1. Art and Diseño

Strasbourg, 29 January 2015
GEC (2014) 12 rev1 (English only)
GENDER EQUALITY COMMISSION
(GEC)
_____________
IMPLEMENTATION OF THE
COUNCIL OF EUROPE GENDER EQUALITY STRATEGY 2014-2017:
ANNUAL REPORT 2014
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Contents
Highlights ...................................................................................................................................... 3
Introduction .................................................................................................................................. 4
I
Overall progress and implementation ...................................................................... 5
A. Ownership and Working Methods
B. Promotion, evaluation and support for implementation of standards
C. Transversal Co-operation – Gender mainstreaming into all policies and
activities of the Council of Europe
D. Strategic partnerships with other regional and international
organisations and civil society
II
Conclusions ................................................................................................................... 9
***
Appendix 1 - Activities and Results by Objective ................................................................. 11
Appendix 2 - Table of ongoing and completed activities .................................................... 19
Appendix 3 - List of studies, compilations, handbooks and other practical tools........... 26
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Highlights of the first year
The first ever Council of Europe Strategy has allowed the Organisation to focus its response to the
challenges and opportunities faced in the implementation of key gender equality standards both
within the Council of Europe and in its member States.
It has energised and accelerated work on narrowing the gap between de jure and de facto gender
equality, as well as brought together resources for greater impact across the organisation, through
its gender mainstreaming pillar.
All sectors of the Council of Europe are increasingly seeing the importance of mainstreaming
gender into their work and activities, whether it is in the area of human rights, justice, fighting
corruption, sport, internal oversight, films and film industry, or drug policies.
The Transversal Programme on Gender Equality has gained visibility, influence and authority in
promoting and implementing gender equality standards.
A comprehensive communication plan for the implementation of the Strategy has increased
visibility and awareness about Council of Europe standards and has further consolidated its
leading role as a normative organisation in the field of women’s rights and gender equality.
Following numerous successful promotional events and contacts with the key external partners, the
Council of Europe Convention on combating violence against women and domestic violence
(Istanbul Convention) entered in force 1 August 2014 and has become a global reference – called as
“golden standard” by the UN Women and received the 2014 Future Policy Award.
Two important conferences of National Focal Points (NFPs) focusing on media and the image of
women and combatting gender stereotypes in education as well as two events focusing on equal
access of women to justice have facilitated implementation of standards by providing opportunities
for exchange of experience and good practice ideas and information as well as networking
opportunities among relevant stakeholders.
Practical tools such as compilations of good practices handbooks/toolkits on the implementation of
Council of Europe standards in the area of gender equality have been made available to member
States.
The successful completion of the fourth round of monitoring the implementation of the Committee
of Ministers Recommendation Rec(2002)5 on the protection of women against violence and its
analytical report have provided member States with information on existing gaps and measures to
address them.
“This is a defining moment for women in Europe for whom the home is a place of danger. This treaty will oblige governments to take
concrete steps to help women and girls facing violent attacks. From Albania to Spain, from Bosnia and Herzegovina to Italy, from
France to Turkey, groups are already starting to use this treaty to force their governments to prevent violence, to protect women, and
to invest in the future of survivors. The struggle to end violence against women is a long one, but thanks to this treaty we have more
power to fight it.”
Gauri van Gulik,
Global women’s rights advocate for Human Rights Watch,
on the occasion of the entry into force of the Istanbul Convention, 1 August 2014
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Introduction
The Council of Europe launched its first ever Transversal Programme on Gender Equality in
2012 with the aim of increasing the impact and visibility of gender equality standards and
supporting their implementation in member States and within the Organisation itself. The
Programme mobilises all of the Council of Europe’s sectors, intergovernmental structures,
monitoring mechanisms and partial agreements as well as its external partners and thus
brings resources together for greater impact, energy and focus.
The most tangible result of the Transversal programme is the first Council of Europe
Strategy on Gender Equality 2014-2017 that was unanimously adopted, in November 2013,
by the Committee of Ministers. The Strategy builds upon the strengths, specificities and
added value of the Council of Europe and proposes a vision and framework for the Council
of Europe’s role and action in the area of gender equality.
The overall goal of the Strategy is to achieve the advancement and empowering of women
and hence the effective realisation of gender equality in Council of Europe member States.
To this end, the Strategy promotes a holistic and integrated approach to gender equality and
provides policy guidance and support to Council of Europe member States, as well as
internal institutional bodies and mechanisms to tackle old and new challenges in
implementing standards in the area of gender equality.
The Strategy sets five priority areas:
1. Combating gender stereotypes and sexism;
2. Preventing and combating violence against women;
3. Guaranteeing equal access of women to justice;
4. Achieving balanced participation of women and men in political and public
decision-making;
5. Achieving gender mainstreaming in all policies and measures.
To assess progress in the implementation of the Strategy, the Gender Equality Commission
is requested to regularly take stock of results achieved and prepare an annual report to be
brought to the attention of the Committee of Ministers.
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I
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Overall Progress and Implementation
Support to member States to implement standards in the area of gender equality is central to
the activities, working methods and partnerships developed across the Transversal
Programme on Gender Equality. A thorough assessment of the situation and work in
progress in the member States has enabled the Council of Europe to better evaluate and
respond to their needs at national and local level. This has been achieved through:
A. Ensuring ownership by the member States of the Strategy and related processes and
activities:
1. Engagement and regular consultations and exchange with the core components of
the Transversal Programme: the Gender Equality Commission (GEC) and the NFPs
for Gender Equality in the member States. This required a change in working
methods and a shift from inward to outward looking, adopting action and measures
tailored to the needs of the member States. Using the Strategy as a baseline, the
choice of specific themes, activities and tools that were developed has been a result of
close consultation, engagement and co-operation with the NFPs in the 47 member
States, as well as with the core structure of the Transversal Programme, the GEC.
2. The NFPs annual conference has developed into a strategic platform for debates and
discussions on a theme decided by the GEC and NFPs which brings together a wide
and diverse spectrum of stakeholders: government and independent gender
specialists and experts, civil society and the private sector, regional and international
organisations. All events and activities have been carried out in partnership with
member States and other bodies and institutions in the Council of Europe.
