12 Gender and Security Toolkit read, whether the person owns property, or whether there are strong traditional ideas about gender roles. For example, a woman from a low socio-economic background held in a place of deprivation of liberty with a culture of deeply entrenched traditional notions of gender will have a very different experience to a woman who has access to large resources and is held within an institutional culture that facilitates freedom around gendered behaviour. Figure 3 identifies how some personal characteristics can overlap with the contextual circumstances of different places of deprivation of liberty and thus cause greater levels of discrimination and suffering.* Figure 3: Personal characteristics and institutional contexts that can cause multiple layers of discrimination Personal characteristics Age; disability; ethnicity; health; language; marital status; parental status; religion or belief; sexual orientation and gender identity Institutional context Distance from family/community; health and sanitation facilities; educational and vocational provisions; language spoken by staff; local cultural beliefs and norms; socio-economic situation 2.6 Gender and the aims of places of deprivation of liberty Adopting a policy of integrating a gender perspective has many benefits for the effective running of places of deprivation of liberty and will aid in the achievement of mandated tasks of such institutions. Ability to meet responsibilities in law Places of deprivation of liberty have a duty of care to all those who are held in, work in or visit them to prohibit cruel, inhumane and degrading punishment or treatment and to ensure that everyone is treated with respect and dignity. Women, men and transgender women and men require different approaches in order to receive fair and just treatment. Therefore, for places of deprivation of liberty to adhere to their duty of care and meet requirements in formal and soft law, a gender perspective is imperative. The Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) is the global charter of women’s rights. Ratified by 189 countries, CEDAW provides the basis for realizing equality between women and men by ensuring women’s equal access and equal opportunities in all spheres of economic, social, cultural, political and civil life. By ratifying or acceding to CEDAW, states commit themselves to undertake a series of measures to end discrimination against women in all forms, including to: Ê incorporate the principle of equality of men and women in their legal system, abolish all discriminatory laws and adopt appropriate ones prohibiting discrimination against women * For a detailed list of groups particularly vulnerable to SGBV if authorities do not take proper measures to address their needs and ensure their safety, see OSCE/ ODIHR (2019) Preventing and Addressing Sexual and Gender Based Violence in Places of Deprivation of Liberty: Standards, Approaches and Examples from the OSCE Region.