Topic: Violence Against Women
Country: El Salvador
Delegate Name: Priya Patel
School: Forest Hills Eastern High School
Topic page: background guide and all position papers All El Salvador position papers GLIMUN 2018 committees
On December 20, 1993, the Declaration on the Elimination of Violence against Women was passed to protect women from physical, sexual, and psychological gender-based violence. The Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women was adopted on December 18, 1979 by the UN to further the efforts for the advancement of women. Global estimates published by WHO indicate that 35% of women worldwide have experienced either physical or sexual violence―this violence can have high social and economic costs for women and can cause serious short- and long-term physical, mental, sexual, and reproductive health problems including fatality, injuries, unintended pregnancies, sexually transmitted diseases, miscarriage, depression, anxiety disorders, and suicide attempts.
El Salvador is one of the most dangerous places in the Western Hemisphere for women and girls with an estimated violent death rate of 9.4 female victims per 100,000 population. Women and girls are regularly targeted by gangs, raped in disputes, forced into relationships, and faced with sexual exploitation. Cultural acceptance of patriarchal and machismo attitudes are cited by experts as creating the environment of severe gender inequality. In a country where gender-based violence is both normalized and institutionalized, women and girls are scared of reporting their experiences to the authorities or seeking help from hospitals. A 2015 UNHRC survey found that 10% of women fleeing violence in El Salvador, Guatemala, and Honduras cited the authorities as their aggressors. For women who experience sexual violence that results in unexpected pregnancies, the strict anti-abortion laws require them to continue their pregnancies. Due to these laws, women who experience miscarriages or stillbirths are often prosecuted for aggravated homicide and sent to prison for 30-40 years.
Substantial amendments to national legislation have been made to implement CEDAW, and El Salvador has submitted six reports on compliance with the Convention. El Salvador also ratified and implemented the Inter-American Convention in the Prevention, Punishment, and Eradication of Violence against Women. The approval of the Domestic Violence Act (1996) was a chief legislative achievement that established mechanisms to prevent and penalize family violence. The government of El Salvador includes gender focus into education to encourage men and boys to break down sexist values, attitudes, and practices which are detrimental to Salvadoran women. To raise awareness and trigger the end of violence against women, El Salvador recommends a comprehensive education program on the basis and effects of gender-based violence to the international community and suggests the use of help hotlines to report violence. Strict protocols for the investigation of cases of gender-based violence should be followed internationally.
