Women’s Rights and Gender Equality
The fulfilment of the human rights of women is still lagging in Europe. Discrimination on the grounds of gender and sex remains widespread and has been further exacerbated by the economic crisis and ensuing austerity measures adopted in some European States, which have impacted on women disproportionately.
Women’s rights are also threatened by the resurgence of reactionary trends targeting women who try to move out from the subordinated role in which they have been kept for centuries. Another issue of concern is the intensification of hate speech against women in Europe, especially on the Internet. Discrimination and hate speech against women provide fertile grounds for violence against women, which is one of the most extreme human rights violations suffered by women. The response of national authorities, including the police, prosecutors and judges, remains inadequate in a great number of cases of violence against women.
Progress has been made in recent decades in a number of areas. The Council of Europe Convention on preventing and combating violence against women and domestic violence has entered into force for a number of member states and the Council of Europe Gender Equality Strategy 2018-2023 is well in place. However, much more needs to be done to make gender equality and the fulfilment of women’s rights a reality. The Commissioner for Human Rights has therefore put the human rights of women and the fight against discrimination on the grounds of gender and sex firmly on her agenda.
Women’s sexual and reproductive health and rights
- Issue Paper (2017)
Summary and recommendations are available in Italian, German, Polish, Russian, Spanish and Turkish - Special page (also available in French and Russian)
Country reports
- Report on the visit to Moldova from 9-13 March 2021, paragraphs 6-23
- Report on the visit to Bulgaria from 25 to 29 November 2019, paragraphs 51-76
- Report on visit to Poland from 11 to 15 March 2019, paragraphs 64-126
- Report on visit to Hungary from 4 to 8 February 2019, paragraphs 135-167
- Report on visit to Romania from 12 to 16 November 2018, paragraphs 55 to 91
- Report on visit to Armenia from 16 to 20 September 2018, paragraphs 6 to 45
- Report on visit to Estonia from 11 to 15 June 2018, paragraphs 5 to 46
- Report on visit to Lithuania from 5 to 9 December 2016, paragraphs 8 to 51
- Report on visit to Ireland from 22 to 25 November 2016, paragraphs 45 to 95 and 169 to 206.
- Report on visit to Latvia from 5 to 9 September 2016, paragraphs 5 to 40
- Report on visit to Poland from 9 to 12 February 2016, paragraphs 128 to 196
- Report on visit to Cyprus from 7 to 11 December 2015, paragraphs 96-104 and 119-122
- Report on visit to San Marino from 9 to 10 June 2015, paragraphs 28 to 45
- Report on visit to Serbia from 16 to 20 March 2015, paragraphs 107 to 124 and paragraphs 133 to 134
- Report on visit to Armenia from 5 to 9 October 2014, paragraphs 93 to 172
- Report on visit to Finland from 11 to 13 June 2012, paragraphs 39 to 47
- Report on visit to Austria from 4 to 6 June 2012, paragraphs 34 to 48
Rule 9
- Bălșan v. Romania, case related to violation of the prohibition of torture and of inhuman and degrading treatment, communication to the Committee of Ministers (20/07/2020)
- 3 cases v. Poland, cases related to access to legal abortion, communication to the Committee of Ministers (27/01/2020)
Opinion articles
- Opinion article on the 10th anniversary of the Istanbul Convention (11/05/2021)
- Stop the rain on human rights (Euractiv, 10/12/2020)
Positions
- Positions on Women’s Rights (2011)
Resources
- Gender pay gap is still persistent in Europe (European Social Charter, June 2020)
- Council of Europe Gender Equality website
- Council of Europe Convention on Violence against Women and Domestic Violence website
- Violence against women, Factsheet - European Court of Human rights
- Domestic violence, Factsheet - European Court of Human rights
- Reproductive rights, Factsheet - European Court of Human rights
- Gender equality, Factsheet - European Court of Human Rights
Other
- Letter to the Slovak Parliament to reject bill which would restrict women’s access to their sexual and reproductive health and rights (10/09/2020)
- The Commissioner urges President of Poland to veto the amendments to the Medical Professions Act (22/07/2020)
- Letter to the Parliament of the Slovak Republic on access to safe and legal abortion care (November 2019)
- We need to stand up for women’s sexual and reproductive health and rights (March 2019)
- Fulfil the promise of a comprehensive response to violence against women (November 2018)
- No excuse should obstruct the ratification and implementation of the Istanbul Convention (March 2018)
- Need to reform abortion law in Malta (February 2018)
- Letter to the Prime Minister of Poland on human rights backsliding in Poland (February 2018)
- Observations and reflections concluding the 4th quarterly activity report 2017 (February 2018)
- The Istanbul Convention protects women, without hidden purposes (Janvier 2018)
- Letter to the President of the Parliament of Bulgaria on ratification of the Istanbul Convention (January 2018)
- Letter to the Prime Minister of Malta on eradicating violence against women and ensuring access to abortion case (January 2018)
- Gender equality in employment is still a distant promise in Europe (2017)
- Letter to the Ukrainian Parliament on ratification of the Istanbul Convention (2017)
- Statement on International Women’s Day (2017)
- Letter to the Prime Minister of Croatia on ratification of the Istanbul Convention (2017)
- Letter to Latvian parliamentarians concerning the ratification of the Istanbul Convention (2017)
- The duty to combat domestic violence (2017)
- 3rd Quarterly Activity Report (2016), page 20-22 - 9. Obsevations and reflections
- Fighting violence against women must become Europe’s priority (2016)
- Letter to the Czech authorities to adopt the bill on reparations for involuntary sterilisation of Roma women (2015)
- Statement celebrating the International Women’s Day (2015)
- Report of the round-table with human rights defenders (2015)
- Annual activity report (2014), page 31 - Gender Equality
- Five steps to increase women’s safety (2013)
- Annual Report 2022: Commissioner Mijatović calls for renewed commitment to human rights protection to address numerous systemic problems
- Serbia: more efforts needed to face the past, increase safety of journalists and human rights defenders, and protect women from violence
- United Kingdom: Commissioner warns against regression on human rights, calls for concrete steps to protect children’s rights and to tackle human rights issues in Northern Ireland
- Addressing the rights of women with disabilities in Europe: observations and perspectives
- Combating violence against women in a digital age utilising the Istanbul Convention: GREVIO General Recommendation No.1 on the Digital Dimension of Violence against Women
- Hearing of the Grand Chamber of the European Court of Human Rights in the cases of H.F. and M.F. v. France and J.D. and A.D. v. France
- Austria: improve reception and integration of migrants and protection of women’s rights
- Portugal should act more resolutely to tackle racism and continue efforts to combat violence against women
- The Republic of Moldova should ratify the Istanbul Convention, improve its response to hate speech and advance access to quality healthcare, affordable housing and social inclusion for all