A/HRC/7/78 page 68 Bearing in mind paragraph 6 of General Assembly resolution 60/251 of 15 March 2006, Recalling its resolutions 5/1 on institution-building of the United Nations Human Rights Council and 5/2 on the Code of Conduct for Special Procedures Mandate-holders of the Human Rights Council, of 18 June 2007, and stressing that the mandate-holder shall discharge his/her duties in accordance with these resolutions and the annexes thereto, 1. Strongly condemns all acts of violence against women and girls, whether these acts are perpetrated by the State, private persons or non-State actors, and calls for the elimination of all forms of gender-based violence in the family, within the general community and where perpetrated or condoned by the State, in accordance with the Declaration on the Elimination of Violence against Women, and stresses the need to treat all forms of violence against women and girls as a criminal offence, punishable by law, as well as the duty to provide access to just and effective remedies and specialized assistance to victims, including medical and psychological assistance, as well as effective counselling; 2. Welcomes the work of the Special Rapporteur on violence against women, its causes and consequences; 3. Takes note of the latest report of the Special Rapporteur (A/HRC/7/6), which includes efforts to formulate indicators on violence against women, as well as her previous reports on intersections between culture and violence against women (A/HRC/4/34) and on the due diligence standard as a tool for elimination of violence against women (E/CN.4/2006/61); 4. Welcomes the initiatives, increasing efforts and important contributions at the local, national, regional and international levels to eliminate all forms of violence against women and girls, and encourages, as a contribution to the effective implementation of the mandate of the Special Rapporteur on violence against women, its causes and consequences, the continued efforts of States, all United Nations bodies, funds and programmes, regional organizations and non-governmental organizations, including women’s organizations, to build upon and support, including through the allocation of adequate resources, these successful initiatives, and to support and participate in regional consultations in this area; 5. Decides to extend the mandate of the Special Rapporteur on violence against women, its causes and consequences, for a period of three years; 6. Invites the Special Rapporteur, in carrying out this mandate, within the framework of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and all other international human rights instruments, including the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women, the Declaration on the Elimination of Violence against Women and the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action: (a) To seek and receive information on violence against women, its causes and its consequences, from Governments, treaty bodies, specialized agencies, other special rapporteurs responsible for various human rights questions, and intergovernmental and non-governmental organizations, including women’s organizations, and to respond effectively to such information;