In the framework of the Lisbon Forum 2016 and on the occasion of the International Day of the Elimination of Violence against Women, the North-South Centre organised a roundtable dedicated to “Women Refugees, Migrants and Asylum Seekers in Europe and the Southern Mediterranean” in order to “meet the immediate emergency needs and find the longer term solutions” on the 25th November.
Chaired by Ms. Ana Gomes, member of the European Parliament, the roundtable gathered experts from the North and the South of the Mediterranean who formulated recommendations to protect women refugees, migrants and asylum seekers and to prevent them from violence related to their gender and situation. Ms. Mina Jaf (Women Refugee Route), Ms. Aleksandra Davidovska (NGO Legis), Ms. Zoya J. Rouhana (KAFA), Ms. Salome Mbugua (European Network of Migrant Women), Ms. Nuha Ma’ayta (General Federation for Jordanian women) and Ms. Carolina Lasén Diaz (Gender Equality Unit of Council of Europe) highlighted the need to strengthen the coordination of governments, parliaments, local and regional authorities and civil society and to take into account the specific situation of women and girls in the migration, refugee and asylum seeker policies, as well as in the political and humanitarian response for refugees in European and Mediterranean regions.
Multiple discriminations, gender based violence, sexual abuse, the lack of access to emergency cares, exploitation, human trafficking and early marriage were presented as the main risks and dangers faced by women and girls refugees and migrants. All speakers of the roundtable agreed on the urgent need to collect and share data and information related to these risks to denounce the situation or to reinforce an effective mulita-level coordination and cooperation between all the relevant actors in order to provide the adapted humanitarian and political responses, immediately and on the long-term.
For this purpose, attention was drawn to the Council of Europe Convention on preventing and combating violence against women and domestic violence (Istanbul Convention) which recognises the specific situation of women refugees, migrants and asylum seekers and is a comprehensive tool providing operational, coordinated and adapted responses to their protection and to the prevention on violence against them.
The North-South Centre will follow-up the roundtable recommendations in the framework of its mission and invites representatives of governments, parliaments, local and regional authorities and civil society organisations from the Northern and southern Mediterranean regions, and the International organisations, to take them into consideration.
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