Violence against women
22. The Committee notes the enactment of the Sexual Offences Act in 2010 and the launch of a national policy on domestic violence (2008-2013) under the slogan “Break the Cycle Take Control”. The Committee expresses its concern, however, at the high prevalence of violence against women in the State party, in particular domestic and sexual violence, which is culturally accepted and in many cases remains underreported. The Committee is further concerned that there is only one centre in the country providing services to victims of violence, which is funded by the State party and run by a non-governmental organization. The Committee also expresses its concern about the acts of violence against lesbian and bisexual women and transgender persons.
23. The Committee urges the State party:
(f) To provide effective protection against violence and discrimination against all groups of women through the enactment of comprehensive anti-discrimination legislation that includes the prohibition of all forms of discrimination against them and the decriminalisation of consensual adult same sex relations as indicated in the oral statement of the delegation.
Link to full text of the report: Concluding Observations-CEDAW-Guyana-2012-eng