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The Declaration on the Elimination of Violence Against Women (abbreviated as DEVAW) was adopted without a vote by the
United Nations General Assembly The United Nations General Assembly (UNGA or GA; french: link=no, Assemblée générale, AG) is one of the six principal organs of the United Nations (UN), serving as the main deliberative, policymaking, and representative organ of the UN. Curr ...
in the 48/104 resolution of 20 December 1993. Contained within it is the recognition of "the urgent need for the universal application to women of the rights and principles with regard to equality, security, liberty, integrity and dignity of all human beings". It recalls and embodies the same rights and principles as those enshrined in such instruments as the
Universal Declaration of Human Rights The Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) is an international document adopted by the United Nations General Assembly that enshrines the rights and freedoms of all human beings. Drafted by a UN committee chaired by Eleanor Roosevelt ...
, and Articles 1 and 2 provide the most widely used definition of
violence against women Violence against women (VAW), also known as gender-based violence and sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV), are violent acts primarily or exclusively committed against women or girls, usually by men or boys. Such violence is often c ...
.


Background

The international recognition that women have a right to a life free from violence is a recent one, emerging around 1970. Historically, their struggles with violence, and with the impunity that often protects the perpetrators, is linked with their fight to overcome discrimination. Since its founding the United Nations has concerned itself with the advancement of women's rights through institutions such as the
United Nations Commission on the Status of Women The Commission on the Status of Women (CSW or UNCSW) is a functional commission of the United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC), one of the main UN organs within the United Nations. CSW has been described as the UN organ promoting gend ...
(CSW), but did not specifically target the high rates of females who were targeted with violence until the early 1990s. The 1979 Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) never mentioned violence against women; the June 1993
Vienna Declaration and Programme of Action The Vienna Declaration and Programme of Action (VDPA) is a human rights declaration adopted by consensus at the World Conference on Human Rights on 25 June 1993 in Vienna, Austria. The position of United Nations High Commissioner for Human ...
(VDPA) was the first international document to explicitly condemn violence against women. The DEVAW resolution was developed as an extension of CEDAW, and explicitly states that the strengthening and complementing of CEDAW is one of its goals. In September 1992, the CSW appointed a special working group to prepare a draft declaration against violence against women. One of the aims of the resolution was to overturn the prevailing governmental stance that violence against women was a private, domestic matter not requiring state intervention. At the time, it was known that wife beating (often grouped under the terms "
domestic violence Domestic violence (also known as domestic abuse or family violence) is violence or other abuse that occurs in a domestic setting, such as in a marriage or cohabitation. ''Domestic violence'' is often used as a synonym for '' intimate partn ...
" or " intimate partner violence") was the most common form of violence against women. For example, Levinson (1989) found that, in 86% of ninety studied cultures, there was
structural violence Structural violence is a form of violence wherein some social structure or social institution may harm people by preventing them from meeting their basic needs. The term was coined by Norwegian sociologist Johan Galtung, who introduced it in hi ...
by husbands against their wives; other studies at the time demonstrated a similar cross-cultural pattern. The health consequences of such violence were considerable; for example, in the
United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country Continental United States, primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., ...
, it was the leading cause of injuries in women, 22–35% of women who visited
emergency rooms An emergency department (ED), also known as an accident and emergency department (A&E), emergency room (ER), emergency ward (EW) or casualty department, is a medical treatment facility specializing in emergency medicine, the acute care of pati ...
did so because of symptoms resulting from partner abuse, and wife beating led 4–5 times more often to the need for psychiatric treatment and 5 times more often to
suicide attempt A suicide attempt is an attempt to die by suicide that results in survival. It may be referred to as a "failed" or "unsuccessful" suicide attempt, though these terms are discouraged by mental health professionals for implying that a suicide resu ...
s than in other women. Furthermore,
sexual violence Sexual violence is any sexual act or attempt to obtain a sexual act by violence or coercion, act to traffic a person, or act directed against a person's sexuality, regardless of the relationship to the victim.World Health Organization., World re ...
including
rape Rape is a type of sexual assault usually involving sexual intercourse or other forms of sexual penetration carried out against a person without their consent. The act may be carried out by physical force, coercion, abuse of authority, or ...
were increasingly recognised as a problem that affected a significant percentage of all women. To mark
International Women's Day International Women's Day (IWD) is a global holiday celebrated annually on March 8 as a focal point in the women's rights movement, bringing attention to issues such as gender equality, reproductive rights, and violence and abuse against wo ...
on 8 March 1993, General Secretary,
Boutros Boutros-Ghali Boutros Boutros-Ghali (; , ar, بطرس بطرس غالي ', ; 14 November 1922 – 16 February 2016) was an Egyptian politician and diplomat who served as the sixth Secretary-General of the United Nations (UN) from 1992 to 1996. An academic ...
, issued a statement in preparation of the declaration explicitly outlining the UN's role in the 'promotion' and 'protection' of women's rights:
The struggle for women's rights, and the task of creating a new United Nations, able to promote peace and the values which nurture and sustain it, are one and the same. Today - more than ever - the cause of women is the cause of all humanity.


