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PRIORITYMEASURE23
“Establish or consolidate human rights programmes to tackle and eliminate violence against older persons in the public and private spheres.”
Possible lines of action
1. Establish or strengthenmechanisms to prevent violence, in any of itsmanifestations, within the family, in long-term care services, in the
workplace, and in the communications media; 2. Provide training and raise the awareness of public officials, medical personnel, family
caregivers or other persons who provide services to older persons to enable them to detect violence or abuse in all areas, to advise them on
the measures to take if they suspect abuse and, in particular, to encourage them to report abuse to the competent authorities; 3. Promote
suitable and accessible measures for reporting cases of violence against older persons, and strengthen the judicial and administrative
mechanisms for addressing them, including adequate compensation to victims, within a reasonable timeframe; 4. Produce statistical
information on the scope, the causes and the effects of violence against older persons, disaggregated by age, sex, place of residence,
disability or other grounds for discrimination; 5. Create support services, such as shelters, counselling and rehabilitation, for older persons
victims of violence in the home (including those living in rural and isolated areas); 6. Establish criminal penalties, civil recourse and
compensation to protect older persons against all types of violence, including sexual violence and harassment in the workplace;
7. Investigate, prosecute and punish all acts of violence against older persons, including sexual violence; 8. Take adequate awareness-raising
andothermeasures toprotect older persons against financial abuse, including fraud or deceit; 9. Pass legislationprohibiting the subjectionof
older persons to scientific experiments,medical treatment or institutionalizationwithout their free and informed consent.
Targets
1. Any older personwhohas sufferedviolence has access to adequate and timely complaintmechanisms; 2. Any older personwhohas suffered
violence has access to victim support services; 3. Any older personwho has undergonemedical treatment or been placed in a long-term care
facilityhasdeclaredhisorher freeand informedconsent; 4.Eliminateviolenceaffectingolderpersons in thepublicandprivate spheres.
Tentative indicators
1. Percentage of older personswho have turned to support services for victims of violence; 2. Percentage of older victimswho have filed
complaints of neglect and abuse; 3. Percentage of older personswho have given their free and informed consent before receivingmedical
treatment or being placed in a long-term care facility; Percentage of older persons who are familiar with programmes geared towards
protection of their human rights.
Related instruments, forums
andmechanisms
TheMadrid International Plan of Action onAgeing includes specific recommendations regarding abuse of older persons, under Priority
Direction III, Issue 3 (Neglect, Abuse andViolence), Objectives 1 and 2.
On ensuring enabling and supportive environments, Objective 1 calls for “elimination of all forms of neglect, abuse and violence against
older persons”, and Objective 2 recommends the “creation of support services to address elder abuse.” (http://undesadspd.org/Portals/0/
ageing/documents/Fulltext-SP.pdf).
