Brussels, 07/12/2009 (Agence Europe) - The forthcoming Spanish Presidency of the European Union plans to put forward a proposal in early January for a "European mandate for the protection of victims" of crimes such as domestic violence in the territory of the Union. The aim of this proposal is to allow a member state to recognise and apply protection measures taken in favour of a victim in another member state. A violent husband who has been handed down a restraining order by a Spanish court preventing him from going within a certain distance of his wife due to domestic violence issues, for example, would have to observe the same measure in any country his wife chooses to move to. In some countries, any person who believes that they have been harassed by another can go to the courts for a decision preventing that person from having any contact, of any kind (visiting the person at home or at work, telephone calls, text messages). At European level, texts have already been adopted to ensure that surveillance or probation measures are carried out in another member state, but nothing can be done if it is the victim who moves to another member state. Spain's initiative, which is supported by around 10 other member states, aims to remedy this situation. Even if the political decision-makers can agree on the need for a measure of this kind, negotiations on the text are still likely to be difficult, because major differences of opinion exist regarding the type and nature of the measures currently applied by the member states. Spain, for example, has a criminal law arsenal in place for victim protection, whereas other member states deal with these issues under civil law. According to recent studies, it is believed that one in every five women in the European Union will be the victim of domestic violence at some point in her life. (B.C./transl.fl)