Palestinian women 'not protected'

Violence against Palestinian women often goes unreported, HRW says

Palestinian women and girls have little protection from violence against them, the advocacy group Human Rights Watch (HRW) has said.

Discriminatory laws and a lack of policies to assist victims of abuse mean violence often goes unreported or unpunished, the group said.

The security threats that women face at home have been ignored in the face of the conflict with Israel, HRW reported.

HRW based its report on interviews conducted in late 2005 and early 2006.

The group found that the legal and justice systems in the West Bank and Gaza result in light sentences for men who, claiming an affront to family honour, kill female relatives suspected of adultery.

'Lack of skills'

In addition, rapists who agree to marry their victims are exempted from criminal prosecution.

When confronted with cases of violence against women and girls, the Palestinian criminal justice system is more interested in avoiding public scandal than in seeing justice done Lucy Mair Human Rights Watch

Several factors were found to compound the problem.

Palestinian police lack the skills to effectively address violence against women, HRW said.

As a result, informal measures are adopted such as seeking the mediation of influential clan leaders to encourage marriage between a rapist and his victim, the reports said.

The justice system too, lets women down HRW said.

"When confronted with cases of violence against women and girls, the Palestinian criminal justice system is more interested in avoiding public scandal than in seeing justice done," said Lucy Mair, one of the researchers and authors of the report.

And although the number of shelters for Palestinian women is growing, Israeli restrictions on movement in the West Bank and Gaza make them difficult or impossible to reach.

The conflict with Israel has cut off access to many women's shelters

HRW sees some hope in recent legal reforms carried out by the Palestinian Authority.

But the rights group wants to see more done.

"The PA urgently needs to adopt a zero-tolerance policy for all forms of violence against women and girls," said Farida Deif, the report's other researcher and co-author.

Police and medical staff should be trained to international standards to respond to domestic violence and discriminatory laws should be repealed, the report said.