Publications by Type: Government Report

http://conventions.coe.int/Treaty/Commun/QueVoulezVous.asp?CL=ENG&NT=201

The member States of the Council of Europe and the other signatories hereto;

Considering that the aim of the Council of Europe is to achieve a greater unity between its members;

Considering that every child has the right to such measures of protection as are required by his or her status as a minor, on the part of his or her family, society and the State;

Observing that the sexual exploitation of children, in particular child pornography and prostitution, and all forms of sexual abuse of children, including acts which are committed abroad, are destructive to children’s health and psycho-social development;

Observing that the sexual exploitation and sexual abuse of children have grown to worrying proportions at both national and international level, in particular as regards the increased use by both children and perpetrators of information and communication technologies (ICTs), and that preventing and combating such sexual exploitation and sexual abuse of children require international co-operation

http://www.coe.int/t/dcr/summit/20050517_plan_action_en.asp

We, Heads of State and Government of the Member States of the Council of Europe, meeting in Warsaw on 16 and 17 May 2005, have outlined the following action plan laying down the principal tasks of the Council of Europe in the coming years.

I - PROMOTING COMMON FUNDAMENTAL VALUES: HUMAN RIGHTS, RULE OF LAW AND DEMOCRACY

1. Ensuring the continued effectiveness of the European Convention on Human Rights

◦   We shall ensure the long-term effectiveness of the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms by all appropriate means. To this end we shall provide the European Court of Human Rights with the necessary support and implement all the reform measures adopted at the 114th Session of the Committee of Ministers in May 2004, in accordance with all the modalities foreseen. This includes, as envisaged, the ratification of Protocol No. 14 to the Convention, which is essential for the future effectiveness of the European Convention on Human Rights.

http://conventions.coe.int/Treaty/Commun/QueVoulezVous.asp?NT=197&CM=8&DF=06/07/2015&CL=ENG

1.   Trafficking in human beings is a major problem in Europe today. Annually, thousands of people, largely women and children, fall victim to trafficking for sexual exploitation or other purposes, whether in their own countries or abroad. All indicators point to an increase in victim numbers. Action to combat trafficking in human beings is receiving worldwide attention because trafficking threatens the human rights and the fundamental values of democratic societies. 

2.   Action to combat this persistent assault on humanity is one of a number of fronts on which the Council of Europe is battling on behalf of human rights and human dignity.

http://eige.europa.eu/rdc/library/resource/IAV_ADL96337

CDEG (2005) 1 

http://www.un.org/womenwatch/daw/cedaw/reporting.htm

This document (HRI/GEN/2/Rev.1/Add.2 ) contains the guidelines issued by the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women for all reports submitted after 31 December 2002. These guidelines replace all earlier reporting guidelines issued by the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women, including those contained in HRI/GEN/2/Rev.1.

http://euromed-justice.eu/document/coe-2002-recommendation-rec-5-committ...

The Committee of Ministers, under the terms of Article 15.b of the Statute of the Council of Europe, Reaffirming that violence towards women is the result of an imbalance of power between men and women and is leading to serious discrimination against the female sex, both within society and within the family; Affirming that violence against women both violates and impairs or nullifies the enjoyment of their human rights and fundamental freedoms; Noting that violence against women constitutes a violation of their physical, psychological and/or sexual integrity; Noting with concern that women are often subjected to multiple discrimination on ground of their gender as well as their origin, including as victims of traditional or customary practices inconsistent with their human rights and fundamental freedoms; Considering that violence against women runs counter to the establishment of equality and peace and constitutes a major obstacle to citizens’ security and democracy in Europe; Noting with concern the extent of violence against women in the family, whatever form the family takes, and at all levels of society; Considering it urgent to combat this phenomenon which affects all European societies and concerns all their members

https://www.icc-cpi.int/nr/rdonlyres/ea9aeff7-5752-4f84-be94-0a655eb30e1...

The Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court (often referred to as the International Criminal Court Statute or the Rome Statute) is the treaty that established the International Criminal Court (ICC). It was adopted at a diplomatic conference in Rome on 17 July 1998^‪ and it entered into force on 1 July 2002.^‪ As of 6 January 2015, 123 states are party to the statute.^‪ Among other things, the statute establishes the court's functions, jurisdiction and structure.

https://wcd.coe.int/ViewDoc.jsp?id=280915

Recommendation Rec(2002)5 of the Committee of Ministers to member states on the protection of women against violence ¹ 

(Adopted by the Committee of Ministers on 30 April 2002 at the 794th meeting of the Ministers’ Deputies)

The Committee of Ministers, under the terms of Article 15.b of the Statute of the Council of Europe,

Reaffirming that violence towards women is the result of an imbalance of power between men and women and is leading to serious discrimination against the female sex, both within society and within the family;

Affirming that violence against women both violates and impairs or nullifies the enjoyment of their human rights and fundamental freedoms;

Noting that violence against women constitutes a violation of their physical, psychological and/or sexual integrity;

Noting with concern that women are often subjected to multiple discrimination on ground of their gender as well as their origin, including as victims of traditional or customary practices inconsistent with their human rights and fundamental freedoms.

http://evaw-global-database.unwomen.org/en/countries/asia/india/2002/sou...

In 2002, the South Asian Regional Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) signed a Convention on Preventing and Combating Trafficking in Women and Children for Prostitution.

http://legal.un.org/icc/statute/romefra.htm

The Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court (often referred to as the International Criminal Court Statute or the Rome Statute) is the treaty that established the International Criminal Court (ICC). It was adopted at a diplomatic conference in Rome on 17 July 1998^[5][6]and it entered into force on 1 July 2002.^[2] As of 6 January 2015, 123 states are party to the statute.^[2] Among other things, the statute establishes the court's functions, jurisdiction and structure.

The Rome Statute established four core international crimes: genocide, crimes against humanity, war crimes, and the crime of aggression. Those crimes "shall not be subject to any statute of limitations".^[7]Under the Rome Statute, the ICC can only investigate and prosecute the four core international crimes in situations where states are "unable" or "unwilling" to do so themselves. The court has jurisdiction over crimes only if they are committed in the territory of a state party or if they are committed by a national of a state party; an exception to this rule is that the ICC may also have jurisdiction over crimes if its jurisdiction is authorized by the United Nations Security Council.

http://www.oas.org/en/mesecvi/library.asp

Document can be located at the bottom of the web page

As a legally binding instrument, the Convention is unique in that it clearly delineates the state’s obligations to protect women’s right to a life without violence. Article 5 of the Convention states that:

Every woman is entitled to the free and full exercise of her civil, political, economic, social and cultural rights, and may rely on the full protection of those rights as embodied in regional and international instruments on human rights. The States Parties recognize that violence against women prevents and nullifies the exercise of these rights.

Article 7 of the Convention articulates the obligations of States Parties with respect to their role in the protection of women’s right to a life without violence. Specific obligations are listed that flow from the States Parties’ formal undertakings to refrain from committing acts of violence against women; demonstrate due diligence in preventing, investigating, and punishing violence against women; reform existing laws, policies, and administrative practices contributing to violence against women; and ensure that women victims have access to restitution, reparations, and other forms of just and effective remedies. Article 8 of the Convention also specifies that a number of other programs and measures must be adopted to promote public education and awareness, to mobilize communities in the fight against violence against women, and to offer specialized services and assistance to women victims.

The current review focuses on the implementation of the measures and dispositions described in articles 7 and 8 of the Convention. It also considers the efforts that are being deployed, as required by Article 9 of the Convention, to take special account of the vulnerability of women to violence by reason of their age, race, ethnic background, status as immigrants, socioeconomic position, or disabilities, among other factors.

http://www.un.org/en/sc/documents/resolutions/2000.shtml

S/RES/1325 (2000)

The Security Council adopted resolution (S/RES/1325) on women and peace and security on 31 October 2000. The resolution reaffirms the important role of women in the prevention and resolution of conflicts, peace negotiations, peace-building, peacekeeping, humanitarian response and in post-conflict reconstruction and stresses the importance of their equal participation and full involvement in all efforts for the maintenance and promotion of peace and security. Resolution 1325 urges all actors to increase the participation of women and incorporate gender perspectives in all United Nations peace and security efforts. It also calls on all parties to conflict to take special measures to protect women and girls from gender-based violence, particularly rape and other forms of sexual abuse, in situations of armed conflict. The resolution provides a number of important operational mandates, with implications for Member States and the entities of the United Nations system.

http://www.forumsec.org/pages.cfm/political-governance-security/biketawa...

http://www.ohchr.org/EN/ProfessionalInterest/Pages/OPCEDAW.aspx

In a landmark decision for women, the General Assembly, acting without a vote, adopted on 6 October 1999 a 21-article Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Discrimination against Women and called on all States parties to the Convention to become party to the new instrument as soon as possible. 

