Relato integral dos debates

Segunda-feira, 4 de Fevereiro de 2013 - Estrasburgo

17. Prevenir e erradicar todas as formas de violência contra mulheres e raparigas (debate)

  Πρόεδρος. - Το επόμενο σημείο είναι η συζήτηση σχετικά με προφορική ερώτηση προς την Επιτροπή για την εξάλειψη και πρόληψη όλων των μορφών βίας κατά των γυναικών και των κοριτσιών, του Mikael Gustafsson, εξ ονόματος της Επιτροπής Δικαιωμάτων των Γυναικών και Ισότητας των Φύλων (O-000004/2013 - B7-0111/2013).

  Mikael Gustafsson, författare. − Fru talman! Om en månad håller FN:s kvinnokommission (CSW) sin 57:e mötessession, som handlar om att hitta gemensamma ståndpunkter för att mer effektivt bekämpa våld mot kvinnor.

Vi i utskottet för kvinnors rättigheter och jämställdhet har därför lagt fram en muntlig fråga till kommissionen samt en resolution, för att sända en stark signal om att kampen mot våld mot kvinnor och flickor måste förstärkas både globalt, lokalt och på EU-nivå.

Vårt utskott skickar dessutom en delegation till CSW för att förstärka vårt budskap. Jag vill understryka att förslaget till resolution är hela utskottets resolution; vi har arbetat med det tillsammans och vi vill göra den här frågan till prioritet för våra kollegor i parlamentet.

En särskild tanke vill jag också rikta till min föregångare på ordförandeposten, Eva-Britt Svensson, som under hela sin tid i Europaparlamentet arbetade för att sätta de här frågorna högst på dagordningen. Hon lyckades, och vi fortsätter hennes arbete.

Låt mig säga något kort om varför det är så centralt att förebygga och stoppa mäns våld mot kvinnor.

Det går inte en enda dag utan att vi läser om kvinnor som misshandlats till döds, kvinnor som utnyttjas i prostitution, kvinnor som våldtagits av någon de känner och hade förtroende för. Flickor och kvinnor bär med sig hot om mäns våld varje dag i sitt liv; det är en del av deras uppväxt.

Detta är inget annat än ett systematiskt brott mot deras mänskliga rättigheter.

De flesta kvinnor inrättar sina liv utifrån hotet om mäns våld mot kvinnor. De väljer andra vägar när de ska gå hem på kvällen, de undviker kollektivtrafik vissa tider på dygnet, de ser till att gå i grupp om de ska gå ut och roa sig och dansa.

Mäns hot om våld och aggressivitet, även när det inte leder till det, är också en form av våld. Det förminskar och begränsar en kvinnas rörelsefrihet. Det sätter gränser för hennes beteende och upprättar en ojämlik maktordning där män bestämmer, och kvinnor ska inrätta sig.

Mäns våld mot kvinnor är ett brott mot mänskliga rättigheter. Det är också ett av de största hindren för jämställdhet.

Vi måste också ta tillfället i akt och för ett litet ögonblick skifta fokus – för att rikta ljuset på dem som begår de här brotten, de som hotar, slår och mördar: Män.

Många tycker att det är obehagligt att prata om förövarna. De flesta vill understryka att det faktiskt är ganska få män som slår. Vissa vill försöka påvisa att de som slår skulle vara några speciella kategorier av män, socialt, ekonomiskt eller kulturellt. Men så är det ju inte.

Nej, problemet med mäns våld mot kvinnor är att det ingår som ett strukturellt maktfenomen i våra samhällen. De män som slår kommer från alla olika samhällsklasser, alla olika kontexter. Det enda de har gemensamt är att de är män. Och slutsatsen måste därför bli att vi har ett gemensamt problem i hur vi formar manlighet i våra samhällen.

Men visst, procentuellt sett slår och hotar relativt få män. Ett problem är dock att det är väldigt få män som faktiskt engagerar sig aktivt i att arbeta mot mäns våld mot kvinnor. Även de som inte slår eller hotar väljer alltför sällan att tydligt ta ställning mot mäns våld mot kvinnor.

Vårt utskott har upprepade gånger lyft de här frågorna och pekat på hur EU borde arbeta. Vi har t.ex. massor av gånger talat om att vi vill att kommissionen ska lägga fram förslag om en EU-strategi men även ett minimidirektiv om våld mot kvinnor. Detta väntar vi självklart fortfarande på.

Nu presenterar vi en muntlig fråga och en resolution som anger några viktiga åtgärder som EU bör göra globalt.

I resolutionen anger vi flera olika aspekter och åtgärder och jag ska bara beröra några få här:

Inför förhandlingarna i CSW har EU-delegationen en nyckelroll. EU-delegationen måste stå upp för kvinnors mänskliga rättigheter hela vägen genom förhandlingarna.

EU har också en mycket viktig roll för att se till att det blir konkreta åtgärder och engagemang. Det handlar t.ex. om informationskampanjer, det handlar om en internationell genomförandeplan, det handlar om att få till utökade resurser, och det handlar om att det syns i EU:s biståndspolitik och i EU:s utrikespolitik.

Mäns våld mot kvinnor är inte ett måste, det är inte något ödesbestämt. Kvinnor och flickor har rätt att leva ett liv utan rädsla, att känna sig trygga i sina kroppar, i sina hem, i sina skolor, på sina arbetsplatser, i det offentliga rummet.

Vi som politiker har ett ansvar att lyssna på alla de kvinnoorganisationer och övriga aktörer som jobbar dagligen med dessa frågor – och att ta till oss deras rekommendationer för att översätta dem till politisk handling. Tillsammans kan vi sätta stop för våld mot kvinnor och flickor – i EU och globalt.

(Applåder)

  Viviane Reding, Vice-President of the Commission. − Madam President, I think that everybody in this House can only agree fully with what the Chair of the Committee on Women’s Rights and Gender Equality has just said.

It is true that one in five women in Europe has suffered physical violence at least once in their life, and one out of 10 has suffered forced sexual violence. This is unacceptable because it is brutal manifestation of gender inequality – the Member is right – and it is a violation of human rights that Europe cannot ignore. That is the reason why we are committed to combating all forms of violence against women within the territory of the European Union and in its external relations policies.

