A/HRC/41/42/Add.2 65. Violence against women disproportionately affects women and girls who face intersecting and multiple forms of discrimination, such as Dalit women, indigenous women, including Madhesi, Tharu and Badi women, lesbian and bisexual women and transgender and intersex persons, women from religious minorities, women with disabilities, women living in remote areas, single women (widows), women affected by leprosy and women human rights defenders. 66. In the new Constitution of 2015, the rights of all castes, races and ethnicities were enshrined under fundamental rights. Through the adoption of the Caste-based and Other Social Untouchability and Discrimination (Offence and Punishment) Act of 2011, the rights of Dalit and other women discriminated against on the basis of caste were further protected, while the Government has also established policies to combat untouchability through social inclusion. Despite the commendable legal provisions, Dalit women continue to face multiple forms of discrimination, including exclusion through customary provisions of caste institutions on the basis of the notion of purity and pollution, patriarchal attitudes and gender discrimination. As a result of such exclusion and discrimination, they endure extreme forms of poverty, humiliation and the denial of social and economic rights. 19 Their vulnerable economic status, combined with the patriarchal values, exposes them to various forms of violence. 67. Indigenous women experiencing family violence are one of the most marginalized and disadvantaged groups in society. The causes of the overrepresentation of indigenous women in rates of family violence are complex and intersectional, as such women face multiple and intersecting forms of discrimination on the grounds of gender and race. In addition to sexism and racism, indigenous women also face class-based discrimination, owing to their low socioeconomic status, and social exclusion in regional or remote geographical locations. Those forms of discrimination and exclusion create extremely difficult social conditions and manifest themselves in an alarmingly high prevalence of violence against indigenous women, who continue to experience higher rates of domestic and family violence and more severe forms of such violence as compared with other women. 68. Although violence against persons with disabilities is prohibited under the Human Rights for Persons with Disabilities Act of 2017, the legislative process has not yet been successful in the prevention or the reduction of violence. In 2018, the Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities expressed concerns “about the reportedly high number of cases of sexual violence and abuse of women and girls, including cases of gang rape of women and girls with disabilities, and that some cases remain unreported” (CRPD/C/NPL/CO/1, para. 11). The Special Rapporteur received reports that women with psychosocial disabilities faced significant obstacles to obtaining access to justice. The prevalent practice of restricting the exercise of legal capacity makes it impossible for such women to initiate or participate in legal proceedings on their own behalf, and public officials, because of their prejudices, tend to doubt the credibility of the testimonies of such women. Women and girls with disabilities face additional obstacles to leaving situations of family violence. They often live in a circle of poverty, violence and homelessness. Service providers are also often slow to react to financial abuse by family members. Furthermore, on the basis of the information received and the shelters visited, the Special Rapporteur noted that there is a lack of culturally sensitive accessibility for disabled women. 69. Through her interactions with members of the lesbian, bisexual, transgender and intersex community, the Special Rapporteur learned that, despite progressive legislation, the prevailing stigma, family pressure and traditional social expectations in Nepalese society have led to continuing discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation. Lesbian and bisexual women and transgender and intersex persons experience discrimination in all aspects of their lives, including in the home, at work and in the health-care and education sectors. The Special Rapporteur is concerned at reports suggesting the use of “corrective rape” and reports of violence allegedly perpetrated by police officers, including verbal 19 14 See https://tbinternet.ohchr.org/Treaties/CEDAW/Shared%20Documents/ NPL/INT_CEDAW_CSS_NPL_32516_E.pdf.