Universal-Womens-accesss-to-justice-Publications-Practitioners-Guide-Series-2016-ENG

V
WOMEN’S ACCESS TO JUSTICE FOR GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE 217
the perpetrator. A detailed recording of each and every
complaint from the victim should be ensured, so that any
evidence of a pattern of assaults and control or coercive
behaviour over time can be made available. Police should be
trained to take account of evidence of trauma and mental
health issues of victims as the potential result of abuse rather
than a reason to dismiss the victim’s reports of violence.
Investigators must make a “context-sensitive assessment” of
the evidence they have, for example by questioning witnesses
whose accounts contradict each other, taking a close account of
timing of events and allowing the victim’s representative to put
questions to witnesses. 572 Investigators must also assess
surrounding circumstances, such as that the alleged
perpetrators “had deliberately misled the applicant in order to
take her to a deserted area, thus creating an environment of
coercion” in order to carry out rape. 573 It should be recalled
here that the definition of rape in the Istanbul Convention
specifies that: “Consent must be given voluntarily as the result
of the person’s free will assessed in the context of the
surrounding circumstances,” a definition which is based on the
findings in the case of M.C. v Bulgaria. 574
Evidence-gathering: medical reports
In his In-depth study on all forms of violence against women,
the UN Secretary-General noted that victims of violence need
access to treatment and also medico-legal examinations that
might support an eventual prosecution:
“Victims of sexual violence, including rape, require
immediate health care and support and evidence for any
resulting legal case also needs to be collected. Physical
examinations following sexual violence may be
experienced as further violence, or at least as invasive.
Lack of timely access to such services can prevent
572
M.C. v Bulgaria, above note 528, paragraph 177.
573
Ibid, paragraph 180.
574
Istanbul Convention, above note 509, Article 36(2).