Definition of Violence Against Women

According to a January 2012 concept note of the International Expert Group Meeting on Combating violence against indigenous women and girls (working for
UNPFII The United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues (UNPFII or PFII) is the UN's central coordinating body for matters relating to the concerns and rights of the world's indigenous peoples. There are more than 370 million indigenous peop ...
), Articles 1 and 2 of the DEVAW provide "the most widely used definition of violence against women and girls"; this claim is echoed by
Jacqui True Jacqui True is a political scientist and expert in gender studies. She is a professor of international relations at Monash University, where she is also Director of the Centre for Gender, Peace and Security. She studies international relations, ...
(2012).
Article One: For the purposes of this Declaration, the term "
violence against women Violence against women (VAW), also known as gender-based violence and sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV), are violent acts primarily or exclusively committed against women or girls, usually by men or boys. Such violence is often c ...
" means any act of gender-based violence that results in, or is likely to result in, physical, sexual or psychological harm or suffering to women, including threats of such acts, coercion or arbitrary deprivation of liberty, whether occurring in public or in private life.
Article Two: Violence against women shall be understood to encompass, but not be limited to, the following: :(a) Physical, sexual and psychological violence occurring in the family, including battering, sexual abuse of female children in the household,
dowry A dowry is a payment, such as property or money, paid by the bride's family to the groom or his family at the time of marriage. Dowry contrasts with the related concepts of bride price and dower. While bride price or bride service is a payment ...
-related violence,
marital rape Marital rape or spousal rape is the act of sexual intercourse with one's spouse without the spouse's consent. The lack of consent is the essential element and need not involve physical violence. Marital rape is considered a form of domestic v ...
,
female genital mutilation Female genital mutilation (FGM), also known as female genital cutting, female genital mutilation/cutting (FGM/C) and female circumcision, is the ritual cutting or removal of some or all of the external female genitalia. The practice is found ...
and other traditional practices harmful to women, non-spousal violence and violence related to exploitation; :(b) Physical, sexual and psychological violence occurring within the general community, including
rape Rape is a type of sexual assault usually involving sexual intercourse or other forms of sexual penetration carried out against a person without their consent. The act may be carried out by physical force, coercion, abuse of authority, or ...
,
sexual abuse Sexual abuse or sex abuse, also referred to as molestation, is abusive sexual behavior by one person upon another. It is often perpetrated using force or by taking advantage of another. Molestation often refers to an instance of sexual assa ...
,
sexual harassment Sexual harassment is a type of harassment involving the use of explicit or implicit sexual overtones, including the unwelcome and inappropriate promises of rewards in exchange for sexual favors. Sexual harassment includes a range of actions fr ...
and intimidation at work, in educational institutions and elsewhere,
trafficking Smuggling is the illegal transportation of objects, substances, information or people, such as out of a house or buildings, into a prison, or across an international border, in violation of applicable laws or other regulations. There are various ...
in women and
forced prostitution Forced prostitution, also known as involuntary prostitution or compulsory prostitution, is prostitution or sexual slavery that takes place as a result of coercion by a third party. The terms "forced prostitution" or "enforced prostitution" appea ...
; :(c) Physical, sexual and psychological violence perpetrated or condoned by the State, wherever it occurs.