The European Union will thus fully support the global efforts of the United Nations to achieve gender equality, in particular by eliminating all forms of violence. We regret that the United Nations’ member states have been unable reach a consensual outcome at the 2012 session of the UN Commission on the Status of Women. No results were achieved, and we cannot really accept such an outcome.

The elimination of violence against women is one of the priorities of the Women’s Charter and of the Commission’s strategy which are on the table in this House. They underline our key priorities: improving knowledge about these problems, legislative action where we have the possibility to take legislative action, the exchange of good practices, the empowerment of women, awareness-raising and funding.

As far as legislative action is concerned, the Union has adopted effective measures in the field of criminal and civil justice. Let me remind you of the directive on trafficking in human beings – which adopts a gender-specific approach to trafficking – as well as the directive against sexual abuse and sexual exploitation of children, the directive on the European protection order applicable to criminal matters and the directive on the rights of victims of crime.

Why do I underline these directives? Because it is the first time that the European Union, which now has the power not only to speak but also to act, has not only made declarations but has presented solid legal proposals: law with which we can help women in all situations of life all over the European Union.

Let us look just at the Victims of Crime Directive. This is a real breakthrough for victims of crime and for women who have fallen victim to violence, because it guarantees the rights of those victims wherever they are in Europe. They have to be treated with respect by authorities, to receive information about their rights, their case, to receive proper support, and to participate in proceedings if they wish, for example by attending the trial. Victims of gender violence will benefit from this, and authorities will have to identify vulnerable victims, such as victims of rape, and give them proper protection while the police investigate and while the courts prosecute.

So it is a real breakthrough which has been obtained. We are not only saying repeatedly what we want, we are also taking action. This is important for women, and I am sure that this law will have a very positive impact on the treatment of victims, especially on women suffering from various forms of violence and sexual crime.

The EU’s approach on victims’ rights has also been recognised outside the European Union as an example to follow. I can tell you the last time that this happened. We have just had a meeting with the prosecutors’ offices and justice ministries of the Eastern Partner Countries on victim protection. Everybody around us thinks that this is the way to proceed: the more groups of countries around the European Union that have these kinds of very strong legal possibilities for women, the better it will be.

We have also proposed a European Protection Order to make sure that women who are victims of violence in their homes are better protected. This will complete the existing EU legislation in the field of penal law in order to ensure that a restraining order issued against a violent partner in one Member State can be automatically recognised in another Member State.

It is about protecting women who are vulnerable. The Member is so right in saying that they stay trembling inside their houses while not exercising their right to move around freely, to go to another Member State. We have to stop this infringement of the normal freedom of any human being, including women who may be under stress from a violent partner.

I call on the negotiators in Parliament and in the Council to reach an agreement as soon as possible on the European Protection Order as a civil law mechanism to provide women with better protection throughout Europe. But passing laws alone is not sufficient to safeguard the rights of victims. In order for these laws to be effective they must be implemented, and the Member States must transpose the laws as a matter of priority in order to benefit millions of Europeans. The Commission assists Member States in implementing these laws, but it is also very vigilant in ensuring that Member States transpose and apply the laws correctly.

I also call on the Member States to sign and ratify the Council of Europe Convention on preventing and combating violence against women and domestic violence. We should all speak up in our Member States and explain to the media why this has not been done, and ask this question of our different governments.

The Commission will also continue to develop targeted and consistent initiatives to support Member States in achieving tangible results. Further legislation is being drafted, for instance, on projects at grassroots level to combat violence against women. This is currently being done via the Daphne programme, and will continue with the forthcoming Rights, Equality and Citizenship programme currently under negotiation in the Multiannual Financial Framework.

When we speak about violence there is also hidden violence, for instance, female genital mutilation. FGM is a form of gender-based violence and the World Health Organisation has estimated that in the European Union there are roughly half a million women and girls who have been through FGM. This may even be an underestimate as it fails to take into consideration second-generation migrants and those who are not accounted for. We should be very clear on this: FGM can under no circumstances be justified by cultural or religious traditional practices.

Our Member States must prohibit this. I urge you all to encourage this prohibition and to encourage people to abandon this practice in the Member States. Last year the European Parliament unanimously adopted a resolution to end FGM in the European Union. This year we are moving to action. On 6 March 2013 the Commission will launch a series of activities, at European and national level, to support the fight against FGM and to uphold the rights of women victims of violence. There will be a round-table discussion and a public consultation to eradicate female genital mutilation both within and outside the European Union.

Turning now to matters outside the European Union, this is also a priority under the Strategic Framework and Action Plan on Human Rights and Democracy. The action plan supports initiatives to counteract gender-based violence, feminicide and harmful traditional practices and to prevent early and forced marriages. I very much count on the EU Special Representative for Human Rights, Mr Lambrinidis, who comes from this House and who I am sure will contribute to the implementation of this action plan.

We continue to work on implementing the EU guidelines on violence against women and girls and the guidelines on children in armed conflict via the EU’s delegations and the Member States’ embassies around the world. We are actively contributing to the global effort at UN level. One of the main objectives is to address the political, religious, cultural and social obstacles that hamper women’s full enjoyment of their civil, political, social, economic and cultural rights. They are enshrined in the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination.

We are active in the implementation of the United Nations Security Council resolutions on women, peace and security. A memorandum of understanding between the EU and UN Women was signed in 2012. One of the priorities is to end violence against women, we are developing with the United Nations a common programme on ending violence against women for 2013 and we are looking at opportunities for a wider collaboration in 2013-2014. We also support the work of Ms Manjoo, the United Nations Special Rapporteur on violence against women and the UN Agenda for Women’s Empowerment, the Beijing Platform for Action.

I could continue the list, but I can tell you I have spoken to all my colleagues who are responsible for external affairs. Some of them are female Commissioners, and they really take these issues seriously and really implement the ‘women factor’ and address the question of violence against women in all the activities and the bilateral talks they have when they are outside the European Union.

