Debate: Combating violence against women and domestic violence
Date: TUESDAY, 23 APRIL 2024
Speaker: Frances Fitzgerald
Country: Germany
Language: EN

Equality across the European Union is floundering in some places: hateful LGBTQ zones created to bully people into conformity, brutal rollback of abortion care and the ever-thundering train of domestic violence that never gets quieter, it seems, but actually – as we’ve seen through the COVID-19 pandemic – only gets louder. And why are women targeted? Because there is, sadly, just beneath the surface, the belief that women are lesser. Every year, gender-based violence costs the European Union a staggering EUR 366 billion – a cost that we cannot afford economically but one we cannot afford socially, because behind these numbers we find fractured families, traumatised children and devastated women living in fear every single day. So the opportunity that presents itself here to us today is to make a stand for the women of Europe, to adopt the directive on combating violence against women and domestic violence. This will send a strong message across the European Union to all 27 Member States and 450 million citizens: we’ll not stand for violence. We have to build on the accession of the Istanbul Convention. We are creating a robust framework. So the goal should be that Europe will be the first continent in the world to eradicate violence against women. But the adoption tomorrow is not enough. We need a robust monitoring framework and a genuine commitment across all levels of government to ensure that this is really implemented, that we tackle this with the right resources and supports. And I would say to the ministers for justice across the European Union – and we saw ambivalence from some of them – to do your absolute utmost, learn from your colleagues across Europe what works well, exchange best practice, fight for that extra bit of budget, invest in resources and make successful tackling of this crime your legacy. We do not want to cut corners on the implementation of this legislation. Don’t try and minimise it; build on it. To the Prime Ministers and Presidents: work with your governments to make sure that this is implemented, that you build on the very best practice so you build a society that’s fit for the women and girls of today and tomorrow. And, obviously, to the European Commission – congratulations to them, to the Commissioner here and Ursula von der Leyen – be clinical in your examination of the transposition of this directive, because this really matters. And do tell us, when the time comes, what has been achieved. I know we will have more to do because, as I have said, this is the beginning. We have come far with this directive. We should have gone further but there was huge resistance, as my colleague Evin Incir has said. But I am confident that with this directive, our Union will be a better place for its adoption. But, again, the real work begins now. Let’s make sure that that’s done all over Europe. We need to go forward together, and there was great cooperation in this House when we were working on this directive. We need to go forward and achieve that secure European future that the women of Europe and the young girls of Europe deserve. I wholeheartedly urge every Member of this House to vote in favour of this directive tomorrow. Do not be distracted. It can save and change countless lives of women right across Europe. This directive is very important. It has new offences. It has sections on prevention, on support, on protection and on prosecution. It really matters that we implement this directive after 10 long years and, indeed, decades.