Govt signs convention on gender violence
9:45 am - June 13th 2012
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contribution by Scarlet Harris
Following my previous blogs on the UK Government’s failure to sign the Council of Europe Istanbul Convention (previously the CAHVIO Convention) on violence against women, I’m pleased to report that the government has now (very quietly) announced that it has signed up.
The announcement was buried in the detail of the announcement about the proposal to criminalise forced marriage which dominated the headlines last week.
The forced marriage announcement is controversial and does not have the support of many women’s groups who believe that victims of forced marriage will be reluctant to prosecute their families so the problem will be driven yet further underground (a rather superficial analysis of the issue, by my own admission – if you’re interested in the arguments against criminalising forced marriage I recommend you read Imkaan’s statement).
But the announcement that the government has finally signed CAHVIO is something we can and should support.
Just to recap, the Convention requires the government to:
- protect women against all forms of violence, and prevent, prosecute and eliminate violence against women and domestic violence;
- contribute to the elimination of all forms of discrimination against women and promote substantive equality between women and men, including by empowering women;
- design a comprehensive framework, policies and measures for the protection of and assistance to all victims of violence against women and domestic violence;
- promote international co-operation with a view to eliminating violence against women and domestic violence;
- provide support and assistance to organisations and law enforcement agencies to effectively co-operate in order to adopt an integrated approach to eliminating violence against women and domestic violence.
This is not just a symbolic gesture. The UK may be streets ahead of many other countries in terms of our efforts to tackle violence against girls and women but that is not to say that we’ve got all the answers. Far from it.
According to the excellent EHRC and EVAW report Map of Gaps, each year, around 1 in ten women in Britain will experience rape and or other violence. One in four local authorities leave female victims of violence without the specialised support they need.
Map of Gaps was carried out in 2009. Since then specialist Violence Against Women and Girls services have been decimated by spending cuts.
Freedom of Information requests by the False Economy website found that 31% of funding to the domestic violence and sexual abuse sector from local authorities was cut between 2010/11 to 2011/12. That’s a reduction from £7.8 million to £5.4 million.
We’ve still got a long way to go. Signing this important international Convention is a step in the right direction.
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Scarlet Harris is the TUC’s Women’s Equality Officer based in the Equality and Employment Rights Department.
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Reader comments
LC crashed when I tried to comment so I don’t know whether it’s swallowed my post. Short version: you say this isn’t a symbolic gesture. How so? What real-world action will it enforce?
Symbolic or not it’s another U-turn.
I welcome it as such, and because it was the right thing to do.
well said Scarlet.
But I find Imkaan’s position curious.
> we are disappointed that the government has chosen to create a separate criminal offence of forced marriage rather than strengthen existing legislation…. if we want more women and girls to come forward for help and get timely and appropriate assistance and advice.
What can give a clearer message to victims, and one that may restrain their adult family abusers – than that ‘forced marriage is now a criminal office’ – much clearer than the current ‘Forced Marriage Statutory Guidelines’.
> Myth: Criminalising forced marriage will stop forced marriage from happening
Well doh – of course that is a myth !
> Myth: Women and girls would proactively take criminal action against their parents
Well this is wrong isn’t it – unless a victim comes forward and is willing to be a witness, then of course no court case can happen!
Yes there is a real problem where victim’s are isolated – in many communities their whole family would oppose them if they accused their parents of putting them througha forced marriage.
But as above – it is a much easier position for a victim to take ‘ sorry Mum and Dad, but forced marriage is a crime, look it up on Google yourself’.
And as a crime, it is the state that prosecutes, not the victim.
This seems much strong then the current practise:
“… when the Forced Marriage Act came into force, courts have been able to issue Forced Marriage Protection Orders. These were intended to protect victims without criminalising family members and can prevent the victim from being taken abroad”
which seems to have been no deterrent to the perprators even when caught!
This is a serious and growing problem.
> The government estimates there could be up to 8,000 cases of forced marriages in England with the numbers rising every year.
And
> In Germany of those forced into marriage 83.4% were Muslim, nearly a third were 17 or under, while 40% fell between the ages of 18 and 21…
> 11/01/2012 – According to a report by the German Federal Ministry of Family Affairs, forced marriage primarily affects young Muslim women.
> German Federal Family Affairs Minister Kristina Schroeder put it succinctly when she remarked “Whoever marries children against their will … is doing them violence.”
> Many of the victims were threatened with violence and even death.
This campaigner seems happy with the new law:
> Jasvinder Sanghera, a campaigner on behalf of Asian women … said it was time for Britain’s Asian community leaders to speak out about the honour code, also known as “Izzat” in Urdu.
> “I’ve yet to see community leaders, religious leaders, politicians, Asian councillors give real leadership on this. They don’t because they know it makes them unpopular.”
> Ms Sanghera said the reluctance of community figures to speak out was “extremely irresponsible, it’s morally wrong and it’s morally blind”.
Reactions: Twitter, blogs
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Liberal Conspiracy
Govt signs convention on violence against women http://t.co/Hnh302O2
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Steve Hynd
Govt signs convention on violence against women http://t.co/Hnh302O2
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Laura Jayne Connor
@VagendaMagazine RT @libcon: Govt signs convention on violence against women http://t.co/KarGKa7A
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Scarlet Harris
Govt signs convention on violence against women http://t.co/xPKTuMxP
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Jason Brickley
Govt signs convention on violence against women http://t.co/2glNP6kF
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Kamaljeet Jandu
Govt signs convention on violence against women http://t.co/xPKTuMxP
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leftlinks
Liberal Conspiracy – Govt signs convention on violence against women http://t.co/hLhAysCF
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Noxi
RT @libcon: Govt signs convention on violence against women http://t.co/m9dlfCbT
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Cllr Jon Harvey
Govt signs convention on violence against women http://t.co/iSCJqRbe < read this article by Scarlet Harris, TUC's Women's Equality Officer
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sunny hundal
Some good news: @scarletharris reports govt has signed the convention on violence against women http://t.co/la4WlN5a
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P McCarvill
Some good news: @scarletharris reports govt has signed the convention on violence against women http://t.co/la4WlN5a
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Marai Larasi
Govt signs convention on violence against women | Liberal Conspiracy http://t.co/eiZj9m5M via @libcon
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Imkaan
Govt signs convention on violence against women | Liberal Conspiracy http://t.co/hHLpcLyk
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BevR
Govt signs convention on violence against women | Liberal Conspiracy http://t.co/nyQimK2P via @libcon
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Hidden Faces
Govt signs convention on violence against women | Liberal Conspiracy http://t.co/hHLpcLyk
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