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Gender Based Violence in University Communities Published online by Cambridge University Press: 22 April 2022
Although laws do exist to protect women from violence against women and girls (VAWG) on campus, they are rarely used by survivors and routinely ignored by the institutions. There have been very few cases in this area, making legal analysis difficult but this chapter looks at the existing law and how it could be used more to bring about muchneeded change in the accountability of universities and respect for women's rights. The very small number of cases to date reflect both the cultural and legal landscape as well as the difficulties women face in bringing such cases. However, there is scope under existing law to hold universities to account and this chapter, authored by a solicitor who has used these laws in recent cases (including R (Ramey) v Governing Body of the University of Oxford), examines in detail the UK, European and international legislation available to survivors of gender based violence (GBV), their advocates and activists.
Introduction
Governing bodies of universities must comply with two key pieces of legislation in relation to the vast majority of their activities: the Human Rights Act 1998 on the basis that they are state bodies, and the Equality Act 2010 on the basis that they are education and service providers. This chapter looks at the legal obligations that universities have in terms of protecting the human rights of women students (and staff) in the education setting, alongside the legal obligations under the Equality Act 2010 not to discriminate or harass women in the provision of education.
The Human Rights Act 1998 codified and implemented the protections of the European Convention on Human Rights directly into UK law. All public bodies (and other bodies carrying out public functions) must comply with the Convention rights. The relevant rights in the context of VAWG in university communities include: Article 3 – the prohibition on inhuman and degrading treatment; Article 8 – the right to protection of one's private and family life; Article 14 – the prohibition on discrimination; and Article 2 of the First Protocol – the right to education.
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