United Nations: OHCHR Addresses Hidden Violence Against Women and Girls with Disabilities
Monday, July 30, 2012 2:25 PM

At the request of the United Nations Human Rights Council’s resolution 17/11, the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) performed a thematic analytical study on violence against women and girls with disabilities.  The findings suggest that women and girls with disabilities are subject to greater risk of violence than women without disabilities. 

The violence can be physical or psychological, including a caretaker’s refusal to assist with daily functions or provide necessary medication and assistive devices.  Women with disabilities are prone to psychological manipulation and to harm or threats of harm from caretakers and other people with whom they have contact.  Sterilization and other forced medical interventions can also be greater risks for women with disabilities than for other women.
 
The study concluded that measures such as reviewing the international legal framework with regard to violence against women and girls with disabilities, raising awareness of this type of violence, and strengthening access to justice for women and girls with disabilities are necessary to reduce this type of violence.  In order to improve access to justice, the study urges states to train justice system personnel on the types of violence specific to women with disabilities and to provide more legal aid to these women.  The Human Rights Council also called for states to review the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and to ensure that domestic laws accord with it.
 
OHCHR recommends a ‘dual-track approach’ for addressing this type of violence: first, preventative measures for violence against women generally; and also, programs that explicitly target women and girls with disabilities.  The study’s summary characterizes this approach as having an “emphasis on the need for a holistic approach aimed at eliminating discrimination against women and girls with disabilities, promoting their autonomy and addressing specific risk factors that expose them to violence.”

“Strengthening protection of women and girls with disabilities from violence continues to be a priority,” Mona Rishmaw, Chief of the Rule of Law, Equality and Non-Discrimination Branch for the UN Human Rights office in Geneva, said at an event during the 20th session of the Human Rights Council.

Compiled from: "Strengthening the protection of women and girls with disabilities, a priority," United Nations Human Rights Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, (11 July 2012).