The conclusion adopted by the Employment, Social Policy, Health and Consumer Affairs Council (EPSCO) in December 2012 is a good preparation for the Beijing Platform for Action and the EU commitment on this.

I hope that this time at the United Nations we can avoid the North-South division which characterised the 2012 session. Having said that, we will nevertheless remain firm in defending the gender equality acquis from any attempt to weaken it. We will also organise side events focusing on the regional approaches to eliminating violence against women and girls.

When we are together at the United Nations session, all the Europeans there will make a ‘Team Europe’. We will go out as a real team and say ‘here is what we are doing, here is how we can help you; we will help you to help yourselves’.

  Mariya Gabriel, au nom du groupe PPE. – Madame la Présidente, tout d'abord, je voudrais vous féliciter, Madame la vice-présidente Reding, pour les efforts et la volonté dont vous faites preuve dans votre engagement envers l'élimination et la prévention des violences faites aux femmes. Il est grand temps que les femmes arrêtent de subir des violences, simplement par le fait d'être des femmes.

Les violences faites aux femmes constituent une grave violation des droits de l'homme. Nous devons effectivement renforcer nos actions; l'Union européenne peut et doit continuer à jouer un rôle proactif.

Grâce à cette résolution, notre contribution s'exprimera par des priorités clairement établies et par des propositions d'action concrètes. Vous venez de l'exprimer. Notre action doit continuer à se focaliser sur plusieurs niveaux: le niveau européen, le niveau des États membres, le niveau international.

Au niveau européen, nous avons développé, avec la Commission, des instruments importants et concrets. Vous les avez cités, Mme Reding: le paquet "victimes", les lignes directrices de l'Union pour l'élimination de la traite des êtres humains, le programme Daphné, la stratégie européenne pour l'élimination des violences faites aux femmes. Je tiens à vous féliciter, Mme Reding, pour votre initiative d'organiser une table ronde sur le thème des mutilations génitales féminines, et leur élimination à l'intérieur et à l'extérieur de nos frontières.

Nous devons tout mettre en œuvre pour l'application efficace de tous ces instruments au sein des États membres pour obtenir des résultats significatifs. Il est important que les États membres signent et ratifient la convention sur l'élimination de toutes les formes de violence envers les femmes. De fait, cet instrument permettra une plus grande coordination des actions au niveau international ainsi qu'un partage aisé des bonnes pratiques.

Enfin, permettez-moi aussi de rappeler que, dans l'Union européenne, la défense des droits de l'homme et de nos valeurs fondatrices est également assurée par le représentant spécial de l'Union européenne pour les droits de l'homme, M. Lambrinidis. Il est important qu'ensemble, vous continuiez à coopérer aussi avec Mme Manjoo, rapporteure spéciale des Nations unies pour les violences faites aux femmes, afin de garantir la coordination et l'efficacité des politiques et des actions entreprises.

En guise de conclusion, je voudrais dire que la résolution que nous nous apprêtons à voter au sein de cette Assemblée même est un message politique fort que nous envoyons à nos citoyens et aux citoyens du monde entier. Ainsi, nous pouvons affirmer notre engagement envers l'élimination et la prévention des violences faites aux femmes, non seulement par des déclarations, mais surtout par des faits.

  Corina Creţu, în numele grupului S&D. – Cea mai răspândită modalitate de încălcare a drepturilor omului, violenţa domestică, nu cunoaşte, din păcate, frontiere geografice, culturale, economice sau educaţionale. Statisticile din ultimii ani sunt îngrijorătoare în întreaga lume, inclusiv în Europa, şi, după cum arăta doamna comisar la început, o femeie din cinci a fost victima violenţei fizice şi una din zece victima violenţei sexuale.

În ţara mea, statistica Poliţiei Române indică faptul că s-a înregistrat, în ultimul an, o creştere cu 26% a cazurilor de violenţă la adresa femeilor, iar acestea sunt date oficiale, numărul real al victimelor fiind cel puţin dublu. Este un fenomen grav care se regăseşte în fiecare ţară membră a Uniunii Europene. Abuzul fizic, sexual, emoţional sau financiar, hărţuirea, mutilarea, căsătoriile forţate şi crimele de onoare, sunt încălcări grave şi sistematice ale demnităţii umane, care se manifestă din păcate pe toate continentele.

Uniunea Europeană şi statele membre sunt datoare să semneze Convenţia Consiliului Europei privind prevenirea şi combaterea violenţei împotriva femeilor şi a violenţei domestice, pentru că este tratatul internaţional care recunoaşte actele de violenţă drept formă de discriminare şi introduce în legislaţie ca infracţiuni fapte neincriminate până în prezent. Sunt necesare, totodată, coordonarea şi monitorizarea strategiilor şi programelor existente, precum şi, în mod concret, înfiinţarea de noi adăposturi şi centre de asistenţă pentru victime. Acest tip de violenţă lasă în urmă invaliditate, mutilare, tulburări emoţionale, scăderea performanţelor profesionale, izolare socială şi decese. Pentru a salva demnitatea umană a acestor milioane de victime, trebuie să depunem toate eforturile posibile.

  Antonyia Parvanova, on behalf of the ALDE Group. – Madam President, today's debate is of great importance in addressing not only the rights of half of the EU’s citizens, but also regarding the values and principles on which the Union is based. The estimated annual cost of violence against women is EUR 34 billion, while domestic violence alone costs EU Member States EUR 16 billion each year according to Council of Europe data – figures that are hard to ignore in the context of a severe economic and financial crisis. This issue has been discussed for years, and despite major advances in drafting international standards and norms to address the phenomenon of violence against women, progress on the implementation side has been clearly insufficient.

Leadership is needed now more than ever, leadership at all levels – local, national and international – and by all sectors, including decision-makers, business leaders, civil society organisations and community leaders. We believe, Madam Commissioner, that you will be as committed on the issue of violence against women as you are on the quota issue. Thank you very much, by the way, on that one.

