The Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars was chartered by the U.S.

Congress in 1968 as the

living memorial to the nation’s twenty-eighth president. It serves as the country’s key nonpartisan policy forum,
tackling global challenges through independent research and open dialogue. Bridging the worlds of academia
and public policy, the Center’s diverse programmatic activity informs actionable ideas for Congress, the
administration, and the broader policy community. Please visit us online at www.wilsoncenter.org.

Ambassador Mark Green, Director, President, & CEO

Board of Trustees
Bill Haslam, Chair; Drew Maloney, Vice Chair; Private Citizen Members: Nicholas Adams, Thelma Duggin, Brian
H. Hook, David Jacobson, Timothy Pataki, Alan N. Rechtschaffen, Hon. Louis Susman; Public Members: Antony
Blinken, Secretary, U.S. Department of State; Lonnie G. Bunch III, Secretary, Smithsonian Institution; Miguel
Cardona, Secretary, U.S. Department of Education; David Ferriero, Archivist of the United States; Carla D.
Hayden, Librarian of Congress; Adam Wolfson, Acting Chairman, National Endowment for the Humanities.

Available from:
Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars
One Woodrow Wilson Plaza
1300 Pennsylvania Avenue NW
Washington, DC 20004-3027
wilsoncenter.org
© December 2021, Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars
Photo credit: A woman looks on in horror at the Eleonas Refugee Camp in Athens, Greece: Alexandros
Michailidis, Shutterstock, April 2016
About the Series

Gender-based violence (GBV) affects one in three women worldwide, making it

an urgent and important policy challenge. Many countries around the world have

passed laws intended to protect women from violence, yet violence persists.

Over the past year, the COVID-19 pandemic has raised awareness of the perils

women face from gender-based violence—what has come to be known as the

“shadow pandemic”—but it has also aggravated risk factors while increasing

barriers to protection, support, and justice.

This publication aims to focus on the intersection of gender-based violence and

the rule of law by examining how legal frameworks, judicial system responses,

and public policy contribute to the ways in which gender-based violence is—and

is not—addressed around the world. Each piece addresses the complicated

challenge of gender-based violence and the successes and failures of various

public policy responses globally, and offers recommendations for a path forward.
Table of Contents

No Justice: Gender-Based Violence and Migration in Central America

By Natalie Gonnella-Platts, Jenny Villatoro, and Laura Collins

Criminalization of Gender-Based Violence: A Legal Obligation

By Moushira Khattab

Domestic Violence Legislation in Russia: Campaigning for Change

By Dr. Marianna Muravyeva

The Information Gains of the 4IR and Closing the GBV Knowledge Gap
By Cassandra Pagan Araujo

Addressing the Historical Roots of Gender-Based Violence in Twenty-First-Century India

By Hari Seshasayee

A Road Map from Canada: Mandatory Sexual Assault Law Training for Judges
By Hon. Rona Ambrose

Ukrainian NGO Efforts to Prevent and Combat Gender-Based Violence During the COVID-19 Pandemic
By Yuliia Anosova and Alona Kryvuliak

Harmful Traditional Practices in the North Caucasus, Russia

By Julia Antonova

Accessing Justice for Gender-Based Violence in Humanitarian Settings

By Sarah B. Barnes

Navigating Uncharted Waters: Curbing the Global Threat of Cyberviolence

By Flavia Bustreo, Felicia Knaul, Nick Metheny, and Renu Nargund

Two Big Risks of Forced Migrations: Migrant Smuggling and Trafficking in Persons
By Guadalupe Correa-Cabrera and Beatriz García Nice

Leaving No One Behind: Ensuring Women’s Access to Quality Multisectoral GBV Services: Experience
from Zimbabwe
By Verena D. Bruno and Julie Diallo
Judging with a Gender Perspective to Guarantee Access to Justice for Women and Girls
By EQUIS: Justicia para las Mujeres A.C. (EQUIS)

Why the Rule of Law Is Not Enough

By Dabney P. Evans

As an International Community, We Cannot Turn Our Backs on the Women and Children of Afghanistan
By Natalie Gonnella-Platts

COVID-19 Lockdowns and Gender-Based Violence across Ethnic Groups in Guatemala

By Laura T. Iesue, PhD

Ni Una Menos, Not One Less: Femicides and Gender-Based Violence in Mexico and Northern Central
America
By Gema Kloppe-Santamaría

A Return to “College Culture” Sparks Student-Led Protests against Sexual Violence in Higher Education
(Again)
By Renu Sara Nargund and Tracey Vitchers

Preventing GBV Through Positive Masculinities: Fathers’ Clubs–A Grassroots Bottom-Up Approach
By Plan International Canada

Domestic Violence in Russia: Existing and Proposed Legislation

By Anna Rivina, PhD

The Violence of Shuttering Feminist and Queer Communications

By Rui Zhong
 GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE INSIGHT: CENTRAL AMERICA

Photo Credit: Honduran women fleeing poverty and gang violence, at a stopover point in Oaxaca, Mexico, en route to the U.S.: Vic Hinterlang,
Shutterstock, November 2018

No Justice: Gender-Based
Violence and Migration
in Central America
Natalie Gonnella-Platts, Jenny Villatoro, and Laura Collins

Gender Based
Violence
INTRODUCTION third path—death either by femicide or suicide. At
national levels, it seriously inhibits security, opportu-
Violence against women and girls is often excluded nity, and development.
from conversations on the nexus of Central Ameri-
can migration, regional development, and domestic As circumstances at the southern border of the
immigration reform. Over the last half-century, United States demonstrate, gender-based violence
topics such as economic empowerment, democra- has a direct influence on migration flows across the
cy, transparency, and security have dominated the region and is deeply tangled with cyclical challeng-
root-causes conversation. es of inequity and poverty. For those who choose
to seek assistance or flee their communities, high
The aim of these investments is to improve the rates of revictimization and bias further obstruct
overall stability and well-being of countries and access to justice and safety.
communities in the region, but their effectiveness
is limited by a failure to consider the impacts of Until policies and programs respond to the serious
gender-based violence on social and systemwide violations of agency and human rights perpetuated
challenges. against women and girls (and within systems and
society at large), instability in and migration from
Though there has been increasing focus from US the Northern Triangle only stand to grow.
and international influencers on the levels of vi-
olence in El Salvador, Guatemala, and Honduras As the United States and the international com-
(known as the Northern Triangle) and its impact on munity consider a comprehensive plan on Central
migration, an adequate response to the gendered America and immigration reform, proposed strate-
differences in the ways violence is perpetrated gies must anchor the status and safety of women
remains limited and at times nonexistent. and girls at the center of solutions.

This needs to change, especially since gender-based

violence within the Northern Triangle constitutes a WHY THIS MATTERS NOW: THE SILENT
daily threat to women and girls—one that has been PANDEMIC
significantly worsened by corruption, weak institu-
tions, and a culture of impunity toward perpetrators. Gender-based violence is one of the most wide-
At individual and community levels, gender-based spread and egregious human rights violations in the
violence drives women and girls to internal displace- world. The United Nations defines gender-based
ment, migration to the United States, or a somber violence as any act “that results in, or is likely to re-
sult in, physical, sexual, or mental harm or suffering
“Violence in all three Northern to women and girls, including threats of such acts,
coercion or arbitrary deprivation of liberty, whether
Triangle countries is high, although occurring in public or in private life.”1
women and girls face a ‘continuum of
violence’ that affects all areas of their Plainly put, gender-based violence is any harmful
act against a person because of their gender. This
lives and is distinctly gendered.”

3 l Gender-Based Violence Insight: Central America

Technical Table for Conciliation on Homicides and Femicides Figures DIA-MJSP and PNC. From: “Violence against Women, El Salvador
2020,” Infosegura, June 18, 2021.4

includes obvious behaviors such as harassment and and girls are habitually viewed as property by gangs2
sexual assault as well as lesser-known examples and can be targeted for torture, rape, and murder as
such as economic abuse (controlling a person’s a way to get revenge on rival members.3 4
access to money and/or resources to keep them
financially dependent on their abuser) and coercion. Of the 25 most dangerous places in the world for
women, 10 are in the Western Hemisphere, with
Violence in all three Northern Triangle countries is Central American countries Honduras and El Salva-
high, although women and girls face a “continuum dor near the top of the list, at numbers two and four
of violence” that affects all areas of their lives and is respectively.5
distinctly gendered.
Young women and adolescent girls face the most
For women and girls, toxic masculinity, machismo, serious threat of violence. For example, while the
gender inequality, and ineffective justice systems re- risk of murder exists throughout a woman’s life,
inforce cyclical violence across all levels of society. women of reproductive age face a significant risk
From harassment and economic abuse to sexual of violent death, according to an analysis on the
assault and femicide, every point within this contin- incidence of the crimes by Infosegura, which does
uum undermines a victim’s agency and well-being, data collection and analysis work on Central Amer-
as well as the stability and prosperity of her com- ican citizen-security issues for the United Nations
munity. Development Program (UNDP) and the US Agency
for International Development (USAID).
While men in the region are at a higher risk of
violent death, the continuum of abuse perpetrated Honduras and El Salvador had Latin America’s high-
against women is most often driven by sexual, intra- est rates of femicide—the targeted killing of women
family, and domestic violence. Additionally, women and girls based on sex and gender—in 2019. And in

4 l Gender-Based Violence Insight: Central America

Photo Credit: A Guatemalan mother with her child in Guazacapán, Guatemala: Kyle M. Price, Shutterstock, November 2018

2020, an average of 11 women were murdered each Concerning perceptions about the status of women
month in El Salvador, with half of them under the and male entitlement also persist, according to 2018
age of 31.6 data from Oxfam that included Honduras, Guate-
mala, and El Salvador among its Latin American
In Guatemala, teenage girls face a substantial risk sample. Three-quarters of young people surveyed
of being “disappeared,” with 8 out of every 10,000 stated that their male friends believe harassment of
girls between the ages of 15 and 17 reported miss- women is normal, while a significant majority also
ing each year.7 said that their male friends monitor their female
partners’ phones and social media.8
Though the prevalence of early and forced marriage
is often overlooked in the region (compared with El Salvador: A sexual crime was reported every
other parts of the world), survey data from UNICEF four hours on average in 2020, and 48.5 percent of
reveals that Central American countries—including victims were 14 years old or younger9—although the
the Northern Triangle nations—have early marriage true number of victims is likely higher, as reporting
rates above both the global and regional averages. rates are low (6 percent).10 A 2017 national survey
In Honduras and Guatemala, around one in three found that 34 percent of women reported being a
women between the ages of 20 and 24 indicated victim of violence within the last 12 months, 4 out
that they were in a marriage or informal union be- of 10 women suffered sexual violence throughout
fore the age of 18. The rate of early marriage is only their lives, and 1 in 10 said she had been a victim of
slightly better in El Salvador, at one in four women. sexual violence in the last 12 months.11 Femicides
reached a high of 16.8 per 100,000 in 2016. To put
that number in perspective, that same year,

5 l Gender-Based Violence Insight: Central America

the total homicide rate for the United States was 5 tion, including a history of repression and genocide.
per 100,000.12
During the genocidal Guatemalan civil war that last-
Honduras: Honduras has the second-highest rate ed from 1960 to 1996, state sanctioned mass rape
of femicide in Latin America.13 In 2020, there were during massacres was used to repress the Indige-
at least seven sexual crimes reported each day, 54 nous populations—with offenses committed publicly
percent of victims were under the age of 15, and and bodies often left on display with the intent to
76 percent were under 20.14 Femicides in Hondu- instill terror in the Mayan communities.19 Truth com-
ras are 50 percent higher than the Latin American missions state that more than 100,000 Indigenous
average and more than triple the global average.15 women were raped and forced into sex slavery.20
One-third of all femicides occurred in the home, up
600 percent from 2013. Honduras does not have State-sanctioned and state-accepted gendered
a suicide-femicide law, but data show that female violence may have contributed to a culture that tol-
suicides start younger (6 to 9 years old) and occur erates violence against women. Guatemalans were
more frequently than male suicides, up to the age the most accepting of gender-based violence in a
of 14.16 2014 survey of Latin American countries by Vander-
bilt University, while El Salvador came in second.21

“State-sanctioned and state-

Unfortunately, the COVID-19 pandemic has further
accepted gendered violence may have exacerbated the risk of violence to women and girls
contributed to a culture that tolerates in the Northern Triangle, as it has in every region
of the world. Exploited by gangs and others, lock-
violence against women.”
downs have forced those most at risk for violence
to shelter in proximity to their abusers. All three
Guatemala: In Guatemala, about 8 of every 1,000 countries within the region have reported sizable
women and girls were the victim of violence in increases in intrafamily violence since the start of
2020. Thirty women were murdered on average the pandemic. El Salvador has also seen a notable
each month last year, or almost one per day, the increase in intrafamily femicide.
lowest rate in the last 10 years. Reported rape cases
averaged 14 per day.17 One of the most extreme and
recognizable forms of gender-based violence is sex The Role of Rights and Systems
slavery. According to a report by the International
Commission against Impunity in Guatemala (CICIG) Access to, and effectiveness and transparency of,
and UNICEF: “A combination of gangs, crime social services and justice systems have consider-
families, and drug trafficking organizations run sex able influence on the status and well-being of wom-
trafficking rings in Guatemala that may involve some en and girls around the world. Sadly, the Northern
48,500 victims.”18 Triangle provides one of the most poignant exam-
ples of what happens when justice and infrastruc-
Women in Indigenous and rural communities may ture remain out of reach or repeatedly fail.
have it even worse. For example, Indigenous wom-
en in Guatemala face multiple layers of discrimina-

6 l Gender-Based Violence Insight: Central America

Photo credit: A Central American asylum seeker boards a bus with her son in La Joya, Texas, that’s headed to a border patrol station:
Vic Hinterlang, Shutterstock, May 2021

El Salvador, Guatemala, and Honduras all have stat- Rape, domestic violence, and sexual harassment are
utes that outline protections and support for wom- all illegal under Salvadoran law and punishable by 6
en and girls impacted by violence. However, lack to 10 years in prison, 1 to 3 years in prison, and 5
of enforcement, corruption, and serious resource to 8 years in prison, respectively.26 Spousal rape is
challenges regularly undermine access to justice criminalized, but at the discretion of the presiding
for women within the region, reinforcing a cycle of judge. El Salvador is also the only country in the
inequity and gender-based violence. world where there is a law against femicide-suicide:
the crime of driving a girl or woman to suicide by
Despite having the highest rate of violence outside abusing her.27
a war zone,22 pockets of the elite within the region
are safe—primarily due to their ability to pay for Honduras criminalizes acts of gender-based violence
private security.23 This means that access to safety such as domestic abuse, sexual assault, and femi-
is directly related to wealth. cide. But the criminal justice system does not ade-
quately punish perpetrators, leaving many victims
Regional impunity rates are high overall, and 95 to try to pursue justice under the Honduran Civil
percent of crimes against women and girls in all Code’s Law Against Domestic Violence. The civil
three countries go unpunished,24 bolstering fear of penalties are paltry—a mere one to three months of
reporting and retribution, the normalization of gen- community service. Monetary damages are award-
der-based violence, and lack of trust in authorities.25 ed only on the basis of economic harm.

7 l Gender-Based Violence Insight: Central America

 and it’s the fourth leading cause of death among
“The lack of enforcement and access women ages 20 to 49. Unfortunately, since the
to justice for women and girls across inception of the femicide-suicide law in 2012, only
60 cases have been investigated, and only one has
the Northern Triangle has direct
made it to court. Even more concerning, none have
implications for the asylum crisis resulted in a conviction.29
along the southern border of the
In Honduras, which has one of the highest rates
United States.”
of femicide in the world, no charges are brought or
convictions secured in about 95 percent of cases.30
Like other countries in the region, Guatemala is a Moreover, punishments are limited because most
signatory of various international treaties focused cases of gender-based violence are adjudicated un-
on preventing and responding to gender-based der the Honduras Civil Codes Law Against Domestic
violence. Additionally, both the 2008 Law Against Violence.
Femicide and the Guatemalan Criminal Code crimi-
nalize gender-motivated violence, including psycho- In Guatemala, resource gaps, limited response
logical, economic, and physical abuse. The 2008 law from law enforcement, and the commutability of
specifically sets defined mandates for punishments sentences render justice and safety out of reach
for gender-based violence, including a 25- to 50-year for many women, regardless of advancements
sentence (without the possibility of early release) in legislation to protect them. The United Nations
for those convicted of femicide. estimated in 2018 that 83 percent of crimes against
women in Guatemala go unpunished.31 Additionally,
But regardless of the scope of these and other the country currently doesn’t have any laws prohibit-
laws, none of the prohibited crimes against women ing sexual harassment.
and girls are effectively enforced.
The lack of enforcement and access to justice for
For example, even though El Salvador and Hondu- women and girls across the Northern Triangle has
ras have joined other countries across the region direct implications for the asylum crisis along the
in moving forward strict legislation prohibiting the southern border of the United States. About 60
practice of early marriage, enforcement challeng- percent of female Central American asylum seekers
es, gang violence, and harmful social norms have who responded to a 2015 United Nations survey
limited progress in protecting young women and said that they had reported incidents to the police,
adolescent girls. but none had received adequate protection—or, in
some cases, any protection at all.32
More than two-thirds of Salvadoran women have
experienced violence in their lifetime, but only 6 Machismo and gender bias also directly influence
percent reported the crimes against them, a 2017 both judicial and civic institutions, causing further
national survey found.28 Suicide among women and trauma for survivors. Ineffective coordination be-
girls is on the rise in El Salvador, accounting for 57 tween agencies, law enforcement, and legal insti-
percent of the deaths of girls between 10 and 19, tutions—and their lack of informed policies when

8 l Gender-Based Violence Insight: Central America

Photo Credit: Indigenous Kaqchikel family members gather in a bride’s home to ask for her hand in marriage, in Chimaltenango,
Guatemala: Byron Ortiz, Shutterstock, November 2011

dealing with gender-based violence—worsens dis- This gender bias and social stigma carries over into
crimination and the stigmatization of victims when other institutions, such as education and health.
crimes are reported. Adolescent mothers are often kicked out of school
for being a “bad influence” on other students, and
Women and girls targeted by gangs are often dis- gender-based violence survivors have reported be-
criminated against within the justice system, with ing denied medical assistance.35
law enforcement, prosecutors, and judges frequent-
ly believing that the women’s abuse was attributed Coupled with the trauma already experienced by
to gang affiliation. This results in poor investigations survivors, each of these factors contributes to a lack
and classification of women’s deaths as due to a of trust in institutions, high levels of impunity for
“gang conflict” rather than femicide.33 perpetrators, and a vicious cycle of repeat violence
against women and girls.
Perhaps most concerning, many survivors of
gender-based violence report being assaulted or Faced with this dire reality, women and girls often
revictimized by the people who were supposed to have three choices: (1) report and face disbelief, (2)
help them. For example, approximately 12 percent stay and risk additional violence, or (3) flee.
of sexual violence cases reported to the Salvadoran
Organization of Women for Peace were perpetrat-
ed by “judges, prosecutors, lawyers, and police
officers.”34

9 l Gender-Based Violence Insight: Central America

THE INFLUENCE OF GENDER-BASED Northern Triangle. Gender-based violence lowers
VIOLENCE ON MIGRATION educational attainment and labor market participa-
tion, reduces gross domestic product (GDP), and
The reasons people migrate from the Northern Trian- leads to higher levels of internal displacement,39
gle are complex, based on a variety of interconnect- poorer health outcomes, higher maternal and infant
ed factors. Some of the most obvious are poverty, mortality rates,40 and worse development outcomes
instability, and corruption in their home countries, as for children.41
well as impunity for violent offenders—a confluence
of negatives that results in “push factors.” There are A 2016–2017 study by Vanderbilt University found
also more nuanced drivers that help create an envi- that both men and women expressed a higher
ronment people either choose to leave or are forced intention to emigrate if they lived in neighbor-
to leave. These include low educational attainment, hoods where there had been attacks on women.
the influence of remittances, and family reunifica- Gender-based violence affects entire communities
tion. where it occurs, increasing the overall sense of
instability and vulnerability.42

“Gender-based violence affects Before reaching the southern border of the United
States, many individuals and families are internally
entire communities where it occurs, displaced, looking for safer areas in their own coun-
increasing the overall sense of tries.43 Many people are internally displaced multiple
instability and vulnerability.” times before ultimately fleeing to another country.44
Unfortunately, due to the ties that exist between
wealth and security, many of them only have access
While many of these push factors have been to areas with equal or worse security concerns.45
present for years, the demographics of arrivals at
the southwestern border of the United States are There are more than 1.4 million people internally
shifting.36 As more women and children seek refuge displaced in the Northern Triangle, according to the
from violence and inequity, it’s clear that one driver International Rescue Committee. Most of those
is having an outsized impact: gender-based violence. internally displaced in Honduras between 2004
and 2018 cited violence as the reason, with most
For example, women in El Salvador were more displacements occurring from one department
likely than men to say that they intended to migrate (state) to another.46 High internal displacement is
because they felt they would be victims of crimes both emblematic of, and a contributor to, instability,
against their person (rather than against their prop- which ultimately drives out migration.
erty).37 The number of women crossing the southern
border tripled between 2018 and 2019.38

Violence, and gender-based violence specifically,

contribute significantly to overall instability in the

10 l Gender-Based Violence Insight: Central America

Photo Credit: Indigenous Guatemalan mother and daughter walking in a rural village in Guatemala: Omri Eliyahu, Shutterstock, April
2019

Revictimization
“The fact that many women face
A significant number of women and girls experience further risk of abuse within the
further victimization in their migration journey, on United States is often overlooked,
top of the personal security concerns they already
faced in their home communities. Whether seeking
even as some attention has focused
security elsewhere in the region or making the ardu- on the experiences of migrant women
ous journey to the US border, kidnapping, coercion, during their journey north.”
sexual violence, and human trafficking are serious
realities faced by female migrants already fleeing
violence. Migrants traveling through Mexico are vulnerable
to smugglers (coyotes), gangs, cartels, and police.49
“The vast majority of victims of sexual violence in More than 60 percent of migrants were exposed to
the context of migration are women and girls,” ac- a violent situation in the two years before leaving
cording to a 2021 analysis from the United Nations their home countries, according to a new report
Office of Drugs and Crime.47 Most of these cases from Doctors Without Borders, which operates a
go unreported.48 But the information that does number of health care posts in Mexico that offer
exist—from law enforcement agencies, immigrant services to migrants. Among migrants traveling with
advocates, and migrant women themselves—re- children, that number jumps to 76 percent. One-
flects a highly concerning pattern of revictimization third of all migrants were internally displaced before
and abuse. making the journey north, and close to 58 percent

11 l Gender-Based Violence Insight: Central America

were exposed to additional violence along the safe. An understanding of legal rights and access
route.50 Unfortunately, gender disaggregated data is to services—including health, trauma, and legal
not available for comparison, a challenge that further support—also remain out of reach for many female
hinders effective and targeted solutions. migrants, furthering cycles of exploitation.

Between 60 and 80 percent of female migrants are Current US refugee and asylum law does not rec-
raped as they travel through Mexico, according to ognize gender-based violence as its own category
a study by Amnesty International.51 When prepar- warranting protection. According to the American
ing to migrate, many females get a contraceptive Bar Association, US protections for victims of
shot, knowing they face a high likelihood of assault gender-based violence are built upon 20 years of
during the journey.52 “Sexual violence is an unfor- advocacy and sometimes favorable legal opinions.54
tunate common feature of all smuggling routes,” a These protections are tenuous, with any presidential
study by the United Nations Office on Drugs and administration able to roll back the decisions made
Crime found, and sexual violence is used to “pay” under its predecessor. Attorney General Merrick
for passage (transactional rape) or “perpetrated for Garland recently reinstated prior precedent for gen-
no purpose other than a demonstration of power, der-based violence asylum requests and announced
misogyny, racism, or sexual gratification.”53 Mexico that the Department of Justice would pursue a
must also take steps to protect migrants within its formal rule.55 But even this could be reversed in the
borders. future.

The fact that many women face further risk of abuse Until legislation enshrines gender-based violence as
within the United States is often overlooked, even a condition warranting humanitarian protection, the
as some attention has focused on the experiences United States will continue to turn away women and
of migrant women during their journey north. Again, girls who merit refuge.
data gaps and fear of reporting remain challenges to
understanding the full scope of revictimization, but
testimonies increasingly describe an abhorrent pat-
THE BROADER IMPACT OF
tern of gender-based violence perpetrated against
GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE ON
female migrants within American border cities and
beyond. REGIONAL STABILITY AND PROSPERITY

Women and girls undertake this risky journey with Gender-based violence is estimated to cost some
no guarantee of legal protection in the United countries around the world as much as 3.7 percent
States. But they come because the horrors they of GDP—a total “more than double what most gov-
face at home are so much worse. ernments spend on education,” according to global
data from the World Bank.56
It’s important to remember that seeking asylum
is often the only legal means that migrants who Simply put: A country cannot succeed when half
qualify have of entering the United States. Although of its population is undervalued, unprotected, and
requesting asylum is legal, the path to asylum is not denied agency to decide and act upon their choices.

12 l Gender-Based Violence Insight: Central America

High levels of gender inequity and violence serious- Strongly influenced by safety concerns, secondary
ly inhibit opportunity, disincentivize investment, and school attendance rates have only reached 44 per-
ultimately stunt economic development. cent in Guatemala, 47 percent in Honduras, and 60
percent in El Salvador. These equate to some of the
How can anyone be expected to thrive when her lowest rates of adolescent school attendance across
day-to-day priority is simply to survive? Latin America. Upper secondary school completion
rates are even more concerning at 25 percent, 25
The realities facing women and children across the percent, and 36 percent for females in Guatemala,
Northern Triangle are complex and acutely impacted Honduras, and El Salvador, respectively.57 And when
by intersecting issues. Policy structures and legal it comes to migration specifically, around 70 percent
systems, access to services and opportunities, of all migrants from the Northern Triangle claim to
interpersonal relationships, and community, social, have received little to no education beyond primary
and environmental pressures all affect the status curriculum.
and well-being of populations.
Additionally, with one of the highest estimated ad-
Though violence against women and girls as an olescent fertility rates in the region, the prevalence
issue is often viewed within a silo, it is both influ- of coercion, early unions, and sexual abuse sig-
enced by and an influence on broader barriers to nificantly impact the ability of adolescent girls and
stability and prosperity across the region. young women to remain in school. For example, 22
percent of Salvadoran teenagers between the ages
of 15 and 19 who dropped out of school became
“Simply put: A country cannot mothers soon after. Guatemala specifically suffers
succeed when half of its population from a high teenage fertility rate (20 percent), with
more than 104,000 births to girls 19 and under in
is undervalued, unprotected, and 2020, including almost 5,000 to mothers between
denied agency to decide and act upon the ages of 10 and 14.58 The true number of births
their choices.” to girls under 14 is unknown, however: In response
to a 2012 law that mandates that hospitals report
under-14 births, families have the girls deliver at
From education and employment to health and home to protect the perpetrator. For girls under 14,
well-being, the continuum of gender-based violence 25 percent of reported rape cases involve the girl’s
undercuts opportunities and upward mobility for father, while 89 percent involve a family member
individuals, communities, and populations at large. or someone known to the family.59 While high in all
three countries, Honduras has the highest rate of
For example, although most countries within Central child marriage at 34 percent (30 percent in Guate-
America have seen significant progress and parity mala, 26 percent in El Salvador).60 In Honduras, 25
in primary school access and completion rates, the percent of girls become pregnant before turning 18,
reality is vastly different when it comes to second- half of those as a result of rape.61
ary education. While 9 in 10 boys and girls transition
to secondary school, completion rates remain low.

13 l Gender-Based Violence Insight: Central America

Gaps in educational attainment and high adolescent The governments of El Salvador,
fertility rates overlaid with unequal gender norms Guatemala, and Honduras should
also result in mothers having fewer opportunities
strengthen justice systems, enforce rule
to participate in the formal labor market and less
economic independence. This includes a higher of law, and create/enhance a continuum of
likelihood of involuntarily becoming primary care- care approach to gender-based violence.
takers and/or working in the informal market with
little to no access to social security. This culminates El Salvador, Guatemala, and Honduras must enforce
in an increase in the burden of care and unpaid the rule of law. This includes increasing access
labor.62 This disparity has broader impacts on both to reporting crimes, investigating, and prosecut-
economic growth and workforce participation. The ing crimes (especially where state actors may be
Observatory for Sexual and Reproductive Health in involved) and ensuring protection for survivors and
Guatemala estimates that the gap in educational at- witnesses. Enforcing the rule of law means taking
tainment between adolescent mothers and mothers all of these steps before gender-based violence
ages 20 to 30 represents a loss of more than $55 reaches the level of sex trafficking or femicide.
million dollars annually. Women face more limited Harassment, verbal abuse, and other early forms of
options for employment than their male counter- gender-based violence must receive greater ac-
parts, “although women have achieved the same (or knowledgement and response.
higher) educational levels as men in many countries,
women’s employment continues to be concentrated El Salvador, Guatemala, and Honduras should also
in low-wage, informal-sector jobs.”63 work with supporting partners—such as USAID,
the International Development Bank, International
Justice Mission, and others—to strengthen their
RECOMMENDATIONS justice systems and implement trauma-informed
best practices.
In seeking to implement effective and sustainable
solutions to bolster peace and prosperity within the Trauma-informed best practices should not start and
Northern Triangle, the following recommendations stop at the justice system. Social service providers,
should be key considerations for policymakers, gov- health care professionals, educators, faith-based
ernment institutions, and corporate and nonprofit organizations, survivor shelters, and others should
actors. Though these recommendations were devel- collaborate to provide a continuum of care approach
oped in response to the circumstances in the North- to survivors of gender-based violence. Ultimately,
ern Triangle, rates of gender-based violence across developing a community-wide strategy will help
the Western Hemisphere and beyond demonstrate foster trust in institutions and support the cultural
that many also have wider application: and social change needed to prevent gender-based
violence from happening in the first place.

14 l Gender-Based Violence Insight: Central America

The Mexican and US governments, in increased collection and dissemination of this data
partnership with nonprofit organizations, and other metrics can provide NGOs, policymak-
ers, and officials with a more complete picture of
should improve access to legal counsel and
what is happening on the southwestern border of
trauma support for women and girls fleeing the United States and the effectiveness of current
gender-based violence. policies in place.64

Mexico, as a transit and receiving country, and the Collaboration on security and humanitarian initia-
United States, as a destination country, should rec- tives by the United States, Mexico, El Salvador, Gua-
ognize the distinct needs of women and girls that temala, and Honduras should include gender dis-
are seeking humanitarian protection and also imple- aggregation of data they collect, as well as sharing
ment trauma-informed best practices and support of that data and analysis. A key component of this
for survivors fleeing gender-based violence. should focus on gender-based violence within the
Northern Triangle and the experiences of migrant
Access to trauma-informed best practices and legal women. Accurate and updated data on the status
counsel ensures that victim’s rights are protected and experiences of female migrants and survivors
and that those who qualify for asylum are granted it. of violence remains woefully sparse, even more so
In many cases, survivors may qualify for alternative among Indigenous, rural, and extremely poor com-
forms of humanitarian protection, and access to munities. Moreover, data tracking the effectiveness
legal counsel could reduce the asylum case back- and expediency of justice systems across the region
log by helping survivors of gender-based violence also remain limited. Both policy and innovation can
navigate the complex immigration system and move play a significant role in tackling these challenges.
their cases to other appropriate channels.
NGOs have made notable inroads on original data
Governments, corporations, and collection and the combining of disparate official
nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) data sources to shine a light on gender-based
violence. Infosegura, for example, is executed by
should prioritize gender disaggregated data
the UNDP’s Regional Bureau for Latin America and
collection. the Caribbean and is funded by USAID. The result
is invaluable data in seven countries (including the
The lack of gender disaggregated data creates Northern Triangle countries) that provide local and
critical knowledge gaps that can impede stakehold- international stakeholders with critical information
ers’ ability to support or implement strategies that on incidences of gender-based violence. The Inter-
effectively improve their respective issue-areas. national Rescue Committee has also seen great
Effective policy, at any level, cannot be made in a success in both disseminating information and col-
data vacuum. lecting data via its mobile phone-based application,
CuéntaNos.65
For example, US Customs and Border Protection
has limited disaggregated data collection on border
apprehensions or asylum requests by gender. An

15 l Gender-Based Violence Insight: Central America

The private sector also has a role to play in funding technologies, health, and education) and countries
these initiatives. Companies should provide techni- (El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, and
cal and capacity-building support around digital initia- the United States) should be a component of any
tives as part of their social corporate responsibility gender strategy.
programs and disaggregate and analyze their own
internal data on the status and success of women Public and private sector stakeholders
on their staff. Innovation is a key driver of private
must meaningfully engage with local
sector success, and companies are well positioned
communities, including men and boys,
to innovate around how they can best support their
workforce and communities. For example, Applaudo on gender equity to challenge and uproot
Studios, a tech and software development company antiquated and harmful social norms.
based in El Salvador, not only has specific training
initiatives for women but also boasts that 45 per- In seeking to ensure sustainable progress in ad-
cent of its leadership is female. dressing gender-based violence, any investments in
gender equality must incorporate targeted engage-
Collection and sharing of gender-disaggregated data ment with men and boys. Direct outreach to males
is simply a necessity if stakeholders are going to opens channels of communication and understand-
positively effect change. ing. It also enhances advocacy and the success of
interventions through the key influence of allyship.
Governments and the private sector should This is particularly true when seeking to build affinity
for the status and well-being of all members of
invest in capacity-building of, partnership
society. And dismantling harmful gender norms and
with, and direct investment in local their acceptance within society is a critical step.
organizations and advocates who are Though greater resources are significantly needed in
leading change. this area, organizations and influencers like Promun-
do and the Spouses of CARICOM Leaders Action
Corporate, foundation, and government donors Network have demonstrated and replicated impact-
should partner with and meaningfully support local ful efforts focused on male allyship in the fight to
organizations and advocates in the Northern Triangle eradicate gender-based violence.
who are working to prevent gender-based violence,
enhance community response efforts, and aid sur- Governments and private sector institutions
vivors.
should support advocacy efforts that inform
women and girls of their rights and agency.
Systemic and social change will take effort and
investment from all members of society and at both
Despite their significant influence on their fami-
macro and micro levels. Foreign aid on behalf of
lies, communities, and countries, many women
the United States should include capacity-building
in Central America are unaware of their individual
and partnership with the organizations and advo-
rights as defined and protected by the law. This dis-
cates that are leading change. Collaboration across
connect is especially acute in rural and Indigenous
sectors (such as information and communication

16 l Gender-Based Violence Insight: Central America

regions. From mobile phone applications to radio lend their expertise on how to best leverage digital
broadcasts, advocacy and awareness campaigns technologies to reduce instances of gender-based
that meet women and girls where they are can go violence.
a long way in building recognition of their agency
and challenging patriarchy. International corporations
that have had success in supporting knowledge and
CONCLUSION
capacity-building around labor rights should explore
ways in which these innovations can be adapted and
The Northern Triangle, Mexico, and the United
expanded to include an emphasis on gender rights
States are at a crossroads. El Salvador, Guatemala,
within the communities where they engage.
and Honduras can either take advantage of a young
population of prime working age by promoting pol-
The US government and other international icies that create a safe, stable environment where
partners should leverage existing women and girls can fully participate, or they can
infrastructure and initiatives to include continue on a path that is leading to substantial lev-
els of gender-based violence, instability, migration,
gender metrics and goals.
and economic stagnation.

There are many initiatives implemented by inter-

As research continuously demonstrates, when
national organizations and foreign and domestic
empowered, active, and engaged, women and girls
governments. Many of these rightly focus on
are a critical catalyst for security and prosperity.
addressing root causes of migration, economic de-
Countries with higher levels of gender equity are
velopment, climate resiliency, and more. Stakehold-
more peaceful and stable overall.66 Gender equality
ers should evaluate their programs to see where
can provide better outcomes for children, increased
gendered metrics and goals can be incorporated
labor productivity, lower poverty rates, and reduced
and where existing infrastructure and “wins” can be
levels of violence.67
leveraged, enhanced, and replicated.

In seeking to secure a brighter future across the

Creative and collaborative thinking here is wel-
Western Hemisphere, immigration and develop-
comed. For example, each country has a strategy
ment policies must include solutions to address
for implementing digitization—which could help re-
gender inequity and gender-based violence. As
duce gender-based violence by increasing access to
current circumstances at the southern border of the
reporting and services, as well as information about
United States demonstrate, stability and prosperity
rights, and could contribute to the implementation
are not possible without them.
and efficient execution of best practices on the part
of the provider. Domestic governments already
have partnerships with international organizations,
such as the Inter-American Development Bank, and
US-based foreign assistance through USAID, to help
reach their digitization goals. These partnerships
should incorporate gender-advocacy groups that can

17 l Gender-Based Violence Insight: Central America

ABOUT THE AUTHORS

Natalie Gonnella-Platts serves as the director

of the Women's Initiative at the George W. Bush
Institute. Laura Collins serves as director, George
W. Bush Institute-SMU Economic Growth Ini-
tiative. Jenny Villatoro is currently an associate
for the George W. Bush Institute-SMU Economic
Growth Initiative.

18 l Gender-Based Violence Insight: Central America

NOTES

1. “Frequently Asked Questions: Types of Violence against Women and Girls,” UN Women,
https://www.unwomen.org/en/what-we-do/ending-violence-against-women/faqs/types-of-
violence#:~:text=Violence%20against%20women%20and%20girls%20is%20defined%20as%20
any%20act,public%20or%20in%20private%20life.

2. Rachel Dotson and Lisa Frydman, “Neither Security nor Justice: Sexual and Gender-Based Violence
in El Salvador, Honduras, and Guatemala,” KIND: Kids in Need of Defense, May 6, 2021, 5, https://
supportkind.org/resources/neither-security-nor-justice-report-sgbv/.

3. Jeffrey Hallock, Ariel G. Ruiz Soto, and Michael Fix, “In Search of Safety, Growing Numbers of Women
Flee Central America,” Migration Policy Institute, September 29, 2020, https://www.migrationpolicy.org/
article/search-safety-growing-numbers-women-flee-central-america.

4. “Violence against Women, El Salvador 2020,” Infosegura, June 18, 2021, https://infosegura.org/
en/2021/06/18/violence-against-women-el-salvador-2020/. 

5. “Interactive Map and Charts on the Global Burden of Armed Violence,” Global Violent Deaths: Interactive
Maps and Charts of Armed Violence Indicators, Small Arms Survey, February 25, 2021, http://www.
smallarmssurvey.org/tools/interactive-map-charts-on-armed-violence.html. 

6. “Violence against Women, El Salvador 2020,” Infosegura, June 18, 2021, https://infosegura.org/
en/2021/06/18/violence-against-women-el-salvador-2020/. 

7. “Presentación De Análisis 2020, Datacción,” Infosegura, April 23, 2021, https://infosegura.

org/2021/04/23/presentacion-de-analisis-2020-dataccion/. 

8. Saskia van Veen, Bethan Cansfield, and Sandrine Muir-Bouchard, “‘Let’s Stop Thinking It’s Normal’
Identifying Patterns in Social Norms Contributing to Violence against Women and Girls across Africa,
Latin America and the Caribbean and the Pacific,” Oxfam, https://oi-files-d8-prod.s3.eu-west-2.
amazonaws.com/s3fs-public/file_attachments/rr-lets-stop-thinking-normal-evaw-social-norms-251118-en.
pdf. 

9. “Violence against Women, El Salvador 2020,” Infosegura, June 18, 2021, https://infosegura.org/
en/2021/06/18/violence-against-women-el-salvador-2020/. 

10. Jonathan Laguan, “La Principal Causa Para No Denunciar La Violencia Contra La Mujer Es La Dificultad
Para Acceder a Los Servicios Públicos: Vanda Pignato,” Noticias de El Salvador - La Prensa Gráfica |
Informate con la verdad, La Prensa Gráfica, May 3, 2018, https://www.laprensagrafica.com/elsalvador/
La-principal-causa-para-no-denunciar-la-violencia-contra-la-mujer-es-la-dificultad-para-acceder-a-los-
servicios-publicos-Vanda-Pignato-20180503-0032.html. 

11. Ibid.

12. “Intentional Homicides (per 100,000 People) - United States,” The World Bank, https://data.worldbank.
org/indicator/VC.IHR.PSRC.P5?locations=US&view=chart. 

19 l Gender-Based Violence Insight: Central America

13. “World Report 2021: Rights Trends in Honduras,” Human Rights Watch, January 13, 2021, https://www.
hrw.org/world-report/2021/country-chapters/honduras. 

14. “Movilidad Humana, Desarrollo Y Seguridad Ciudadana En Honduras, El Salvador y Guatemala,”

Infosegura, October 13, 2020, https://infosegura.org/2020/10/13/movilidad-humana-desarrollo-y-
seguridad-ciudadan-en-honduras-el-salvador-y-guatemala/. 

15. Ibid.

16. “Boletín Oficial De Homicidios, Suicidios Y Muertes Por Lesiones De Tránsito, Honduras 2018,”
Infosegura, July 30, 2019, https://infosegura.org/2019/07/30/boletin-oficial-de-homicidios-suicidios-y-
muertes-por-lesiones-de-transito-honduras-2018/. 

17. “Violence against Women, Guatemala 2020,” Infosegura, June 18, 2021, https://infosegura.org/
en/2021/06/18/violence-against-women-guatemala-2020/. 

18. “Human Trafficking for Sexual Exploitation Purposes in Guatemala,” UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF), 2016,
https://www.refworld.org/docid/584aaeac4.html.

19. Michele L. Leiby, “Wartime Sexual Violence in Guatemala And Peru,” OUP Academic (Oxford University
Press, June 3, 2009), https://academic.oup.com/isq/article/53/2/445/1856585.

20. Hannah Matthews, “Guatemala: Two Women Murdered Every Day,” Horizons of Friendship, January 12,
2018, https://www.horizons.ca/blog/2018/1/3/guatemala.

21. Dinorah Azpuru, “Approval of Violence towards Women and Children in Guatemala,” Insights no. 123
(2015), Nashville, TN: LAPOP, Vanderbilt, https://www.vanderbilt.edu/lapop/insights/IO923en.pdf.

22. “Report: Forced to Flee Central America’s Northern Triangle,” Médecins Sans Frontières, May 11, 2017,
https://www.doctorswithoutborders.org/what-we-do/news-stories/research/report-forced-flee-central-
americas-northern-triangle.

23. Yury Fedotov, “Transnational Organized Crime: Let’s Put Them Out of Business,” United Nations Office
on Drugs and Crime, September 2012, https://www.unodc.org/toc/en/reports/TOCTACentralAmerica-
Caribbean.html.

24. Tamar Ziff, “The Toxic Intersection of Violence against Women in the Northern Triangle and the Trump
Administration’s Anti-Immigration Policies,” The Dialogue (Inter-American Dialogue, June 17, 2020),
https://www.thedialogue.org/blogs/2019/09/the-toxic-intersection-of-violence-against-women-in-the-
northern-triangle-and-the-trump-administrations-anti-immigration-policies/.

25. Rachel Dotson and Lisa Frydman, “Neither Security nor Justice: Sexual and Gender-Based Violence in El
Salvador, Honduras, and Guatemala,” KIND: Kids in Need of Defense, May 6, 2021, https://supportkind.
org/resources/neither-security-nor-justice-report-sgbv/.

26. “2018 Country Reports on Human Rights Practices: El Salvador,” US Department of State, Bureau of
Democracy, Human Rights and Labor, March 13, 2019, https://www.state.gov/reports/2018-country-
reports-on-human-rights-practices/el-salvador/.

20 l Gender-Based Violence Insight: Central America

27. Ciara Nugent, “Violence Against Women in El Salvador Is Driving Them to Suicide — Or to the U.S.
Border,” Time, May 14, 2019, https://time.com/5582894/gender-violence-women-el-salvador/.

28. Ibid.

29. Almudena Toral and Patricia Clarembaux, “Salvadoran Women and Suicide,” Pulitzer Center, December
31, 2018, https://pulitzercenter.org/projects/salvadoran-women-and-suicide.

30. “Human Rights Council Working Group on the issue of discrimination against women in law and in
practice,” United Nations Human Rights, Office of the High Commissioner, November 14, 2018, https://
www.ohchr.org/EN/NewsEvents/Pages/DisplayNews.aspx?NewsID=23873&LangID=E.

31. Maria Verza, “Poverty, Unemployment, Violence Drive Guatemalan Emigration,” Associated Press,
October 26, 2018, https://apnews.com/article/immigration-central-america-caribbean-ap-top-news-
international-news-0b7f28a8ab5645e58fb2d708d27e3adf.

32. “Women on the Run: First-Hand Accounts of Refugees Fleeing El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, and
Mexico,” United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, October 2015, https://www.unhcr.org/en-us/
publications/operations/5630f24c6/women-run.html.

