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ACDemocracia worked in Ecuador to promote access to justice for women and girl survivors of violence. The UN Trust Fund-supported project seeks to promote the application of normative frameworks and policies for the protection of women’s rights by influencing legislative reform and changing cultural norms. The project is working with the Decentralized Autonomous Governments to strengthen the institutional response to violence at the local level. 

At least 20,000 people received information on women’s right to live free of violence through various publicity initiatives, including broadcasts on the national and international media. By providing short six-week courses for 92 people, the project was able to increase the number of women and girls survivors supported to 699, an almost 10-fold increase from the start of the project.

A petition was launched in support of a comprehensive law on violence against women and girls which gathered 27,000 physical and 10,000 virtual signatures from all over the country. In January 2018, ACDemocracia led advocacy along with the National Coalition of Women and UN Women for the adoption of a new Comprehensive Law for the Prevention and Eradication of Violence against Women, which was approved with 90 per cent votes in favour by the parliament in Ecuador.

Since 2014 in Tunisia, UN Women, jointly with UNFPA, OHCHR and UNICEF supported the development of the first draft law on violence against women.  Since the end of 2014, a close monitoring was ensured with the two consecutive governments to provide technical support and international standards’ guidance to ensure the review of the different versions. Despite the challenges facing the country, the council of ministers has adopted on 13 July 2016 a bill regarding VAW. The House of Representatives has also voted, on the 21st July, the draft of the Organic Law No. 29/2015 on the prevention and fight against human trafficking, which aims at fighting all forms of exploitations of persons, especially women. This law is considered to be in line with international standards.

In Kyrgyzstan, UNODC facilitated a public safety and crime prevention planning in 14 municipalities, focusing on domestic violence and other priorities. As a result of the active participation of women in local level dialogues on public safety, gender-based violence was included as a priority issue in approved local crime prevention plans in 4 districts.

In Namibia, UNODC conducted an assessment and analysis of information about existing responses to gender violence and provided detailed recommendations to national counterparts on policy and practical matters to enhance crime prevention and criminal justice responses to violence against women.

UN Women, in collaboration with the Jordanian National commission for Women(JNCW), held a roundtable meeting on “Jordan-Morocco sharing of experience on the criminal prosecution of rapists “in May 2016 in Amman, Jordan, at which 11 Jordanian parliamentarians as well as Moroccan parliamentarians exchanged views and experience with regards to the current amendments of the Penal Code. The Moroccan parliamentarians have explained the process they went through of reviewing the penal code over two years and then abolishing article 475 (similar provisions to 308) completely after one female minor “Amina” committed suicide for being forced to marry her rapist. At the end of the session, the Jordanian parliamentarians were equipped with knowledge on how to move forward on the abolishment of article 308 of the penal code.

In Georgia, UN Women supported the Domestic Violence Council to harmonize legislation with the Istanbul Convention and draft a governmental decree to institutionalize the gender equality mechanism within the executive branch of the government. Planned legislative amendments will enhance the Domestic Violence Law to reflect other forms of violence against women, include protective orders, criminalize stalking and female genital mutilation, and align the concept of rape with international standards.

In Guatemala, OHCHR, though a Progamme named Maya Programme, works with the Public Prosecutor’s Office (indigenous people’s department) on the drafting of a policy on access to justice for indigenous peoples with a human right’s perspective.  It requires the Public Prosecutor’s office to “develop and apply specific criteria for the attention, investigation, and criminal prosecution of femicide, sexual violence and other forms of violence against indigenous women.”

In Vietnam, UNODC supported the revision of the penal code and penal procedure code, promoting the incorporation of relevant international standards and norms, especially concerning violence against women. Similarly, With UN Women, UNODC conducted a gap analysis of Viet Nam's Penal Code and Criminal Procedure Code providing research findings and key UN joint recommendations for strengthening effective responses to violence against women to the National Assembly.

In Myanmar, UNODC provided inputs to bring legislation related to violence against women and drug control into line with international standards and norms.

In Croatia, UNDP supported the Government with evidence and legal analysis to draft the law, which entered into force in June 2015, on the rights of victims of sexual violence during the conflict of the 1990s. “Law on Rights of Victims of Sexual Violence During the Armed Aggression on the Republic of Croatia During the Homeland War.” This is the first law in the region that provides civilian victims of sexual violence in armed conflict with a comprehensive set of reparation measures: medical and psychosocial rehabilitation, financial compensation, legal aid and symbolic acts of reparation. UNDP supports the Ministry of Veterans’ Affairs in the implementation of mechanisms assessing the eligibility criteria for the status of survivors of sexual violence in armed conflict.