race, ethnic group, colour, sex, language, religion, political or any other opinion, national or social origin, fortune, birth or other status.” 118. Article 18(3) of the African Charter provides that “The State shall ensure the elimination of every discrimination against women and also ensure the protection of the rights of the woman and the child as stipulated in 119. AC HP R international declarations and conventions.” The non-discrimination principle generally ensures equal treatment of an individual or group of persons irrespective of their particular characteristics, and the non-discrimination principle within the context of Article 2 and 18(3) of the African Charter ensures the protection from discrimination against women by States Parties to the African Charter. 120. Before the African Commission proceeds to determine whether Articles 2 and 18(3) of the African Charter have been violated in this Communication, it finds it imperative to define discrimination and its relationship with gender-based violence as alleged in this Communication. 121. The Women‟s Protocol defines discrimination against women as “Any distinction, exclusion or restriction or any differential treatment based on sex and whose objectives or effects compromise or destroy the recognition, enjoyment or the exercise by women […] of human rights and fundamental freedoms in all spheres of life.”26 The same Protocol defines violence against women as ”All acts perpetrated against women which cause or could cause them physical, sexual, psychological, and economic 26 n 21 above Article 1 (f) . 34