33. Rachel Dotson and Lisa Frydman, “Neither Security nor Justice: Sexual and Gender-Based Violence in El
Salvador, Honduras, and Guatemala,” KIND: Kids in Need of Defense, May 6, 2021, https://supportkind.
org/resources/neither-security-nor-justice-report-sgbv/.

34. “Un 67% De Las Mujeres Ha Sufrido Algún Tipo De Violencia En El Salvador,” United Nations,
April 17, 2018, https://news.un.org/es/story/2018/04/1431372#:~:text=Adem%C3%A1s%2C%20
seg%C3%BAn%20la%20Encuesta%20Nacional,pensaron%20que%20no%20las%20
creer%C3%ADan.

35. “Emergency Contraceptive Pill Vital for Sexual Assault Victims: Honduras,” Médecins Sans Frontières
International, February 11, 2019, https://www.msf.org/emergency-contraceptive-pill-vital-sexual-assault-
victims-honduras.

36. Jeffrey Hallock, Ariel G. Ruiz Soto, and Michael Fix, “In Search of Safety, Growing Numbers of Women
Flee Central America,” Migration Policy Institute, September 29, 2020, https://www.migrationpolicy.org/
article/search-safety-growing-numbers-women-flee-central-america.

37. “Movilidad Humana, Desarrollo Y Seguridad Ciudadana En Honduras, El Salvador y Guatemala,”

Infosegura, October 13, 2020, https://infosegura.org/2020/10/13/movilidad-humana-desarrollo-y-
seguridad-ciudadan-en-honduras-el-salvador-y-guatemala/.

38. Julia Westbrook, “How Mexico and Central America’s Femicide Epidemic Drives and Complicates the
Migrant Crisis,” The New Humanitarian, April 24, 2020, https://www.thenewhumanitarian.org/news-
feature/2020/02/27/Femicide-migration-Central-America-Mexico-US-Mexico-women-violence.

39. “Socioeconomic consequences of adolescent pregnancy in Guatemala,” United Nations Population

Fund, Guatemalan Office, February 2020, https://osarguatemala.org/consecuencias-socieconomicas-del-
embarazo-en-la-adolescencia-en-guatemala/.

21 l Gender-Based Violence Insight: Central America

40. “Violence against Women,” World Health Organization, March 9, 2021, https://www.who.int/news-room/
fact-sheets/detail/violence-against-women. 

41. Juan Forero, “Women in Latin America Are Being Murdered at Record Rates,” The Wall Street Journal,
December 19, 2018, https://www.wsj.com/articles/it-is-better-not-to-have-a-daughter-here-latin-americas-
violence-turns-against-women-11545237843.

42. Dinorah Azpuru, “The Political Culture of Democracy in Guatemala and in the Americas, 2016/17: A
Comparative Study of Democracy and Governance,” ed. Mariana Rodriguez and Elizabeth J Zechmeister
(USAID, LAPOP, AmericasBarometer, Vanderbilt, February 2018), https://www.vanderbilt.edu/lapop/
guatemala/AB2016-17_Guatemala_Country_Report_English_V3_02.01.19_W_02.18.19.pdf.

43. Infosegura, same as footnote 14.

44. “2020 Global Report on Internal Displacement,” Internal Displacement Monitoring Centre, April 28,
2020, https://www.internal-displacement.org/global-report/grid2020/.

45. Infosegura, same as footnote 14.

46. “Estudio De Caracterización Del Desplazamiento Interno Por La Violencia En Honduras 2004 - 2018,”
United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, December 11, 2019, https://data2.unhcr.org/en/
documents/details/73689.

47. “Abused and Neglected – A Gender Perspective on Aggravated Migrant Smuggling and Response,”
United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, June 28, 2021, https://www.unodc.org/unodc/en/
frontpage/2021/June/unodc-highlights-lack-of-justice-for-migrants-abused-on-smuggling-routes.html.

48. Manny Fernandez, “‘You Have to Pay with Your Body’: The Hidden Nightmare of Sexual Violence on the
Border,” The New York Times, March 3, 2019, https://www.nytimes.com/2019/03/03/us/border-rapes-
migrant-women.html.

49. Jeffrey Hallock, Ariel G. Ruiz Soto, and Michael Fix, “In Search of Safety, Growing Numbers of Women
Flee Central America,” Migration Policy Institute, September 29, 2020, https://www.migrationpolicy.org/
article/search-safety-growing-numbers-women-flee-central-america.

50. “Report: No Way Out: Central American Migration,” Médecins Sans Frontières, February 11, 2020,
https://www.msf.org/report-no-way-out-central-american-migration.

51. “Mexico: Invisible Victims. Migrants on the Move in Mexico,” Amnesty International, August 10, 2021,
https://www.amnesty.org/en/documents/amr41/014/2010/en/.

52. Anja Parish, “Gender-Based Violence against Women: Both Cause for Migration and Risk along the
Journey,” Migration Policy Institute, April 29, 2021, https://www.migrationpolicy.org/article/gender-based-
violence-against-women-both-cause-migration-and-risk-along-journey.

53. “Abused and Neglected – A Gender Perspective on Aggravated Migrant Smuggling and Response,”
United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, June 28, 2021, https://www.unodc.org/unodc/en/
frontpage/2021/June/unodc-highlights-lack-of-justice-for-migrants-abused-on-smuggling-routes.html.

22 l Gender-Based Violence Insight: Central America

54. Deborah Anker, “The History and Future of Gender Asylum Law and Recognition of Domestic Violence
as a Basis for Protection in the United States,” American Bar Association, April 27, 2020, https://www.
americanbar.org/groups/crsj/publications/human_rights_magazine_home/immigration/the-history-and-
future-of-gender-asylum-law/.

55. 28 I&N Dec. 307 (A.G. 2021), https://www.justice.gov/eoir/page/file/1404796/download.

56. “Gender-Based Violence (Violence against Women and Girls),” World Bank, September 25, 2019, https://
www.worldbank.org/en/topic/socialsustainability/brief/violence-against-women-and-girls.

57. “Secondary Education and Enrollment Statistics,” UNICEF, April 2021, https://data.unicef.org/topic/
education/secondary-education/#status.

58. “Embarazos y Registro De Nacimientos De Madres Adolescentes – Año 2020,” OSAR Guatemala,
https://osarguatemala.org/embarazos-y-registro-de-nacimientos-de-madres-adolescentes-ano-2020/.

59. Linda Forsell and Kjetil Lyche, “Rape, Ignorance, Repression: Why Early Pregnancy Is Endemic in
Guatemala,” The Guardian, August 27, 2015, https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2015/
aug/26/guatemala-rape-early-pregnancy-sex-education-catholic-church.

60. “Child Marriage Prevalence Rates,” Girls Not Brides, https://blogs.worldbank.org/dev4peace/can-gender-

equality-prevent-violent-conflict.

61. “World Report 2021: Rights Trends in Honduras,” Human Rights Watch, January 13, 2021, https://www.
hrw.org/world-report/2021/country-chapters/honduras.

62. “Consecuencias Socieconómicas Del Embarazo En La Adolescencia En Guatemala,” OSAR Guatemala,

United Nations, February 2020, https://osarguatemala.org/consecuencias-socieconomicas-del-embarazo-
en-la-adolescencia-en-guatemala/.

63. Clare Ribando Seelke, “Trafficking in Persons in Latin America and the Caribbean,” Congressional
Research Service, October 13, 2016, https://sgp.fas.org/crs/row/RL33200.pdf.

64. Matthew Rooney, Laura Collins, and Cristobal Ramón, “Smart Border Policy for the 21st Century,” Bush
Center, George W. Bush Institute, February 2021, https://www.bushcenter.org/publications/resources-
reports/reports/immigration-white-papers/smart-border-policy-in-the-21st-century.html.

65. “International Rescue Committee,” International Rescue Committee, September 19, 2018, https://www.
rescue.org/press-release/irc-announces-launch-humanitarian-information-service-designed-salvadorans-
cuentanos.

66. Catalina Crespo-Sancho, “Can Gender Equality Prevent Violent Conflict?” World Bank Blogs, March 28,
2018, https://blogs.worldbank.org/dev4peace/can-gender-equality-prevent-violent-conflict.

67. Emmaline Soken-Huberty, “7 Reasons Why Gender Equality Is Good for Everyone,” Human Rights
Careers, April 16, 2020, https://www.humanrightscareers.com/issues/why-gender-equality-is-good-for-
everyone/.

23 l Gender-Based Violence Insight: Central America

 GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE INSIGHT: EGYPT

Photo credit: Women take to the streets to demand rights for themselves at the beginning of the Arab Spring in Cairo, Egypt: Rosen Ivanov Iliev,
Shutterstock, March 2011

Criminalization of Gender-Based
Violence: A Legal Obligation
Moushira Khattab

Gender Based
Violence
INTRODUCTION risks widely faced by women across the MENA
region. Women’s rights organizations, helplines,
After submitting my first draft to the editor of this and shelters for survivors of domestic violence in
publication, three significant developments took some MENA countries reported an increase in calls
place in Egypt, the potential impact of which pushed for support or recorded a rise in cases of GBV. In
me to revisit the entire chapter. Gender-based Algeria, at least 39 cases of murder or “intentional
violence (GBV) is a global pandemic that affects one assault and battery” resulting in death were record-
in three women in their lifetime. In the Middle East ed by the Centre of Information on the Rights of
and North Africa (MENA) region, violence against Women and Children during the COVID-19 lock-
women (VAW) is referred to as a silent cancer that down, with women’s rights groups warning that the
often goes undetected and unreported. Society in true number of cases was likely to be higher.2 At the
this region is becoming more aware of the epidem- height of the COVID-19 pandemic, the challenges
ic, yet it is still not gender-sensitive to its causes or facing women in Egypt increased. For example,
implications. GBV is a stigma that leaves its marks many women had to take on a new role as the fam-
on the victims for years if not a lifetime.1 Despite ily doctor.3 Incidences of violence against children
decades of effort by stakeholders including wom- and harmful practices increased in the villages of
en’s organizations, United Nations organs, civil Upper Egypt as well.
society organizations, and the donor community,
GBV in MENA remains perilous. The cultural setup As the world begins to emerge from the darkness
condones impunity for some forms of domes- that enveloped most of 2020 and 2021, priority
tic violence, even when it leads to premeditated must be given to recovering the lost ground in the
murder, as in the case of female genital mutilation fight against GBV. Previous gains must be won back
(FGM). COVID-19 highlighted the weaknesses and used to trample obstacles that stand in the way
inherent in many of the institutions that we have of stopping GBV dead in its tracks. Victims must be
been socialized to take for granted. Institutions such availed the opportunity to report and pursue justice
as education and health-care systems, in addition to without fearing discrimination (social or legal, under
social protection schemes, stood the test of time up the charge of adultery), governments must act
until 2020. By that same token, COVID-19 shattered against impunity, and above all governments must
fledgling institutions in the MENA region, including openly condemn GBV.
institutions such as those that make laws criminaliz-
ing GBV. Amid the gloom brought on by the pandemic, rays
of hope emerged to turn the challenge into an op-
portunity. In an unprecedented move, Shubra Crim-
“Previous gains must be won back inal Court in Cairo sentenced a father and a nurse
and used to trample obstacles that (tried in absentia) to three and 10 years in prison
stand in the way of stopping GBV respectively, for the crime of FGM. This is the first
case to be handled by the criminal court since the
dead in its tracks.” criminal code was revised to harshen the penalty
for FGM, turning it from a misdemeanor to a felony
The COVID-19 pandemic, which spread worldwide offense. This development became even more
in early in 2020, heightened the already grave significant as Egypt launched its first ever National

3 l Gender-Based Violence Insight: Egypt

Photo credit: A traditionally dressed Egyptian woman walks by a mosque in Cairo, Egypt: Nattyflo, Shutterstock, February 2020

Strategy for Human Rights on September 11, 2021. secretary general of the United Nations (UN). I can
The strategy includes: (1) civil and political rights, (2) comfortably say that Egypt is indeed turning over a
economic, social, and cultural rights and, interesting- new leaf.
ly, (3) human rights of women and the vulnerable.
Though human rights experts may question such
classification, it is a testament to the unprecedent- THE UNITED NATIONS RESPONDS
ed gains and the strength of national awareness
in support of women’s rights. Two days later, on The UN was established with two overarching ob-
September 13, Egypt launched its human develop- jectives: to maintain international peace and secu-
ment report, again in the presence of President Sisi. rity and to foster friendly relations among nations
The report, which comes after a 10-year pause, puts based on respect for the principle of equal rights
heavy emphasis on the evolving gains of women. and self-determination for peoples. To achieve its
objectives, the UN cooperates with various stake-
To me, such developments promise a paradigm holders in addressing international economic, social,
shift and a quantum leap toward meeting interna- cultural, and humanitarian crises, and aims for hu-
tional standards of human rights. On October 4, the man rights and fundamental freedoms to be at the
Parliament of Egypt elected me to serve as the first center of its global efforts.4
female president of the National Council for Human
Rights. While I recognize that it will not be smooth Throughout the 76 years of its existence, the UN
sailing, I am honored to fill a place once occupied has been praised as much as it has been criticized.
by my mentor, Dr. Boutros Boutros-Ghali, former Most recently, its mishandling of the COVID-19 pan-

4 l Gender-Based Violence Insight: Egypt

Photo credit: A woman attends a lecture about media’s representation of women in Cairo, Egypt: Touqa Essam, Shutterstock, February
2018

demic exposed the fragility of international peace reach, it has become a powerful political tool around
and security. While the secretary general of the the world.
UN and the UN’s World Food Programme rose to
the challenge, the United Nations Security Council In 2020, as the world became engulfed in the pan-
(UNSC) proved inept at dealing with the crisis. The demic and various countries implemented sweep-
ongoing spread of the pandemic will exacerbate pat- ing lockdowns, UN Secretary General António
terns of global inequality, potentially causing instabil- Guterres was the first to globally draw attention to
ity and armed conflicts. In the event of a recession, its impact on women. He urged all governments to
or worse, a depression, the structural inequalities prioritize the prevention and redressing of violence
inherent in systems of development aid, humani- against women and girls in national response plans
tarian assistance, and the global political economy to COVID-19. He “appealed for an end to violence
will increasingly present a challenge for the Global everywhere” and cautioned that “violence is not
South. confined to the battlefield. For many women and
girls, the threat looms largest where they should be
The confusion and disappointment that stemmed safest. In their own homes.”5 He called for a global
from the UNSC’s failures should not overshadow ceasefire to focus on the battle of our lives.
the more valuable assets of multilateralism. The UN
human rights system overall is a flagship and full- Women’s rights activists have long encouraged the
fledged success story. Although in certain parts of UN’s most powerful organ, the Security Council,
the developing world, especially the MENA region, to join the battle for women’s human rights. UNSC
respect for universal human rights is not yet within Resolution 1325, which was adopted on October 31,

5 l Gender-Based Violence Insight: Egypt

2000, and sets forth an agenda for women, peace, the UNSC resolutions with regard to women’s hu-
and security, has provided a strong asset in the fight man rights is a significant stride that member states
to end GBV through the rule of law. Resolution 1325 should not overlook. Rather, they should embrace
and other ensuing resolutions offer a “common these resolutions and build upon them. Doing so
language” and approach for unifying efforts toward emphasizes the importance of women’s rights and
ending VAW, and the UN has subsequently provided gives countries an opportunity to meet internation-
women’s advocacy groups with international fund- ally recognized standards—and, crucially, it lessens
ing. However, the formulation and implementation the load on governments currently grappling with
of National Action Plans by governments have the global pandemic and other regional crises and
proven difficult. Indeed, 21 years have passed since conflicts. Actions that stem from the UNSC resolu-
the adoption of Resolution 1325, and few countries tions will assist states in including the prevention
including Egypt have yet to start the process of of VAW in their COVID-19 national response plans
preparing a National Action Plan. and encourage a global coalition to enact sweeping,
robust change.

“To expand the achievements of the The way forward on eliminating VAW has become
clearer thanks to the work of UN Human Rights
UN, countries must adopt a human
Treaty Bodies as well. Implementation of these
rights approach to combat GBV.” measures is an ongoing process, not a onetime ac-
tion. It calls for the incremental and progressive real-
ization of human rights in their entirety. Solutions to
UNSC Resolution 1820 in 2008 heralded a very complex and multifaceted challenges such as GBV
important legal development. It is the first Security take time to enact and go beyond merely passing
Council resolution to recognize conflicts related laws. Success lies in building awareness and enforc-
to sexual violence as a tool of war. Depending on ing laws, data collection, capacity-building, resource
the context, it characterizes rape and other forms allocation, cooperation with civil society, and moni-
of sexual violence as war crimes, crimes against toring and evaluation of mandates.
humanity, or acts conducive to genocide. It stress-
es the need for the exclusion of sexual violence
crimes from amnesty provisions in the context of
FEMALE GENITAL MUTILATION IN
conflict resolution processes, and it and calls upon
EGYPT: CASE STUDY IN BEHAVIORAL
UN member states to comply with their obligations
for prosecuting persons responsible for such acts, CHANGE
to ensure access to justice by all victims of sexual
violence. Various myths and superstitions have long put forth
the idea that FGM makes a girl eligible for marriage,
These and other UNSC resolutions raise the bar controls her sexual desire, and prevents adultery.
for women’s rights. MENA countries still have not Commonly called tahara, which means purification,
invested in this asset and must do so. To expand FGM is falsely associated with good hygiene, clean-
the achievements of the UN, countries must adopt liness, and chastity. This context shows the com-
a human rights approach to combat GBV. Mandating plexity of trying to reverse such a custom. Yet in the

6 l Gender-Based Violence Insight: Egypt

Photo credit: A group of girls attend reading class in Shalateen, Egypt: Tools12, Shutterstock, March 2017

span of five years, I am honored to have led a socie- developed messaging that would resonate with our
tal movement to combat FGM. We have succeeded target audience and allow us to achieve long-term
in turning what was a socially accepted habit into behavioral changes.
a crime punishable by law. An important source of
activism came from a grassroots movement that Our key strategies to combat FGM—and GBV more
refused the practice and was determined to uproot broadly—focused on the following interventions and
it, with the media acting as a strategic ally. tactics:

Through a rights-based approach, we made it clear 1. Lump three forms of GBV together: deprivation
that FGM is a violation of females’ rights. This was of education, child marriage, and FGM. Raising girls’
not an easy task in a conservative society riddled education to the top of the agenda was less provoc-
with prejudice. To say the least, human rights, let ative than addressing FGM in isolation.
alone women’s rights, has been perceived as a for-
eign agenda. Due to the complexity and sensitivity 2. Create a public consensus against GBV, including
of this issue in particular, we opted to partner with FGM and child marriage, by building momentum
key stakeholders to pursue a comprehensive strat- on the ground and creating a coalition of stake-
egy of social marketing to encourage social change. holders, including the media, civil society, medical
To combat FGM, we surveyed the political, eco- practitioners, line ministries, religious leaders, and
nomic, cultural, and environmental value systems in educational institutions.
Egypt. Through qualitative and quantitative research
on the then-prevailing perception of the practice, we

7 l Gender-Based Violence Insight: Egypt

3. Enhance the voices of grassroots activists to 8. Promoting rights based liberal religious discourse
feature their resentment of FGM and highlight the that denounces GBV was also an integral compo-
pledge formulated by village communities to end nent of our media strategy. The fatwa, or religious
the practice. Grassroots groups and local communi- edict of the Grand Mufti, and statements by the
ties spoke out according to their own will, declaring Coptic Orthodox Church have opened the door for
publicly their stance against GBV. Villages also creat- religious leaders to tackle FGM from a human rights
ed their own manifestoes by signing public declara- perspective. Today, with such clear-cut religious posi-
tions against FGM. These declarations provoked the tions against the practice, very few people can say,
sentiments of surrounding communities, pressuring “We do FGM for God.”
them to make commitments that uphold the rights
of young girls as well. These brave actions on the 9. Incorporate an anti-FGM module within the con-
part of local communities made our quest for a legal text of education curricula promoting the rights of
framework banning FGM more doable. female children.

4. Design a program through extensive participation 10. Introduce legislation that criminalizes FGM,
on the part of all stakeholders, in order to build on which became less provocative as the other pillars
the previous experiences of others and respond of our strategy proved successful.
effectively to the ongoing debates and myths.
Our campaign lasted for five years, during which a
5. Create an environment conducive to change, thus space was created for a wide range of stakehold-
empowering families with girls at risk. The voices ers. Advocacy around women’s rights culminated in
afraid of change eventually faded out as more peo- June 2008 with the adoption of Egypt’s most com-
ple crept out of the shadows to demonstrate their prehensive and visionary human rights legislation
desire for change. ever (Law 126/2008). It ensured, at a minimum, the
rights that are guaranteed by international treaties
6. Support the emergence of a youth movement Egypt previously ratified. We also raised the mini-
that endorses young people as agents of change. mum age of marriage for girls from 16 to 18, equal
The youth were informed, innovative, and developed to that of boys, and criminalized FGM with fines and
advocacy tools that proved to have an effective the possibility of imprisonment. Women gained the
impact on their peers. right to pass their nationality to their children, and
single mothers were granted the ability to register
7. Establish a comprehensive media strategy that their children born out of wedlock and were also
consisted of informative media campaigns to ed- awarded educational custody of those children.
ucate the public. We invested in creating a public These are all great successes that exceeded our ini-
dialogue against FGM through all forms of media, tial hopes. Enlightened men, women, and the media
including TV, radio, drama, and the internet. The all became integral components of these achieve-
impact of the media can be assessed by looking at ments, developing a sense of ownership and pride.
the success of the child helpline, where thousands
of calls were received requesting additional informa-
tion and counseling. The helpline provided a tool for
monitoring, which guided the entire process.

8 l Gender-Based Violence Insight: Egypt

THE CHALLENGE REMAINS in the home, perpetrated by someone the victim
knows intimately.
Despite the enormous strides made in raising
awareness and criminalizing FGM, few cases were Preexisting challenges, such as regional conflicts
brought to the courts and to date not one single and insecurity, also provide a fertile ground for GBV.
court ruling was implemented. As the sentence MENA is plagued by occurrences of armed conflict
by Shubra Criminal Court is made in absentia, the in Syria, Iraq, Libya, and Yemen. The number of refu-
judge must impose the maximum penalty provided gees and internally displaced persons now reaches
by the law. It remains to be seen whether it will be into the millions as people are forced to flee the
enforced or it will be business as usual. Sadly the violence. The Israeli occupation of Arab territories
national hype against the practice faded, after it has also taken a toll on the region, giving credence
reached its climax in December 2010 with a dec- to violent extremism and terrorism. FGM, child
laration by Benban village in Aswan against FGM. marriage, rape, domestic violence, cyberbullying,
The penalty for FGM was harshened two times and sexual harassment, and human trafficking occur at
has become a hard crime handled by the higher greater levels during times of conflict and are largely
criminal court. This can be a double-edged sword, unreported, due to the victims’ fear of stigmatization
because the severity of the sentence may discour- and retaliation, inadequate reporting mechanisms,
age the judge from imposing it, and it might prove and poor access to the justice system.
to be a recipe for killing the law. To me, the pressing
challenge is to restore national and local awareness To their credit, MENA countries have a decent track
against FGM through the revival of village declara- record in terms of the ratification of human rights
tions and activism. This should be complemented by instruments and reporting to Human Rights Treaty
a solid witness protection program, as well as social Bodies. Moreover, the establishment of human
and psychological counseling for the victims. rights councils and universal periodic reviews have
made women’s rights more visible. Reservations
about human rights conventions, however, remains
“The establishment of human rights a barrier. Several MENA countries have expressed
concerns on the ground that their national laws,
councils and universal periodic traditions, religion, or culture are not congruent with
reviews have made women’s rights the positions set forth by Committee on the Elimina-
more visible.” tion of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women
(CEDAW), although their national constitutions or
laws do prohibit discrimination. This exposes an
Since the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, inherent conflict between the provisions of certain
emerging data and reports from those on the states’ constitutions and their leaders’ reservations
front lines indicate that GBV has intensified, in an about the CEDAW. This has led some to believe
alarming upsurge. It was labeled by UN Women as that there is unresolvable tension between law and
a shadow pandemic. MENA is no exception, yet religion.
scarce data on the impact of lockdowns on women
in remains a challenge. Domestic violence happens CEDAW has urged most MENA countries to review

9 l Gender-Based Violence Insight: Egypt

and withdraw their reservations to Articles 2 and 16, drive, and today a woman the Saudi ambassador to
which are incompatible with the object and purpose the United States. The rights of Persian Gulf women
of CEDAW. Such reservations are of a general or in the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain continues
sweeping nature that may water down the commit- to advance at a rapid pace. Even embattled Libya
ment of these states to the entire CEDAW. has a female minister of foreign affairs, a smart
move that will expedite post-conflict peace-building.
MENA women’s list of achievements continues to
“For the first time, the president of grow.
Egypt is an advocate of women’s
However, MENA women’s achievements are still
rights.” mostly in the public sphere, as they continue
to battle to eradicate GBV in the private sphere.
Egyptian women are gearing up for a heated battle
CONCLUSION over a new family law that stands to finally offer
women an equal right to divorce. This law, if passed,
Against all odds, women of the MENA region (of will see Egyptian women breathe a collective sigh
whom I am one) are fighters. They have elbowed of relief and reinvigorate awareness of GBV. Suc-
their way into a place at the decision-making table, cess in this area is crucial to reversing the damage
and their voices can now be heard louder than ever. done by COVID-19 lockdowns, during which more
The so-called Arab Spring of 2011 was a turning girls than usual were mutilated, trafficked, of faced
point for women in the region. The women of Tunisia interruptions to their education. The ramifications of
asserted their position as a solid political and cultural COVID-19 do not stop there: With resources dry-
power to be reckoned with, and the country now ing up, women will continue to be the first to lose
has the first female prime minister in the region. their jobs. And pressure on health care systems
After a rocky start, Egyptian women emerged stron- will continue to result in unwanted pregnancies, as
ger and louder—and thanks to their perseverance, well as more rape, marital or otherwise. All of this is
the political will to uphold women’s rights in Egypt against a background of renewed energy in the fight
is much stronger. For the first time, the president to eradicate FGM.
of Egypt is an advocate of women’s rights. The
National Council for Women is stronger than ever Post-COVID-19 national response plans provide an
in terms of its mandate and its human and financial opportunity for women to build back better. MENA
resources. The last bastions of discrimination in the women need to unite and to leverage the fact that
judiciary have crumbled and women have joined the they have become a force to be reckoned with,
administrative courts (State Council) and the public knowing that there is no turning back and that the
prosecutorial bodies. only way is forward.

The fortune of Saudi women is unparalleled. The

speed of modernization makes it hard to believe that
only a few years ago women in that country weren’t
afforded the most basic of rights. Just a few years
ago, women in Saudi Arabia didn’t have right to

10 l Gender-Based Violence Insight: Egypt

NOTES

1. Ayat Soliman and Mirjam Kalle, “Treating a Silent Cancer: How to Tackle Gender-Based Violence in
MENA,” World Bank Blogs, September 28, 2020, https://blogs.worldbank.org/arabvoices/treating-silent-
cancer-how-tackle-gender-based-violence-mena.

2. Amnesty International, “MENA: Gender-Based Violence Continues to Devastate Lives of Women Across
Region,” press release, March 8, 2021, https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/press-release/2021/03/mena-
gender-based-violence-continues-to-devastate-lives-of-women-across-region/.

3. United Nations Human Rights Office of the High Commissioner, “Responding to the Needs of Women,
‘First Responders’ to Egypt’s COVID-19 Crisis,” news release, February 25, 2021, https://www.ohchr.org/
EN/NewsEvents/Pages/EgyptianWomenCOVID-19.aspx.

4. United Nations, Charter of the United Nations, October 25, 1945, https://www.un.org/en/model-united-
nations/un-charter.

5. UN Women, “Inter-Agency Statement on Violence against Women and Girls in the Context of
COVID-19,” press release, June 24, 2020, https://www.unwomen.org/en/news/stories/2020/6/
statement-inter-agency-statement-on-violence-against-women-and-girls--in-the-context-of-covid-19.

11 l Gender-Based Violence Insight: Egypt

 GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE INSIGHT: RUSSIA

Photo credit: Activists at a May Day rally in St. Petersburg, Russia: Alexander Chizhenok, Shutterstock, May 2017

Domestic Violence Legislation in

Russia: Campaigning for Change
Dr. Marianna Muravyeva

Gender Based
Violence
INTRODUCTION Following the 2016 Ukrainian-Russian virtual flash
mob #IAmNotAfraidToTell
Violence against women is recognized as one of the (# ), in which thousands of
main human rights violations against women in Rus- women shared stories of sexual and domestic
sia by several international organizations, including abuse, other feminist hashtag campaigns such
the latest communications from the Committee on as #ItIsNotAReasonToKill and #IDoNotWantToDie
the Elimination of Discrimination against Women gathered and related a multitude of narratives of
(CEDAW) and the European Court of Human Rights. domestic violence.3 The newly created center and
1
In its responses to international organizations, Rus- information resource Nasiliu.net launched an aggres-
sian representatives continue to insists that “the sive information campaign about domestic violence,
country has all necessary instruments of adminis- reporting incidents of women being maimed or
trative and criminal law to protect women from do- killed, which were further reposted by major media
mestic violence and their effectiveness is confirmed outlets. Several especially brutal criminal cases
by law enforcement practices.”2 Such statements made headlines in all of the major newspapers and
happen against the background of active domestic online news outlets. Those included the 2017 case
campaigns to enact legislation on the prevention of of Margarita Gracheva, who had her hands chopped
domestic violence, which were the result of active off by her husband due to his jealousy (Gracheva
mass media coverage of particularly brutal cases of had filed a complaint with the police about his
violence against women and the work of activists abuse just two weeks prior to the incident),4 as well
campaigning for change. as the case of the Khachaturian sisters, who killed
their father in 2018 after years of abuse.5

Source: ROSSTAT: https://rosstat.gov.ru/folder/13807

3 l Gender-Based Violence Insight: Russia

Photo credit: Women protest at a feminist rally in St. Petersburg, Russia: Farhad Sadykov, Shutterstock, March 2017

Each of these mass media campaigns has revealed criminalize domestic violence entered the Criminal
so many stories of violence against women in Rus- Code (Article 116), which suggests that domestic vi-
sia that it has been difficult to ignore. olence is highly underreported and clearly attests to
the need for explicit criminalization of intimate-part-
ner and domestic violence in Russia.
“Domestic violence, including
intimate-partner violence, is not
officially considered a violation of POST-SOVIET LEGISLATION ON VIO-
women’s human rights in Russia.” LENCE AGAINST WOMEN

Domestic violence, including intimate-partner

The available statistics also confirm that domes-
violence, is not officially considered a violation of
tic violence remains a major violation of women’s
women’s human rights in Russia. It is rather seen as
rights in Russia. In 2012, the Russian Statistical
a social problem, a result of intoxication and pover-
Service (ROSSTAT) started publishing statistics on
ty, which is a continuation of Soviet criminological
crimes within the family, which they received from
and legal research into “family-domestic violence,”
the Ministry of Internal Affairs. The stats in Graph
a special term widely used by contemporary Rus-
1 show that around 35,000 incidents are recorded
sian scholarship and official law.6 Such an approach
every year, on average, and that in the vast majority
is also closely connected with the way women’s
of these crimes, women are the victims. Also, the
movement and gender studies developed in the
cases spiked in 2016, when a short-lived attempt to
1990s and early 2000s in Russia, as well as the

4 l Gender-Based Violence Insight: Russia

Photo credit: State Duma deputy Elena Mizulin at a meeting of the interim commission of the Federation Council in Moscow, Russia:
Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation, February 2020

failure to make violence against women central to especially women with feminism as an ideology
the women’s rights agenda. and an academic discipline, did a lot of damage to
genuine feminist initiatives in the 1990s.10 For the
During the post-Soviet period, many scholars have new Russian Federation, however, while human
noted a resurgence in gender essentialism in rights were declared of the “highest value” (Article
Russia, which has been particularly successful in 2 of the Constitution), the rights of women did not
framing public understandings of gender politics.7 constitute a priority.
The success of models of gender relations between
men and women that underline the “natural” differ- The Criminal Code of 1996 maintained the structure
ences between them and their roles in society has of the Soviet criminal codes in relation to physical
in large part been ascribed to the persisting negative assault and sexual violence; that is, it did not include
legacies of gender inequality from the Soviet period. any explicit protection in situations of domestic
The supporters of the reform in the late 1980s and violence, especially intimate-partner violence. To
the early 1990s in socialist countries represented this day, women (and men) must use more general
these changes as normalization, as a return to the articles on assault (Articles 109–116), torment (Arti-
“natural order of things, in which gender essential- cle 117), kidnapping (Article 121), and rape (Article
ism and the natural role of mothering have a crucial 131-132) to prosecute their partners and spouses.
role.”8 The opponents of the Soviet gender order Articles 127.1 and 127.2 were introduced into the
interpreted it as a consequence of an abnormal so- Criminal Code in 2003 prosecute human trafficking
cial system.9 Scholars also note that the contentious and slavery, but without explicit mention of sex traf-
and problematic relations of post-Soviet society and ficking or special protections for female victims.11

5 l Gender-Based Violence Insight: Russia

What this suggests is that the issue of women’s ia zhiznennaia situatsiia) as “the situation which
rights has continued to be handled using a Soviet violates a citizen’s livelihood … and which cannot
understanding and approach to the “woman ques- be overcome on their own” (Article 3.4) and is still
tion.” Instead of the Soviet Women’s Committee, in use. The list of conditions included disability, old
which provided the infrastructure for women in the age, poverty, unemployment, homelessness, and
Soviet Union, and which later transformed into the conflicts and abuse in the family. The 1995 law guar-
Union of Russian Women and became a semi-in- anteed financial and in-kind help for such citizens
dependent nongovernmental organization (NGO),12 and even temporary shelter for children in abusive
post-Soviet government organized the State Du- families (Articles 8–12).
ma’s Committee on the Affairs of Women, Family
and Youth (and later Children), which has existed The 1997 draft law “On the basics of socio-legal
since then. The Committee was given the role of protection from violence in the family” focused on
overseeing the “woman question,” in cooperation prevention and intervention. It provided definitions
with the government and other agencies. In accor- of domestic violence and described measures that
dance with the Russian Federation’s commitment to were to be undertaken by public agencies and social
building democracy and being part of international services to help survivors of family abuse. Already
legal order, the Committee was very attentive to in 1997, the law included protection orders, a novelty
the international agenda for women’s rights. Several for the Russian legal system, as well as shelters and
legal initiatives that originated in the Committee other means of protection. The draft even dealt with
addressed violence against women and domestic legal issues by detailing how complaints about do-
violence. mestic violence should be communicated from law
enforcement agencies to social services (Articles
The 1996 Concept of the Improvement of the Status 7–9).
of Women in the Russian Federation, which stayed
in force till 2004 and was the result of Russia’s However, in June 1997 the draft was withdrawn
commitment to the Beijing Platform, stated that by its sponsors, who agreed with the Duma’s
one of its major goals was “to prevent and stop concluding assessment that Russian criminal and
violence against women.”13 The document included family codes contained all necessary norms to deal
such steps as “development of criminal, civil, labor with violence in the family and that there was no
and administrative legal sanctions to prosecute for need for a separate federal law.17 This argument
crimes … committed against women, including in against specialized legislation on domestic violence
the family.”14 To fulfill this obligation, in 1997 the also expanded to other gender-specific legislation,
Committee introduced the draft law “On the basics namely, the draft law “On state guarantees of equal
of socio-legal protection from violence in the family,” rights and freedoms of men and women and equal
which continued the Soviet tradition of providing opportunities for their realization,”18 which entered
social services to those in a “difficult life situation” the State Duma in 2003 as a result of several years’
(trudnaia zhiznennaia situatsiia).15 The draft law was worth of work. In its official review of the draft
closely connected with the 1995 federal law “On the law in 2008, after the draft spent almost six years
basics of provision of social services to the popula- tabled in the State Duma after its first reading, the
tion of the Russian Federation,”16 which contained government of the Russian Federation provided a
a definition of the “difficult life situation” (trudna- detailed list of references to the existing legislation

6 l Gender-Based Violence Insight: Russia

Photo credit: A meeting of the Council under the President of the Russian Federation in Moscow, Russia, regarding state policy around
family and child protection: Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation, November 2019

that made the provisions of the draft moot, in their Convention”). The Convention was the first major
opinion.19 international treaty that Russia did not sign. That the
convention pertained to human rights instruments
specifically was an important indication of Russia’s
“It was also the first international stance on human rights, especially the rights of
document that Russia rejected based women. It was also the first international document
that Russia rejected based on its incompatibility
on its incompatibility with Russia’s
with Russia’s culture and tradition, which indicated
culture and tradition, which indicated Russia’s turn toward active use of the concept of
Russia’s turn toward active use of the cultural sovereignty.20

concept of cultural sovereignty.”

The Istanbul Convention became a milestone and a
bone of contention between Russia and the Council
of Europe (CoE). This relationship had been conten-
RUSSIA AND THE ISTANBUL CONVEN- tious for some time prior to 2011,21 but such open
TION defiance of a major human rights convention signi-
fied a new stage of Russia’s relationship with inter-
In 2011, Russia refused to sign the Council of national organizations. The Convention follows CE-
Europe Convention on preventing and combating DAW and other international instruments and does
violence against women and domestic violence bind the states that signed the treaty to provide
(Istanbul Convention, No. 210, hereafter “the better protections for the rights of women based on

7 l Gender-Based Violence Insight: Russia

essentially feminist concepts of human rights and or other measures to ensure that the offenses es-
violence against women.22 The Convention itself is tablished in the Convention are punishable by effec-
a result of negotiations, debates, and compromises tive, proportionate, and dissuasive sanctions (Article
among the CoE member states. While there seems 45), taking into account their seriousness and aggra-
to have been consensus during the preparation pro- vating circumstances, such as whether the acts are
cess that a convention on violence against women committed in the presence of a child (Article 46). As
was needed, delegations from various countries for preventive and protective measures, states must
expressed different opinions on the scope of the promote “changes in the social and cultural patterns
Convention during the preparatory meetings. While of the behavior of women and men with a view to
most of the delegations were in favor of a conven- eradicating customs, traditions and all other prac-
tion that covers all forms of violence against wom- tices which are based on the idea of the inferiority
en, a minority of delegates wanted the Convention of women or on stereotyped roles for women and
to focus on domestic violence irrespective of the men” (Article 12). States must also provide support
victim’s gender. The final wording of the Convention services for victims of violence, including legal and
is a compromise between these two approaches: psychological counseling, financial assistance, hous-
the Convention covers all forms of violence against ing, education, and training and assistance in finding
women (Article 2.1) and encourages parties to apply employment (Article 20), specialist support services
the Convention to “all victims of domestic violence” (Article 22), shelters (Article 23), and telephone
(Article 2.2). Part of the compromise was that the helplines (Article 24). In order to implement the obli-
criminal law articles, with the exception of female gations set out the Convention, states must allocate
genital mutilation, are gender neutral and do not “appropriate measures and human resources,” thus
refer to sex or gender. These disagreements have creating a precise legal obligation in terms of public
been reflected in the ratification processes.23 expenditure.24 All these requirements would have
resulted in serious amendments of Russian criminal
Russia expressed a dissatisfaction with several law as well as civil law, social security legislation
requirements of the Convention. The Convention and, of course, a return to working on the federal
requires state parties to criminalize several forms law on gender equality.
of conduct that amount to violence against wom-
en and domestic violence, despite whether these
forms of conduct are included in the respective “By trying to introduce restrictive
state’s criminal codes. These types of conduct conservative legislation under
include forced marriage, female genital mutila-
the auspices of a ‘protect the
tion, forced abortion, stalking, sexual harassment,
physical violence, psychological violence, and sexual children’ slogan, Russian legislators
violence. The Convention also requires state parties inadvertently redirected society’s
to ensure that in criminal proceedings regarding the
attention to gender-sensitive issues,
acts of violence covered by the Convention, “cul-
ture, custom, religion, tradition or so-called ‘honour’ including gender equality, women’s
are not regarded as justifications of such acts” (Ar- rights, and domestic violence.”
ticle 42, paragraph 1). The Convention then obliges
state parties to take the necessary legislative steps

8 l Gender-Based Violence Insight: Russia

Photo credit: Activists at a rally for women’s rights in St. Petersburg, Russia: Konstantin Lenkov, Shutterstock, March 2021

CONSERVATIVE MOBILIZATION AND The 2013 legislation that prohibited the promotion
(DE)CRIMINALIZATION OF DOMESTIC of nontraditional sexual relationships or “propa-
ganda law” resulted in vocal public debate about
VIOLENCE IN 2016-2017
what should be considered “traditional” and “non-
traditional” sexual relationships, as well as to what
The ideology of “traditional values” and the official
extent the state should interfere with the private
“conservative turn” that took place in the early
life of its citizens.26 The draft legislation to ban
2010s exposed post-Soviet negotiations on gender
abortion or to at least remove it from being covered
identity as a bone of contention in Russian society.
by state-sponsored medical insurance, which was
By trying to introduce restrictive conservative legis-
actively pushed by the Russian Orthodox Church,
lation under the auspices of a “protect the children”
faced opposition not only from feminist organiza-
slogan,25 Russian legislators inadvertently redirected
tions but also from medical and legal professionals,
society’s attention to gender-sensitive issues, includ-
as well as from the Ministry of Health and Social Se-
ing gender equality, women’s rights, and domestic
curity, which argued that the costs of illegal abortion
violence. Now every time the State Duma or the
would be higher than what was currently paid as
Federation Council received a piece of draft legisla-
part of medical insurance.27 In this debate, tradition
tion involving gender-related issues, it stirred a wide
was monetized and rejected based on a pragmatic
public debate that turned into a standoff between
argument of neoliberal economics. When domestic
conservative organizations, who spoke on behalf of
violence legislation entered the State Duma in May
“families” and “tradition,” and feminist groups and
2016, Russian society was well prepared, alert, and
NGOs, who advocated for women’s rights.
divided.

