Side Event, Human Rights Council 35th session
Thursday 15 June 2017, 13h00-15h00
Room XXI - Palais des Nations
The UN GA resolution 66/127 designated 15 June as World Elder Abuse Awareness Day. Violence against older persons remains largely a taboo subject. However, it is gaining recognition as an important barrier to the enjoyment of human rights by older persons. Older women and older persons with disabilities may be especially vulnerable to abuse by a range of perpetrators including intimate partner, family members, caregivers and institutions.
The multiple forms of elder abuse and the fact that it frequently occurs at the intersection of different types of discrimination requires multifaceted, interdisciplinary strategies.
Opening words:
H.E. Ambassador Marcelo Cima, Permanent Mission of Argentina
Panelists:
- Martina Vuk, State Secretary, Ministry of Labour, Family, Social Affairs and Equal Opportunities, Slovenia
- Peggy Hicks, Director of the Thematic Engagement, Special Procedures and Right to Development Division, OHCHR
- Mickey Schindler, Project Director, Yad Riva Legal Aid for the Elderly (in cooperation with Yad Sarah), Israel
- H.E. Ambassador Sabine Böhlke-Möller, Permanent Mission of Namibia
- Michael Windfuhr, Global Alliance of National Human Rights Institutions (GANHRI)
- Dubravka Šimonović, Special Rapporteur on Violence against Women, its Causes and Consequences
Moderator: Silvia Perel-Levin, Chair of the NGO Committee on Ageing, Geneva
The panel will be followed by an interactive debate with the audience and concluding remarks by Martina Vuk, State Secretary, Ministry of Labour, Family, Social Affairs and Equal Opportunities, Slovenia.
The event is being sponsored by the Group of Friends of the Human Rights of Older Persons and by the Permanent Missions of Argentina, Austria, Brazil, El Salvador, Israel, Montenegro, Namibia, Portugal, Slovenia and Uruguay