In 1993, the United Nations General Assembly adopted the Declaration on the Elimination of Violence Against Women (DEVAW). This landmark document was a result of efforts within the United Nations Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) and the Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC). While DEVAW does not have the binding legal authority of a convention or treaty, as a United Nations General Assembly declaration, it is universal in coverage and a strong statement of principle to the international community. Identifying the subordination of women as a principle cause of domestic violence, DEVAW states, "violence against women is a manifestation of historically unequal power relations between men and women, which have led to domination over and discrimination against women by men." DEVAW condemns the crucial social mechanisms by which women are forced into a subordinate position as compared with men" and defines violence as that occurring both in "private or public life." Importantly, DEVAW provides specific steps member states should take to combat domestic violence, including legal system reform. DEVAW provides that states should investigate and punish acts of domestic violence, develop comprehensive legal, political, administrative and cultural programs to prevent violence against women, provide training to law enforcement officials and promote research and collect statistics relating to the prevalence of domestic violence.