Comprehensive legislation is fundamental for an effective and coordinated response to violence against women. This Handbook intends to provide all stakeholders with detailed guidance to support the adoption and effective implementation of legislation that prevents violence against women, punishes perpetrators, and ensures the rights of survivors everywhere. It is especially aimed at government officials, civil society, UN staff, and other actors in their efforts at ensuring that a solid legal basis is in place for tackling the scourge of violence against women.
The Handbook first outlines the international and regional legal and policy frameworks that mandate States to enact and implement comprehensive and effective laws to address violence against women. It then presents a model framework for legislation on violence against women, divided into 14 sections. Finally, the Handbook provides a checklist of considerations to be kept in mind when drafting legislation on violence against women. This list highlights the importance of identifying a clear legislative goal; undertaking comprehensive and inclusive consultation with all relevant stakeholders, and in particular victims/survivors; and adopting an evidence-based approach to legislative drafting.
Recommendations:
The Handbook consists largely of recommendations on how to provide an effective legal framework for addressing violence against women. A few of the recommendations highlighted include:
- Legislation should explicitly recognise violence against women as a form of gender-based discrimination and a violation of women’s human rights.
- Legislation should contain provisions for effective implementation, evaluation and monitoring.
- Legislation should establish institutional mechanisms, such as multi-sectoral task forces or committees, to undertake the task of monitoring the implementation of the law.
- The law should prioritise prevention and provide for a range of measures to undertake this, including awareness-raising campaigns, sensitisation of the communications media, and inclusion of material on violence against women and women’s human rights in educational curricula.
- Legislation needs to provide for empowerment, support and protection of the victim/survivor. Provisions should ensure survivors’ access to comprehensive and integrated support services and assistance.
- Specific legal provisions should guarantee the rights of immigrant women who are victims/survivors of violence.
- It is important to legislate specific duties of police and prosecutors in cases of violence against women.
- Legislation should ensure that sentences in cases of violence against women are consistent with the gravity of the crime committed. Exemptions and reductions in sentencing granted to perpetrators of violence against women should be eliminated, such as when a rapist marries his victim or in cases of so-called honour crimes.
- Family law should be examined and amended to ensure the sensitive and appropriate consideration of violence against women in family law proceedings, particularly on issues of alimony and the right to remain in the family dwelling.
