A UN Committee asks Venezuela for a plan against human trafficking and gender violence

The UN Committee for the Elimination of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) has published this Tuesday its conclusions on Venezuela, after examining the State during its last period of sessions.

The conclusions contain positive aspects of the application of the Convention, as well as the main concerns and recommendations of the Committee, among which those related to access to justice, the prevention of gender violence, trafficking in persons and the migratory crisis stand out. and access to sexual and reproductive health.

Women’s access to justice

The Committee took note of the establishment of 73 offices throughout the State with competence to address issues related to women’s rights, including an office specialized in femicide.

However, it expressed its concern about the existing barriers for women to have effective access to justice, such as economic obstacles and the limited availability of free legal aid.

In this sense, the Committee recommended to the authorities expand public legal aid servicesaddress language barriers and disseminate information on the legal resources available to claim rights, as well as reconsider withdrawing from the American Convention on Human Rights in 2012, and reestablish their jurisdiction.

violence against women

The Committee welcomed the second partial modification of the Organic Law on the Right of Women to a Life Free of Violence.

However, he expressed deep concern about the high incidence of gender violence against women and girls in the country, in particular, the persistence of femicides, disappearances and psychological violence.

In this regard, the Committee recommended strengthening measures to prevent and punish cases of gender violence, adopt regulations and protocols with a gender perspective necessary for the application of the Organic Law, increase the number of reception centers for victims (there are five throughout the country) and provide them with access to assistance legal, forensic evidence, psychosocial counseling and rehabilitation programmes.

Likewise, the Committee recommended establishing a data collection system on gender violence against women, including femicide.

human trafficking

The Committee expressed concern about the lack of a specific and comprehensive law on human trafficking and for the delay in the publication of the National Plan against Trafficking in Persons.

The Committee recommended combat forced recruitment and trafficking of women and girls by irregular armed groups, particularly in the context of the Orinoco mining arc, and along the borders with Brazil and Colombia, and investigate all allegations of contemporary forms of slavery.

In this sense, he asked Venezuela to develop a protocol for prompt identification and referral of trafficked women and girls to appropriate services, especially in border areas. He also asked the authorities to allocate sufficient funds to ensure adequate support services to victims of trafficking, including shelters, psychosocial counseling, reintegration programs and effective access to refugee status determination procedures for those who may be in need of international protection.

In addition, the Committee recommended that the Venezuelan authorities allocate sufficient human, technical and financial resources to the Special Ombudsman so that it can effectively and independently fulfill its mandate to protect migrant and refugee women from the risks of human trafficking and to reinforce the independence of the Ombudsman.

Health

Regarding health, the Committee recommended that the Venezuelan authorities legalize abortion, at least in cases of rape, incest and serious malformation of the fetus, in addition to cases of threat to the life or health of the pregnant woman; decriminalize it in all other cases and ensure that women and adolescents have adequate access to safe abortion and post-abortion care.

In addition, it noted with concern the reports of forced sterilizations within the framework of the National Surgical Plan, despite its criminalization since 2007, and recommended that the State immediately put an end to this practice and require the free, prior and informed consent of the woman for any medical intervention that affects their health and sexual and reproductive rights.

It also recommended that the authorities guarantee that women and girls have a affordable access to sexual and reproductive health servicesto modern contraceptives and life-saving medicines and to address the shortage of antiretroviral treatment for women and girls living with HIV/AIDS.

Other recommendations

Other recommendations focus on promoting the visibility of the Convention so that all women are aware of their rights and the legal resources available to them; strengthen awareness and education campaigns to eliminate discriminatory and gender stereotypes; strengthen measures to protect women human rights defenders; ensure that women and girls have access to quality primary and secondary education and access to formal employment; and reinforce the economic training of women.

Likewise, the Committee pointed out that female representation in the National Assembly remains at 31%; only 2 women have been elected as state governors (8.3%) and 62 as mayors (19%); and only 9 of the 33 Ministries of People’s Power are headed by women. For this reason, the Committee recommended strengthening its measures to ensure the equal participation of women in political and public life, especially at decision-making levels.

In addition to the report from the Venezuelan delegation, the review process included the participation of civil society organizations at the national level on various topics and from the United Nations system, who submitted relevant information which served as the basis for the examination evaluation.