A/HRC/44/52/Add.2 A. Femicide or gender-related killings of women 52. Ecuador is among the countries in the Latin American and Caribbean region with the highest rates of femicide. Between January 2014 and February 2019, 642 femicides were recorded in the country, including 28 girls and 55 adolescents. 8 The Special Rapporteur notes that only those cases of femicide that are prosecuted as such are included in official statistical data. Comparable administrative data on cases of femicide or gender-related killing of women and girls disaggregated by the age and ethnicity of the victim, the sex of the perpetrator, and the relationship between the perpetrator and the victim are not available. 53. The Comprehensive Criminal Code defines femicide as the exercise of power relations resulting in the death of a woman for “being a woman” (art. 141). It is punishable with a prison sentence ranging from 22 to 26 years. The Criminal Code also provides for funds to be made available for children who have been orphaned as a result of femicide. The Special Rapporteur welcomes the proposal to expand the compensation coverage of these provisions, particularly as data collected indicate that between January 2014 and February 2019, some 600 children were orphaned as a result of femicide.9 54. During her visit, the Special Rapporteur met with a woman whose daughter had been killed in front of the daughter’s four children, despite having been granted a protection order and access to a panic button. It is evident that, while there are some provisions in law and some practical measures in place to address femicide, the lack of coordination between the police, prosecutors and relevant administering agencies is hampering the implementation of preventive measures. 55. While data exist on prosecuted cases of femicide, there is a lack of official administrative data on all gender-related killings of women and girls. The Special Rapporteur reiterates the call she made for all States to establish a “femicide watch”, a “gender-related killing of women watch” or observatories on violence against women, and to collect and release data each year on 25 November, the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women, on the number of intimate partner and the number of family-related femicides based on an established relationship between the victim and the perpetrator, and the number of other gender-related killings (see A/71/398). Data on perpetrators and the prosecution of cases should also be collected and published. Most importantly, all such cases should be carefully analysed by a specialized observatory or femicide watch to identify any failure of protection, with a view to improving and developing further preventive measures. 56. The Special Rapporteur commends the work being carried out by non-governmental organizations, including women’s organizations at the local level, to quantify genderrelated killings of women. The Asociación Latinoamericana para el Desarrollo Alternativo (Latin American association for alternative development – Aldea), for example, has been collating information and data on violence and associated injuries and on incidents related to gender-based violence and killings.10 B. Domestic violence 57. Domestic violence continues to pervade society in Ecuador, with 20 per cent of women having experienced some form of violence in the home within her lifetime. In 2019, 4 per cent of women had experienced some form of violence at home. 11 Domestic violence, including physical, sexual and psychological abuse, is still considered a private matter and not an issue of public concern in most parts of the country. The incidence of domestic violence is still underreported, owing in part to the lack of public awareness about this 8 9 10 11 10 Data compiled through the Asociación Latinoamericana para el Desarrollo Alternativo. See www.fundacionaldea.org/noticias-aldea/tag/Feminicidios. Ibid. Ibid. INEC, Encuesta Nacional sobre Relaciones Familiares y Violencia de Género contra las Mujeres.