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Ireland falls behind as 36 countries sign ground-breaking convention to protect women from violence

Published: Friday, August 01, 2014

Today, the Council of Europe Convention on preventing and combating violence against women and domestic violence will become an active legal instrument, having achieved – and surpassed – the number of State ratifications required to bring it into force.
Of the 47 Member States of the Council of Europe, 36 countries have signed Convention. Sadly, Ireland has done neither.


The National Women’s Council of Ireland (NWCI) welcomes the activation of this piece of legislation, commonly referred to as the Istanbul Convention, as a major step towards successfully combating violence against women in Europe. The Convention incorporates best practice from around the globe, providing States with a detailed blueprint of essential measures and services needed to prevent gender-based violence, protect its victims and prosecute the perpetrators.


The NWCI, which chairs the National Observatory on Violence on Women, takes this opportunity today to call on the Irish Government to sign and ratify the Convention.  “We know we need this convention because there were over 38,000 calls to helplines in Ireland last year and frontline shelters are having to turn people away, and even facing threats of closure,” said Orla O’Connor, Director of NWCI. “These life-saving supports are too often treated as optional rather than essential services – legal obligation would change that.”


Ms. O’Connor added, “In March, the largest ever research on violence against women was published by the European Fundemental Rights Agency. Its findings, based on interviews with 40,000 women across the EU, highlighted the seriousness of the problem with one in five women reporting that they have experienced sexual or physical violence since the age of 15. Worryingly, data from Ireland indicates a higher incident rate of one in three Irish women reporting such an experience.”


But as well as violence itself there is huge damage done just be the fear of violence. That fear denies women the freedom to participate fully in society. 52% of women in Ireland reported as part of the survey that they avoid certain places or situations for fear of harassment or violence, a number higher than EU average.


This ongoing fear is a reminder that one of the most compelling reasons for the ratification of the Istanbul Convention is that if we do not put the proper supports in place then women who experience violence will continue to suffer a second violence in societies’ failure to protect or support them.


Ms. O Connor noted, “The Convention today came into force in 11 countries, with more to follow in the autumn. By delaying signature and ratification of the Istanbul Convention, our government is failing the women of Ireland. We urge the government to sign the Convention as a first step in indicating its commitment to this much-needed piece of legislation. This would provide the government with the necessary time and impetus to implement all the necessary changes, including the allocation of ring-fenced resources in October’s budget, to ensure a state of readiness for full ratification without delay.”