Expert Group Meeting on good practices in legislation on violence against women

1
The Amendments Process of the Law on Domestic
Violence in Honduras

• Expert Group Meeting on good practices in
  legislation on violence against women
• United Nations Office at Vienna, Austria
• 26 to 28 May 2008
• Claudia Herrmannsdorfer
• Latin American and Caribbean Committee for the
  Defense of Womens Rights
• (CLADEM)

2
Origin and Support for Amendments of the Law on
Domestic Violence (LDV)

• The LDV was approved in 1997 as a result of
  womens organizations advocacy. This civil law is
  sustained on CEDAW and in the Interamerican
  Convention to Prevent, Sanction and Eradicate VAW
  (Belén do Pará Convention).
• Since 1998, the Special Inter-institutional
  Commission for Monitoring Implementation of the
  Law against Domestic Violence was formed to
  coordinate actions between state institutions and
  implement best practices. Womens ngos belong to
  this Commission.

3
Amendments process

• Experience on implementation caused the necessity
  to work on amendments that included better
  mechanisms for the effectiveness of the LDV in
  its principal objective to prevent and protect
  women against domestic violence.
• For 2004 the Inter-institutional Commission had
  an amendment proposal, deeply discussed and
  agreed nationwide with state institutions and
  womens organizations advocates.

4
Amendments process support

• At the same time, PAHO (Panamerican Health
  Organization), part of the World Health
  Organization (WHO), was working on a model for
  legislation in domestic violence for Latin
  America and decided to validate some components
  of the model in the amendments process in
  Honduras.
• This model for legislation on domestic violence
  was a result of investigations in the countries
  of the region and different experts meetings and
  conclusions.
• The Inter-institutional Commission of Honduras
  included in the amendments, recommendations of
  the PAHO model.
• Womens organizations had more arguments to
  include some forms of domestic violence that were
  not well received by state institutions, for
  example restrictions on family planning rights
  as part of sexual domestic violence.
• The amendments proposal was approved by Congress
  and is effective since 2006

5
Significant amendments approved

• Protection orders and other measures were
  clarified and extended
• Police, prosecutors and/or judges can issue
  protection orders.
• Firearms possession permissions can be withdrawn.
• Women have preference rights to stay at home.
• Repeated acts of domestic violence should be
  indicted as criminal cases.

6
Significant amendments approved

• Judges can apply a precautionary embargo to grant
  child support.
• Major household items are attributed to women.
• The time for the different protection mechanisms
  was extended to a minimum of two months and a
  maximum of six.
• In case of patrimonial violence, the offender has
  the obligation of full compensation to the
  survivor, repair damages and pay bills occasioned
  to attend the effects of the domestic violence
  acts.

7
Significant amendments approved

• Better coordination and accountability mechanisms
  were established
• Special judges to follow-up sentences compliance.
  
• Police, prosecutors and/or judges can follow-up
  compliance of protection orders.
• Judges have the obligation to investigate causes
  of womens abandonment in the cases they file.
  Cases can not be closed without this
  investigation.

8
Significant amendments approved

• Better and extended definitions of the different
  forms of violence
• Sexual violence included the restriction for
  contraception and protection.
• Patrimonial violence was added and widely
  defined.
• Psychological violence was defined incorporating
  all the PAHO model legislation recommendations.

9
Significant amendments approved

• Involving other sectors of the society and state
  institutions
• Employers (private and public sector) acquire the
  obligation to grant permissions to employees that
  have to attend some measures imposed by judges in
  the implementation of the LDV, like reeducation
  sessions for men and self-support groups for
  women.
• The National Womens Institute and the
  municipalities have the obligation to install
  shelters.

10
Conclusions

• The LDV was amended considering omissions, gaps
  and different problems found in the
  implementation of the original legislation. It
  was important to have a stronger civil law, with
  a faster and more accessible procedure.
• Coordination between state institutions and
  womens ngos was important in the amendments
  process to guarantee improvements in behalf of
  womens human rights.
• International interest and support was important
  to achieve a better law. The PAHO support allowed
  the opportunity to include the lessons learned in
  other countries of the region.