A/HRC/17/22
against Women (“Belém do Pará”) as a framework for the due diligence requirements. The
Court said that restoration of the situation prior to the violation was not sufficient and
confirmed that the structural inequalities had to be subverted. Ms. Rubio-Marín stressed
that, for the first time, a case highlighted the gendered nature of the harms and applied a
gender perspective to the reparations.
32.
Ms. Hossain presented examples of public interest cases where national courts in
Bangladesh had applied various international standards, including CEDAW and its general
recommendation No. 19, regarding cases of gender-based violence. In these cases, focusing
mainly on forced veiling and corporal punishment in public institutions, the remedies
provided for by the courts not only focused on individual relief, but also on broader
structural changes needed. Ms. Hossain explained that public interest litigation had also
been used to prevent extra-judicial penalties against women in the name of “fatwa”, citing a
case where the court acknowledged that “fatwas” are not recognized by Bangladesh law
and referred to the constitution and international norms that prohibit violence against
women.
33.
Ms. Hossain noted that the main challenges were, inter alia: (a) the endemic level of
non-compliance with judgements; (b) the difficulty in implementing the judgements from
the Supreme Court at the local level; (c) the lack of access to justice and legal aid; (d) the
lack of witness and victim protection measures; (e) gender bias in the criminal justice
system; and (f) widespread structural poverty. In terms of good practices, these public
interest cases provided for a combination of individual relief and broader social remedy; the
possibility for women’s organizations to petition on behalf of the claimant; the use of
international law in a progressive and strategic manner; and the focus of remedies on
preventive aspects. She concluded by recommending the dissemination of progressive
judgements promoting the use of international law at national level.
34.
Mr. Carranza structured his presentation around three types of challenges:
conceptual, practical and ideological. He argued that making reparations transformative
conceptually went beyond gender. He also pointed out the need to recognize the larger
context of violence that affects women, not only the direct victims of this violence. In
Nepal for instance, there were important issues at stake, including caste, class, ethnicity and
other forms of discrimination, which are usually not dealt with in the reparations
programmes, in addition to gender discrimination. In Sierra Leone, the original reparations
proposed by the truth commission could not be implemented for lack of resources.
35.
Mr. Carranza also emphasized some practical challenges, including the mapping and
registration of victims and beneficiaries, their participation in designing the reparation
programmes, and the financial resources needed for implementation of the reparation
programme itself and its longer-term sustainability, citing the problem of Nepal, where
implementation of reparations was dependent on donors. Regarding ideological challenges,
Mr. Carranza affirmed that, if they were to be transformative, reparations should not be
limited to civil and political rights. He stated that one should wonder about the goals of
reparations and transitional justice (is it truth, justice or equality?). Reparations should
strive to subvert gender hierarchies, the systemic marginalization of groups and structural
inequalities.
36.
In the discussion session that followed, questions were asked about good practices in
reaching out to religious leaders; the responsibilities of the State and donors regarding
funding for reparation programmes; and the direction taken by the International Criminal
Court vis-à-vis reparations. The representative of Nepal affirmed his country’s commitment
to address the issues stemming from the conflict via the two commissions on truth and
reconciliation. The representative of Peru asked how to overcome obstacles regarding
registration of victims and ascertainment of facts. The representative of Timor-Leste
pointed to the uniqueness of the case of Timor-Leste, where most of the perpetrators of the
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