We know that the EU and its Member States have an important role to play, and we should be at the forefront of international efforts to combat violence against women, as we were with global efforts to stop climate change and strive for a more sustainable future. Is the wellbeing of women a less important cause? In order to achieve this, we also need to step up our domestic effort to eliminate violence against women. It is vital that the European Commission comes up with an EU strategy on violence against women, that all Member States sign and ratify the Council of Europe Convention, and that addressing gender-based violence becomes a conditionality criterion for access to humanitarian and development aid. Such efforts would certainly increase our credibility on the international scene.

Millions of women and girls are assaulted, beaten, raped, mutilated, murdered, and trafficked on an everyday basis. I am sure that this Chamber shares my belief that, in the 21st century, we cannot remain tolerant to such a massive abuse of human rights. We should be ambitious and press the 57th session of the UN Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) to adopt a set of forward-looking conclusions that will ensure the economic, social and political empowerment of women and the protection of their human rights. Madam Commissioner, we believe that there is a crucial and leading role for EU institutions. We will be a driving force for the conclusion of the UN CSW.

  Ulrike Lunacek, on behalf of the Verts/ALE Group. – Madam President, it is true – as so many have already said – that there are hundreds of millions of women on this planet who suffer daily from violence against women and girls, be it in very mild forms, such as stupid sexist jokes or harassment, or in really brutal forms, like the gang rape that we have seen recently in India. For all those who still think that violence against women and girls is somehow a lesser evil, I would like to repeat what my colleague Ms Parvanova already said. A recent study financed by the Daphne programme has shown that domestic violence alone in the EU Member States costs around EUR 16 billion every year. It is, therefore, high time to stop violence against women all over this planet.

I would like to congratulate you, Ms Reding, on the directives that you have mentioned. I think there has been good progress. There is still one thing I would like to remind you of and help you to go ahead with it in the Commission. Last year, this Parliament asked you to launch a directive against gender-based violence, one that would enhance the struggle that we already have. I would ask you to go ahead with that in the future.

I also support the call from all those who have said that Member States of the European Union have to sign and ratify the Council of Europe Convention on Preventing and Combating Violence against Women. Only ten have signed up so far, and hardly any have ratified. This needs to change. I would also like to thank the Chair of the Committee on Women’s Rights and Gender Equality, Mr Gustafsson. I think that he is a good example of how men join in the struggle opposing violence against women.

I would like to invite every woman and man in this Chamber, and those who watch us and listen to us, to join, on 14 February, Eve Ensler’s ‘One Billion Rising’ initiative. On this day, all over this planet, one billion women and men will rise up, stand up, dance and shout out loud: ‘We can stop violence against women’. It is possible for women to live without fear and freely.

  Marina Yannakoudakis, on behalf of the ECR Group. – Madam President, this resolution should have no political colouring: violence against women is unacceptable whichever side of the Chamber you sit on. There is no justification for violence by one person against another person, especially when violence is based on fear, vulnerability and control.

Where we differ is the route taken to stop violence. I believe governments have a duty to protect their citizens, work with any legal tools available to eliminate violence against women, prevent violence, and offer provision for care and prosecution where necessary. Member States, within the boundaries of their own legal system, must do everything they can to bring abusers to justice. But the real work must be bottom-up. We must educate children that violence is unacceptable. We must raise awareness amongst women that domestic violence is unacceptable, and we must empower women to understand that they do not have to put up with any sort of violence.

We must strengthen institutes, associations and groups who support victims of violence – and here I give credit to the work done by the Daphne project. We need more training for professionals, including doctors, nurses and health visitors, on how to identify and deal with violence against women. We have to educate communities that violence such as FGM is not part of their cultural heritage but a form of direct violence on young girls and women. Rape, domestic violence, FGM, psychological abuse and war crimes against women are all forms of violence which destroy lives well after the physical scars have healed.

Only by strengthening people’s resolve against all forms of violence, by highlighting it as unacceptable in a civilised society, and by supporting that resolve by Member-State-driven legislation, can we hope to win this battle.

  Kartika Tamara Liotard, namens de GUE/NGL-Fractie. – Eén op drie vrouwen ter wereld krijgt tijdens haar leven te maken met mishandeling of met verkrachting. Dat zijn in het totaal meer dan 1 miljard vrouwen en dat geeft direct de omvang van het probleem aan.

Het Europees Parlement heeft vorige week steun betuigd aan de slachtoffers door met een grote groep leden te dansen voor de One Billion Rising Campaign. Op 14 februari zullen naar schatting 1 miljard mensen dansen tegen geweld tegen vrouwen. Maar ik vraag ook de Commissie om iets te doen, met name een Europese strategie ter voorkoming van geweld tegen vrouwen mét - en dat is heel belangrijk - een specifiek bijbehorend budget, het promoten van het verdrag ter uitbanning van geweld tegen vrouwen en een duidelijke stellingname tegen geweld tegen vrouwen op de VN-top over de status van de vrouw.

Graag actie van de Commissie hiervoor!

  Krisztina Morvai (NI). - Madam President, as a human rights and women’s rights lawyer, I am always happy when there is yet another document produced by the European Union about protecting the human rights of its citizens in general, and battered women’s rights in particular, but I would be even happier to see these documents and this commitment actually working.

Let me give you a test case, and let us see together whether these things work in practice. There is a Hungarian women called Patricia. She marries a French citizen. Unfortunately, as is too often the case, regular domestic violence starts when the woman is pregnant with their child. As an integral part of the usual process of domestic violence, the man takes the family to a French Polynesian island called Bora Bora with a promise that they will have a last try at keeping their marriage and their family together.

The battering continues and it turns out that the man just wanted to falsely establish the jurisdiction of French Polynesia over them – a territory with which they have absolutely no legal or other ties. Guess what happens. Neither the French Government nor the European Union or anybody else helps this women, who is now being kept hostage in French Polynesia along with her four-year-old child. The Bora Bora local court has actually decided by an injunction, a temporary order, that the child has to spend one week with the father and one week with the mother and bans the child from leaving the territory of Polynesia. This obviously means that the woman is also taken hostage along with the child.

So what can the European Union do in this actual situation of an actual battered woman and her child? With all these documents and all this commitment, what can the EU do and what can it promise this woman and her child?