9 l Gender-Based Violence Insight: Russia

The changes to Article 116 of the Criminal Code, prosecution of violence committed by family mem-
enacted in July 2016, set a precedent in Soviet bers even if it did not result in grievous bodily harm
and post-Soviet legislation on domestic violence. or permanent health damage.32 This amendment
Since 1996, Article 116, titled “Assault” (Poboi), had was labeled the “spanking law” (zakon o shlepkakh)
stipulated punishments for assaults not resulting in in mass media and received furious criticism not
serious health damage, the first revised post-Sovi- only from conservative parental movements and
et Criminal Code. The changes to this article came the Russian Orthodox Church but also from infa-
as part of the package initiated by the Ministry of mous State Duma deputy Elena Mizulina. Mizulina
Justice in 2015. The package was aimed at “op- called these changes “absurd” and “antifamily,”
timizing” the criminal and administrative justice and expressed her anger by saying: “One gets the
system, easing the judicial load, and creating more impression from this article [116] that such behavior
effective prosecutorial mechanisms.28 Part of this within the family [assault] is more dangerous to so-
process was to decriminalize some actions from ciety than that of strangers.”33 On July 27, 2016, she
Article 116.1 and transfer them to the Administra- introduced a bill to reverse these changes. It took
tive Code.29 The idea behind this measure was an six months and a new Duma composition to make it
attempt to “save” on criminal prosecutions by invok- law. The new version of the code, in February 2017,
ing a “cheaper” administrative procedure, without excluded close persons from the article, so that
(presumably) endangering the public. Administrative “simple” assault not resulting in serious injury was
prosecution allows for a type of summary prosecu- relegated to the status of a petty offense punishable
tion without any lengthy and complicated criminal under Article 6.1 of the Administrative Code of the
involvement. While the Duma and various Duma Russian Federation with a fine (60 to 400 euros) or
committees discussed the amendment, a group of other administrative punishments (10 to 15 days jail
feminist-minded lawyers who defended survivors time or community labor).
of domestic violence, led by Mari Davtyan, insisted
that assault against family members should remain
within criminal law, since such assaults were prom- “However, the political climate for
inent and domestic violence discriminates against such legislation was not favorable:
and endangers women.30
It was a new Duma, and Elena
The break came in June 2016 during the second Mizulina was on the warpath to
reading of the draft in the Committee on Legisla- cancel the ‘spanking law.’ Therefore,
tion, when the head of the committee, a prominent
any legislation on domestic violence,
lawyer named Pavel Krasheninnikov, suggested
including three important words in the new version no matter what its purpose, would
of Article 116—that is assault “committed to close not have succeeded.”
persons” (v otnozhenii blizkikh litz).31 His argument
came from “protect the children” principle, in which
criminal liability for child abuse should be in place in During Mizulina’s reconsolidation and aggressive
order to better protect children. This version be- campaign to “restore” the original intent of the 2015
came a law on July 3, 2016, (FZ-323) and therefore package and remove “anti-family amendments,” in
the new Criminal Code allowed for private-public September 2016 the State Duma deputy represent-

10 l Gender-Based Violence Insight: Russia

ing the republic of Bashkortostan, Salia Murzabaeva, THE 2019 DRAFT LAW ON THE PREVEN-
and Federation council member Anton Beliaev, a TION OF FAMILY DOMESTIC VIOLENCE
senator from the city of Vladimir, introduced a draft
law “On the prevention of family domestic violence” In the autumn of 2019, the draft law on the preven-
(O profilaktike semeino-bytovogo nasilia), which was tion of family domestic (semeino-bytovoe) violence
developed by the Ministry of Labor of the Russian was the most controversial topic of public debate in
Federation.34 The explanatory note of the draft Russia and a cause of intense campaigns and strug-
argued that “there is no systematic approach to this gles between various sectors of civil society, social
problem [domestic violence] in Russia” and that movement organizations, and the government. The
“domestic violence … has become rampant.”35 The draft law introduced new legal provisions for more
note mentioned the absence of protection orders effective prevention of domestic violence, the most
and the inability of police to deal with domestic controversial of which happened to be a definition
abusers. The draft itself provided detailed definitions of family domestic violence and protection orders, a
of “family domestic violence” (Article 3) and princi- universal international tool to deal with abusive hus-
ples of prevention (Article 4), including protection or- bands or partners. The debates around the definition
ders (Articles 22–23). It was a standard federal law stemmed from the absence of explicit criminaliza-
very similar to other legislation on prevention, such tion of domestic violence in Russian legislation—
as federal laws on crime prevention (FZ-182). How- and, therefore, any official definition of domestic
ever, it was dismissed by the State Duma on a tech- violence. The same was also the case with protec-
nicality just a month later. The decision stated that tion orders, which the Russian legal system does
the draft lacked the assessment of the government not have. Therefore, when the draft defined family
of the Russian Federation, which was necessary for domestic violence as any “intentional act, inflicting
such legislation since it required budgeting.36 It is or threatening to inflict physical and (or) psycholog-
important to note that both Murzabaeva and Beliaev ical suffering and (or) property harm, which does
are medical professionals who took a keen interest not contain elements of administrative offense or a
in child protection legislation. Beliaev is also known crime,”38 it resulted in widespread criticism, which
for his legal initiatives to harshen punishments for also reflected fears by the public that anyone could
pedophiles, including chemical castration.37 Howev- be prosecuted under this law, arbitrarily, based on
er, the political climate for such legislation was not an unclear and vague definition.39
favorable: It was a new Duma, and Elena Mizulina
was on the warpath to cancel the “spanking law.” The draft’s text was very close to the 2016 version,
Therefore, any legislation on domestic violence, no except for edited definition of “family domestic
matter what its purpose, would not have succeed- violence” (Article 2) and changes to the priority of
ed. principles of prevention in Article 4, in which “sup-
port and preservation of the family” (no. 4 in the
2016 version) was moved ahead of legality and the
protection of human rights (no. 1 and 2 in the 2016
version, respectively). Otherwise, Article 5 defined
the “subjects of prevention,” including social ser-
vices, emergency shelters, medical services, and
NGOs. Articles 6 to 16 detailed the responsibilities

11 l Gender-Based Violence Insight: Russia

of different agencies. Article 17 outlined the grounds opinions on the problem of domestic violence and
for prevention measures, including information com- the need for such legislation.44 With conservative
ing from social services, police, or the courts, which groups rejecting the draft law as a foreign import
meant that official complaints ceased to be the only and a breach of Russia’s sovereignty in the form of
grounds for prosecution. Articles 18 to 25 defined a threat to family, and feminist groups advocating
the types and methods of prevention, including for special legislation based on the personal stories
the controversial Articles 24 and 25 on protection of abused women and terrifying statistics about
orders. Overall, the draft continued the legal tradi- femicide, the question of the necessity of spe-
tion of “prevention” legislation that was specifically cialized legislation for the prevention of domestic
applied to social problems such as crime, drug and violence became central to the debate. The conser-
alcohol abuse, poverty, homelessness, and so on. vatives insisted that Russian legislation contained all
necessary provisions to deal with domestic violence
(and some listed those) and they blamed law en-
“The COVID-19 pandemic forcement and the judiciary for their ineffectiveness
restriction measures changed the in applying those provisions. The feminists argued
that new legislation was needed to ensure that law
political discourse regarding violence enforcement and the judiciary would be effective in
against women.” applying the existing legislation.45 Therefore, there
seems to be a consensus about the inability of law
enforcement and the judiciary to effectively deal
The Federation Council, whose legal initiative put with domestic violence.
forward this draft law, organized a series of public
debates culminating in the online discussion of the
draft law between November 29 and December 15,
CONCLUSION: COVID-19 RESTRICTIONS
2019.40 Such a situation was unusual, but it followed
AND LEGISLATION ON PROTECTING
the 2012 Resolution of the Government of the Rus-
sian Federation on conducting public discussions WOMEN FROM DOMESTIC VIOLENCE
of draft legislation41 as part of the “open govern-
ment” policy.42 However, this particular “discussion” The COVID-19 pandemic restriction measures
attracted a record number of participants, with the changed the political discourse regarding violence
web page registering 11,186 entries. Prior to and against women. Already in April 2020 the United
parallel with the online discussion, conservative Nations had described the worldwide increase in
social movement organizations as well as feminist domestic abuse as a “shadow pandemic” alongside
groups had been conducting their own mass media COVID-19. Russian High Commissioner for Human
campaigns either against or in support of the draft Rights Tatiana Moskalkova announced that the num-
law.43 In addition, they each organized their sup- ber of incidents of domestic violence had increased
porters to participate in the online discussion with at least twofold.46 The Committee of the Ministry of
arguments that were developed by spokespeople Internal Affairs on Crime Prevention issued special
from their respective organizations. The government instructions on how to combat and prevent “crimes
was symbolically absent from this debate, although within the family,” addressed to all state agencies
some officials and deputies did express their on March 31, 2020.47 These measures included

12 l Gender-Based Violence Insight: Russia

additional support for crisis centers (or, in the ab-
sence of those, NGOs that provide support services
to survivors of domestic violence), the establish-
ment of hotlines, and a direct order to the police to
“prosecute domestic violence under Article 116 of
the Criminal Code.” Such traditional ways of deal-
ing with domestic violence nevertheless created
a framework for crisis management that is still in
place and allows for the creation of further networks
to support survivors of domestic violence.

The State Duma returned to the draft law on domes-

tic violence in May 2020. However, during these
discussions, the overall majority of the deputies
and senators acknowledged the importance of the
law and, specifically, the introduction of protec-
tion orders.48 Moreover, in April 2021 there was a
landmark decision by the Constitutional Court that
recognized the amended Article 116 from 2017 as
unconstitutional and ordered the article to be re-
vised.49 Following this decision, the Supreme Court
of the Russian Federation initiated draft legislation
to cancel private prosecution, which was specified
in Article 116 and required the case to start only
upon an official complaint by the victim.50 Taken
together, these legal changes have paved a path for
the reintroduction into the Russian parliament of the
law on the prevention of domestic violence—and
renewed hope for its success this time.

13 l Gender-Based Violence Insight: Russia

NOTES

1. United Nations, Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women, “Communication No.
65/2014,” March 26, 2019; European Court of Human Rights, Case of Volodina v. Russia (Application no.
41261/17), July 9, 2019.

2. United Nations, Human Rights Council, thirty-ninth session, “Report of the Working Group on
the Universal Periodic Review. Russian Federation. Addendum. Views on conclusions and/or
recommendations, voluntary commitments and replies presented by the State under review,”
September 3, 2018, https://www.ohchr.org/EN/HRBodies/UPR/Pages/RUindex.aspx.

3. Feruza Aripova and Janet Elise Johnson, “The Ukrainian-Russian Virtual Flashmob against Sexual
Assault,” Journal of Social Policy Studies, 16(3) (2018), 487–500.

4. Ekuzaveta Koroleva, ”Prikhodite, kogda ub’iut,” Gazeta.ru, October 2, 2018, https://www.gazeta.ru/

social/2018/10/02/12005587.shtml.

5. “V Moskve tri sestry ubili ottsa,” Tass.ru, July 28, 2018, https://tass.ru/proisshestviya/5412390.

6. Marianna Muravyeva, “Bytovukha: Family Violence in Soviet Russia,” Aspasia 8 (2014), 90–124.

7. Vikkie Turbine, “Women’s human rights in Russia: outmoded battlegrounds, or new sites of contentious
politics?” East European Politics vol. 31, no. 3 (2015), 326–341.

8. Katherine Verdery, “From Parent-State to Family Patriarchs: Gender and Nation in Contemporary Eastern
Europe,” East European Politics and Societies vo. 8, no. 2 (1994), 228; Thomas Hylland Eriksen, “The
Sexual Life of Nations: Notes on Gender and Nationhood,” Kvinner, køn og forskning no. 2 (2002),
52–65, https://tidsskrift.dk/KKF/article/download/28291/24899/0.

9. Oleg Riabov and Tatiana Riabova, “The remasculinization of Russia? Gender, nationalism, and the
legitimation of power under Vladimir Putin,” Problems of Post-Communism vol. 61, no. 2 (2014), 23–35.

10. Julie Hemment, Empowering Women in Russia: Activism, Aid and NGOs (Bloomington: Indiana
University Press, 2007); Anna Temkina, Elena Zdravomyslova, “Gender’s Crooked Path: Feminism
Confronts Russian Patriarchy,” Current Sociology vol. 62, no. 2 (2014), 253–270.

11. The Criminal Code of the Russian Federation (1996, revision 2017) is available here: http://www.
consultant.ru/document/cons_doc_LAW_10699/.

12. Linda Racioppi and Katherine O’Sullivan See, Women’s Activism in Contemporary Russia (Philadelphia:
Temple University Press, 1997).

13. The Concept of the Improvement of the Status of Women in the Russian Federation, introduced by the
resolution of the Government of the Russian Federation no. 6, January 8, 1996, http://pravo.gov.ru/proxy/
ips/?docbody=&prevDoc=102088090&backlink=1&&nd=102039018.

14 l Gender-Based Violence Insight: Russia

14. Ibid, II.d.

15. The Draft Law no. 97700685-2 of March 11, 1997, Ob osnovakh sotsial’no-pravovoi zashchity ot
nasilia v sem’e (On the basics of socio-legal protections from violence in the family), https://sozd.
duma.gov.ru/bill/97700685-2. See also Tatiana Zabelina, “Domashnee nasilie v otnishenii zhenshchin:
gosudarstvennaia problema ili ‘lichnoe delo’?” Zhenshchina v rossiiskom obshchestve no. 4 (2008), 1-8,
https://cyberleninka.ru/article/n/domashnee-nasilie-v-otnoshenii-zhenschin-gosudarstvennaya-problema-
ili-lichnoe-delo.

16. Federal Law no. 195-FZ of November 15, 1995, Ob osnovakh sotsial’nogo obsluzhivaniia v Rossiiskoi
Federatsii (On the basics of provision of social services to the population of the Russian Federation),
http://www.consultant.ru/document/cons_doc_LAW_8574/.

17. State Duma of the Russian Federation, Transcripts, Session 109, June 20, 1997, https://sozd.duma.
gov.ru/bill/97700685-2. See also Galina Sillaste, “Zakon v tupike (Sem’ia dolzhna byt’ zashchena
ot nasilia),” Obozrevatel’ no. 2 (1998), 53–54, http://old.nasledie.ru/oboz/N02_98/2_13.HTM;
Tatiana Sidorenkova, “Pravovye osnovy zashchity ot nasiliia v sem’e. In Kuda iset Rossiia?” In
Transformatsiia sotsial’noi sfery i sotsial’noi politiki (Moscow, 1998), 332–340, http://ecsocman.hse.ru/
data/778/679/1219/038Sidorenkova.pdf; Zabelina, “Domashnee nasilie v otnishenii zhenshchin.”

18. Draft law no. 284965-3 of January 16, 2003, O gosudarstvennykh garantiiakh ravnykh prav i svobod
muzhchin i zhenshchin i ravnykh vozmozhnostei dlia ikh realizatsii (On state guarantees of equal rights
and freedoms of men and women and equal opportunities for their realization), https://sozd.duma.gov.
ru/bill/284965-3#bh_histras.

19. The Government of the Russian Federation. Official comment on the draft law no. 284965-3 On state
guarantees of equal rights and freedoms of men and women and equal opportunities for their realization
accepted for the first reading April 16, 2003, https://sozd.duma.gov.ru/bill/284965-3#bh_histras.

20. Marianna Muravyeva, “‘Ia i moia sem’ia kategoricheski protiv etogo zakona’: gendernoe grazhdanstvo
i domashnee nasilie v sovremennoi Rossii, (My family and I are absolutely against this law: gender
citizenship and domestic violence in contemporary Russia),” Interaction. Interview. Interpretation vol. 13,
no. 3 (2021), 44–64, https://www.inter-fnisc.ru/index.php/inter/article/view/5935/5757.

21. Jeffrey Kahn, “The Rule of Law under Pressure: Russia and the European Human Rights System,”
Review of Central and East European Law vol. 44, no. 3 (2019), 275–295; Bill Bowring, “Russia and the
Council of Europe: an incompatible ideology, and a transplanted legal regime?” in Russian Discourses
on International Law: Sociological and Philosophical Phenomenon, ed. P. Sean Morris (Abingdon:
Routledge, 2018), 133–157.

22. Lourdes Peroni, “Violence against migrant women: The Istanbul convention through a postcolonial
feminist lens,” Feminist Legal Studies vol. 24, no. 1 (2016), 49–67; Ronagh JA McQuigg, The Istanbul
convention, domestic violence and human rights (Abingdon: Routledge, 2017); Lorena Sosa, “The
Istanbul Convention in the context of feminist claims,” in International Law and Violence Against
Women, ed. Johanna Niemi, Lourdes Peroni, Vladislava Stoyanova (Abingdon: Routledge, 2020), 25–42.

15 l Gender-Based Violence Insight: Russia

23. Johanna Niemi, Lourdes Peroni, and Vladislava Stoyanova, eds., International Law and Violence Against
Women: Europe and the Istanbul Convention (Abingdon: Routledge, 2020).

24. Sara De Vido, “The Istanbul Convention as an interpretative tool at the European and national levels,”
in International Law and Violence Against Women, ed. Johanna Niemi, Lourdes Peroni, Vladislava
Stoyanova (Abingdon: Routledge, 2020), 57–74.

25. Muravyeva, “Bytovukha.”

26. Alexander Kondakov, “The silenced citizens of Russia: Exclusion of non-heterosexual subjects from
rights-based citizenship,” Social & Legal Studies vol. 23, no. 2 (2014), 151–174; Cai Wilkinson, “Putting
‘traditional values’ into practice: The rise and contestation of anti-homopropaganda laws in Russia,”
Journal of Human Rights vol. 13, no. 3 (2014), 363–379.

27. Alexander Ponomariov, “‘In the Spirit of Symphony’: On Russian Orthodox Church’s Refinement
of Secular Legal Standards in the Russian Federation,” Interdisciplinary Journal for Religion and
Transformation in Contemporary Society vol. 7, no. 1 (2021), 234–260; Michelle Rivkin-Fish, “‘Fight
Abortion, Not Women’: The Moral Economy Underlying Russian Feminist Advocacy,” Anthropological
Journal of European Cultures vol. 27, no. 2 (2018), 22–44.

28. See also Olga Semukhina, “The decriminalization of domestic violence in Russia,” Demokratizatsiya: The
Journal of Post-Soviet Democratization vol. 28, no. 1 (2020), 15–45.

29. Draft law no. 953398-6 of December 11, 2015, O vnesenii izmenenii v otdel’nye zakonodatel’nye
akty Rossiiskoi Federatsii v sviazi s priniatiem Federal’nogo zakona “Ovnesenii izmenenii v Ugolovnyi
kodeks Rossiiskoi Federatsii i Ugolovno-Protsessual’nyi kodeks Rossiiskoi Federatsii po voprosam
sovershenstvovaniia osnovanii i poriadka osvobozhdeniia ot ugolovnoi otvetstvennosti” (On
amendments of legal statutes of the Russian federation in relation with passing the Federal Law “On
amendments of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation and Legal Procedural Code of the Russian
Federation on the issues of improving grounds and procedure of releasing from criminal liability”),
https://sozd.duma.gov.ru/bill/953398-6.

30. Anastasia Khodyreva, “Desiat’ let v pravozashchitnom femimzme. Bol’shoe interview s Mari Davtian”
(Ten years in Feminist Advocacy. Interview with Mari Davtyan), Colta.ru, July 26, 2020, https://www.
colta.ru/articles/she/24766-mari-davtyan-bolshoe-intervyu.

31. Dmitrii Kozelev, “Upornaia bor’ba za tri slova,” (Persistent fight for three words) Znak.ru, January 11,
2017, https://www.znak.com/2017-01-11/kak_elena_mizulina_dobilas_prinyatiya_ochen_spornogo_
zakonoproekta_o_poboyah.

32. Federal law no. 323-FZ of July 3, 2016, O vnesenii izmenenii v otdel’nye zakonodatel’nye akty Rossiiskoi
Federatsii v sviazi s priniatiem Federal’nogo zakona “Ovnesenii izmenenii v Ugolovnyi kodeks Rossiiskoi
Federatsii i Ugolovno-Protsessual’nyi kodeks Rossiiskoi Federatsii po voprosam sovershenstvovaniia
osnovanii i poriadka osvobozhdeniia ot ugolovnoi otvetstvennosti” (On amendments of legal statutes
of the Russian federation in relation with passing the Federal Law, “On amendments of the Criminal
Code of the Russian Federation and Legal Procedural Code of the Russian Federation on the issues of
improving grounds and procedure of releasing from criminal liability”), https://rg.ru/2016/07/08/uk323-
dok.html.

16 l Gender-Based Violence Insight: Russia

33. “Mizulina predlagaet dekriminalizirovat’ semeinye poboi,” Pravo.ru, July 27, 2016, https://pravo.ru/news/
view/131807/.

34. Draft law no. 1183390-6 of September 29, 2016, O profilaktike semeino-bytovogo nasilia (On prevention
of family-domestic violence), available here: https://sozd.duma.gov.ru/bill/1183390-6.

35. Ibid, 45.

36. Russian Federation, The Council of the State Duma, Decision of the Committee on the Issues of Family,
Women and Children, no 3.6-5-5/3, October 20, 2016, https://sozd.duma.gov.ru/bill/1183390-6.

37. See unprecedentedly heated debate in the State Duma here: https://www.youtube.com/
watch?v=As1pzeHfaG4.

38. Draft law of November 29, 2019, O profilaktike semeion-bytovogo nasiliia v Rossiiskoi Federatsii (On
prevention of family-domestic violence in the Russian Federation), available here: http://council.gov.ru/
media/files/rDb1bpYASUAxolgmPXEfKLUIq7JAARUS.pdf.

39. Muravyeva, “‘Ia i moia sem’ia kategoricheski protiv etogo zakona.’”

40. See the official site of the debate: http://council.gov.ru/services/discussions/themes/110611/.

41. Resolution of the Government of the Russian Federation of August 25, 2012, no. 851, O poriadke
raskrytiia federal’nymi organami ispolnitel’noi vlasti informatsii o podgotovke proektov normativnykh
pravovykh aktov i resul’tatakh ikh obshchestvennogo obsuzhdeniia (On revealing information on
preparation of the drafts of normative legal acts and results of their public discussion by the federal
executive agencies), http://government.ru/docs/6303/.

42. Natalya Vinogradova, Olga Moiseeva, “Open Government and ‘E-Government’ in Russia,” Sociology
Study vol. 5, no. 1 (2015), 29–38.

43. “V Moskve proidet miting protiv zakona o domashnem nasilii” (There will be a meeting against law on
domestic violence in Moscow), Interfax, November 20, 2019, https://www.interfax.ru/moscow/684836.

44. Yana Markova, “Analiz ofitsial’noi ritoriki protivnikov priniatia zakonoproekta ‘O profilaktike semeion-
bytovogo nasiliia v Rossiiskoi Federatsii’” (The analysis of the official rhetoric of the opposers to the draft
law “On prevention of family-domestic violence in the Russian Federation”) Logiko-filosofskie shtudii vol.
17, no. 3 (2019), 240–256; Anna Andreeva, Nataliia Drozhashchikh, Galina Nelaeva, “Women’s Rights and
the Feminists’ ‘Dirty Plans’: Media Discourses During the COVID-19 Pandemic in Russia,” Affilia vol. 36,
no. 3 (2021), 319–335.

45. Muravyeva, “Ia i moia sem’ia kategoricheski protiv etogo zakona.”

46. “Moskal’kova soobshchila o roste sluchaev domashnego nasilia vo vremia epidemii,” RBC.ru, May 5,
2020, https://www.rbc.ru/rbcfreenews/5eb0bb599a79474f582ed637.

47. Russian Federation. Ministry of Internal Affairs. The Committee on Crime Prevention. Decision of
March 31, 2020, O realizatsii sub”jektami profilaktiki pravonarushenii polnomochii po preduprezhdeniiu
prestuplenii v oblasti semeion-bytovykh otnoshenii, https://xn--b1aew.xn--p1ai/mvd/sovorg/prav_kom/
com_work.

17 l Gender-Based Violence Insight: Russia

48. “Zhertvam dadut order. V Gosdume vernulis’ k rabote nad zakonoproektom o profilaktike semeion-
bytovogo nasilia,” Kommersant, December 7, 2020, https://www.kommersant.ru/doc/4603180.

49. Decision of the Constitutional Court of the Russian Federation no. 11- from April 9, 2021, On
constitutionality of art. 116.1 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation in relation to the complaint
of L. F. Sakovoi, http://publication.pravo.gov.ru/Document/View/0001202104120009.

50. Draft law no. 1145531-7 from 7.04.2021, O vnesenii izmenenii v Ugolovno-Protsessual’nyi kodeks
Rossiiskoi Federatsii (On amendments of the Criminal Procedural Code of the Russian Federation),
https://sozd.duma.gov.ru/bill/1145531-7.

18 l Gender-Based Violence Insight: Russia

 GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE INSIGHT: DATA ANALYSIS

Photo Credit: Prostock-studio, Shutterstock

The Information Gains of the 4IR

and Closing the GBV
Knowledge Gap
Cassandra Pagan Araujo

Gender Based
Violence
A COMPLEX PROBLEM WITH BASIC “wicked problem … systemic in nature, complexly
INFORMATION interrelated, and materialize[s] at the interface be-
tween public-private and profit-nonprofit interests”4
We live in the most dynamic age in human history. in ways that the global community struggles to de-
The increasing fusion of our physical and digital fine, measure, and address. The complexity of GBV
realities provides us with access to nearly infinite in- is ecological in nature, pervading all strata, including
formation at any given time. Many hoped the Fourth “factors operating at the individual, relationship,
Industrial Revolution (4IR) would effectively democ- community and society levels.”5 To know whether or
ratize information and thereby provide societies with not society is addressing GBV, we need to be able
the capability to identify problems and create evi- to measure and benchmark progress (or lack there-
dence-based solutions. But the truth is, we still lack of) in all its complexity—however, we rely on basic
critical information about many of society’s most and limited data to complete this task.
persistent challenges. While artificial intelligence
and machine learning provide unprecedented insight International efforts such as the Convention of the
into human behavior, helping to drive consumption Elimination on All Forms of Discrimination Against
to new heights, the global community still fails to Women (CEDAW) and the Belem do Para Conven-
understand the scope and nature of many social ills. tion highlight the need for norms and standards in
Gender-based violence (GBV) is one such problem. addressing GBV, “including standards for domestic
legislation, creating standards for global civil soci-
ety to both advocate and monitor, and mobilizing
“For all the technological and domestic civil society around these new shared
informational advances made in expectations of individual and state behavior.”6
Data are essential to holding governments to these
recent years, the information we standards. For all the technological and informational
are operating with in order to hold advances made in recent years, the information we
governments and institutions are operating with in order to hold governments and
institutions accountable for protecting all citizens
accountable for protecting all citizens is strikingly limited. We suffer from a knowledge
is strikingly limited.” gap regarding the extent to which GBV occurs, the
forms it takes, the frequency at which it occurs,
GBV encompasses “physical, psychological, or who is experiencing and perpetrating the violence,
sexual violence perpetrated against an individual or and critically, what works in reducing GBV. There
group on the basis of gender or gender norms”1— are many reasons why this knowledge gap exists,
although it is often interchangeably, and narrowly, and efforts such as the United Nations (UN) Sustain-
used to describe violence against women. It is a able Development Goals (SDGs) are working at the
global scourge. An estimated 35 percent of wom- global level to address shortfalls in data, but there
en around the world have experienced physical or is much progress to be made. We cannot achieve
sexual violence from an intimate partner,2 and cases the SDG’s goal to “eliminate all forms of violence
are believed to be widely underreported. Only an es- against all women and girls in the public and private
timated 7 percent of women who have experienced spheres”7 if we cannot monitor its prevalence.
violence reported it to a formal source.3 GBV is a

3 l Gender-Based Violence Insight: Data Analysis

This paper will discuss why this knowledge gap lence versus events, and (5) the time frame in which
exists and what we need to do to close it. the violence occurred.9 The question of perpetrators
has to do with the nature of the relationship with
the victim. For example, should there be a narrower
WHY DON'T WE HAVE MORE DATA? focus on intimate or former intimate partners who
commit GBV? In that case, where do we include
At its core, the reason the global community violence perpetrated by family members who are
struggles to paint a complete picture of GBV is the not an intimate partner, as in the extreme case of
ongoing debate over what, exactly, we mean by honor killings? How should we categorize the nature
gender-based violence. There is a tension between of the relationship between perpetrator and victim,
adopting indicators with “a specialized focus on and how can we know this?
gender-based violence or the use of frameworks
that facilitate the mainstreaming of violence against
women.”8 Essentially, one side of the debate argues
“The lack of agreement on the
that data should capture gender-based violence scope of purpose of these data sets
perpetrated against any and all victims, regardless inhibits our ability to measure
of their sex. This approach would require a deeper
understanding of the dynamics that shape violent
and understand the deeper issues
events when they are recorded, to ensure it can be surrounding gender-based violence.”
properly classified as gender-based violence, so as
not to capture all instances of interpersonal vio-
lence (such as assault motivated for non-gendered The question regarding the types of violence is sim-
reasons) and lose its meaning. While on the other ilar in nature. What kinds of violence should be in-
side of the debate, some argue that the purpose of cluded in measurements, and what is the threshold
collecting such data is to prioritize and mainstream of violence that should count? Standard definitions
notions of gender-based violence specifically target- and measurements of physical and sexual violence
ing women (although whether this is defined as a already exist. However, with emotional violence,
matter of sex or gender identity is a further debate) which evidence shows is more pervasive,10 “there
into perspectives and policy decisions, and there- has been little progress in reaching consensus on
fore measurements should be based on sex- how to conceptualize and measure psychological vi-
disaggregation between male and female victims. olence,”11 despite its inclusion in the SDGs. Similarly,
The lack of agreement on the scope of purpose of how do we define and measure patrimonial vio-
these data sets inhibits our ability to measure and lence such as property grabbing?12 Moreover, there
understand the deeper issues surrounding gen- is a debate regarding the severity of violence that
der-based violence. should be measured and how to differentiate severe
violence. What is the threshold of violence that
Beyond the fundamental debate, there are five should be measured? How does that vary according
points of disagreement that further complicate the to type of violence? Can we reasonably lump physi-
definition and scope of GBV indicators and data. cal violence such as shoving together with femicide
These points include defining (1) perpetrators, (2) and expect accurate measurements?
types of violence, (3) severity of violence, (4) preva-

4 l Gender-Based Violence Insight: Data Analysis

Photo Credit: BearFotos, Shutterstock

governments are not always able to collect data on

“GBV is rarely a one-off occurrence, a regular, annual basis, and therefore measuring if
and experts recognize that there are victims have experienced GBV in their lifetime gives
a sense of prevalence and could be captured with
cycles of violence that repeat.”
lower frequency. At the same time, if the data mea-
sures prevalence over a lifetime, researchers are not
The final two debates are quite literally a matter of able to effectively know if GBV prevalence is getting
time. The debate of prevalence versus events or better or worse over time. To answer that question,
incidents centers on whether it is more useful to measuring the prevalence of violence in the previ-
understand the proportion of the population that ous 12 months is more useful.
experiences gender-based violence (prevalence)
or to count the number of events in which gen- Regardless of what the scope of GBV means to a
der-based violence occurs (incidents). GBV is rarely researcher or policymaker, the simple truth is we do
a one-off occurrence, and experts recognize that not have the information necessary to test expla-
there are cycles of violence that repeat.13 What do nations or innovations. The problem is twofold: (1)
we miss when we do not understand the chronic There are issues with the data that we do collect,
nature of GBV? The other debate is whether the and (2) there are data we do not collect.
data should capture if victims have experienced
violence in the course of their lifetime versus in the The data that we do have is limited by the definition-
past 12 months. Crime surveys and other popula- al issues and lack of standards that prevent insti-
tion-wide data collection efforts are expensive and tutions from producing indicators we can compare
time-consuming to conduct. With limited resources, over time and across countries. Often these data

5 l Gender-Based Violence Insight: Data Analysis

are not disaggregated by age, not collected for suggests that victims are more likely to report when
women over the age of 49, do not differentiate be- surveys adopt a self-completion method rather than
tween rural and urban settings, and do not capture being conducted as in-person interviews.15
where the violence occurred (workplace, school,
home, etc.). Because of the lack of standards and The second source of data are administrative re-
definitions at the international level, national and cords, most often reported from the justice system.
subnational institutions are left to develop and These data draw from crime statistics collected
implement data collection on their own accord. This by the police and convictions data collected by the
puts tremendous pressure on national statistics courts, both of which are problematic. Statistics
offices (NSOs), which often lack the resources to reported from police sources capture only a drop in
create and publish these data.14 Within this context, the bucket of the actual number of GBV incidents
NSOs rely on less than perfect sources to produce because very few victims report to formal sources.
the indicators that we see in databases and cited in Victims of GBV may be afraid of retribution from
research. their abuser, may not trust the police or the justice
system to protect them or investigate the case,
may feel shame, or may not understand that they
“Researchers and policymakers have experienced a crime. Statistics collected from
have some sense of the prevalence convictions capture even fewer instances of GBV
because they depend firstly on the incident being
of physical and sexual violence reported at all, and also that the incident is thor-
committed against women, but the oughly investigated and the case judged, and that
picture largely ends there.” the perpetrator is convicted. Impunity for commit-
ting GBV is a persistent problem around the world.
Completing this journey through the justice system
The two main sources of these data are surveys may take years. In some contexts, intimate partner
and administrative records. An advantage of surveys violence committed between a married couple is
is that they can be designed to capture granularity considered a private matter and is dismissed by
that is often missing and include questions on the the justice system, and therefore those cases are
dynamics of the violence that can help researchers systematically excluded from these statistics. These
better differentiate gender-based violence from barriers mean that high-quality, annual data on gen-
interpersonal violence. However, surveys are expen- der-based violence is rare, even as decision-makers
sive to conduct on a regular basis, require specially rely on these imperfect data to make policy deci-
trained enumerator staff to ensure the emotional sions.
well-being of participants, and draw from limited
population samples that often exclude the most The data that we do not collect tells a deeper story.
vulnerable, including the unhoused or those living Researchers and policymakers have some sense
in temporary shelters. Moreover, special care must of the prevalence of physical and sexual violence
be taken to preserve the confidentiality and rights committed against women, but the picture largely
of participants. Participants in the survey must also ends there. The acknowledgement that information
respond truthfully and choose to disclose the details gaps exist drives progress in creating new data and
of violent incidents to strangers, and some evidence “since 2000, the effort involved in monitoring the

6 l Gender-Based Violence Insight: Data Analysis

Graphic Credit: Yunuen Bonaparte

Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) has spurred depends on having existing contact with the UN
increased investment to improve data for monitoring body that acts as custodian to a given indicator. The
and accountability.”16 The SDGs expanded the indi- people most affected by these data are unlikely to
cators from 60 under the MDG framework to 231 be in the room.
indicators to capture a more complete picture of
human development. At the same time, the growth
in the indicators the international community con- “Creating standards, methodologies,
siders a priority presents a problem. The increase in and data collection instruments
indicators from initiatives like the SDGs “challenged
that apply globally is a complicated
the capacity of the international statistical communi-
ty to innovate and find measurements methods for process that requires consensus and
priorities which there are no agreed upon definitions takes time.”
and are difficult to measure.”17 Creating standards,
methodologies, and data collection instruments that
apply globally is a complicated process that requires Global indicators give us a sense of the scale of
consensus and takes time. the problem and whether it is improving or degrad-
ing. But these data are not sufficient for making
It is also a process that relies on people, which decisions about how to address GBV. Research-
raises a crucial question: Who is at the table when ers also need to collect data about whether the
these decisions are made? The UN SDGs employ interventions designed to reduce GBV work in
a consultative process that convenes experts and practice. Researchers and decision-makers do not
consultants from around the world to develop indi- have sufficient evidence to know what policies and
cators that lack a standard methodology. But these programs effectively reduce GBV. To answer this
groups are limited in size, and participation largely question, researchers must conduct evaluations of

7 l Gender-Based Violence Insight: Data Analysis

programs and policies, but “rigorous evaluations of capture the count of GBV incidents in addition to
GBV interventions are infrequent, and those that are measuring prevalence. The seismic shift to online
conducted are often limited by shortcomings in their collaboration in the post-COVID-19 world means
methodology and measurement, and their lack of that international cooperation no longer requires the
detailed intervention description.”18 The gold stan- burden of in-person meetings to convene expert
dard of such evaluations employ randomized control groups. International organizations should leverage
trials (RCTs) to determine the impact of a given these technologies to create expert groups for
intervention, but these kinds of experiments are indicators without standard methods and to revisit
rarely conducted for GBV interventions. These eval- existing indicators.
uations are expensive to conduct, and because the
results of the study are not available until years after Second, we need to expand the capacity of NSOs to
the experiment is complete, there is little appetite to collect and publish GBV data on an annual basis and
fund them. Moreover, ethical concerns limit what in- make data available on a user-friendly and accessible
formation can be gathered and how the experiment platform to encourage accountability. This means
is designed, so as not to expose GBV victims to any providing resources and expertise to implement
harm. Finally, the results of any particular evaluation annual surveys with expanded population samples
are specific to the location, program or policy, and and improved methodologies for existing indicators,
context in which it occurred and cannot be easily as well as employing data collection tools for new
extrapolated to other situations. indicators. Mobile technologies should be employed
to reduce the burden of data collection and expand
self-completion methodologies. Similarly, data
privacy innovations should be used to protect the
WHAT CAN WE DO BETTER?
confidentiality of survey participants.

The GBV knowledge gap persists, but the benefits

Third, if we are going to rely on administrative data
of the technological advances of the 4IR, when
such as crime statistics, we need to improve the
applied with intention, can help close that gap.
rates of reporting GBV to formal sources. Police
First, the international community needs to develop
need to be trained to respond to GBV, and more
standard indicators to measure GBV beyond phys-
women should be actively recruited to police forces.
ical and sexual violence. Specifically, indicators for
Police should also adopt online reporting mecha-
emotional or psychological violence and patrimonial
nisms to expand access. These e-reporting plat-
violence need to be defined and standardized. We
forms should adopt responsive design techniques to
also need to improve the methodologies for existing
ensure the reporting platform is easily accessible on
GBV indicators to include age disaggregation; move
mobile devices, and they should include a mecha-
beyond sex-disaggregation and the limited focus on
nism for reporting via SMS in cases where smart-
female victims; differentiate rural and urban settings;
phone access is limited.
collect information regarding the relationship to
the perpetrator beyond intimate partner (i.e., family
And finally, we need to increase the research and
member, work colleague, stranger, etc.); differen-
evaluations of GBV interventions. The financial bur-
tiate between the severity levels of violence; and
den for this work cannot depend on university fund-

8 l Gender-Based Violence Insight: Data Analysis

ing alone. If governments and donors demand that
those programs and policies be evidence-based,
then the funding for conducting rigorous evaluations
needs to be made available.

At the end of the day, improved data and informa-

tion will not solve the problem of gender-based
violence, but it will help expose the problem and
give advocates the fuel needed to fan the flames of
urgency. Policymakers will not be motivated to act
by statistics alone, but the citizenry can use those
statistics to hold policymakers accountable for the
safety of their constituencies. Data is not the “new
oil” of the 4IR, because it is not a scarce commodi-
ty and should not be treated as such. Data has value
only when we create it, share it, and harness it to
solve the problems that stymie human develop-
ment.

9 l Gender-Based Violence Insight: Data Analysis

NOTES

1. Laurie Ball Cooper, Elizabeth Levy Paluck, and Erin K. Fletcher, “Reducing gender-based violence,” The
SAGE Handbook of Gender and Psychology (Los Angeles, CA: SAGE, 2013), 359.

2. Zainab Ibrahim, Jayanthi Kuru-Utumpala, and Jay Goulden, Counting the Cost: The Price Society Pays for
Violence Against Women (Care International, 2018), 3.

3. Tia Palermo, Jennifer Bleck, and Amber Peterman, “Tip of the iceberg: reporting and gender-based
violence in developing countries,” American Journal of Epidemiology 179, no. 5 (2014), 609.

4. Lorraine Eden and M. Fernanda Wagstaff, “Evidence-based policymaking and the wicked problem of
SDG 5 Gender Equality,” Journal of International Business Policy 4, no. 1 (2021), 29.

5. Andrew Morrison, Mary Ellsberg, and Sarah Bott, “Addressing gender-based violence: a critical review of
interventions,” The World Bank Research Observer 22, no. 1 (2007), 26.

6. Jeni Klugman, “Gender based violence and the law,” World Development Report Background Paper
(2017), 2.

7. “Sustainable Development Goal 5: Achieve Gender Equality and Empower All Women and Girls,” United
Nations, accessed July 8, 2021, https://www.un.org/sustainabledevelopment/gender-equality/.

8. Sylvia Walby, “Improving the statistics on violence against women,” Statistical Journal of the United
Nations Economic Commission for Europe 22, nos. 3-4 (2005), 194.

9. Ibid.

10. Md. Alamgir Hossen, “Measuring gender-based violence: Results of the violence against women (VAW)
survey in Bangladesh,” in 5th Global Forum on Gender Statistics (2014), 5.

11. Lori Heise, Christina Pallitto, Claudia García-Moreno, and Cari Jo Clark, “Measuring psychological
abuse by intimate partners: Constructing a cross-cultural indicator for the Sustainable Development
Goals,” SSM-Population Health 9 (2019), 1.

12. Geraldine Terry, Gender-based violence, Oxfam GB (2007), 14.

13. Laurie Ball Cooper, Elizabeth Levy Paluck, Erin K. Fletcher, “Reducing gender-based violence,” The SAGE
Handbook of Gender and Psychology (Los Angeles, CA: SAGE, 2013), 361.

14. Angelina Fisher and Sakiko Fukuda-Parr, “Introduction—data, knowledge, politics and localizing the
SDGs,” Journal of Human Development and Capabilities 20, no. 4 (2019), 376.

15. Sylvia Walby, “Improving the statistics on violence against women,” Statistical Journal of the United
Nations Economic Commission for Europe 22, nos. 3-4 (2005), 199.

16. United Nations, “A World that Counts,” UN, New York (2014), 4.

10 l Gender-Based Violence Insight: Data Analysis

17. Angelina Fisher and Sakiko Fukuda-Parr, “Introduction—data, knowledge, politics and localizing the
SDGs,” Journal of Human Development and Capabilities 20, no. 4 (2019), 376.

18. Laurie Ball Cooper, Elizabeth Levy Paluck, Erin K. Fletcher, “Reducing gender-based violence,” The SAGE
Handbook of Gender and Psychology (Los Angeles, CA: SAGE 2013), 373.

11 l Gender-Based Violence Insight: Data Analysis

 GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE INSIGHT: INDIA

Photo credit: Rajasthani women in veils in Beawar, Rajasthan, India: Sumit Saraswat, Shutterstock, April 2019

Addressing the Historical Roots

of Gender-Based Violence in
Twenty-First-Century India
Hari Seshasayee

Gender Based
Violence
Prehistorian Marylène Patou-Mathis, one of a select The system of patriarchy too has ancient origins:
few who study the origin of violence in humans, “Patriarchy is a historic creation formed by men and
has found that collective violence appeared with the women in a process which took nearly 2,500 years
“sedentarization of communities” around 15,000 to its completion,” says historian Gerda Lerner, as
years ago, and more important, that “Violence is not she traces its origin to early Mesopotamia (“the
inscribed in our genes. Its appearance has historical cradle of civilization”) in 3,100 BC.5
and social causes.”1
These historical texts provide evidence of three
The Seville Statement on Violence adopted by the central elements of violence against women, which
United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural remain relevant today:
Organization (UNESCO) also affirms that “there is
nothing in our neurophysiology that compels us 1. Historical: Violence against women, be it through
to react violently,” and consequently, “how we act sexual violence, physical assault, rape or femicide,
is shaped by how we have been conditioned and goes back several millennia, appearing as early as
socialized.”2 the sedentarization of humans in small communi-
ties.
If violence among humans is not innate and has so-
ciohistorical origins, other subsets of violence, such 2. Sociocultural roots: Since violence is not “in-
as gender-based violence (GBV), must also have scribed in our genes,” we should be cognizant of its
similar roots. The underlying sociocultural origins of deep sociocultural causes that have been fostered
GBV are well recorded in the book Archaeologies of over the years. Violence directed at women is visibly
Gender and Violence, which includes a Greek-Ptol- apparent, justified, and even encouraged in mytho-
emaic text from 2,200 years ago that eerily mirrors logical texts, religion, and literature.
society today: “Do not disregard an insult from your
wife. Beat her!”3 3. Global: Nearly every civilization with a recorded
history has left evidence of violence against wom-
Greek mythology too is rife with stories of sexual en. UN Women estimates that one in three women
violence against women and girls. Susanne Moraw, globally face some form of sexual violence,6 cutting
a classical archaeologist, draws striking compari- across race, ethnicity, class, and nationality.
sons between Ancient Greece and the present day,
through motifs of sexualized murder, penetration by Thus the question must be asked: Why has violence
objects such as a symbolic phallus, and sexualized against women, which began several millennia ago,
torture and rape. She also observes that in most remained nearly immutable to this day? In other
cases “the perpetrator is ascribed an explicitly high- words, why is a dictum from the Ptolemaic period
er status than is his victim, apart from the fact that 2,200 years ago to beat one’s wife still strikingly
he is male and she is not.”4 This motif of hierarchy is apposite today?
often used as justification for GBV, especially when
directed at minorities or in times of conflict, from Rajni Bakshi, an author and rights activist, offers an
the Roman Empire 2,000 years ago and the coloni- important caveat that may help us understand this
zation of the Americas 500 years ago to the partition
of India and the present day.

3 l Gender-Based Violence Insight: India

issue, cautioning that “we must locate GBV as one 1. Marriage-related violence, including dowry
element in the larger context of violence and war.” deaths, honor killings, forced marriages, and child
marriages.

