More than half of the 108 million people who were displaced at the end of 2022 were categorized as "women" [1]. Women are particularly vulnerable in an environment of flight and migration. The real danger of sexualized and gender-based assaults is omnipresent - whether in the country of origin, on the run or in the host country.
Even if comprehensive protection is provided for by binding regulations, such as the Council of Europe's Istanbul Convention, this is nowhere to be found in reality - both at the EU's external borders and in the EU's internal states.
The Istanbul Convention, which has also been binding for the EU since June 2023, calls for comprehensive protection for women against domestic violence. The comprehensive preventive and protective measures are binding for all women, regardless of their origin, nationality or residence status.
At the same time, the EU agreed on a directive to combat violence against women and domestic violence at the beginning of February this year. Despite considerable gaps, this is to be welcomed in principle, but the lack of the right to stay and existing reporting obligations mean that the directive not only disregards the guarantees of the Council of Europe's Istanbul Convention, but also makes effective access to protection for women on the run impossible.
Together With:
Anne Pertsch, Lawyer at Equal Rights Beyond Borders
Clara Bünger, Member of German Parliament, Die Linke
we want to examine the legal perspective of existing and planned protection and support services for refugee women, the (non-)implementation of these at the EU's external borders and in Germany, and discuss the political perspectives and background.
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[1] The regulations discussed use the term "woman". We include all persons who categorize themselves under this term.
