Women's Human Rights Resources Database

This database lists hundreds of resources -- articles, documents and links -- related to international women's rights law and Canadian women's rights law. Annotations describe the content of each resource. Users can search by keyword and author as well as browse by women's rights topic. Full-text documents or links to full-text documents are provided where available.
Search Results for content type Article categorized with Violence Against Women
Seelinger, Kim Thuy , Forced Marriage and Asylum: Perceiving the Invisible Harm , 42(1) COLUMBIA HUMAN RIGHTS LAW REVIEW, 55-117 (2010).
Many women seek refugee protection fleeing from forced marriages. However, because there is no precedent establishing forced marriage as a form of persecution, these women often have to establish their claims on related harms that already constitute persecution, such as rape,. The article discusses what constitutes forced marriage and the development of requirements for refugee protection. The author then examines the meaning of persecution and how forced marriage may fit within the definition. Following this more general discussion, the article analyzes a number of U.S. cases involving forced marriage to explore the treatment of forced marriage in asylum adjudications. The analysis identifies a number of factors in asylum adjudications involving forced marriage, including legal challenges and adjudicator misapprehensions. It concludes that forced marriage as persecution is barely addressed in U.S. asylum cases. The author concludes that forced marriages should be considered a form of persecution under domestic and international law since they deprive women of the fundamental right to freely consent to marriage. Kim Thuy Seelinger, Forced Marriage and Asylum: Perceiving the Invisible Harm (2010) 42:1 Colum HRL Rev 55.
http://heinonline.org.myaccess.library.utoronto.ca/HOL/Page

 
Seneviratne, Wasantha , International Legal Standards Pertaining to Sexual Violence Against Displaced Women in Times of Armed Conflict with Special Reference to the Emerged Jurisprudence at the ICTY and the ICTR , 20 SRI LANKA JOURNAL OF INTERNATIONAL LAW, 1-28 (2008).
Wasantha Seneviratne outlines how sexual violence against women during and after periods of internal and international conflict has been classified and addressed in international humanitarian law. The author argues that, as women are displaced by armed conflict, there is a heightened danger to them of sexual violence during and after that conflict. Seneviratne looks at court decisions from the ICTR and ICTY and the progressive approach these courts have taken to prosecute crimes of sexual violence occurring in internal armed conflicts; particularly, how sexual violence was classified as a war crime and a crime against humanity. The author emphasizes the statute and work of the ICC in prosecuting these crimes. She points to the progress made by the ICC in substantive and procedural law in this area allowing victims to testify and seek redress in these courts when their states are not willing to do so.
http://heinonline.org.myaccess.library.utoronto.ca/HOL/Page

 
Sheppard, Colleen , Women as Wives: Immigration Law and Domestic Violence , 26 QUEEN LAW JOURNAL, 1-41 (2000)
This article focuses on the spousal sponsorship system in Canadian immigration law. The author argues that the current system creates significant obstacles to sponsored immigrant women with abusive spouses. The article examines the specific provisions of the sponsorship system through a human rights lens, with a focus on both the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms and international human rights law. In conclusion, the author argues that the current spousal sponsorship regime needs immediate reform as it results in violations of Charter rights and international human rights law. [Descriptors: Migration - Refugees and Immigration, Canada]

 
Simmons, William Paul , Liability of Secondary Actors under the Alien Tort Statute: Aiding and Abetting and Acquiescence to Torture in the Context of the Femicides of Ciudad Juarez , 10 YALE HUMAN RIGHTS & DEVELOPMENT LAW JOURNAL, 88-140 (2007).
The author argues that local officials who failed to adequately prevent and investigate femicides in Ciudad Juarez, Mexico, could be held civilly liable in the U.S. under the Alien Tort Statute (ATS). International victims of human rights abuses have used the ATS to bring civil suits in U.S. courts against governmental officials and multinational corporations for a range of abuses. The author argues that aiding and abetting liability should be allowed to remain as a form of third-party liability available under the ATS, but would not be sufficient to hold the Mexican officials liable for their systematic violations of women's rights. Instead, the author proposes acquiescence to torture as an innovative form of third-party liability that would broaden the scope of the ATS and allow officials to be held liable for their failure to take reasonable steps to prevent and investigate femicides. William Paul Simmons, Liability of Secondary Actors under the Alien Tort Statute: Aiding and Abetting and Acquiescence to Torture in the Context of the Femicides of Ciudad Juarez (2007) 10 Yale Human Rts & Dev LJ 88.
http://heinonline.org.myaccess.library.utoronto.ca/HOL/Page