  Elisabeth Morin-Chartier (PPE). - Madame la Présidente, Madame la Vice-présidente de la Commission, Mme Reding, je connais votre engagement et votre volonté de faire reculer tous les problèmes de violence. Au sein de la commission des femmes, autour de notre président Gustafsson, nous sommes extrêmement déterminés, tous groupes politiques confondus.

Il y a unanimité sur le sujet, mais nous voyons bien qu'il est extrêmement complexe, parce qu'il faut éradiquer le problème au niveau national, parce qu'il faut montrer la voie au niveau européen, et parce que nous devons mobiliser au niveau international. Tous ces niveaux exigent que nous soyons d'une détermination absolument sans faille.

Nous voyons bien qu'ici, à l'intérieur du Parlement, nous sommes tous déterminés, mais le problème se pose dès que nous sortons à l'extérieur. Il nous faut lancer ce mouvement de telle sorte que tout le monde sache reconnaître les victimes, qu'elles puissent parler, qu'elles puissent être protégées. Puis, il faut éduquer les jeunes à reconnaître qu'on est soit victime ou qu'on peut être même un petit bourreau.

Je crois donc que nous devrons faire extrêmement attention – Marina Yannakoudakis l'a dit tout à l'heure – à ce que l'éducation montre aux jeunes les bornes qui ne doivent pas être franchies, que ce soit les filles, dont il faut libérer la parole, mais que ce soit, aussi, les garçons, qui doivent comprendre et savoir que la violence est un véritable délit.

Je voudrais dire aussi que nous avons beaucoup à faire à l'intérieur des grandes entreprises, de telle sorte que les violences faites aux femmes puissent être repérées – que ces violences soient silencieuses ou qu'elles soient physiques – et que nous puissions mobiliser les chefs d'entreprise ainsi que le personnel de ces entreprises, pour être, tous ensemble, extrêmement vigilants face à ce problème qui ne peut plus durer.

  Marc Tarabella (S&D). - Madame la Présidente, Madame la Commissaire, la violence envers les femmes reste un des grands fléaux de notre époque, une atteinte particulièrement dure en matière de droits humains.

C'est un peu dommage de devoir s'attarder sur les chiffres qui ont été rappelés, mais il faut les citer, car ils traduisent une réalité humaine désastreuse. L'impact de 16 milliards d'euros avancé par Mmes Parvanova et Lunacek fait aussi réfléchir...

Au Guatemala, on assassine en moyenne deux femmes par jour. Dans le monde, jusqu'à 50 % des agressions sexuelles sont commises à l'encontre de jeunes filles de moins de 16 ans. Environ 100 à 140 millions de femmes sur la planète ont subi des mutilations génitales et l'on considère que plus de 3 millions de filles par an, notamment en Afrique, courent le risque de subir les mêmes pratiques.

Là aussi, Madame la Commissaire, comme l'a fait Mme Gabriel, je tiens à vous féliciter pour l'organisation de cette table ronde consacrée aux mutilations génitales. Ici, Mme Morin-Chartier vient de le dire, on mobilise. C'est en dehors qu'il faut aussi agir, sur l'éducation, et bien rappeler que la démocratie et la liberté individuelle ont quand même une limite, qui est la liberté des autres et, dans ce cas-ci, la liberté de la femme à disposer de son corps.

  Ana Miranda (Verts/ALE). - Senhora Comissária, Senhor Gustafsson, você é um exemplo de iniciativas contra a violência de género. Estou totalmente de acordo que a violência contra as mulheres e raparigas é talvez a mais vergonhosa violação dos direitos humanos e que devemos agir na Europa e no Mundo. Um fenómeno mundial, desde a Índia à África, desde a Europa à Guatemala, como dizia o Senhor Tarabella. Um fenómeno generalizado em todo o mundo e em todas as sociedades de classes sociais. Um fenómeno triste e inaceitável. As mulheres – temos direito a uma vida sem violência. Têm que existir recursos públicos para as vítimas de maus tratos e, sobretudo, têm que existir políticas públicas para sensibilizar e consciencializar a sociedade e que a crise não seja uma desculpa para reduzir fundos de ajuda às vítimas dos maus tratos e deixar de lutar pela igualdade e contra a desigualdade.

Por isso, Senhora Comissária, bem-vinda a proposta de uma nova diretiva contra a violência de género.

  Nick Griffin (NI). - Madam President, when we discuss violence against women, there is a desperate attempt to avoid mentioning the giant green elephant in our midst: Islam. Islam’s inherent devaluing of women and hostility to unbelievers combine to make it the greatest threat to millions of women and girls in many parts of the EU. In Britain, the crime of on-street grooming for sex, drugs and prostitution is directed against thousands of girls as young as 10. Many of the victims are beaten, threatened and gang-raped. While the majority community produces many perpetrators of internet paedophilia and one-on-one sex crimes, paedophile gang rape is a crime in which the perpetrators are overwhelmingly Muslim, while their innocent victims are invariably from other communities.

In my constituency, 14-year-old Charlene Downes was groomed, raped and murdered. Her body has never been found. The case against two Muslim men collapsed on a technicality; however, while the police say that they are not looking for anyone else, they continue to ignore evidence of jury rigging and refuse to seek a retrial. Charlene’s mother and grandmother are bravely and actively campaigning for justice. Shockingly, this has resulted in both of them being repeatedly threatened with arrest for involvement in entirely peaceful protests. The problem of officialdom turning a blind eye to the inconvenient truth about Islam and sexual violence is thus endemic. I urge those here who are concerned about this issue to face the politically-incorrect truth, because denial will not make the problem go away. Justice for Charlene Downs!

(The speaker agreed to take two blue-card questions under Rule 149(8))

  Marc Tarabella (S&D), question "carton bleu". – J'ai d'emblée un regret, Madame la Présidente, c'est de donner de la publicité à des imbécillités comme celles que je viens d'entendre. Il y en a assez des collègues qui viennent parler de cas particuliers qu'ils ont lu dans le Sun ou dans d'autres journaux à scandale!

