United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime

Pursuant to resolution 18/1 of the Commission on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice, UNODC convened an intergovernmental expert group meeting, in Thailand, in November 2009, to develop, consistent with the Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners (SMR) and the United Nations Standard Minimum Rules for Non-custodial Measures (the Tokyo Rules), supplementary rules specific to the treatment of women in detention and in custodial and non-custodial settings. The meeting was attended by experts from twenty-five countries and non-governmental organizations and it endorsed a set of seventy draft rules. Hide

As part of a One-UN project on violence against women, UNODC held a training course in Viet Nam to build the capacity of law enforcement officers to effectively deal with cases of domestic violence. This first train-the-trainers session focused on gender equality principles, common characteristics of domestic violence and best practices in dealing with victims, witnesses and perpetrators. Hide

UNODC convened an Intergovernmental Expert Group Meeting (IEGM) to review and update the Model Strategies and Practical Measures on the Elimination of Violence against Women in the Field of Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice, adopted by the General Assembly with its resolution 52/86 in 1997. The IEGM was held in Bangkok, Thailand in March 2009. Hide

UNODC is carrying out training of law enforcement officials in Colombia and India, concentrating on investigation and punishment of trafficking in persons with a gender perspective. Regular training for military officials, including NATO, focusing particularly on trafficking for sexual exploitation is also being provided. Hide

In the Southern African region, under the framework of the United Nations Trust Fund for Human Security and in close collaboration with other UN agencies, UNODC supports activities aimed at strengthening capacity to address gender-based violence as a human rights violation, and empowering survivors, inter-alia, through training. Hide

In the Southern African region, under the framework of the United Nations Trust Fund for Human Security and in close collaboration with other UN agencies, UNODC supports several activities, including counselling and establishment of support groups for male perpetrators and potential perpetrators in order to break the cycle of violence. Hide

UNODC continued to support, and conducted research related to trafficking in persons, including on the nature of trafficking and national and regional responses to trafficking. Hide

Ongoing and planned UNODC projects on juvenile justice in Afghanistan, Burundi, Egypt, Haiti, Jordan, Lebanon and Yemen pay particular attention to the situation of girls and to awareness raising and training on the special needs of girls. A global project on implementation of the Guidelines on Justice in Matters involving Child Victims and Witnesses of Crime is ongoing and gives special consideration to the situation of girl victims and witnesses of crime. Hide

In Afghanistan, UNODC supported training for prison staff on the special needs of preparing women and girls for release and several tools developed. Hide

Within the framework of its thematic debate on ‘Aspects of violence against women that pertain directly to the Commission on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice’, the Commission, at its seventeenth session from 14-18 April 2008, considered the report of the Secretary-General on crime prevention and criminal justice responses to violence against women and girls. The Commission, in decision 17/1, requested UNODC to convene an intergovernmental group of experts, in cooperation with the institutes of the United Nations Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice Programme network, the Commission on the Status of Women and the Special Rapporteur on violence against women, to review and update the Model Strategies and Practical Measures on the Elimination of Violence against Women in the Field of Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice. Hide