3. Activities, developments and progress in the member States were given visibility in
the website of the Transversal Programme as well as disseminated among the
relevant structures and stakeholders. This has led to recognition of efforts in the
member States to comply with Council of Europe standards and flow of information
and experience among the member States.
“Swiss Position on a Framework for Sustainable Development Post-2015 - Switzerland promotes both a standalone goal on gender equality and a transversal approach, integrating gender-sensitive targets in the
formulation of other goals consistent with the Council of Europe Gender Equality Strategy”
“A law promoting true equality between women and men, presented by the Minister of Women's Rights, Najat
Vallaud-Belkacem, was adopted by the French Senate and National Assembly on 8 August 2014.”
“On the occasion of International Women's Day, the Head of the Croatian Gender Equality Office, Ms Helena
Stimac Radin, presented on 6th March the Council of Europe Gender Equality Strategy 2014-2017, which they
have translated into Croatian”.
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B. Promotion, monitoring/evaluation of standards to identify gaps and obstacles and
development of activities, tools and co-operation programmes to address such gaps
and remove obstacles towards implementation.
1. Monitoring implementation is used as a tool to support member States in their
efforts to comply with standards. An example is the 4th round of monitoring the
implementation of the Committee of Ministers Recommendation Rec(2002)5 on the
protection of women against violence which was successfully completed in 2013 and
the results published in an Analytical Report in 2014. The findings of the monitoring
provided the member States with information about gaps and recommendations for
further action, including good examples in member States.
2. The Council of Europe has designed and implements targeted co-operation projects.
Examples include co-operation in the framework of Norway Grants with Bulgaria,
Poland, Romania and Slovakia; co-operation with SIDA to support Ukrainian
authorities in the process of ratification of the Istanbul Convention; a study on the
costs of violence against women in Poland; compliance with Article 10 of the Istanbul
Convention - Coordinating Body in Finland; co-operation with the South-Med
countries to combat gender based violence and promote gender equality; cooperation with UN Women on a multi-country study to map the availability and
quality of support services for women victims of violence in five member States.
3. Visibility and promotion materials in the form of factsheets, information leaflets,
thematic papers and studies and brochures, TV spots and videos about the Council
of Europe standards in the five priority areas were prepared and widely
disseminated throughout member States and other stakeholders during national,
regional or global events, as well as electronically. As an example, a short video
about the subjects covered by the Conference on Media and the Image of Women
was one of the most viewed Council of Europe videos and the conference was
mentioned in national press, including The Guardian. The Istanbul Convention has
generated significant media attention (traditional media and new social media) with
at least 130 articles and news items published about the Convention and widespread
use of the hashtag #IstanbulConvention. Last but not least, the creation and regular
updating of dedicated websites for Gender Equality and the Istanbul Convention
have contributed significantly to raising the visibility of the Council of Europe
standards and activities among experts and the general public.
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4. Council of Europe standard reference - expertise and sharing of good practice in the
context of co-operation with member and non-member States and other regional and
international organisations has increased visibility of, and knowledge about Council
of Europe standards among its strategic partners. The Istanbul Convention has
become the standard reference in the field of preventing and combating violence
against women and domestic violence for a wide range of institutions at both EU and
global level. Other regional and international agencies are drawing from the
standards and experience of the Council of Europe work in the area of equal access of
women to justice, gender mainstreaming or tackling gender stereotypes.
“The Istanbul Convention is a prime example of a comprehensive legal framework ….. It explicitly defines violence against
women as a human rights violation. It recognizes unequal power relations between men and women as the root cause of
violence against women, and it advocates a gender-sensitive perspective in tackling it”.
UN Women Executive Director Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka
Congratulatory speech on the Vision Award for the Istanbul Convention at the
Future Policy Award 2014 Ceremony (IPU Assembly, Geneva, 14 October 2014)
C. Transversal and close co-operation with the various bodies and institutions in the
Council of Europe to ensure gender mainstreaming throughout policies and activities;
1. Co-operation and synergies were reinforced with the various steering committees
and monitoring mechanisms to ensure an integrated approach and introduce a
gender equality perspective in all policies and at all levels. Gender Equality
Rapporteurs (GERs) have been appointed in all steering committees, other
institutional bodies including at the Committee of Ministers level as well as in some
of the monitoring mechanisms.
2. The various institutional bodies, the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of
Europe (PACE), the Office of the Commissioner for Human Rights (CHR), the
Congress of Local and Regional Authorities and the European Court of Human
Rights systematically monitor and evaluate the respect of standards related to gender
equality and women’s rights.
3. The GEC holds regular exchange of views with GERs and representatives from
across the organisation to share information, expertise, know-how and good working
methods and practices as well as discuss challenges. Such exchanges have taken
place with the GRECO GER, the Vice-President of the ECHR, the First ViceChairperson of the PACE Committee on Equality and Non-Discrimination and
General Rapporteur on Violence against Women, the GER of the European
Committee on Local and Regional Democracy (CDLR), the GER of the Steering
Committee on Media and Information Society (CDMSI), the GER of the Enlarged
Partial Agreement on Sport (EPAS), the Executive Secretary of the Council of Europe
Convention on Action against Trafficking in Human Beings, the Council of Europe
Commissioner for Human Rights, the Deputy Executive Director of EURIMAGES –
the European Cinema Support Fund, and the GER of the Committee of Ministers.
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4. The Gender Mainstreaming Team (GMT) which brings together Secretariat
representatives from institutional bodies, intergovernmental committees and
monitoring mechanisms is an important component of the Transversal Programme
and has played an important role in the preparation and on-going work for the
implementation of the Strategy.
D. Strategic partnerships with other regional and international organisations to ensure
synergies and avoid duplication, as well as with the civil society to increase outreach
and visibility.
