A/HRC/35/30/Add.3 B. Policy framework 66. The National Women’s Council had established a free helpline (144) operated by psychologists and lawyers 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, which provided advice and information on assistance available to victims of violence. The helpline received an average of 9,000 calls per month and had experienced challenges in expanding its national coverage and coordinating its services with emergency assistance services and complaint procedures. The Special Rapporteur was informed that the helpline was being expanded in cooperation with the Office of the Under-Secretary for Gender and Diversity of the Province of Buenos Aires. However, several NGOs and victims stated that the capacity of the helpline was insufficient, that it did not provide information in indigenous languages and that it was not adapted for deaf women. 67. At the time of the Special Rapporteur’s visit, there were 87 State-run shelters for victims of domestic violence in Argentina, as well as several shelters operated by NGOs. The Special Rapporteur visited several of those shelters and met staff who were devoted to their work and delivering much needed assistance and services. In one province, however, there was not a single shelter in operation. The Special Rapporteur received information that there were no shelters in rural and remote areas of the country. She noted that there were only a few shelters available throughout the country for victims of trafficking. 68. In July 2016, the Government announced its National Action Plan for 2017-201964 with the mission to guarantee the right of every woman to a life free of violence and to achieve the implementation of Law No. 26.485 on violence against women. The Plan set out the three-year budget, of which 80 per cent was earmarked for the construction of 36 comprehensive protection homes (shelters). It comprised 69 measures and 137 actions and had been validated by 50 public institutions from all three branches of government. The Plan proposed the incorporation of a gender-based perspective at the educational level; the conducting of mass awareness-raising campaigns to increase the profile of the emergency helpline (144) for victims; and increased spending on women’s rights initiatives in various government agencies. Stakeholders had raised concerns that information about the resources provided by the various national ministries involved in the Plan was not available and it was not clear whether the budget would be sufficient to ensure financing of the activities included in the Plan.65 C. Institutional framework: national machinery and independent institutions 69. The National Women’s Council is the governing body responsible for developing public policies on prevention, punishment and eradication of violence against women. The strategic priorities of the Council include eradication of all forms of violence against women and girls; economic empowerment and promotion of the autonomy of women; political empowerment, participation and equality for women in all areas of decisionmaking. The Council worked in the areas of gender violence, women and health, employment, communication and politics66 and had important responsibilities regarding the implementation of Law No. 26.485. 70. The Special Rapporteur welcomed the Council’s efforts to promote and monitor the implementation of the State’s international obligations relating to gender equality and violence against women and to coordinate its work with that of the provincial and municipal Women’s Offices with a view to implementing national plans in the area of gender equality and the 2017-2019 National Action Plan. She was, however, concerned 64 65 66 16 Argentina, Plan Nacional de Acción para la Prevención, Asistencia y Erradicación de la Violencia Contra las Mujeres 2017-2019. Available at https://www.argentina.gob.ar/sites/default/files/ consejo_nacional_de_mujeres_plan_nacional_de_accion_contra_violencia_genero_2017_2019.pdf. ANDHES and others, “Evaluation of compliance with the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women in Argentina” (October 2016). See www.cnm.gov.ar/.