 
Simons, Penelope, Handl, Melisa , Relations of Ruling : A Feminist Critique of the United Nations Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights and Violence against Women in the Context of Resource Extraction , 31(1) CANADIAN JOURNAL OF WOMEN AND THE LAW, 113-154 (2019)
This article examines the capacity of the UN guiding principles on Business and Human Rights (UN Guiding Principles) to address the gendered effects of resource extractive industries, particularly violence against women. After explaining the authors’ feminist textual methodology, the article traces the relationship between the resource extraction industry and violence against women in their workplace, home, and community. The article goes on to examine the ways in which the UN Guiding Principles inadequately address the subject of violence against women and resource extraction. The authors first explore how the text largely neglects women and women’s rights, except where it relates to business in conflict zones. The authors then critique the text’s hierarchical treatment of ‘gender neutral’ human rights treaties over treaties concerning women and other minority group rights. Finally, the authors interpret the norms and dichotomies that arise in the text as gendered binaries. The authors conclude that the “relations of ruling” established in the UN Guiding Principles uphold oppressive social structures and fail to protect women’s rights in resource extraction contexts.
https://heinonline.org/HOL/P

 
Simons, Penelope , Unsustainable International Law : Transnational Resource Extraction and Violence Against Women , 26(2) TRANSNATIONAL LAW AND CONTEMPORARY PROBLEMS, 415-434 (2017)
This article focuses on sexual violence against women perpetrated in the context of transnational North-South resource extraction. The author explores how a growing number of transnational extractive corporations, and particularly Canadian ones, have been linked to the perpetration of sexual violence against women in the Global South. The author starts by detailing the legal cases of three Canadian extractive companies implicated in human rights abuses overseas including violence against women. They then describe the distinct types of harm caused by sexual violence, using reports from the UN and Amnesty International for support, and underline the structural factors that exacerbate violence against women. An overview of the contribution of international treaties and obligations, including CEDAW, to the matter shows how the current international legal system maintains a gendered regulatory gap and fails to hold transnational extractive companies accountable for violent acts perpetrated against women in the Global South.
https://heinonline.org/HOL/P, https://www.researchgate.net/publication/332301324_Unsustainable_International_L…

 
Sithole, Linet, Dziva, Cowen , Eliminating Harmful Practices Against Women in Zimbabwe : Implementing Article 5 of the African Women's Protocol , 19(2) AFRICAN HUMAN RIGHTS LAW JOURNAL, 568-590 (2019)
This article examines the duty to protect against harmful practices perpetuated against women and girls in Zimbabwe just over a decade after the ratification of the African Women’s Protocol. Prior to the publication of this article, existing research focused on the implementation of the Protocol as a whole. This article focuses exclusively on the implementation of Article 5 legally, institutionally, and from a policy reform perspective from 2008-2018. Contributions by civil society and non-governmental organizations are also examined. Starting with an overview of the harmful cultural and generational practices that oppress women in Zimbabwe, such as child marriage, virginity testing and dowry payments, the article turns to the reforms undertaken by the government to implement Article 5. After canvassing the implementation of Article 5, the article concludes that some harmful practices are ongoing, partly due to the pace at which legislative reform is taking place. 
https://heinonline.org/HOL/P, http://dx.doi.org/10.17159/1996-2096/2019/v19n2a1

 
Slater, Rachel , Gender Violence or Violence against Women: The Treatment of Forced Marriage in the Special Court for Sierra Leone , 13 THE MELBOURNE JOURNAL OF INTERNATIONAL LAW, 732-773 (2012).
The article considers the case for viewing forced marriage as a gender crime. This practice was a prevalent form of violence during the civil war in Sierra Leone. The article engages in a brief examination of the Special Court for Sierra Leone trials. The author argues that recognition of this practice as a form of gender violence is crucial to advancing the scope of international law. A comparison is made between the characterization of forced marriage under international criminal law and its treatment under international refugee law, where similar violence is defined as persecution in the Convention relating to the Status of Refugees.
http://heinonline.org.myaccess.library.utoronto.ca/HOL/Page

