Gender-based violence against Afro-descendant women

Afro-descendant women in Latin America and the Caribbean face aggravated forms of violence as a result of the intersection of structural racism and gender discrimination. These forms of violence have specific characteristics that must be addressed by States and societies from an ethnic-racial, human rights, gender and intersectional approach.

More than 76.5 million Afro-descendant women live in the region. Throughout their life, they are disproportionately exposed to multiple forms of physical, sexual, symbolic and psychological violence as a result of racial and gender stereotypes, institutional racism, structural poverty and social exclusion.

This violence manifests itself in every sphere of their lives: within the family, at school, in the workplace, in healthcare services, within their communities, in state institutions, in the media, and across digital spaces. Police violence, in particular, disproportionately affects Afro-descendant women, who are overrepresented in the criminal justice system and subjected to racial profiling practices that include humiliation, assault, sexual violence, and other forms of mistreatment.

Violence in the political and public spheres also disproportionately impacts women human rights defenders, social leaders, and women in politics, who face attacks aimed at limiting their participation, silencing their voices, and obstructing their work in defense of human rights.

The Belém do Pará Convention and other international instruments enshrine the right of Afro-descendant women to a life free of violence and establish obligations for States.

To contribute to raising awareness of this reality and provide concrete tools to address it, the Committee of Experts of the MESECVI, in partnership with the Regional Office of the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) for Latin America and the Caribbean and the Network of Afro-Latin American, Afro-Caribbean and Diaspora Women, developed the General Recommendation No. 5 on gender-based violence against Afro-descendant women. This instrument, based on the highest international and Inter-American standards, proposes measures aimed at advancing the eradication of the multiple forms of violence faced by Afro-descendant women and girls in the region.

The Committee emphasizes the urgent need to adopt an intersectional approach and to guarantee the active participation of Afro-descendant women in the formulation and implementation of public policies, plans, laws, and programs as an indispensable condition for achieving real impact in the elimination of the violence that affects them.

The preparation of this General Recommendation included consultations with Afro-descendant women’s organizations from various countries in the region, including Mexico, Honduras, Brazil, Bolivia, Panama, Nicaragua, Peru, Uruguay, Chile, and Costa Rica.

This instrument, which offers concrete tools for States, civil society, international organizations, and other entities working on this issue, presents 52 recommendations aimed at preventing, addressing, investigating, sanctioning, and repairing violence against Afro-descendant women.

Access the General Recommendation.

General Recommendation of the Committee of Experts of the MESECVI (No. 5) GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE AGAINST AFRO-DESCENDANT WOMEN. (MESECVI, 2024)