1. Significant progress has been made towards developing and enhancing strategic
partnerships with regional and international organisations (EU, OSCE, OAS, and the
United Nations, in particular UN Women); networks of women’s organisations
(European Women’s Lobby; Women against Violence Europe Network (WAVE),
Women’s Aid); international NGOs (Amnesty International and Human Rights
Watch); Equinet (European network of equality bodies), research and think-tank
institutes in the member States and outside the European region. Regular exchange,
consultation and co-operation have furthered synergies and co-ordination on the
basis of the added value of each stakeholder. Participation and contribution at high
level political events has increased visibility, impact and outreach of Council of
Europe standards, work and activities in the area of gender equality.
2. Through contacts with MEPs and participation in events with EU institutions, such
as the European Parliament, European Institute for Gender Equality (EIGE) and the
European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights (FRA), the Council of Europe was
able to promote Council of Europe standards in the area of gender equality,
maintain the support at the EU level for the ratification by EU member States and
the possible accession of the EU to the Istanbul Convention, and promote Council of
Europe standards in the area of gender equality. The Council of Europe is regularly
invited to speak at high level events, including at ministerial level, organised by the
EU and its agencies as well as by the European Parliament.
3. Important contacts were made throughout 2013 and 2014 with the Inter-American
Commission of Women of the OAS, as well as with the Secretariat of the Follow-up
Mechanism to the Belém do Pará Convention. The Council of Europe participated in
the Hemispheric Conference on the Human Rights of Women: Good practices in
Gender Justice (Buenos Aires, Argentina, 25-27 September 2013) and was given a
prominent place during the fifth Conference of States Parties of the monitoring
mechanism (MESECVI) of the Inter-American Convention on the Prevention,
Punishment and Eradication of Violence against Women (Washington DC,
December 2014). The Council of Europe also contributed to the “Hemispheric Forum
on The Belém do Pará Convention and the Prevention of Violence against Women:
Good practices and proposals for the future” (Pachuca, Mexico, 14-15 May 2014).
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4. Co-operation between the Council of Europe and UN Women in the field of
preventing and combating violence against women was further enhanced during
2014. In addition to the successful organisation of and contribution to events, both
organisations are working together on a multi-country study to map the availability
and quality of support services for women victims of violence in Albania, Bosnia
and Herzegovina, Georgia, Serbia, Turkey, and “the former Yugoslav Republic of
Macedonia”, and to compare them to the requirements of the Istanbul Convention.
II
Conclusions
The establishment of the Council of Europe Transversal Programme on Gender Equality and
the Gender Equality Strategy 2014-2017 have further consolidated the leading role of the
Council of Europe as a reference point in the field of women’s rights and gender equality. At
the same time, it has also raised many expectations and in addition to running the
institutional bodies of the Transversal Programme and their activities, there is an increasing
demand for support, expertise, co-operation and contributions which is emerging from
various national, regional and global processes. Challenges to tackle during the second year
of the implementation of the Strategy and through the activities of the Transversal
Programme include:
1. Growing threats to women’s human rights call for enhancing synergies,
partnerships and co-operation – despite progress, opposition to gender equality and
women’s rights is on the rise among certain segments of policy makers, parliamentarians
and civil society groups. In times of crises and austerity measures, it is necessary to
strengthen co-operation and communication with the member states to ensure
that women’s human rights remain high in the political agenda. It is important
to build supportive networks among policy-makers, academics, civil society
experts and regional and international organisations, to continue the promotion
of the Council of Europe standards on women’s rights and gender equality in
particular the Istanbul Convention, to raise awareness among stakeholders
about their existence and their potential as tools for change both in member and
non-member states and to strengthen impact through joint action.
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2. Monitor and support the implementation of Council of Europe standards: despite
progress, member States continue to face challenges with implementation. Gender
equality mechanisms have witnessed further cuts in both human and financial resources
and face difficulties in carrying out their mandates to achieve gender equality, combat
discrimination on the ground of sex and monitor developments at national level.
Effective monitoring and evaluation of the implementation of Council of Europe
standards is therefore an important process which contributes to taking stock of
developments, progress or lack thereof. It provides useful information on emerging
trends and issues and underpins efforts to improve performance and ensure
accountability. Evaluation and monitoring reports of other bodies and monitoring
mechanisms inside the organisation, and by external partners, should be duly taken into
account to align strategies and increase impact. All activities, including co-operation,
during the second year of the implementation of the strategy, should aim towards
supporting member States to fill identified gaps and remove obstacles towards the
implementation of existing standards.
3. Strengthen internal transversal co-operation with other bodies and institutions inside
the organisation. To cope with increasing demand for expertise and co-operation to
implement standards and mainstream gender across policies and at all levels, it is
important to further invest in training the GER, the GMT, as well as staff in the
headquarters and in Council of Europe field offices.
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Appendix I
Activities and Results by Objective
Objective 1 – Combating gender stereotypes and sexism
The first NFP Conference focused on “Media and the Image of Women” (Amsterdam, 4-5
July 2013) and tackled gender stereotypes and sexism in the area of media. It analysed
persisting challenges related to balancing gender equality and freedom of expression, the
challenges and opportunities created by the new media technologies, and leadership of
women in the media. The Conference served as an opportunity to reach out to and engage
with the media sector, and through them with society at large, which allowed on the one
hand to promote Council of Europe standards such as the Committee of Ministers
Recommendation on gender equality and media, and on the other hand to provide member
States with information and practical tools to implement such standards.
The second NFP conference took up challenges related to "Combating gender stereotypes
in and through education" (Helsinki, 9 - 10 October 2014). It analysed the role played by the
education system in perpetuating gender-based inequalities, examined the challenges of
mainstreaming gender within the education system, the parallel and important role of
parents in promoting equality and combating stereotypes and presented success stories in
the fight against gender stereotypes in school settings. The Conference drew up conclusions
and applicable recommendations on how to enhance the Council of Europe long standing
efforts in the area of combating gender stereotyping in and through education.
Both events highlighted challenges that member States face in implementing standards,
including lack of awareness about existing good practices and specific examples of how to
integrate standards into their legislative and policy framework at national level, as well as
benchmarks to assess compliance and progress. Follow up and work on results focused on
filling such gaps in the areas where the Council of Europe has an added value. Results
include:
1. A compilation and publication of good practices from member States on “Gender
Equality and the Media at National Level” – includes national and targeted media
campaigns, specific legislation, prizes/awards for non-stereotyped portrayal of women,
electronic databases with experts that traditionally appear less in media coverage,
inventorying of best practices in the field of gender imaging, training courses directed at
mass media professionals, relevant data collection and competitions.
