Ten years Istanbul Convention

One in three women in the European Union over the age of 15 has been the victim of physical or sexual violence. One in two has already experienced sexual harassment, according to the European Commission

10 years ago - on May 11, 2011, to be precise - 13 member states of the Council of Europe signed the "Convention on Preventing and Combating Violence against Women and Domestic Violence," better known as the Istanbul Convention because the meeting was held in Istanbul. A milestone in the fight against violence against women, it aims to guarantee four things: better protection, prevention, combating and condemnation of violence against women and other people affected by patriarchal violence.

States parties are committed to various measures as part of the holistic violence protection strategy:

• Preventing violence by raising awareness and sensitizing the public.
• Support and protection through support services, deployment of trained professionals, establishment of women's shelters
• Effective criminal law norms and procedures to investigate and sanction acts of violence
• Immediate protection through contact and proximity bans
• Extension of measures also in asylum procedures, independent residence permits for victims of violence

To date, 46 member states of the Council of Europe have signed the Istanbul Convention. But only 34 have ratified the Istanbul Convention.