Following the entry into force in June 2024 of the first directive to combat domestic violence and violence against women (see EUROPE 13431/33), Member States are working to implement it. To this end, draft conclusions are due to be approved on 17 October at the Employment, Social Policy, Health and Consumer Affairs Council (EPSCO).
The text, which was published on Thursday 2 October and will be presented to the Member States’ representatives to the European Union (Coreper I) on 8 October, points out that the directive is based on three areas of action: prevention, protection of victims and punishment of offenders.
The aim is to prevent violence, detect risk situations early and intervene without waiting for them to escalate.
With these draft conclusions, the Danish Presidency of the Council of the EU is calling on Member States to develop measures to address the issue of under-reporting, in particular by encouraging witnesses, such as relatives, to call the authorities without fear of reprisals.
Action also involves raising awareness and training professionals, such as care workers, teachers, law enforcement officers, judges and social workers, to identify the signs of violence so that they can intervene as quickly as possible.
The text also calls for better cooperation between the various players, including associations, who are active in the field.
The draft conclusions reiterate some of the key factors in understanding these issues, such as the key role played by women’s financial independence in leaving violent relationships, and the need to recognise children and pregnant women exposed to violence as victims in their own right who will require appropriate support.
In addition, to combat this violence there is a need to collect and analyse reliable data, to create funded, multi-disciplinary action plans, and to hold consultations with civil society at every stage.
The European Commission is therefore called upon to take account of these priorities in its future post-2025 equality strategies and to integrate the priorities into them.
Read the draft conclusions: https://aeur.eu/f/isr (Original version in French by Nithya Paquiry)