2. Violence related to caste or religion, especially

THE ROOTS OF GBV IN INDIA
with regards to Dalits, lower castes, and religious
minorities.
In India’s case, the roots of GBV can be traced to
innumerous sociocultural elements, including but
In addition to these sociocultural causes, the advent
not limited to the Manusmriti in the second century
of colonialism added a new layer of complexity that
BC (allocating to women “the habit of lying, sitting
set back the cause of women’s rights. Neelam Deo,
around and an indiscriminate love of ornaments,
a former Indian ambassador and former board mem-
anger, meanness, treachery, and bad conduct”),7
ber of Breakthrough India, which works to prevent
literary works like the Ramayana (which repeated-
violence against girls and women, declared that
ly denounces the “fickleness” of women, not to
“British colonialism froze our social structures and
mention Draupadi’s public vastraharana [disrobing]
delayed any change we could expect with regards to
and Sita’s fire test to prove her “purity”), numerous
women’s rights. It took the Bengal Renaissance for
historical texts (the Dharmarrstra, Atharvaveda, and
the practice of Sati to be banned and even widow
Tolkappiyam)8 that advocate the marriage of girls
remarriage was allowed only after repeated cam-
just as they attain puberty (or even earlier), in the
paigning in Maharashtra and Bengal.”10
historical practice of dowry (where the bride’s family
bestows costly gifts to the groom’s as a prerequisite
to marriage; dowry cuts across religion, class, and
caste in India), and sati, where a widow sacrifices THE LAWS EXIST, BUT IMPLEMENTA-
herself atop her deceased husband’s funeral pyre. TION IS LAX
Historian Uma Chakravarti concludes in her article
on the origins of patriarchy in India that “the design The Constitution of India, the Indian Penal Code
of the patriarchal caste-class structure was mapped (IPC), and the Indian Evidence Act (IEA) all offer
out by the Brahmanas; pativrata, the specific dhar- protection for women in the eyes of the law, and
ma of the Hindu wife, then became the ideology by include concepts of equality and nondiscrimination.
which women accepted and even aspired to chastity Although the IPC remains the main legal instrument
and wifely fidelity as the highest expression of their to address crimes against women, India has also
selfhood.”9 enacted legislation that specifically addresses GBV,
including:
These sociocultural notions and customs paved the
way for India’s profoundly patriarchal society, as well • The Immoral Traffic (Prevention) Act, 1956,11
as for the patrilineal system that ensures property meant to restrict prostitution and abolish human
rights and inheritance remain with men. In addition trafficking.
to the sexual violence and domestic abuse women
face globally, women in India face two additional
challenges:

4 l Gender-Based Violence Insight: India

Photo credit: Sati handprints at Mehrangarh Fort in Jodhpur, Rajasthan, India: Artem Mishukov, Shutterstock

• The Dowry Prohibition Act, 1961,12 which made 2008,16 included provisions to address cyber
the act of taking or giving dowry a criminal offense stalking, cyber defamation, online harassment, child
punishable up to five years in prison. pornography, and bullying, all of which became ram-
pant in the twenty-first century.
• The Indecent Representation of Women Act,
1986,13 which seeks to “prohibit indecent repre- • The Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace
sentation of women through advertisements or in Act, 2013,17 which seeks to provide “a right to a safe
publications, writings, paintings, figures or in any environment free from sexual harassment.”
other manner.”
• The Criminal Law (Amendment) Act, 2013,
• The Commission of Sati (Prevention) Act, 1987, 14
popularly known as the Nirbhaya Act, it incorporat-
following the ban of sati more than a century prior, ed offences like acid attacks, sexual harassment,
this act sought to more effectively prevent the com- voyeurism, and stalking into the IPC. It also made it
mission of sati and its glorification. mandatory for medical personnel to administer and
treat victims of sexual assault.
• Protection of Women from Domestic Violence
Act, 2005,15 which defined the term “domestic vio- Yet, as the Bhartiya Stree Shakti report, funded by
lence” for the first time under Indian law, including India’s Ministry of Women and Child Development
physical, sexual, verbal, emotional, and economic (MWCD), outlines, “despite constitutional protection
abuse. and several legislations, gender discrimination and
injustices continue to occur. This is mainly because
• The Information Technology (Amendment) Act, those who enforce the laws or interpret them do

5 l Gender-Based Violence Insight: India

not always fully share the philosophy of gender GENDER INEQUALITY IN
justice.”18 TWENTY-FIRST-CENTURY INDIA

“Despite the passing of numerous If the law is unable to protect Indian women from
acts of violence, nor administer justice after the act,
laws protecting women in India,
it is because deep sociocultural beliefs continue to
GBV is nearly universal, cutting justify GBV in India. As the MWCD report confirms,
across socioeconomic and religious gender equality is not a concept shared by those
in judicial, political, or law enforcement institutions.
strata.”
Three widely prevalent tropes continue to permeate
across India:
The lax enforcement of these laws is unequivocal:
After reviewing 1,635 rape judgments between 1. Violence against women is acceptable: As
2013 and 2018, legal scholar Preeti Pratishruti Dash many as two-thirds of men in India believe “there
found that the conviction rate for crimes against are times when a woman deserves to be beaten,”
women stood at only 19 percent, far less than the and even more think this violence should be toler-
47 percent conviction rate for all other crimes. This ated “in order to keep her family together.”22 This
data point is perhaps the most damning indication notion runs so deep that IPC Section 375 specifical-
yet that India’s legal system is ill-equipped to ad- ly states that marital rape is not a criminal offense.23
dress the issue of GBV.19 This exception should be removed as swiftly as pos-
sible. The justification for violence within marriages
Despite the passing of numerous laws protecting extends even beyond the husband, since brides are
women in India, GBV is nearly universal, cutting often considered part of the husband’s family after
across socioeconomic and religious strata. Deo marriage. As a result, “cruelty by husband or his
underscores that “the problem with the implemen- relatives” is the most reported of all crimes against
tation of laws meant to protect women is that the women.24
judiciary’s default position is in favour of the man.
The social attitude of the judge is to blame the 2. The “immoral” or “promiscuous” prosecu-
complainant [the woman].” A recent verdict in one trix: Until 2002, the so-called “immoral character”
of India’s most high-profile cases of sexual assault, of complainants (women), admissible as evidence
involving journalist Tarun Tejpal, seems to confirm under Section 155(4) of the IEA, often determined
Deo’s comments. Responding to Tejpal’s acquittal judgments of rape cases.25 That it took independent
for rape charges, the Bombay High Court exclaimed India 55 years to remove this clause is just another
that “the judgment appears to provide a manual on sign of the misogynistic attitudes that shape the
how rape victims should behave.”20 The distressing legal system. Yet, despite the removal of Section
consequence of this biased legal system is that 99.1 155(4), the “immoral character” of women contin-
percent of women in India prefer not to report cases ues to influence rape judgments; Bhabna Das, an
of GBV to the authorities.21 Advocate-on-Record in the Supreme Court of India
(SCI), writes that the “promiscuous prosecutrix, a
ravished woman with a misplaced moral compass,
is a long-running trope in rape discourse. Complain-

6 l Gender-Based Violence Insight: India

Photo credit: Indian women gather at a rally in Kolkata, India, in remembrance of Jyoti Singh’s brutal murder in 2012: Arindam Banerjee,
Shutterstock, December 2014

ants, despite their obvious reluctance, are often cast one reason more bizarre than the next, including
in this role by the accused.”26 that “a member of the higher caste cannot rape a
lower caste woman because of reasons of purity.”28
3. Caste and religious justifications: It would be Another element is honor killings—when girls or
remiss not to mention the disproportionately highly women are killed because of their courtship with
burden faced by women from India’s lower castes someone from another caste or religion. Given the
and minorities. As Dalit rights activist Thenmozhi gruesome nature of the crime and the high rate
Soundararajan explains, “Just as there is no way to of occurrence, particularly in North India, the SCI
understand sexual violence in the history of the US directed India’s central and state governments in
without understanding racism and slavery, there 2018 to submit plans of action to specifically “com-
is no way to understand the frequency and lack bat honour crimes.”29 A more recent subject is “love
of punishment of violence against women in India jihad,” a conspiracy theory that purports forceful
right now without understanding caste.”27 For most religious conversions (specifically of Hindu or Chris-
women from India’s minorities, the law remains out tian women to Islam), which has received so much
of reach. The Bhanwari Devi case is most illustra- credence that multiple Indian states have passed
tive: Due to her opposition to the child marriage of laws to prevent it. Ultimately, the context of caste
a 9-month-old girl in her village, Bhanwari (a Dalit discrimination falls within deeper, religious justifi-
woman) was gang-raped by five men of the more cations (that cuts across religions in India); as Deo
affluent Gujjar caste. The case took a political turn, notes, “acculturation through religion is so deep that
with judges changing five times, until one acquitted a high percentage of Indian women also
the men of rape charges, condoning the act with

7 l Gender-Based Violence Insight: India

think it’s all right to be beaten for the most minor against GBV: the 1972 Mathura rape case, and the
infractions.”30 2012 Delhi gang rape, popularly called the Nirbhaya
case.
These recurring sociocultural themes—that women
deserve violence, are of “immoral character,” or In 1972, a tribal girl named Mathura was raped by
are simply subordinate—make it a grueling task to two policemen inside the police station; in 1979,
successfully navigate the legal system. To begin the SCI acquitted the policemen and instead blamed
with, many women are unlikely to report acts of vio- Mathura: “because she was used to sex, she
lence, especially from their own partners; their own might have incited the cops (they were drunk on
families will likely discourage them from lodging a duty) to have intercourse with her.”33 This marked a
complaint. Those who make official complaints face watershed moment for India’s feminist movement:
moralistic questioning by the police. The investiga- widespread protests and advocacy led to legal
tions that follow are often weak or absent; in cases amendments that made custodial rape (including a
where a political, religious, or influential person is woman under the custody of police, public servants,
involved, the complainant’s family and friends are armed forces personnel, or medical institutions) a
also at risk. If the case goes public, the woman risks criminal offense in Section 376 of the IPC,34 placed
ostracism for being a victim of sexual assault. rebuttable presumption for custodial rape in favor of
the woman, and led to a new law on cruelty against
These obstacles present themselves even before women in 1984 and against dowry death in 1986.35
entering the legal sytem. The cost to the com-
plainant is therefore extremely high. These factors The more recent Nirbhaya case, where Jyoti Singh
are multiplied if the victim is from a lower caste, a Pandey was gang raped and tortured to death on a
minority religion, is transgender or LGBTQ+, or lives private bus, led to nationwide protests, social media
in rural India, where attitudes of male chauvinism campaigns, and increased awareness of GBV in
run even deeper. It is not surprising that only 0.9 India. It remains one of few cases where the rapists
percent of Indian women who face GBV report it to were promptly convicted and even sentenced to
the authorities.31 According to Bishakha Datta, an death. It had an even greater impact on the legal
activist and founder of Point of View, a nongovern- system: It led to the Criminal Law (Amendment)
mental organization (NGO) that works on gender, Ordinance in 2013, the establishment of fast-track
sexuality, and women’s rights, this rather agonizing courts for rape cases, and the Justice Verma Com-
“process is the punishment.”32 mittee recommendations.

Although much remains to be done, some progress

in addressing GBV is worth noting:
GBV POLICIES IN INDIA: LIMITED BUT
VALUABLE PROGRESS 1. Policies and implementation of laws: One of
the immediate consequences of the Nirbhaya case
Despite this gloomy state of affairs, two seminal
was the appointment of the Justice Verma Com-
rape cases acted as turning points in India’s fight
mittee, which submitted a 644-page report36 after
considering 80,000 suggestions from the public.

8 l Gender-Based Violence Insight: India

Photo credit: Students at a voting awareness event arranged by the local administration in Chittorgarh, India: Pradeep Gaurs,
Shutterstock, November 2013

Several recommendations were soon drafted into economically or socially marginalized community.”38
law, including the expansion of the definition of rape
beyond vaginal penetration, the inclusion of verbal b. Special Cell for Women and Children: In 1984,
sexual assault, sexual harassment in the workplace, the Tata Institute of Social Sciences in Mumbai
tougher sentences for human trafficking and child collaborated with the Bombay Police to create a
sexual abuse, medical support for victims, and special cell for women and children within police
police reforms. stations. This essentially became “a service provid-
ed to women survivors by trained social workers,
2. Police reform: As the Justice Verma Committee strategically located in the police system with a
notes, “the members of the police force them- clear understanding that VAW [violence against
selves often come from a society where patriar- women] is a crime and that it is the responsibility of
chal superiority is established,” and consequently, the State to prevent and counter it.” The project had
“male police officers do not take complaints of rape such a positive social impact that it was adopted by
seriously.”37 A handful of police reforms have been the state government of Maharashtra and expanded
passed, but they have had limited impact so far: to numerous cities.

a. First Information Report (FIR): Indian law man- c. Police helpline: Most states across India have
dates that police officers register complaints of sex- help lines that specifically cater to GBV.39 While
ual assault. Failure to do so can result in two years these helplines have had a discernible impact, many
of imprisonment for police officers; yet, many still remain unaware of them. The Mumbai Police’s col-
resist filing FIRs “especially if the victim is from an laboration with women’s rights organizations that

9 l Gender-Based Violence Insight: India

train and coordinate the running of GBV help lines is Aadha Full television series, Jagriti Youth’s training
a best-case practice that can be replicated in other workshops for young male students, the Gender Eq-
parts of India. uity Movement in Schools program, and the Centre
for Health and Social Justice’s MITRA and Parichiti
d. Sex offenders database: In September 2018, initiatives.42 Others like Akshara, Majlis, and count-
India launched its National Database on Sexual Of- less women’s rights organizations contribute more
fenders, to help law enforcement agencies monitor than their fair share to increasing awareness of GBV.
and investigate sex offenders; India became only Yet, for such initiatives to have nationwide impact,
the ninth country in the world with such a database. they need to target the mainstream, taking advan-
tage of India’s culture of hero worship, particularly in
e. Domestic violence as a civil offense: Given the cinema, sports, and politics.
difficulties of filing a criminal complaint with the
police, the Protection of Women from Domestic
Violence Act 2005 introduced the option of filing RECOMMENDATIONS FOR A MORE
a civil complaint with a magistrate. Under the act,
GENDER-EQUAL INDIA
state governments must provide protection officers,
medical aid, and counseling for complainants.
The moral justification for gender equality is un-
questionable; nevertheless, there remains another
f. Gender sensitivity training: Organizations like
important motive for India—the economy. Women
Majlis Law work closely with legal and law enforce-
remain conspicuously absent in India’s economic
ment institutions to train them on handling GBV
growth story. The few women who earn a living in
cases. In 2017 alone, Majlis trained 535 judges, 100
India remain in “labor-intensive, home-based, and
protection officers, 85 legal aid lawyers, 200 women
informal work, concentrated in low-productivity sec-
probationary police officers, and 150 medical practi-
tors.”43 The result? Only 18 percent of India’s gross
tioners, and it also organized awareness campaigns
domestic product (GDP) comes from women.
for more than 2,500 students—all in the state of
Maharashtra.40 The work of Majlis and other organi-
zations should be replicated nationally and stands as “Despite all the progress toward a
an example of the impact that NGOs can have.
more gender-equal India, millions
3. Educational and awareness campaigns: As continue to reinforce sociocultural
the Justice Verma Committee report notes, legal tropes that hinder and even reverse
reforms should be “accompanied by widespread
measures raising awareness of women’s rights to
the cause of gender equality.”
autonomy and physical integrity.”41 Many organiza-
tions have attempted to increase awareness of gen-
Due to India’s obstinate roots in patriarchy, the list
der equality through multimedia campaigns, training
of recommendations for addressing GBV is long,
sessions, and educational content, including Break-
obvious, and arduous. It is not difficult to map
through’s Bell Bajao campaign, Vogue India’s Start
what needs to be done, but it remains notoriously
with the Boys short film, the BBC and UNICEF’s

10 l Gender-Based Violence Insight: India

Photo credit: West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee addresses protesters after calling off her sit-in protest in Kolkata, India:
Saikat Paul, Shutterstock, February 2019

challenging to actually get it done. Despite all the setting up of One Stop Crisis Centers, and increas-
progress toward a more gender-equal India, millions ing the autonomy of NGOs working on GBV.44
continue to reinforce sociocultural tropes that hinder
and even reverse the cause of gender equality. A 2. Womanifesto: In 2014, a collection of individuals
host of organizations and individuals have already and women’s organizations published a six-point
made sound, enforceable recommendations for this plan for gender equality called the “Womanifesto.”45
cause: Specifically, it called for the launch of well-funded
and long-term public education programs; account-
1. Ministry of Women and Child Development: ability of government agencies to implement GBV
India’s MWCD published 20 detailed recommenda- laws; passing of the Women’s Reservation Bill; the
tions for addressing GBV in its Bhartiya Stree Shakti implementation of police reforms and sensitization;
report. These include the right to legal representa- the establishment of fast-track courts; and adequate
tion and assistance, setting up a criminal injuries’ support for GBV survivors.
compensation board and a victim compensatory
fund, better coordination between investigating 3. Partners for Law in Development (PLD): A
officers and public prosecutors, more modern inves- study of rape prosecutions in Delhi between 2014
tigative and forensic techniques, gender sensitivity and 2015 by PLD had some noteworthy findings
training programs (for political institutions, the judi- and recommendations. These included shifting
cial system, police, media, and medical profession- the emphasis from gender-sensitization programs
als), the promotion of women judges in GBV cases, to more comprehensive training programs for the
recruitment of more women police officers, the police, medical personnel, and public prosecutors;

11 l Gender-Based Violence Insight: India

the establishment of specialized agencies to provide
single-window support to GBV victims; the provi- “A full 70 years after independence,
sion of medical care and counseling for GBV victims India’s female labor force
without a prerequisite that they register formal com-
participation rate reached its lowest
plaints; focus on more realistic timelines for rape tri-
als, since the current two-month stipulation results point at 17.5 percent in 2017.”
in hasty conclusions; mandate an end to direct, hos-
tile cross-examinations during trial, instead routing 2. Women in the workplace: A full 70 years after
questions through a presiding officer; and extending independence, India’s female labor force participa-
witness protection beyond court premises.46 tion rate reached its lowest point at 17.5 percent in
2017.48 Estimates suggest that an increase in wom-
en’s economic participation could boost GDP by 27
“The sociocultural causes of GBV percent.49 The Companies Act of 2013 mandated
in India need to be uprooted for any that companies with a capital of 100 crore rupees
lasting, long-term change.” ($14 million) or revenues of 300 crore rupees ($42
million) appoint at least one woman on the board
of directors.50 While this is a welcome move, India
The police and the judiciary may be responsible for should also enact quotas for women in the public
law and order, but neither strike at the underlying sector, while actively promoting women’s participa-
causes of violence against women. The sociocultural tion in the private sector and enacting legal mea-
causes of GBV in India need to be uprooted for any sures to guarantee equal pay.
lasting, long-term change. The following is a list of
sociocultural recommendations to promote gender 3. Portrayal of women in visual and literary con-
equality: tent: India is a cinema-loving nation and the largest
producer of films globally. Unfortunately, Indian cine-
1. Women in politics: Of the 543 seats in India’s ma often reinforces gender stereotypes. A study of
Lok Sabha (lower house of parliament), only 79 are Indian films in the twenty-first century by employing
currently held by women. Yet, this is the highest the Bechdel test51 found that female characters, es-
percentage in the Lok Sabha’s history.47 India must pecially in top-grossing films, are “mere accessories
urgently pass the Women’s Reservation Bill, which to the plot” and “serve as eye-candy.”52 A newer
seeks to reserve one-third of Lok Sabha seats for generation of women filmmakers are bringing about
women, and it can also learn from Latin American gradual changes in how women are portrayed in
countries—many of which face similar issues of visual content, especially by eliminating tropes like
gender inequality—that have successfully imple- “item numbers” (provocative dance numbers that
mented quotas for women in political parties, elec- objectify women), giving women a sense of agency,
toral lists, and as candidates in general elections. and addressing women’s issues. These content cre-
ators must be promoted and supported financially
so that women can be viewed differently by future
generations of Indians. The government can also

12 l Gender-Based Violence Insight: India

consider expanding the Indecent Representation girls today go to school and stay in school.54 Yet
of Women Act to include crass gender stereotypes some states with patently low female literacy and
that objectify women and portray them as com- school enrollment lag behind; less than 0.5 percent
pletely devoid of agency. of GBV cases were reported by women in these
states.55 A 2018 report by women’s rights activist
4. Transgender and LGBTQ+ protections: Trans- Urvashi Sahni recommends the introduction of
gender and LBGTQ+ people, who form part of the gender education as part of school curriculum and
wider gender umbrella, face even more challenges the inclusion of gender-sensitive modules in teacher
than straight, cisgender women in India do. To begin trainings.56 Increasing the access to education for
with, they are excluded from India’s rape law, which girls and women in India would be a prerequisite for
defines men as perpetrators of rape and women better women’s representation in the labor force,
as victims. Even the Transgender Persons Act of politics, the judicial system, law enforcement agen-
2019 limits punishment for sexual offenses against cies, and any significant institution with a national
transgender people to between six months and impact. Education will also play a vital role in chang-
two years of imprisonment. The law must include ing existing gender norms that motivate GBV.
transgender and LBGTQ+ people within the frame-
work of the IPC and offer them adequate protection;
more awareness campaigns are also required to
CONCLUSION
reduce the stigma they face.

In India, as in much of the rest of the world, achiev-

ing the goal of gender equality is impossible within
“Increasing the access to education
the present framework of patriarchy. Despite all the
for girls and women in India would progress in addressing GBV through the enactment
be a prerequisite for better women’s of new laws, training of police and judges, aware-
ness campaigns, and the promotion of equal partic-
representation in the labor force,
ipation of women in society, lasting change is unlike-
politics, the judicial system, law ly unless we uproot historical notions of patriarchy;
enforcement agencies, and any this, by far, remains our most daunting challenge.

significant institution with a national

The fight for gender equality is a historical one. It
impact.” began millennia ago and is likely (unfortunately) to
last many years longer. Bakshi believes that “hu-
man attitudes shaped over millennia are unlikely
5. Education: A number of government initiatives,
to change over the course of a few years. Lasting
such as the Mahila Samakhya programme, the
change will take time and diverse forms of effort.
Right to Education Act, the National Programme for
Even if we manage to achieve some sense of equal-
Education of Girls at Elementary Level, the Kastur-
ity, ending the system of patriarchy will require a
ba Gandhi Balika Vidyalaya Scheme, and the Beti
much larger transformation in how power is defined
Bachao, Beti Padhao scheme have advanced the
and operates in society at all levels.”57 Given the his-
cause of girls’ education.53 Consequently, far more

13 l Gender-Based Violence Insight: India

torical injustice meted out by generations of men, history by colonialism, apartheid and patriarchy.”59 As
it is fundamental that men also join this movement. in the case of colonialism, perhaps we will reach a
Women alone cannot be expected to carry the point in the future when GBV is considered morally
burden of the morally bankrupt system of gender unacceptable, after which there will (hopefully) be
inequality. As Lana Wells, a Canadian professor, no turning back.
articulated at a discussion at the UN Human Rights
Council, “in order to truly end violence and discrimi- As Lerner examined in her decades-long career as
nation against women and girls, men and boys must one of the founders of the field of women’s history,
be seen as more than part of the problem; they the system of patriarchy has endured for more than
have to be seen as integral to the solution.”58 5,100 years. Yet her work shows reason for opti-
mism. In her treatise The Creation of Patriarchy, she
concludes, “the system of patriarchy is a historic
“Given the historical injustice meted
construct; it has a beginning; it will have an end.
out by generations of men, it is Its time seems to have nearly run its course—it no
fundamental that men also join this longer serves the needs of men or women and in
its inextricable linkage to militarism, hierarchy, and
movement.”
racism it threatens the very existence of life on
earth.”60
India must continue to employ every possible
method to reduce the deleterious impacts of GBV
on women and society as a whole, be it through
the better implementation of laws, police reform,
increasing the participation of women in politics and
in the workplace, better portrayal of women in visual
and literary content, and educating more girls and
women. Nonetheless, as Deo cogently explains,
“any positive change is to be welcomed, but no
change is to be thought of as enough.”

India’s fight against GBV is part and parcel of the

world’s struggle with this issue. It would require a
global effort to accelerate the pace of gender equal-
ity, something akin to the second and third waves
of democracy in the latter half of the twenty-first
century. The South African Constitution has already
drawn a parallel between colonialism and patriarchy,
noting in its Preamble that “the consolidation of de-
mocracy in our country requires eradication of social
and economic inequalities, especially those that are
systemic in nature, which were generated in our

14 l Gender-Based Violence Insight: India

NOTES

1. Marylène Patou-Mathis, “Ideas: The origins of violence,” The UNESCO Courier 2020, no. 1 (2020),
38–41.

2. David Adams, “The Seville Statement on Violence: preparing the ground for the construction of peace,”
Paris, UNESCO (1991), https://unesdoc.unesco.org/ark:/48223/pf0000094314.

3. Christine Hue-Arcé, “Violence against women in Graeco-Roman Egypt: the contribution of Demotic
documents,” Archaeologies of Gender and Violence (Oxford, Philadelphia: Oxbow Books, 2017), 136.

4. Susanne Moraw, “Death and the Maiden: late antique images of nubile females as agents and victims
of lethal violence,” Archaeologies of Gender and Violence (Oxford, Philadelphia: Oxbow Books, 2017),
175.

5. Gerda Lerner, The Creation of Patriarchy (New York: Oxford University Press, 1987), 212.

6. “Facts and figures: Ending violence against women,” UN Women, accessed July 12, 2021, https://www.
unwomen.org/en/what-we-do/ending-violence-against-women/facts-and-figures.

7. Uma Chakravarti, “Conceptualising Brahmanical patriarchy in early India: Gender, caste, class and
state,” Economic and Political Weekly (1993), 579–585.

8. R. Radha, “Historical perspective of violence against women in India through various ages,” International
Journal of Basic and Applied Research 9, no. 6 (2019), 149–153.

9. Uma Chakravarti, “Conceptualising Brahmanical patriarchy in early India: Gender, caste, class and
state,” Economic and Political Weekly (1993), 579–585.

10. Telephone interview with Neelam Deo.

11. “The Immoral Traffic (Prevention) Act, 1956,” National Commission for Women, http://ncw.nic.in/sites/
default/files/THEIMMORALTRAFFIC%28PREVENTION%29ACT1956_2.pdf.

12. “The Dowry Prohibition Act, 1961,” National Commission for Women, http://ncw.nic.in/sites/default/files/
THEDOWRYPROHIBITIONACT1961_0.pdf.

13. “Indecent Representation of Women,” Ministry of Women and Child Development, Government of
India, https://wcd.nic.in/act/indecent-representation-women.

14. “The Commission of Sati Prevention Act and rules,” Ministry of Women and Child Development,
Government of India, https://wcd.nic.in/act/commission-sati-prevention-act-and-rules.

15. “The Protection Of Women From Domestic Violence Act, 2005,” Ministry of Women
and Child Development, Government of India, http://ncw.nic.in/sites/default/files/
TheProtectionofWomenfromDomesticViolenceAct2005_0.pdf.

16. “The Information Technology (Amendment) Act, 2008,” Ministry of Electronics & Information Technology,
Government of India, https://www.meity.gov.in/writereaddata/files/it_amendment_act2008%20
%281%29_0.pdf.

15 l Gender-Based Violence Insight: India

17. “The Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act, 2013,”
Ministry of Women and Child Development, Government of India, http://ncw.nic.in/sites/default/files/
SexualHarassmentofWomenatWorkPlaceAct2013_0.pdf.

18. “Tackling Violence Against Women: A Study of State Intervention Measures,” New Delhi: Government of
India, Ministry of Women and Child Development (2017), https://wcd.nic.in/sites/default/files/Final%20
Draft%20report%20BSS_0.pdf.

19. Arundhati Katju, “Putting the victim on trial,” Indian Express, June 5, 2021, https://indianexpress.com/
article/opinion/columns/past-sexual-history-rape-trials-tarun-tejpal-7344701/.

20. Ibid.

21. Pramit Bhattacharya and Tadit Kundu, “99% cases of sexual assaults go unreported, govt data shows,”
Mint, April 24, 2018, https://www.livemint.com/Politics/AV3sIKoEBAGZozALMX8THK/99-cases-of-sexual-
assaults-go-unreported-govt-data-shows.html.

22. “Evolving Men: Initial Results from the International Men and Gender Equality Survey (IMAGES),”
International Center for Research on Women (ICRW)/Instituto Promundo, Washington-Río de
Janeiro (2011), https://www.icrw.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/Evolving-Men-Initial-Results-from-the-
International-Men-and-Gender-Equality-Survey-IMAGES-1.pdf.

23. “Section 375: Rape,” India Code, Government of India,

https://www.indiacode.nic.in/show-data?actid=AC_
CEN_5_23_00037_186045_1523266765688&sectionId=46151&sectionno=375&orderno=424.

24. Surabhi Shaurya, “One Rape Every 16 Minutes in India, NCRB Data Highlights Country’s Deteriorated
Law & Order,” India.com, October 2, 2020, https://www.india.com/news/india/no-country-for-women-
one-rape-every-16-minutes-in-india-ncrb-data-highlights-countrys-deteriorated-law-order-4159540/.

25. Arundhati Katju, “Putting the victim on trial,” Indian Express, June 5, 2021, https://indianexpress.com/
article/opinion/columns/past-sexual-history-rape-trials-tarun-tejpal-7344701/.

26. Bhabna Das, “Tarun Tejpal and the Case of the Promiscuous Prosecutrix,” The Wire, June 11, 2021,
https://thewire.in/law/tarun-tejpal-judgement-promiscuous-prosecutrix-sexual-assault.

27. Tanika Godbole, “Why India’s Dalit women are vulnerable to sexual violence,” Deutsche Welle,
October 28, 2020, https://www.dw.com/en/why-indias-dalit-women-are-vulnerable-to-sexual-
violence/a-55423556.

28. Geeta Pandey, “Bhanwari Devi: The rape that led to India’s sexual harassment law,” BBC News, March
17, 2017, https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-india-39265653.

29. “Judgement – Writ Petition (Civil) No. 231 of 2010,” Supreme Court of India, March 27, 2018, https://
main.sci.gov.in/supremecourt/2010/18233/18233_2010_Judgement_27-Mar-2018.pdf.

30. Telephone interview with Neelam Deo.

16 l Gender-Based Violence Insight: India

31. Pramit Bhattacharya and Tadit Kundu, “99% cases of sexual assaults go unreported, govt data shows,”
Mint, April 24, 2018, https://www.livemint.com/Politics/AV3sIKoEBAGZozALMX8THK/99-cases-of-sexual-
assaults-go-unreported-govt-data-shows.html.

32. Telephone interview with Bishakha Dutta.

33. Sujata Anandan, “Remember Mathura?,” Hindustan Times, December 26, 2012, https://www.
hindustantimes.com/columns/remember-mathura/story-20s5V27y2cHkCbTNCy9XlI.html.

34. “Section 276: Punishment for rape,” India Code, Government of India, https://www.indiacode.nic.in/
show-data?actid=AC_CEN_5_23_00037_186045_1523266765688&orderno=425.

35. Indira Jaising, “Slamming the doors of justice on women,” Indian Express, January 20, 1999, https://
indianexpress.com/article/news-archive/slamming-the-doors-of-justice-on-women/.

36. Justice JS Verma, Justice Leila Seth, and Gopal Subramanium, “Report of the Committee on
Amendments to Criminal Law,” Justice Verma Committee Report, Government of India, https://www.
thehindu.com/multimedia/archive/01340/Justice_Verma_Comm_1340438a.pdf.

37. Ibid.

38. Jayshree Bajoria, “Everyone Blames Me: Barriers to Justice and Support Services for Sexual Assault
Survivors in India,” Human Rights Watch, 2017, https://www.hrw.org/report/2017/11/08/everyone-blames-
me/barriers-justice-and-support-services-sexual-assault-survivors.

39. Radhika Sanghvi, “#ActAgainstAbuse: Domestic Violence Abuse Helplines For Women Across India,”
Femina, August 29, 2020, https://www.femina.in/trending/actagainstabuse/actagainstabuse-domestic-
violence-abuse-helplines-for-women-across-india-169132.html.

40. “Majlis Manch Narrative Report 2017-18,” Majlis Law, 2018, http://majlislaw.com.

41. Justice JS Verma, Justice Leila Seth and Gopal Subramanium, “Report of the Committee on
Amendments to Criminal Law,” Justice Verma Committee Report, Government of India, https://www.
thehindu.com/multimedia/archive/01340/Justice_Verma_Comm_1340438a.pdf.

42. Ami Pandya, “Effective IEC to combat gender-based violence,” Observer Research Foundation, August
18, 2018, https://www.orfonline.org/expert-speak/43433-effective-iec-combat-gender-based-violence/.

43. Mitali Nikore “Where are India’s working women? The fall and fall of India’s female labour
participation rate,” South Asia@London School of Economics, October 22, 2019, https://blogs.lse.
ac.uk/southasia/2019/10/22/where-are-indias-working-women-the-fall-and-fall-of-indias-female-labour-
participation-rate/.

44. “Tackling Violence Against Women: A Study of State Intervention Measures,” New Delhi: Government of
India, Ministry of Women and Child Development (2017), https://wcd.nic.in/sites/default/files/Final%20
Draft%20report%20BSS_0.pdf.

45. Devaki Jain et al. “Womanifesto,” Economic and Political Weekly 49, no. 16 (2014), 4, http://www.jstor.
org/stable/24480135.

17 l Gender-Based Violence Insight: India

46. “Towards Victim Friendly Responses and Procedures for Prosecuting Rape,” Partners for Law in
Development, 2017, https://doj.gov.in/sites/default/files/PLD%20report.pdf.

47. “India,” IPU Parline, Inter-Parliamentary Union, https://data.ipu.org/content/india?chamber_id=13418.

48. Mitali Nikore “Where are India’s working women? The fall and fall of India’s female labour
participation rate,” South Asia@London School of Economics, October 22, 2019, https://blogs.lse.
ac.uk/southasia/2019/10/22/where-are-indias-working-women-the-fall-and-fall-of-indias-female-labour-
participation-rate/.

49. PTI, “Gender parity can boost India’s GDP by 27%: WEF co-chairs,” Economic Times, January 21, 2018,
https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/economy/policy/gender-parity-can-boost-indias-gdp-by-27-
wef-co-chairs/articleshow/62589586.cms.

50. “The Companies Act, 2013,” Ministry of Corporate Affairs, Government of India, https://www.mca.gov.
in/Ministry/pdf/CompaniesAct2013.pdf.

51. The Bechdel Test, formulated by Alison Bechdel, is used to measure the representation of women in
visual content, most often in film. To pass the test, a film must include the following: (1) At least two
named women (2) who talk to each other (3) about something other than a man. See more at https://
bechdeltest.com/.

52. Hansika Kapoor, Prachi H. Bhuptani, and Amuda Agneswaran, “The Bechdel in India: Gendered
Depictions in Contemporary Hindi Cinema,” Journal of Gender Studies 26 (2) (04) 2017, 212–226.

53. “Girls Education in India,” Lok Sabha Secretariat, Government of India, http://164.100.47.193/Refinput/
New_Reference_Notes/English/Girls%20Education%20in%20India.pdf.

54. “School Has Been a Right for Girls in India Since 2009. So Why Aren’t They Going?” Time, June 27,
2019, https://time.com/5614642/india-girls-education/.

55. Pramit Bhattacharya and Tadit Kundu, “99% cases of sexual assaults go unreported, govt data shows,”
Mint, April 24, 2018, https://www.livemint.com/Politics/AV3sIKoEBAGZozALMX8THK/99-cases-of-sexual-
assaults-go-unreported-govt-data-shows.html.

56. Urvashi Sahni, “Mainstreaming gender equality and empowerment education in post-primary schools
in India,” Center for Universal Education at Brookings (2018), https://www.brookings.edu/wp-content/
uploads/2018/12/US_Policy-Brief_FOR-WEBSITE.pdf.

57. Telephone interview with Rajni Bakshi.

58. “Men and boys in the fight to eliminate violence against women,” The Office of the High Commissioner
for Human Rights (UN Human Rights), June 30, 2017, https://www.ohchr.org/EN/NewsEvents/Pages/
FightToEliminateViolenceAgainstWomen.aspx.

59. “Government Gazette,” Republic of South Africa, February 9, 2000, https://www.gov.za/sites/default/

files/gcis_document/201409/a4-001.pdf.

60. Gerda Lerner, The Creation of Patriarchy (New York: Oxford University Press, 1987), 228–229.

18 l Gender-Based Violence Insight: India

 GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE DISPATCH No. 1 l December 2021

Photo Credit: Lukasz Stefanski, Shutterstock

A Road Map from Canada: Mandatory Sexual

Assault Law Training for Judges
Hon. Rona Ambrose

The truth is that it should never have been this hard. House of Commons. It was a modest piece of legisla-
tion that was designed to increase confidence in one
Sometimes in politics even the policies that enjoy of our most prized institutions: our judiciary.
broad-based support across party lines can face un-
foreseen challenges. Especially when those policies The JUST Act introduced mandatory sexual assault
are designed to shine a light on shadowy areas of our law training for Canadian judges at the federal level.
institutions or challenge entrenched beliefs that some It would ensure that education and training were pro-
are not yet ready to reconcile. vided to the leaders in our justice system who hold
the most power—our judges—while also providing
This was the case with my Private Member’s Bill greater transparency around their rulings.
C-337,1 An Act to amend the Judges Act and the
Criminal Code, more commonly known as the JUST
Act. I first introduced it in 2017, when I was serving as
the leader of the Official Opposition in the Canadian

Gender Based
Violence
THE BILL these victims will remain silent. Ninety-five percent
of women do not report these kinds of assaults,7
Canadian sexual assault law, while robust, is one and men and boys are even less likely to report
of the most complex areas of law, and it requires them. When asked why, according to Justice Can-
specialized education. As such, mandatory training ada, two-thirds of victims say they have no faith in
would focus on deconstructing rape myths and vic- the courts.8
tim stereotypes, and it would shed new light on the
impact trauma has on memory, among other things.
The JUST Act followed the spirit of similar require- THE JOURNEY
ments already practiced in the United Kingdom,
where judges must refresh their training every three When I entered politics, I vowed to be a passion-
years or they cannot preside over sexual assault ate advocate for women in Canada and around the
trials. world. When I became the leader of the Official
Opposition, it was an opportunity to bring forward
Time and again errors in sexual assault law are legislation that would correct the disparities in our
made. In one month alone in 2019, the Supreme courtrooms and encourage more victims to report.
Court of Canada overturned two cases due to trial
judges incorrectly applying sexual assault law specif- I couldn’t believe that rape myths and stereotypes
ically around consent and allowing rape myths and plagued our courtrooms, that trial judges would
victim stereotypes into the courtroom.2 In a two- say things like “Why didn’t you just keep your legs
year period, the province of Alberta saw four cases closed?”9 or “Clearly a drunk can consent.”10
overturned for the same reasons.3
I introduced Bill C-337 to help ensure that these
kinds of things didn’t happen again. Given the
“It is estimated that 1 in 3 women alarming statistics and the undeniable mountain of
evidence in court transcripts, it never occurred to
and 1 in 6 men will experience sexual me or to the bill’s advocates that it would have been
violence in their lifetime.” such an arduous road.

It is highly unusual in the Canadian parliamentary

Typically, errors in the courtroom are only brought system to attain all-party support for legislation; it
to light when a journalist witnesses a trial or when is even more unusual for the support to fall behind
an academic researcher digs into court transcripts (a a private member’s bill, let alone one sponsored by
costly and lengthy process). Not only is there little the leader of the Official Opposition.
accountability for the ignorance of sexual assault
law by some judges—there is even less transpar- But my bill had the unanimous support of all parties.
ency around how they render their decisions. The I worked closely with members across party lines—
JUST Act intends to address both of those deficits. everyone wanted to see this done.

It is estimated that 1 in 3 women4 and 1 in 6 men5 And then it sat in the Senate. It sat there for so
will experience sexual violence in their lifetime. For long I had left the House of Commons and moved
Indigenous women, the numbers are far worse; into the private sector while waiting for the bill
they are three times more likely to be sexually to be passed. I expected it would be. After all, it
assaulted than non-Indigenous women.6 Most of is customary for the Senate to prioritize passing

GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE DISPATCH

No. 1 l December 2021

legislation that has the full weight of the House of SUCCESS, FINALLY
Commons behind it.
In 2019 I was able to secure the support—once
Suffice it to say, that is not what happened. again—of all political party leaders who together
committed that whoever won the federal election
would reintroduce my bill as their own and see it
HOW IT GOT DONE passed into law. That was a pivotal moment on the
journey.
I refused to let a small group of senators derail the
will of the House of Commons and deny legislation Bill C-337 became Bill C-511 and finally Bill C-3. Each
that was desperately needed. I spent the next sev- time it had the unanimous support of the House of
eral years building a team and working with anyone Commons, and each time it faced dilution and delay
who was willing to support the bill. I traveled to by a small, powerful group of senators. Admittedly, I
different provinces, advocating and working with was frustrated at my final Senate committee appear-
multiple jurisdictions. Prince Edward Island became ance in 2021, where I admonished those responsi-
the first Canadian province to bring in similar legis- ble for the bill’s delay. That said, I was happy to hear
lation at the provincial level, and other provinces are the words of Justice Adele Kent, the chief judicial
currently working toward the same goal. officer of the National Judicial Institute, who noted
that my original bill instigated “valuable” conversa-
We set up a website and initiated public petitions tions between the judiciary, legislators, and victims’
and letter writing campaigns. We worked along- rights groups12 in the past four years. Further, more
side an army of advocates active on social media, robust and reoccurring training on gender-based and
including powerful allies like the prime minister, the sexual violence was developed as a result.
leaders of all federal political parties, and the (for-
mer) national chief of the Assembly of First Nations. Happily, Bill C-3 passed and is now enshrined in
We aligned with leading advocacy agencies and Canadian law.13
legal scholars and made sure to listen to victims at
every turn.
THE PATH FORWARD
We followed court cases and called out the judges
and lawyers who perpetuated the imbalances in As we cast our gaze forward and look to other ju-
our courtrooms. I repeatedly called on the Canadian risdictions to enact similar reforms, let me mention
Judicial Council, National Judicial Institute, and the three points of encouragement for those in other
Supreme Court of Canada to get behind the bill. jurisdictions willing to lead on similar reforms:
Many Canadian journalists followed the bill, wrote
about it, and set aside space in their publications First, expect adversity and opposition from unex-
and time on the air for radio and television inter- pected places. Long-held, deeply ingrained un-
views with me and the advocates I worked with. conscious biases still run deep. This can be more
complicated when facing an institution such as the
We pulled out all the stops. judiciary, which in the Canadian context has minimal
transparency.

Second, find your allies within and outside of

government. Policy influencers can help sway key

GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE DISPATCH

No. 1 l December 2021

decision makers in private, public champions can
help educate people about the issue, and media
attention will reach the masses.

“Be resilient and press on.”

Finally, and most important, do not give up. In our

case, we had the unanimous support of the House
of Commons and still faced an uphill struggle. Be
resilient and press on.

Despite the many challenges and ultimate success

of the JUST Act, in retrospect it is the in-between
moments that might have had the most impact.
Consider that for four years every time the bill was
talked about it was an opportunity to educate those
listening, watching, or reading about gender-based
and sexual violence. In the end, more people were
reached than would have been if we had not faced
roadblocks.

When I introduced the JUST Act in 2017, I never an-

ticipated the journey that would follow. I am forever
grateful to all those who stood up for the legislation,
and to all those who will stand up and take on the
mission in other corners of the world. It is the duty
of policymakers to help ensure that the legislation
that governs our institutions treats people with dig-
nity and fairness. Victims must have confidence in
our institutions, or they will not come forward.

Best of luck on the journey ahead.

GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE DISPATCH

No. 1 l December 2021

NOTES

1. Parliament of Canada, “Private Member’s Bill: 42nd Parliament, 1st Session. C-337,” LEGISinfo,
December 3, 2015, https://www.parl.ca/LegisInfo/BillDetails.aspx?Language=E&billId=8783394.

2. LEAF, “LEAF welcomes the majority SCC decision in R v Goldfinch finding ‘friends with benefits’
evidence was not properly administered in jury trial on sexual assault charges,” June 2019, https://
www.leaf.ca/news/leaf-welcomes-the-majority-scc-decision-in-r-v-goldfinch-finding-friends-with-benefits-
evidence-was-not-properly-admitted-in-jury-trial-on-sexual-assault-charges/. CanLII, “R. v Barton, 2019
SCC 33 [2019] 2 S.C.R.,” Supreme Court of Canada, May 24, 2019, https://www.canlii.org/en/ca/scc/
doc/2019/2019scc33/2019scc33.html. Supreme Court of Canada, “R. v Goldfinch, 2019 SCC 38,”
Supreme Court of Canada, June 28, 2019, https://scc-csc.lexum.com/scc-csc/scc-csc/en/item/17848/
index.do.

3. “4 Alberta judges under scrutiny for sex assault rulings,” CBC News, September 16, 2016, https://www.
cbc.ca/news/canada/calgary/alberta-judges-sex-assault-trials-myths-1.3765959.

4. Carleton University, “Information About Sexual Violence,” Department of Equity and Inclusive
Communities, https://carleton.ca/sexual-violence-support/what-is-sexual-assault/getting-the-facts.

5. Ibid.

6. Justice Canada, “Indigenous Overrepresentation in the Criminal Justice System,” Justice Canada:
Research and Statistics Division, May 2019, https://www.justice.gc.ca/eng/rp-pr/jr/jf-pf/2019/may01.html.

7. Justice Canada, “JustFacts: Sexual Assault,” Justice Canada: Research and Statistics Division, April
2019, https://www.justice.gc.ca/eng/rp-pr/jr/jf-pf/2019/apr01.html.

8. Ibid.

9. Staff, Canadian Press, “‘Knees together’ judge resigns after judicial council suggests removal,” Global
News, March 9, 2017, https://globalnews.ca/news/3299128/knees-together-judge-robin-camp-removed-
judicial-council.

10. Elaine Craig, “Judging Sexual Assault Trials: Systemic Failure in the Case of Regina v Bassam
Al-Rawi,” Canadian Bar Review vol. 95, no. 1 (2017), https://www.canlii.org/en/commentary/
doc/2017CanLIIDocs102#!fragment/zoupio-_Tocpdf_bk_13/.

11. Parliament of Canada, “House Government Bill: 43rd Parliament, 1st Session, C-5,” LEGISinfo,
December 3, 2019, https://www.parl.ca/LegisInfo/BillDetails.aspx?Language=E&billId=10620333.