2. A toolkit on the implementation of the Committee of Ministers Recommendation on
gender equality and media (CM/Rec (2013) 1) - aims to translate into specific actions the
expectations and commitments resulting from this Recommendation, by illustrating each
provision of the Recommendation with positive and practical examples.
3. A factsheet on combating gender stereotyping and sexism in media – providing
benchmarks to assess progress towards implementation of Council of Europe and other
regional and international standards in this area.
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4. A compilation and publication of good practices to promote an education free from
gender stereotypes - provides examples of activities that Council of Europe member
States are implementing at national level to encourage an education free from gender
stereotypes and identifying ways to implement the measures that are included in the
Committee of Ministers Recommendation on gender mainstreaming in education. The
presented initiatives include, among others, campaigns to inform and motivate girls and
women to choose non stereotypical careers, gender equality training programmes for
teachers and financial assistance provided to families to support girls’ school attendance.
5. A factsheet on combating gender stereotyping and sexism in education – providing
benchmarks to assess progress towards implementation of Council of Europe and other
regional and international standards in this area.
NFP conferences have encouraged and generated debates at regional and national level and
have inspired spin-off activities related to the themes discussed by the Conference and the
recommendations put forward. Examples include events in Montenegro, Morocco and
Poland.
Objective 2 – Preventing and Combating Violence against Women
Efforts in this area focused on supporting the swift entry into force of the Council of Europe
Istanbul Convention. Specifically, action sought to:
1. Support member States to sign and ratify the Istanbul Convention through the provision
of technical and legal expertise (such as a study on the costs of violence against women
in Poland, compliance with Article 10, of the Istanbul Convention, Co-ordinating Body,
in Finland);
2. Enhance the implementation of the Istanbul Convention by involving all relevant bodies
and entities of the Council of Europe;
3. Collect and disseminate information on legal and other measures taken at national level
to prevent and combat violence against women, providing visibility to good practices;
4. Promote the Istanbul Convention beyond the European continent, making available
expertise and sharing of good practice in the context of co-operation with non-member
States and other regional and international organisations.
As a result, the Istanbul Convention entered into force on 1 August 2014; seven additional
ratifications and four more signatures were obtained in 2014. At the time of the preparation
of the report, 15 countries1 had ratified the Istanbul Convention and a further 21 had signed.
1
Albania, Andorra, Austria, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Denmark, France, Italy, Malta, Monaco, Montenegro, Portugal, Serbia,
Spain, Sweden, and Turkey
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Preparations towards signature and ratification of the Istanbul Convention and its entry into
force had a direct impact on national policy and legal frameworks related to violence against
women and domestic violence. Legal reforms passed in several member States including
Croatia, Denmark, Finland, France, Italy, Luxembourg, Poland, Portugal, Serbia, Slovakia,
Turkey and the United Kingdom. These reforms included, for example, changes in Criminal
Codes to penalise more forms of violence, as requested by the Istanbul Convention such as
forced marriage, stalking, sexual violence and female genital. Some countries (France, Italy)
strengthened the protection of women against domestic violence by speeding up the
proceedings for issuing protection orders and extending their time frame, while other
countries (Italy, Latvia, Luxembourg) extended the powers of competent authorities to act in
cases of immediate danger and remove the perpetrator from the share residence, as
requested by Article 52 of the Istanbul Convention.
Specific results include:
1. The publication and dissemination of the “Analytical study of the results of the fourth
round of monitoring the implementation of Recommendation Rec(2002)5”, 2014.
2. A collection of papers on the Istanbul Convention - a specific tool for the
implementation of the treaty. Each of the existing and future papers in this collection is
designed as an easy to use, ‘how to’ guide comprising a detailed description of the
nature of the obligations contained in the respective article, good practice examples, and
information on state-of-the-art research and resources for the implementation of the
provisions therein. The first three papers in this collection address the topic of
preventing violence against women.
3. A toolkit prepared in co-operation with European Women’s Lobby (EWL) “Act against
rape! Use the Istanbul Convention” and 30 events at national level in the Council of
Europe member States to present the Convention and the toolkit.
4. A handbook – “The Council of Europe Istanbul Convention as a tool to end female
genital mutilation”, prepared in co-operation with Amnesty International.
5. The preparation of the publication "Regional tools to fight violence against women: The
Belém do Pará and Istanbul Conventions" (in English, French and Spanish) – targeted at
government authorities, civil society, other regional and international organisations at
global level, the publication contains detailed information and the full text of the two
Conventions. The publication was the result of co-operation between the Council of
Europe, OAS and the permanent mission of Argentina to the UN.
Objective 3 – Guaranteeing Equal Access of Women to Justice
Activities towards the achievement of this objective include the completion of a feasibility
study on women’s access to justice in the Council of Europe member States. The study
focused on examples from four member States (Austria, Finland, Portugal and Sweden) and
provided a panorama of international standards, as well as national legal frameworks in
these countries. The findings of the feasibility study provided the basis for more in-depth
thematic debates which enabled relevant stakeholders to discuss and understand the
persisting barriers of women’s access to justice (including those of a cultural, economic or
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social nature), identify the measures that can help to remove them, share lessons learned
and good experiences.
A Hearing on “Access to justice for women victims of violence” (Paris, 9 December 2013),
was organised in partnership with the French Ministry of Women's Rights. Over 120
participants discussed the barriers faced by women victims of violence when seeking justice
and international standards in this area, notably the Istanbul Convention as the most
advanced standard in this field. Government officials, legal professionals and civil society
representatives used the Hearing as an opportunity to exchange good practices and lessons
learned, and to build partnerships and networks. Testimonies by victims of violence,
including how they used their personal stories to drive forward change in attitudes,
mentalities, policies and legislation, were one of the highlights of the Hearing.