Influence

The Declaration on the Elimination of Violence Against Women (DEVAW) has had an impact on the development of several other human rights instruments and institutions: *
United Nations Special Rapporteur on Violence Against Women On 4 March 1994 the Human Rights Council passed Resolution 1994/45 on the question of integrating the rights of women into the human rights mechanisms of the United Nations and the elimination of violence against women. This Resolution establishe ...
: DEVAW was one of the documents invoked by the
UN Commission on Human Rights The United Nations Commission on Human Rights (UNCHR) was a functional commission within the overall framework of the United Nations from 1946 until it was replaced by the United Nations Human Rights Council in 2006. It was a subsidiary body of ...
in Resolution 1994/45 adopted on 4 March 1994, in which it decided to appoint
Radhika Coomaraswamy Deshamanya Radhika Coomaraswamy (born 17 September 1953)is a Sri Lankan lawyer, diplomat and human rights advocate who served as the Under-Secretary-General of the United Nations, Special Representative for Children and Armed Conflict until 13 ...
as its first United Nations Special Rapporteur on Violence Against Women, including its causes and consequences. The Special Rapporteur has a mandate to collect and analyse data from governments, treaty bodies, specialized agencies, NGOs, and other interested parties, and to respond effectively to such information. Furthermore, they also have a role in making recommendations on an international, national and regional level, as well as liaising with other Special Rapporteurs, special representatives, working groups and independent experts of the Commission on Human Rights. * Inter-American Convention on the Prevention, Punishment, and Eradication of Violence against Women (Belém do Pará Convention): DEVAW is mentioned in the preamble of the Belém do Pará Convention of 9 June 1994. * International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women: UN Resolution 54/134 of 17 December 1999, which recognised 25 November as the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women, invoked the Declaration on the Elimination of Violence Against Women (UN Resolution 48/104) twice.


Problems

Many women's rights advocates who believe in human rights have expressed concerns that much of the ground gained by the declaration has been threatened by the rise of more conservative forces within the international community. In March 2003, during a meeting of the
UN Commission on the Status of Women The Commission on the Status of Women (CSW or UNCSW) is a functional commission of the United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC), one of the main UN organs within the United Nations. CSW has been described as the UN organ promoting gend ...
, the delegate from Iran objected to the inclusion of a paragraph that called on governments to "condemn violence against women and refrain from invoking any custom, tradition, or religious consideration to avoid their obligations with respect to its elimination as set out in the Declaration of the Elimination of Violence against Women." Representatives from Egypt, Pakistan, Sudan and US also raised objections; making it the first ever diplomatic failure at the UN Commission on the Status of Women.


Campaigns

Each year, the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women marks the start of
16 Days of Activism against Gender-based Violence The Global 16 Days Campaign is an international campaign to challenge violence against women and girls. The campaign runs every year from 25 November, the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women, to 10 December, Human Right ...
. Human Rights organisations such as
Center for Women's Global Leadership The Center for Women's Global Leadership, based at Rutgers University, was founded in 1989 by Charlotte Bunch, the former executive director and an internationally renowned activist for women's human rights. Executive Director Krishanti Dharmara ...
,
Unifem The United Nations Development Fund for Women (UNIFEM, french: Fonds de développement des Nations unies pour la femme, ) was established in December 1976 originally as the Voluntary Fund for the United Nations Decade for Women in the International ...
, Women Won't Wait, Women for a Change,
Women's Aid Women's Aid Federation of England, commonly called Women's Aid within England, is one of a group of charities across the United Kingdom. There are four main Women's Aid Federations, one for each of the countries of the United Kingdom. Its aim is t ...
, and other groups join together to speak out against gender violence and to promote the rights and principles of the declaration. A striking step that was taken to end the violence that women face was launched in 2008 and is known as the "Unite to End Violence against Women". This aims to raise public awareness to the problem and in ending the violence women and girls face all around the world. With there still being so much room for change today only 2 out of 3 countries have banned domestic violence and 37 countries that exempt sex perpetuators from being prosecuted if they are either married to the victim or will soon be married to the victim. There are also 49 countries who till this day have no laws that will protect women from domestic violence. On 10 April 2009,
Amnesty International Amnesty International (also referred to as Amnesty or AI) is an international non-governmental organization focused on human rights, with its headquarters in the United Kingdom. The organization says it has more than ten million members and s ...
held a demonstration in Narayanghat,
Nepal Nepal (; ne, नेपाल ), formerly the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal ( ne, सङ्घीय लोकतान्त्रिक गणतन्त्र नेपाल ), is a landlocked country in South Asia. It is ma ...
, to highlight the plight of women's rights activists after the Nepalese state failed to protect two activists from violent attacks and, finally, their murder. Despite ratifying the declaration, Nepal had failed to abide by Article 4-c which asserts the clear obligation of states to:
Exercise due diligence to prevent, investigate and, in accordance with national legislation, punish acts of violence against women, whether those acts are perpetrated by the State or by private persons.


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{{DEFAULTSORT:Declaration On The Elimination Of Violence Against Women United Nations General Assembly resolutions Works about violence against women Women's rights instruments 1993 in law 1993 in the United Nations Proclamations 1993 in women's history December 1993 events