For World Elder Abuse Awareness Day – 15 June 2015
Older persons are still subjected to abuse and violence
on a daily basis, UN rights experts warns
GENEVA (12 June 2015) – Older persons have rights and
must be able to live free from abuse and violence and with dignity and respect,
a group of United Nations human rights experts said today, speaking ahead of
the World Elder Abuse Awareness Day, which will be marked on Monday 15 June.
“Our ageing populations are still subject to different
forms of abuse and violence on a daily basis, even though innovative policies
and programs have been adopted by many countries at the national level,” said
Rosa Kornfeld-Matte, the Independent Expert mandated by the UN Human Rights to
monitor and report on the enjoyment of all human rights by older persons in the
world.
The United Nations Special Rapporteur on violence against
women, Rashida Manjoo highlighted the need to look at these issues from a
gender perspective, age being an established contributory factor for risk of
violence.
“Older women, due to their age and related physical,
social and economic disadvantages are indeed particularly vulnerable to
violence”, she said. “But the ways that older women’s rights are abused and the
forms of violence affecting them have been so far seriously overlooked and neglected.”
“The array of forms of violence against older women, as
well as the fact that this violence frequently occurs at the intersection of
different types of discrimination, calls for the adoption of multidimensional
strategies to effectively prevent and fight this violence,” Ms. Manjoo added.
Human rights expert Emna Aouij, who currently heads the
UN Working Group on discrimination against women in law and in practice, noted
that “violence and abuse against older women stem from multiple forms of
discrimination that they may face during their lifetime.”
“Discriminatory laws and practices against women in all
spheres of their political, economic, social and family lives fuel violence and
abuse and must be repealed,” Ms. Aouij stressed.
The UN Independent Expert on older persons warned that
“implementation and enforcement are still inadequate to prevent, criminalize
and eliminate such outrageous practices against older persons.”
“It is time for effective action. Urgent action must be
taken to put an end to such a pressing and global issue that destroys lives and
families in all regions, in developing and developed countries,” Ms.
Kornfeld-Matte said, recalling the obligations on all States to eliminate elder
abuse, through legislation and comprehensive policies and preventive
strategies.
“On this World Elder Abuse Awareness Day, we call on all
Governments and civic society organisations to renew their commitment to fight
against all forms of abuse and violence against older persons,” the human
rights experts said.
On Monday 15 June, UN human rights specialists and other
international experts will gather in Geneva to mark the UN World Elder Abuse
Awareness Day. The experts will discuss the issue of abuse and violence against
older women, in an event co-organized by the UN High Commissioner for Human
Rights with civil society organizations.
ENDS
The Independent Experts, Special Rapporteurs, and Working
Groups are part of what is known as the Special Procedures of the Human Rights
Council.
Special Procedures, the largest body of independent experts in the UN
Human Rights system, is the general name of the Council’s independent
fact-finding and monitoring mechanisms that address either specific country
situations or thematic issues in all parts of the world.
Special Procedures’
experts work on a voluntary basis; they are not UN staff and do not receive a
salary for their work.
They are independent from any government or organization
and serve in their individual capacity.
Learn more, visit:
Violence against women:
http://www.ohchr.org/EN/Issues/Women/SRWomen/Pages/SRWomenIndex.aspx
Discrimination against women:
http://www.ohchr.org/EN/Issues/Women/WGWomen/Pages/WGWomenIndex.aspx
For further information and media requests, please
contact Mr. Khaled Hassine (+41 22 917 93 87 / khassine@ohchr.org) or write to
olderpersons@ohchr.org
For media inquiries related to other UN independent
experts:
Xabier Celaya, UN Human Rights – Media Unit (+ 41 22 917
9383 / xcelaya@ohchr.org)
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Check the Universal Human Rights Index:
http://uhri.ohchr.org/en
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