By ratifying the Optional Protocol, a State recognizes the competence of the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women -- the body that monitors States parties' compliance with the Convention -- to receive and consider complaints from individuals or groups within its jurisdiction.

The Protocol contains two procedures: (1) A communications procedure allows individual women, or groups of women, to submit claims of violations of rights protected under the Convention to the Committee. The Protocol establishes that in order for individual communications to be admitted for consideration by the Committee, a number of criteria must be met, including those domestic remedies must have been exhausted. (2) The Protocol also creates an inquiry procedure enabling the Committee to initiate inquiries into situations of grave or systematic violations of women’s rights. In either case, States must be party to the Convention and the Protocol. The Protocol includes an "opt-out clause", allowing States upon ratification or accession to declare that they do not accept the inquiry procedure. Article 17 of the Protocol explicitly provides that no reservations may be entered to its terms.

The Optional Protocol entered into force on 22 December 2000, following the ratification of the tenth State party to the Convention. The entry into force of the Optional Protocol puts it on an equal footing with International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination, and the Convention against Torture and other Forms of Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, which all have communications procedures. The inquiry procedure is the equivalent of that under the Convention against Torture.

http://research.un.org/en/docs/ga/quick/regular/48

Document can be located under A/RES/48/104

The UN Declaration on the Elimination of Violence against Women was adopted by the United Nations General Assembly in 1993. It covers physical, sexual and psychological violence as well as violence both at home and elsewhere in society.

The definition of violence against women that the UN presents in the Declaration is currently the most widely accepted definition:

‘Any act of gender-based violence that results in, or is likely to result in, physical, sexual or psychological harm or suffering to women, including threats of such acts, coercion or arbitrary  deprivation of liberty, whether occurring in public or in private life.’

The Declaration states three categories of violence against women: violence perpetrated by the State, such as violence against women in custody and as part of warfare; violence occurring within the general community, including rape, sexual harassment, trafficking in women and intimidation at work; and violence in the family and in the private sphere, for example incest and selective abortions).

According to the Declaration, violence against women is rooted in the historically unequal power relations between women and men. It also explains that violence against women is ‘one of the crucial social mechanisms by which women are forced into a subordinate position compared with men.’

The UN member states are therefore urged to legislate against the violence, work preventively and improve the situation of victimised women.

http://www.ohchr.org/EN/HRBodies/CEDAW/Pages/Recommendations.aspx

The Convention in Article 1 defines discrimination against women. The definition of discrimination includes gender-based violence, that is, violence that is directed against a woman because she is a woman or that affects women disproportionately. It includes acts that inflict physical, mental or sexual harm or suffering, threats of such acts, coercion and other deprivations of liberty. Gender-based violence may breach specific provisions of the Convention, regardless of whether those provisions expressly mention violence. 

http://www.ohchr.org/EN/HRBodies/CEDAW/Pages/Recommendations.aspx

http://www1.umn.edu/humanrts/instree/cairodeclaration.html

The Nineteenth Islamic Conference of Foreign Ministers (Session of Peace, Interdependence and Development), held in Cairo, Arab Republic of Egypt, from 9-14 Muharram 1411H (31 July to 5 August 1990),

Having examined the Report of the Meeting of the Committee of Legal Experts held in Tehran from 26 to 28 December, 1989;  Agrees to issue the Cairo Declaration on Human Rights in Islam that will serve as a general guidance for Member States in the Field of human rights.

http://www.ohchr.org/EN/HRBodies/CEDAW/Pages/Recommendations.aspx

1. The legislation in force to protect women against the incidence of all kinds of violence in everyday life (including sexual violence, abuses in the family, sexual harassment at the work place etc.);

2. Other measures adopted to eradicate this violence;

3. The existence of support services for women who are the victims of aggression or abuses;

4. Statistical data on the incidence of violence of all kinds against women and on women who are the victims of violence.