THE IMMIGRANTS’ RIGHTS CENTER

IMMIGRATION ATTORNEYS

(407) 382-4944

The attorney’s at IRC can guide you if you have been or currently are the victim of “Gender-Based” violence

Since the mid-1990s, there has been increasing attention paid to the fact that many women around the globe experience specific types of VIOLENCE on account of their GENDER.  The following types of specific violent crimes have been labeled as “gender-based”: 

ŸHuman Trafficking for Prostitution or Sexual SlaveryŸDomestic Violence

ŸFemale Genital Cutting (FGC)ŸForced MarriageŸ“Honor” Killings

ŸForced Abortion or Reproductive SterilizationŸRapeŸother Sexual Violence

An important distinction in gender-based cases is the difference between victims of personal harm, i.e domestic issue, victims of ordinary crime and victims of persecution.  Under the UN asylum guidelines established at the 1951 Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees, asylum has historically been understood to apply to state-sanctioned violence and persecution.  Some examples of country conditions which may show that gender-based violence was persecution and not personal or random in nature are:

· The denial of equal status under the law to women;

· The purposeful lack of state protection or refusal of state police or judicial authorizes to get involved in “domestic matters” that involve abuse, rape, torture or other severe harm;

· Certain traditional practices which women are forced to undergo despite objections (including FGM, forced marriage, and polygamy); and

· The denial of fundamental rights and freedom to women, and/or the infliction of severe punishment on women for transgressing fundamentally discriminatory social norms.

Asylum claims involving the following types of harm have been considered gender-based:

ŸCoercive Population ControlŸDomestic ViolenceŸFemale Genital Mutilation (FGM),

ŸForced Marriage/PolygamyŸLesbian/Gay/Bisexual/Transsexual (LGBT)

ŸHonor KillingŸTrafficking / ProstitutionŸRape / Sexual Violence

ŸRepressive Social Mores and Sexual Slavery.

Recently, the Obama administration sent a positive signal about gender-based violence in the case of a severely battered woman from Mexico (Matter of L. R.). The Department of Homeland Security acknowledged in its legal Brief, that such claims could be accepted under asylum law.

How can we help?

For more than two decades the IRC has defended women with gender-based persecution claims. We will continue to monitor the current administration’s positive signals regarding gender-based persecution and report any advancements or changes in this area.  Please continue to visit this website for updats on this issue or call to make an appointment if you have been or are currently a victim of gender-based violence. Click on the button on the right for a brief explanation on some current options.

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Para más información sobre las diferencias entre los remedios, por favor llame y pida una cita para hablar con un abogado en Español.