A/HRC/14/44 ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________ C. Vulnerable groups 25. Owing to their vulnerability certain population groups come under particular threat during humanitarian crises or major upheavals and therefore require even greater attention to be paid to their protection needs. The persons concerned are mostly women, children, the elderly, persons with disabilities, and persons who have suffered trauma or serious injury or have lost a limb. 1. Women and gender-based violence 26. There is a considerable volume of credible evidence of the plight of women, in particular pregnant women and women with very young babies. Owing to their delicate condition they do not have access to food distribution points or to food coupons: some of them are obliged to walk for several hours and are not strong enough to carry bags of rice, or even if they are, they may have their bags of food stolen on route. There is some evidence of a very large increase in forced prostitution, especially in exchange for food or food coupons. There is considerable evidence of violence against women and girls, in particular in the camps but also in the various quarters of Port-au-Prince and other disasterstricken towns in which makeshift shelters have been set up. 27. There are allegations of a 150 per cent increase in incidents of violence reported to the Haitian National Police, which means that the estimates must be far lower than the true figures, for many women and girls were reluctant in the past and are still reluctant to make complaints. The lack of security in the camps, the poor lighting at night, the dearth of proper sanitation facilities and the shortage of shelters or tents which compels people to cohabit with strangers are the commonest reported causes of gender-based violence. 28. An increasing number of these acts of violence are committed by gangs of men, who are able to proceed with absolute impunity even though their names are known. This situation is further aggravated by the fact that the principal hospitals which used to examine sexually assaulted women in order to certify their condition have been destroyed and the civil society organizations which used to work on these cases have been disbanded or have ceased to operate. Nevertheless, from the third week after the earthquake a number of organizations (such as Kay Fanm, Solidarité Fanm Ayisyen (SOFA) and Fanm Décidé) began to care for women victims of violence. The National Police does not seem particularly anxious to receive and process complaints; clear instructions ought to be given by the National Police authorities concerning procedures for dealing with this type of violence, in particular with respect to the receipt of complaints and increased patrols inside and in the vicinity of the camps. What is more, the General Hospital in Port-au-Prince has ceased to issue certificates to women victims of violence on the pretext that this not an “essential service”. 29. The issue of violence against women must be treated as a high priority and steps must be taken to combat the existing fatalism and impunity, so that women who suffer or are threatened with violence are given clear and sufficient information. Protected washing and toilet facilities must be installed in order to keep women safe from men’s eyes, and patrols including female members (of the National Police and the United Nations Police (UNPOL)) should maintain surveillance, particularly in high-risk zones. 30. Lastly, the Guidelines for Gender-Based Violence Interventions in Humanitarian Settings8 of the Inter-Agency Standing Committee should be widely publicized and issued to the personnel of the National Police, MINUSTAH and other bodies. They contain numerous specific recommendations applicable to the situation in Haiti. 8 8 http://www.womenwarpeace.org/docs/GBV_Guidelines_pdf. GE.10-13204 (EXT)