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Recommendation 1847 (2008)
Combating violence against women: towards a Council of Europe convention
1. Recalling its Resolution 1635 (2008) – Combating violence against women: towards a Council
of Europe convention – the Parliamentary Assembly welcomes the Council
of Europe Campaign to combat violence against women, including domestic
violence. This campaign, conducted from 2006 to 2008, has involved
all three political dimensions of the Council of Europe (parliamentary,
governmental, local and regional) and associated NGOs.
2. The Assembly considers that the Council of Europe campaign
“Stop domestic violence against women” has brought greater awareness
of the phenomenon and acknowledgement of the fact that violence
against women, particularly domestic violence, is an unacceptable
violation of human rights.
3. Despite the progress made and the international instruments
already in existence, the Assembly considers that action to combat
violence against women must be intensified. It is convinced that
the drafting of a legal instrument which embodies the “three Ps”
(protection of victims, punishment of perpetrators and prevention)
and specifically addressing the question of gender-based violence
is necessary in order to encourage the member states to attain the
minimum standards in this respect and strengthen their legislation. The
Assembly feels that the preparation of a framework convention (modelled
on the Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities,
ETS No. 157) would make it possible to propose guidelines and provisions
defining objectives that the contracting parties would undertake
to pursue through national legislation and appropriate governmental
action.
4. The Assembly accordingly invites the Committee of Ministers
to draft a framework convention on the severest and most widespread
forms of violence against women, associating the Parliamentary Assembly,
the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of the Council of
Europe and NGOs in the drafting process, which should:
4.1. encompass the gender dimension
and address the specific nature of gender-based violence;
4.2. cover the severest and most widespread forms of violence
against women, in particular domestic violence against women (partners
or former partners, cohabiting or not), sexual assaults (including
rape and “marital rape”) and harassment, forced marriages, so-called
“honour crimes” and female genital mutilation;
4.3. include provisions requiring states to take the necessary
measures to protect victims and prevent and prosecute acts of violence
against women;
4.4. include an independent monitoring mechanism capable of
controlling the effective implementation of the convention.
5. Recalling its Recommendation
1838 (2008) – Empowering women in a modern, multicultural society
– the Assembly invites the Committee of Ministers to appoint a Council
of Europe special rapporteur on women’s rights who, under the authority
of the Council of Europe Commissioner for Human Rights, would be
responsible for monitoring the progress of women’s rights in fields
including that of combating violence against women.
6. The Assembly invites the Committee of Ministers to include
the action to combat the severest and most widespread forms of violence
against women in its co-operation and assistance programmes (including parliamentary
programmes) and to seek extra-budgetary funds to finance these activities.
7. The Assembly invites the Committee of Ministers to step up
its co-operation with the United Nations in connection with the
UN Campaign to end violence against women and girls (2008-15), so
that the good practices identified during the Council of Europe
campaign are developed and reinforced worldwide.