On ne peut pas accuser l'islam d'être responsable de la violence à l'égard des femmes. C'est toujours l'apanage de, peut-être, certaines déviances, mais qui n'ont pas de connotation religieuse ou culturelle. Cela se passe partout dans le monde. Cela se passe aussi en Europe. Alors, arrêtez de raconter n'importe quoi!

Je terminerai comme j'ai commencé: je regrette d'avoir dû intervenir pour signaler des imbécillités comme celles que je viens d'entendre et de leur faire en même temps de la publicité.

  Francesca Barracciu (S&D), Domanda "cartellino blu". – Signor Presidente, onorevoli colleghi, la violenza contro le donne purtroppo è un fenomeno in forte crescita. Come emerge dalle ricerche e dalle rilevazioni sociali che sono state fatte in tutti i paesi, i carnefici purtroppo non possono essere individuati per essere portatori o credenti in una religione piuttosto che in un'altra, non possono essere individuati per avere o non avere un livello culturale alto piuttosto che basso, non possono essere individuati per la loro appartenenza a una classe sociale. Purtroppo – e le cose che ho sentito poc'anzi sono veramente vergognose – si sa che la violenza che viene perpetrata nei confronti delle donne non conosce queste differenze, per cui additare una religione piuttosto che un'altra come portatrice di un atteggiamento violento e scorretto nei confronti delle donne è un modo sbagliato di procedere per affrontare il tema e io spero che questo Parlamento, così come èvidentemente è già chiaro, non segua assolutamente…

(Il Presidente interrompe l'oratore)

  Nick Griffin (NI), blue-card answer. – Madam President, while the people on that side of the House are denying the facts, thousands more young girls will suffer as a direct consequence of your denial. Of course Islam is directly involved. When you have a religion which says that a woman’s rights in court are half those of a man, when you have a religion which says that a woman who is raped can be stoned to death for adultery unless she can produce four male witnesses to prove she is innocent, then of course that creates a mentality within that community which is fundamentally anti-women.

It started with Muhammad, who raped a captive – a Jewish captive – whose husband he just had murdered. He started that, and he is regarded by Muslims as the perfect man. His example colours what Muslims do. Many Muslims do not, but within their community this is real problem. You need to recognise that fact and address it, not run away from it.

  Anna Maria Corazza Bildt (PPE). - Madam President, I would like to start by supporting what my colleague just said, that violence against women and girls is not a matter of religion. It is very important that we recognise that in this House.

While culture and tradition should never be used to justify violence against women, one cannot say that it has anything to do with any religion. Our hearts have been beating strongly in solidarity for the women raped in India, and we support the uprise of civil society there. At the same time, from Afghanistan to Europe – in every corner of the world – this widespread violence against women is one of the biggest and most serious violations of human rights. In our neighbourhoods too, our white, Christian neighbourhoods, violence against women and girls is not a private issue, although every individual woman and girl deserves respect and care for their personal trauma. It is important to break the silence, break the loneliness and break the vicious circle of guilt and fear of too many women who live in fear and too many children that witness violence.

Therefore, I call on you, Mrs Reding, to move forward in the strategy to combat violence against women called for in the Stockholm Programme a long time ago. I also think that the upcoming meeting of the UN Commission on the Status of Women is an opportunity that the EU should not miss to make a very concrete contribution. It should do this by action to implement international humanitarian law for women who are raped in conflict and in refugee camps, to take legislation into countries where domestic workers are not covered by the law, to give access to appropriate healthcare and psychological support, and to create more shelters to ensure the protection of victims.

In the EU we have adopted a number of steps forward, but they are not yet being implemented: the European Protection Order, and the legislation on the protection of victims and the criminalisation of trafficking. We call on Member States to implement these. The time for action has come, and I hope this Parliament will continue to be committed and stand up for zero tolerance to impunity.

(The speaker agreed to take a blue-card question under Rule 149(8).

  Nick Griffin (NI), blue-card question. – You say your heart beats strongly for women raped in India – mine does, too – but does your heart not also beat for the thousands of young girls gang-raped in Britain over the last few years, or are you simply left in ignorance because the facts are concealed by the controlled liberal media?

  Anna Maria Corazza Bildt (PPE), blue-card answer. – Thank you for your question. As I said, it is a phenomenon that is global, it is European and it is in every single neighbourhood. In Britain you do not have only Muslim people – it is a multicultural society – and I am sure that you will be able to provide us with figures that crimes against girls and women are not committed only by Muslim people. I hope you will do it in this House.

  Mojca Kleva Kekuš (S&D). - Najprej hvala gospe komisarki za odlično predstavitev vsega, kar je EU že naredila.

Nasilje nad ženskami dejansko spada pod vprašanje temeljnih človekovih pravic, ki ga še vedno nismo uspeli izkoreniniti. Pri tem je fizično in spolno nasilje, ki ga doživlja več kot 70 % žensk, samo vrh ledene gore. Pod njo se skrivajo ekonomska diskriminacija, seksizem, prisilna prostitucija in ponekod prisilne poroke.

Zavedati se moramo, da nasilje nad ženskami oblikuje vlogo ženske v družbi in vpliva na njen dostop do zaposlovanja, do izobrazbe, do vključevanja v družbene in kulturne dejavnosti, na ekonomsko neodvisnost in na sodelovanje v javnem in zasebnem življenju.

Dokler so ženske še vedno najbolj ogrožene tam, kjer naj bi bile najbolj varne – to je med svojimi dragimi, na svojih domovih – ne moremo govoriti niti o enakih možnostih niti o napredni družbi.

Kot je Ulrike že povedala, bi tudi sama želela 14. februarja vse povabiti na V-Day, na dan, ki bo združil eno milijardo ljudi po celem svetu, da s plesom opozarja na boj proti nasilju.

  Erminia Mazzoni (PPE). - Signora Presidente, onorevoli colleghi, il tema della violenza nei confronti delle donne è un tema molto attuale, purtroppo sempre attuale, che coinvolge e vede partecipi tutti. Mi dispiace solo di aver colto delle forme di divisione tra i colleghi. Io credo che non ci siano violenze di serie A e violenze di serie B, violenze buone e violenze cattive. A prescindere dalla causa, è il fenomeno che noi dovremmo combattere e dobbiamo combattere tutti uniti con grande convinzione e determinazione.

