25 November is the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women and also the first day of a conference on Violence Against Women organised by the European Commission. The This Conference, which aims to draw attention to this prevalent and often under-recognised form of crime and its severe consequences, followed the Summit of EU Women Ministers on the same topic organised by the Belgian Presidency on 24 November.

The Conference on Violence Against Women, which start the same day World conmemorates the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women, has gathered in Brussels a group of leaders, parliamentarians, experts, academics, NGOs and international organisations active in the field of combating violence against women. These experts will discuss over two days about the origins of the problem, the best way to fight against it, some special ways of violence and how to tackle them or the legal aspects related to this issue.

European Commission Vice President and Commissioner in charge for Justice, Fundamental Rights and Citizenship, Viviane Reding, Joëlle Milquet, the Deputy Prime Minister of Belgium and Minister for Equal Opportunities and Rashida Manjoo, UN Special Rapporteur on Violence against Women, are some of the panellist present at the event.

Women Ministers Summit on violence against women

The Conference followed the Women Ministers Summit on violence against women organised by the Belgian Presidency on 24 November. Gathering the women ministers of the European Union, whatever their competencies, is a new initiative which started in Cadiz, in the context of the Trio Presidency which is to be consolidated in the future, having such a summit during every Presidency.

The women ministers met in Brussels to reaffirm their commitment to combat violence against women and signed the Brussels Declaration “Towards a coherent, effective  and global European policy to combat violence against women ”, in which they truly commit themselves to fight for this cause. The aim of this event was to highlight the importance of combating different forms of violence which millions of women in the European Union are being confronted with.

It is an ambitious document which recommends, for instance, a European policy based on the following five principles: policy, prevention, prosecution and protection for women and girls. Such a policy must be designed as such in order to address the needs of all women and girls and to serve as a reference for national policies aimed at eliminating violence and influencing behaviour and attitude that could lead to these acts of violence.