Annotation:
This report discusses whether violence committed against women in private and public settings constitutes torture. Noting governmental indifference to the maltreatment of women, the report demands for states to be held accountable for violence against women when they have failed to provide effective protection. It notes that gender-based violence is compounded by the many forms of discrimination that women face: "for all the gains that women around the world have made in asserting their rights, women worldwide still earn less than men, own less property than men, and have less access to education, employment and health care&. Violence against women feeds off this discrimination and serves to reinforce it". Personal experiences of victims of gender-based violence and recommendations for governments are also included. [Descriptors: Violence Against Women, International]