 
Spatz, Melissa , A "Lesser" Crime: A Comparative Study of Legal Defenses for Men Who Kill Their Wives , 24 COLUMBIA JOURNAL OF LAW AND SOCIAL PROBLEMS, 597-638 (1991).
The author notes that throughout the world, men who murder their wives encounter legal systems that are lenient toward their crimes; many legal systems treat the murder of the wife as a less serious crime than the murder of a stranger. This article examines three types of systems, viewing the plight of wives as a problem of international dimension. Section II examines criminal justice systems in Islamic countries that acquit or impose drastically reduced sentences on men who murder their adulterous wives. Section III explores a different kind of system, in which positive laws designed to protect women from their husbands remain un-enforced. Section IV examines two Western countries, Brazil and the United States, in which judges have created defenses for men who otherwise would not be protected under statutory law. [Descriptors: Violence Against Women, International]

 
Ssenyonjo, Manisuli , Culture and the Human Rights of Women in Africa: Between Light and Shadow , 51 JOURNAL OF AFRICAN LAW, 39-67 (2007).
This article examines the ways in which cultural practices have caused difficulties in protecting women's rights in Africa. The author looks at the ways traditional cultural practices prevent womens rights from being realized. The author begins with an overview of women's human rights in African law (CEDAW, the African Charter on Human and Peoples Rights and the Protocol to the Charter on the Rights of Women in Africa). The author then examines specific cultural practices that limit the full implementation of women's rights (polygamy and divorce). The author concludes with suggestions: that education is vital for establishing a culture where human rights are understood and promoted, and that the African Charter should be interpreted as a "living instrument".
http://heinonline.org.myaccess.library.utoronto.ca/HOL/Page

 
Suzor, Nicolas, Dragiewicz, Molly, Harris, Bridget, Gillett, Rosalie, Burgess, Jean, Van Geelen, Tess , Human Rights by Design: The Responsibilities of Social Media Platforms to Address Gender-Based Violence Online , 11(1) POLICY AND INTERNET, 84-103 (2019)
This article explores the ways that gender-based violence (GBV) is perpetrated and normalized on social media platforms, and the difficulty in addressing GBV due to jurisdictional issues on the national and international levels. GBV is a human rights violation that may take many forms, including criminal harassment of female public figures and stalking of intimate partners. The authors argue that GBV cannot be addressed through the law alone, but requires that technology companies become leaders in preventing and combating abuse across their networks by utilizing international human rights instruments. Recommendations are presented for online telecommunications companies and digital media platforms, including collaboration between governments, civil actors, and telecommunications providers to create greater scholarly research, experimentation, domestic laws, and international agreements in an effort to implement infrastructure, policies, procedures, and socio-technical affordances to tackle gender-based violence. 
https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdfdirect/10.1002/poi3.185

 
Sverdlov, David , Rape in War : Prosecuting the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant and Boko Haram for Sexual Violence against Women , 50(2) CORNELL INTERNATIONAL LAW JOURNAL, 333-359 (2017)
The article discusses the feasibility of prosecuting militant groups such as ISIL and Boko Haram under the Genocide Convention or the non-genocidal crimes of the Rome Statute. International legal bodies have brought few rapists to justice, and rape remains the least condemned war crime. The author relies on legal precedents established by international tribunals that dealt with the prosecutions of Rwandan and Yugoslavian war criminals. Through evaluation of known facts regarding ISIL and Boko Haram, the author concludes that ISIL militants can be prosecuted for the genocidal rape of Yazidi women, while Boko Haram militants must be prosecuted under the Rome Statute by the International Criminal Court. 
https://heinonline.org/HOL/P, https://scholarship.law.cornell.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi

 
Tamimi, Tamara Tawfiq , Violence Against Women in Palestine and Mediocre Accountability , 5(1) LEGAL ISSUES JOURNAL, 75-96 (2017)
This article discusses the forms that violence against women take in the Palestinian context. Societal oppression, economic dependence and the public/private divide are cited as factors that maintain and perpetuate patriarchal values in Palestine. These factors are understood within the broader context of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. The regulation of women’s body in the name of family “honour” plays a significant role in the perpetuation of violence against Palestinian women. Violence against women is further internalized into Palestinian culture due to the lack of legal consequences for marital rape and “honour” crimes. This article concludes with a series of recommendations including legal reforms as well as the destruction of harmful gender stereotypes. 
https://heinonline.org/HOL/P

