Violence against women: the European Union joins the Istanbul Convention. Dalli (EU), prevention and fight are priorities

The Convention of the Council of Europe on preventing and combating violence against women and domestic violence will come into force in the European Union on October 1st 2023. The international treaty, usually known as “Istanbul Convention”, has been officially ratified in Strasbourg today in the presence of the secretary general of the pan-European institution, Marija Pejčinović Burić, the permanent representative of Sweden, ambassador Mårten Ehnberg, on behalf of the presidency-in-office of the EU Council, and the European Commissioner for Equality, Helena Dalli, who stated: “For us to live in a fair and equal European Union, women and girls must be able to live free from fear, violence, and everyday insecurity”. By ratifying the Convention, the Commissioner went on, the EU commits to guaranteeing “that minimum criminal legal standards apply to counter violence against women and domestic violence across the Union, and the message that tackling these forms of violence is a priority”. The EU is the 38th signer of the Convention, which all the member states of the EU have joined, but it has been ratified by 21 European countries so far. Chronologically, the EU’s ratification comes after that of Ukraine, the United Kingdom and the Republic of Moldova. According to Marija Pejčinović Burić, the EU Council has a “pioneering role in the fight against violence against women and domestic violence” and is the propeller of “a virtuous circle” in this respect.

Valentina Bombelli