Violence against women and girls is one of the most systematic and common human rights violations worldwide. EU countries are no exception. Sadly, one in three women has experienced physical or sexual violence, mostly by intimate partners.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, there has been a notable increase in cases of physical and emotional violence against women. Calls to domestic violence helplines have reportedly increased fivefold in some countries.
Online violence is also increasing, especially against young women and women in public life, such as journalists and politicians. Women are also victims of violence in the workplace: around a third of women in the EU who are victims of sexual harassment have in fact suffered it at work.
The EU and its Member States are working on several fronts to put an end to gender-based violence, protect the victims of this heinous crime and punish those responsible.
In this context, on 14 May 2024, the European Council adopted the EU Directive on combating violence against women and domestic violence. In this way, the European Union has, for the first time, a law that effectively combats violence against women and domestic violence.
Member States will have until 14 June 2027 to transpose the directive into their national legislation and policies.
The directive criminalizes at EU level the violence against womenboth offline and online. Some forms of violence such as female genital mutilation and forced marriages are prohibited, at the same time, the most widespread forms of cyber violence are addressed, which is an urgent problem, given the exponential spread and dramatic impact of online violence. In this context, the non-consensual sharing of intimate images (including deepfakes), cyber stalking and cyber harassment (including cyber flashing). Furthermore, the law provides for targeted protection, support and access to justice measures for victims of any form of gender-based and domestic violence, where it is considered a crime under national or Union law. Finally, it requires Member States to establish preventive measures, including specific measures to prevent rape and promote the central role of consent in sexual relationships.
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