The lack of a standard definition of rape in Europe’s first ever law on violence against women took centre stage in talks ahead of the Women 20 delegation’s trip to the G20 summit in Brazil.
Linda Laura Sabbadini, who served as the Chair of W20 in 2021, declared:
The W20 is launching an appeal to reject the EU directive that will be put to a vote in parliament in April. We want it to be rejected as it doesn’t include rape and sexual harassment in the workplace, so it does not meet the requirements of the Istanbul Convention.
In Italy, at least 31.5 per cent of women aged 16 to 70 have experienced some form of physical or sexual violence. The Italian Ministry of the Interior found that partners or ex-partners were responsible for 55 out of 106 murders of women.
The main objective of the W20 is to ensure that discussions on gender equality are included in the G20 agenda at the annual summit. Although the EU has not agreed on a definition of femicide, it is commonly understood to mean the killing of women or girls on the basis of sex.
The W20 engagement group, composed of volunteer delegates from each of the G20 members, actively participates in the negotiations and recommends policies that promote women’s economic empowerment so that they can be implemented at the national level.
