Men Get Involved to Combat Domestic Violence

► Mobilising Male Parliamentarians
► Declaration "Men Get Involved against domestic violence" Standing Committee, 25 November 2007 (PDF)
► How can parliamentarians take part in activities for the 25 November 2007 Day and encourage men to get involved in combating violence against women?
► Join the PACE pan-European initiative and send back the form!
► Gender equality – are men interested? Can male parliamentarians get involved? - an NGO perspective
► Setting up Male Parliamentarian Networks : the Swedish experience
► Useful website links

(last update 11.12.2007)

 

 

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Mobilising Male Parliamentarians

 

There has been a growing recognition that the role of men is crucial in changing unequal power relations. Men throughout all spheres of society need to become more involved in combating violence against women.

In the last decade, the importance of ‘involving men’ in achieving gender equality has been highlighted within the United Nations System. The Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action, 1995, and Beijing +5, the outcome of the twenty-third special session of the General Assembly, 2000, both call for countries to promote men's support in the struggle for gender equality and to call for a strategic movement to end gender-based violence. Rapporteur of the Mid-term Assessment of the Campaign, Mr Mendes Bota, emphasised during the recent part-session on 5 October, 2007, in Strasbourg, the need to focus on involving men, from a male parliamentarian perspective, to combat violence against women.

 

“Lastly a word on the need for male parliamentarians to be constantly involved in the fight to combat violence against women. [Men] make up 80% of the members of national parliaments in Europe and hold most of the positions of power in the political, economic and social spheres.  And 90% of those who engage in domestic violence are men.  The commitment of male public figures with parliamentary responsibilities in this combat should become a factor for changing mentalities in our society.  This is why we are suggesting setting up a network of groups of male parliamentarians in each parliament, following the example of the group in place in Sweden since 2002.

I am convinced that if we carry out our parliamentary duty effectively, we will save the lives of thousands of women and alleviate the physical and psychological suffering of tens of millions of others.  This is a great challenge that we are facing, but the responsibility we have is even greater.  It is time to say enough is enough!”

Excerpt of Mr Mendes Bota’s address to the Parliamentary Assembly, Strasbourg, 5 October 2007

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How can parliamentarians take part in activities for the 25 November 2007 Day and encourage men to get involved in combating violence against women ?

 

 

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Gender equality – are men interested? Can male parliamentarians get involved?

"Parliamentarians enter parliament in order to make their community a better place.
There is no more important way to do this than by working to eliminate violence against women. The social, health psychological, and economic benefits are staggering.
The cost of violence against women in just one member state of the Council of Europe has been estimated by Professor Sylvia Walby to be approximately 40 billion Euros.

Yet because of the overrepresentation of men in every Parliament in Europe, it is vital for individual male parliamentarians to be involved in order for change to take place.

It is apparent by the statements made by the PACE and by parliaments across Europe about the issue of violence against women that parliamentarians care about the issue. Let us therefore demonstrate that care by becoming involved in campaigning around the issue by supporting the initiatives laid out below."

"The Active Role of Men in Changing Attitudes to Combat Violence against Women", Chris Green's presentation at the Council of Europe Seminar on Men’s Active Participation in Combating Domestic Violence (Zagreb, 9-10 May 2007)

 

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 Setting up Male Parliamentarian Networks : the Swedish experience

How to involve more actively male parliamentarians in combating violence against women and, more generally, in gender equality issues? Following the success and positive example of the Swedish Network the Parliamentary Assembly proposed in Resolution 1582 (2007) on “Parliaments united in combating domestic violence against women”: mid-term assessment of the campaign (Rapporteur : Mr José Mendes Bota (Portugal, EPP/CD) that national parliaments :

“promote the setting up of a group of male parliamentarians dedicated to combating violence against women and to create networks between them at European level.”

Background information about the Swedish Parliamentarian Network

During a hearing on men’s involvement in equality projects in Reykjavik (Iceland, 13 September 2005) organised by the PACE Committee on Equal Opportunities for Women and Men, Mr Lars U Granberg, Swedish MP, discussed his experiences regarding the setting up of a Swedish Male Parliamentarian Network. Mr Granberg said that he had taken the initiative to start a male network in the Swedish Parliament in 2004 in response to cases of human trafficking and the negative reaction of some men to a speech he gave in Helsinki regarding men’s involvement in working for gender equality. The network is currently working on the prevention of trafficking for sexual exploitation, the prevention of violence against women and looking into the workplace and how it can be made a more equitable environment.

As Mr Granberg stated, there is still a lot to do to change the power structures between women and men in the world. Politicians have the responsibility for creating a society with equal rights for all young people and for renewing their ideas on gender equality.