La violenza contro le donne è riconosciuta come violazione dei diritti fondamentali dalla CEDU e dalla Carta dei diritti fondamentali dell'Unione, è oggetto della Convenzione che è stata sottoscritta nel 2011 contro le violenze domestiche e le violenze contro le donne ed è chiaramente un punto fondamentale preso in considerazione all'interno della direttiva sull'ordine di cattura europeo. Eppure, come abbiamo sentito dagli interventi dei colleghi, i dati rivelano ancora un quadro estremamente negativo in Europa e altrove.

Signora Commissario Reding, io La ringrazio per quello che fa e per l'appello che ha fatto nel Suo intervento a tutti gli Stati membri perché facciano la loro parte. Noi, da questa sede, dobbiamo fare la nostra parte per stimolare la partecipazione convinta degli Stati membri. Io credo nell'importanza di questa risoluzione perché coglie nel segno il tema della necessità di una cooperazione più vasta. Affinché i nostri strumenti abbiano una maggiore efficacia, c'è la necessità di essere più incisivi, più determinanti e più decisivi in sede internazionale.

Aggiungo che questo fenomeno purtroppo non si risolve solo con gli strumenti punitivi e con le enunciazioni di principi. È un fenomeno che va aggredito alla radice, sradicando le stratificazioni di incultura, che possono avere causa anche nelle appartenenze religiose ma non solo, e abbattendo le barriere sociali.

Ci vogliono progetti concreti, ci vogliono risorse, ci vuole una strategia dell'Unione europea che metta in campo azioni concrete per superare le differenze sui luoghi di lavoro, per emancipare dalla povertà, per garantire veramente la promozione delle pari opportunità. Io credo che il Suo lavoro, Commissario Reding, sia sulla strada giusta e sarò al Suo fianco per sostenere la realizzazione di questi progetti. Ma più risorse e più fatti concreti sono la mia richiesta.

  Antigoni Papadopoulou (S&D). - Madam President, violence against women and girls is certainly a scourge afflicting all societies. As Members of Parliament we are committed to prevention, protection, provision of infrastructure, action-planning and monitoring of this situation. We support the UN structures fighting to put to an end to all types of gender-based violence and inequalities, discrimination, genital mutilation and honour crimes.

We call on the EU, the UN and the Council of Europe to work hand-in-hand to maximise their impact, to break the silence around the world, and to develop efficient international norms, policies and a global implementation plan, in close cooperation with NGOs and civil society, to end violence. We call on you, Ms Reding, to put pressure on the Commission to propose a comprehensive EU strategy on violence against women, including a directive with minimum standards. We call on the EU and all Member States to sign and ratify the Council of Europe Convention and to increase resource allocation and support to NGOs and women’s organisations. On 14 February let us stand up, rise and dance against violence.

ΠΡΟΕΔΡΙΑ: ΓΕΩΡΓΙΟΣ ΠΑΠΑΣΤΑΜΚΟΣ
Αντιπρόεδρος

  Elena Băsescu (PPE). - Stimată doamnă comisar Reding, sunteţi o persoană care a reacţionat întotdeauna ferm atunci când a venit vorba de orice tip de discriminare. De aceea, doresc să vă aduc la cunoştinţă iniţiativa pe care a avut-o zilele acestea un lider local din coaliţia social liberală aflată la guvernare în România. Consilierul local Rareş Buglea a cerut ca femeile sărace de etnie romă care nu au condiţii să-şi crească copiii să fie, nici mai mult, nici mai puţin, decât sterilizate. Sunt consternată mai ales de faptul că el se întreba retoric: „de ce să o lăsăm să-l mai nască şi pe al doilea, de ce să o lăsăm să-l mai nască şi pe al cincilea?”. Deci, avem de a face cu discriminare de gen, etnică şi de statut social. Mai mult, este o încălcare flagrantă a drepturilor fundamentale ale omului, respectiv dreptul la viaţă.

Surprinzător este faptul că acest domn care instigă la ură rasială a colaborat cu o fundaţie care desfăşoară proiecte finanţate din fonduri europene pentru protecţia romilor. Ar fi trebuit să cunoască faptul că există o strategie europeană de incluziune a romilor, iar, ca ţară membră a Uniunii Europene, nu putem folosi practici care ne trimit cu gândul la holocaust, atunci când peste 400 000 de evrei şi de romi au fost sterilizaţi.

Pe de altă parte, la fel de condamnabilă ca discriminarea este şi violenţa propriu-zisă împotriva femeilor. Infracţiunile de violenţă nu sunt de cele mai multe ori raportate, iar, în cazul în care ele sunt raportate, autorităţile nu le tratează cu prioritatea cuvenită. Voi exemplifica cu o tragedie petrecută în Bucureşti anul trecut, când un poliţist şi-a ucis soţia şi pe colega ei de serviciu în urma unui atac armat. Au existat 14 sesizări de comportament agresiv depuse la poliţie împotriva bărbatului, însă autorităţile au preferat să le ignore.

  Joanna Senyszyn (S&D). - Panie Przewodniczący! Przemoc wobec kobiet jest główną przeszkodą w zapewnieniu prawdziwej demokracji, równości płci, a także najbardziej powszechnym naruszeniem praw człowieka. W niektórych państwach 7 na 10 kobiet pada ofiarą przemocy. To wynik patriarchatu, który jest niestety utrwalany przez wiele religii. W Polsce pod wpływem Kościoła katolickiego kobiety są poddawane przemocy instytucjonalnej w postaci restrykcyjnej ustawy antyaborcyjnej. Kościół sprzeciwiał się także podpisaniu przez rząd konwencji Rady Europy przeciw przemocy wobec kobiet. Nie możemy nie zauważać, że wiele religii ma negatywny wpływ właśnie na kwestię zwalczania przemocy wobec kobiet.

