On November 25, at the initiative of the United Nations, the world
marks the International Day for the elimination of violence against
women. This date was chosen in memory of the Mirabal sisters, political
activists who were brutally assassinated in 1960 by order of the
Dominican Republic dictator Rafael Trujillo. This date was chosen to
draw the world's attention to violence against women and to intensify
the fight against this brutal violation of human rights.
Violence against women and girls is, unfortunately, a widespread
problem of human rights violation that has no borders and takes place
around the globe. The World Health Organization estimates that one
third of women and girls worldwide experience violence at some point in
their live. But these numbers are just the tip of the iceberg, as this
type of violence often goes unnoticed. The victims are scared to talk
about it because of the social stigma and shame that surrounds it. As a
result, criminals often go unpunished.
The COVID-19 pandemic has only exacerbated the problem and demonstrated
that for many women, even their own home is not a safe place. According
to the results of the study “The Impact of COVID-19 on Women's Rights
in Ukraine”, provided by the Association of Women Lawyers of Ukraine
“Yurfem”, more than 40% of women who reported domestic violence during
the quarantine had no such experience before. But the worst thing is
that almost 90% of such crimes in Ukraine do not reach law enforcement
agencies. According to statistics from the Ministry of Justice, out of
1 million victims of domestic violence, only 100,000 people call the
police. The rest just keep silent. They are silent because of fear and
tolerance of violence in the society.
The European Commission has unveiled the most common myths about
violence against women. Their debunking is important so that this
phenomenon is not tolerated in society any more.
MYTH 1: Domestic violence is a private issue and we should not get
involved. Domestic violence is a crime. It is against the law and thus
it is not a private matter. If you commit a crime in your own home, it
is still a crime for which you should be prosecuted. Silence around
domestic violence enables it to continue. Everyone, women included, has
the right to be safe and free from fear everywhere, including at home.
The COVID-19 pandemic has shown that for some women, home is far from
being a safe place.
MYTH 2: Addressing gender-based violence means imposing ideas and
values onto other cultures. Violence is not a legitimate part of any
culture. Gender-based violence exists in every country, culture or
community and governments around the world have outlawed most acts of
gender-based violence. Gender-based violence cannot be allowed to
continue. It is one of the most widespread, persistent and devastating
human rights violations in the world today. Women are being harassed,
raped, mutilated, beaten and even murdered. This must end.
MYTH 3: There would be fewer rapes if women refrained from risky
behaviours (for example, revealing clothing, being drunk…). The
victim’s behaviour can never be taken as a sign of consent to sexual
activity. This victim blaming discourse perpetuates the idea that rape
can be justified: 27% of EU citizens say non-consensual sex could be
justifiable in certain situations. This shifts the blame to the
victim/survivor, while the fact is that the only person responsible for
rape is the perpetrator.
One of the most widespread and effective international instruments in
the field of women's rights protection is the Istanbul Convention, an
international agreement of the Council of Europe on violence against
women and domestic violence, opened for signature on 11 May 2011 in
Istanbul.
The document is important not only because it officially recognizes
violence against women as both a violation of human rights and a form
of discrimination, but it also covers a number of measures to prevent
and combat violence, protect the victims, prosecute and punish
perpetrators. The Convention provides specific tools, strategies for
combating and preventing violence against women, methods of protection
and support for victims. Ukraine signed the Istanbul Convention in
2011, but has not yet ratified it. In 2016, President Petro Poroshenko
submitted a draft law to the Verkhovna Rada aimed to ratify the
Convention, but it was not approved by the Parliament and sent for
revision. In February this year, a petition appeared on the website of
the President of Ukraine demanding ratification of the Istanbul
Convention. By May, the petition had received the required 25,000 votes
to be considered. President Volodymyr Zelensky promised to submit a
similar draft law to the Parliament, but hasn’t done it yet. The main
stumbling block for the adoption of the Convention in Ukraine is the
concepts of «gender» and «gender identity» definitions in the text of
the document. Opponents of the Convention argue that these terms in the
legal field may be the basis for substituting the concept of
«biological sex». Human rights activists insist that «gender» in the
text of the Convention refers to social roles, in particular the fact
that a woman is often a victim of violence precisely because she is a
woman. Ukraine has been repeatedly called upon to ratify the Istanbul
Convention by the European Union and the Council of Europe. Experts
from Amnesty International also speak about the need to adopt the
document.
On the International Day for the elimination of violence against women,
the Committee on Ukraine’s Integration into the EU joins the EU
initiative #SayNoStopVAW, which aims to talk about violence against
women, debunk the myths surrounding it and help eradicate this human
rights violation from the society. The symbols of the fight against
this kind of violence are white ribbon and orange. The European
Commission, European External Action Service and the Council of the EU
will be lighting up its buildings in Brussels, in orange on the eve of
Wednesday 25 November to show its support for combatting violence
against women.