Violence Against Women: The Istanbul Convention

The Istanbul Convention sets minimum standards for governments to meet when tackling violence against women. The full name is the Convention on preventing and combating violence against women and domestic violence. It is a legal framework that exists to tackle domestic violence against women and girls and covers other forms of violence such as sexual assault and rape.

Women attending the Million Women Rise March in London

Image by Anne-Marie Bickerton

8 June 2020 marks 8 years since the UK signed the Istanbul Convention. However, the Convention has not yet been ratified by the UK government, which means it is not yet legally binding.

Violence against women in the UK is still widespread and further action on the part of Government is needed. Specialist frontline services are in crisis and many women and children are still suffering.

Take Action

Join our call for the UK government to ratify the Istanbul Convention:

  1. Share our tweet and Facebook post: https://www.facebook.com/thewi/
  2. Tweet your MP:
    • Find their twitter handle here: www.tweetyourmp.com
    • Copy the following tweet or write your own:
      @[YOUR MP’S TWITTER HANDLE] it has been 8 years since the UK signed the #IstanbulConvention. As your constituent, I ask you to call on the government to ratify the Istanbul Convention without delay by taking this @ICChangeUK action: www.icchange.co.uk/8JuneAction @thewi

  3. Use our template letter to write to your MP. Email us at pa@nfwi.org.uk for the template letter.

Sources of Support

www.thewi.org.uk/dv-support

Further Information

For further information on 'The Istanbul Convention', visit IC Change: www.icchange.co.uk/2020/05/25/8-june-speak-out/ or get in touch with us at pa@nfwi.org.uk. You can also read our blog which breaks down the Domestic Abuse Bill here.