The document will be forwarded together with reservations or a reference to the Latvian Constitution, said Siliņa, emphasizing that the Constitution will not be violated in any way by ratifying the convention.
Also, this week, the Saeima will start reviewing the draft laws for the introduction of the regulation of partnership relations, forwarded by the Ministry of Justice, the Prime Minister stated.
Siliņa emphasized that this will fulfill the agreement reached before the formation of the coalition on advancing several initiatives by the end of the year.
Minister of Transport, “Progressivo” politician Kaspars Briškens expressed his satisfaction that he managed to move forward with the coalition partners towards the ratification of the Istanbul Convention and the implementation of partnership relations by the end of this year. The text of the convention will be ratified as it is within the framework of the Council of Europe, but the “Progressives” respect the cooperation partners’ desire to add an explanation to the declaration, Briškens said, noting that the main thing is that there is currently progress towards what is accepted in Europe, how to stand against any violence against women.
As announced, the Istanbul Convention is an international document that sets specific standards and measures for combating violence, as well as the goal of creating an inclusive, integrated and gender-sensitive approach to the prevention and eradication of violence and abusive behavior. Namely, the mission and goal of the Istanbul Convention is to eradicate violence against women and domestic violence by promoting gender equality.
The Istanbul Convention is primarily focused on women, as it covers forms of violence that only women suffer (forced abortion, female genital mutilation) or that women experience more often than men (sexual violence and rape, stalking, sexual harassment, domestic violence, forced marriage, forced sterilisation), however the Convention encourages its provisions to be applied to all victims of domestic violence, including men and children.
With the ratification of the convention, preventing and combating violence is no longer a matter of the will of individual politicians, but a legal obligation of the state under international law. Ratification involves changing laws, implementing practical measures and securing funding to achieve zero tolerance for violence against women and domestic violence. Furthermore, the Convention makes it clear that violence against women and domestic violence can no longer be considered a private matter, and that states must take a stand and take measures to prevent violence, protect victims and punish perpetrators.
As reported, in 2016, in Bulgaria, Sofia, former Minister of Welfare Jānis Reirs (JV) signed the Council of Europe Convention on preventing and combating violence against women and domestic violence, or the so-called Istanbul Convention, on behalf of Latvia.
2023-10-30 17:41:43
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