Joint civil society position on key aspects of the European Parliament and Council of the EU position on the Proposal for a Directive on combating violence against women and domestic

In this crucial phase of the interinstitutional negotiations, we call on the European Commission, the European Parliament, and the Council of the EU to find meaningful compromises, to ensure that the Directive truly serves the needs of all survivors/victims1 of violence against women and girls2 and domestic violence, advances the achievement of gender equality and the effective protection of victi. [...] We centre and affirm the expertise of women human rights defenders in all their diversity, and encourage the European Commission, the European Parliament, and the Council of the EU to do the same. [...] By making this differentiation, the Directive aligns with the Istanbul Convention and the proposed revision of the Victim’s Rights Directive which underlines the complementarity of the levels of protection envisaged in sectorial and horizontal legislation, guaranteeing the rights of victims of crimes that have specific needs, such as the victims of violence against women and domestic violence. [...] Regarding Article 28, the Council failed to recognize that in many member states the overwhelming majority of specialised services for victims of sexual violence and other forms of violence against women are run by feminist NGOs and CSOs19, and the role they play as equal partners in the provision of services and implementation of the Directive due to their expertise in the area. [...] We call for the inclusion of the amendments proposed by the Parliament, recognising civil society as partners in multi-agency cooperation and in the implementation of the Directive, and the key role of women’s specialist services in preventing and tackling gender-based and domestic violence, particularly in Articles 18, 20, 27, 31, 44 and 44a.