WUNRN
AMERICAS-OAS - QUESTIONNAIRE ON
ACCESS TO INFORMATION FROM A GENDER PERSPECTIVE
The OAS brings together all 35 independent states of the Americas and
constitutes
the main political, juridical, and social governmental forum in
the Hemisphere.
OAS Rapporteur on the Rights of
Women
Inter-American Commission on Women
QUESTIONNAIRE
Access to Information in the
Send Answers to Questionnaire to: cim@oas.org
The Deadline to Submit Answers is July 14th, 2014.
The present questionnaire has been
prepared as part of the work plan of the Rapporteurship on the Rights of Women,
with the goal of collecting information regarding the main challenges that
women face in obtaining access to information managed by the State in the
fields of violence and discrimination. This initiative will include the
publication of a report, identifying challenges, best practices, and a set of
recommendations for States on how to improve their compliance with existing
human rights standards relevant to the issue of access to information. It will primarily focus on the administration
of justice and areas related to this sector, such as legislation, public
policies, and services.
Information
available to the Commission - in the form of petitions received; the findings
of regional initiatives; data provided in thematic hearings by State and
non-State actors; and communications with different women’s rights
organizations - indicates that violence and discrimination are still widespread
and alarming issues in the Americas and require consistent attention from the
Rapporteurship. Most of the petitions received by the Inter-American Commission
on Human Rights in the realm of women’s rights are still centered on the issues
of violence and discrimination.
The
Commission has adopted a number of regional reports focused on the issues of
access to justice, violence against women, and discrimination, but has just
began to look closely at access to information from a gender perspective.[1][2] It has underscored that access to information is closely linked to the attainment of other key
human rights of women, such as their right to personal integrity, to privacy,
to protection of the family, and to live free from violence and discrimination.
Therefore, a failure to respect and guarantee this right for women can lead to
the infringement of their civil, political, economic, social, and cultural
rights.
Within the
framework of this initiative, the Rapporteurship will examine the main roadblocks
faced by women in obtaining basic information managed by State entities in
relation to various areas, among others:
- The
processing by the justice system of cases of violence and discrimination
against women; the functioning of the legal process in general; and ways
to avail themselves of basic guarantees and protections provided by law;
- Existing
legislation, services, and programs designed to prevent and mitigate the
effects of violence and discrimination against women;
- Measures
available to victims or potential victims of violence such as the
existence of protection and/or restraining orders; shelters; and other
social services;
- The
quality of statistics available on the issue of violence against women and
the lack of disaggregation of such statistics on the basis of race,
ethnicity, age, and other grounds;
- The
availability of public spaces for women, victims, and the organizations
that represent them to access information about the development of current
legislation and public policies pertaining to the issues of violence and
discrimination, and to have a voice in the design of interventions.
The Commission invites respondents to submit quantitative and
qualitative information related to the areas referred-to above. The information submitted can include
analysis, graphs, statistics and budgetary data, as well as other documentation
and/or material. It is requested that
the information includes insight into the situation at the national, local,
urban, and rural levels. In federal
states, information is needed for all states and provinces. Information is welcomed concerning the
specific situation of women particularly affected by barriers in access to
information, including girls, indigenous and afro-descendent women, and women
who are socio-economically disadvantaged, among others, in the terms indicated
in Article 9 of the Inter-American Convention on the Prevention, Punishment,
and Eradication of Violence against Women (Convention of Belém do Pará).
QUESTIONNAIRE
General: Protection and prevention of violence and discrimination against women
1.
Specify whether the State collects data
and figures related to the issue of violence against women. If so, please identify which government
agencies and instances collect this information.
2.
In regards to any data or figures
managed by the State in the realm of violence against women:
a.
Which are the actual figures of all
types of violence against women at the national and local levels?
b.
What types of statistics are actually
available for the different types of cases, including intra-family, sexual and
psychological violence, among others?
c.
Is there a uniform State system to
collect information on violence against women?
d.
How can persons access information
about the figures managed by the State?
e.
Is there a mechanism in place to control the
quality and integrity of the information available? To periodically update the information
available?
f.
Explain in detail any measures adopted by the State
to disaggregate the public information available on the basis of sex, age,
race, and ethnicity, among other factors, in the terms described under Article
9 of the Convention of Belém do Pará.
g.
Describe any measures adopted to ensure that women
receive information in their own language and in a way that respects their
culture.
