03/07/2020 | Equality and Non-Discrimination
Following the Black Lives Matter protests in the US and Europe, parliamentarians came together with anti-racism officials and campaigners during a PACE webinar to condemn the “denial of the painful reality” of an estimated 15 million people of African descent living in Europe, and to demand...
25/06/2020 | Equality and Non-Discrimination
“Increasing attacks against LGBTI people in Poland over the past weeks and months must stop,” declared Fourat Ben Chikha (Belgium, SOC), the General Rapporteur on the rights of LGBTI people for the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE), speaking today. “It is alarming to see that...
24/06/2020 | Equality and Non-Discrimination
According to the Equality Committee, member States should ensure a gender dimension in their foreign policies, in view of promoting inclusiveness, equality and non-discrimination and to counter the backlash against women's rights. The report by Petra Stienen (Netherlands, ALDE), adopted by the...
12/06/2020 | Equality and Non-Discrimination
Women should be fully involved at the heart of crisis response planning and decision-making, participants agreed at a PACE webinar on the gender dimension of foreign policy in the response to COVID-19, bringing together parliamentarians with current and former diplomats as well as academics...
11/06/2020 | Equality and Non-Discrimination
PACE’s Committee on Equality and Non-Discrimination held an exchange of views on 5 June 2020 on “Upholding human rights in times of crisis and pandemics: the right to equality and non-discrimination”. The exchange followed the appointment of Petra Stienen (Netherlands, ALDE) as rapporteur for a...
10/06/2020 | Equality and Non-Discrimination
PACE’s Committee on Equality and Non-Discrimination is hosting a Facebook Live webinar on the gender dimension of foreign policy in the response to COVID-19 at 4 p.m. CET on 11 June. Panellists include current and former diplomats and academics involved in this field from the Netherlands, Sweden...
05/06/2020 | Equality and Non-Discrimination
Sexual and reproductive healthcare have been among the first services to be negatively impacted during the COVID-19 crisis. Women have often been left without access to essential medical services such as contraception, testing for HIV and sexually transmitted infections, and reproductive cancer...
22/05/2020 | Equality and Non-Discrimination
“The Hungarian Parliament’s enactment this week of a law designed to prevent trans and intersex people from obtaining legal recognition of their gender identity is a flagrant breach of human rights,” declared PACE General Rapporteur on the rights of LGBTI people, Fourat Ben Chikha (Belgium, SOC...
18/05/2020 | Equality and Non-Discrimination
The negative impact on sexual and reproductive health and rights of the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as innovative solutions to cope with the crisis, were the focus of a parliamentary webinar streamed live via Facebook on 19 May 2020 at 16h CEST.Organised by PACE’s Committee on Equality and Non...
15/05/2020 | Equality and Non-Discrimination
“The COVID-19 pandemic has thrown into sharp relief the inequalities existing in our societies, and marginalised still further those who were already most at risk. Many LGBTI people already faced discrimination in access to employment, housing and adequate health care, and the last few weeks have...
11/05/2020 | Equality and Non-Discrimination
With violence against women increasing during the COVID-19 lockdown, parliamentarians and experts from across the international community came together in an online conversation on Europe Day (5 May) to urge governments to tackle this “dramatic situation” by fully implementing the measures laid...
23/04/2020 | Equality and Non-Discrimination
The new Handbook for parliamentarians on the Council of Europe Convention on Preventing and Combating Violence against Women and Domestic Violence (Istanbul Convention) is now available. The handbook aims to strengthen parliamentary knowledge about the convention and to support parliamentarians...