“It was quite inspiring to be in a room with so many extraordinary committed people. I walked out inspired and
drained but in a wonderful way. I wish I was doing something more in this field. “
Participant at the Hearing in Paris
A Seminar on “Tackling the gaps in research and the lack of data disaggregated by sex
concerning women’s equal access to justice” (Paris, 26-27 June 2014) mapped regional and
international standards and initiatives regarding research and data collection in the field of
women’s equal access to justice. Participants addressed the lack of collected evidence on the
particular barriers that women face to access justice, and a number of good practices from
member States were also presented and discussed. The seminar concluded that there is
urgency to improve data collection and analysis on cases of violence against women,
including harmonisation needs and sharing of information among the different actors
(justice system, police, social services, health services).
As a result of these activities, awareness was raised about the barriers faced by women
victims of violence to access justice; Council of Europe and other standards, including the
Istanbul Convention, to ensure access to justice for women victims of violence were
promoted; information and good practices exchanged on the situation in member States to
promote equal access to justice for women victims of violence; partnerships and networks
facilitated among government officials, legal professionals and civil society; and good
practices and policies in member States regarding research and data disaggregated by sex
were identified.
Specific results include:
1. A Compilation of Contributions from member States on Key Challenges and Good
Practices on Access to Justice for Women Victims of Violence at National Level was
published in February 2014 and widely disseminated;
2. A factsheet on Guaranteeing Equal Access of Women to Justice, detailing the main
issues addressed by the Council of Europe in this area and providing benchmarks to
assess progress towards implementation of Council of Europe and other regional and
international standards.
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Work around this objective has benefited from co-operation and synergies with other
regional and international organisations, in particular with UN and its agencies (UN
Women, UNODC, UNDP, OHCHR, CEDAW) and EU, in particular FRA.
On-going work includes co-operation between the Council of Europe, UN Women and
UNDP to develop a core package of indicators for measuring women’s access to justice.
In May 2014, the Council of Europe provided detailed written contribution to the United
Nations Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW)
towards the preparation of a General Recommendation on “Women’s Access to Justice”.
In September 2014, the Gender Equality Unit provided written comments to the draft
terms of reference to prepare a “Handbook on Access to Justice in Europe”, which is a
joint project between FRA, CEPEJ and the European Court on Human Rights.
Objective 4 – Achieving Balanced Participation of Women and Men in Political and Public
Decision-Making
Recommendation CM/Rec (2003)3 on balanced participation of women and men in
political and public decision making calls on member States to take measures so that the
representation of either women or men should not fall below 40%. On-going work in this
area includes promotion of the Recommendation among member States and other
international organisations (EU, UN and OSCE).
The Strategy indicates that action in this field will include monitoring progress on women’s
participation in decision-making and ensuring the visibility of data and good practices in
member States, to be done through the collection and dissemination of information on the
implementation of the CM/Rec (2003)3. Work is in progress to revise the questionnaire for
the third round of monitoring which will be launched in 2015.
Objective 5 – Achieving Gender Mainstreaming in all policies and measures
Gender Mainstreaming throughout the activities and policies within the organisation has
witnessed growing interest and significant progress has been achieved. Combining formal
structures (GERs and GMT) with more visibility for the work of the different sectors in this
area (exchange of views with GEC, presentations to the GMT or other occasions) have led to
a “buy-in” from the other sectors which are increasingly understanding the importance of
gender mainstreaming into their work and activities.
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Specific results include:
1. Two trainings of the GERs;
2. The compilation, publication and dissemination of the Manual “Supporting Gender
Equality Rapporteurs in their Role” – using a variety of methods such as tests,
definitions, concrete examples and good practices, the Manual responds to the expressed
need for specific methodologies to apply a gender perspective in all areas of work of the
Council of Europe;
3. Training of Council of Europe staff and management of DGII organised by the
Directorate of Human Resources.
Institutional bodies, steering committees and monitoring mechanisms have contributed
towards gender mainstreaming in all policy areas and processes.
The PACE Network of “Women free from Violence” has assumed a very active role in the
promotion of the Istanbul Convention. This became, in fact, the main goal of the Network
and a significant number of parliamentary seminars, hearings and meetings were organised
to promote signatures and ratifications of the convention. In addition, the Parliamentary
Assembly has also appointed a General Rapporteur on violence against women who has
raised the profile of the PACE activities in the area of combtting gender based violence.
The Commissioner for Human Rights regularly evaluates the situation of human rights in
the member States, including issues related to women’s rights and gender equality. In
addition to country visits, the Commissioner publishes Issue Papers and Human Rights
Comments which also tackle problems and discuss emerging trends regarding women’s
rights and gender equality.
Corruption and gender - the Council of Europe Group of States against Corruption
(GRECO) developed a questionnaire for its member States to gather relevant data and
engage in a detailed analysis of the gender dimensions of corruption, identify evidentiary
gaps, consider how anti-corruption strategies might incorporate a gender perspective and
generally contribute to the discussion on how best to promote gender equality within the
framework of anti-corruption.
The Council of Europe Directorate of Internal Oversight (DIO) is conducting an Evaluation
of Gender Mainstreaming in Technical Assistance Interventions to evaluate to what extent
has gender been mainstreamed in technical co-operation interventions, which factors have
promoted or hindered gender mainstreaming and what results has the mainstreaming of
gender achieved and which approaches have been particularly effective and ineffective.
Eurimages has started collecting data on the gender parity of film projects they receive for
funding and is exploring possibilities to introduce gender equality considerations in the
funding policy of Eurimages.
17
GEC(2014)12 rev1
The Enlarged Partial Agreement on Sport (EPAS) has worked on possible tools to
mainstream gender in sport, including a draft Recommendation on gender mainstreaming
in sport.
The Pompidou Group is finalising a project on “The Gender Dimension of Non-Medical Use
of Prescription Drugs (NMUPD)”, which involves 21 researchers from 17 countries. A
survey was launched in April 2014, aimed at exploring gender differences in Non‐Medical
Use of Prescription Drugs (NMUPD) in Europe and in the Mediterranean Region through
the documentation of available data and the identification of gaps. A second relevant project
is related to “gender-oriented services for substance dependent women in Egypt: 20122014”, implemented in the framework of the Mediterranean Network for co-operation on
drugs and drug addiction (MedNET).
