United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women

UN Women drafted and submitted two Secretary-General’s reports on “Intensification of efforts to eliminate all forms of violence against women” (A/67/220), and “Trafficking in women and girls” (A/67/170). Technical inputs and expertise was also provided to the co-chairs of the General Assembly’s 67th Session on the resolutions on “Intensification of efforts to eliminate all forms of violence against women” (A/RES/67/144) and “Trafficking in women and girls” (A/RES/67/145), respectively, as well as to Member States more generally. Negotiations on the two resolutions were monitored throughout the GA 67th Session. Negotiations on the General Assembly’s resolution on “Intensification of global efforts for the elimination of female genital mutilations” (A/RES/67/146) were also monitored. Hide

UN Women supported new or amended anti-violence legislation in India, Maldives, Mexico, Pakistan, Sierra Leone, Uganda, and Viet Nam - on a range of forms, including sexual harassment in the workplace, domestic violence, femicide, acid violence, and sexual offences. In both Viet Nam and Uganda, elements of anti-violence legislation have been incorporated into larger Family Development and Justice, Law and Order strategies, respectively. Hide

UNICEF and UNMIL collaborated with Ministry of Gender and Development in Liberia to convene a retreat on Child rape in October 2012. Also in Liberia, UNFPA supported the Ministry of Gender and Development to collaborate with civil society groups to launch and build capacity of the GBV observatory to help raise awareness of the referral pathway and issues rlated to teenage pregnancy, early marriage and rape. Several advocacy initiatives were undertaken by THINK and CEP (UNFPA funded partners) to address the issue of SGBV, including strengthening of six networks and four community outreach sessions. Dialogue was initiated with traditional leaders and men’s and women’s groups to address harmful Traditional Practices, resulting in the Ministry of Internal Affair’s announcement that FGM is prohibited and prosecutable. UN Women continues to expand the Peace Huts, emphasizing the role of women as peace builders and recognizes their key role in engaging with local authorities for prevention, increasing women’s voice and supporting them in engaging with authorities to improve access to justice, and provide active accompaniment of women and girls who are survivors of violence. Hide

In October 2012, on the occasion of the International Day of the Girl Child, UNFPA, UNICEF and UN WOMEN –co-hosted a high-level event in New York to address the issue of child marriage and called for renewed global action to end the practice. Hide

UN Women supported new local or national action plans to end violence against women in Cambodia, the Dominican Republic, FYR Macedonia (second generation strategy 2012-2015), Indonesia, Timor Leste (together with UNDP, UNFPA, IOM and UNICEF), and the Maldives (through a multi-sectoral group convened by the SG Campaign). In addition, the Family Protection Authority was established in the Maldives to oversee the implementation of the new action plan. In Nepal, UN Women provided technical expertise and support to engender the Foreign Employment Policy including protection and promotion of human rights for women migrant workers at country of origin, transit country or destination country to avoid harassment and discrimination.UN Women is also working to support the inclusion of voices of the most excluded groups such as youth, indigenous, ethnic minorities, rural women and others in public policy formulation in relation to ending violence against women. For example, in Ecuador, the entity responsible for the restructuring of the System of Justice Administration has included the priorities of the indigenous women’s organization’s agenda in its formal restructuring process. In Bolivia, indigenous women have now secured agreements for their involvement in Rights and Justice oversight committees at municipal levels. Work with women from indigenous Guaraní and Ayoreao communities in the Brazil-Paraguay border focused on empowering young women and girls to register and report cases of rights violations, including trafficking. In Mexico, UN Women has supported the development of a care model for violence against women that also provide sexual and reproductive health service, implemented through Indigenous Women’s Houses (CAMIs). In 2012, the number of CAMIs increased to 19, operating in 12 states – with government funding and indigenous women responsible for administering the centres. The CAMIs have been acknowledged as a best practice in the Permanent Forum for Indigenous Peoples. Hide

In Latin America, OHCHR and UN Women, together with the Spanish Federation of Human Rights Organizations and the Carlos IIII University of Madrid supported the formulation of a regional Protocol for the investigation of Femicide. The protocol will assist in strengthening national capacities to investigate, prosecute, punish and redress femicide. The Protocol will be promoted through, inter alia, regional and international human rights mechanisms. In Kosovo, OHCHR supported the development of a national action plan on Security Council resolution 1325. Hide

UN Women organized for community-led programming at the country level, such as in Liberia with its continued support to women’s peace huts, where women volunteers refer survivors of gender-based violence to medical, psychosocial and justice services, carry out grassroots mediation to prevent conflict, and have even investigated cases of sexual violence and referred them to police stations; the development of referral pathways for survivors in Timor-Leste, in collaboration with other UN entities, local women’s organizations, and local succo chiefs; and the organization of neighborhood safety patrols near Haiti’s IDP camps along the same routes as the women use to go to school, the market, or water pumps, in order to mark out areas for improved lighting or police presence and encourage women and girls to report any instances of gender-based violence. Hide

UN Women manages a programme for capacity development for elimination of violence against women (EVAW) practitioners, institutional strengthening for EVAW organisations, knowledge- building and sharing of effective strategies and promising practices. Hide

The Regional Coordination Mechanism Thematic Working Group on Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women (RCM TWGGEEW) (co-chaired by ESCAP and UN Women) established a Working Group on Gender Statistics, which includes a focus on VAW statistics. Hide

UN Women provided women inmates in Palestinian correction and rehabilitation centres (Palestinian prisons) with legal aid and representation from a gender perspective, social counseling sessions, recreational and rehabilitative activities; and provision of goods for primary needs for the women and their newborn children leaving inside the prison. Regular monitoring of the situation (social and legal) of women inmates in the occupied Palestinian territory was conducted and a paper was produced. UN Women has also provided financial support to the existing toll-free help in the occupied Palestinian territory for women and children victims of violence. Hide