Today, 14 May, marks one year since the adoption of the EU Directive on combating violence against women and domestic violence. This landmark Directive represents a crucial step towards ensuring the safety, protection, and rights of women and girls across Europe in all spheres of life.
EU Member States have still two years to transpose the Directive into their national legislation. Its implementation will be essential to provide a consistent and effective response to one of the most systematic and common human rights violations globally.
According to the World Health Organisation, 1 in every 3 women has been subjected to physical and/or sexual violence. For the first time, the EU has recognised through binding legislation that violence against women is an obstacle to achieving gender equality.
The Directive introduces a holistic approach to combat violence against women and domestic violence, incorporating measures of prevention, protection, support for victims, access to justice and legal remedies, as well as the prosecution of perpetrators. It responds to the longstanding need to address violence against women in a sex- and gender-sensitive manner.
It is worth highlighting the intersectional approach of the Directive, addressing the specific vulnerabilities faced by women and girls due to factors such as migration status, ethnicity, disability, or socio-economic background.
Following the criminalisation of forced marriage in the Violence Against Women Directive and its recognition as a form of trafficking in human beings in the recast Anti-Trafficking Directive, La Strada International is currently conducting research on forced marriage and its links to human trafficking. In June, we will also launch a dedicated campaign, in partnership with our member organisation Open Gate in North Macedonia, to further raise attention to this critical issue.
On this first anniversary, La Strada International celebrates the important milestone achieved in advancing gender equality and calls on all Member States to prioritise the swift and thorough transposition of the Directive, ensuring that victims of violence receive the protection and support they deserve. Recognising the intersectionality of violence against women is key to delivering meaningful and inclusive responses.
As the EU Gender Equality Strategy 2020–2025 approaches its conclusion, LSI looks forward to actively engaging in discussions on the next Strategy. We strongly hope to see a continued push for the recognition of all forms of violence against women, particularly those linked to human trafficking, and for the intersectional approach highlighted in the Directive to be fully embraced and reflected in future EU gender equality policies.
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