Violence against women, the EU adheres to the Istanbul Convention

The European Parliament has given its yes to EU accession to the Council of Europe Convention on preventing and combating violence against women and domestic violence, the Istanbul Convention. MEPs gave their consent in two separate votes: the first on EU institutions and public administration, approved with 472 votes in favour, 62 against and 73 abstentions, the second on questions relating to judicial cooperation in criminal matters, all asylum and non-refoulement, approved with 464 votes in favour, 81 against and 45 abstentions.

Lega and Fdi abstained

However, the delegations of FdI and Lega, as shown by the delegation lists, abstained in a compact manner in both votes. Which concerned a first resolution which dealt with accession to the Convention in the public sector and a second which instead focused on judicial cooperation and asylum. Both resolutions were voted by a large majority. S&d, Renew, Verdi, Sinistra, M5S and the vast majority of the EPP voted in favour. Against the Polish members of the ECR (in Poland for some time there has been debate on the possibility of withdrawing from the Convention) and part of the ID group. Among the Italians, Lega and FdI opted instead for abstention.

Picieno (Pd): “Abstention by Lega and FdI depressing image”

The Pd with Pina Picierno, vice president of the European Parliament, attacks: “The conception of women by the two main majority parties is backward, uncivilized and liberticidal. Today, in fact, FdI and Lega abstained in the European Parliament in the vote that approved the ratification of the Istanbul convention. Even two representatives of FdI and Lega voted against. The convention, signed six years ago, represents the first legally binding international instrument on preventing and combating violence against women. Unfortunately, it has not yet been implemented by the Union European Union because six member states are missing, starting with Hungary – explains Picierno – Today, with the abstention, the parties of Meloni and Salvini have returned a depressing and unworthy image of Italy and its government. while our executive is led by a woman. It is a choice with a precise political, shameful and disturbing meaning. The retreat on the ground of rights had already been sanctioned by some ideological and identity choices of our government, which seems intent on progressively erode elementary rights conquered in years of civil battles. But today’s abstention represents the most brutal peak of this regression path and places the Italian government on a par with the crudest and most reactionary states of the Union”, concludes the vice president of the EP.

FdI’s reply

“The Fratelli d’Italia delegation, in reaffirming its commitment to the fight against violence against women, chose to abstain for a reason of method and one of merit – the head of the delegation of Fratelli d’Italia explained in a note – Ecr al eg Charles Fidanza and the FdI MEP Vincent Sofo – As regards the method, we consider problematic the fact that in order to speed up the ratification of the Convention by the EU it was decided to proceed by qualified majority and no longer by unanimity. A dangerous precedent for future decisions on new international agreements. On the merits, with our abstention we wanted to reiterate our concern on issues related to gender. There is no possibility that the Convention will be used to impose specific regulations on national governments. However, we want to denounce once again the constant exploitation of the Convention by the rainbow left, who would like to make it yet another Trojan horse to impose the LGBT agenda, as happened with the resolution adopted in Strasbourg last February. Whoever does this is actually an enemy of women because it is precisely women who are the first victims”, conclude the MEPs.

Pe votes in favor of EU accession to the Istanbul Convention

The EU Parliament recalled that the Commission proposed EU accession to the Convention in 2016, but that “ratification has stalled due to the reticence of some countries”. Subsequently, the EU Court of Justice confirmed in October 2021 that the EU can ratify the Convention with a qualified majority vote. “The EU Court has identified the appropriate scope for EU membership in asylum policies and judicial cooperation in criminal matters and in the obligations of EU institutions and public administration”, specifies the EU Parliament.

Finally, MEPs recalled that EU accession to the Istanbul Convention does not exempt member states from ratifying it themselves, and in this context they urged the six remaining countries, Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania and Slovakia, to do so without delay. With today’s plenary vote, the Council, and therefore the member countries, can now proceed to conclude the procedure for EU accession to the Convention with a qualified majority vote.