ISBN: 978-9953-0-2431-8 EAN: 9789953024318 © United Nations Population Fund - Lebanon, 2012. All rights reserved. Disclaimer: The views expressed in this publication are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the United Nations Population Fund. June 2010 Prepared by Centre of Arab Women for Training and Research (CAWTAR) United Nations Population Fund - Lebanon Situation Analysis 02 of Gender-Based Violence in Lebanon Foreword FOREWORD Despite the significant progress achieved in Lebanon with regard to women empowerment and specifically women and girls’ access to education and participation in social, economic and cultural fields, and despite the endorsement of Lebanon of most human rights instruments, and despite the fact that violence against women has become a phenomenon in the spotlight and is referred to as a form of discrimination and a violation of human rights of women, Violence against women is still part our daily lives and within its different forms. In addition, available data on violence against women remains scarce and scattered and efforts for addressing and ending this violence remain modestly coordinated. Over the years, UNFPA has worked closely with government institutions, civil society organizations, academic institutions, media, etc… for the advancement of women through promoting legal measures, raising awareness and supporting research and training. Since 2008, UNFPA has been collaborating with gender-based violence (GBV) actors in Lebanon, through the support of the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs/Italian Cooperation to mainstream and institutionalize GBV prevention and response in national planning and development. In accordance with the key priorities for 2010 which were identified jointly as a result of a close coordination and consultation with concerned stakeholders, four national studies on GBV in Lebanon and one GBV lexicon were completed: • Situation Analysis of Gender-Based Violence • Assessment of Media Coverage of Gender-Based Violence • Review of Gender-Based Violence Research • Review of Gender-Based Violence Resource and Training Materials • Gender-Based Violence Lexicon New evidence generated by “Situation Analysis of Gender-Based Violence in Lebanon” a comprehensive overview of the GBV situation in Lebanon in terms of legislations, programmes, services, resources, actors, among others. As such, this study aims at achieving the following objectives: (a) Provide an overall context of Lebanon as regard to the system in place, as well as to gender equality and development achievements as seen through the perspective of MD/MDGs (b) Carry out a legal review and conformity assessment to identify gender gaps in national legislation and discrepancies between national laws and commitments against ratified international treaties (c) Carry out an assessment of existing programmes and services provided by governmental and non-governmental institutions (d) Identify, through mapping, the institutional mechanisms and related organizations which contribute, or could contribute to the reform process and/or social change (e) Define the challenges and way forward with a summary of the conclusions and recommendations, through the categorizing of the findings and recommendations stemming from the review using international references and important legal aspects related to the status of women and other policy/programmes domains The development of these studies is not an end in itself and we hope that they will provide evidence and recommendations that will assist national and international actors in addressing GBV at multiple levels and in putting an end to end this human rights violation and obstacle to development. Situation Analysis of Gender-Based Violence in Lebanon 03 ACKNOWLEGEMENT This study was commissioned by UNFPA to the Centre of Arab Women for Training and Research and has benefited extensively from the contributions, efforts and energy of many persons. Ms. Asma Kurdahi provided overall guidance and advice throughout the undertaking of the study. Ms. Nicia El Dannawi ensured meticulous follow up to the study and contributed to the editing process. Ms. Barbara Carlson was responsible for editing this study. UNFPA wishes to thank all partners and stakeholders - namely governmental institutions and administrations, non-governmental organizations, universities, research centers, and experts - who contributed their knowledge, experience and time towards the development, review, and validation of this study. Situation Analysis 04 of Gender-Based Violence in Lebanon Research Center and Team RESEARCH CENTER AND TEAM The Centre of Arab Women for Training and Research The Centre of Arab Women for Training and Research (CAWTAR) was set up in March 1993, with the aim to generate knowledge and enhance technical and institutional