One-in-three girls within the EU has skilled some type of gender-based violence, reminiscent of sexual harassment, rape, feminine genital mutilation or on-line harrassment.
For instance, this yr alone, simply in Italy, 53 girls had been murdered by their associate or former associate.
”I do not understand how you’re feeling about this, however I am fucking livid,” stated MEP Terry Reintke (Greens/EFA) throughout a plenary debate on the elimination of gender-based violence on Thursday morning (23 November).
The 2-hour debate was the primary merchandise on MEPs’ agenda on the final day of the November plenary session in Strasbourg. It began at 9am. The hemicycle was nearly empty, or barely stuffed by the audio system themselves — most of whom had been girls.
By an approximate EUobserver tally, there have been 46 feminine MEPs current and 6 speaking on behalf of their teams, plus 16 male MEPs.
However their message was robust, and the consensus amongst MEPs was undoubtedly throughout the political spectrum: the EU wants a sturdy directive to eradicate violence in opposition to girls — and the Council must cease blocking negotiations.
”As issues stand, time is working out to undertake this directive earlier than the upcoming European elections,” Dubravka Šuica, vice-president of the EU Fee pressured. ”We should maintain pushing for progress”.
On 8 March 2022, the fee proposed a brand new directive on combating violence in opposition to girls and home violence to create a minimal stage of safety throughout the EU. Till now, there was no pre-existing EU authorized framework for it.
The EU Parliament agreed its widespread place in July 2023, however the council opened a authorized battle over the EU’s powers on this space — delaying all makes an attempt to have a directive in place earlier than the tip of this mandate.
”Why on earth are member states not dashing in direction of this aim, refusing to be sincere and say that with out strong relationship and sexuality training we are going to by no means overcome this phenomenon?” stated MEP Frances Fitzgerald (European Folks’s Social gathering).
Member states have eliminated all references to the offence of rape from the draft textual content, and don’t even agree on a standard definition of rape.
The council itself is internally divided, with a majority of nations, together with France and Germany, in opposition to the inclusion of rape within the last textual content, and others, reminiscent of Belgium, Greece and Italy, in favour.
Alternatively, the conflict between the EU establishments over the definition of rape revolves round whether or not it ought to be thought of as such when there’s a lack of consent (as proposed by the parliament) or when drive is utilized by the aggressor, as proposed by some member states.
”Girls are able to giving consent and males are able to respecting it,” stated MEP Karen Melchior, from the Renew Europe group.
”Solely ’sure’ means sure. Intercourse with out consent is rape. This needs to be clear, and it needs to be included within the directive,” additionally pressured Iratxe García Pérez, chief of the Socialists and Democrats (S&D) within the parliament.
”And sexual exploitation of a lady is not only promoting her physique, it is usually forcing her to have intercourse with out her consent,” García Pérez added.
Parliament isn’t alone on this authorized battle of competences. The EU government decided that rape offences fall throughout the competence of the EU.
Fee president Ursula von der Leyen herself made the identical level in her annual State of the Union speech: ”No means no. There will be no true equality with out freedom from violence,” she stated in September.
”If we on this parliament surrender the primary time a member state raises authorized issues, we is not going to get anyplace. But when we battle, we are able to make it,” Reintke concluded.