27/11/2008 Equality and Non-Discrimination
Strasbourg, 27.11.2008 - The Spanish Minister responsible for equal opportunities, Bibiana Aído, expressed her support this morning for PACE Recommendation 1847 (2008), which calls on European governments to prepare a Council of Europe framework convention on the severest and most widespread forms of violence against women, including domestic violence, sexual assault, harassment, forced marriages, "honour" crimes and female genital mutilation. "An accurate, reliable diagnosis of the phenomenon of violence against women is the first step towards combating it more effectively,” said Ms. Aído. “It is for this reason that the Spanish Chairmanship of the Committee of Ministers, which begins today, is determined to conduct a more detailed analysis of the phenomenon in member states so that it can work with common parameters." The Minister was addressing the members of the Sub-Committee on Violence against Women in Madrid.
For his part, the President of PACE, Lluís Maria de Puig, welcomed the fact that the political will to combat violence against women had led to the introduction of legislation in Spain. "Overall, however, there is little cause for satisfaction: it is estimated today that 80 million women in Europe are victims of violence."