The World Assembly,
Acknowledging that many cultures place the home and family on a deserved pedestal;
Rejecting the notion that any person has the right or privilege to deliberately harm a person solely because the two are in an intimate or family relationship;
Aware of the generational nature of domestic abuse, with children who see or are subjected to domestic abuse being significantly more likely to perpetrate such abuse as adults, and to suffer other forms of harm well into their life;
Asserting that domestic abuse is a matter of international concern, as:
- there is a fundamental right to security and integrity of the person, of the house, and of the family, rights which are disregarded by those who commit domestic abuse; and
- many nations, even otherwise respected nations, consider violence between intimate partners, or between parents and children, to be of lesser or no importance, thus denying certain vulnerable persons equal rights and equal dignity under the law;
Seeking to ensure that perpetrators of domestic abuse face justice and that their victims receive the support they need to rebuild their lives,
Hereby enacts as follows:
- In this Resolution, "domestic abuse" means any one or more of the following, when the perpetrator is a spouse, civil partner, parent, legal guardian, or cohabitant of the victim:
- physical or sexual violence, other than a physical act done within reasonable self-defense;
- threats to inflict serious bodily harm, when the perpetrator appears to have the means and will to carry the threat into execution;
- preventing the victim from finding or maintaining employment, working, or receiving remuneration for their work;
- confiscating the assets of the victim, or preventing the victim from accessing any property which the victim has a legal right to access;
- administering any drug or similar substance to the victim, without the victim's consent, other than an act permitted under international law; or
- interfering with the interactions between the victim and the victims's friends or family or monitoring any form of communications with the intention of rendering the victim dependent on the perpetrator or unable to appreicate the fact that the perpetrator is engaging in, has engaged in, or is likely to engage in, any other act described in items (a) to (e).
- Each member shall:
- ensure that domestic abuse is a criminal offense under its law, with penalties commensurate to its effect on the victim and to the history and relevant convictions of the offender;
- provide that a violent or sexual offense shall be treated as aggravated if committed as domestic abuse;
- forbid the fact that the perpetrator and victim of an offense were in a family or romantic relationship from being used as evidence of innocence or as reason for a lighter sentence; and
- forbid the defense in any prosecution from questioning the alleged victim regarding why such person remained in a relationship with the defendant, unless such questioning would materially benefit the defense beyond simply rendering the alleged victim less credible or causing mental harm to the alleged victim.
- Each member shall require schools and educational institutions within the jurisdiction of that nation to:
- educate students, in a manner appropriate to the ages of such students, of the nature of domestic abuse, including that any person may be a perpetrator or a victim of domestic abuse;
- provide resources to students who suffer, or who know a person who suffers, from domestic abuse, including assistance to students seeking to leave any such situation;
- on request of any person who works or is a student at such school or institution, separate that person from another person who has been convicted of committing domestic abuse against the requesting party;
- refrain from punishing or retaliating against a student who is reported to have been subjected to an instance of domestic abuse; and
- ensure that students and faculty are aware of the laws governing domestic abuse, including, but not limited to, the purpose and effect of those laws and the authorities responsible for enforcing those laws.
- Members, in promulgating regulations or legislation the effect of which is to restrict or limit the ability of persons to leave their place of residence, are required to:
- consider the effects of such regulations or legislation on the occurence, detection, and punishment of domestic abuse; and
- ensure that while such regulations or legislation is in effect, there exists an accessible way for victims of domestic abuse to escape such situation.
- Members shall not reduce, suspend, or vacate charges for any criminal offense against a suspect by reason of the fact that the suspect has married the alleged victim of such offense, or has promised or otherwise indicated an intent to do so. Any national law or regulation which permits or requires such reduction, suspension, or vacatur shall be held null, void, and of no effect.
