Background

At the invitation of the Government of Bosnia and Herzegovina, the Special Rapporteur on violence against women and girls, its causes and consequences, Ms. Reem Alsalem, will conduct an official visit to the country from 25 January to 3 February 2027.

Country visits are undertaken following an invitation by the Government and are prepared and conducted in the spirit of cooperation and dialogue with the State concerned. The objective of the country visit is for the Special Rapporteur to gain a first-hand understanding of issues related to her mandate, and particularly in relation to measures taken to prevent, combat, and eliminate violence against women and girls, and to provide redress for victims.

Following a country visit, the Special Rapporteur presents a report to the UN Human Rights Council outlining her findings, conclusions and recommendations to the State concerned. The conclusions and recommendations provided by the Special Rapporteur are a useful tool to guide States when adopting measures to prevent and eliminate violence against women. They also serve as a roadmap for other stakeholders working on sex and gender-based violence in the country, such as civil society, women’s organizations, as well as UN agencies.

The visit of the Special Rapporteur will start in Sarajevo, and she will also undertake field visits to both urban and rural areas, in order to gain a first-hand understanding of the issues related to violence against women and girls as experienced by various segments of the population.

During her visit, and as a means of gathering information from all relevant stakeholders, the Special Rapporteur intends to convene meetings with Government officials; academic experts; representatives from civil society organizations; women’s rights organizations; community leaders; groups of women and girls; UN agencies; and other relevant stakeholders working towards the elimination of violence against women and girls in the country. The Special Rapporteur also intends to conduct visits to shelters and places of deprivation of liberty accommodating both nationals and migrants.

At the end of the visit on 3 February 2027, the Special Rapporteur will debrief relevant Government officials on her preliminary findings.

Key questions and types of input/comments sought

In preparation for the visit, the Special Rapporteur invites all interested individuals and organizations, including civil society organizations, women’s rights activists, and academics, to provide inputs.

While all contributions are welcome, the Special Rapporteur is particularly interested in receiving information on the following issues (the list is not exhaustive):

1. Adherence to international and regional human rights frameworks on women’s and girls’ rights and the elimination of violence against women and girls based on intersecting grounds;

2. The adequacy of the legal and normative framework, including on:

1. Femicides;
2. Domestic violence;
3. Sexual violence
4. Trafficking, including for sexual and labour exploitation and in prostitution;
5. Access to justice, including on family matters such as child custody issues and divorce;
6. Harassment and discrimination in public spaces and at work;
7. Sex and gender-sensitive migration policy management;
8. Online violence and other violence facilitated by digital technology;
9. Equal access to services such as health care or education;
10. Forced and child marriage;
11. Women’s participation in transitional justice and peacebuilding processes.

3. The implementation of constitutional guarantees, legal provisions and programmes aimed at eliminating violence against women and girls as well as information on the extent to which differences between jurisdictions may result in unequal levels of protection;

4. Measures undertaken to increase the transparency, accountability, and effective participation by women and women’s organizations in the design of laws and policies related to ending discrimination and violence against women and girls;

5. Government budget and resources for the prevention of violence against women and girls and the effective assistance and protection for victims of violence;

6. Implementation of policies to ensure coordinated, appropriate and comprehensive essential services for the survivors of violence against women and girls, and to ensure that perpetrators are brought to justice;

7. Child protection mechanisms in place to prevent and respond to incidents of severe discrimination and violence against girls;

8. Access to protection, justice and remedies for victims, including the availability of shelters and effectiveness of protection orders, investigation and prosecution mechanisms, and legal aid.

Priority groups of women and girls

1. Women and girls who are nationals of Bosnia and Herzegovina, including rural women
2. Women and girl migrants, including domestic migrant workers
3. Women belonging to ethnic minorities, including Roma women
4. Women in politics
5. Women active in public life (including sports)
6. Women human rights defenders
7. Mothers and widows
8. Older women, including those living in institutional settings
9. Women-survivors of conflict-related sexual violence and children born to them

How inputs will be used?

All inputs will be treated confidentially by the Special Rapporteur and her team and for the sole purpose of preparing for the county visit. The Special Rapporteur greatly appreciates the effort that goes into the contributions and looks forward to reviewing the submissions.

Media inquiries

At the end of the visit on 3 February 2027, the Special Rapporteur will hold a press conference in order to share the preliminary findings with the broader public. Additional information on the venue and time of the press conference will be shared prior to the visit.