| dc.description.abstract | In their countries of origin, during their journey, in transit and destination
countries, many refugee and asylum-seeking women and girls have been
exposed to gender-based violence in the form of rape and other forms of
sexual abuse and exploitation, harassment or domestic violence. Their protection
from violence is not always considered a priority by receiving states. The
gender dimension and protection needs of high numbers of refugees and
asylum seekers have been largely overlooked and have left gaps in protection,
thereby increasing risks for many women.1
As a tool to prevent and combat all forms of violence against women, including
domestic violence, the Council of Europe Convention on Preventing and
Combating Violence against Women and Domestic Violence (hereinafter the
Istanbul Convention) contains provisions specific to asylum-seeking and refugee
women. The purpose of this publication is to support the implementation
of Articles 60 (Gender-based asylum claims) and 61 (Non-refoulement) of the
Istanbul Convention. The aim is to assist policy makers, border and immigration
officials and practitioners by providing them with practical advice. This
includes definitions, information and examples of: gender-based violence
that may be recognised as forms of persecution or other serious harm; how to
ensure that a gender-sensitive interpretation is given to each of the convention
grounds; what the requirements of gender-sensitive reception procedures
are; gender-sensitive practice and procedures in respect of refugee status determination; and applications for other forms of international protection.
It discusses the additional protection of the non-refoulement principle and
concludes with a checklist which summarises the requirements of the provisions
affecting asylum-seeking and refugee women in Articles 60 and 61 of
the Istanbul Convention.
As of 1 December 2019, a total of 34 Council of Europe member states have
ratified the Istanbul Convention and 11 member states have signed but not
ratified. The European Union (EU) has also signed. The Group of Experts on
Action against Violence Against Women and Domestic Violence (GREVIO) have
completed and published the baseline evaluation assessments in relation to
Albania, Austria, Denmark, Finland, France, Monaco, Montenegro, Portugal,
Sweden and Turkey. These examine the extent to which states parties comply
with their convention obligations. Some of GREVIO’s findings are presented
in the subsequent sections of this paper. | en_US |
