Author Archives: UN Women

Women’s access to religious courts in Indonesia

In Indonesia, the religious courts are an important avenue for women seeking justice. Recognising this, the Supreme Court is working in partnership with civil society to enhance access and monitor their performance. Legal registration of marriage and divorce is not … Continue reading

Women’s and men’s views on what kind of reparations are needed in the Central African Republic

Women are more likely to demand apologies and punishment of those responsible for violations, than men. Source: Based on data from Vinck and Pham 2010a and 2010b.

Women’s and men’s perceptions of why reparations are important in the Central African Republic

Both women and men say that they need reparations to alleviate poverty. Women are much more likely than men to say they want recognition of their suffering.   Source: Based on data from Vinck and Pham 2010a and 2010b.

Reservations to CEDAW

30 countries have entered reservations in relation to equal rights in marriage or the family. Source: Annex 5, Progress of the World’s Women.

Women’s representation in the justice system

In all regions women are under-represented in the police, prosecution services and judiciary. Source: UN Women calculated regional aggregates (population weighted) using UNODC 2009 and population data from UN DESA 2009b. Note: Aggregates are based on 99 countries for which … Continue reading

Women’s police stations and special courts in Brazil

The first women’s police station (Delegacias Especiais de Atendimento à Mulher – DEAM) opened in São Paulo in 1985. Today there are 450 DEAMs throughout the country and they are credited with raising awareness of violence against women and increasing … Continue reading

Key Facts

Out of 585 peace agreements signed since 1990, only 16% contained any reference to women and only 7% mentioned gender equality or women’s human rights.

Key Facts

A study of European countries found that, on average, 14% of reported rapes ended in a conviction. Globally, fewer than one in ten police officers is a woman.

Laws and policies on gender equality and women’s representation in parliaments in sub-Saharan Africa

Post-conflict countries have higher levels of women’s political representation and are more likely to have gender equality laws and policies. Source: Tripp et al. 2009; UN Women calculations using data from IPU 2011a. Note: N= 46 countries in sub-Saharan Africa.

Laws on age of marriage and incidence of early marriage

Where countries put in place a higher minimum legal age of marriage, the incidence of early marriage is lower. Source: UN Women analysis using prevalence of child marriage data from UNICEF 2011 and statutory legal age of marriage data from … Continue reading