The Council of Europe’s Centre of Expertise for Local Government Reform (CELGR) added
a Chapter on gender mainstreaming to the Centre’s Toolkit on Modern and Effective Human
Resources Management on obstacles to women in the work place and specific human
resources policy and measures for gender equality and mainstreaming. The Toolkit is being
implemented in several member States, including Armenia and Serbia. A Chapter on i)
women and leadership, and ii) leadership and gender mainstreaming was added to the
Centre’s Toolkit on Modern Leadership for Modern Local Government (LAP). The LAP is
being implemented in several member countries, including Ukraine. New rounds will soon
being in Malta and Poland.
The Council of Europe Schools of Political Studies (SPS) aim to maintain and further
develop the presence of gender mainstreaming and non-discrimination issues in their
training curricula and their governance. In April 2014, the Annual Meeting of the SPS
Directors included a workshop on “Gender Equality in the Schools of Political Studies”.
IV
Co-operation
The Council of Europe co-operation under Norway Grants - under Programme Area 29
(Domestic and gender-based violence and human trafficking) Council of Europe works in
close co-operation with four beneficiary countries: Bulgaria, Poland, Romania and Slovakia.
The involvement of the Council of Europe in the Norway Grants programmes is twofold:
1. At programme level - strategic advice and expertise with a view to identifying priority
areas in the field of gender-based violence and ensuring that the developed programmes
are in line with the Council of Europe standards;
2. In project partnerships - the Council of Europe develops and implements the project in
close operation with the beneficiary.
Achieving Gender equality is an important element of the Council of Europe
Neighbourhood Co-operation Priorities with its immediate neighbours in the South
Mediterranean. Initiated in 2012, co-operation with countries of the region (Jordan, Morocco,
and Tunisia) was established on the basis of specific needs and requests by the beneficiaries.
Areas covered by co-operation include promotion of women’s rights, combating violence
against women and domestic violence, women’s equal access to justice and gender
GEC(2014)12 rev1
18
stereotypes and media. A total of 28 activities (15 of which took place 2014) have been
implemented in the following areas: awareness-raising (13 activities), capacity-building (9
activities) and technical assistance (6 activities).
Co-operation has led to tangible results such as the launching of the 2014 governmental
action plan promoting gender equality measures to prevent violence against women
(Morocco), preparation of draft laws on violence against women and on women and media
(Morocco), changes in the criminal code and family law to bring it in line with international
and CoE standards (Morocco), preparation of the Draft Law on Violence against Women
(Tunisia), provision of expertise on CoE standards (Jordan, Morocco, and Tunisia) and
training on mainstreaming gender in public policies (Tunisia).
Ukraine Project2: Preventing and combating violence against women and domestic violence.
The project is in line with the Strategy and seeks to support Ukraine to sign and ratify the
Istanbul Convention through the provision of technical and legal expertise. The overall
project objective is to increase the capacity of national institutions to prevent and combat
violence against women and domestic violence, in particular by bringing national legislation
and policies in line with the requirements of the Istanbul Convention.
2
http://www.coe.int/en/web/stop-violence-against-women-ukraine
19
GEC(2014)12 rev1
Appendix 2
Table of ongoing and completed activities
INDICATIVE TABLE OF ONGOING AND PROPOSED ACTIVITIES
Strategic objective 1: Combating Gender Stereotypes and Sexism
Activities
1. Annual Conference of Gender Equality
National Focal Points (NFPs) “Media and
the Image of Women”
2. Workshop on the “Role of Media
Regulatory Bodies“- Compilation and
distribution of good practices among media
regulatory bodies
3. Publication and dissemination of the
compilation of good practices from
member States “Gender Equality and the
media at national level”
4. Publication and dissemination of a media
handbook on the implementation of
CM/Rec(2013)1 of the Committee of
Ministers on Gender Equality and Media
5. Translation and dissemination of
Recommendation CM/Rec(2013)1 of the
Committee of Ministers on Gender Equality
and media
Entity
Budget
Timeframe
Current Status
GE-Coordination
OB+VC
2013
Completed
July 2013
GE- Coordination
with other
entities
OB
20142015
Ongoing
GE-Coordination
OB+VC
2014
Completed
GE-Coordination
OB
20142015
Ongoing
Media and
Internet
Governance
Division
OB+VC
20142015
Ongoing
Already
translated into
Russian and
Bulgarian
6. Annual Conference of the Gender Equality
National Focal Points on “Stereotyping in
Education“
GE-Coordination
OB
2014
Completed
October 2014
7. Translation and Dissemination of CM
Recommendation on Mainstreaming
Gender Equality in Education
Education
Division +
Coordination
with GE
OB+VC
20142015
Ongoing.
GEC(2014)12 rev1
20
Strategic objective 2: Preventing and Combating Violence against Women
Activities
Entity
Budge
t
Timefram
e
Current Status
1. Annual events at national, regional and
international level to promote the Istanbul
Convention as a standard reference and
tool for change in all areas of preventing
and combating violence against women
and domestic violence
VaW+PACE +
other
entities +
regional and
international
organisation
s
OB+VC
20132017
Ongoing
GE+VAW
OB
2013
Completed
GE-VaW Co-operation
with EWL
VC
2013
Completed
December
2013
GE+VaW
OB
20132014
Completed
Published
March 2014
2014
Completed
September
2014
2. Preparation and dissemination of an
overview of national legislation on the
provision of shelters for victims of violence
against women and domestic violence
3. Organisation of awareness-raising events
on sexual violence and Istanbul Convention
as a tool for change
4. Launch the fourth round of monitoring of
the implementation of CM
Recommendation Rec(2002)5 on the
protection of women against violence and
analyse and disseminate the findings
5. Conference to mark the entry into force of
the Istanbul Convention
6. Prepare studies, collect and disseminate
good practices on various specific measures
provided for in the Istanbul Convention
including:
a. conducting awareness raising
campaigns on different forms of
violence;
b. general obligations to prevent
violence against women;
c. the obligation to set up perpetrators'
programmes for perpetrators of
domestic violence and sex offenders;
7. Develop and test methodologies for
assessing the availability and accessibility of
specialist services for women and girls
victims of violence
8. Preparation of a study, in co-operation with
Amnesty International, of a tool to end
female genital mutilation
9. Conduct study and develop a methodology
for measuring the direct costs of violence
against women
VaW-GE Coordination
OB+VC
GE +VaW +
PACE
(as regards
disseminatio
n)
OB/VC
GE – Cooperation
with UN
Women
OB+VC
20132014
Completed
GE-VaW
OB
2014
Completed
GE -VaW
OB+VC
20132014
Ongoing
20132015
Study a.
