Plenary summary: Istanbul Convention, 67th UN Commission on the Status of Women
During its February I plenary session, the European Parliament Plenary debated and voted on some files that relate to the human rights of LGBTI persons:
- Council of Europe Convention on preventing and combating violence against women and domestic violence: EU accession – Committees on Women’s Rights and Gender Equality (FEMM) and Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs (LIBE)
- The EU priorities for the 67th session of the UN Commission on the Status of Women
- (Note: For a complete list of all texts (and specific paragraphs) in this legislature touching upon LGBTI issues, check our List of resources available here.)
Council of Europe Convention on preventing and combating violence against women and domestic violence: EU accession
On Tuesday, Members of the European Parliament debated the report on the Council of Europe Convention on preventing and combating violence against women and domestic violence: EU accession (rapporteurs: Arba Kokalari (EPP)and Łukasz Kohut (S&D)). The report was adopted on Wednesday.
The Parliament welcomed the fact that on 4 March 2016 the Commission proposed the EU’s accession to the Istanbul Convention, and urged the Council to act according to CJEU decision and not to delay the EU’s accession to the Istanbul Convention any longer. It reiterates that the Istanbul Convention should be understood as the minimum standard required to eradicate gender-based violence and that the Union should also pursue additional legislative and non-legislative measures in this regard.
On LGBTIQ issues, it mentioned:
- 3. Reaffirms its commitment to pursuing a comprehensive approach to call for the eradication at EU level of all gender-based violence committed against women and girls in all their diversity and against LGBTIQ+ persons on the grounds of their sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression and sex characteristics and to ensure the follow-up of its recommendations, which have been proposed in a number of resolutions;
- 4. Strongly condemns all forms of gender-based violence against women and girls and against LGBTIQ+ persons; strongly affirms that the denial of sexual and reproductive health services and rights including the right to safe and legal abortion, is a form of violence against women and girls; […]
Watch the plenary debate here.
The EU priorities for the 67th session of the UN Commission on the Status of Women
Also on Tuesday, Members of the European Parliament debated the resolution on The EU priorities for the 67th session of the UN Commission on the Status of Women (rapporteur: Robert Biedrón, S&D). The report was adopted on Wednesday.
- (t) to point to the need to protect democracy and human rights in the digital space, such as freedom of expression, the right to privacy and data protection; to underline the dangers posed online to women human rights defenders (WHRDs), women politicians, journalists and other women and LGBTIQ+ activists, as cyberviolence and harassment is often instrumentalised in attempts to silence women’s voices; to promote efforts to protect them;
- (v) to emphasise the need to protect and promote the rights of groups experiencing multiple and intersectional forms of discrimination, including women with disabilities, racialised women, including Black women and women of colour, migrant and ethnic minority women, older women, women with lower education levels, women with health problems, single mothers and LGBTIQ+ women in rural and depopulated areas; to work to promote the concept of combating multiple discrimination and to integrate intersectional analysis throughout all UN bodies, as well as in the EU and its Member States;
Watch the plenary debate here.
The resolution was adopted by show of hands.
