17/02/2011 | Equality and Non-Discrimination
At its meeting of 17 February 2011 the Committee on Equal Opportunities for Women and Men unanimously adopted an opinion on the draft Convention on preventing and combating violence against women and domestic violence.
16/02/2011 | Equality and Non-Discrimination
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Germany has made a voluntary contribution of close to 100 000 Euros to the Parliamentary Assembly to be devoted to the parliamentary dimension of the Council of Europe “One in Five” campaign to stop sexual violence against children. The main objectives of this year’s parliamentary campaign activities are to raise awareness of the issues surrounding sexual abuse and exploitation of children in Council of Europe member states and to promote relevant legislative and political action to combat these crimes and help the victims.
26/01/2011 | Equality and Non-Discrimination
A network of PACE parliamentarians held its first meeting today in Strasbourg to launch the parliamentary dimension of the Council of Europe’s “One in five” campaign to combat sexual violence against children. The group – which will eventually bring together “contact parliamentarians” from each of the Council of Europe’s 47 parliaments – will be pressing for better laws to protect children, spread good practice and organise awareness-raising events across the continent.
02/12/2010 | Equality and Non-Discrimination
Carina Ohlsson (Sweden, SOC), Chair of PACE’s Sub-committee on Children, has spelled out the legal changes that are needed across Europe to protect children against sexual abuse. A 14-member PACE delegation is taking part in the launch in Rome of the Council of Europe’s new “one in five” campaign to stop sexual violence against children, to draw attention to ambitious plans for the parliamentary dimension of the campaign.
02/12/2010 | Equality and Non-Discrimination
The PACE Committee on Equal Opportunities today asked European governments for specific legal, economic and social measures to improve the situation of rural women. The committee members stressed that unemployment, poverty and low quality or absence of basic services particularly affected rural women, as did stereotyped roles and subordinate status, the outcome of traditional attitudes.
30/11/2010 | Equality and Non-Discrimination
Carina Ohlsson (Sweden, SOC), Chair of PACE’s Sub-committee on Children, has spelled out the legal changes that are needed across Europe to protect children against sexual abuse. A 14-member PACE delegation is taking part in the launch in Rome of the Council of Europe’s new “one in five” campaign to stop sexual violence against children, to draw attention to ambitious plans for the parliamentary dimension of the campaign.
29/11/2010 | Equality and Non-Discrimination
PACE Vice-President and former Irish childrens’ minister Frank Fahey (Ireland, ALDE) has recalled how transparent inquiries enabled Ireland to face up to the “painful experience” of dealing with child sexual abuse and urged other countries to do the same.
29/11/2010 | Equality and Non-Discrimination
Promoting the Council of Europe Convention against trafficking in human beings will be the subject of an inter-parliamentary conference which the PACE Committee on Equal Opportunities between Women and Men of the will be holding in Paris on 3 December 2010. The participants will take stock of the action undertaken by the international organisations in this field, the implementation of the relevant international legal instruments and the involvement of national parliaments.
26/11/2010 | Equality and Non-Discrimination
A 14-member PACE delegation will be taking part in the launch of the Council of Europe campaign to stop sexual violence against children, “One in five”, next week in Rome – and drawing attention to ambitious plans for the parliamentary dimension of the campaign.
25/11/2010 | Equality and Non-Discrimination
"It is a fact that tens of thousands of women around the world are murdered every year by their husbands, partners or ex-partners simply because they are women, let alone those who are specifically targeted in warfare and other extreme situations. In terms of numbers of victims alone, this is the equivalent, every month, of more than the number who died in the 9/11 attacks in New York! There is a civil war going on in our backyards," declared José Mendes Bota (Portugal, EPP/CD), Chair of the Committee on Equal Opportunities.
11/11/2010 | Equality and Non-Discrimination
Experts negotiating a forthcoming Council of Europe treaty to combat violence against women and domestic violence are “four-fifths” of the way through their work and the convention could be ready before the end of Turkey’s six-month chairmanship of the Council of Europe, parliamentarians were told today during a meeting in Antalya. PACE’s Sub-committee on domestic violence was meeting ahead of the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women (25 November) to take stock of progress since the end of the Council of Europe’s campaign against domestic violence, which ended two years ago.
18/10/2010 | Equality and Non-Discrimination
‘On the European Day against Trafficking in Human Beings, I would like to reiterate the firm commitment of the Committee for Equal Opportunities for Women and Men not to spare any effort to fight against this intolerable form of modern-day slavery’, said today José Mendes Bota, Chairperson of the Committee.‘On our continent, the Council of Europe and the European Union should work hand in hand, avoid duplication and apply the highest standards in the prevention of trafficking, the prosecution of offenders and the protection of victims’.