The staff of the Council of Europe Programme Office in Ankara wears orange masks to support the 16 Days of Activism, global awareness-raising campaign to stop violence against women, starting on 25 November, the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women.
Wearing orange is part of the visibility actions implemented in relation to the action “Fostering a comprehensive institutional response to violence against women and domestic violence in Turkey”, implemented within the joint European Union and Council of Europe programme “Horizontal Facility for the Western Balkans and Turkey 2019-2022”. The action is carried out by the Council of Europe together with the Ministry of Family, Labour and Social Services, Ministry of Justice, Justice Academy of Turkey and Ministry of Interior, including police and gendarmerie to ensure a safer future for women free from violence in Turkey.
On 30 November, as part of 16 Days of Activism the action also organises a public webinar on “Administrative Data Collection and Analysis on Violence against Women and Domestic Violence” to increase awareness and understanding on the need of better data collection on violence against women, considering applicable European standards and promising practices in this field.
The action aims at strengthening institutional mechanisms in Turkey to co-ordinate and effectively apply the standards of the Council of Europe Convention on Preventing and Combating Violence against Women and Domestic Violence (Istanbul Convention) based on recommendations stemming from the Group of Experts on Action against Violence against Women and Domestic Violence (GREVIO) and the Committee of the Parties to the Istanbul Convention.
