Some 700 representatives from 33 Latin American and Caribbean countries on Friday urged regional governments to ensure women's rights.

The appeal is part of the "Brasilia Consensus", a document adopted upon the conclusion of the 11th Regional Conference on Women in Latin America and the Caribbean, held here from July 13 to 16. The event was organized by the UN Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC) with support from the Brazilian government.

The document calls for women's greater economic independence and workplace equality as well as more participation in political processes, and urges to stop all forms of violence against women.

It demands that preventive, punitive, protective and caring measures be taken against all forms of violence upon women, and that effective access to justice and free legal aid be ensured for women suffering from violence.

Besides, the Consensus urges women's citizenship to be strengthened and their participation in decision-making be expanded.

It emphasizes the need to take all necessary measures to ensure parity as well as ethnic and racial alternation in all branches of government, in order to strengthen democracy in Latin America and the Caribbean.

The Consensus also calls for facilitating women's access to new technologies, credit and assets, and promoting egalitarian, democratic and non-discriminatory media, as well as ensuring health care and sexual and reproductive rights for women.

Finally, it presents an agreement to conduct training, exchange and dissemination activities for the formulation of public policies, and to promote cooperation to establish gender equity.

The conference also pledged solidarity with Haiti and Chile that were ravaged by strong quakes earlier this year and agreed to actively support reconstruction efforts that contribute to sustainable development, women's rights and gender equality.