A/HRC/11/6 page 19 women who never experienced violence by their partner”. Women who experienced abuse declared having problems walking and in carrying out their daily work, feeling pains, loss of memory, dizziness [and miscarriage] in the four weeks preceding the survey.47 59. VAW affects women’s sexual and reproductive health, which is a key aspect of women’s right to health.48 The experience of violence adversely affects reproductive health regardless of wealth.49 Survivors of VAW have the right to adequate reparation and rehabilitation that covers their physical and mental health.50 But this support is often not provided. The privatization of health services may affect women survivors’ access to health care since the introduction of user-fees for patients has been shown to greatly reduce women’s attendance at health clinics.51 60. VAW is also considered to be a leading cause of HIV/AIDS, affecting women’s right to health.52 Given the increasing feminization of HIV/AIDS,53 eliminating VAW is a critical intervention to reduce the pandemic. VAW or fear of it also prevents many women from asking their partners to practise safe sex leading to higher HIV rates. Many women also experience severe violence at the hands of their partners as soon as their diagnosis becomes known. In order to care for family members with HIV/AIDS, they may feel forced into high-risk work such as the sex industry or keep children, especially girls, out of school to help with tasks - thereby entrenching the intergenerational transmission of poverty and violence.54 6. Right to education 61. Women’s access to education is a prerequisite for improving their capabilities and attaining greater self-confidence. Educational levels have also been found to be positively correlated with 47 Multi-Country Study on Women’s Health and Domestic Violence against Women, Geneva, 2005, p. 14 (available at http://www.who.int/gender/violence/who_multicountry_ study/en/). 48 Human Rights, Health and Poverty… (note 46 above), p. 9. 49 Kishor, S. and Johnson, K. “Reproductive health and domestic violence: Are the poorest women uniquely disadvantaged?” Demography, Vol. 43, No. 2 (May 2006), p. 303. 50 OHCHR and WHO, The Right to Health, Fact Sheet, No .31, p. 13 (http://www.ohchr.org/ Documents/Publications/Factsheet31.pdf). 51 Ibid., p.27. 52 See my report on “intersections of violence against women and HIV/AIDS” (E/CN.4/2005/72). 53 Today 50 per cent of the 30.8 million adults with HIV are women. 54 UNFPA, The State of World Population 2008, p. 61.