George Orwell Rises from the Grave: Leading MEPs Highlight Harmful Effects of Istanbul Convention

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Rebecca Hain: +1-513-479-3335

George Orwell Rises from the Grave: Leading MEPs Highlight Harmful Effects of Istanbul Convention

February 7, 2023 – Leading Members of the European Parliament have identified serious flaws with the Istanbul Convention (IC), also known as the Convention on Preventing and Combating Violence and Domestic Violence. Their statement was issued on February 2 following the recent vote of the IC by the Committees on Civil Liberties and on Women’s Rights and Gender Equality.

MEPs Christine Anderson (Germany), Jorge Buxadé Villalba (Spain), Patricia Chagnon (France), Nicolaus Fest (Germany), Balázs Hidvéghi (Hungary), and Margarita de la Pisa Carrión (Spain) explain (1):

Istanbul Convention is based on “gender theories with no scientific basis.”

The Preamble to the Convention makes this dubious claim: “Recognizing that violence against women is a manifestation of historically unequal power relations between women and men, which have led to domination over, and discrimination against, women by men and to the prevention of the full advancement of women;”

According to researcher Nicola Graham-Kevan, this concept has been “heavily criticised as a theory that is ideologically based, rather than empirically supported.” (2)

Convention “generates prejudices and mistrust, making peaceful coexistence within the family impossible.”

Marriage rates in Europe have plummeted in recent years, falling from 8.0 in 1964 to 4.0 in 2000. (3) Fertility rates also have fallen below the replacement level, with only 1.5 births per woman in 2020. (4)

By repetitively highlighting their risk of domestic violence, the Istanbul Convention preys on women’s fears and insecurities. This serves to discourage marriage and family formation, and predispose to the long-feared demographic winter across Europe. (5)

IC “generates prejudices against men…due to its partial, biased and discriminatory nature.”

Men and women are equally likely to be victims of domestic violence, according to numerous studies (6). In contrast, the IC text uses the phrase, “violence against women,” 56 times, while “violence against men” is not mentioned once. The effect is to deny abused men access to services and systematically bias the criminal system against males (7). This is a violation of several Articles of the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union.

In the name of equal rights, the Istanbul Convention establishes a two-tiered caste system of unequal rights for males and females. George Orwell’s dystopian prediction that “All animals are equal, but some are more equal than others,” may now come to pass.

The Domestic Abuse and Violence International Alliance – DAVIA — consists of 71 member organizations from 26 countries in Africa, Asia, Australia, Europe, Latin America, and North America. DAVIA seeks to ensure that domestic violence and abuse polices are science-based, family-affirming, and gender-inclusive. https://endtodv.org/coalitions/davia/

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