 
Thomas, Dorothy Q., Beasley, Michele E. , Domestic Violence as a Human Rights Issue , 15 HUMAN RIGHTS QUARTERLY, 36-62 (1993).
This article discusses why domestic violence was not analyzed traditionally as a human rights issue. It discusses the three changes that occurred to make such an analysis possible: the expansion of state responsibility, the recognition of domestic violence as widespread and largely un-prosecuted, and the understanding that non-prosecution of domestic violence constitutes a violation of the right to equal protection under international law. In addition, this article explores the value and limitations of the human rights approach to combating domestic violence. The authors conclude that the human rights approach can be a powerful tool to combat domestic violence, but that there are currently both practical and methodological limitations that are problematic and require further analysis to make the approach more effective. [Descriptors: Violence Against Women, International]

 
Tiroch, Katrin , Violence against Women by Private Actors: The Inter-American Court's Judgment in the Case of Gonzalez et al. (Cotton Field) v. Mexico , 14 MAX PLANCK YEARBOOK OF UNITED NATIONS LAW, 371-408 (2010).
The article highlights the fact that violence against women persists on an astounding scale across the globe. Its prevalence serves as a barrier to development, equality, and peace. Not only does the violence affect the victims themselves, but how women across the world view their roles and potential. In contrast, the article recognizes that the international responsibility of states has been widened, along with attention and consciousness to the issue. International courts and tribunals have become increasingly responsive. The author posits that barriers to maximal effectiveness of these institutions can be addressed through the recognition of positive state obligations
http://heinonline.org.myaccess.library.utoronto.ca/HOL/Page

 
Tomasovic, Elizabeth K. , Robbed of Reproductive Justice: The Necessity of a Global Initiative to Provide Redress to Roma Women Coercively Sterilized in Eastern Europe , 41(3) COLUMBIA HUMAN RIGHTS LAW REVIEW, 765-823 (2010).
Although the Czechoslovakian practice of sterilizing undesirables was officially abandoned in 1990, many Romai women claim they have continued to be coercively sterilized since the fall of communism in 1989. Victims have obtained little justice from the government. The article argues that the lack of justice for these victims is due to barriers in the Czech and Slovak legal systems regarding laws designed to protect against coercive sterilization. The article discusses how the most successful efforts to obtain justice for the coercively sterilized women have been through the work of international, regional and non-governmental organizations. The author concludes that the most effective means of obtaining individual compensation is by having NGOs file complaints, on behalf of victims, to the CEDAW Committee or the European Court of Human Rights. Additionally, the author encourages organizations to pressure the Czech and Slovak governments to establish a mass compensation fund. Elizabeth K Tomasovic, Robbed of Reproductive Justice: The Necessity of a Global Initiative to Provide Redress to Roma Women Coercively Sterilized in Eastern Europe (2010) 41:3 Colum HRL Rev 765.
http://heinonline.org.myaccess.library.utoronto.ca/HOL/Page

 
Tuerkheimer, Deborah , Conceptualizing Violence Against Pregnant Women , 81 INDIANA LAW JOURNAL, 667-710 (2006).
This article discusses the nature of violence against pregnant women and how traditional criminal laws have failed to adequately address pregnancy battering. Part I describes the nature of violence against pregnant women. Part II looks at the limitations of criminal law in response to pregnancy battering. Part III explores an alternative statutory framework that has been used recently to address violence against pregnant women in the US. Here, the author also evaluates the construct of the fetal personhood over time and argues that this concept has undermined the rights of pregnant women. In Part IV, the author proposes integrating a feminist understanding of the harms suffered by battered pregnant women into criminal law in order to expand the latter's conceptualization of violence against pregnant women. [Descriptors: Violence Against Women, International - North America]

 
Turano, Laura C. , The Gender Dimension of Transitional Justice Mechanisms , 43 NEW YORK UNIVERSITY JOURNAL OF INTERNATIONAL LAW AND POLITICS, 1045-1086 (2011).
In this article the author explores the development in international law of crimes of gender-based violence, noting both its progress and its continued limitations. Turano focuses on the ability of transitional justice mechanisms, specifically, criminal prosecutions and truth commissions, to adequately redress harms experienced by women during times of conflict. She argues that while much progress has been made in prosecuting gender based crimes at the ICTY and the ICTR, a focus on crimes of sexual violence towards women ignores many other socio-economic harms that affect women during conflict. The author evaluates the strengths and weaknesses of transitional justice mechanisms in responding to the needs of women and suggests that truth commissions might offer a superior way of ensuring justice for women.
http://nyujilp.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/02/43.4-Turano.pdf

