WOMEN’S UN REPORT NETWORK

1. WOMEN’S UN REPORT NETWORK WUNRN http://www.wunrn.com NETWORK FOR EUROPEAN WOMEN’S RIGHTS NEWR FINAL CONFERENCE 30 June-1 July, 2005 CRIMES OF HONOR IN EUROPE In the Context of the Status of Women, Freedom of Religion or Belief & Traditions

3. WUNRN INTRODUCTION The United Nations Study on Freedom of Religion or Belief and the Status of Women from the Viewpoint of Religion and Traditions is a major, universal, comprehensive approach to discrimination against women and girls based on religion or traditions. To strengthen the nexus between women’s rights and freedom of religion or belief, it is important to build on the Juridical and Factual Aspects of this UN Study by research, plans of action, and projects.

4. WUNRN HISTORY In 2002, the UN Study is written by Special Rapporteur Abdelfattah Amor of Tunisia. The Study is considered a breakthrough in that it is the ONLY UN document/mechanism to date that clearly addresses the intersection between the Status of Women and Freedom of Religion or Belief. In 2003, in Geneva, Special Rapporteur Amor introduced his Study to the UN Commission on Human Rights and was part of a panel on “Violence Against Women: What Next?” with the late UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Sergio Viera de Mello, and then UN Special Rapporteur on Violence Against Women, Radhika Coomaraswamy. In 2004, in Geneva, a WUNRN Workshop panel “WUNRN: Building on the UN Study,” with UN Special Rapporteur Amor, new UN Special Rapporteur on Violence Against Women, Yakin Erturk and several distinguished Women’s NGO leaders introduced the WUNRN Website during the UN Commission on Human Rights.

7. JURIDICAL ASPECTS The Universal Declaration of Human Rights affirms, “Recognition of the inherent dignity and of the equal and inalienable rights of all members of the human family is the foundation of freedom, peace and justice in the world.” The UN Study reaffirms this by stating women’s human rights are universal, not international. The question of discrimination against women from the viewpoint of religion and traditions has not been directly addressed in international instruments as stated by the UN Study. In many countries forms of discrimination against women are based on or attributed to religion and culture and may be tolerated or even legalized.

12. From the Kvinnoforum Sherazad Project “Honour based violence is a form of violence perpetrated against females within the famework of patriarchal family structures, communities and societies, where the main claim for the perpetration of violence is the protection of a social construction of honour as a value system, norm or tradition.”

15. HOW CAN WUNRN SUPPORT WOMEN’S RIGHTS IN EUROPE TO REDUCE/ELIMINATE CRIMES OF HONOR?

16. Social policy monitoring on Crimes of Honor - Europe, United Nations, National/Countries. • Continuous dissemination of Crimes of Honor news, research, references, via the WUNRN ListServe. • WUNRN workshops, programs, and materials. • Networks and collaborations on Crimes of Honor. ● ● ● ●

17. The Women’s UN Report Network calls for research on issues of violence against women in the European Union in the context of religion or belief and traditions, and specifically on Crimes of Honor. While the European Union countries, have signed on officially to CEDAW and other UN documents addressing gender; and the European Union has provided legal framework of specific aspects of women’s human rights as in economics, education, and health, there is still a huge gap in research, policy, political will, and enforcement mechanisms in areas that are more elusive as relating to religion or belief, traditions, culture, and the family or private sphere.

21. WUNRN LISTSERVE Considered to be the most active Gender ListServe in the world.

29. Women’s UN Report Network WUNRN & Crimes of Honor

35. WUNRN hopes that this Resolution on Crimes of Honor, CEDAW, the Declaration on the Elimination of Violence Against Women, related European Union and State documents, and the UN Study of WUNRN, can be the basis on which to do further research in the European Union, possibly with one or more selected countries as the United Kingdom, to explore the statistical, legislative, judicial, law enforcement, service, prevention, and other multiple dimensions of Crimes of Honor and ways to prevent and address by political will and public mentality, International law and sovereign/domestic State laws and actions, can be combined for saving lives of women and girls in Europe from Crimes of Honor.

36. Crimes of Honor UN Resolution Requests UN Secretary-General To Report On Implementation at 60th Session of UN General Assembly UNITED NATIONS GENERAL ASSEMBLY A/C.3/59/L.25 15 October 2004 WORKING TOWARDS THE ELIMINATION OF CRIMES AGAINST WOMEN AND GIRLS COMMITTED IN THE NAME OF HONOR 5.REQUESTS THE SECRETARY-GENERAL TO REPORT ON THE IMPLEMENTATION OF THE PRESENT RESOLUTION IN HIS REPORT ON THE QUESTION OF VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN TO THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY AT ITS SIXTIETH SESSION.

37. Honor Killings Make Dishonorable Men.              By Dr. Carole FontaineThey say it is for honor.It is not.They say it is for family.It is not.They say it is Tradition.It is not.They say it is Religion.It is not.Give it a real name:call it despair that makes a manfind his courage there,in slaying a female!Such an honorable deed!such an inconvenient need,keeping women alivejust so they can breed!Are they human, these brave men?Do they also bleed,or have human feelings,or only the needto feed upon helplessand those who depend-a mother, a daughter, a wife, a friend-all fodder for honormen shall never achieveby such bloody measures,for such raging greedto be powerful, male, in control, and avenged.When all the women are gone,where is their honor then?