capacity in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region in ways which would enable Arab women to become fully empowered and to enjoy their human rights as part of the development of their communities and societies. Unique in the Arab world and in the MENA region, CAWTAR is an international, non-governmental organization with full diplomatic status, established through an agreement between the Arab Gulf Program for Development (AGFUND) and the Tunisian Government and based in Tunis. The board of trustees interacts with such United Nations organizations as the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) as founding members, and the United Nations Development Fund for Women (UNIFEM) as observer; with such intergovernmental institutions as the League of Arab States and the World Bank; and with governmental organizations and institutions of many countries, including AGFUND and International Planned Parenthood Federation (IPPF). The outreach, knowledge sharing and advocacy of CAWTAR, both within the region and further afield, are managed by the Arab Network for Gender and Development (ANG@ED), which has currently more than 300 members. CAWTAR interventions are undertaken to ensure consensus building and ownership by all concerned stakeholders, including right holders, duty bearers and partners. For that purpose, at each stage, from strategic thinking to the final evaluation of the work, implementation is done as a consultative and participatory process. Research Team Dr Faiza Benhadid: Gender & Human Rights Senior Expert, Team Leader Dr Leila Youssef Azouri: Professor at the Lebanese University, Faculty of Law and Political Sciences Dr Faysal El Kak: Professor at the American University of Beirut, Faculty of Health Sciences Ms Hedia Belhadj Youssef Sebai: Documentation Officer & GBV coordinator Ms Raghida Ghamlouch: Social Worker, Research Assistant Ms Hikmet Zouari: Administrative & Finance Officer Situation Analysis of Gender-Based Violence in Lebanon 05 TABLE OF CONTENTS LIST OF ACRONYMS AND ABBREVIATIONS 09 LIST OF FIGURES 11 CHAPTER ONE INTRODUCTION 12 I. Approach 12 A. Objective 12 B. Principles 12 C. Consensus 12 II. Methodology 12 A. Framework 12 B. Implementation 13 C. Main constraints and facilitating factors 14 III. Expected output 15 IV. GBV Situation Analysis Report 15 CHAPTER TWO OVERALL CONTEXT 16 I. Geography and population 17 II. Historical and political overview 17 III. Gender, human rights and development achievements 17 A. Poverty 17 B. Economic participation and employment 18 C. Education and illiteracy 18 D. Political participation and decision-making 19 E. Health and reproductive health 19 F. HIV/AIDS 19 G. Conclusion 20 CHAPTER THREE GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE: CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK 21 I. Culture and gender framework 21 A. Cultural values 21 B. Societal norms 21 C. Gender framework 22 II. Definitions 22 A. At global level 22 Situation Analysis 06 of Gender-Based Violence in Lebanon Table of Contents B. At national level 23 III. Forms 24 A. At global level 24 B. At national level 25 CHAPTER FOUR GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE FROM HUMAN-RIGHTS AND GENDER-EQUALITY PERSPECTIVES 27 I. Human rights and gender-based violence 27 A. United Nations Declaration on the Elimination of Violence against Women 27 B. Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women 28 C. Other international human rights and development commitments 28 II. Human rights and gender equality 29 A. United Nations Charter 29 B. Universal Declaration on Human Rights 29 C. Other international human rights and development instruments 29 III. International commitments - Lebanon 29 A. Status of ratification and reservations 29 B. Reservations 30 C. Institutional mechanisms 30 CHAPTER FIVE GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE: LEGISLATION AND POLICIES IN LEBANON 32 I. Legal and legislative framework 32 A. National legislation 32 B. Consistency with international standards and national commitments 36 C. Knowledge, perceptions and experiences of main stakeholders 38 D. Conclusions and recommendations 42 II. Status of Lebanese policies in gender-based violence and related areas 45 A. Context 45 B. Government commitments 46 C. Overall public policies 46 D. Consistency with international recommendations and national commitments 50 E. Conclusions and recommendations 51 CHAPTER SIX PROGRAMMES AND SERVICES ON GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE 53 I. Context 53 II. Programmes and projects 54 A. Governmental institutions 54 B. International organizations 55 III. Services 57 A. Framework 57 B. Approach 58 C. Intervention 59 IV. Knowledge, perceptions and experiences 59 A. Focus group discussions: overall findings 59 B. Focus group discussions: categories