Torture of women is a fundamental violation of human rights, prohibited in all circumstances under international law. Yet despite the gains that women around the world have made in asserting their rights, the torture of women is a daily reality. It is rooted in pervasive discrimination that continues to deny women full equality with men and that legitimizes violence against women. Sometimes the perpetrators of acts of violence against women are agents of the state, such as police officers, prison guards or soldiers. Sometimes they are members of armed groups fighting against the government. However, much of the physical, mental and sexual abuse faced by women is at the hands of people they know, such as husbands, fathers, employers or neighbours.States have a duty to ensure that no one is is subjected to torture or ill-treatment, whether inflicted by agents of the state or by private individuals. Yet far from protecting women, states all around the world have allowed beatings, rape and other acts of torture to continue unchecked. When a state fails to take effective measures to protect women from torture, it shares responsbility for the suffering these women endure.
- ISBN10 0862102960
- ISBN13 9780862102968
- Publish Date 29 March 2001
- Publish Status Out of Print
- Out of Print 30 January 2013
- Publish Country GB
- Imprint Amnesty International UK
- Format Paperback
- Pages 67
- Language English