 
Ulrich, Jennifer , Confronting Gender-Based Violence With International Instruments: Is a Solution to the Pandemic Within Reach? , 7 INDIANA JOURNAL OF GLOBAL LEGAL STUDIES, 629-654 (2000).
This note discusses violence against women on a global scale. In order to determine the potential of international instruments to eliminate gender-based violence, the author compares the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women, the United Nations Fourth World Conference on Women and the Declaration on the Elimination of Violence Against Women. The author argues that while these four instruments have advanced the fight against gender-based violence to a certain extent, "the continued male-dominated status of both international and individual State law effectively prevents the total elimination of violence against women". She concludes that traditional legal power structures must be reorganized for women to achieve equality with men. [Descriptors: Violence Against Women, International]

 
Urs, Tara , Coercive Feminism , 46 COLUMBIA HUMAN RIGHTS LAW REVIEW 85-157 (2014)
This article criticizes the application of American domestic violence policy to the developing world through the UNiTE campaign. In 2008, the UN began the aggressive UNiTE campaign to reform domestic violence in developing countries. While this campaign includes useful reforms, the author looks at look other exported elements that have faced criticism in the US itself such as mandatory arrest policies and no-drop prosecutions which undermine a woman's ability to make deeply personal life decisions. The author also criticizes the American system as it gives police, prosecutors, and judges power to decide whether a woman must leave her spouse, whether she must testify against him in open court, and whether he must be excluded from their shared home. The author specifically addresses the problematic effects of giving such power to the agents of authoritarian regimes in developing countries and the ousting of traditional practices. The author suggests that before efforts to combat domestic violence are intensified, the flaws in the basic assumptions of the reform must be addressed. 
https://heinonline.org/HOL/P

 
Vesa, Andreea , International and Regional Standards for Protecting Victims of Domestic Violence , 12 AMERICAN UNIVERSITY JOURNAL OF GENDER, SOCIAL POLICY AND THE LAW, 309-360 (2004).
This article examines major international and regional human rights documents that can be invoked to protect victims of domestic violence and discusses the major problem of lack of adequate enforcement. The article begins with a discussion on the definition of domestic violence and international efforts to combat domestic violence, focusing particularly on the actions of the United Nations. It assesses the potential and limitations of major international and regional human rights documents to protect women's human rights in situations involving domestic violence. It concludes by highlighting weaknesses such as lack of enforcement and reservations made by state parties. [Descriptors: Violence Against Women, International]

 
Vijeyarasa, Ramona , CEDAW’s General Recommendation No. 35: A quarter of a century of evolutionary approaches to violence against women , 19 JOURNAL OF HUMAN RIGHTS, 153-167 (2020)
This article examines whether the Committee on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women’s (“CEDAW Committee”) General Recommendation No. 35 fundamentally contributes towards accountability for women’s human rights. Although the General Recommendation No. 35 reaffirms the global commitment towards eliminating gender-based violence, the author emphasizes that the CEDAW Committee lacks in providing a clear and in-depth analysis and in its ability to guide the States on their obligations and how to fulfill them. Nevertheless, General Recommendation No. 35 must be read with General Recommendation No. 19 and some of the other General Recommendations. Even with its flaws, the author concludes that General Recommendation No. 35 is likely to help reduce gender-based violence by directing States on the existing policies, legislation, and practical reforms necessary to support victims and prevent impunity.
https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/14754835.2019.1686347

 
Wachala, Kas , The tools to combat the war on women bodies: rape and sexual violence against women in armed conflict , 16(3) THE INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF HUMAN RIGHTS, 533-553 (2012)
This article examines how international law regarding sexual violence and armed conflict has developed significantly since the 1990s. Rape and sexual violence was commonplace during conflict in the twentieth and twenty-first centuries and most recently has been used in Darfur, Sudan and in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Both the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda and the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia started momentum for the prosecution of sexual violence and rape in armed conflict. Over time, a number of tools have been developed that can be used to combat sexual violence against women in armed conflict, including humanitarian law, the Genocide Convention, laws condemning crimes against humanity, and customary international law. This article analyzes the effectiveness of the tools available and examines how they can be utilized in the future to prevent sexual violence during armed conflict. Kas Wachala, "The tools to combat the war on womens bodies: rape and sexual violence against women in armed conflict" (2012) 16:3 Intl JHR 533.

