Standards for the protection of the human rights of women: Necessary tools for the defence of women’s political participation

n the framework of the regional project "Eradicating violence against women in politics in Latin America", UN Women, the Inter-American Commission of Women (CIM) and the Follow-up Mechanism to the Convention of Belém do Pará (MESECVI) developed the document "Standards for the protection of the human rights of women: Necessary tools for the defence of women’s political participation", a practical legal guide that brings together a systematic and analytical compilation of 130 judgments, decisions and resolutions in paradigmatic cases, so that both civil society and public institutions -legislative, executive and judicial- can count with tools for the cross-cutting application of the protection standards in force in International Human Rights Law, related to cases of gender-based violence against women. This document is useful for the creation, application, and interpretation of norms; it contributes to the conceptualization of the different types of gender-based violence committed against women based on material, formal, objective, and subjective criteria, in accordance with the International, Inter-American and European Human Rights Systems. In turn, increase understanding of the symbiotic relationship between gender stereotypes and bias and gender-based violence against women, thereby facilitating the prevention, treatment, punishment, and eradication of that violence; and identify and determine the protection standards in force in international human rights law. Each section is accompanied by a brief overview of the applicable legal framework, focusing on the Americas, and includes violence against women in politics.