3.
Describe the existing legal framework regulating
the access to information managed by the State in the fields of violence and
discrimination against women. Regarding
this framework, please provide the following details:
a.
Procedures which must be followed in order to
request public information.
b.
Limitations in the access to certain kinds of
information prescribed in the law.
c.
The scope and coverage of these laws to the
different branches of the State – legislative, executive, and judicial.
d.
Government organ/organs which are responsible for
monitoring compliance with these laws, and the quality and integrity of the
information provided.
e.
Legal avenues which are available in the following
cases:
i.
In order to obtain review decisions adopted by
public officials denying the information requested.
j.
In order to report the non-compliance with the
existing legislative framework.
k.
In order to report the distortion and lack of
quality in the information received.
l.
In order to report silence after the information
has not been provided within the specific time period provided for in the law.
f.
Specify whether this framework is applicable to
information managed by the administration of justice system.
g.
Describe any training programs in place for public
officials in order to promote the proper compliance with the legislative
framework referred to.
4.
Which are the existing legal norms to prevent
and sanction violence against women of national and/or local application? In regards to the mentioned laws, please
provide the following information:
a. Which types of violence are
included in these norms?
b. Do these laws contemplate protection measures
against imminent acts of violence? Are there any mechanisms in place for women
to access information related to restraining orders, shelters and other
services?
c. Are there national and/or local programs to
prevent, sanction, and/or eradicate violence against women?
d. Do existing laws related to violence against
women address the situation and specific needs of indigenous women?
e. Which types of advances have been made in the
past 5 years in the reform of the content of laws to prevent, eradicate and
sanction violence against women?
f. Which mechanisms are in place for women to
access information relevant to the enforcement of these laws and legal
developments.?
g. Are there any training programs offered to
public officials on existing laws and changes related to these in the realm of
violence against women?
h. Do public libraries carry information
related to existing legislation focused on violence against women?
5.
If the State has ratified the Convention of Belém
do Pará, has the State created any mechanisms to provide information related to
the dispositions and implementation of the mentioned Convention?
6.
Specify whether any public spaces have been created
involving the participation of State agencies and women’s rights organizations
with any of the following objectives:
a.
Incorporate their role and voice in decision-making
related to access to information; and
b.
Collaborate in the production of information and
statistics related to violence, discrimination, and other gender equality
issues.
7.
Is there any information available on budgets
allocated to different sectors working on issues pertaining to violence against
women?
8.
Are there mechanisms in place to access information
about existing sexual and reproductive health services?
Administration
of Justice: Investigation, Prosecutions, Monitoring and
Accountability
1.
Describe procedures in place to offer victims and
their family members information related to their cases of violence and
discrimination against women being processed in the civil and criminal systems.
Specify whether these programs contain measures to impart information in
different languages.
2.
Are there public legal assistance
programs? Are these programs free? In what measure are these programs used in
cases of discrimination or violence against women? Is there a specific procedure designed for
victims and family members to obtain information regarding these programs?
3.
Can it be identified how many
complaints have been received in the last 5 years of violations of the rights
of women, above all in cases of discrimination and violence? How many of these
cases have reached the sentencing stage?
4.
Do women who do not speak the official
language have access to any interpretation services when they are presenting
their complaints?
5.
In regards to ongoing investigations,
are there mechanisms in place to access information about the progress of these
investigations? Is there any information
available to the victims and their family members about protocols applicable to
cases of violence against women?
6.
Are there programs that systematize or
review case law by theme, either public or private? Do these programs include case law related to
discrimination and violence against women? Is this information available to the public?
7.
Is there any data publically available
related to the operation of the justice sector.
Please specify whether there is any data available related to the
following aspects:
- Arrests, prosecutions, and convictions.
- Restraining orders granted.
- Judgments and decisions.
- Time taken in the adjudication of
cases.
- Gender composition of judiciary.
- Any internal monitoring and
accountability mechanism.
8.
Has there been any evaluation of the
judicial system response to cases related to violence and discrimination?
[2][1]
The Latin America and
[3][3] IACHR, Access to information on Reproductive Health
from a Human Rights Perspective. 2011, para. 1.
[4][4] In this
questionnaire, the administration of justice is defined broadly, including the
ordinary judicial branch (all of its instances, tribunals, and administrative
divisions), and the police and forensic medicine services, in urban and/or
rural zones, with national and/or local competency.