 
Weiner, Merle H. , The Potential and Challenges of Transnational Litigation for Feminists Concerned About Domestic Violence Here and Abroad , 11 AMERICAN UNIVERSITY JOURNAL OF GENDER, SOCIAL POLICY AND THE LAW, 749-800 (2003).
This article discusses the potential benefits and challenges of using private transnational litigation in the area of domestic violence against women, focusing especially on litigation following the adoption of the Hague Convention on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction. After providing background information on the Hague Convention, the author argues that the Hague Convention assists women who seek custody of their children and even more broadly, reinforces public international norms related to domestic violence. Other benefits and practical challenges are also identified and discussed. The author concludes by arguing for private transnational litigation in the area of domestic violence as the potential benefits overcome the challenges. [Descriptors: Violence Against Women, International]

 
Weissman, Deborah M. , In Pursuit of Economic Justice : The Political Economy of Domestic Violence Laws and Policies , 2020(1) UTAH LAW REVIEW, 1-67 (2020)
This article addresses the issue of partner violence involving economic violence where victims may be abused through interference of acquiring or maintaining economic resources. The article draws attention to the lack of efficacy of legal and policy responses to the economic consequences of such abuse. The article notes that legal responses such as the Violence Against Women Act and the I.R.S Income Tax Relief are not effective responses to gender violence because they respectively limit remedies for economic violence and are too convoluted for the victims to understand and use. The article addresses that domestic abuser treatment programs may also not be effective because they do not address the larger issue of economic hardship as a determinant of economic violence. The article concludes by describing emerging models designed to ameliorate economic abuse such as economic justice initiatives and domestic violence programs like the Center for Survivor Agency and Justice (“CSAJ”) organization.  
https://heinonline.org/HOL/P, https://dc.law.utah.edu/ulr/vol2020/iss1/1

 
Wilets, James D. , Conceptualizing Private Violence Against Sexual Minorities As Gendered Violence, An International And Comparative Law Perspective , 60 ALBANY LAW REVIEW, 989-1050 (1997).
This article looks at the issue of violence against women and sexual minorities, and argues that since both stem from male dominance, it is important to consider other commonalities to devise adequate national and international legal protection. The main thesis of the article is that violence against sexual minorities is equivalent to gender subordination. This article looks at the ability as well as the shortcomings of international law to address domestic violence. Part II examines the similarities between gender violence and violence against sexual minorities. Part III takes a historical look at the systematic private violence faced by sexual minorities. Part IV considers the main limitation of international law to protect these two vulnerable groups, namely deference to national legislation and cultural customs. Part V discusses advancements in international law to enhance the protection of women and sexual minorities against gendered violence. [Descriptors: Violence Against Women, International]

 
Wright, Claire , Torture at Home: Borrowing from the Torture Convention to Define Domestic Violence , 24 HASTINGS WOMEN LAW JOURNAL, 457-563 (2013).
This article utilizes a psychological or behavioural perspective to analyze the domestic violence laws in the United States and concludes that at the very least, states should amend child custody laws to include mental abuse in their definition of domestic violence. The author uses "mental abuse" to refer to verbal, emotional, and psychological abuse, and discusses each of these in turn. The article explains the behavioural approach to law and establishes background information on the phenomenon of domestic violence. Major theories of domestic violence that have been proposed are discussed. The author argues that the psychological theory of domestic violence suggests that the legal system should implement more effective deterrents and sanctions for the mental abuse of one family member by another, especially when the victim is a child.
http://heinonline.org.myaccess.library.utoronto.ca/HOL/Page

 
Zaman, Rima , Female Genital Mutilation: Membership in a articular Social Groupand Past vs. Future Persecution A Comparative Look at Asylum Laws for Women Who Have Been Subjected to FGM in the United States and the United Kingdom , 16 NEW ENGLAND JOURNAL OF INTERNATIONAL AND COMPARATIVE LAW, 225-254 (2010)
The article provides a comparative analysis of the asylum laws in the US and in the UK with regards to women who have been subject to female genital mutilation (FGM). The author argues that refugee status for these women depends on whether or not they are determined to belong to a "particular social group". The author finds that this requirement is more narrowly defined in the UK than in the US, leading to the US having more lenient refugee determinations. This article contains five sections: Part I discusses current asylum laws in both countries; Part II focuses on the background and history of FGM in a global context; Part III compares the policies and case law in both countries in regards to granting asylum to women who fear persecution and subjection to FGM; Part IV focuses on past persecution for FGM and the definition of membership in a "particular social group;" and finally, Part V provides a comparative look at the legislation instituted by both countries in addressing FGM within their own borders.
http://heinonline.org.myaccess.library.utoronto.ca/HOL/Page

 

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