There are no domestic human rights organizations, although the Government does not impede their formation. The Government has declared itself open to outsiders' investigations of alleged abuses, but there have been no known requests. The law prohibits discrimination based on race, religion, disability, language, or social status, and the authorities respect these provisions. The law also prohibits some forms of discrimination based on sex, but vestiges of legal as well as societal discrimination against women remain. The law provides for the protection of women from violence, and occurrences of such violence, including spousal abuse, are rare.
Several laws provide specifically for the equality of women in the workplace and elsewhere.
In practice there is no discrimination in pay or working conditions. All careers are open to women, including careers in the military and police as well as the highest public offices. However, one law discriminates against women by stipulating that a woman who marries a foreigner cannot transmit citizenship to her husband or children, but that a man who marries a foreigner can do so to both his wife and their children. In a September 1999 referendum, the electorate by a very narrow margin failed to confirm a change to the law that was approved by Parliament in June 1999. The proposed law would have provided for the transmission of Sammarinese citizenship by women, but it was narrowly defeated despite support by all political parties.