A/HRC/44/52/Add.2 Ecuadorians abroad. In 2012, the Office became the national mechanism for the prevention of torture and is recognized as such by the United Nations (HRI/CORE/ECU/2018, para. 120). The Office has the authority to raise awareness on any matter related to human rights and administer the law protecting people from discrimination based on different grounds. E. Provision of shelters and access to essential services 47. In March 2015, the National Directorate for Domestic and Gender Violence was created, through Ministerial Agreement 870 issued by the former Ministry of Justice, Human Rights and Religious Affairs, now the Human Rights Secretariat. The Directorate had a protection unit for victims of violence that was responsible for the implementation, institutionalization and expansion of the national network of shelters and specialized care centres for victims of violence, within the framework of the national plan to eradicate gender-based violence. The Directorate was converted into a Subsecretariat in 2018, pursuant to Presidential Decree No. 560. 48. During her visit, the Special Rapporteur was concerned by the fact that almost all interlocutors with whom she met pointed to the dire shortage of adequate shelters throughout the country offering a safe house for women and girls who had been victims of violence, particularly in indigenous communities and in rural and remote areas. The limited support provided to the shelters that are in place and the lack of coordinated, genderfriendly and comprehensive essential services for survivors of violence are also of considerable concern. 49. The lack of safe shelters and 24-hour helplines, as well as the lack of awareness among women of their rights in such cases, only contributes to the high level of impunity of perpetrators of violence against women. F. Protection orders 50. The Comprehensive Organic Law to Prevent and Eradicate Violence against Women provides for protection orders in cases of domestic violence. While some progress has been made in this regard, there is a lack of awareness among women of this right, along with a lack of coordination between Community Police Units and Judicial Units specializing in violence against women. Strengthened cooperation between Community Police Units and these Judicial Units is essential for the full implementation of this Law and its corresponding protection measures. It seems, however, that the police are not receiving sufficient training on how to address cases of gender-based violence, particularly in relation to risk assessment in cases involving violence against women. IV. Manifestations of violence against women, its causes and consequences 51. The collection of data on violence against women by the National Statistics Institute is commendable and represents a positive step to measure and respond to violence against women and girls as a matter of public concern. Data shared with the Special Rapporteur demonstrate that 65 per cent of women have been victims of some form of violence, with 60 per cent having experienced psychological violence, and between 30 and 40 per cent having suffered from physical violence. 7 However, data on femicide or gender-related killings of women and on suicides of women remains limited. 7 INEC, Encuesta Nacional sobre Relaciones Familiares y Violencia de Género contra las Mujeres. 9