A/HRC/25/40 5. Violence against women 72. Women in the Occupied Palestinian Territory face multiple layers of violence and discrimination. The analysis made by the Special Rapporteur on violence against women in 2005 remains valid. She found that the combination of decades of Israeli occupation, the use of force against Palestinians by Israel, the different forms of resistance used by Palestinians against such use of force and the patriarchy prevailing in Palestinian society expose women to a continuum of violence in all spheres of life.89 73. Palestinian NGOs report that violence against women continues to be widespread90 and so-called “honour killings”91 remain of concern. Family honour plays a fundamental role in Palestinian society. Although there are no reliable statistics on “honour killings,”92 in 2012,93 ICHR documented five such cases across the Occupied Palestinian Territory.94 However, there appears to be underreporting of cases; 13 additional cases of murder of women were documented as occurring under “mysterious” circumstances, which indicates that the number of “honour killings” may be higher.95 74. In 2011, the Palestinian President abolished article 340 of the 1960 Jordanian Penal Code,96 which had been in force in the West Bank, and which allowed effective impunity for men who kill or injure their wives or female relatives (maharim) 97 whom they consider to be involved in adultery. However, this measure has not been effective as provisions establishing mitigating circumstances remain in force, in particular article 98 of the Penal Code,98 which provides for reduced penalties for a person who commits a crime in a state of great anger resulting from a wrongful and dangerous act on the part of the victim.99 An NGO study of cases of “honour killings” between 2005 and 2010 showed that the evocation of such mitigating circumstances had dramatically reduced penalties.100 In eight out of 10 cases, the perpetrators were charged with premeditated murder, which carries life imprisonment,101 however, in most of the cases, due to a combination of mitigating circumstances and the victim’s family’s decision to “drop” the victim’s personal rights,102 89 90 91 92 93 94 95 96 97 98 99 100 101 102 A/HRC/13/54, para. 54; E/CN.4/2005/72/Add. 4. Women’s Studies Centre and Women’s Affairs Center, Palestinian women in the cycle of violence, December 2012. While some Palestinian NGOs prefer the term “femicide”, this report follows the terminology used by the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women. A/HRC/13/54, para 56; also http://www.pwrdc.ps/site_files/Fact%20Sheet%20E%20%20Womens.pdf. The Women’s Centre for Legal Aid and Counselling (WCLAC) recorded 25 cases of gender-based killings between January and October 2013. ICHR, Eighteenth Annual Report, 2012, p. 68. Reportedly, in one case the medical report falsely stated that the cause of the death was natural; see ICHR, Eighteenth Annual Report, 2012, p. 275. Gaza applies the Mandatory Criminal Code Ordinance No. 74 of 1936. Maharim means relatives whom one cannot marry. See also OHCHR, “The consistency of applicable Palestinian legislation with international human rights law”, 2013, p. 9. Also articles 97 and 99. This provision has been used repeatedly to reduce penalties for perpetrators of “honour killings”; see also Lynn Welchman and Sara Hossain, eds., ‘Honour’: Crimes, Paradigms and Violence Against Women, (London, U.K., Zed Books, 2005), pp. 174–176. WCLAC, “Court judgments issued against perpetrators of murders of women”, 2011 (in Arabic). Article 328 of the 1960 Jordanian Penal Code establishes the death penalty for premeditated murder. However, ordinarily, this is replaced by life imprisonment. The Jordanian Penal Code provides for the protection of two types of rights: personal and societal; a victim, in this case, the victim’s family, can renounce the criminal action related to personal rights. However, victims cannot renounce criminal actions related to societal rights, since they fall outside of the personal sphere. 17