completed
Study b.
completed
Study c.
completed
21
10. Prepare and disseminate thematic
factsheets on important topics related to
the implementation of the Istanbul
Convention
11. Provide legal and other technical expertise
to member and non-member States to
align national legislation and policies with
the provisions and requirements of the
Istanbul Convention
12. Prepare the process and relevant
documentation for the setting up of
GREVIO
13. Meetings of the Parliamentary Network
Women Free from Violence (8 in
Strasbourg + 2 in CoE member States)
14. Parliamentary seminars to promote the
Istanbul Convention and achieve further
ratifications
15. Advocacy activities by the General
Rapporteur on violence against women
16. Seminars on capacity building on the
implementation of the Istanbul Convention
and the monitoring role of
parliamentarians, with the participation of
parliamentarians, legal experts, lawyers
17. Awareness-raising campaign aimed at the
general public through action taken by
parliamentarians on a national level in
partnership with NGOs and media
18. Production of visibility and awarenessraising material addressed to
parliamentarians
19. Update of the in-house leaflet on "Violence
against women"
20. Awareness raising on the Istanbul
Convention by the Gender Equality Expert
among NGO networks
GEC(2014)12 rev1
GE- VaW
OB+VC
20132017
Ongoing
GE-VaW
OB+VC
20132017
Ongoing
VaW
OB
2014
Ongoing
PACE
OB+VC
20142015
Ongoing
PACE
OB+VC
20132015
Ongoing
PACE
OB+VC
20132015
Ongoing
PACE
OB+VC
20132015
Ongoing
PACE
VC
20132015
Ongoing
PACE
VC
20132015
Ongoing
2014
Completed
2013
Ongoing
DRH
Conf INGO
OB
Strategic Objective 3: Guaranteeing Equal Access of Women to Justice
Activities
1. Prepare a preliminary feasibility study on
“Equal Access for Women to Justice”
2. Conference/event on “Access to justice for
women victims of violence” - analyse and
disseminate findings
Entity
Budge
t
Timefram
e
GE
OB
2013
GE+VaW
OB
20132014
Current Status
Completed
April 2013
Completed
December
2013
GEC(2014)12 rev1
3. Conference on “Tackling the gaps in
research and lack of data disaggregated by
sex concerning women’s equal access to
justice” – analyse and disseminate findings
22
GE
OB
2014
Completed
June 2014
Strategic Objective 4: Achieving balanced participation of women and men in
political and public decision-making
Activities
Preparation and launch of survey to
monitor the implementation of the
Recommendation Rec(2003)3 of the
Committee of Ministers to member States
on balanced participation of women and
men in political and public decision
making
2. Appointment of a Thematic Rapporteur for
the Congress
3. Chapter on Gender mainstreaming in
Centre of Expertise for Local Government
Reform’s Toolkit on Modern and Effective
Human Resources Management on
obstacles to women in the work place and
specific human resources policy and
measures for gender equality and
mainstreaming
Entity
Budge
t
Timefram
e
Current Status
GE
OB
20142015
In preparation
Congress
OB
20132014
CELGR
OB
20122013
CELGR
OB
20122013
1.
4. Chapter on i) women and leadership, and ii)
leadership and gender mainstreaming in
Centre of Expertise for Local Government
Reform’s Toolkit on Modern Leadership for
Modern Local Government (LAP)
5. Development of the “Women’s Section” of
the All-Ukrainian Association of Village and
Settlement Councils promoted through i)
facilitation of drafting, discussion and
finalisation of the Section’s Statute, Rules
of Procedure and the Strategy, and ii)
strengthening leadership capacity of its
members following the Centre of Expertise
for Local Government Reform’s Toolkit on
Modern Leadership for Modern Local
Government (adopted for Ukraine)
CELGR
VC
2014
Appointed
February 2014
Completed
2013
Toolkit is being
implemented
in several
countries, e.g.
Armenia,
Serbia
Completed
2013
The LAP is
being
implemented
in several
countries, e.g.
Ukraine; new
rounds will
soon begin in
Poland and
Malta.
Ongoing
(through the
Programme in
Ukraine)
23
6. Gender based analytical briefing on basic
local self-government legislation of Ukraine
prepared (taking into account the Council
of Europe standards, including the Gender
Equality Strategy for 2014-2017)
7. Round table on “including gender
perspectives in conflict resolution and
peace building”
8. Meetings of the Working Group of the
Conference of INGOs on “Gender
perspectives in political and democratic
processes, particularly dealing with
conflicts”: awareness raising and exchange
of good practice
GEC(2014)12 rev1
CELGR
VC
Conf INGO +
PACE
OB
Conf INGO
OB
2014
2014
Ongoing
(through the
Programme in
Ukraine)
Completed
June 2014
Ongoing
Strategic Objective 5: Achieving Gender Mainstreaming in all policies and
measures
Activities
1. Develop training modules and toolkits for
the GERs
2. Develop and disseminate good practices,
factsheets and other relevant information
(including on existing GE acquis)
3. Ensure that the Schools of Political Studies
(SPS) of the Council of Europe maintain and
further develop the presence of gender
mainstreaming and non-discrimination
issues in their training curricula and their
governance (e.g. selection of participants),
and make available to them relevant CoE
documents and tools for use in their
activities
4. CDLR added a section on gender to its
reports on Structure and Operation of Local
and Regional Democracy
5. Section on gender equality in the
Compendium comparative table on cultural
policies in 42 European countries and
preparation of a monitoring table
indicating trends and developments over
the past 10 years.
