Two Council of Europe (CoE) Projects “The Istanbul Convention: a tool to advance in fighting violence against women and domestic violence in Ukraine” and “Supporting the transparency, inclusiveness and integrity of electoral practice in Ukraine” joined their efforts in order to endorse Government initiative to promote gender equality through Strategic session "The Council of Europe Gender Equality Strategy 2018-2023 in Ukraine: State of affairs and perspectives of implementation on national, regional and local levels”.
The Council of Europe has been supporting and continues to support all human rights actions and initiatives, particularly, those aimed at promoting and advancing gender equality, women’s rights, prevention and response to domestic and gender based violence in Ukraine. Moreover, it was symbolic to discuss the CoE Gender Equality Strategy 2018-2023 on 10 December, International Human Rights Day.
“The Strategy is a key tool to enhance gender equality In Ukraine, its implementation is being done along and within the framework of the Council of Europe Action Plan for Ukraine 2018 – 2021. These two documents are closely related as the Action Plan for Ukraine states the promotion of gender equality both as a priority and a cross cutting issue in different areas of reforms in Ukraine”, underlined Mr. Marten Ehnberg, Head of the CoE Office in Ukraine.
He called participants to discuss first steps taken by Ukraine with regard to implementation of the Strategy and possible perspectives for the future in line with the main objectives defined in the Strategy. Those objectives include:
- preventing gender stereotypes and sexism;
- preventing violence against women and domestic violence;
- ensuring the equal access of women to justice;
- achieving balanced participation of women and men in political and public decision making;
- protecting the rights of migrant, refugee and asylum-seeking women and girls;
- achieving gender mainstreaming in all policies and measures.
The Strategic session aimed to let the participants realize the progress done by Ukraine in 2018, to share good practices in the CoE member states on gender mainstreaming and domestic violence and violence against women prevention, as well as to support implementation of relevant CoE standards in these areas, including main objectives defined in the above mentioned Strategy.
The event gathered 116 (88 female, 28 male) public authority representatives of central, regional and local levels, namely those who are responsible for gender mainstreaming and gender based violence prevention in their relevant institutions: Deputy Ministers, Deputy Heads and other representatives of National Agencies, representatives of regional state administrations, self-government authorities (head and representatives of united territorial communities; head and members of city councils; village heads), gender advisers and civil society organizations.
Ms. Ivanna Klympush-Tzynsadze, Vice-Prime Minster on European and Euro Atlantic Integration of Ukraine, in her welcoming speech informed about systematic efforts of Government to support gender mainstreaming, particularly drafting Communication Strategy for European Integration 2018-2021 (October 2018) with one of the objectives to raise awareness on European values, ensure gender equality, fight all forms of discrimination. She mentioned the obstacles faced and priorities of the Government for the next couple of years.
She also pointed out an anti-gender position of some city councils which recently had adopted documents protecting "family values" as a protest against gender equality considerations and the Istanbul Convention itself, what in her opinion was a bright evidence of misconception of gender and a manipulation around the issue.
Ms. Iryna Suslova, Member of Ukrainian Parliament and Head of Parliamentary Sub Committee on Gender Equality and Non-discrimination, thanked the CoE for the support provided in conducting trainings for regional gender coordinators and for several other initiatives, and expressed a deep hope that the work would be continued in order to receive practical outputs and to follow recommendations and standards of the CoE in the area.
Progress in establishing national gender machinery and implementation of the Objective 6 of the CoE Gender Equality Strategy was presented by Ms. Kateryna Levchenko, Government Commissioner for Gender Policy, through a brief overview of existing advisory bodies and their activities, national and regional gender coordinators and advisers, number of existing regional programmes on gender equality, etc. Her presentation in Ukrainian can be found here.
Ms. Nataliya Fedorovych, Deputy Minister of Social Policy, focused on the work done towards prevention and response to domestic violence with an emphasis on changes in legislation and policy framework; in particular she admitted that the Ministry of Social Policy had been leading a multiagency working group on development of sub-legislation for domestic and gender based violence prevention.
There was the much interest demonstrated for the good practices in the CoE member states presented by Ms. Katja Tiilikainen, Gender Adviser of the CoE office in Ukraine, particularly gender mainstreaming, access women to justice, the Istanbul Convention and services for survivors, organized support groups, one-to-one counselling, sexual education, balanced participation of women.
Ms. Olga Chychyna, member of Kharkiv city Council, gender adviser to Kharkiv city mayor, head of Group of Council members on gender issues, and Mr. Oleksiy Riabokon, Head of Pyriatyn united territorial community, Poltava region have shared their practical experience as well.
Participants appreciated information on wide network of regional and local centres for legal aid provision (interactive map) and their partners organizations presented by Mr. Oleksiy Boniuk, Director of Coordination Centre for Legal Aid Provision, which provide assistance to victims of domestic and gender based violence. His presentation is available following the link.
During the facilitated gender equality labs (brainstorming session) the participants also shared their own practical experience, good practices, and brainstormed about national, regional and local resources, mechanisms and activities in Ukraine which would help to implement effectively all objectives of the Strategy.
Meanwhile, the participants admitted lack of understanding of their role as coordinators on gender equality and gender-based violence prevention. That’s why they have requested both the CoE and Government to support them with methodological materials and updated information on integration of gender perspective in activities of their institution and tailor-based approach on violence prevention. In the area of domestic violence prevention they have asked for more detailed information on possible instruments to support the work of their institutions to be fully informed on all opportunities of multiagency cooperation, i.e. public-private partnership, social services commissioning (when state delegates the right to deliver some social services to Civil society organization or private institutions supporting them under special funds, i.e. services of shelters, treatment programmes), cooperation with business, etc.
