United Nations A/HRC/20/16 General Assembly Human Rights Council Twentieth session Agenda item 3 Promotion and protection of all human rights, civil, political, economic, social and cultural rights, including the right to development Distr .: General 23 May 2012 Original: English Report of the Special Rapporteur on violence against women, its causes and consequences, Rashida Manjoo* ** Summary This thematic report addresses the topic of gender-related killings of women. Rather than a new form of violence, gender-related killings are the extreme manifestation of existing forms of violence against women. Such killings are not isolated incidents that arise suddenly and unexpectedly, but represent the ultimate act of violence which is experienced in a continuum of violence. Women subjected to continuous violence and living under conditions of gender-based discrimination and threat are always on "death row, always in fear of execution". Globally, the prevalence of different manifestations of gender-related killings is reaching alarming proportions. Culturally and socially embedded, these manifestations continue to be accepted, tolerated or justified-with impunity as the norm. States' responsibility to act with due diligence in the promotion and protection of women's rights is largely lacking as regards the killing of women. * The footnotes are reproduced as received, in the language of submission only. ** Late submission. GE.12-13600 Please recycle
A/HRC/20/16 Contents I. Introduction 1 II Activities 2-13 Paragraphs Page 3 A. Country visits 2 B. Communications and press releases 4-5 C. General Assembly and Commission on the Status of Women 6-9 D. Other activities III. Gender-related killings of women 14-81 A. Conceptual evolution of terms 20-28 6 B. Global trends and manifestations. 29-81 IV. International and national developments 82-102 A. International human rights law and jurisprudence 82-93 B. Some national practices 94-102 V. Conclusions and recommendations 103-116 3 2-3 3 3 3 10-13 4 4 8 20 20 24 26
A/HRC/20/16 I. Introduction 1. The present report, submitted pursuant to Human Rights Council resolution 16/7, is the third thematic report submitted to the Council by the Special Rapporteur on violence against women, its causes and consequences, Rashida Manjoo, since her appointment in June 2009. Chapter II summarizes the Special Rapporteur's activities since her previous report to the Council up until 20 March 2012. Chapters III to V address the topic of gender- related killings of women. II. Activities A. Country visits 2. During the period under review, the Special Rapporteur requested invitations to visit Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, India and Venezuela (Bolivarian Republic of). Earlier requests for country visits were also reiterated to the Governments of Bangladesh, Nepal, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan and Zimbabwe. 3. The Special Rapporteur visited Jordan, from 11 to 24 November 2011 (see A/HRC/20/16/Add.1); Italy, from 15 to 26 January 2012 (A/HRC/20/16/Add.2); and Somalia, from 9 to 16 December 2011 (A/HRC/20/16/Add.3). In addition, she visited Solomon Islands, from 12 to 16 March 2012, and Papua New Guinea, from 18 to 26 March 2012. The Special Rapporteur would like to thank these Governments for having responded positively to her requests for a visit and urges the Governments