RECOMMENDATION

The State party should: adopt specific legislation, within a clear time frame, to criminalize marital rape without any exemptions; (a) To ensure the effective implementation of the Domestic Violence Prevention Act, including by allocating adequate financial resources for the implementation of the Domestic Violence Prevention National Strategy, and establish mechanisms to ensure that law enforcement officers respond to and investigate complaints regarding violence against women and that perpetrators are prosecuted and punished; (b) To put in place an effective system to monitor and evaluate the implementation, effectiveness and impact of the new legislative framework and collect disaggregated data on the number of prosecutions and convictions of perpetrators; (c) To strengthen victim assistance and rehabilitation by establishing a comprehensive care system for women who are victims of violence, including medical and psychological support, counselling and rehabilitation services, throughout the territory of the State party and, to that end, increase the effectiveness of the family and protection services centres and safe houses by providing adequate funding and trained personnel; (d) To disseminate clear information aimed at specific groups, including teenage girls and migrant women, on the criminalization of various forms of violence under the new legislative framework; (e) To develop measures to encourage women to lodge criminal complaints, and to eliminate the stereotyping and stigmatization faced by women who are victims of violence and claim their rights.