power within indigenous peoples, and between indigenous peoples and majority communities. The loss of languages, culture, resources and territories that often accompanied colonization and assimilation policies put great pressure on indigenous peoples’ own mechanisms for conflict resolution, and make indigenous women and children vulnerable.

What the Member States should do to empower indigenous peoples is implement the UN Declaration. States must also provide immediate appropriate assistance to indigenous women, children and persons with disabilities in the form of culturally sensitive protection, health care and legal assistance in their own language to the victims of different kinds of vaiw. The Human Rights Council should keep the matter high on its agenda.

Education, in general, and for everyone about violence, education of the police, lawyers and judges about the rights of indigenous women would help to put an end to vaiw, was the message of the Graduate Women International, supported by IAW.

Therewith GWI echoed Olga Montufar Contreras from Mexico. She advocates for disabled people. Human rights covenants need to be read in a systematic way regarding women and girls with disabilities. Those women and girls suffer from multiple forms of discrimination. Many of them have been taught to be grateful for favours of being given some attention. Asked about their expectations in a survey, they did not expect much. Then they had a training on their human rights, nevertheless, in a repeated study, they did not consider verbal violence, rejection and coercion as violence against them. If women don’t know their rights, they cannot defend them.

Hannah McGlade, Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights Senior Indigenous Fellow, said that Aboriginal women and girls of Australia face unacceptably high levels of violence. Aboriginal mothers are 17,5 times more likely to die from homicide then  non-Aboriginal mothers, and they are also at increased risk of suicide related to intimate partner violence and sexual abuse. The lack of responsiveness of the justice system is a major issue faced by aboriginal women. Fortunately Australia has made a commitment to combat violence against women, including indigenous women, through a National Plan of Action.

Australia must ensure equality before the law and further develop a strategy and policy to increase access to justice, ensure the full participation of indigenous women in the administration of justice, and develop human rights programmes aimed at the enforcement officials and the judiciary.

Victoria Tauli-Corpuz, Special Rapporteur on the rights of indigenous peoples said that the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples applied equally to indigenous men and women.

Art. 22 provided that States should take measures, in conjunction with indigenous peoples, to ensure that indigenous women and children enjoyed full protection and guaranties against all forms of violence and discrimination.It is a fine line between self-determination of indigenous communities and the responsibility of the State to protect indigenous women and girls as citizens from violence within indigenous communities. States should also build the capacity of female indigenous leaders to advocate for the rights of women and girls.

In the discussion States with and without indigenous peoples within their borders intervened. Ecuador with 14 different indigenous nationalities and 18 ethnicities in the country said that it had taken measures to foster the participation in policy formulation and in political life, including through affirmative action on employment of indigenous women with disabilities in the public sector. Guatemalmajoritya had put in place measures to prevent gender-based violence and had created an office of the Ombudsperson for indigenous women, DEMI, which sought to tackle viaw as a community issue rather than an individual issue.

Fiji had a singular problem: as a country with an indigenous majority in the population they had trouble saying that between indigenous people there was a higher incidence of violence.

The Council of Europe reminded that its Istanbul Convention broke new grounds by requesting States to criminalize various forms of vaw, including physical, sexual and psychological violence, as well as stalking, sexual harassment, FGM, forced marriage, forced abortion and forced sterilization. It was emphasized that the Convention is open to non-European states as well.

The panel was a welcome contribution to the rights of indigenous women and girls, including those with disabilities. My conclusion is  that access to justice, training of law enforcement officers, and education and participation of indigenous women in policy making is of the greatest importance. In order not to forget that, every country with indigenous people(s) within its borders should, together with those peoples and especially the women, make and implement a NATIONAL PLAN of ACTION.

The panelists showed the capacities of indigenous women!

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UN Special Rapporteur on Violence Against Women
Call  to All Stakeholders for Submissions on Gap in Incorporating & Implementing International & Regional Standards on Violence Against Women

The Special Rapporteur on Violence Against Women, its Causes and Consequences, Ms Dubravka Šimonović, took up the function as Special Rapporteur on 1 August 2015 and intends to, inter alia, focus on the legal and policy frameworks of her mandate and the international human rights mechanisms to discuss the gap in incorporating and implementing the international and regional standards related to violence against women.

The Special Rapporteur considers that the discussion on the adequacy of the international legal framework on violence against women initiated by the former mandate holder should continue and she wishes to secure views from different stakeholders, including States, National Human Rights Institutions, Non-governmental organizations, as well as members of academia.

Taking into consideration the important role that different stakeholders play in reinforcing universal human rights standards, she would be very interested to receive input and views on the following questions:

1. Do you consider that there is a need for a separate legally binding treaty on violence against women with its separate monitoring body?
2. Do you consider that there is an incorporation gap of the international or regional human rights norms and standards?
3. Do you believe that there is a lack of implementation of the international and regional legislation into the domestic law?
4. Do you think that there is a fragmentation of policies and legislation to address gender-based violence?
5. Could you also provide your views on measures needed to address this normative and implementation gap and to accelerate prevention and elimination of violence against women?

All submissions should be sent by 1 October 2016 to vaw@ohchr.org

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Text of emergency motion
Violence against women (VAW) is the most widespread violation of women’s human rights: one out of three women is a victim of sexual and/or physical violence in the EU. VAW is both a cause and a consequence of gender inequality. The most unsafe place for women and girls is at home.Small arms like knives, pistols and rifles are easy to buy and conceal. 1 They give a sense of power to a partner, ex-partner, family member or acquaintance and are great threats to the safety of women and girls. Preventive measures saves states and civil society a great deal of money!

The EU Commission is called upon to establish 2016 as the EU Year to End Violence Against Women, with substantial resources to raise more awareness about prevention of VAW especially caused by the use of small arms like knives, pistols and rifles and support actions at all levels. 2

Note 1. FRA – European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights, 2014

Note 2. EWL demands A Europe free from violence against women in From Words to Action 1995-2015, p 15 

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