12. Parliament of Canada, “The Standing Committee on Legal and Constitutional Affairs Evidence,” Senate
of Canada, March 18, 2021, https://sencanada.ca/en/Content/Sen/Committee/432/LCJC/14ev-55162-e.

13. Parliament of Canada, “House Government Bill: 43rd Parliament, 2nd Session, C-3,” LEGISinfo,
September 23, 2020, https://www.parl.ca/LegisInfo/BillDetails.aspx?billId=10867694&Language=E.

GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE DISPATCH

No. 1 l December 2021

 GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE DISPATCH No. 2 l December 2021

Photo credit: Yurii Yarema, Shutterstock

Ukrainian NGO Efforts to Prevent and

Combat Gender-Based Violence During the
COVID-19 Pandemic
Yuliia Anosova and Alona Kryvuliak

The COVID-19 pandemic has exacerbated the prob- COVID-19 pandemic but also deficiencies in the reac-
lem of gender-based violence in Ukraine, as it has tion by the state, especially during strict lockdowns.
in every other country of the world. This problem
has been widely recognized at the national level by
state authorities in Ukraine,1 who reported a twofold
increase in the number of criminal cases of domestic WHAT CHANGED: THE PERSPECTIVE
violence in 2020, compared with 2019. This tendency OF A UKRAINIAN NGO WORKING
was confirmed by nongovernmental organizations WITH SURVIVORS OF GBV
(NGOs)2 in the country, who underlined not only an
increase in cases of gender-based violence (GBV), The civil society organization (CSO) La Strada-Ukraine3
including domestic violence, in Ukraine during the has been working in the field of preventing and com-

Gender Based
Violence
batting gender-based violence and gender discrim- Nevertheless, it managed to adjust its work to
ination in Ukraine for more than 20 years. It runs the new conditions. For example, many survivors
the National Hotline for the Prevention of Domestic complained that because they were living with an
Violence, Human Trafficking, and Gender Discrim- abuser during lockdown, they could not call for help
ination,4 which operates 24/7 and provides free by phone, since the abuser was listening. Thus, the
psychological, legal, and informational consultations hotline diversified its electronic channels of commu-
to survivors of domestic violence and other forms nication, allowing survivors to receive a consultation
of GBV. by sending a message to the hotline through social
media platforms such as Messenger, Telegram, and
In the months following the introduction of a nation- Instagram.
wide lockdown in Ukraine on March 12, 2020, there
was an increase of up to 150 percent in calls to Adjustments also had to be made with regard to the
the hotline.5 When the lockdown was lifted in June work of the hotline consultants. In particular, during
2020, the number of calls dropped slightly. Still, it strict lockdowns, their shifts increased in duration
has not returned to its pre-pandemic level. There has and their transportation to work was arranged by
also been a trend of substantial increases in calls taxi when public transportation was stopped. The
during periods when the epidemiological situation consultants also received online training and super-
in the country was worsening. Thus, during Novem- vision, in particular with regard to the specific nature
ber and December 2020 and March 2021, when of their work under the new conditions of the pan-
COVID-19 cases in Ukraine reached their peak, the demic. Thermometers, sanitizers, gloves, and masks
number of calls to the hotline rose by 200 percent, were provided in the hotline’s office.
compared with the pre-COVID period, even though
there were no lockdowns as strict as the initial one
in March 2020. “There were many cases in which
Strict quarantine measures in Ukraine have nega-
survivors reported that even though
tively affected the work of all institutions and ser- their partners had never used violence
vices that provide support to survivors of GBV. There
in the past, there was a first episode of
were reports of decreased efficiency in terms of
police responses, as well as difficulties with access violence during the lockdown.”
to courts, which were either closed or inaccessible
due to stoppages to public transportation. Other vic-
tim-support services (including free legal-aid centers WHAT SURVIVORS HAVE TO SAY
and centers for social services) were converted to
working online. Some shelters were either closed Being in a unique position of direct contact with
or did not admit new survivors; others required a survivors from all over Ukraine via the channels of
negative PCR test, which many survivors could not the National Hotline for the Prevention of Domestic
afford. In some cases, survivors could not get to Violence, Human Trafficking, and Gender Discrim-
shelters because public transportation was stopped. ination, the CSO La Strada-Ukraine published a
report6 based on the results of a survey of survivors
The National Hotline for the Prevention of Domestic of domestic violence. The survey aimed to assess
Violence, Human Trafficking, and Gender Discrimina- how their situation changed during the pandemic
tion also experienced difficulties during lockdowns. and how efficient the response of state authorities

GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE DISPATCH

No. 2 l December 2021

was. Overall, 303 respondents participated in the offender would have nowhere to go during lock-
survey. Most of them claimed that the situation down. In some cases, the police refused to issue an
became worse, as episodes of violence became emergency barring order, claiming that they could
more frequent and cruel, and the abusers became not evict an abuser during quarantine.
more aggressive, having lost their jobs and/or
become more addicted to drugs and alcohol. There
were many cases in which survivors reported that “Most of the survivors reported
even though their partners had never used violence that they did not seek treatment at
in the past, there was a first episode of violence
during the lockdown—or other more serious forms medical facilities for injuries due to
of violence happened for the first time. Very often domestic violence.”
children were affected as well, since they were
transferred to online learning and spent whole days
at home, witnessing violence between parents or There were problems with the work of social ser-
becoming direct victims themselves. vices as well. In some regions, these services were
closed; in others, the work was transferred online.
Another part of the survey concerned the response Some respondents complained that the quality of
of the state institutions that were responsible for social services was diminished when they were
preventing and combatting domestic violence in moved online, especially in the case of psychologi-
Ukraine. Overall, there were no changes introduced cal counseling, where face-to-face communication
at the legislative level aimed at adjusting the state provides a much better experience. Most of the
response to GBV in Ukraine during the unprecedent- survivors reported that they did not seek treatment
ed conditions of the COVID-19 pandemic. Still, the at medical facilities for injuries due to domestic
problems reported by survivors were in many cases violence. Although most of the respondents claimed
directly connected to the pandemic and the related that they did not need medical assistance, some of
restrictions that had been imposed. them reported that they did not apply because they
were either afraid of getting infected with COVID-19
The respondents had different experiences when while waiting at the hospital or because during lock-
applying to courts for restraining orders during lock- down it was recommended that people only go to
down. In some cases, they did not report any sub- hospitals in an emergency and they did not consider
stantial problems. However, a few survivors claimed their case of violence that important. In this regard,
that their hearings were postponed (beyond 72 it should also be noted that some of respondents
hours, which is the limit for hearings in such cases admitted serious long-lasting effects of domestic
under Ukrainian law), or they had difficulties getting violence on their psychological and physical health
to court due to stoppages of public transportation. (such as neuroses, benign tumors, etc.), especially
in the case of children.
As for the work of the police, many respondents
complained that their cases were not treated
seriously enough—that the police often sided with
an offender or failed to conduct a proper risk as- WHAT IS NEXT
sessment and subsequently refused to issue an
emergency barring order. Sometimes the survivors Based on the problems identified in the survey, a
themselves preferred not to report the incidents of number of recommendations7 to state authorities
violence to the police, as they were worried that the were formulated about how to act in a crisis situa-

GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE DISPATCH

No. 2 l December 2021

tion like the COVID-19 pandemic, in order to protect
the victims and those at risk of domestic violence,
especially women and children. Special times re-
quire special measures, and hopefully the problems
elicited by the COVID-19 pandemic will teach state
authorities in the Ukraine and around the world this
lesson.

GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE DISPATCH

No. 2 l December 2021

NOTES

1. Interfax-Ukraine, “Level of domestic violence increases in Ukraine due to COVID-19 pandemic,” Kyiv
Post, November 26, 2020, https://www.kyivpost.com/ukraine-politics/level-of-domestic-violence-
increases-in-ukraine-due-to-covid-19-pandemic.html.

2. Impact of COVID-19 on Women’s Rights in Ukraine (report), Ukrainian Woman Lawyers Association
“JurFem” (2020), https://www.ua.undp.org/content/ukraine/en/home/library/democratic_governance/
covid-impact-on-women-rights-in-ukraine.html.

3. La Strada-Ukraine, https://la-strada.org.ua.

4. National Hotline for the Prevention of Domestic Violence, Human Trafficking, and Gender Discrimination,
https://www.facebook.com/lastradaukraine.

5. The detailed statistics of calls to the National Hotline for the Prevention of Domestic Violence, Human
Trafficking, and Gender Discrimination are available at https://la-strada.org.ua/garyachi-liniyi.

6. State authorities’ response to the cases of domestic violence during crisis situations (in particular,
COVID-19) and recommendations for improvement (analytical report), CSO La Strada-Ukraine (2021),
https://la-strada.org.ua/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/2-zvit_a4_eng-obl-1.pdf.

7. Ibid., p. 40.

GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE DISPATCH

No. 2 l December 2021

 GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE DISPATCH No. 3 l December 2021

Photo credit: A Muslim woman in the city of Makhachkala in Dagestan, Russia: SaidR, Shutterstock, March 2017

Harmful Traditional Practices in the North

Caucasus, Russia
Julia Antonova

OVERVIEW or girls in the North Caucasus.” The government has

indicated that “the conduct of procedural checks and
In the North Caucasus region of Russia, violence preliminary investigations into crimes against women
against women and children is widespread. In this is carried out in a general manner.” Contrary to the
area, it is often more systematic and integrated into government’s assertions, there is abundant and grow-
social and family structures, including in the form of ing evidence of the prevalence of harmful practices
harmful traditional practices such as honor killings and in the North Caucasus that threaten the health and
female genital mutilation (FGM) of girls. lives of thousands of women and girls every year. In
addition, harmful traditional practices are often carried
Russia’s national government has not provided any out in connection with other gender-based violence
specific information about harmful traditional prac- crimes.
tices in the region, citing the absence of “concrete
evidence of the violation of the rights of women and/

Gender Based
Violence
FEMALE GENITAL MUTILATION reaffirms one’s belonging to a particular community,
in which women bear responsibility for preserving
In 2016, we published the first contemporary report family honor and reputation.
on the practice of FGM1 in Russia, based on in-
terviews conducted with 25 survivors in nine of The report generated media coverage due to incen-
Dagestan’s high mountain districts, as well as with diary comments made by a prominent imam, who
17 religious, medical, and legal experts. The report not only confirmed the existence of the practice but
found that FGM is mostly performed on girls before also spoke of it as an efficient and harmless way of
the age of 3, at home, with the use of regular tamping down women’s sexuality. In August 2016,
household implements such as knives or shears. following the publication of the report, a draft bill
Practices vary depending on the village and ethnic criminalizing FGM was introduced in the Duma.
group, with the most common types being incision However, the bill was never passed, and neither fed-
and bloodletting and partial removal of the clitoris. eral nor regional authorities have made any efforts
Regardless of the type of FGM, the aim of the pro- to eliminate the practice, except for highly superfi-
cedure is to control women’s sexuality and behavior cial actions, such as a check carried out by the pros-
both before and after marriage. ecutor’s office in Dagestan following the report’s
publication. The prosecutor’s office requested the
In a second report in 2018,2 we estimated the ap- personal information of the survivors interviewed
proximate minimum number of potential victims in for the report, which our organization Stichting
Dagestan at 1,240 girls per year, based on statistics Justice Initiative declined to disclose; subsequently,
about births in the practicing districts, disaggregated the prosecutor’s office found “no evidence” of the
by gender. The actual figure is likely to be higher, as practice.
anecdotal and expert accounts indicate that FGM
is also practiced in other districts in the south of In recent years, evidence has emerged of the
Dagestan, where no studies have been conducted “medicalization” of FGM in Russia, with the practice
to date. performed and even advertised in private medical
clinics. In 2019, a 9-year old girl was taken by her
While many of the respondents cited religion as father and stepmother to the private Aibolit clinic in
the basis for the practice, it is more likely rooted in Ingushetia in order for a doctor to perform FGM. The
pre-Islamic customary law (adat). Currently, howev- doctor is being prosecuted for causing “minor harm
er, certain influential local Islamic leaders support to health,” and the authorities refused to open crimi-
the practice with reference to religious doctrine in nal proceedings against the father and stepmother.
the Shafi‘i school of Sunni Islam. Social and ethnic In June 2020 the Federal Service for Surveillance in
traditions in practicing villages—which are by nature Healthcare (Roszdravnadzor) in Ingushetia replied
extremely remote and closed to outsiders—also that “all violations at the ‘Aibolit’ clinic had been
play a strong role in perpetuating a practice that eliminated” and no measures were being taken to
annul its medical license. Moreover, it gave no as-
sessment of the facts pointing to the performance
“Regardless of the type of FGM, the of FGM at the clinic. It did not address whether
Roszdravnadzor considers FGM an unacceptable
aim of the procedure is to control practice in principle or whether it should be consid-
women’s sexuality and behavior both ered a serious legal violation. Thus, the government
agency responsible for control over the safety of
before and after marriage.”
medical assistance could not guarantee that the

GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE DISPATCH

No. 3 l December 2021

Photo credit: An Ingush woman wearing a traditional costume and headdress walks by the Tkhaba-Yerdy temple in Ingushetia,
Russia: Igor Stomakhin, Shutterstock, April 2015

practice of FGM is unacceptable or that it should

not be performed in medical establishments. “The term refers to the commission
of murder by close male relatives for
HONOR KILLINGS the purposes of rehabilitating family
honor as a result of real or suspected
In the North Caucasus, especially in Chechnya,
Dagestan, and Ingushetia, honor killings are still ‘misconduct’ or ‘inappropriate’
a common practice. The term refers to the com- behavior.”
mission of murder by close male relatives for the
purposes of rehabilitating family honor as a result
of real or suspected “misconduct” or “inappropri- or Sharia law, but rather on self-righteous and willful
ate” behavior. In our first report in 2019,3 we docu- maintenance of personal and family ambitions,
mented 58 cases from various sources involving 73 reinforced and incited by public opinion, gossip,
victims from Chechnya, Dagestan, and Ingushetia rumors, and slander. In 100 percent of the cases,
between 2009 and 2020. The vast majority of the the accused cited the immoral behavior of the vic-
victims were women, mostly young, single, or tim as the motive for the crime. They believed that
divorced, between the ages of 20 and 30 years, the murdered women (victims) had by their actions
and were the daughters, sisters, wives, nieces, or (immoral behavior, licentiousness) either insulted
stepdaughters of the perpetrators.  them personally or their relatives, acquaintances,
family, or clan, or the “honor” of the family or clan,
An analysis of honor killings shows that these and that due to their “actions” the women must be
crimes are not based on traditions, customs (adat), punished.

GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE DISPATCH

No. 3 l December 2021

Photo credit: An Avar family in a small village in Dagestan, Russia, plow the field with a wooden plow: Kirill Skorobogatko,
Shutterstock, May 2007

were men. Of these, in Ingushetia there were two

“In 100 percent of the cases, the cases, in the Chechen Republic nine cases, and in
accused cited the immoral behavior the Republic of Dagestan 22 cases. Only 14 cases
went to trial: In 13 cases the accused were con-
of the victim as the motive for the victed; in one they were acquitted. And this is only
crime.” a small fraction of the identified problem. In prac-
tice, very few of these crimes receive publicity and
become the subject of legal investigation and media
In our second report,4 published in 2020, we ana- attention.
lyzed 43 court criminal judgments of honor killings.
It was the first comprehensive analysis of the scale In one out of every three cases, the court commut-
and prevalence of such crimes in the region, includ- ed the punishment for the accused, referring to “the
ing the perception of these crimes by the relatives immorality of the victim’s behavior as the reason for
and fellow villagers of those killed, their justifica- the crime.” The court considered that the (murdered)
tions for these murders of women, the problem of victims had, by their actions—“sexual promiscu-
investigating and conducting criminal cases of honor ity”—provoked the accused to commit murder. And
killings in court, the prospects for changing the those “actions” need not even be taken consensu-
situation in the near future, and possible steps to ally. For example, in the North Caucasus, being a
eradicate the practice. victim of sexual violence incurs a possibility that the
victim will be subjected to honor-based violence. 
The study found that from 2008 to 2017, there were The first research clearly showed that “the over-
33 cases, as a result of which a total of 39 people whelming number of murders remained hidden and
were killed, of whom 36 were women and three not revealed during the study. Hidden murders, mur-

GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE DISPATCH

No. 3 l December 2021

ders that did not receive wide publicity, for which
there was no criminal prosecution, no charges were
brought, are practically not discussed by the re-
spondents. In addition, there are practically no value
judgments on their part in relation to those convict-
ed of such crimes. In conditions of concealment of
such crimes, unwillingness to discuss this topic not
only with researchers, but also with close relatives,
an ambiguous public assessment of such acts, it
is extremely difficult to get a complete picture of
honor killings in Russia.”

In order to change the situation, we recommend

conducting further research on FGM and honor kill-
ings in the North Caucasus region and developing a
comprehensive strategy to eliminate them, includ-
ing education and awareness-raising campaigns,
effective mechanisms for prosecuting and convict-
ing the perpetrators, and systems of remedies and
support services for victims. It’s also necessary to
strengthen the capacity of law enforcement author-
ities to protect women and girls from violence, to
ensure that the victims can report cases without
having to fear retribution or stigma and can have
access to legal, psychological, medical, and social
support.

GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE DISPATCH

No. 3 l December 2021

NOTES

1. Julia Antonova and S. Siradzhudinova, “Female Genital Mutilation of Girls in Dagestan (Russian
Federation),” Russian Justice Initiative, 2016, https://www.srji.org/upload/iblock/52c/fgm_
dagestan_2016_eng_final_edited_2017.pdf.

2. Julia Antonova and S. Siradzhudinova, “The practice of female genital mutilation in Dagestan: strategies
for its elimination,” Project “Justice Initiative,” 2018, https://www.srji.org/en/about/annual/the-second-
fgm-report-based-on-the-results-of-a-study-in-russian-federation/.

3. Julia Antonova and S. Siradzhudinova, “Killed by gossip. ‘Honor killings’ of women in the North
Caucasus,” Project “Justice Initiative,” 2018, https://www.srji.org/upload/medialibrary/a3d/PPI-2018-12-
18-Honor-killings-Eng-final.pdf.

4. Julia Antonova and S. Siradzhudinova, “Killed by gossip 2. Analysis of court sentences in criminal cases
related to honor killings in the republics of the North Caucasus,” Project “Justice Initiative,” 2020, https://
xn--80abdnmdd8ddgec3d.xn--p1ai/reports/ubitye-spletnyami-2-analiz-sudebnykh-prigovorov-otchet-2020-
goda/%22.

GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE DISPATCH

No. 3 l December 2021

 GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE DISPATCH No. 4 l December 2021

Photo credit: Syrian refugees sit inside an abandoned construction site in Saida, Lebanon: Richard Juilliart, Shutterstock, October 2015

Accessing Justice for Gender-Based Violence

in Humanitarian Settings
Sarah B. Barnes

Gender-based violence (GBV) is a global epidemic en will experience sexual violence.3 Due to conflict,
rooted in gender inequality and an imbalance in power persecution, and natural disasters, an estimated 68.5
dynamics. All persons are at risk of violence because million people have been displaced, including 25.4
of their gender or perceived gender. Women and million refugees, 3.1 million asylum seekers, and 40
girls—including transgender women and girls—expe- million internally displaced persons.4 The catastroph-
rience disproportionate gender-based violence, and ic number of displaced persons, coupled with the
this violence is even more prevalent among women increased risk of GBV in these settings, threatens the
and girls who have been forcibly displaced.1 lives of millions of women and girls, as well as global
progress toward gender equity and empowerment.
Globally, 1 in 3 women experience violence during
their lifetime.2 In some humanitarian emergencies, Even in the best situations, accessing justice for
however, more than 70 percent of women have expe- survivors of violence is extremely difficult. In human-
rienced GBV, and an estimated 1 in 5 displaced wom- itarian settings, the process—from initial reporting to

Gender Based
Violence
full legal justice—is rife with obstacles. Displace- actually reported, due to the structural barriers sur-
ment disrupts social support systems, removes vivors face when seeking justice. Intimate partner
connections to services and familiar legal avenues, violence (IPV), often called domestic violence, is the
and inserts added stress and economic insecurity, most common form of gender-based violence, but
which are key drivers of violence. The threats to dis- it has been estimated that less than 40 percent of
placed persons take many forms, including intimate women who suffer from IPV seek help.11 Prior to the
partner violence, rape as a weapon during conflict, pandemic, screening of refugees in Cox’s Bazar in
early and forced marriage, and human trafficking.5 Bangladesh suggested that 1 in 4 women and girls
experienced GBV and 80 percent of those cases
were IPV.12 Since camps were locked down, report-
“Even when GBV is reported, ing of violence has decreased by 50 percent. How-
ever, since lockdowns have made it even more diffi-
the pandemic has created further
cult to report acts of violence, service providers are
challenges for authorities trying to confident that IPV and other forms of gender-based
identify and prosecute those accused.” violence are actually on the rise.13 COVID-19 restric-
tions have further hindered access to legal services
and justice for survivors. Lockdowns, quarantines,
Internally displaced persons (IDPs)—individuals who curfews, and other restrictions on movement have
are forced to flee their homes, but who do not cross limited survivors’ access to police, legal aid, and
an international border—are especially vulnerable. social services, as well as counseling, safe shelters,
Unlike refugees, they are not eligible for protec- medical treatment, and sexual and reproductive
tions under international law.6 IDPs, often women health services.14 In the Democratic Republic of
and children, are also at a heightened risk of being Congo, for example, authorities had to suspend an
trapped in areas of conflict or being used as weap- investigation into mass rape in South Kivu, as well
ons of war, compared to refugees.7 as postpone trials of individuals charged with sexual
violence crimes, due to COVID-19 restrictions.15
Studies show that the COVID-19 pandemic has ex-
acerbated already high levels of GBV, and lockdowns In addition to fear of their abuser(s), victims of GBV
and restrictions on movement have made reporting also often have a general distrust of the systems
even more difficult.8 Even when GBV is reported, designed for their protection. For displaced popu-
the pandemic has created further challenges for lations, a general mistrust of legal systems, limit-
authorities trying to identify and prosecute those ac- ed courts and legal staff, and difficulty navigating
cused.9 While violence is often perpetrated by family legal systems can leave survivors of violence with
members, traffickers, or other displaced persons, minimal to no means of legal justice.16 For survivors
documentation also shows abuse from national with irregular legal or citizenship status, seeking jus-
migration administrations, peacekeeping forces, and tice through formal legal systems can be perilous,
humanitarian staff,10 which further exacerbates the potentially resulting in detention or deportation. 17
balance of power and distrust in protection systems. Displaced communities also often create and place
value on informal justice systems, where legal deci-
sions are negotiated through community, religious,
REPORTING AND LEGAL SYSTEMS or family leaders. However, even in these informal
systems, the rights and best interests of survivors
Experts have always predicted that the rate of are rarely upheld.18
gender-based violence is much higher than what is

GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE DISPATCH

No. 4 l December 2021

Photo credit: South Sudanese refugees at Kule Refugee Camp in Gambella, Ethiopia: Richard Juilliart, Shutterstock, July 2014

PROGRESS TOWARD GENDER especially for people in humanitarian crises.

EQUITY AND THE ELIMINATION OF
Gender inequality is the root cause of gender-based
VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN AND violence. Without progress toward the ultimate goal
GIRLS of gender equity, women and girls will not be safe
from violence. Repeatedly shining a light on the bla-
International declarations like the 1993 Declaration tant inequity faced by women and girls is a first step
on the Elimination of Violence against Women and toward the elimination of violence. In agreement
the 2000 Resolution on Women, Peace, and Securi- with the Resolution on Women, Peace and Security,
ty have helped secure positive steps forward for the it is imperative to incorporate a gender perspective
world’s women and girls, but more must be done into peacekeeping operations, include adequate
within these frameworks to recognize both refugees contract and accountability mechanisms to prevent
and internally displaced persons. Other international sexual violence, and to promote gender diversifica-
guidelines, like the United Nations Population Fund’s tion of the peacekeeping troops, military observers,
Minimum Standards for Prevention and Response and civilian police.19
to Gender-Based Violence in Emergencies, have
worked to create concrete mechanisms to put
these high-level commitments into action. However,
“COVID-19 restrictions have further
implementation of these guidelines is notoriously
difficult and has become increasingly challenging in hindered access to legal services and
the COVID-19 era. In order to truly capture the ef- justice for survivors.”
fects of the pandemic on the global increase of GBV,
it is important to continue efforts to collect quantita-
tive and qualitative data to illuminate these impacts,

GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE DISPATCH

No. 4 l December 2021

Investing in improved reporting and services for
survivors of violence is also paramount to improving
justice for survivors. Phone hotlines, text messag-
ing, and videoconferencing can be useful tools to
engage survivors, but in humanitarian emergency
settings, access to phones and the internet may be
limited or even restricted by local authorities. This
forces humanitarian service providers to be even
more innovative in their efforts to engage survivors.
In Jordan, organizations have turned women-only
safe spaces into private phone booths where Syrian
refugees can confidentially call and speak to GBV
counselors at any time without risk of exposure. In
Lebanon, refugee women suggested holding GBV
awareness-raising sessions in small, socially dis-
tanced groups.20

“Repeatedly shining a light on the

blatant inequity faced by women
and girls is a first step toward the
elimination of violence.”

It is ultimately up to national and local governments,

donors, international organizations, nongovernmen-
tal organizations, and communities to continue the
focus on displaced populations during this devas-
tating time of COVID-19.21 There must be increased
investment in innovative programming to improve
the reporting of gender-based violence and the
treatment and protection of survivors, as well as a
revamping of the legal justice system and efforts to
improve awareness of legal status and protections.

GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE DISPATCH

No. 4 l December 2021

NOTES

1. Devon Cone, “Exacerbating the Other Epidemic: How COVID-19 Is Increasing Violence
against Displaced Women and Girls,” Refugees International, August 4, 2020, https://www.
refugeesinternational.org/reports/2020/7/31/exacerbating-the-other-epidemic-how-covid-19-is-increasing-
violence-against-displaced-women-and-girls.

2. “Violence against Women,” World Health Organization, March 9, 2021, https://www.who.int/news-room/

fact-sheets/detail/violence-against-women.

3. Karen Block et al., “What Responses, Approaches to Treatment, and Other Supports Are Effective in
Assisting Refugees Who Have Experienced Sexual and Gender-Based Violence?” Iris Working Paper
Series, no. 30 (2019): 33.

4. Ibid.

5. Cone, “Exacerbating the Other Epidemic.”

6. Lindsay Stark, Ilana Seff, and Chen Reis, “Gender-Based Violence against Adolescent Girls in
Humanitarian Settings: A Review of the Evidence,” The Lancet Child & Adolescent Health 5, no. 3
(March 1, 2021): 210–22, https://doi.org/10.1016/S2352-4642(20)30245-5.

7. “Questions and Answers about IDPs,” United Nations Human RIghts Office of the High Commissioner,
accessed July 22, 2021, https://www.ohchr.org/en/issues/idpersons/pages/issues.aspx.

8. Cone, “Exacerbating the Other Epidemic.”

9. Ibid.

10. Marija Obradovic, “Protecting Female Refugees against Sexual and Gender-Based Violence in Camps -
United Nations University,” United Nations University, November 9, 2015, https://unu.edu/publications/
articles/protecting-female-refugees-against-sexual-and-gender-based-violence-in-camps.html.

11. “UN Chief Calls for Domestic Violence ‘Ceasefire’ amid ‘Horrifying Global Surge’ | | UN News,” United
Nations, April 6, 2020, https://news.un.org/en/story/2020/04/1061052.

12. “Shadow Pandemic of Domestic Violence Threatens to Engulf World’s Largest Refugee Camp as
COVID-19 Further Jeopardises Access to Support Services for Women and Girls,” International Rescue
Committee (IRC), June 11, 2020, https://www.rescue-uk.org/press-release/shadow-pandemic-domestic-
violence-threatens-engulf-worlds-largest-refugee-camp-covid.

13. Cone, “Exacerbating the Other Epidemic.”

14. Ibid.

15. “‘Voices from the Field’ at the International Day for the Elimination of Sexual Violence in Conflict -
United Nations Office of the Special Representative of the Secretary-General on Sexual Violence in
Conflict,” United Nations, June 19, 2020, https://www.un.org/sexualviolenceinconflict/voices-from-the-
field-at-the-international-day-for-the-elimination-of-sexual-violence-in-conflict/.

GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE DISPATCH

No. 4 l December 2021

16. Stark, Seff, and Reis, “Gender-Based Violence against Adolescent Girls in Humanitarian Settings.”

17. Cone, “Exacerbating the Other Epidemic.”

18. Stark, Seff, and Reis, “Gender-Based Violence against Adolescent Girls in Humanitarian Settings.”

19. Obradovic, “Protecting Female Refugees against Sexual and Gender-Based Violence in Camps - United
Nations University

20. Cone, “Exacerbating the Other Epidemic.”

21. Ibid.

GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE DISPATCH

No. 4 l December 2021

 GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE DISPATCH No. 5 l December 2021

Photo credit: CR Shelare, Shutterstock, April 2016

Navigating Uncharted Waters: Curbing the

Global Threat of Cyberviolence
Nicholas Metheny, Renu Sara Nargund, Flavia Bustreo and Felicia Knaul

It is undeniable that the proliferation of internet between those with internet access and those with-
access and internet-connected mobile devices has out it is most stark, especially among adolescent girls
improved health-care access and health outcomes and women.4
for marginalized populations worldwide. Internet use
has been associated with improved access to health In addition to the digital divide, other disadvantages
care,1 better health literacy,2 and access to social of increased connectivity are emerging. Among them,
norms that promote health equity.3 While the fastest cyberviolence—antisocial, aggressive, and violent
uptake of the internet is currently in Africa and Asia, content and behaviors that include but are not limited
its use in low- and middle-income countries is far to physical threats, sexual harassment, sex trolling,5
from universal and is often stratified along longstand- doxing,6 and nonconsensual pornography7 —is an
ing class, ethnic, racial, and gender lines. It is there- all-too-common and an increasingly dark side to the
fore in these countries where the digital divide proliferation of internet use globally.

Gender Based
Violence
Cyberviolence affects all countries: It follows the Cyberviolence can lead to serious health conse-
spread of the internet in high-income countries quences. Victims report trouble sleeping, fear for
and throughout the Global South. More than half personal safety, reduced self-esteem, and feelings
of girls and young women ages 15 to 25 reported of powerlessness.13 The suffering of survivors can
being the victims of cyberviolence, according to a lead to serious mental and physical health out-
Plan International report based on research involv- comes, including depression, anxiety, social isola-
ing more than 14,000 women from 22 countries.8 tion, suicidal ideation, and self-harm behaviors.14, 15,
Further, the risk is increasing with COVID-19. The 16

pandemic has shifted numerous social, educational,

and work-related activities online, further increasing
internet use. Children’s increased online exposure “Governments have been slow
is of particular concern, as cyber abuse typically to adopt and enforce regulations
begins early in life: It is estimated that 1 in 10 girls
with access to the internet experience at least one
that curb online abuse and hold
form of cyberviolence before the age of 15.9 perpetrators accountable.”

“Marginalized groups are often Cyberviolence also blunts economic development

both at an individual and country level—so much so
singled out for cyberviolence on the that the United Nations has named it a significant
basis of their identities.” reason for the growing gender digital divide.17 Ac-
cording to one study, nearly half18 of those experi-
encing cyberviolence reduced their online presence
Like other forms of violence, cyberviolence inter- or left platforms altogether. This suggests that
sects with the social determinants of health—pov- cyberviolence is exacerbating the already significant
erty, education, gender inequality, and other forms gap in online access and participation between men
of interpersonal violence.10 Those at the highest and women.
risk of cyberviolence are those who are already at
an increased risk of physical and sexual violence Though many have recognized that cyberviolence is
that stems from an imbalance of power between widespread and harmful,19 governments have been
the victim and perpetrator: women, girls, LGBTIQ11 slow to adopt and enforce regulations that curb on-
people, those with disabilities, and racial and ethnic line abuse and hold perpetrators accountable. To do
minorities. Further, marginalized groups are often so requires a multipronged approach that includes
singled out for cyberviolence on the basis of their elements of primary and secondary prevention.
identities. More than 40 percent of respondents in First, governments and the technology platforms
the 22-country study who identified as LGBTIQ said on which the majority of cyberviolence takes place
they were harassed online for their sexual or gender should work together to keep violent content aimed
identity; 37 percent of girls who belonged to racial at individuals off of the internet. In the United States
or ethnic minorities were harassed due to their (where many major platforms’ headquarters are lo-
racial or ethnic identity; and 14 percent of those cated) President Biden’s forthcoming Task Force on
indicating they had a disability had been bullied or Online Abuse and Harassment is part of a wider ef-
harassed online specifically because of their fort to regulate the production and sharing of violent
disability.12 social media and other online content, as well as to
streamline reporting processes for those who en-

GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE DISPATCH

No. 5 l December 2021

counter this type of content.20 The European Union are outlawed and (2) the restriction to perpetrators
is pushing for an independent safeguarding entity who are motivated by a personal desire to harm the
to monitor and coordinate the response to cybervio- victim—render the internet a breeding ground for
lence.21 The entity would also serve as a regulatory cyberviolence.
body to which tech platforms would be obligated to
report, and it would be given the authority to con-
duct external investigations of the causes of specific “Countries must also consider
instances of cyberviolence and mandate companies
to update mitigation techniques and strengthen
whether marginalized groups may be
content policies to help prevent these abuses from disinclined to report cyberviolence
occurring. due to other laws that may be hostile
In addition to fundamentally strengthening the to their identities.”
frameworks and agencies that regulate the produc-
tion of potentially harmful content, governments
at all levels should consider passing legislation that Beyond resource availability, the effectiveness of
holds perpetrators of cyberviolence accountable. cyberviolence laws greatly depends on the will and
Laws outlawing revenge porn have already been ad- the ability to enforce them. According to one study
opted across Europe and in 48 states in the United of cyberviolence in India and the United States,
States.22 Unfortunately, due to opposition by power- police officers in both countries who were suppos-
ful lobbies and a misunderstanding23 of the nature edly specially trained in cyberviolence enforcement
of online abuse, many of these laws are written so were still unprepared to serve cyberviolence survi-
narrowly as to be nearly useless.24 The majority of vors or adequately pursue their perpetrators.30 This
them are limited to situations in which the perpe- speaks to a broader need to both better train those
trator acted with the intent to personally harm the responsible for enforcing cyberviolence laws and
victim. But as with sexual assault, the important ensure that survivors have access to strong support
question is not intent, but consent. According to a networks, including health-care providers, when
study by the Cyber Civil Rights Initiative, nearly 80 they bring these crimes forward. Countries must
percent of perpetrators of nonconsensual pornogra- also consider whether marginalized groups may be
phy indicate they did not act with the intent to harm disinclined to report cyberviolence due to other laws
the victim.25 However, this is no way lessens the that may be hostile to their identities. For instance,
harmful impact of their actions. While children may living in a country with regressive laws regarding
be somewhat better protected legally, due to the homosexual behavior likely deters LGBTIQ victims
widespread adoption of child exploitation statutes,26 of cyberviolence from reporting crimes committed
gaps in coverage, especially for teenage victims, against them. Existing at the intersection of other
remain. The legal landscape is similar in low- and marginalized identities (e.g., racial, ethnic, ability,
middle-income countries (LMICs), most of which do immigration status, religion) may similarly deter
not have laws against cyberviolence. Some LMIC reporting.
countries (e.g., the Philippines,27 India,28 and South
Africa29) have made progress on legislating against Law enforcement must also confront the miscon-
specific acts of cyberviolence, but most LMICs duct that occurs within its own ranks. Specific
lack the resources needed to enforce these laws. accountability measures for officer-perpetrated vio-
Globally, the functional limitations of existing laws lence are imperative to the appropriate enforcement
in two areas—(1) the forms of cyberviolence that of cyberviolence laws. For example, the Interna-

GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE DISPATCH

No. 5 l December 2021

tional Association of Chiefs of Police, a nonprofit
association based in the United States, advocates
for a zero-tolerance policy for police offenders.31

Despite the limitations and obstacles of legal re-

form, more laws against cyberviolence are needed.
Just as pressure from international organizations,
nongovernmental organizations, advocacy groups,
and the media exists to outlaw marital rape in juris-
dictions where it is not yet illegal,32 similar pressure
should be mounted to outlaw cyberviolence. These
efforts must come with an understanding of, and
safeguards against, the disproportionate and often
unjust ways in which the criminal legal system has
affected historically excluded communities, which in
many cases has driven those communities to mis-
trust the police and criminal legal apparatus. As the
threat to women, girls, and other historically exclud-
ed communities continues to grow, it will be ever
more important to prevent cyberviolence through
comprehensive laws and policy reforms centered on
the experiences of survivors. Until that happens, the
true potential of widespread internet connectivity
will remain unrealized.

GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE DISPATCH

No. 5 l December 2021

NOTES

1. Lydia Ramsey, “How the Internet Is Improving Healthcare,” World Economic Forum, January 3, 2017,
https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2017/01/technology-is-changing-the-way-we-view-our-health-this-is-
how/.

2. David Raths, “Expanding Internet Access Improves Health Outcomes,” Government Technology, June
2020, https://www.govtech.com/network/Expanding-Internet-Access-Improves-Health-Outcomes.html.

3. Kathleen Stansberry, Janna Anderson, and Lee Raine, “4. The Internet Will Continue to Make Life
Better,” Pew Research Center, October 28, 2019, https://www.pewresearch.org/internet/2019/10/28/4-
the-internet-will-continue-to-make-life-better/.

4. International Telecommunications Union, “Measuring Digital Development: Facts and Figures 2020,” ITU
Publications, 2020, https://www.itu.int/en/ITU-D/Statistics/Documents/facts/FactsFigures2020.pdf.

5. “Sex trolling” definition: Intentionally instigating conflict, hostility, or arguments using intimate
information about a person or their photos, videos, or other media without consent.

6. “Doxing” definition: The researching and broadcasting of personal (and often intimate) data.

7. “Nonconsensual pornography” definition: The distribution of sexually explicit imagery of individuals

without their consent, also sometimes referred to as “revenge porn.”

8. Plan International, “Free to Be Online? Girls’ and Young Women’s Experiences of Online
Harassment,” 2020 report, https://www.plan.de/fileadmin/website/05._Ueber_uns/Maedchenberichte/
Maedchenbericht_2020/Free_to_be_online_report_englisch_FINAL.pdf.

9. European Institute for Gender Equality, “Cyber Violence against Women and Girls,” June 23, 2017,
https://eige.europa.eu/publications/cyber-violence-against-women-and-girls.

10. Cybercrime Convention Committee, “Mapping Study on Cyberviolence,” Council of Europe, July 9, 2018,
https://rm.coe.int/t-cy-mapping-study-on-cyberviolence-final/1680a1307c.

11. “LGBTIQ” is an acronym for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, intersex, and queer or questioning.

12. European Institute for Gender Equality, “Cyber Violence against Women and Girls,” June 23, 2017,
https://eige.europa.eu/publications/cyber-violence-against-women-and-girls.

13. Cybercrime Convention Committee, “Mapping Study on Cyberviolence,” Council of Europe, July 9, 2018,
https://rm.coe.int/t-cy-mapping-study-on-cyberviolence-final/1680a1307c.

14. Michelle F. Wright, “Cyber Victimization on College Campuses: Longitudinal Associations with Suicidal
Ideation, Depression, and Anxiety,” Criminal Justice Review 41, no. 2 (June 2016), 190–203, https://doi.
org/10.1177/0734016816634785.

15. Institute of Medicine, Delivering High-Quality Cancer Care: Charting a New Course for a System in Crisis
(Washington, DC; The National Academies Press, 2013).

GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE DISPATCH

No. 5 l December 2021

16. Randolph C. H. Chan, “Effects of Online Heterosexist Experiences on Physical and Mental Health in
Sexual Minorities: An Examination of the Cognitive and Affective Mechanisms,” Journal of Interpersonal
Violence, June 9, 2021, https://doi.org/10.1177/08862605211021962.

17. United Nations General Assembly, “Promotion, Protection and Enjoyment of Human Rights on the
Internet: Ways to Bridge the Gender Digital Divide from a Human Rights Perspective,” United Nations
High Commissioner for Human Rights, annual report, May 17, 2017, https://undocs.org/A/HRC/35/9.

18. Ibid.

19. Adriane Van Der Wilk, “Cyber Violence and Hate Speech Online against Women,” European
Parliament, August 2018, https://www.europarl.europa.eu/RegData/etudes/STUD/2018/604979/IPOL_
STU(2018)604979_EN.pdf.

20. “The Biden Plan to End Violence against Women,” Joe Biden for President: Official Campaign Website,
https://joebiden.com/vawa/.

21. Cybercrime Convention Committee, “Mapping Study on Cyberviolence,” Council of Europe, July 9, 2018,
https://rm.coe.int/t-cy-mapping-study-on-cyberviolence-final/1680a1307c.

22. “48 States + DC + One Territory Now Have Revenge Porn Laws,” Cyber Civil Rights Initiative, https://
www.cybercivilrights.org/revenge-porn-laws/.

23. Mary Anne Franks, “How to Defeat ‘Revenge Porn’: First, Recognize It’s About Privacy, Not Revenge,”
HuffPost, June 22, 2016, https://www.huffpost.com/entry/how-to-defeat-revenge-porn_b_7624900.

24. Danielle Citron and Mary Anne Franks, “Evaluating New York’s ‘Revenge Porn’ Law: A Missed
Opportunity to Protect Sexual Privacy,” Harvard Law Review Blog, March 19, 2019, https://blog.
harvardlawreview.org/evaluating-new-yorks-revenge-porn-law-a-missed-opportunity-to-protect-sexual-
privacy/.

25. Asia Eaton, Holly Jacobs, and Yanet Ruvalcaba, “2017 Nationwide Online Study of Nonconsensual Porn
Victimization and Perpetration,” Cyber Civil Rights Initiative, June 2017, https://www.cybercivilrights.org/
wp-content/uploads/2017/06/CCRI-2017-Research-Report.pdf.

26. European Institute for Gender Equality “Cyber Violence against Women and Girls,” June 23, 2017, https://
eige.europa.eu/publications/cyber-violence-against-women-and-girls.

27. “An Act Defining and Penalizing the Crome of Photo and Video Voyeurism, Prescribing Penalties
Therefore and for Other Purposes,” Congress of the Philippines, Republic Act No. 9995, July 27, 2009,
https://www.lawphil.net/statutes/repacts/ra2010/ra_9995_2010.html.

28. Aditya Krishna, “Revenge Porn: Prosecution under the Current Indian Legal System,” The Criminal
Law Blog, National Law University, Jodhpur, April 13, 2020, https://criminallawstudiesnluj.wordpress.
com/2020/04/13/revenge-porn-prosecution-under-the-current-indian-legal-system/.

GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE DISPATCH

No. 5 l December 2021

29. Tom Head, “South Africa’s New ‘Revenge Porn’ Laws: Here’s What Will Land You in Jail,” The South
African, October 3, 2019, https://www.thesouthafrican.com/news/what-is-revenge-porn-south-africa-
laws-fines-jail-why/.

30. Prit Kaur and Ranjay Vardhan, “Cyber Violence against Women and Girls (CVAWG): Preparedness
of Cyber Units in Police Stations in United States of America and Women Police Stations in India,”
Intellectual Quest, Vol. 14 (December 2020), https://www.researchgate.net/publication/350671066_
CYBER_VIOLENCE_AGAINST_WOMEN_AND_GIRLS_CVAWG_PREPAREDNESS_OF_CYBER_UNITS_
IN_POLICE_STATIONS_IN_UNITED_STATES_OF_AMERICA_AND_WOMEN_POLICE_STATIONS_IN_
INDIA.

31. “Domestic Violence by Police Officers: Model Policy,” International Association of Chiefs of Police, July
2003, https://www.theiacp.org/sites/default/files/all/d-e/DomesticViolencebyPolicePolicy.pdf.

32. Ellen Wulfhorst, “UN Urges Countries to End Marital Rape and Close Legal Loophole,” Thompson
Reuters Foundation, June 26, 2019, https://www.globalcitizen.org/en/content/un-women-marital-rape-
laws/.

GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE DISPATCH

No. 5 l December 2021

 GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE DISPATCH No. 6 l December 2021

Photo Credit: A Middle Eastern woman and her children try to keep warm at the Idomeni refugee camp in Greece: Giannis Papanikos,
Shutterstock, December 2015

Two Big Risks of Forced Migrations: Migrant

Smuggling and Trafficking in Persons
Guadalupe Correa-Cabrera and Beatriz García Nice

Forced migration or forced displacement continues War and conflict remain the main causes of dis-
to relocate millions of people around the world. The placement on a global scale, and the displaced are
category includes refugees, migrants, and internally increasingly female. Also, more women are migrating
displaced persons, and it is a direct result of persecu- on their own rather than as dependents. Coming
tion, conflict, other events seriously disturbing public from the Middle East, more than 6 million Syrians are
order, and generalized human rights violations. The refugees or asylum seekers; women make up the
United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees esti- majority of those displaced, representing an estimat-
mates that more than 82.4 million people1 are current- ed 78 percent.2 Likewise, the recent end of the US
ly forcibly displaced—more than twice the number of war in Afghanistan continues to pose tremendous
people as a decade ago. Of those, women and girls risks for Afghani women. The new Taliban government
make up 50 percent of displaced populations; they so far represents a deterioration of the advance-
are, in general, at a higher risk of violence. ments in women’s rights achieved in the last 20 years
during the US occupation. Consequently, the present

Gender Based
Violence
situation places them at a higher risk of exploitation human trafficking or other violent crimes. However,
in the labor market, gender-based violence, torture, while women migrants and asylum seekers are
and forced marriage. In the Americas, displaced most vulnerable to trafficking rings or other orga-
Venezuelans are only second to Syrians; women nized crime groups, receptor countries’ immigration
account for 52 percent of the total displaced pop- policies often exacerbate dire conditions for mi-
ulation of more than 5 million.3 Border crossings grants’ livelihood.
between Venezuela and Colombia have become
increasingly dangerous; women and girls are partic- Forced displacement is not gender neutral; instead
ularly at risk. Criminal groups have taken over the it comes with key challenges for women and girls
territory, where women are now targets of their vi- who are forced to migrate (or are forcefully dis-
olent actions and forced recruitment. Women living placed) worldwide. “The position of female migrants
in Central America’s Northern Triangle,4 for example, is different from that of male migrants in terms of
face poverty, gang violence, institutional weakness, legal migration channels, the sectors into which
and corruption that makes them targets for domes- they migrate, the forms of abuse they suffer and
tic violence, human trafficking, and various forms of the consequences thereof.”6 Significant security
gendered-based violence. risks are linked with two illicit activities: migrant
smuggling and trafficking in persons. It is worth
noting that these are two distinct phenomena,
“However, while women migrants typified as two different crimes according to interna-
and asylum seekers are most tional law. These terms are often confused or used
interchangeably. An essential distinction between
vulnerable to trafficking rings or them is that, “victims of trafficking are considered
other organized crime groups, victims of a crime under international law; smuggled
receptor countries’ immigration migrants are not—they pay smugglers to facilitate
their movement.”7 According to international law,
policies often exacerbate dire “human trafficking is a crime involving the exploita-
conditions for migrants’ livelihood.” tion of an individual for the purposes of compelled
labor or a commercial sex act through the use of
force, fraud, or coercion. On the other hand, migrant
Gender-based violence is more pervasive in crisis smuggling occurs when a person voluntarily enters
scenarios where displaced women lack access to into an agreement with a smuggler to gain illegal
education, health services, security, lawful immi- entry into a foreign country and is moved across an
gration status, and acceptance of changing gender international border.”8
norms. Receptor countries in Europe, as well as the
United States and other high-income countries, are One key concept in this distinction is “consent.” It is
faced with the challenge of responding to a world- worth noting that the consent of a victim of human
wide crisis where “the scale of displacement and trafficking is irrelevant when any of the means set
the pre-existing political and economic tensions in forth in the Trafficking in Persons Protocol have been
the region [limit] the efficiency of the responses.”5 used—i.e., “threat or use of force or other forms of
Consequently, human smuggling services—man- coercion, of abduction, of fraud, of deception, of the
aged or supported by criminal organizations (includ- abuse of power or of a position of vulnerability or of
ing the so-called “drug cartels”)—take advantage the giving or receiving of payments or benefits to
of migrants’ vulnerable situations, particularly in achieve the consent of a person having control over
the case of women, who might become victims of another person, for the purpose of exploitation.”

GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE DISPATCH

No. 6 l December 2021

Photo Credit: Central American asylum seekers and their children being processed by Border Patrol agents in La Joya, Texas: Vic
Hinterlang, Shutterstock, May 2021

not always easy to separate one illicit activity from

“The position of female migrants is the other. Actually, when analyzing the effects and
different from that of male migrants risks of forced migrations, the separation of these
phenomena is often a gray area.
in terms of legal migration channels,
the sectors into which they migrate, Most displaced migrants or refugees must hire
the services of human smugglers and pay corrupt
the forms of abuse they suffer and the authorities in various countries in order to make
consequences thereof.” it to their desired destinations in safer and more
developed nations. Migrant smugglers frequently
put displaced migrants and refugees at great risk
What is more, “The recruitment, transportation, since they are often linked—or even work in tan-
transfer, [harboring] or receipt of a child9 for the pur- dem—with human trafficking rings, drug trafficking
pose of exploitation shall be considered ‘trafficking organizations, kidnapping rings, and other organized
in persons’ even if this does not involve any of the crime groups. Migrant and refugee women and girls
means” mentioned above.10 are comparatively more vulnerable than men, and
they are the groups more likely to be subjected to
Even though we are talking about two clearly dif- violence along the migration routes. They are also
ferent phenomena, confusion arises for a number frequent victims of human trafficking for the pur-
of reasons. When referring to certain other illicit pose of sexual exploitation.11
activities—such as the drug trade or illicit arms
trade—the terms “smuggling” and “trafficking” are In order to provide effective solutions to these
frequently used interchangeably. What is more, it is multilayered problems, a reckoning with the cultural

GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE DISPATCH

No. 6 l December 2021

roots of gender-based violence is needed across the
world. Such problems have to do mainly—but not “Overall, there is a need for close
exclusively—with South–North flows, where wom- cooperation between refugee-
en who are facing extreme poverty, violence, and a
lack of protection from the state attempt to reach
sending countries, transit countries,
more stable and richer countries that promise better and destination countries, in order
opportunities and security for them. Awareness
campaigns and activist efforts have come a long
to successfully face the enormous
way in bringing attention to women’s vulnerable role human challenges of forced
in human displacement scenarios and susceptibili- migrations and address the root
ty to extreme instances of gender-based violence,
forced labor, and human trafficking rings. causes of such displacements.”

But this is not enough. On an immediate level, tran-

sit and receptor countries must provide adequate Likewise, it is fundamental to have reliable data to
protection for migrant flows, particularly for dis- support and expand policies that promote gender
placed women and girls against the rapacity of hu- equality and provide women with economic and
man smuggling networks and the deleteriousness social opportunities. In Latin America, for example,
of human trafficking rings along the world’s migrant a region where women are highly susceptible to
routes (land, maritime, and aerial). This includes these types of crimes, underreporting gives way to
efforts to deter the collusion between criminal orga- a normative and institutional vacuum, minimizing
nizations and local authorities and the preemption efforts and rendering them obsolete. To counter
of inhumane treatment against displaced popula- this, projects such as Infosegura in Central Amer-
tions. Moreover, adequate anti-trafficking legislation ica, which is dedicated to providing gender-based
in each country, effective enforcement, and wider violence data, have proven pivotal in allowing
availability of protection services for victims are par- authorities to develop solutions based on reliable
amount actions needed to reduce security risks for information.
forcefully displaced women and girls. The European
Union just released its 2021–2025 strategy12 to pre- National efforts to dismantle human smuggling
vent trafficking, break criminal business models, and networks, combat human trafficking, and eradicate
protect and empower victims. With half of identified corruption, such as Operation Sentinel14 and Joint
victims in the EU being non-EU citizens, the strate- Task Force Alpha15 in the United States are excellent
gy aims to reduce demand by working with national initiatives, and their reach should be extended to
authorities and civil society organizations targeting regional and perhaps even global levels. More spe-
high-risk sectors. It also addresses the use of online cifically, authorities in the various affected countries
platforms for the recruitment and exploitation of should collaborate closely to strengthen protections
victims and places special emphasis on international for displaced women and girls and deter the activ-
cooperation with countries of origin and transit. In ities of migrant smugglers and human traffickers.
North Africa and the Middle East, Egypt13 is making Inadequate anti-trafficking legislation needs to be
important strides in addressing human trafficking improved at the country level to raise these policies
and related crimes, with a comprehensive approach. to international standards.16
The country has inaugurated specialized shelters for
trafficked victims, increased prosecution, expanded Overall, there is a need for close cooperation be-
training, and rolled out public awareness campaigns. tween refugee-sending countries, transit countries,

GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE DISPATCH

No. 6 l December 2021

and destination countries, in order to successfully
face the enormous human challenges of forced
migrations and address the root causes of such
displacements. Due to the global complexity of
trafficking and smuggling rings, international law
enforcement cooperation is fundamental to con-
ducting more investigations into the corruption and
violence in certain areas, the illicit roles of state and
local actors, and the configuration of human smug-
gling networks and human trafficking rings in their
own territories. Most important, these efforts must
lead to improved accountability by government
authorities and civil society organizations regionally,
while assuring the safety and protection of women
along migration routes.

GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE DISPATCH

No. 6 l December 2021

NOTES

1. United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, “Figures at a Glance: UNHCR Global Trends 2020,”
June 18, 2021, https://www.unhcr.org/en-us/figures-at-a-glance.html.

2. Jane Freedman, Zeynep Kivilcim, and Nurcan Özgür Baklacıoglu, eds., A Gendered Approach to the
Syrian Refugee Crisis (London: Routledge, 2017).

3. Infobae, “The UN Fears that by 2021 More Than 6 Million Venezuelans Will Have Emigrated
from Their Country,” Infobae, America, December 13, 2020, https://www.infobae.com/america/
venezuela/2020/12/13/la-onu-teme-que-para-el-2021-mas-de-6-millones-de-venezolanos-hayan-emigrado-
de-su-pais.

4. The Northern Triangle is composed of Guatemala, Honduras, and El Salvador.

5. Freedman, Kivilcim, and Özgür Baklacıoglu, A Gendered Approach (London: Routledge, 2017).

6. Lee Swepston, Patrick Taran, and Ryszard Cholewinski, Migration, Human Rights and Governance:
Handbook for Parliamentarians No. 24 (Geneva: Inter-Parliamentary Union, 2015), https://www.ohchr.org/
documents/publications/migrationhr_and_governance_hr_pub_15_3_en.pdf.

7. Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons, “Human Trafficking and Migrant Smuggling:
Understanding the Difference,” US Department of State, June 2017, https://www.state.gov/wp-content/
uploads/2019/02/272325.pdf.

8. Human Rights Office of the High Commissioner, “Protocol to Prevent, Suppress, and Punish Trafficking
in Persons Especially Women and Children, supplementing the United Nations Convention against
Transnational Organized Crime,” United Nations, General Assembly resolution, November 15, 2000,
https://www.ohchr.org/en/professionalinterest/pages/protocoltraffickinginpersons.aspx. Human Rights
Office of the High Commissioner, “Protocol against the Smuggling of Migrants by Land, Sea, and Air,
supplementing the United Nations Convention against Transnational Organized Crime,” United Nations,
General Assembly resolution, November 15, 2000, https://www.ohchr.org/EN/ProfessionalInterest/
Pages/TransnationalOrganizedCrime.aspx.

9. “Child,” according to the Trafficking in Persons Protocol, means “any person under eighteen years of
age.”

10. Human Rights Office of the High Commissioner, “Protocol to Prevent, Suppress, and Punish Trafficking
in Persons Especially Women and Children, supplementing the United Nations Convention against
Transnational Organized Crime,” United Nations, General Assembly resolution, November 15, 2000,
https://www.ohchr.org/en/professionalinterest/pages/protocoltraffickinginpersons.aspx.

11. Guadalupe Correa-Cabrera and Jennifer Bryson Clark, “Re-victimizing Trafficked Migrant Women: The
Southern Border Plan and Mexico’s Anti-trafficking Legislation,” Eurasia Border Review, 7(1) (2016),
55–70.

12. European Commission, “Fight against Organised crime: New 5-Year Strategy for Boosting Cooperation
across the EU and for Better Use of Digital Tools for Investigations,” press release, April 14, 2021,
https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/en/ip_21_1662.

GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE DISPATCH

No. 6 l December 2021

13. United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, “World Day Against Trafficking in Persons: Victim-Centered
Response,” press release, July 27, 2021, https://www.unodc.org/romena/en/press/2021/July/joint-press-
release---nccpimandtip--unodc--iom-and-eu-world-day-against-trafficking-in-persons_-victim-centered-
response.html.

14. US Department of Homeland Security, “DHS Announces Operation to Target Criminal Smuggling
Operations,” press release, April 27, 2021, https://www.dhs.gov/news/2021/04/27/dhs-announces-
operation-target-criminal-smuggling-organizations.

15. US Department of Justice, “Attorney General Announces Initiatives to Combat Human Smuggling and
Trafficking and to Fight Corruption to Central America,” press release, June 27, 2021, https://www.
justice.gov/opa/pr/attorney-general-announces-initiatives-combat-human-smuggling-and-trafficking-and-
fight.

16. Guadalupe Correa-Cabrera and Arthur Sanders Montandon, “Arguments to Reform Mexico’s Anti-
trafficking Legislation,” The Wilson Center (2018).

GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE DISPATCH

No. 6 l December 2021

 GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE DISPATCH No. 7 l December 2021

Photo credit: Lucian Coman, Shutterstock

Leaving No One Behind

Ensuring Women’s Access to Quality Multisectoral GBV
Services: Experience from Zimbabwe
Verena D. Bruno and Julie Diallo

INTRODUCTION

This short piece looks at the status of violence to women and girls living in remote areas: the Mobile
against women and girls (VAWG) in East and South- One Stop Centre model introduced in Zimbabwe. This
ern Africa. It examines the role of ensuring the avail- article recognizes that the availability of quality multi-
ability of quality multisectoral gender-based violence sectoral GBV services is a crucial part of achieving the
(GBV) services in Southern Africa to prevent VAWG, United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goal 5,1 as
mitigate its impact, and stop the reoccurrence of well as realizing the aspirations of the African Union’s
violence. Finally, it presents an innovative model for Agenda 2063: The Africa We Want.2
delivering quality mobile multisectoral GBV services

Gender Based
Violence
THE STATUS OF GENDER-BASED with available data, less than 10 percent of adoles-
cent girls ages 15 to 19 who experienced forced sex
VIOLENCE IN EAST AND SOUTHERN
sought professional help.7
AFRICA

Violence against women and girls is one of the most

widespread human rights violations in the world.
Looking at the African continent in 2018, the World THE ROLE OF QUALITY
Health Organization (WHO) estimated that one MULTISECTORAL GBV SERVICES
out of three African women will experience either
physical and/or sexual intimate partner violence or GBV services refers to a wide range of services,
nonpartner sexual violence in their lifetime. Accord- including health, police, legal, and social services
ing to WHO, sub-Saharan Africa and Southern Asia provided to survivors of gender-based violence. The
are the two regions with the highest prevalence of Essential Services Package for Women and Girls
VAWG.3 When we look at age disaggregation, we Subject to Violence8 is a series of guidance tools
see that African adolescent girls and young women that aims to provide greater access to a coordinated
are disproportionately affected by gender-based set of essential and quality multisectoral services
violence. At the global level, 1 in 20 adolescent girls for women and girls who have experienced GBV or
ages 15 to 19—approximately 13 million girls—have are at risk of GBV. The provision and coordination of
experienced forced sex.4 There is a high prevalence essential health, police, justice, and social services
of physical and sexual intimate partner violence can significantly mitigate the consequences of
among adolescent girls and young women in East violence on survivors’ well-being, health, and safety.
and Southern Africa. To some extent, this high It also contributes to survivors’ recovery and helps
prevalence can be correlated with forced first sexual stop violence from recurring. The implementation
encounters. of the Essential Services Package can diminish
the impact of violence on women, girls, families,
“On average, only 1 in 10 women and communities in terms of productivity, school
achievement, public policies, and budget.
exposed to violence sought any help.”
In East and Southern Africa, services are mostly
available in urban areas, such as in cities at provin-
The COVID-19 pandemic shed light on this shadow cial and district levels. Access for women and girls
pandemic. Globally, during the COVID-19 pandemic, living in rural and remote areas is constrained due to
there has been a considerable increase in report- the lack of transport and often the economic means
ed cases of gender-based violence,5 and it is likely to travel. The latest data from the Global Network
that this is just the tip of the iceberg. Research of Women’s Shelters9 shows that there is a critical
shows that women, and especially adolescent girls need for increased resources and capacity for exist-
and young women, rarely report the violence that ing shelters, as well as a need for more shelters to
they have experienced. On average, according to respond to the needs of women, girls, and children
data, only 1 in 10 women exposed to violence have survivors and/or those who are at risk of violence.
sought any help. And of those who did, only a small An assessment by the Office of the United Nations
percentage sought help from formal authorities or High Commissioner for Human Rights10 pointed out
service providers, such as police, lawyers, religious the limited and in some cases nearly nonexistent
leaders, or health professionals.6 In most countries availability of psychosocial and/or counseling ser-

GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE DISPATCH

No. 7 l December 2021

vices for women survivors of violence in countries to GSMA’s 2020 report on the mobile gender gap,12
in East and Southern Africa. It is well recognized in sub-Saharan Africa there is a 13 percent gender
that crisis counseling and longer-term counseling gap in mobile ownership, and there were 74 million
are essential in assisting survivors of GBV with unconnected women. It is critical to remember that
feeling safe, processing their experience, alleviating many women do not have their own phones or are
their feelings of guilt and shame, and reaffirming not in a position to be in a private space and speak
their rights to live free from violence. freely and safely. However, in some contexts during
the pandemic, we saw a shift in reporting from the
use of telephone hotlines to WhatsApp, Chat Box
“Women’s access to justice has been and other social media communications. These chal-
lenges and new forms of reporting pushed provid-
negatively affected by the shutdown
ers of GBV services to develop innovative models of
of courts.” reaching out to women and girls and providing both
remote and mobile GBV services.

There is limited recent data on the status of GBV

services in East and Southern Africa. Quality data
that looks at the availability, accessibility, accept- CASE STUDY: THE MOBILE ONE
ability, and quality of GBV services11 is essential STOP CENTRE BRINGING GBV
for informing the delivery of quality multisectoral SERVICES TO WOMEN AND GIRLS IN
services.
REMOTE AREAS IN ZIMBABWE
The COVID-19 pandemic has exacerbated the
Building on the guidance of the Essential Services
existing challenges to delivering quality GBV ser-
Package for delivering quality multisectoral GBV
vices and contributed to the further scarcity of
services, the United Nations Population Fund (UN-
services. During the pandemic, the health sector
FPA) Zimbabwe office and partners introduced the
faced limitations to its ability to effectively handle
Mobile One Stop Centre (MOSC) model in an effort
GBV cases and disclosures. In relation to access to
to ensure timely access to GBV services in remote
justice, reports have shown that since the onset of
and hard to reach areas, within a multihazard hu-
the pandemic, women’s access to justice has been
manitarian context. This model was developed and
negatively affected by the shutdown of courts. In
implemented under two flagship programs, the Eu-
some countries, it was reported that courts were
ropean Union–funded Spotlight Initiative to Prevent
closed or operating at reduced hours, resulting in
VAWG and the World Bank–funded Zimbabwe Idai
delays in processing cases, further contributing
Recovery Project (ZIRP). The MOSC model provides
to the deprioritization of GBV cases. In countries
mobile multisectoral quality GBV services such as
where e-justice services were made available,
health, police, psychosocial, and legal support in
women and young women of lower socioeconomic
remote and hard to reach areas of Zimbabwe that
status were constrained by factors such as limited
have been affected by drought or Cyclone Idai. It is a
information and communications technology literacy
one stop center on wheels.
and/or not owning or having access to a phone or
other connected device.
The MOSC model addresses some of the key
challenges faced by women and girls, while trying
The mobile gender gap exacerbated the ability of
to respond to the deprioritization of GBV services
women and girls to access GBV services. According

GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE DISPATCH

No. 7 l December 2021

in rural and remote areas. Women and girls living continuous two-way communication with mobile
in remote areas may be confronted with significant teams, as well as with GBV hotlines, to enhance
distances to travel to access static services, as well timely and quality referral. Since the introduction of
as a lack of available transportation and/or a lack the model, MOSCs were established in 24 out of
of economic means to pay the expenses related 65 districts14 across all 10 provinces of Zimbabwe,
to transportation. The MOSC model reduces the reaching a total of 30,406 survivors.15
distance between survivors and these services, by
bringing the services closer to their homes.

TESTIMONY

MOSC IN PRACTICE: HOW DOES IT “I was scared of moving around due to the lock-
WORK? down. But one day I made up my mind and got up
very early and waited anxiously for the Mobile One
The MOSC model is based on the principles of flex- Stop Centre team. When they arrived, I was soon
ibility of service delivery and community engage- assisted by the welcoming counselors. I managed
ment. As such, MOSC teams are deployed on the to get clinical care and was given post-exposure
basis of evolving needs and identified GBV hotspots prophylaxis (PEP). I was also taken to the shelter for
within specific communities, such as community safety while the Victim Friendly Unit officer went to
boreholes, food distribution points, and camps for arrest my uncle. If the mobile One Stop Centre had
internally displaced people. not come, I would have missed the opportunity to
get PEP, and to be protected. At the shelter, I feel
The MOSC is made of multidisciplinary teams from very safe. The court processes are going on, and I
the health, police, psychosocial, and legal support am hopeful.”
sectors. Doctors, nurses, and paramedical staff are
trained on the clinical management of rape,13 —Faith, a sexual and gender-based violence survivor
survivor-centered approaches, and psychological who received support at a Mobile One Stop Centre
first aid. To support reporting of GBV cases, the
MOSC teams work in close collaboration with be-
havior change facilitators and village health workers
to support the identification of GBV cases at the
community level, and to ensure timely referral be-
tween services in GBV hotspots, such as water and
food distribution points. This assistance is part of
the MOSC GBV surveillance outreach sessions.

The MOSC model has demonstrated its effective-

ness in terms of service uptake in emergencies
and humanitarian contexts, such as during Cyclone
Idai and during the COVID-19 lockdowns, where the
model was strengthened through the provision of a
shuttle service to assist survivors’ referrals to higher
levels of care. Additionally, behavior change facilita-
tors were equipped with airtime and data to ensure

GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE DISPATCH

No. 7 l December 2021

NOTES

1. “Sustainable Development Goal 5: Achieve Gender Equality and Empower All Women and Girls,” United
Nations, Department of Economic and Social Affairs, https://sdgs.un.org/goals/goal5.

2. “Agenda 2063: The Africa We Want,” African Union, https://au.int/en/agenda2063/overview.

3. “Violence against Women Prevalence Estimates, 2018,” World Health Organization, March 9, 2021,
https://www.who.int/publications/i/item/9789240022256.

4. “Gender Equality,” United Nations Children’s Fund, https://www.unicef.org/gender-equality.

5. Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka, “Violence against Women and Girls: The Shadow Pandemic,” UN Women,
April 6, 2020, https://www.unwomen.org/en/news/stories/2020/4/statement-ed-phumzile-violence-
against-women-during-pandemic.

6. “The World’s Women 2015: Trends and Statistics,” UN Department of Economic and Social
Affairs, Statistics Division, November 2, 2015, https://unstats.un.org/unsd/gender/downloads/
worldswomen2015_report.pdf.

7. “A New Era for Girls: Taking Stock of 25 Years of Progress,” United Nations Children’s Fund, UN Women,
and Plan International, March 4, 2020, https://www.unicef.org/sites/default/files/2020-04/A-new-era-for-
girls-2020.pdf.

8. “Essential Services Package for Women and Girls Subject to Violence,” UN Women, UNFPA, WHO,
UNDP, and UNODC, December 30, 2015, https://www.unfpa.org/essential-services-package-women-
and-girls-subject-violence.

9. World Conference of Women’s Shelters, News and Updates, 2019, https://fourth.

worldshelterconference.org/en/news/call-for-action,-connect-and-act/56/.

10. “Protection Orders and Shelters: Country Visits Information,” United Nations Office of the
High Commissioner, 2016, https://www.ohchr.org/Documents/Issues/Women/SR/Shelters/
CountryVisitExperience.pdf.

11. “Availability, Accessibility, Acceptability and Quality framework: A Tool to Identify Potential Barriers in
Accessing Services in Humanitarian Settings,” UNICEF, November 2019, https://gbvguidelines.org/
en/documents/availability-accessibility-acceptability-and-quality-framework-a-tool-to-identify-potential-
barriers-in-accessing-services-in-humanitarian-settings/.

12. Oliver Rowntree and Matthew Shanahan, “The Mobile Gender Gap Report 2020,” GSMA Connected
Women, March 2020, https://www.gsma.com/mobilefordevelopment/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/
GSMA-The-Mobile-Gender-Gap-Report-2020.pdf.

13. “International Consultant-Clinical Management of Rape Survivors (CMR),” United Nations Population
Fund, May 18, 2018, https://www.unfpa.org/jobs/international-consultant-%E2%80%93-clinical-
management-rape-survivors-cmr.

GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE DISPATCH

No. 7 l December 2021

14. Twenty-four districts from 2019 to 2021. Currently MOSCs are operational in 10 districts only, due to
emergency funding expiration and projects closure in some of the districts.

15. UNFPA Zimbabwe CO data on MOSC reach—all survivors accessing at least one service.

GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE DISPATCH

No. 7 l December 2021

 GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE DISPATCH No. 8 l December 2021

Photo Credit: Somkid Thongdee, Shutterstock

Judging with a Gender Perspective to

Guarantee Access to Justice for Women
and Girls
EQUIS: Justicia para las Mujeres A.C. (EQUIS)1

I. JUDGING WITH A GENDER country. Between 2014 and 2018, only 5 out of every
PERSPECTIVE 100 cases in which women denounced an assaulter
resulted in a sentence.4
Mexico has one of the highest rates of violence
against women in Latin America: Almost 7 out of 10 Unfortunately, not even the cases the judicial powers
women have suffered from it.2 However, few women receive are guaranteed a fair sentence. At EQUIS
get access to the justice system, partly because of Justicia para las Mujeres (EQUIS), we have observed
persistent social, cultural, and economic barriers, but actions and judicial decisions based on prejudices
also largely because of mistrust in Mexico’s justice and gender stereotypes that contribute to invisibiliza-
institutions3—due to high rates of impunity in the tion, impunity, and the persistence of violence over

Gender Based
Violence
long periods of time—in part because of the lack of apply such methodology in all cases, with the pur-
training of jurisdictional personnel. For example, an pose of eliminating stereotypes, verifying situations
analysis of 100 sentences in 2017 by the Red por of inequality of power, and meeting the needs of
la Ciudadanización de la Justicia (Citizen Network groups in special situations of vulnerability.9
for Open Justice) found that 85 percent of judges
did not take into account how power and gender
relations influenced their cases; 69 percent failed II. CRITERIA FOR THE SUITABILITY
to assess the victim’s risk and to dictate protection OF TRAINING
orders; 79 percent did not respect the norms of
human rights protections; and 86 percent did not One of the main challenges that Mexico faces in ful-
dictate measures to repair the damage.5 filling the aforementioned obligations is that judicial
powers do not regard the training as essential.

“Unfortunately, not even the cases In 2017, EQUIS found that 34 percent of judicial
the judicial powers receive are trainings in Mexico were, in reality, academic diffu-
sion events (conferences, forums, presentations);
guaranteed a fair sentence.”
75 percent had a short duration; 36 percent covered
general content or content unrelated to the matter;
For women, the possibility of accessing justice and 37 percent were taught by personnel without the
having their rights restored is almost nonexistent, required expertise; and none included an evaluation
since they are frequently assisted by public servants strategy to verify if the training had had a significant
who lack comprehensive training on gender and in- impact on the administration of justice.10
tersectional perspectives (as established by special-
ized national and international organizations). Based on these results, EQUIS developed six
minimum suitability standards required to move
The obligation to judge with a gender perspective is judicial training processes away from institutional
not new; it is found in several binding international simulation, in order to achieve adequate results and
instruments, including the Convention on the Elimi- guarantee access to justice for all people:
nation of All Forms of Discrimination Against Wom-
en (CEDAW)6 and the Convention of Belém do Pará,7 a. Implement activities that represent true teach-
both of which establish the obligation to guarantee ing-learning processes (events should not be limited
women legal protection of their rights with com- to conferences or lectures).
petent courts and adequate measures to eradicate
discrimination. In addition, these conventions com- b. Make enough time to address all subjects con-
pel states to have fair and effective legal procedures templated in the training program, while digging
for women that include protection measures, a deeper into questions that are more complex or
timely trial, and effective access to such procedures, relevant.
as well as other rights. Mexico’s Supreme Court,
particularly since the 2011 reform,8 has been devel- c. The content shared during the training must be
oping a solid jurisprudence line in order to establish adequate, allowing judges to offer judicial attention
the obligation of judging with a gender perspective, according to the highest national and international
paying special attention to the conditions women standards regarding human rights and gender.
face in judicial processes. Through various judicial
resolutions, the court established an obligation to

GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE DISPATCH

No. 8 l December 2021

d. Training must be given by specialists who pos- Puebla, Jalisco, Quintana Roo, Oaxaca, Coahuila,
sess extensive knowledge and experience in the Tlaxcala, Mexico City, and Yucatán.
matter, as well as a deep understanding of the tasks
judges perform daily. Additionally, these specialists In the case of Poder Judicial del Estado de Nuevo
must have teaching experience in the judicial field. León (Judicial Power of Nuevo León), EQUIS has
facilitated workshops and open spaces for dialogue
e. Contemplate a strategy of continuous and rigor- about judging with a gender perspective, in order to
ous evaluation, based on excellence and the objec- educate judicial officials about gender-based vio-
tive standards previously established. lence and discrimination against women. During the
workshops, we have discussed: (1) gender-based
f. The training programs must be designed to violence against women, its consequences, modali-
address the specific duties of magistrates, judges, ties, and areas in which it takes place, as well as the
secretaries, officials, administrative employees, and existent stereotypes about women who suffer vio-
other judicial assistants, in order to make possible lence, (2) the obligation of enhanced due diligence
for each judicial officer to improve access to justice in cases of gender-based violence, (3) the obligation
for everybody. to judge and make comprehensive assessments of
evidence and reparation measures with a gender
perspective, and (4) the need to reinforce a pre-
III. EQUIS'S EXPERIENCE IN ventive approach to femicidal violence, through the
JUDICIAL TRAINING issuance and monitoring of protection orders11 as
mechanisms of quick, simple, and comprehensive
In line with the standards developed, since 2013 action to specifically protect women at risk of gen-
EQUIS has facilitated training processes aimed at der violence.
different state courts in Mexico. During this time,
we have asked ourselves, has the training really
changed the way women receive justice? “Training of jurisdictional and
administrative personnel in the
Alarmingly, we have found that there are multiple
states where millions of pesos have been invested country’s courts should no longer
in judicial training, yet the sentences issued by their consist of isolated events and
courts are still discriminatory and allow or protect
violent acts against women. In this regard, it is nec- activities.”
essary to clearly determine whether the training is
being effective enough—and what other measures
must be taken to further ensure its effectiveness.
IV. WHAT IS NEXT?
Therefore, we’ve developed comprehensive training
To accomplish justice in equality and nondiscrimina-
processes that contain a gender and human rights
tion, we need trained and updated personnel who
approach and an intersectional perspective. Such
fulfill their obligation to judge using a gender and
training also contains pedagogical tools and citizen
human rights perspective, in order to guarantee
participation to help match the needs of the partic-
access to justice for all women.
ipants with the justice needs of women. We have
provided judicial training to more than 10 states
in the country, including Nuevo León, Guanajuato,

GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE DISPATCH

No. 8 l December 2021

Training of jurisdictional and administrative person-
nel in the country’s courts should no longer consist
of isolated events and activities. Training on judging
with a gender perspective means responding to the
obligations and recommendations of national and in-
ternational organizations. It implies that institutions
must designate enough resources to personnel
training, apply suitability standards throughout the
process of planning and executing the training, and
monitor its impact.

It is also necessary to establish mechanisms that

evaluate the training results. These mechanisms
must be built in collaboration with civil society
organizations that face the challenges of the lack of
justice in Mexico. The opportunity of opening justice
to citizens is key for institutions in order to identify,
through the voices of women and civil society, the
areas of opportunity in the training of judges.

An example of the latter is Oaxaca, where EQUIS,

together with local organizations and the state judi-
ciary, promoted the foundation of the Citizen Con-
sultative Council, which aims to issue observations
and recommendations about the judicial training
process. This includes the definition of important
indicators, such as the analysis of sentences, that
will allow us to try to make gender perspectives
and intersectionality a fundamental part of the legal
rationale in all cases.

GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE DISPATCH

No. 8 l December 2021

NOTES

1. EQUIS: Justicia para la mujeres (EQUIS), A.C. is a feminist organization based in Mexico City that works
to transform institutions and public policies and strengthen women’s leadership to improve access to
justice for all women. EQUIS contributes to creating conditions where women can exercise all of their
human rights in a context that’s free of violence and discrimination.

2. National Institute of Statistics and Geography (INEGI, by its Spanish acronym), “National Survey on the
Dynamics of Household Relationships” (ENDIREH, by its Spanish acronym), 2016, https://www.inegi.
org.mx/contenidos/saladeprensa/aproposito/2020/Violencia2020_Nal.pdf.

3. In a survey carried out by INEGI, it was registered that only 14.8 percent of the people surveyed
mentioned that they had a lot of trust in the judges of Mexico. INEGI, “National Survey on Victimization
and Perception of Public Safety” (ENVIPE, by its Spanish Acronym), 2019, https://www.inegi.org.mx/
temas/percepciondes/default.html#Informacion_general.

4. Arturo Angel, “In Five Years, Only 5 Out of 100 Complaints of Sexual Abuse and Rape Obtained a
Conviction,” Animal Político, February 4, 2021, https://www.animalpolitico.com/2021/02/5-cada-100-
denuncias-abuso-sexual-violacion-sentencia/.

5. EQUIS, “No es Justicia,” 2019, https://equis.org.mx/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/noesjusticia.pdf.

6. United Nations, “Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women,”
December 18, 1979, https://www.ohchr.org/sp/professionalinterest/pages/cedaw.aspx.

7. Organization of American States, “Inter-American Convention on the Prevention, Punishment, and

Eradication of Violence Against Women,” June 9, 1994, https://www.oas.org/es/mesecvi/convencion.
asp.

8. In June 2011, the Federal Congress reformed the Mexican Constitution to recognize the authorities’
obligations to respect, protect, promote and guarantee human rights, those written in the Constitution
and all those stated on international treaties signed by Mexico.

9. Supreme Court of Justice of the Nation (SCJN by its Spanish acronym), First Chamber 1a./J. 22/2016
(10a.), “Access to Justice in Conditions of Equality. Elements for Judging with Gender Perspective,” April
15, 2016.

10. EQUIS & Transversal, “Judicial Training on the Rights of People with Disabilities,” 2019, https://equis.
org.mx/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/La_Capacitacion_Judicial_en_Derechos_de_las_Personas_con_
Discapacidad.pdf.

11. Those contained in the General Law on Women’s Access to a Life Free of Violence.

GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE DISPATCH

No. 8 l December 2021

 GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE DISPATCH No. 9 l December 2021

Photo Credit: Women demonstrate for the end of rape culture in Goiânia, Brazil: Angela Macario, Shutterstock, May 2016

Why the Rule of Law Is Not Enough

Dabney P. Evans

In May 2021 the Brazilian Federal Register announced According to the World Bank, at least 155 countries
that all people seeking services for relationship vio- have passed laws on domestic violence,3 yet one in
lence would receive a risk assessment.1 three women experience physical, sexual, or psycho-
logical violence during their lifetimes.4 While these
The use of risk assessments—tools designed to laws may be well-intentioned, their consequences
predict reassault or femicide in cases of domestic or may be unexpected. In a 2014 study conducted in
intimate partner violence (IPV)—is an important step Nicaragua, women believed that the passage of
in advancing the implementation of federal violence Law 779, a progressive anti-femicide law passed in
against women (VAW) laws. Such practices in Brazil 2012, actually led to an increase in femicide;5 this
are built on the existing 2006 Maria da Penha Law, was in part because it also contained new carceral
and 2015 anti-femicide legislation that criminalized do- punishments for domestic violence. Knowing that
mestic violence and gender-based killing.2 Yet, while they would face carceral consequences for domestic
the rule of law is necessary, it is insufficient to ensure violence as well as femicide, some men may have felt
a world free from relationship violence. disincentivized to limit their abusive behavior toward
their partner—and thus committed even more ex-

Gender Based
Violence
treme acts of violence that led to death instead. dered by their partners in retaliation. One participant
VAW laws are designed to protect people from went so far as to say that the possibility of such
violence, but their mere existence does not solve retaliation leads women to “fear the law more than
the problem. The success of any law is dependent the abusers.”
on society’s willingness to respect it. In this sense,
VAW laws are like stop signs. They can only prevent Such attitudes may only be complicated by unclear
violence if people believe that the consequences data relating to the effects of VAW laws. A study
of not obeying the sign will cause them more harm comparing Brazilian data from before and after
than good. In Nicaragua, study participants did not the enactment of the Maria da Penha Law, Brazil’s
believe that Law 779 did that. In fact, quite the op- first federal VAW legislation, reported that physical
posite. They believed that the law made the violence violence significantly increased after the passage
worse. If someone speeds through an intersection of the law. In 2003, 11 percent of Brazilian women
without stopping, they may cause a car accident. reported experiencing violence; by 2013, seven
But if they do, it’s not the fault of the stop sign. Un- years after the Maria da Penha Law, this figure had
less laws and policies are fully implemented, they increased to 53.5 percent.7 At first glance, this data
may actually exacerbate violence. seems to suggest that the law somehow contrib-
uted to increased violence. Yet the reasons for this
change are uncertain. It is possible that the actual
“The success of any law is dependent violence increased, but the results could also reflect
increased awareness and reporting of violence, or a
on society’s willingness to respect it.” combination of both factors. Without further explo-
ration and contextualization, the effects of VAW laws
will not be fully understood.
In a 2016 study of Brazilian women attending state-
run health clinics, all participants were aware of And while VAW laws are intended to directly ad-
at least one federal VAW law.6 Yet they expressed dress violence, other laws and policies may also
widespread lack of trust in the government, and affect its occurrence. While the world has faced
viewed the legal sector as ineffective. They felt VAW the COVID-19 pandemic, the “shadow pandemic”
laws either exacerbated violence or otherwise had of relationship violence has also raged on.8 Shelter-
little impact on the lives of people experiencing in-place policies were widely believed to put those
it. One participant pointed out that the possible experiencing relationship violence at increased risk;
benefits and protections granted by VAW laws can numerous studies since the pandemic began have
be completely undermined, and even reversed, by found that speculation to be well grounded.9
the legal sector’s inability to ensure full compliance
with these laws, including the consequences for Whether before or during the pandemic, all of
perpetrators. This generalized lack of trust in the us live in a world where violence is unacceptably
government manifested as a lack of confidence normalized; adverse childhood experiences, comu-
in VAW laws and was a major barrier for women
seeking services through two pathways to prevent
and respond to violence: the health and legal sec-
“While the world has faced the
tors respectively. Numerous participants recounted COVID-19 pandemic, the 'shadow
stories about the ways that women were further
traumatized by ineffective interactions with health
pandemic' of relationship violence
and legal sector actors—or worse, abused or mur- has also raged on.”

GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE DISPATCH

No. 9 l December 2021

nity violence, and other social comorbidities are The root causes are systems of oppression, racism,
risk factors for both experiencing and perpetrating sexism, and all of the -isms.13 As the poet Audre
violence.10 Deeply embedded systems of oppres- Lorde taught us, “There is no hierarchy of oppres-
sion have made themselves apparent, as evidenced sion.”14 
by acts of police violence and domestic terrorism
in the United States—and elsewhere around the
world. But as troubling as these occurrences have “In the wake of COVID-19
been, we have reason for hope. If COVID-19 was we must explore new methods
the pressure cooker, the world has been primed for
explosive change. of accountability grounded in
transformative justice.”
The practice of risk assessment for violence in Brazil
is one such change, and it’s grounded in more than
two decades of feminist activism, the adoption of So, we must consider new means of individual and
laws, and scientific research about risk assessment societal accountability, including ways to disman-
tools and how laws effect the lived experiences of tle harmful gender norms. This future is difficult to
people facing violence. We have successfully identi- imagine because it is so different from the world we
fied risk factors for experiencing IPV11 and justifiably know today. But it is costing us too much not to act.
centered survivors in our work. The Danger Assess- And if COVID has taught us anything, it is that the
ment, a tool validated to predict reassault, as well as world can change overnight. Through the rule of law,
attempted and completed femicide, has been trans- combined with other strategies for governance and
lated and cross-culturally adapted for use in Brazil. justice, we can bring forth the change necessary to
The vast majority of women participating in a 2020 solve the wicked problem of gender-based violence.
study assessing the face validity of a translated
and cross-culturally adapted version of the Danger
Assessment for Brazil found the instrument easy to
comprehend, underscoring that people experienc-
ing violence are primed and ready for laws to effect
change in their lives.

Less work has been done with regard to perpetra-

tors, but we are learning that they too have expe-
riences of trauma that contribute to their interac-
tions with their intimate partners.12 Yet most of our
approaches with perpetrators have been punitive
or carceral in nature. In the wake of COVID-19
we must explore new methods of accountability
grounded in transformative justice. We must ask
ourselves what an abolitionist approach to IPV
prevention and response would look like. And we
must do so because the root cause of relationship
violence is not individual perpetrators.

GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE DISPATCH

No. 9 l December 2021

NOTES

1. Presidente da República, “Lei No. 14.149, De 5 de Maio de 2021,” Diário Oficial da União 84, 1, May
2021, https://www.in.gov.br/en/web/dou/-/lei-n-14.149-de-5-de-maio-de-2021-318198245.

2. Presidência da República, “Lei No. 11.340, de 7 de Agosto de 2006,” August 2006, http://www.planalto.

gov.br/ccivil_03/_Ato2004-2006/2006/Lei/L11340.htm; Presidência da República, “Lei No. 13.104, de 9
de Março de 2015,” March 2015, http://www.planalto.gov.br/ccivil_03/_Ato2015-2018/2015/Lei/L13104.
htm.

3. World Bank Group, Women, Business and the Law 2020 (Washington, D.C.: World Bank, 2020), https://
elibrary.worldbank.org/doi/abs/10.1596/978-1-4648-1532-4.

4. World Health Organization, “WHO multi-country study on women’s health and domestic violence
against women: Initial results on prevalence, health outcomes and women’s responses,” 2005, https://
www.who.int/reproductivehealth/publications/violence/24159358X/en/.

5. Samantha M. Luffy, Dabney P. Evans, and Roger W. Rochat, “It is better if I kill her”: Perceptions and
opinions of violence against women and femicide in Ocotal, Nicaragua, after Law 779,” Violence and
Gender 2, no. 2 (June 2015), 107–111, https://doi.org/10.1089/vio.2015.0008.

6. Dabney P. Evans et al., “Women fear the law more than the perpetrators”: Trust in health and legal
response to Violence Against Women in Brazil,” Cadernos de Saudé Publica 36, no. 10 (2020), http://
dx.doi.org/10.1590/0102-311X00114019.

7. Mariana V. Gattegno, Jasmine D. Wilkins, and Dabney P. Evans, “The relationship between the Maria
da Penha Law and intimate partner violence in two Brazilian states,” International Journal for Equity in
Health 15, no. 138 (November 2016), https://doi.org/10.1186/s12939-016-0428-3.

8. UN Women, “The Shadow Pandemic: Violence against women during COVID-19,” accessed June 17,
2021, https://www.unwomen.org/en/news/in-focus/in-focus-gender-equality-in-covid-19-response/
violence-against-women-during-covid-19.

9. Alex R. Piquero et al., “Domestic Violence During COVID-19: Evidence from a Systematic Review and
Meta-Analysis,” Council on Criminal Justice (Washington D.C.: March 2021), https://miami.pure.elsevier.
com/en/publications/domestic-violence-during-the-covid-19-pandemic-evidence-from-a-sy; Dabney P.
Evans, Shila René Hawk, and Carrie E. Ripkey, “Domestic Violence in Atlanta, Georgia Before and During
COVID-19,” Violence and Gender (December 2020), https://doi.org/10.1089/vio.2020.0061.

10. ”Risk and Protective Factors,” National Center for Injury Prevention and Control, Division of Violence
Prevention, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, last reviewed March 2, 2020, https://www.cdc.
gov/violenceprevention/youthviolence/riskprotectivefactors.html; Casey D. Xavier Hall and Dabney P.
Evans, ”Social comorbidities? A qualitative study mapping syndemic theory onto gender-based violence
and co-occurring social phenomena among Brazilian women,“ BMC Public Health 20, No. 1260 (2020),
https://doi.org/10.1186/s12889-020-09352-7; Martín Hernán Di Marco and Dabney P. Evans, “Society,
Her or Me? An Explanatory Model of Intimate Femicide Among Male Perpetrators in Buenos Aires,
Argentina,” Feminist Criminology (October 2020), https://doi.org/10.1177/1557085120964572.

GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE DISPATCH

No. 9 l December 2021

11. “Evidence Hub: What Works Resources,” What Works to Prevent Violence, accessed June 17, 2021,
https://www.whatworks.co.za/resources.

12. Di Marco and Evans, “Society, Her or Me?”

13. Kimberle Crenshaw, “Demarginalizing the Intersection of Race and Sex: A Black Feminist Critique of
Antidiscrimination Doctrine, Feminist Theory and Antiracist Politics,” University of Chicago Legal Forum
1989, no. 1 (1989), 139–167, http://chicagounbound.uchicago.edu/uclf/vol1989/iss1/8.

14. Audre Lorde, “There is no hierarchy of oppressions,” Bulletin: Homophobia and Education (New York:
Council on Interracial Books for Children, 1983), 14.

GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE DISPATCH

No. 9 l December 2021

 GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE DISPATCH No. 10 l December 2021

Photo credit: Afghans living in India gathered at the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees office in New Delhi to demand refugee
status: Pradeep Gaurs, Shutterstock, August 2021

As an International Community, We Cannot

Turn Our Backs on the Women and Children
of Afghanistan
Natalie Gonnella-Platts

Afghan women’s and children’s rights, agency, and Afghan women were an important catalyst for prog-
well-being were eroded overnight when the Taliban ress—for themselves, their communities, and their
seized power in August 2021. country.

As in nearly all conflicts and humanitarian crises, it Critical pillars in the pursuit of democracy, security,
is the women and children who now shoulder the and development, some of the most courageous
burden of most of the fallout in Afghanistan, including women in the country have been threatened, as-
increased instances of gender-based violence. This saulted, and killed by the Taliban for making the very
is particularly sad because Afghan women achieved impact that was previously celebrated by the interna-
more during the previous 20 years than most wom- tional community.
en’s movements did across many more decades.

Gender Based
Violence
Gender-based violence was already endemic across was nearly 30 percent lower than it was in 2017, in
Afghanistan, with limited recourse and access to part because of worsening security conditions.
justice for survivors, despite protections outlined
in national legislation.1 Even before the COVID-19 Under the Taliban, women and girls live in daily fear
pandemic and the Taliban takeover, a majority of of assault and even death for walking without a
Afghan women experienced some form of physical, male escort in public or for leaving home without
psychological, or sexual abuse, according to various the cover of a burka. Unmarried women and young
studies, with underreporting also a serious chal- girls are also being forced into marriage and sexually
lenge.2 Most often, the perpetrators were reported abused, according to numerous accounts docu-
by survivors to be close contacts—male relatives or mented in the media and via personal testimonies
spouses.3 received by advocates and organizations like the
George W. Bush Institute.5, 6, 7

“The international community still Women have been excluded from employment,
and adolescent girls and young women have been
has a role to play in protecting the prevented from attending secondary and tertiary
rights and well-being of Afghan schools in most provinces. Those who have protest-
ed the restriction of their rights and agency in this
women and children and other
way—including journalists documenting the strug-
vulnerable populations.” gle8— have been harassed and assaulted.9

Women’s shelters have been shuttered, and survi-

Today, the Taliban and other perverse actors like vors of violence have been forced back into homes
the Islamic State Khorasan (ISIS-K) have already with their abusers.10, 11
heightened the prevalence of the issue significant-
ly—strategically leveraging violence against women
and girls, as well as their exclusion from society, as “Women’s rights advocates and
a cornerstone of state-sponsored oppression. other at-risk Afghans have been
Despite the recent US withdrawal from Afghanistan, unable to secure safe passage out of
the international community still has a role to play Afghanistan.”
in protecting the rights and well-being of Afghan
women and children and other vulnerable popula-
tions. Actions taken in the months and years ahead Female judges and lawyers who were instrumental
not only have the capacity to improve millions of in the advancement of access to justice and
lives but also to demonstrate the authenticity of the anti-gender-based violence efforts are being hunted
world’s commitment to confronting injustice and by the very criminals whom they worked to put
gender-based violence everywhere. away for crimes against women and children.12 As
are female doctors who helped survivors of domes-
Afghanistan ranked as the worst country in the tic violence, including women whose husbands set
world for women, based on the 2021 Women, them on fire or threw acid on them.13
Peace, and Security Index from Georgetown Uni-
versity’s Institute for Women, Peace, and Security.4 Meanwhile, women’s rights advocates and other
Afghanistan’s relative and absolute score in 2021 at-risk Afghans have been unable to secure safe

GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE DISPATCH

No. 10 l December 2021

passage out of Afghanistan. There is virtually no Additionally, Afghan mothers who give birth in third
access to asylum in bordering countries. And seri- countries face the very real possibility that their chil-
ous barriers persist to obtaining a visa to escape to dren will be denied their universal right to identity
other regions, because the United States and other and nationality, further restricting future access to
allies no longer provide consular services within justice and protection of their rights under the law.
Afghanistan. Advocates seeking safety have been While gender-based violence in Afghanistan was a
beaten and killed. serious challenge before August 2021, the Taliban’s
brutality and the current humanitarian crisis have
already exacerbated the issue significantly. Though
“Afghan refugees face the harsh the withdrawal may be complete, the international
community shoulders a responsibility to protect the
challenge of survival with limited status and well-being of the Afghan people, espe-
access to resources or protection.” cially the most vulnerable.

The United States and other NATO allies should ex-

Moreover, since the Taliban took over full control of pand the pathways to safety for at-risk women and
Afghanistan in August, scarcities of food, water, and other marginalized populations. For example, in the
basic health care, as well as the likelihood of immi- United States, the Biden administration should use
nent economic collapse, have made the struggle of executive authority to implement a special parole
daily life extraordinarily difficult for ordinary Afghans. program for at-risk Afghans.
Families—desperate to survive in the midst of eco-
nomic collapse and famine—have resorted to selling Donor countries and private-sector institutions must
their daughters. Some are barely toddlers. increase support for humanitarian aid into Afghan-
istan, particularly to meet acute food and medical
Those women who miraculously and courageously needs for those most at risk—often women and
make it out face further risks of gender-based vio- children.
lence and inequity.
Intergovernmental organizations should work
Idling in third countries for months and even years closely with regional nations to ensure that borders
awaiting visa processing and resettlement, Afghan remain open, asylum is available, and refugee con-
refugees face the harsh challenge of survival with ventions are followed.
limited access to resources or protection. And, in an
already difficult environment, Afghans face further Public-private partnerships must mobilize to support
challenges to their well-being as a liquidity crisis at-risk Afghans in third countries awaiting final re-
has made access to personal assets impossible. settlement in places like the United States, Europe,
Amid extremely uncertain immigration situations, and elsewhere, especially those most at risk of
limited financial means, and without access to basic exploitation and gender-based violence in the future.
support, Afghan women and children are forced to
confront the risk of further exploitation and revic- Resettlement efforts should also include
timization by traffickers, organized crime syndicates, gender-specific responses to integration, such as
and other nefarious actors. information advising women of their rights and

GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE DISPATCH

No. 10 l December 2021

agency under the law and how to access social ser-
vices and trauma support. These resources must be
culturally competent and available across multiple
languages.

Most important, the United Nations must uphold

the protection of Afghan women and children’s indi-
vidual rights, well-being, and agency in keeping with
its own international human rights guidelines. And
as an international community, we must all ensure
that those most impacted by the Taliban’s abuse are
represented and heard where it matters most. From
social media to decision-making forums, we all have
a role to play in elevating the voices, strength, and
experiences of at-risk Afghans.

For some, the status of women and children in

Afghanistan may seem like an isolated problem—an
extreme example of gender-based violence and
injustice, horribly unfortunate, but beyond the scope
of concern considering other political and national
security challenges. But the opposite is true.

When women and girls are marginalized, abused,

and denied recognition and status under the law,
countries fail and global security weakens. We’ve
seen how this plays out before.

As an international community, we cannot turn our

backs on the women and children of Afghanistan.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Natalie Gonnella-Platts serves as the director

of the Women's Initiative at the George W. Bush
Institute.

GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE DISPATCH

No. 10 l December 2021

NOTES

1. “Injustice and Impunity: Mediation of Criminal Offences of Violence against Women,” United Nations
Assistance Mission in Afghanistan, May 2018, https://unama.unmissions.org/sites/default/files/unama_
ohchr_evaw_report_2018_injustice_and_impunity_29_may_2018.pdf.

2. “Strategy and National Action Plan on the Elimination of Violence Against Women (2016–2020),” Ministry
of Women’s Affairs, Government of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, 2020, https://www2.unwomen.
org/-/media/field%20office%20eseasia/docs/publications/2017/01/aco_evawstrategy_jan17_email-r2.
pdf?vs=1821.

3. Ibid.

4. “Afghanistan’s Performance on the Women, Peace, and Security Index,” Georgetown Institute for
Women, Peace and Security, October 2021, https://giwps.georgetown.edu/country/afghanistan/.

5. “Girls Increasingly at Risk of Child Marriage in Afghanistan,” UNICEF, November 25, 2021, https://www.
unicef.org/press-releases/girls-increasingly-risk-child-marriage-afghanistan.

6. Philip Smucker, “The Taliban’s Forced Marriages,” The Diplomat, October 12, 2021, https://thediplomat.
com/2021/10/the-talibans-forced-marriages/.

7. S. Khan, “Taliban: Afghan Families Flee to Pakistan Over Forced Marriage Fears,” Deutsche Welle,
September 9, 2021, https://www.dw.com/en/taliban-afghan-families-flee-to-pakistan-over-forced-
marriage-fears/a-59133446.

8. Mike Collett-White, “Afghan Journalists Beaten in Taliban Detention, Editor Says,” Reuters, September
9, 2021, https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-pacific/afghan-journalists-beaten-taliban-detention-editor-
says-2021-09-09/.

9. Yogita Limaye and Aakriti Thapar, “Afghanistan: Women Beaten for Demanding Their Rights,” BBC News,
September 8, 2021, https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-58491747.

10. Alissa J. Rubin, “Threats and Fear Cause Afghan Women’s Protections to Vanish Overnight,” The New
York Times, September 4, 2021, https://www.nytimes.com/2021/09/04/world/middleeast/afghanistan-
women-shelter-taliban.html.

11. Amie Ferris-Rotman and Zahra Nader, “‘I Don’t Know Where to Go’: Uncertain Fate of the
Women in Kabul’s Shelters,” The Guardian, October 1, 2021, https://www.theguardian.com/global-
development/2021/oct/01/i-dont-know-where-to-go-uncertain-fate-of-the-women-in-kabuls-shelters.

12. David Zucchino, “Afghan Women Who Once Presided Over Abuse Cases Now Fear for Their Lives,” The
New York Times, October 20, 2021, https://www.nytimes.com/2021/10/21/world/asia/afghan-judges-
women-taliban.html.

13. Ruchi Kumar, “A Surgeon Who Helps Burned Afghan Women Is Now in Hiding, Afraid for Her
Life,” Goats and Soda blog, NPR, November 13, 2021, https://www.npr.org/sections/goatsandso
da/2021/11/13/1051428111/a-surgeon-who-helps-burned-afghan-women-is-now-in-hiding-afraid-for-her-
life.

GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE DISPATCH

No. 10 l December 2021

 GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE DISPATCH No. 11 l December 2021

Photo credit: Women march for gender equality on International Women’s Day in Panajachel, Guatemala: J.A. Dunbar, Shutterstock, March 2020

COVID-19 Lockdowns and Gender-Based

Violence across Ethnic Groups in Guatemala
Laura T. Iesue, PhD

INTRODUCTION Highlands, and Petén,4 indigenous women experience

overwhelming rates of domestic violence, compared
Women often face barriers to accessing government with Ladinos in Guatemala.5 In addition, these individ-
services, particularly access to the justice system.1 uals often underreport or do not report being victims
This is especially the case in Guatemala, where gen- of domestic violence, which is often attributed to a
der-based forms of violence continue to be a criminal general mistrust of the police.6
justice and health issue.2 In Guatemala, approximately
36 percent of women who live with a man experience While the issues involving gender-based or domestic
either physical, sexual, or psychological abuse, and on violence are now well known in Guatemala, there is
average, two women per day are murdered, accord- limited research into how domestic violence has been
ing to several reports that focused on gender-based impacted by COVID-19 and COVID-19-based policy
violence in the country between 2015 to 2017.3 responses in Guatemalan contexts.7 One exception is
Particularly in areas of Guatemala City, the Eastern a paper by Iesue and colleagues that found that initial

Gender Based
Violence
lockdowns were associated with an increase in lence against women, and others. These categories
domestic violence.8 However, this pattern varied by are broad in scope but fit within the United Nations’
departments in Guatemala. While informative, this definition of domestic violence, as domestic vio-
study did not explicitly consider how one’s ethnicity lence involves a pattern of behavior in any relation-
may impact these variations, though it suggests that ship that is used to gain or maintain power over
it may be important. one’s partner, including physical, sexual, emotional,
economic, and/or psychological abuse.16

In Guatemala, there is not a socially constructed

DOMESTIC VIOLENCE CASES category of “mestizo,” or person of a national eth-
no-racial identity of mixed indigenous and Spanish
Following previous research conducted in the United heritage.17 Rather, Guatemalans utilize the category
States9 and Australia,10 this brief report considers of “Ladino.” Ladinos are Guatemalan-born and have
how COVID-19 and Guatemala’s lockdown policies both indigenous and Spanish heritage, yet they
to mitigate infection impacted domestic violence choose to set aside signifiers of indigenous identity
for Ladinos and Mayans. Daily domestic violence such as language and dress.18 Individuals of pre-
cases were compiled from a specialized policing dominantly indigenous descent that utilize signifiers
unit of Guatemala’s National Civil Police (PNC) called of indigenous identity are predominantly Mayan.
Departamento de Atención a la Victima. This unit is Because of this, data for this study is broken up into
located within police headquarters, particularly in two categories: domestic violence cases for Ladinos
areas with higher incidences of violence.11 Alto- and Mayans.
gether, it has 53 offices across Guatemala.12 Units
are staffed by female police personnel who provide
emotional, physical, family, social, and legal assis-
tance either directly or through outreach via other “Soon after the lockdown, news
organizations. Victims of violence can report directly outlets began to report domestic
to these specialized units. Once the unit receives a
complaint from a victim and services have been ren- violence incidents across Guatemala.”
dered to the victim, the complaint goes to the PNC,
which initiates an investigation in coordination with
the Public Ministry, which grants authorization to
the PNC to make any necessary arrests.13 Services DATA ANALYSIS TECHNIQUES
involved include initial attention toward the victim’s
well-being, taking formal complaints, accompanying Data was collected from January 1, 2019, until
victims to justice institutions, reporting cases to the December 31, 2020. In total, there were more than
judicial bodies, and ensuring compliance with judi- 1,400 cases of domestic violence involving Ladinos
cial orders regarding the security of the victim, as and Mayans during this period.19 For simplicity, an
well as following up on actions regarding the case.14 observation variable for each case was created, so
a complete count of cases could be obtained based
Individuals are classified into the following catego- on these categories.
ries by the PNC: abandoned, Alerta Alba Keneth,
Alerta Alejandra,15 disappeared, flagrancy, abduction In this study, we consider one key date of inter-
of a minor, referred for (abuse or at-risk), restitution est: March 29, 2020. On this date, Guatemalan
of minor’s sexual offenses, intrafamilial violence, vio- President Alejandro Giammattei implemented an

GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE DISPATCH

No. 11 l December 2021

eight-day curfew due to COVID-19.20 Soon after the generalized least square methods to estimate the
lockdown, news outlets began to report domestic linear regression model and account for robust stan-
violence incidents across Guatemala.21 This spike in dard errors, was utilized. ITSA allows for estimates
domestic violence cases is not surprising, as this of domestic violence trends before the lockdown
trend was also seen in other countries across the as well as after the lockdown went into effect. ITSA
globe that utilized similar lockdown measures.22 also allows for treating the shutdown as a “treat-
Indicator variables were created to represent the ment” effect, ultimately assessing whether the lock-
lockdown, so that we could understand how the down contributed to changes in domestic violence.
lockdown impacted domestic violence across these Previously this test has been used to analyze the
two groups. Any period before the lockdown is effects of community interventions on domestic vio-
signified as a 0, while an indicator of 1 was utilized lence,26 and it is also useful for analyzing large-scale
for the lockdown period and throughout the rest of interventions and changes27 such as government
2020. shutdowns.28

As with past research, multiple techniques were

utilized to assess the relationship between the pan- “Results show that domestic violence
demic lockdown and domestic violence.23 First, sim-
ple descriptive graphs depicting counts of domestic
increased for both Ladinos and
violence for all data as well as the intervention Mayans during this time.”
date of March 29 were created. Next, Dickey–Fuller
non-stationary root tests as well as correlogram
plots were generated to determine if lagged values
in our model were autocorrelated. Dickey–Fuller RESULTS
results for the Ladino and Mayan models are avail-
able in Table 1, and they indicate that the data are Table 2 lists domestic violence cases for Ladinos
stationary. Based on the correlogram plots, data for and Mayans in Guatemala between 2019 and 2020.
Ladinos had a positive effect on the values at the On average, there were 24.28 cases of domestic vi-
1st, 2nd, 3rd, 6th, 7th, 8th, 14th, 21st, 28th, and olence per day for Ladinos, and approximately 10.16
35th lags. For Mayans, a positive effect was seen at cases of domestic violence per day for Mayans.
the 1st, 7th, 14th, 21st, 28th, and 35th lags. These Focusing on the Poisson regression analyses, which
lagged effects are accounted for in the Poisson re- considered whether domestic violence increased
gression analyses, which have been provided in the during the pandemic lockdown, results show that
appendix. Poisson regression analyses were calcu- domestic violence increased for both Ladinos and
lated instead of ordinary least squares, as Poisson Mayans during this time. For Ladinos, domestic
models are commonly used with count variables.24 violence increased between 4.08 and 5.13 percent.
Percentage changes in domestic violence based on For Mayans, domestic violence increased between
the Poisson regression models were also calculated 5.5 to 7.25 percent. However, to assess whether
using the following equation: (ecoefficient -1) *100 this increase in domestic violence was associated
= expected percentage change. with the pandemic, and more specifically the pan-
demic-related lockdown, we move to the interrupted
Finally, an interrupted time series analysis for both time series analysis. Figure 1 visually represents the
of our ethnic groups using the ITSA command in overall time trend on domestic violence across the
STATA 17.1 was conducted.25 To account for auto- two groups.
correlation, the Prais–Winsten model, which uses

GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE DISPATCH

No. 11 l December 2021

Table 3 and Figure 2 consist of the interrupted time In terms of domestic violence for Mayans, these
series models for Ladinos and Mayans during this results may seem like a good thing, at least consid-
period. Starting with Ladinos, these results show ering that domestic violence was not exacerbated
that domestic violence was significantly decreasing by or attributed to the lockdown. However, we must
prior to the lockdown (b = -0.01, p < 0.001). When ask ourselves why this was not the case, as it was
the lockdown began, domestic violence cases for their Ladino counterparts, particularly consid-
jumped to 2.40 cases per day, and based on the ering that past research has often highlighted that
post-estimation command (b = 0.01, p < 0.001), Mayans overwhelmingly experience more domes-
the lockdown was statistically associated with this tic violence. These results are puzzling, and they
increase in domestic violence. Domestic violence possibly suggest that once again individuals are
continued to steadily increase between March 30 simply reluctant to go to the police to report such
and December 31, 2020 (b = 0.02, p < 0.05). crimes. Future work needs to better consider the
role of trust in the police, especially whether newly
For Mayans, the results suggest that domestic vio- formed police units such as the Departamento de
lence was not significantly increasing or decreasing Atención a la Victima are succeeding in instilling
prior to the lockdown period. When the lockdown trust and helping all victims of domestic violence. In
began, domestic violence increased to 1.06 cases addition, future analyses of domestic violence need
per day, however the post-estimation command to incorporate more self-reported instances, to bet-
shows that this jump was not statistically asso- ter consider the ramifications of COVID-19 and its
ciated with the lockdown, but likely due to some lockdowns across these groups. Unfortunately, very
other underlying factor. Domestic violence rates did few policy evaluations focusing on this specialized
not change between the period of March 30 and department’s efficacy when working with victims
December 31, 2020. Figure 2 consists of a visual have been conducted, nor have there been studies
representation of the interrupted time series with utilizing self-reports. More work, both empirically
break points at the time the lockdown began. and among advocates, is needed to consider these
connections.

DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSION “Guatemalans need to ensure that

Results of this study showed that during the pan-
their law enforcement and judicial
demic, domestic violence increased for both Ladi- systems continue to investigate and
nos and Mayans. However, increases in domestic
prosecute abusers.”
violence were attributed to the lockdown for Ladi-
nos but not for Mayans.
In addition, future policy work needs to help expand
access to resources for domestic violence survi-
“These results are puzzling, and they vors, either with the support of or outside of police
stations. This can include providing emergency
possibly suggest that once again
warning systems to help individuals indicate that
individuals are simply reluctant to go they are in danger or need support29 and expanding
to the police to report such crimes.” support services to areas such as pharmacies.30
In areas where technology and infrastructure are
available to make services more accessible, online

GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE DISPATCH

No. 11 l December 2021

services for victims, including health and counseling While a strictly criminal justice approach will not be
services, should be considered.31 Other potential enough to eradicate domestic violence, this sec-
services include publications with specific guidance tor can work with public health officials and other
that friends and family can utilize to support victims outlets to prevent and combat domestic violence
who may be isolated during COVID-19,32 including through sanctions on abusers, raising awareness
advice about what to look and listen for in domestic along with programs as mentioned previously, and
violence situations and ways to encourage active increasing women’s access to the judicial legal
conversations about domestic violence within neigh- system. Female police units such as the one men-
borhoods.33 tioned are a step in the right direction, but given
Guatemala’s history of police abuses, more work
Finally, changes to Guatemala’s criminal justice is needed to build up trust and access to resources
system need to be considered, primarily to its law for all victims. In the end, timely and responsive law
enforcement and judicial systems. First, Guatema- enforcement embedded in the rule of law can deter
lans need to ensure that their law enforcement and violence and provide better protections for women.
judicial systems continue to investigate and pros-
ecute abusers. Currently, the extent to which law
enforcement members opt out of investigating and
prosecuting domestic violence cases to free up jail
space—particularly during COVID-19—is unknown.

GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE DISPATCH

No. 11 l December 2021

FIGURE 1A: DOMESTIC VIOLENCE TRENDS FOR LADINOS AND MAYANS
FROM 2019 TO 2020

GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE DISPATCH

No. 11 l December 2021

FIGURE 2: INTERRUPTED TIME SERIES MODEL FOR LADINOS AND MAYANS
FROM 2019 TO 2020

GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE DISPATCH

No. 11 l December 2021

GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE DISPATCH

No. 11 l December 2021

 APPENDIX: POISSON REGRESSION ANALYSES

LADINO MAYA
b(SE) b(SE)
Model 1 Shelter in Place 0.01(0.02) 0.07(0.03)**
Constant 3.19(0.01)*** 2.30(0.01)***
Pseudo R-Squared: Pseudo R-Squared:
0.0001 (N=731) 0.0015 (N=731)
Model 2 Shelter in Place 0.01(0.02) Lag 1 0.06(0.03)*
Lag 1 0.01(0.00)*** 0.01(0.00)***
Constant 2.91(0.02)*** 2.16(0.03)***
Pseudo R-Squared: Pseudo R-Squared:
0.0275 (N=730) 0.0094 (N=730)
Model 3 Shelter in Place 0.02(0.02) Lag 7 0.05(0.03)*
Lag 2 0.00(0.00)*** 0.03(0.00)***
Constant 3.09(0.02)*** 1.98(0.03)***
Pseudo R-Squared Pseudo R-Squared
0.0033 (N=729) 0.0374 (N=724)
Model 4 Shelter in Place 0.02(0.02) Lag 14 0.06(0.03)*
Lag 3 0.00(0.00)*** 0.03(0.00)***
Constant 3.09(0.02)*** 1.98(0.03)***
Pseudo R-Squared Pseudo R-Squared
0.0036 (N=728) 0.0380 (N=717)
Model 5 Shelter in Place 0.02(0.02) Lag 21 0.06(0.03)*
Lag 6 0.00(0.00)*** 0.02(0.00)***
Constant 3.05(0.02)*** 2.07(0.03)***
Pseudo R-Squared Pseudo R-Squared
0.0063 (N=725) 0.0222 (N=710)
Model 6 Shelter in Place 0.02(0.02) Lag 28 0.05(0.03)*
Lag 7 0.01(0.00)*** 0.02(0.00)***
Constant 2.82(0.02)*** 2.04(0.03)***
Pseudo R-Squared Pseudo R-Squared
0.0468 (N=724) 0.0273 (N=703)
Model 7 Shelter in Place 0.02(0.02) Lag 35 0.06(0.03)*
Lag 8 0.00(0.00)*** 0.02(0.00)***
Constant 3.07(0.02)*** 2.09(0.03)***
Pseudo R-Squared Pseudo R-Squared
0.0047 (N=723) 0.0174 (N=696)

GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE DISPATCH

No. 11 l December 2021

Model 8 Shelter in Place 0.03(0.02) --
Lag 13 0.01(0.00)*** --
Constant 3.01(0.02)*** --
Pseudo R-Squared
0.0108 (N=718)
Model 9 Shelter in Place 0.04(0.02)* --
Lag 14 0.01(0.00)*** --
Constant 2.81(0.02)*** --
Pseudo R-Squared
0.0477 (N=717)
Model 10 Shelter in Place 0.04(0.02)** --
Lag 21 0.01(0.00)*** --
Constant 2.85(0.02)*** --
Pseudo R-Squared
0.0380 (N=710)
Model 11 Shelter in Place 0.05(0.02)** --
Lag 28 0.01(0.00)*** --
Constant 2.87(0.02)*** --
Pseudo R-Squared
0.0380 (N=703)
Model 12 Shelter in Place 0.05(0.02)** --
Lag 35 0.01(0.00)*** --
Constant 2.90(0.02)*** --
Pseudo R-Squared
0.0268 (N=696)

GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE DISPATCH

No. 11 l December 2021

NOTES

1. Flavia Agnes, Sudhir Chandra, and Monmayee Basu, Women and Law in India, (Delhi: Oxford University
Press, 2016); Esther Duflo, “Why Political Reservations?” Journal of the European Economic Association
3, no. 2 (2005), 668–78.

2. Adriana Beltran and Laurie Freeman, “Hidden in Plain Sight: Violence Against Women in Mexico and
Guatemala,” WOLA Special Report, 2007.

3. Mahlet Atakilt Woldetsadik, “In Latin America, Breaking the Cycle of Intimate-Partner Abuse One
Handwritten Letter at a Time,” The RAND Blog: Pardee Initiative for Global Human Progress, September
30, 2015, https://www.rand.org/blog/2015/09/in-latin-america-breaking-the-cycle-of-intimate-partner.html.

4. Robert Brenneman, Homies and Hermanos: God and Gangs in Central America (Oxford University
Press, 2011), https://doi.org/10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199753840.001.0001; Lesniewski et al.,“Ethnoracial
Patterns of Violence in Guatemala: An Empirical Examination of the Relationship between Mayan
majority Municipalities and Homicide Rates in Guatemala,” Journal of Community Psychology 49, no. 6
(August 2021), 1707–17, https://doi.org/10.1002/jcop.22506.

5. Dinesen et al., “Violence and Social Capital in Post-Conflict Guatemala,” Revista Pan Americana De
Salud Publica = Pan American Journal of Public Health 34, no. 3 (September 2013), 162–68.

6. Shannon Drysdale Walsh and Cecilia Menjívar, “‘What Guarantees Do We Have?’ Legal Tolls and
Persistent Impunity for Feminicide in Guatemala,” Latin American Politics and Society 58, no. 4 (January
2016), 31–55, https://doi.org/10.1111/laps.12001.

7. An exception to this being a study by Laura Iesue, Felicia O. Casanova, and Alex Piquero in Journal of
Contemporary Criminology entitled “Domestic Violence During a Global Pandemic: Lockdown Policies
and their Impacts Across Guatemala.”

8. Iesue, Casanova, and Piquero, “Domestic Violence During a Global Pandemic: Lockdown Policies and
Their Impacts Across Guatemala.”

9. Campedelli et al.,“Disentangling Community-Level Changes in Crime Trends during the COVID-19

Pandemic in Chicago,” Crime Science 9, no. 1 (December 2020), 21. https://doi.org/10.1186/s40163-020-
00131-8; Piquero et al., “Staying Home, Staying Safe? A Short-Term Analysis of COVID-19 on Dallas
Domestic Violence,” American Journal of Criminal Justice 45 (2020), 601–35, https://doi.org/10.1007/
s12103-020-09531-7.

10. Naomi Pfitzner, Kate Fitz-Gibbon, and Jacqui True, “Responding to the ‘Shadow Pandemic’: Practitioner
Views on the Nature of and Responses to Violence against Women in Victoria, Australia during the
COVID-19 Restrictions,” Monash University, June 6, 2020, https://doi.org/10.26180/5ed9d5198497c.

11. Karla Gutiérrez, “Qué Son Las Oficinas de Atención a La Víctima y Dónde Se Ubican,” AGN: Agencia
Guatemalteca de Noticias, February 16, 2021, https://agn.gt/que-son-las-oficinas-de-atencion-a-la-
victima-y-donde-se-ubican-pnc/.

GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE DISPATCH

No. 11 l December 2021

12. Wendy Álvarez, “Departamento de Atención a La Víctima de PNC Unidad Especializada Para Recibir
Denuncias de Violencia Contra La Mujer,” Gobierno de Guatemala, February 11, 2021, https://mingob.
gob.gt/departamento-de-atencion-a-la-victima-de-pnc-unidad-especializada-para-recibir-denuncias-de-
violencia-contra-la-mujer/.

13. Gutiérrez, “Qué Son Las Oficinas de Atención a La Víctima y Dónde Se Ubican.”

14. Gutierrez.

15. Alerta Alba Keneth and Alerta Alejandra are systems that aid in the search, location, and protection
of missing or abducted children and are similar to the US-based Amber Alert and Megan’s Law. More
information about these programs please visit https://www.albakeneth.gob.gt.

16. “What Is Domestic Violence,” United Nations, COVID-19 Response, 2020, https://www.un.org/en/
coronavirus/what-is-domestic-abuse.

17. Charles Hale, “Does Multiculturalism Menace? Governance, Cultural Rights and the Politics of Identity
in Guatemala,” Journal of Latin American Studies 34, no. 3 (2002), 485–524.

18. Ibid.

19. Initial models were only from January 1 to December 31, 2020. However, it is possible that seasonal
variations due to factors such as the wet season or other weather patterns may be impacting results.
Thus, in order to account for variations in domestic violence that may be associated to other contextual
factors such as weather patterns, we extended this data through the start of 2019.

20. Alejandro Zúñiga, “Guatemala Rules Out New Covid-19 Closures in Effort to Protect Economy,” The Tico
Times, October 9, 2020, http://ticotimes.net/2020/10/09/guatemala-rules-out-new-covid-19-closures-in-
effort-to-protect-economy.

21. ChapinTV.com, “Aumentan Los Casos de Violencia Contra La Mujer,” news report, May 21, 2020,
https://www.chapintv.com/noticia/aumentan-los-casos-de-violencia-contra-la-mujer/; ChapinTV.com, “21
Escenas de Violencia Contra La Mujer Procesadas Por El MP,” news report, May 20, 2020, https://www.
chapintv.com/noticia/21-escenas-de-violencia-contra-la-mujer-procesadas-por-el-mp/.

22. Naomi Pfitzner, Kate Fitz-Gibbon, and Jacqui True, “Responding to the ‘Shadow Pandemic,’” (Melbourne:
Monash University, 2020); Piquero et al., “Staying Home, Staying Safe?” American Journal of Criminal
Justice 45 (2020).

23. Iesue, Casanova, and Piquero, “Domestic Violence During a Global Pandemic: Lockdown Policies and
Their Impacts Across Guatemala”; Piquero et al., “Staying Home, Staying Safe? A Short-Term Analysis
of COVID-19 on Dallas Domestic Violence.”

24. J.S. Long, Regression Models for Categorical and Limited Dependent Variables (Thousand Oaks, CA:
Sage Publications Ltd., 1997).

GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE DISPATCH

No. 11 l December 2021

25. Ariel Linden, “Conducting Interrupted Time-Series Analysis for Single- and Multiple-Group Comparisons,”
The Stata Journal: Promoting Communications on Statistics and Stata 15, no. 2 (June 2015), 480–500,
https://doi.org/10.1177/1536867X1501500208.

26. A. Biglan, D. Ary, and A.C. Wagenaar, “The Value of Interrupted Time-Series Experiments for Community
Intervention Research,” Prevention Science 1 (2000), 31–49.

27. Linden, “Conducting Interrupted Time-Series Analysis for Single- and Multiple-Group Comparisons.”

28. Iesue, Casanova, and Piquero, “Domestic Violence During a Global Pandemic: Lockdown Policies and
Their Impacts Across Guatemala.”

29. Ibtissem Guenfound, “French Women Use Code Words at Pharmacies to Escape Domestic Violence
during Coronavirus Lockdown,” ABC News, April 3, 2020, https://abcnews.go.com/International/french-
women-code-words-pharmacies-escape-domestic-violence/story?id=69954238.

30. Ibid.

31. Susan Mattson, Nelma Shearer, and Carol O. Long, “Exploring Telehealth Opportunities in Domestic
Violence Shelters,” Journal of the American Academy of Nurse Practicioners 14, no. 10 (2002), 465–70.

32. Kim Usher, Navjot Bhullar, Joanne Durkin, Naomi Gyamfi, and Debra Jackson, “Family Violence and
COVID-19: Increased Vulnerability and Reduced Options for Support,” International Journal of Mental
Health Nursing 29, no. 4 (August 2020), 549–52, https://doi.org/10.1111/inm.12735.

33. Jane Gerster, “When Home Isn’t Safe: How Coronavirus Puts Neighbours on Front Lines of Abuse,”
Global News, March 29, 2020, https://globalnews.ca/news/6723582/coronavirus-domestic-abuse/.

GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE DISPATCH

No. 11 l December 2021

 GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE DISPATCH No. 12 l December 2021

Photo credit: Tens of thousands of women protest against femicide and gender-based violence on International Women’s Day in Mexico City,
Mexico: Soy Sendra, Shutterstock, March 2020

Ni Una Menos, Not One Less:

Femicides and Gender-Based Violence in
Mexico and Northern Central America
Gema Kloppe-Santamaría

In January 2021, Luz María del Rocío López was suspected the violence she endured at the hands of
murdered. Her body was found wrapped in plastic her husband but were unable to help her.1 Neither the
inside a sewer in Guatemala City, showing signs of country’s justice institutions—where she happened
mutilation, torture, and burning. Luz María was 25 to work—nor her neighbors or family members could
years old, had a 1-year-old daughter, and worked as an prevent Luz María’s killing. She was defenseless in
investigator in the Public Prosecutor’s Office. She was the face of her abuser. As her case continues to be
trained as a criminologist and wanted to go to school investigated, the number of women murdered in
for a master’s in forensic science. The neighbors had Guatemala keeps growing. Between January and July
continuously heard her screaming asking for help 2021, 300 women were killed.2 Like Luz María, many
while her husband abused her, but they did not report of these women were murdered by their partners and
it to the authorities. Her family and friends knew or were exposed to cruel forms of violence and abuse—

Gender Based
Violence
verbal, emotional, and physical—that culminated in Behind these statistics, there are the stories of
their killing. In all likelihood, they were victims of thousands of women whose lives, and those of
femicide, the intentional killing of a woman because their families, have been shattered by violence.
of her gender. One of the most recent—and perhaps most alarm-
ing cases—reported in Mexico was the murder of
Luz María’s femicide is one of the thousands of 34-year-old Reyna González in the municipality of
cases that have been reported over the last de- Atizapán de Zaragoza, in Estado de México, in May
cade in the Northern Triangle of Central America, 2021. Reyna’s body was found, together with the re-
a subregion deeply impacted by the prevalence of mains of other unidentified women, in the house of
femicides and gender-based violence more broadly. Andrés N., a 72-year-old man who has since admit-
In 2019, Honduras, El Salvador, and Guatemala were ted to murdering and mutilating 30 women over the
among the four countries with the highest numbers course of two decades.8 The case is reminiscent of
of femicides per 100,000 women in Latin America, the series of murders committed by former police-
a list that also includes Bolivia.3 In a context where man Hugo Osorio in the municipality of Chalchuapa,
gender-based violence intersects with gang-relat- in El Salvador. Osorio’s murders were uncovered
ed activities, state-sanctioned violence, and high this past May when neighbors called the police
levels of impunity, an increasing number of wom- after hearing screams coming from his house and
en—either alone or with their children—have been seeing the perpetrator hit one of his victims in the
forced to flee these Central American countries and head with a metal pipe.9 The victim was Jacquelinne
migrate northward in search of survival and protec- Palomo Lima, 26 years old, who had been lured into
tion.4 Osorio’s house after he promised her information
about her missing brother. The remains of at least
24 more people, including Jacqueline’s mother and
“In Mexico, every day, 10 women are brother, were found in his home.
murdered.”
Although authorities and press reports have charac-
terized these men as “monsters” and “lone serial
Women fleeing from Mexico share similar experi- killers” whose behavior is assumed to be anoma-
ences of violence and abuse at the hands of their lous or isolated, the reality suggests a more com-
partners, men linked to criminal organizations, or plex and unsettling picture. Andrés N. participated
law enforcement institutions. Although Mexico actively in local and neighborhood-based politics,
has lower femicide rates than the northern Central and he was part of a campaign team supporting one
American nations (1.5 per 100,000 women, com- of the candidates for mayor in the municipality of
pared with 1.8 in Guatemala, 3.3 in El Salvador, and Atizapán de Zaragoza.10 Hugo Osorio planned and
6.2 in Honduras),5 statistics on violence against carried out his killings in collaboration with at least
women in Mexico are equally staggering. According 12 other people. One of his accomplices was a
to official sources, from January to June of 2020, member of the armed forces who asked for Osorio’s
1,844 women were killed, most of them by firearm help with murdering his girlfriend and his own son.11
or strangulation.6 This number corresponds to the More important perhaps, the femicides perpetrated
grim figure that has caught national and internation- by these men share important characteristics with
al attention over the last two years: In Mexico, every the thousands of cases that remain unresolved in
day, 10 women are murdered.7 Mexico and the Northern Triangle of Central Amer-
ica. These characteristics include these killers’
excessive use of violence (including torture, mutila-

GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE DISPATCH

No. 12 l December 2021

tion, and burning), the use of sexual forms of abuse, very best, addressed as an afterthought, as part of
a close or sentimental tie to some of the victims, those “other” forms of violence impacting citizens
and their occurrence within contexts undergirded by in the “private realm.” Evidence suggests, however,
high levels of impunity. that gender-based violence intersects in significant
ways with the violence produced by gangs and orga-
The prevalence of these acts of violence, together nized criminal groups. Women experience forced
with the impunity that surrounds them, has pro- recruitment, sexual exploitation, and lethal violence
duced a wave of protests organized by feminist on behalf of gangs in the Northern Triangle,17 and
organizations and activists across this subregion. networks of human and sexual trafficking operating
In Honduras, the murder of a 26-year-old nursing in both Mexico and the United States—such as
student while in police custody pushed dozens the one originated in Tenancingo, Tlaxcala—involve
to rally and publicly denounce police brutality and women who are exploited by members of their
gender-based violence last February.12 In Guatemala, own families or by their sentimental partners.18
hundreds of women took to the streets on Inter- Moreover, militarized responses to security chal-
national Women’s Day, carrying banners that read lenges have increased women’s exposure to sexual
“Girls are not to be touched, raped, burnt, killed” violence and femicides perpetrated by organized
and “We did not ‘appear’ dead; we were mur- criminal organizations and state actors.19 Adding to
dered.”13 Political leaders have met women’s mo- this scenario, several studies have demonstrated
bilizations with contempt, if not outward hostility. that exposure to violence during childhood—e.g.,
Notably, Mexican President Andrés Manuel López witnessing sexual and physical violence against a
Obrador has repeatedly downplayed or called into mother at home—increases an individual’s risk of
question the significance of violence against women suffering violence later in life.20 Gender-based vio-
in the country.14 lence is thus at the heart of the cycles of violence
impacting these and other nations.

“Gender-based violence is thus at The governments of Mexico and the countries of

the Northern Triangle of Central America need to
the heart of the cycles of violence prioritize the implementation of integral and mul-
impacting these and other nations.” tisector responses to femicides and gender-based
violence. US security cooperation initiatives as well
as assistance programs need to acknowledge how
For too long, security responses promoted by the gender-based violence intersects with different
governments of Mexico and the Northern Triangle expressions of criminal violence in both the public
of Central America have focused on the violence and private spheres. The US government’s recently
produced by drug-trafficking organizations or the announced strategy to address the root causes of
transnational gangs commonly known as maras.15 migration, which includes a fifth pillar centered on
Conversely, international cooperation efforts and “combating sexual, gender-based, and domestic
assistance programs—including those sponsored violence”21 is a step in the right direction, insofar
by the United States government—have cen- as it acknowledges the centrality of these issues to
tered on dismantling these criminal organizations the security challenges faced by these nations. To
through punitive and military responses, as well be fully effective, however, such a strategy should
as, to a lesser extent, policies that seek to address address the intergenerational dimensions of gen-
the institutional and social roots driving organized der-based violence, its manifold connections to
crime.16 Violence against women has been, at the organized crime and gang-related violence, and the

GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE DISPATCH

No. 12 l December 2021

detrimental consequences that militarized respons-
es to crime have had on women and girls’ security
and well-being. Gender-based violence needs to
seen, heard, and acted upon. “Not One Woman
Less, Not One More Death.”

GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE DISPATCH

No. 12 l December 2021

NOTES

1. Cindy Espina, “Luz María, una víctima del femicidio,” el Periódico, January 31, 2021, https://elperiodico.
com.gt/noticias/domingo/2021/01/31/luz-maria-una-victima-del-femicidio/.

2. María José España, “El 70% de las denuncias por violencia contra la mujer sigue sin resolverse,” Prensa
Libre, July 16, 2021, https://www.prensalibre.com/guatemala/comunitario/el-70-por-ciento-de-las-
denuncias-por-violencia-contra-la-mujer-sigue-sin-resolverse/.

3. “Femicide or feminicide,” Gender Equity Observatory for Latin America, ECLAC, United Nations, https://
oig.cepal.org/en/indicators/femicide-or-feminicide, accessed June 28, 2021.

4. “The Toxic Intersection of Violence Against Women in the Northern Triangle and the Trump
Administration’s Anti-Immigration Policies,” The Dialogue, September 11, 2019, https://www.thedialogue.
org/blogs/2019/09/the-toxic-intersection-of-violence-against-women-in-the-northern-triangle-and-the-
trump-administrations-anti-immigration-policies/.

5. The UN Refugee Agency, “Women on the Run: First-Hand Accounts of Refugees Fleeing El Salvador,
Guatemala, Honduras, and Mexico,” October 2015, https://www.unhcr.org/5630f24c6.pdf.

6. “Femicide or feminicide,” Gender Equity Observatory for Latin America.

7. Ana Karen García, “Sólo en los primeros seis meses del 2020 fueron asesinadas 1,844 mujeres en
México: Inegi,” El Economista, February 13, 2021, https://www.eleconomista.com.mx/politica/Solo-en-
los-primeros-seis-meses-del-2020-fueron-asesinadas-1844-mujeres-en-Mexico-Inegi-20210213-0002.
html.

8. Alejandra Márquez Guajardo, “Mexico’s other epidemic: Murdered women,” The Conversation, May 29,
2020, https://theconversation.com/mexicos-other-epidemic-murdered-women-132307.

9. Carmen Morán Breña, “Mexico’s serial killer ‘El Chino’ had a routine: paying daily visits to his last
victim,” El País, May 20, 2021, https://english.elpais.com/usa/2021-05-20/mexicos-serial-killer-el-chivo-
had-a-routine-paying-daily-visits-to-his-last-victim.html.

10. “‘My soul has left me’: family grieves after El Salvador mass grave discovered,” Reuters, May 30, 2021,
https://www.reuters.com/world/americas/my-soul-has-left-me-family-grieves-after-el-salvador-mass-grave-
discovered-2021-05-29/.

11. María Elena Cantú, “Narran vecinos convivencia con feminicida de Atizapán,” Reforma, June19, 2021.

12. Bryan Avelar, “Asesino de Chalchuapa, El Salvador, confiesa cómo mataron a 13 víctimas en el último
año,” June 15, 2021, Animal Político, https://www.animalpolitico.com/2021/06/asesino-chalchuapa-trece-
victimas-el-salvador/.

13. “Death of Honduran student in police custody sparks protests,” BBC, February 10, 2021, https://www.
bbc.com/news/world-latin-america-56009346.

GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE DISPATCH

No. 12 l December 2021

14. “8M: Marcha ‘Vivas nos queremos’ reclama derechos de las guatemaltecas en la víspera del Día
Internacional de la Mujer,” Prensa Libre, March 7, 2021, https://www.prensalibre.com/guatemala/
comunitario/8m-marcha-vivas-nos-queremos-reclama-derechos-de-las-guatemaltecas-en-la-vispera-del-
dia-internacional-de-la-mujer/.

15. “AMLO dice que el 90% de las llamadas sobre violencia contra las mujeres son falsas,” Animal politico,
May 15, 2020, https://www.animalpolitico.com/2020/05/llamadas-falsas-violencia-mujeres-amlo/.

16. Gema Santamaría, “Breaking the Vicious Cycle: Criminal Violence in U.S. – Latin American Relations,”
in Jorge Dominguez and Rafael Fernández de Castro, Contemporary U.S. Latin American Relations:
Cooperation or Conflict in the 21st Century? (Routledge, 2016).

17. Congressional Research Service (CRS), “Mexico: Evolution of the Mérida Initiative, 2007-2020,” updated
July 20, 2020, https://fas.org/sgp/crs/row/IF10578.pdf.

18. Tina Zedginidze, “Domestic Abuse and Gang Violence against Women, Minnesota Journal of Law &
Inequality,” Vol. 34, Issue 1, 221–245.

19. “Tráfico sexual, negocio familiar que se hereda en Tlaxcala,” El Universal, May 2, 2020, https://www.
eluniversal.com.mx/nacion/trafico-sexual-negocio-familiar-que-se-hereda-en-tlaxcala.

20. Nobel Women’s Initiative, “From Survivors to Defenders: Confronting Violence in Mexico, Honduras and
Guatemala,” Just Associates, Ottawa, ON, 2012; Heather Robin Agnew, “Reframing ‘Femicide’: Making
Room for the Balloon Effect of Drug War Violence in Studying Female Homicides in Mexico and Central
America,” Territory, Politics, Governance 3:4 (2015), 428–445.

21. Alessandra Guedes et al., “Violence against Women in Latin America and the Caribbean,” PAHO, 2012,
https://www.paho.org/hq/dmdocuments/2014/Violence1.24-WEB-25-febrero-2014.pdf, accessed August
1, 2021.

22. “U.S. Strategy for Addressing the Root Causes of Migration in Central America,” July 29, 2021, available
at: https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/statements-releases/2021/07/29/fact-sheet-strategy-to-
address-the-root-causes-of-migration-in-central-america/.

GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE DISPATCH

No. 12 l December 2021

 GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE DISPATCH No. 13 l December 2021

Photo credit: Students protest in support of removing a fraternity following an alleged sexual assault at a university in Lincoln, Nebraska: Matt Bills,
Shutterstock, August 2021

A Return to “College Culture” Sparks

Student-Led Protests against Sexual Violence
in Higher Education (Again)
Renu Sara Nargund and Tracey Vitchers

Content warning: This article contains references to students usually bear the responsibility of developing
sexual assault and violence. creative strategies to demand change within their
institutions. After new cases of sexual violence sur-
The fall of 2021 marked the return of millions of stu- faced at numerous universities, young activists have
dents to university campuses after a long hiatus due ignited a new wave of protests calling on universities
to the COVID-19 pandemic. While adhering to strict to the dismantle the infamous “college culture,”2
university policies designed to contain the spread of which has long been associated with pervasive
the virus,1 students have found themselves battling a violence that disproportionately affects women and
plague of sexual violence largely on their own. Volatile marginalized communities.
guidelines from the US Department of Education
have left universities with little oversight, meaning

Gender Based
Violence
LEGISLATION TO ADDRESS SEXUAL HIGH-RISK ENVIRONMENT
VIOLENCE ON CAMPUS
Research and campus climate surveys have consis-
Under President Obama’s administration in 2011, tently documented a prevalence of sexual violence
the Department of Education Office for Civil Rights across universities. The combination of heavy
(OCR) released the landmark “Dear Colleague Let- alcohol consumption and a limited understanding
ter” (DCL) expanding Title IX, a federal law barring of consent among the student population have
gender discrimination, to include peer-on-peer sex- fostered an environment that perpetuates sexual
ual violence.3 Three years later, the OCR released assault—“the college culture.”7 A 2019 national
improved guidance for universities and launched survey of 108,221 undergraduate students across
several investigations into prestigious academic 33 schools revealed that approximately 7 percent of
institutions—and for the first time in US history, it cisgender8 heterosexual9 (cis-het) males reported
began publishing the names of institutions under experiences of sexual assault with physical force.10
investigation for Title IX violations related to institu- For female students, the statistics were closer to
tional mishandling of sexual misconduct investiga- one in four.11 Gender and sexual minority students
tions and adjudications.4 are nearly three times more likely12, 13 to experience
violence than their cis-het male peers. Those who
During this period, colleges and universities under- choose to report incidents to the school experience
went immense changes to adhere to the guide- significant disruptions to their education14 and often
lines, developing new policies, contracting training suffer serious mental health consequences, includ-
services for students and employees, and hiring ing depression and post-traumatic stress disorder.15
personnel to oversee Title IX violations. By 2017, the
DCL and 2014 Title IX guidelines had been with-
drawn by the Trump administration.5 Less than two “The study found that it was
months after COVID-19 was declared a global pan- approximately only 5 percent of
demic, the Department of Education released new
guidance that overhauled systems that universities
men who were committing the
had just struggled to put in place.6 Specifically, the vast majority of the sexual assaults,
May 2020 regulations issued by Secretary of Educa-
indicating that the men were repeat
tion Betsy DeVos established a narrower definition
of sexual misconduct incidents that educational perpetrators.”
institutions would be required to investigate and
forced colleges to follow a more prescriptive and
onerous adjudicative process that would likely result Certain student populations have been identified as
in more student survivors electing to not engage in having at a higher likelihood of being perpetrators
Title IX processes whatsoever. of sexual violence. Namely, male students who are
affiliated with fraternities (“Greek life”) and male
athletes. Male fraternities are associated with envi-
“Gender and sexual minority ronments where violence against women is nor-
malized, a key component of the so-called “college
students are nearly three times more culture.”16 A recent study found that men affiliated
likely to experience violence than with these social organizations are 300 percent
more likely to perpetrate sexual assault.17 However,
their cis-het male peers.”
it is important to note that it is not all men in frater-

GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE DISPATCH

No. 13 l December 2021

nities who are committing these acts, and that there at Auburn University credited videos of activism at
is a larger issue of universities neglecting to address UNL for inspiring them to speak out against their
sexual violence at an institutional level. The study administration.27
found that it was approximately only 5 percent of
men who were committing the vast majority of the Weeks later, in October, Brandon Freyre, a 20-year
sexual assaults, indicating that the men were repeat old member of Kappa Delta Rho at the University
perpetrators. Forty-six percent of the incidents of of Delaware, was charged with a series of felonies,
sexual assault reported in the study were com- including strangulation and assault, for his violent
mitted by men who admitted to raping 10 or more actions against a female student.28 University leader-
times. Due to a combination of low reporting rates ship waited four days to release a statement de-
(less than 10 percent of campus survivors report nouncing Freyre’s actions.29 In contrast, the petition
these incidents to their institution) and a lack of peer for his expulsion disseminated by students gathered
accountability within their social circles, these men 20,000 signatures in just two days, and a video
are able to commit repeated acts of sexual assault documenting Freyre’s friends laughing at the protest
without consequence.18 was viewed more than seven million times.30

Platforms like Instagram, TikTok, and Twitter, which

students are leveraging to drive public knowledge
USING SOCIAL MEDIA TO BRING and institutional change, have made it impossible
SHAME for administrators to contain awareness of protests
to their campuses. The combination of on-campus,
Universities and experts feared elevated rates of in-person protests and the ability for students to
sexual violence once social gatherings resumed.19 quickly spread the word about incidents at their
Fear shifted to reality when Vanderbilt University20 schools has sparked a cascade of protests across
and Virginia Tech21 received at least six notifications multiple campuses calling for abolition of Greek life
of sexual assault within the first month of the fall organizations.31, 32
2021 semester. Frustrated with institutional betray-
al,22 students are now taking advantage of social
media to publicly shame their universities, particu- “A better approach to addressing
larly focusing on fraternities.23, 24
sexual violence requires
In August, a member of the University of Ne- comprehensive prevention tools.”
braska-Lincoln (UNL) Phi Gamma Delta chapter, a
fraternity known as FIJI, was accused of sexual
assault. Once word hit social media platforms, there
was viral outrage among young adults across the RESPONSES FROM KEY
United States. Less than a day after the report, a STAKEHOLDERS
video on popular social media platform TikTok that
showed hundreds of students shouting, “Rot in When a fraternity member is publicly exposed for
hell!” outside the FIJI lawn had already amassed committing sexual assault, the response from uni-
more than two million views and almost 400,000 versities is often to temporarily suspend the orga-
likes.25, 26 After mounting pressure from students, nization the student is affiliated with. Suspensions
the FIJI chapter at UNL received a five-year suspen- of fraternities fail to consider that the issue is the
sion. Leaders of protests against sexual violence not the organization itself, but rather how it fosters

GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE DISPATCH

No. 13 l December 2021

dangerous attitudes toward women, people of color, FUTURE FOR STUDENTS IN HIGHER
and LGBTQ+33 students, which manifest as the
EDUCATION
perpetration of sexual violence. A better approach
to addressing sexual violence requires comprehen- Demonstrations have occurred at more than a
sive prevention tools, such as effective education dozen schools since the beginning of the fall 2021
on consent throughout a student’s college career, semester, with participation ranging from a few disil-
as well as coordinated trauma-informed services for lusioned students to thousands filling the streets
survivors. Universities should enforce zero-tolerance with provocative signs and chants. After years of
policies toward perpetrators of peer-to-peer sexual advocacy, protests, and repeated national media at-
violence and the social organizations that enable tention, it is important to ask the question: Why are
them, to ensure that the consequences for these young adults in higher education still being forced to
crimes are based on the crime itself and not any fight for basic safety and protection on their college
extraneous factors that should not be prioritized. campuses? Institutions of higher education, without
pressure to change their policies and practices from
At the federal level, Title IX guidelines for univer- the federal government, continue to privilege the
sities have evolved into a political football, tossed social and psychological safety of cis-het men on
from one administration to the next. To circumvent campus over the physical safety of women, sexual
the politicization of sexual violence on college and gender minorities, international students, and
campuses, states have begun to adopt more com- students of color.
prehensive legislation that expands survivor rights
and improves the transparency of the disciplinary In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, universities
proceedings.34, 35 Amid the latest series of protests, were able to swiftly shift operations from in-person
President Biden announced that his plans to roll to online learning, while implementing new poli-
back the Trump-era Title IX guidelines would begin cies to curb the spread of the virus within weeks.
in May 2022,36 a contrast to his claims of immedi- Despite sexual violence on college campuses being
ate action during the presidential campaign. In the a documented issue for at least half a century,
meantime, student survivors are expected to suffer universities still choose not to prioritize the safety of
the consequences of the current guidelines and students. If sexual violence prevention was treated
disciplinary process. Advocates are waiting to see if as a public health emergency of the same mag-
Catherine Lhamon’s recent confirmation as assistant nitude as COVID-19, students would likely not be
secretary for civil rights in the Department of Educa- suffering the way they are today. In the absence of
tion will speed up the federal regulatory process to consistent federal laws and university accountability,
undo the harmful regulations currently in place. students are once again forced to take matters into
their own hands as they advocate for change within
their own campus communities and in the field of
“Why are young adults in higher higher education writ large.
education still being forced to fight
for basic safety and protection on
their college campuses?”

GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE DISPATCH

No. 13 l December 2021

NOTES

1. “ED COVID-19 Handbook: Strategies for Safe Operation and Addressing the Impact of COVID-19
on Higher Education Students, Faculty, and Staff,” US Department of Education, Office of Planning,
Evaluation and Policy Development, June 2021, https://www2.ed.gov/documents/coronavirus/
reopening-3.pdf.

2. Anemona Hartocollis and Giulia Heyward, “After Rape Accusations, Fraternities Face Protests and
Growing Anger,” The New York Times, October 12, 2021, https://www.nytimes.com/2021/10/01/
education/fraternities-rape-sexual-assault.html.

3. Russlyn Ali, “Dear Colleague,” US Department of Education Office for Civil Rights, April 4, 2011, https://
www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ocr/letters/colleague-201104.pdf.

4. R. Shep Melnick, “Analyzing the Department of Education’s Final Title IX Rules on Sexual Misconduct,”
Brookings Institution, June 11, 2020, https://www.brookings.edu/research/analyzing-the-department-of-
educations-final-title-ix-rules-on-sexual-misconduct/.

5. Candice Jackson, “Dear Colleague,” US Department of Education Office for Civil Rights, September
22, 2017, https://www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ocr/letters/colleague-title-ix-201709.pdf?utm_
content=&utm_medium=email&utm_name=&utm_source=govdelivery&utm_term.

6. “Summary of Major Provisions of the Department of Education’s Title IX Final Rule, ” US Department of
Education, 2020, https://www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ocr/docs/titleix-summary.pdf.

7. Emma Brown, Steve Hendrix, and Susan Svrluga, “Drinking Is Central to College Culture – and to Sexual
Assault,” The Washington Post, June 14, 2015, https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/education/beer-
pong-body-shots-keg-stands-alcohol-central-to-college-and-assault/2015/06/14/7430e13c-04bb-11e5-
a428-c984eb077d4e_story.html.

8. “Cisgender” definition: A gender identity wherein the person identifies with the sex that a doctor
assigned them at birth.

9. “Heterosexual” definition: A person who is sexually attracted to people of the opposite sex.

10. David Cantor, Bonne Fisher, Susan Chibnall et al., “Report on the AAU Campus Climate Survey on
Sexual Assault and Misconduct,” Westat, January 17, 2020, https://www.aau.edu/sites/default/files/AAU-
Files/Key-Issues/Campus-Safety/Revised%20Aggregate%20report%20%20and%20appendices%20
1-7_(01-16-2020_FINAL).pdf.

11. Ibid.

12. Jessie Ford and José G. Soto-Marquez, “Sexual Assault Victimization among Straight, Gay/Lesbian,
and Bisexual College Students,” Violence and Gender 3, no. 2 (2016), 107–15, https://doi.org/10.1089/
vio.2015.0030.

GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE DISPATCH

No. 13 l December 2021

13. Matt Kammer-Kerwick, Alexander Wang, T’Shana McClain et al., “Sexual Violence among Gender
and Sexual Minority College Students: The Risk and Extent of Victimization and Related Health
and Educational Outcomes,” Journal of Interpersonal Violence (November 2019), https://doi.
org/10.1177/0886260519883866.

14. “The Cost of Reporting: Perpetrator Retaliation, Institutional Betrayal, and Student Survivor Pushout,”
Know Your IX, 2021, https://www.knowyourix.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/Know-Your-IX-2021-
Report-Final-Copy.pdf.

15. David Cantor, Bonne Fisher, Susan Chibnall et al., “Report on the AAU Campus Climate Survey on
Sexual Assault and Misconduct,” Westat, January 17, 2020, https://www.aau.edu/sites/default/files/AAU-
Files/Key-Issues/Campus-Safety/Revised%20Aggregate%20report%20%20and%20appendices%20
1-7_(01-16-2020_FINAL).pdf.

16. Patricia Yancey Martin and Robert A. Hummer, “Fraternities and Rape on Campus,” Gender & Society 3,
no. 4 (January 1989), 457–73, https://doi.org/10.1177/089124389003004004.

17. John D. Foubert, Angela Clark-Taylor, and Andrew F. Wall, “Is Campus Rape Primarily a Serial or One-
Time Problem? Evidence from a Multicampus Study,” Violence Against Women 26, no. 3-4 (March 2019),
296–311, https://doi.org/10.1177/1077801219833820.

18. “Statistics About Sexual Violence,” National Sexual Violence Resource Center, 2015, https://www.nsvrc.
org/sites/default/files/publications_nsvrc_factsheet_media-packet_statistics-about-sexual-violence_0.pdf.

19. Maria Carrasco, “Colleges Scramble to Educate Students on Sexual Health,” Inside Higher Ed,
September 24, 2021, https://www.insidehighered.com/news/2021/09/24/colleges-re-engage-students-
sexual-health-and-assault.

20. Sam Stubbs, and Aidan Voorhis-Allen, “Vanderbilt Community Receives Six Sexual Assault Notices in
Less Than a Month,” Vanderbilt Hustler, October 8, 2021, https://vanderbilthustler.com/43138/featured/
vanderbilt-community-receives-six-on-campus-sexual-assault-notices-in-less-than-a-month/.

21. Kelsey Jean-Baptiste and Colleen Guerry, “Students at Virginia Tech Protest as Reports of Sexual
Assault on Campus Continue to Rise,” WFXR Fox, September 29, 2021, https://www.wfxrtv.com/news/
local-news/new-river-valley-local-news/students-at-virginia-tech-protest-as-reports-of-sexual-assault-on-
campus-continue-to-rise/.

22. Chris Linder, and Jess S. Myers, “Institutional Betrayal as a Motivator for Campus Sexual Assault
Activism,” NASPA Journal About Women in Higher Education 11, no. 1 (2018), 1–16, https://doi.org/10.10
80/19407882.2017.1385489.

23. Anemona Hartocollis and Giulia Heyward, “After Rape Accusations, Fraternities Face Protests and
Growing Anger,” The New York Times, October 12, 2021, https://www.nytimes.com/2021/10/01/
education/fraternities-rape-sexual-assault.html.

24. Dennon Anne, “Social Media Ignites Abolish Greek Life Movement,” Best Colleges, October 14, 2021,
https://www.bestcolleges.com/news/2021/10/14/abolish-greek-life-social-media/.

GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE DISPATCH

No. 13 l December 2021

25. Will Green, TikTok video, August 24, 2021, https://www.tiktok.com/@simp4icarly/
video/7000206091829169414?sender_device=pc&sender_web_id=7013036388284171781&is_from_
webapp=v1&is_copy_url=0.

26. Tricia Crimmins, “‘Rot in Hell!’: Tiktok Video Shows Students Protesting Notorious Frat after Allegations
of Sexual Assault,” Daily Dot, September 2, 2021, https://www.dailydot.com/irl/tiktok-fiji-protest/.

27. Hannah James and Sakura Gray, “Students Organize Protest at Auburn University Following Recent
Reports of Sexual Assault on Campus,” CBS42, September 15, 2021, https://www.cbs42.com/alabama-
news/students-organize-protest-at-auburn-university-following-recent-reports-of-sexual-assault-on-
campus/.

28. 6abc Digital Staff, “Protests Erupt at University of Delaware after Student Charged with Attacking
Ex-Girlfriend,” 6abc Action News, October 13, 2021, https://6abc.com/university-of-delaware-student-
kidnapping-assault-brandon-freyre/11120575/.

29. Gefen Galfand, “Expel Brandon Freyre,” Change.org, 2021, https://www.change.org/p/the-university-of-

delaware-expel-brandon-freyer?redirect=false.

30. Clara Wang, “Viral TikTok Shows College Students Protesting Violence against Women after Female
Student Beaten by Male Peer,” Daily Dot, October 14, 2021, https://www.dailydot.com/irl/university-of-
delaware-assault-protests-tiktok/.

31. Anemona Hartocollis and Giulia Heyward, “After Rape Accusations, Fraternities Face Protests and
Growing Anger,” The New York Times, October 12, 2021, https://www.nytimes.com/2021/10/01/
education/fraternities-rape-sexual-assault.html.

32. Anne Dennon, “Social Media Ignites Abolish Greek Life Movement,” Best Colleges, October 14, 2021,
https://www.bestcolleges.com/news/2021/10/14/abolish-greek-life-social-media/.

33. LGBTQ+ is an acronym that stands for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer and questioning.

34. “An Act Relative to Sexual Violence on Higher Education Campuses,” 192nd General Court of the
Commonwealth of Massachusetts, January 12, 2021, https://malegislature.gov/Bills/191/S2979/
BillHistory.

35. “Act 16 of 2019,” Pennsylvania Department of Education, 2019, https://www.education.pa.gov/

Postsecondary-Adult/Pages/Act-16-of-2019.aspx.

36. “The Biden Agenda for Women,” Joe Biden for President: Official Campaign Website, 2020, https://
joebiden.com/womens-agenda/.

GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE DISPATCH

No. 13 l December 2021

 GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE DISPATCH No. 14 l December 2021

Photo credit: Man marches in solidarity at an International Women’s Day march in Amsterdam, Netherlands: Elena Baryshnikova, Shutterstock,
March 2020

Preventing GBV Through Positive

Masculinities: Fathers’ Clubs–A Grassroots
Bottom-Up Approach
Plan International Canada

Globally, about 1 in 3 women experience gen- can intensify quickly in a crisis. Unless addressed ho-
der-based violence (GBV) at the hands of their inti- listically, this can derail progress made on gender-spe-
mate partners or others.1 This has serious ramifica- cific issues such as GBV. (2) Global GBV response
tions for any country: It is a violation of women’s and actions, which focus predominantly on top-down
girls’ fundamental human rights, and it has consid- normative and systemic approaches, are not enough,
erable costs in terms of a country’s socioeconomic as they don’t address the root causes of GBV.
objectives and systems.2
Some 155 countries have passed laws against do-
All forms of GBV have intensified during the COVID-19 mestic violence4 that focus on punitive actions and
pandemic,3 clearly illustrating the following: (1) Deeply providing services to survivors. Yet enforcement of
rooted gender inequality and harmful social norms these laws continues to remain a challenge,5 while

Gender Based
Violence
bottom-up prevention of GBV has received less PLAN INTERNATIONAL CANADA'S
attention in governments’ policy agendas. GBV is
EXPERIENCE IN ENGAGING MEN
rooted in unequal power relationships, entrenched
gender inequality, and discrimination against women
IN GENDER EQUALITY: LEARNINGS
and girls, exacerbated by intersectional factors such FROM A REPRODUCTIVE HEALTH
as age, race, ability, gender identity, etc. To eliminate PROGRAM
all forms of GBV, governments need to adopt both
top-down and bottom-up approaches, equally prior-
itizing systemic measures and other measures that The Vision
tackle the root causes. The latter includes building As a core element of our gender-transformative
the inherent agency of women and girls in all their approach, our extensive experience in implementing
diversity, engaging men and boys in positive mascu- male engagement interventions views men and
linities, and fostering a broader social environment boys as partners and beneficiaries of gender equal-
that rejects GBV in any form. ity. This vision is of sustainable attitudinal, behav-
ioral, and relational changes that encompass men’s
experiences, motivations, relationships, and active
“To eliminate all forms of GBV, participation—rather than a list of actions or deci-
sions in which men should participate.
governments need to adopt both top-
down and bottom-up approaches, The Approach of Fathers’ Clubs
equally prioritizing systemic As part of the comprehensive Gender Equality Strat-
egy of the multicountry program funded by Global
measures and other measures that Affairs Canada, Strengthening Health Outcomes for
tackle the root causes.” Women and Children (SHOW) (2016–2021), Plan In-
ternational implemented an evidence-informed male
engagement strategy in Bangladesh, Ghana, Haiti,
A critical approach neglected in GBV responses is Nigeria, and Senegal in support of good outcomes
the systematic engagement of men and boys in in reproductive health. The project established
positive masculinities broadly and in addressing gen- 1,041 Fathers’ Clubs, engaging 15,105 fathers in a
der-specific issues such as GBV. Globally, there is course of 20 reflective sessions to broaden men’s
growing momentum behind men’s engagement as a understanding of gender equality, motivate them to
programmatic and policy measure in several sec- question what it means to be a man and a father,
tors. However, operationalization of these objectives and promote their equitable and nonviolent involve-
requires consideration of the various barriers to ment in households.6
men’s meaningful engagement in different contexts.
Phased Process
The approach comprised three components: (a)
development of the Fathers’ Clubs curriculum, (b)
training/mentoring of local male facilitators, and (c)
recruitment of men’s groups willing to undergo all
sessions.

GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE DISPATCH

No. 14 l December 2021

The Content father-child relations, including equal treatment of
The Fathers’ Clubs Manual sets out 20 participatory girls and boys.
sessions covering topics such as gender and power,
nonviolent relationships, and equitable distribution • Internalization: Men appear to have internalized
of roles and decision-making. These sessions mo- learnings from the Fathers’ Clubs and started to
tivate men to challenge inequitable gender norms share these lessons with the next generation in
and power imbalances in their personal lives, and their homes. This points to the potential for social-
to promote sustained changes in their relation- ization of gender equality intergenerationally and
ships with spouses and children. The sessions are with peers.
strengthened with homework to encourage discus-
sions with spouses, family members, and peers. • Role of Fathers’ Clubs: Study respondents
universally identified that Fathers’ Clubs learnings
The Effects have triggered positive changes in the attitudes and
In 2019, Plan International Canada conducted a behaviors of men.
qualitative study7 in four SHOW countries with men
from Fathers’ Clubs, their spouses, adolescent • Sustainability: Respondents overwhelmingly
children, and community leaders, to examine their believe that the adopted positive behaviors will be
experiences and perspectives around changes in sustained, as they are linked to perceived benefits
men’s household caregiving and couple relation- to men and their families.
ships. The findings revealed Fathers’ Clubs mem-
bers were more positively and nonviolently engaged
with their spouses and children. Key findings are: “As a bottom-up approach, male
• Challenging rigid norms: Men started to chal- engagement tackles the root causes
lenge traditional social norms that perpetuate gen- of GBV and contributes to its
der hierarchies and unequal power relations. They
changed attitudes and practices regarding their roles
prevention.”
in their homes.

• Self-restraint: Men demonstrated improved ADDITIONAL IMPLICATIONS

self-control linked to a perceived reduction in GBV.
Respondents reported being more open commu-
FOR PROGRAMMERS AND
nication and peaceful conflict resolution in their POLICYMAKERS
personal relationships.
Our experience and results establish that well-de-
• Joint decision-making: There were shifts in deci- signed and implemented male engagement inter-
sion-making patterns, indicating improved collabora- ventions have positive outcomes and should be ap-
tion between spouses. plied in complementarity and systemic approaches.
As a bottom-up approach, male engagement tackles
• Improved spousal and family relations: Per- the root causes of GBV and contributes to its pre-
ceptions of increased bonding, respect, love, and vention. However: (1) There is no generic approach
humor were identified, as well as spending more to meaningfully engaging men; they are not mono-
quality time in the house. There were also improved lithic, and neither are the barriers they face. Contex-
tual relevance is key to an increased acceptability

GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE DISPATCH

No. 14 l December 2021

of gender transformative change. (2) To be lasting
and sustainable, care should be taken to promote
a holistic understanding of men’s engagement as a
change in men’s attitudes, values, and relationships,
rather than men’s specific actions alone. (3) Engag-
ing men in positive masculinities can lead to stig-
mas for participating men and their spouses, as well
as conflict with community and household influ-
encers. A parallel broad communication strategy to
enable men’s engagement is important. (4) Engag-
ing men can have unintended negative outcomes by
further reinforcing men’s power and privilege. This
requires risk-cognizant planning and execution of
interventions informed by women’s and girls’ voices,
along with good monitoring and evaluation. At no
point should male engagement lead to the disadvan-
tage of women and girls.

GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE DISPATCH

No. 14 l December 2021

NOTES

1. "Violence against women,” World Health Organization, https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/

detail/violence-against-women.

2. “enGENDER IMPACT: Addressing Gender-Based Violence,” The World Bank, https://www.worldbank.org/

en/topic/gender/publication/engender-impact-addressing-gender-based-violence.

3. “COVID-19 and Ending Violence Against Women and Girls,” UN Women, https://www.unwomen.org/
sites/default/files/Headquarters/Attachments/Sections/Library/Publications/2020/Issue-brief-COVID-19-
and-ending-violence-against-women-and-girls-en.pdf.

4. World Bank. 2020. Women, Business and the Law 2020. Women, Business and the Law. Washington,
DC: World Bank. doi:10.1596/978-1-4648-1532-4. License: Creative Commons Attribution CC BY 3.0 IGO,
https://openknowledge.worldbank.org/bitstream/handle/10986/32639/9781464815324.pdf.

5. “Focusing on prevention: Ending violence against women,” UN Women, https://www.unwomen.org/en/

what-we-do/ending-violence-against-women/prevention.

6. Father’s Club Manual, Promundo and Plan International Canada, https://plancanada.ca/file/planv4_files/

reports/modules/9-SHOW-FATHERS-CLUBS-MANUAL-compressed.pdf.

7. “Promoting Positive Masculinities: Findings of a Qualitative Study in Reproductive Health Programming

in Bangladesh, Ghana, Haiti, and Nigeria,” Plan International Canada, https://plancanada.ca/file/planv4_
files/reports/Chapeau-FC-Report-BGD-HTI-GHA-NGA-23-OCT2020-EN-WEB.pdf.

GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE DISPATCH

No. 14 l December 2021

 GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE DISPATCH No. 15 l December 2021

Photo credit: Russian woman holds a sign that says “I don't need flowers, I need a law that will protect me from domestic violence" at a feminist
rally in St. Petersburg, Russia: Farhad Sadykov, Shutterstock, March 2017

Domestic Violence in Russia: Existing and

Proposed Legislation
Anna Rivina, PhD

The Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of That alone was good reason to wonder whether the
Discrimination against Women entered into force in publicly professed readiness of the Soviet leadership
1981, and as of 2021, 189 United Nations (UN) mem- to protect women and prioritize their safety was noth-
ber states are parties to this international agreement. ing but rhetoric. That did indeed prove to be the case.
One can hardly overestimate the importance of its Now Russia is the only member state of the Council
adoption, as it was the first international document to of Europe not to have a law on domestic violence,1
acknowledge the problem of domestic violence and and it is the last post-Soviet country that does not
suggest ways to solve it. The Soviet Union was one of have dedicated legal mechanisms to protect women
the first countries to ratify the agreement, but soon from violence in the family.
afterward, a group of Leningrad feminists, who were
exploring women’s issues in the USSR, were expelled Why is a separate specialized law protecting the vic-
from the country. tims of domestic violence so important? After all, one
will often hear its opponents claim that the Criminal

Gender Based
Violence
Code in its current version is successful in dealing period of 10 to 15 days or compulsory community
with the problem. service for a sum of 60 to 120 hours). According to
the Zona Prava human rights project, in the first six
months of 2020, the average fine for family violence
“Only 10 percent of domestic in Russia was 5,323 rubles5 (approximately US $70).

violence victims in Russia seek police One of the grave consequences of decriminalizing
assistance after beatings.” battery against close relatives is that a person who
beats up a family member faces criminal liability
only in the case of repeated offenses and only if
First, in the absence of a dedicated law, Russian the second offense occurs within a year. In basic
legislation does not have a definition of what con- terms, this works as follows: If a man beats up
stitutes domestic violence. For that reason, Russia his wife only once a year and avoids breaking her
lacks comprehensive and up-to-date statistics that bones, then he does not face a criminal charge. To
would show the scale of the problem. The number make things worse, criminal liability for the second
of domestic violence cases has gone up drasti- instance of battery is followed by administrative lia-
cally in many parts of the world during the global bility for the third instance, thus making the penalty
COVID-19 pandemic, requiring additional steps for the third offense lighter than for the second.
to protect the victims.2 Meanwhile, according to
spokespeople for the Russian Ministry of Internal It wasn’t until April 9, 2021, that the Russian Con-
Affairs, the number of domestic violence cases stitution Court ruled this norm unconstitutional. It
reported to the police in Russia in 2020 went down happened following the complaint of Liudmila Sako-
compared to 2019.3 At the same time, Russian va, who asked the Constitutional Court to clarify the
human rights organizations directly working with provision on repeated battery6 (Article 116.1 of the
victims and survivors have registered a rise in the Russian Criminal Code). In 2018, her brother was
number of people turning to them for help. Police fined for beating her up; in spring of 2019, he was
figures are not false, but one should keep in mind sentenced to corrective labor under the Criminal
that Russian women were penalized for violating the Code for a second beating, but in October 2019, he
so-called self-isolation regime if they went to the assaulted her again and was only sentenced to a
police when facing a life-threatening situation. fine under the Administrative Code, because more
than a year had already passed since the first fine.
Second, the police are not the people whom Rus- The Constitutional Court ruled that the wording in
sian women tend to seek help from when facing the current legislation does not ensure the right of
domestic violence. According to Kommersant news- aggrieved parties to protection and instructed the
paper,4 only 10 percent of domestic violence victims Russian lawmakers to make this provision more
in Russia seek police assistance after beatings. And specific.
such assistance is not very efficient, especially after
the so-called decriminalization of domestic violence, There has been no follow-up by the Russian author-
when in winter of 2017 battery against a close ities so far, and at present, the ruling of the Consti-
relative was moved from the Criminal Code (Article tutional Court is the only positive news that gives at
116) to the Code of Administrative Offenses (Article least some hope that the members of the Russian
6.1.1). After the reclassification, battery now incurs a parliament will undertake steps to rectify the
fine of 5,000 to 30,000 rubles (or, much more rarely, situation soon. This is much better than staying on
other penalties, namely administrative arrest for a the sidelines watching the violence that millions of

GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE DISPATCH

No. 15 l December 2021

Russian women face within the family, yet leaving a law protecting women from violent spouses, part-
them entirely unprotected. ners, or family members. But the lawmakers take
one step forward and 10 steps back—barely improv-
ing the situation and not letting the new practices
“Lawmakers take one step forward settle before quickly rolling them back.

and 10 steps back—barely improving

the situation and not letting the new
practices settle before quickly rolling
them back.”

Since emergence on the world map of the new

state called the Russian Federation, different people
and initiatives have put forward more than 40 draft
bills against domestic violence, but not a single one
of them was reviewed by the parliament even in
the first reading.7 Every new electoral cycle sees its
own initiatives and new actors, but no law is adopt-
ed. If the Human Rights Council presents a draft
to President Putin and submits it for parliamentary
consideration, but the parliament votes for a fine as
a penalty for battery, it fails to translate into new leg-
islation—despite the intense public debate and 80
percent support for new laws on domestic violence.
In the 7th State Duma, there was only one among
450 members of parliament who had been working
hard in the course of six years to improve the situa-
tion: Oksana Pushkina. The most recent parliamen-
tary election took place in September 2021, and
there is serious doubt that in the new Duma there
will be even one voice speaking on behalf of the
millions of fellow citizens who live in fear of their
family members.

Violence against weaker family members is one of

the most frequent offenses in the world, and sociol-
ogists point out that Russians may face violence in
the family regardless of age, income, education, or
place of residence. People in Russia do acknowl-
edge the importance of solving the problem of
domestic violence, with 79 percent of respondents
to a 2019 survey8 believing that there is a need for

GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE DISPATCH

No. 15 l December 2021

NOTES

1. Utopia interview with Anna Rivina, founder and director of Nasiliu.Net, Moscow, October 9, 2019.

2. Dave Manas and Neil Patel, “Domestic Violence during the COVID-19 pandemic,” The BMJ Opinion blog,
May 7, 2020, https://www.researchgate.net/publication/341219686_Domestic_violence_during_the_
covid-19_pandemic.

3. “The Ministry of Internal Affairs Reported a Decrease in the Number of Crimes with Domestic Violence
by 7%,” Kommersant, May 13, 2020, https://www.kommersant.ru/doc/4342735.

4. Kommersant interview with Oksana Pushkina, deputy chairman of the State Duma Committee on
Family, Women and Children, Moscow, February 5, 2018.

5. “In 2020, the Average Fine for Domestic Violence in Russia Amounted to 5323 rubles,” Utopia, October
28, 2020, https://mediautopia.ru/v-2020-godu-srednij-shtraf-za-domashnee-nasilie-v-rossii-sostavil-5323-
rublya/.

6. “Fine, Time Limit, Fine. A Woman Complained to the Constitutional Court about the Decriminalization
of Domestic Violence for Previously Convicted Persons,” Utopia, February 15, 2021, https://mediautopia.
ru/shtraf-srok-shtraf-zhenshhina-pozhalovalas-v-ks-na-dekriminalizaciyu-domashnego-nasiliya-dlya-ranee-
sudimyx/.

7. “The Russian Authorities Are Not Confronting the Epidemic of Domestic Violence. These Women Are
Fighting Instead,” Utopia, March 12, 2021, https://mediautopia.ru/story/rossijskie-vlasti-ne-protivostoyat-
epidemii-domashnego-nasiliya-vmesto-nix-boryutsya-eti-zhenshhiny/.

8. The Levada Center, press release, September 13, 2019, https://www.levada.ru/2019/09/13/domashnee-

nasilie/.

GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE DISPATCH

No. 15 l December 2021

 GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE DISPATCH No. 16 l December 2021

Photo Credit: Qilin's prance Filmmaker, Shutterstock

The Violence of Shuttering Feminist and

Queer Communications
Rui Zhong

For vulnerable people, to check in is to live. Variations China is no exception to how gender and intimate
of “call me when you get home” and “text me if partner violence (IPV) is discussed digitally. Since sur-
you need to vent” are not phrases tied to specific veys of IPV began in the 1990s, the Women’s Federa-
cultures. These messages are commonplace among tion of China data have indicated that IPV is the most
friends, acquaintances, and allies in groups facing common form of violence against women.1 Underre-
gender-based and sexual violence, and they can porting remains a serious concern, with 72 percent of
be a significant part of survival. In the internet age, a 176-count sample responding that they stayed silent
information and communication technology have a in response to rape.2 Of 133 women who reported
prominent connection to gender justice and safety. To intimate partner violence to family members, nearly
cut off access is to cut oxygen from freely accessible half (44.4 percent) were not supported by the family.3
and much-needed tools for combatting violence at the As more relationships are built digitally within a nation
personal and institutional levels. of nearly 1 billion internet users, online communica-
tion has connected disparate groups and provided

Gender Based
Violence
other options for support.4 allowed LGBTQ individuals and domestic violence
survivors to find camaraderie and sympathetic com-
munities. Parents of LGBTQ children also network
“Online resources have allowed through social media, swapping advice to help pro-
LGBTQ individuals and domestic mote solidarity and safety for gender-nonconforming
individuals.
violence survivors to find camaraderie
and sympathetic communities.” The erosion of Chinese social media’s thin buffer be-
tween the state and civic spaces spells trouble for
groups that do not conform to the standards being
Sina Weibo and Tencent’s WeChat blogging tools written on cultural discourse.
and commenting features have been used to push
back against gender norms and the problem of Chinese Communist Party Chairman Xi Jinping’s
gender violence. Through these social media tools, core vision of China’s social landscape includes 家
individuals from different walks of life publish and 风建设, or the “construction of family values.” In a
comment on each other’s citizen journalism, blogs, July 2020 speech, he specified that families are the
and essays—as long as they’re not censored. cellular components of society, emphasizing the
LGBTQ circles, which overlap with feminist interest “civilized” construction of family.5 With a cursory
groups, have also been used to share resources, nod to China being a “feminist country,” Xi nonethe-
health information, and safety tool kits. However, less singled out the “unique and distinct” roles that
the future of both these group types is at greater women must fulfill as mothers and wives, including
risk in recent years as authorities clamp down on their role in preserving the sanctity and beauty of
more varieties of space creation by Chinese feminist the traditional Chinese family. This construct has
and queer communities. As a result, the availability brought about an uptick in images of a heterosexual
and future of these platforms has taken a concern- nuclear family in propaganda and official media, as
ing turn; likely restrictions and censorship have put well as acted as bureaucratic guidance in commu-
Chinese individuals with marginalized gender and nication policy. Women were profiled as workers
sexual identities at greater risk. within China’s COVID-19 pandemic, but they were
simultaneously commended on their ability to keep
Gender violence and homophobia-linked safety their families fed, safe, and stable.6 These shifting
issues go hand in hand with the problems of online stakes by state actors also contextualizes shut-
access. Though state regulators monitor social downs of feminist and queer spaces. As a new law
media spaces for political dissent, blogs and chat that implements a divorce cool-off period reaches
spaces have remained an important buffer between the one-year mark and encouragement that families
the state and civil society. Online resources have produce more children becomes more common
within propaganda work, the role of biological
children and family stability serving political ends re-
“Whether intentionally or not, the emerges. Whether intentionally or not, the problem
of harder-to-access web resources about violence
problem of harder-to-access web and resisting violence can be devastating. Veteran
resources about violence and resisting organizers, however, are accustomed to having to
violence can be devastating.” destroy organizing materials and rebuild web con-
tent from backups, knowing that their discussions
are sensitive and likely to be taken down.7

GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE DISPATCH

No. 16 l December 2021

Photo Credit: Atstock Productions, Shutterstock

By the summer of 2021, state encouragement of users using their civic-space tools. On Sina Weibo,
traditional gender roles and suppression of content one prominent user posted a call for tips, alleging
that rebuffed it had coalesced into a tightening on unsubstantiated rumors that LGBTQ and feminist
social media and fresh waves of crackdowns. In the organizations were colluding with foreign influence
wake of high-profile rape cases involving high-profile operations.11 Though veteran activists may be unde-
perpetrators, censorship accelerated. As Canadi- terred by the new wave of shutdowns, the damp-
an-Chinese pop star Kris Wu faced allegations of ening of information can be devastating to younger
rape that brought forth a fresh wave of discussions internet users with nowhere to turn.
about feminism, consent, and violence, a phrase
emerged in online spaces: “It is women that save
women.”8 This phrase trended alongside denials “In the absence of institutional
by Wu and assertions that the victim made up her
accusation, which refreshed assumptions that she
support, women can only rely on
sought money and attention from mass media.9, 10 their sympathetic peers.”
Undergirding these dueling sentiments about vio-
lence is an implication that is troubling on a societal
level: In the absence of institutional support, women Shrinking discursive space is itself a problem for the
can only rely on their sympathetic peers. future of confronting domestic and gender violence.
Powerful perpetrators remain at large, both legally
As with many aspects of online life in China, the and in the court of public opinion, as discussions
state will remain a key player in regulating speech about them remain stifled, depending on their con-
related to gender violence. However, influencers nections. If sunlight remains a disinfectant for social
encouraged by state apparatuses have also acceler- issues, those dedicated to promoting feminism and
ated suspicions toward feminist and queer internet discussing gender politics are finding it harder to

GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE DISPATCH

No. 16 l December 2021

shed that light and share resources. As the social
order in China solidifies under Xi Jinping’s eighth
year in power, it may do so at the cost of safety for
marginalized gender and sexual identities.

GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE DISPATCH

No. 16 l December 2021

NOTES

1. Xiangxian Wang, Gang Fang, and Hongtao Li, “Gender-based violence and hegemonic masculinity in
China: an analysis based on the quantitative research,” China Population and Development Studies,
volume 3 (2019): 84–97, https://doi.org/10.1007/s42379-019-00030-9.

2. Ibid.

3. Ibid.

4. Evelyn Cheng, “China says it now has nearly 1 billion internet users,” CNBC, February 4, 2021, https://
www.cnbc.com/2021/02/04/china-says-it-now-has-nearly-1-billion-internet-users.html.

5. Xi Jinping, “习近平谈家风建设,” Politics.People.com, July 22, 2020, http://politics.people.com.cn/

n1/2020/0722/c1001-31792411.html.

6. Kailing Xie and Yunyun Zhou, “The Cultural Politics of National Tragedies and Personal Sacrifice,” Made in
China Journal, May 30, 2021, https://madeinchinajournal.com/2021/05/30/the-cultural-politics-of-national-
tragedies-and-personal-sacrifice-state-narratives-of-chinas-ordinary-heroes-of-the-covid-19-pandemic/.

7. Rebecca Kanthor, “Feminist activists in China speak out against online censorship despite government
pushback,” The World, July 14, 2021, https://www.pri.org/stories/2021-07-14/feminist-activists-china-
speak-out-against-online-censorship-despite-government.

8. “萝严肃 吴亦凡被刑拘 是女孩救了女孩,” China Digital Times, August 2, 2021, https://

chinadigitaltimes.net/chinese/669070.html.

9. “Chinese popstar Kris Wu denies sexual assault allegation,” France 24, July 7, 2021, https://www.
france24.com/en/live-news/20210719-chinese-popstar-kris-wu-denies-sexual-assault-allegation.

10. “萝严肃 吴亦凡被刑拘 是女孩救了女孩,” China Digital Times, August 2, 2021, https://
chinadigitaltimes.net/chinese/669070.html.

11. Shen Lu, ”Red Vs are after China’s queer community,” Protocol, July 13, 2021, https://www.protocol.
com/china/china-wechat-delete-lgbt-accounts.

GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE DISPATCH

No. 16 l December 2021

Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars
One Woodrow Wilson Plaza
1300 Pennsylvania Avenue NW
Washington, DC 20004-3027

www.wilsoncenter.org / gbv.wilsoncenter.org
[email protected]
facebook.com/woodrowwilsoncenter
@thewilsoncenter
202.691.4000