114 GENDER PERSPECTIVES ON TORTURE: Law and Practice Diligence subject Article of the Convention State Obligations Article 42: Unacceptable Justifications for Crimes Justifications on the basis of culture, custom, religion, tradition, or so-called “honour” can­ not be used in order to reduce sanctions Article 46: Aggravating Circumstances Include situations where a perpetrator has previously been convicted of FGM, where the offence resulted in severe physical or psy­ chological harm for the affect woman, or if the offence was committed against a child or adolescent under 18 Article 44: Extraterritoriality Apply the principle of extraterritorial jurisdic­ tion in FGM related cases Article 56: Measures of Protection Protect the rights and interests of victims, including their special needs as victims Migrants in Europe can be exposed to particular vulnerabilities, including their legal status, ill health, racism, discrimination, or a history of violence, exploitation and/or trafficking during migration routes. Research shows that the legal status of refugees, asylum seekers, and undocu­ mented migrants is a risk factor for sexual ill health and sexual violence23. Being an ethnic minority or a woman with a precarious legal status further exacerbates the vulnerability of these women. International protection In a recent report by the European Parliament, one of the reasons24 identified for the vulnerabil­ ity of female refugee and asylum seekers is the difficulty they encounter in proving their asylum claims. They generally can provide less evidence for their applications compared with men, or deliberately choose to do so because female victims of torture or gender persecution are reluctant to report their stories, even if their stories might constitute the legal basis for an asylum application25. According to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), during the first three quarters of 2014, 71% of the female asylum seekers in the EU were survivors of FGM26, thus reinforcing the importance of guaranteeing a gender-specific focus. The Istanbul Convention requires States Parties to criminalise FGM (article 38); to recognise gender-based violence against women, including FGM, as a form of persecution (refugee status) and serious harm (subsidiary 23 Keygnaert Ines, Sexual violence and sexual health in refugees, asylum seekers and undocumented migrants in Europe and the European Neighbourhood: determinants and desirable prevention. Doctoral thesis. ICRH Monographs, 2014. 24 Bonewit, A. and Shreeves, R., Reception of female refugees and asylum seekers in the EU. Case study Germany, European Parliament, February 2016, available at: http://www.europarl.europa.eu/RegData/ etudes/STUD/2016/536497/IPOL_STU(2016)5 36497_EN.pdf. 25 Sansonetti Silvia. Female refugees and asylum seekers: the issue of integration. Study. European Parliament DG for Internal Policies Citizen’s Rights and Constitutional Affairs, Women’s Rights and Gender Equality, 2016. 26 Novak-Irons F., Female genital mutilation: a case for asylum in Europe, Forced Migration Review, May 2015. http://www.fmreview.org/sites/fmr/files/FMRdownloads/en/climatechange-disasters/FGM.pdf.