The 10th anniversary of the Istanbul
Convention
Today we
mark the 10th anniversary
of the opening for signature of the Council of Europe
Convention on
Preventing and Combating violence against women and domestic violence.
It was concluded and signed in
Istanbul in 2011.
A result of a series of European initiatives started in the 90’, it
came into force on 1 August 2014
and it is
known as the “Istanbul Convention”.
As of today, 33 countries have signed, ratified and enforced it.
Another 11countries have signed without ratifying it as of yet. One country recently withdrew from it.
The Istanbul Convention has been a landmark achievement in the fight against gender-based violence. It is
the
first European legally binding treaty
in this area. It includes a set of wide-ranging measures to prevent violence,
protect its victims and prosecute perpetrators. It gives the signatory countries a set of
tangible measures such as
shelters, helplines and a comprehensive help for victims of all kinds of violence. In addition to those concrete
measures, it firmly states that violence against women is a violation of human rights and a form of discrimination.
The convention created also
a legal framework at pan-European level
and includes a specific monitoring
mechanism to ensure effective implementation of its provisions.
The implementation of the Istanbul Convention has already had
a real impact
on the lives of women and men,
girls and boys in all their diversity. It has helped to raise awareness of gender-based violence in society. It has been
instrumental in raising more ambitious legislative and policy standards in national legislation.
What is more; it has
resulted in more training for legal professionals, health professionals and law enforcement
–
a very important
measure if we are to remove obstacles to access to justice for victims of gender-based violence.
Importantly, it
has also raised the profile of the societal debate on the issue.
It is with great concern that we witness an ever-growing opposition to this landmark Convention. At the moment
of a health, economic and social crisis, women were at the frontline of the coronavirus pandemic working in the
healthcare, care, education, retail or cleaning sectors. At the same time, the number of reports of domestic and
intimate partner violence rose quickly in the first months. Shelter for victims and counsellors faced a surge in
demand and women and girls were often trapped at home with their perpetrators during lockdowns and curfews.
And yet;
the voices against the Convention are louder than before.
Every woman and girl has the right to live free from violence. Preventing all forms of violence is not controversial.
Protecting victims of abuse is not controversial. Most of all, it is not negotiable. And yet, since its conception, the
convention was met with
an unprecedented campaign of disinformation and misinterpretation.
Its opponents
took offence at the Convention’s
definition of gender as a social construct or on the requirement for including
teaching material on non-stereotyped gender roles.
Even more worryingly, the opposition to the Convention recently comes also from some governments and
members of parliament in the European Union. This resulted among others in the blocked ratification process by
some Member States and stalled process of ratification by the European Union. Another Member State announced
its intention to withdraw from the treaty.
The recent decision of the Turkish government of 19 March 2021 to withdraw from the Convention, has shown us
that those threats of revocation are indeed very real. The decision of Turkey comes 10 years after it was the first
country to sign the Convention in Istanbul.
We are deeply alarmed by those unprecedented attacks
on women’s rights and their safety.
We stand
together in solidarity with women and girls in Turkey and beyond. We call on Turkey to reverse its decision.
We also urgently call on all Council of Europe Member States who have not yet done so to sign and ratify
this landmark treaty.
We are committed to ensuring full implementation and enforcement of the Convention in our countries
and
to
working together to protect the fundamental values guaranteed by the Convention.