6. Promote the integration of a gender
perspective in pilot activities run by nongovernmental youth organisations with the
support of the European Youth Foundation
7. Evaluation of Gender Mainstreaming in
Technical Assistance Interventions
Entity
Budge
t
GE
OB
GE
OB
Timefram
e
20132017
Current Status
Ongoing
20132017
Ongoing
DPP
OB
20142017
3-4 April 2014:
Annual
Meeting of the
SPS Directors
including
workshop on
“Gender
Equality in the
Schools of
Political
Studies”
CDLR
OB
20122013
Completed
DGII
OB+VC
20142015
Ongoing
activity of the
Compendium
project
(www.cultural
policies.net)
DGII-EYF
EYF
2014
Ongoing
DIO
OB
2014
Ongoing
GEC(2014)12 rev1
8. Project on the Gender Dimension of NonMedical Use of Prescription Drugs
(NMUPD)
9. Project on gender-oriented services for
substance dependent women in Egypt
(2012-2014), in the framework of the
Mediterranean Network for co-operation
on drugs and drug addiction (MedNET)
10. Round Table on the presence of women in
the film industry and debate: positive
discrimination: is it the key to a male
/female balance in the film industry?” In
collaboration with the European Women’s
Network and the Strasbourg office of
“Créative Europe”. This debate was open
to members of the public with 60
participants including professionals from
the region and from Paris, members of the
Eurimages Board of Management, staff
from the Council of Europe, and others.
Presentation by Carolina Lásen Diaz,
Equality Division of the CoE, about the
Council of Europe’s equality policy
11. Debate on the presence of women in the
film industry to be organised in Torino (IT)
during the 137th meeting of Eurimages
Board
12. Inclusion of gender mainstreaming clauses
in the proposed policy orientation text
(format still to be chosen) on the Internet
of Creative Citizens
13. Organisation of a conference on “Gender
dimensions of corruption”, Prague, 13
December 2013
14. Contribution to the development and
implementation of a UNDP survey on “Men
and women in civil service”
15. Organisation of a joint PACE/GRECO
parliamentary hearing on “Gender
dimensions of corruption”
24
Pompidou
Group
VC
20142015
Ongoing
22 September
2014
(Rome
conference)
publication of
the study in
2015
Pompidou
Group
VC
20122014
Ongoing
Eurimages/E
WA
none
2014
Completed
October 2014
Eurimages
none
2014
December
2014
DGII –
Culture and
Democracy
OB
20142015
Ongoing
GRECO
OB
2013
Completed
GRECO
OB
20132015
Ongoing
PACE/GRECO
OB
2014
Completed
1 October 2014
25
GEC(2014)12 rev1
Table Abbreviations:
GE-Co-ordination:
VaW:
CDLR:
CDMSI:
CoE:
DIO:
GEC:
NFP:
GER:
GMT:
GRECO:
OB:
VC:
DG1:
DG2:
CELGR:
UN Women:
DPP:
PACE:
EYF:
EWL:
CONF iNGO
Gender Equality Unit in charge of the Transversal Programme on Gender Equality
Anti-Trafficking and VaW Division in charge of activities related to the monitoring of the Istanbul Convention
European Committee on Local and Regional Democracy
Steering Committee for Media and Information Society
Council of Europe
Directorate of Internal Oversight
Gender Equality Commission
National Focal Points on Gender Equality appointed by member States
Gender Equality Rapporteurs
Gender Mainstreaming Taskforce
Group of States against Corruption
Ordinary Budget
Voluntary Contribution
Council of Europe Directorate General Human Rights and Rule of Law
Council of Europe Directorate General of Democracy
Centre of Expertise for Local Government Reform
United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women
Council of Europe Directorate of Policy Planning
Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe
European Youth Foundation
European Women’s Lobby
Conference of international non-governmental organisations
GEC(2014)12 rev1
26
Appendix 3
List of studies, compilations, handbooks and other practical tools
MEDIA
A compilation and publication of good practices from member States on “Gender
Equality and the Media at National Level
A toolkit on the implementation of the Committee of Ministers Recommendation on
gender equality and media
EDUCATION
A compilation and publication of good practices to promote an education free from
gender stereotypes.
VIOLENCE
Istanbul Convention - A global tool to prevent and combat violence against women and girls
Prevention of violence against women: Article 12 of the Istanbul Convention
Raising awareness of violence against women: Article 13 of the Istanbul Convention
Domestic and sexual violence perpetrator programmes: Article 16 of the Istanbul
Convention
Analytical Study of the results of the 4th round of monitoring the implementation of
Recommendation Rec(2002)5 on the protection of women against violence in Council of
Europe member states
European Women's Lobby and Council of Europe (2013), Action Kit Act against Rape! Use
the Istanbul Convention
Act against Rape! Video developed in a joint project between the European Women's Lobby
and the Council of Europe
Seven information cards on different aspects of combating violence against women and
domestic violence (general facts, costs, men’s engagement)
27
GEC(2014)12 rev1
The following Council of Europe texts and studies on violence against women were
translated into the Ukrainian language and made available to Ukrainian law and policy
makers, as well as general public, by the project on “Preventing and combating violence
against women and domestic violence in Ukraine”:
-
Council of Europe Convention on preventing and combating violence against
women and domestic violence and Explanatory Report.
Council of Europe Convention on preventing and combating violence against
women and domestic violence (pocket version).
Handbook for Parliamentarians: Council of Europe Convention on preventing and
combating violence against women and domestic violence.
Administrative data collection on domestic violence in Council of Europe States.
Setting the Standard: A Study on and Proposals for Minimum Standards for Violence
Against Women Support Services.
The following Council of Europe texts have been translated into Arabic and made available
to law and policy makers:
-
Council of Europe Convention on preventing and combating violence against
women and domestic violence and Explanatory Report.
Information leaflet on the Council of Europe Convention on preventing and
combating violence against women and domestic violence.
ACCESS TO JUSTICE
Conclusions of the Hearing on Access to Justice - Paris, December 2013
Compilation of Contributions from member States on Key Challenges and Good Practices on
Access to Justice for Women Victims of Violence at National Level