The European Union (EU) has signed the Council of Europe’s Convention on preventing and combating violence against women and domestic violence (Istanbul Convention). The decision to join the Istanbul Convention was made by the Council of the European Union on May 11, 2017. According to the Council, “[b]y joining the Istanbul convention, the EU reaffirms its leading role in ending violence against women and tackling all forms of discrimination based on gender.” All EU member states have signed and/or ratified the Istanbul Convention. The EU Parliament must now consent to the formal accession of the EU to the Istanbul Convention.
On May 19, Georgia ratified the Istanbul Convention, becoming the twenty-third state to do so. Twenty-one other states have signed, but not ratified the Convention.
The Istanbul Convention is the first legally binding instrument in Europe to create a comprehensive legal framework to protect women from acts of violence as well as prevent, prosecute and eliminate all forms of violence against women. The Convention entered into force in August of 2014.
Compiled from: EU to join international convention combating violence against women, Council of the European Union, Press Releases and Statements (May 11, 2017); Georgia ratifies the Istanbul Convention, Istanbul Convention, Action on violence against women and domestic violence, Newsroom (May 19, 2017).