Apeluję o unijną dyrektywę przeciwko przemocy! Tylko wtedy Unia i państwa członkowskie będą skutecznymi i wiarygodnymi partnerami w walce z przemocą wobec kobiet. Apeluję także o podpisanie i ratyfikowanie przez Unię i wszystkie państwa członkowskie konwencji Rady Europy w sprawie zapobiegania i zwalczania przemocy wobec kobiet i przemocy domowej. Istotne jest także wsparcie dla obrońców praw kobiet, praw człowieka i praw osób LGBT.

  Sirpa Pietikäinen (PPE). - Mr President, violence against women is a crime. It is against human rights, because women’s rights are human rights. It is against all the core European values, and it is against the free movement of people.

There are many kinds of violence: physical violence, social violence, sociological violence and psychological violence. There is also structural violence that actually prevents people from being free. As we know, women make up more or less half of the population. If the European Union and the Member States do not take active and severe action to combat violence against women, nothing can be said to be being done on human rights and European values.

This is why I urge the Member States, the Commission, Parliament and all of us to work together to find a legal basis in the European Union, to draft legislation to combat violence against women in all its forms, to start an active global programme in all sectors of international cooperation in order to put halting violence against women right at the forefront of the EU’s activities. The time is ripe for action. Women and men, future generations, the girls and boys to come, deserve it.

  Zita Gurmai (S&D). - Mr President, on the eve of the 57th Session of the United Nations Commission on the Status of Women, the violence that women keep enduring in multiple physical or less visible forms remains at an alarmingly high level. This is both within and outside the EU, despite numerous international and European commitments. I would therefore urge the EU to have a strong common position during this session of the CSW in order to achieve, this time, tangible conclusions and results. Violence against women stems from many different factors and we need a comprehensive action plan with sufficient funding. This also means keeping a high level of funding for already existing programmes such as Daphne.

I would call once more on the Member States to sign and ratify the Council of Europe Convention on Preventing and Combating Violence against Women but, as Vice-President Reding stated herself, what we need above all is a strong political vehicle to ensure that legislation and declarations are followed by concrete actions. This, sadly, is not yet the case today, and I would like to underline that this political will also needs to come from her and the Commission.

(The speaker agreed to take a blue-card question under Rule 149(8))

  Krisztina Morvai (NI), blue-card question. – I am very happy that you agree it is important to combat violence against women. Do you also agree that this issue is above party politics? Would you be willing – as a fellow Hungarian female MEP – to initiate a common fight, involving all female MEPs across party lines from Hungary and everywhere else, for the freedom of Patricia Nyiri-Kovács, the battered mother whom I mentioned?

  Zita Gurmai (S&D), blue-card answer. – I believe that violence against women is a cross-party issue. I can state, as President of the European Socialist Party’s Women’s Organisation, that we have started several campaigns, including ‘My Body, My Rights’, which talks very clearly about this very serious problem that affects women young and old, not just in Europe but also on other continents. The question which you have asked concerns a very important topic, so let us sit down together and discuss it.

  Lena Kolarska-Bobińska (PPE). - Pani Komisarz! Bardzo doceniamy Pani pracę nad problematyką kobiet w ogóle. Nie chodzi tylko o walkę z dyskryminacją, z gwałtami, ale również o Pani działania – powiedziałabym – pozytywne na rzecz promocji kobiet. Ale w tej chwili dyskutujemy o przemocy i chcę powiedzieć, że ten parlament wiele razy podnosił tę kwestię. Mówiliśmy o używaniu gwałtu jako formy ubezwłasnowolnienia całych grup w czasie wojen. Mówiliśmy o gwałtach ostatnio przy okazji tego, co się wydarzyło w Indiach. Jest jednak tak, że uchwalamy pewne rzeczy, debatujemy nad rezolucjami, a potem następnego dnia mają miejsce jeszcze bardziej okrutne i dramatyczne gwałty, przypadki morderstw i przemocy wobec kobiet.

Dlatego chciałabym prosić o dwie rzeczy. Po pierwsze, o dużo większe uwzględnienie tej problematyki w polityce zewnętrznej, ustalenie z Catherine Ashton, żeby w kwestii praw człowieka wspieranie walki z przestępczością wobec kobiet było szczególnie uwzględnione. Karanie to jedno. Druga rzecz – o której my tu mówimy – to prewencja. Wydaje mi się, że w naszej polityce zewnętrznej, różnego rodzaju funduszach i projektach, które akceptujemy, ta problematyka współdziałania z organizacjami walczącymi o prawa kobiet powinna być bardziej uwzględniona. Po drugie, chciałabym prosić o propagowanie ścigania gwałtów z urzędu. Nie wierzę, że mogą być dyrektywy unijne dotyczące zwalczania gwałtów – jak proponowała pani Senyszyn – ale może być właśnie propagowanie ścigania gwałtów z urzędu w różnych krajach.

Διαδικασία "Catch-the-Eye"

  Roberta Angelilli (PPE). - Signor Presidente, onorevoli colleghi, come ha detto la Vicepresidente Reding in questa legislatura Parlamento e Commissione hanno raggiunto obiettivi concreti: la direttiva sulle vittime di reato, l'ordine di protezione europeo, la direttiva sulla tratta e la direttiva, di cui sono stata relatrice, sulla lotta allo sfruttamento sessuale dei minori e alla pedopornografia online.

Ma i dati purtroppo non sono positivi e ci dicono che troppe sono le donne vittime di violenza, troppe sono le donne che vengono addirittura uccise spesso dai loro mariti, dai fidanzati o dai loro ex. Una donna su cinque, in Europa, è vittima di violenza almeno una volta nella vita. Quindi dobbiamo puntare molto sull'informazione, sulla prevenzione, su una vera e propria strategia europea. Un altro passaggio obbligato è la firma e la ratifica della Convenzione del Consiglio d'Europa contro la violenza domestica da parte di tutti gli Stati membri. Dunque molti sono gli strumenti legislativi, ma le risorse purtroppo sono ancora scarse.

  Συλβάνα Ράπτη (S&D). - Κυρία Επίτροπε Reding, είναι γνωστοί οι αγώνες σας υπέρ των γυναικών και σας ευχαριστώ γι’ αυτό. Γι’ αυτό ακριβώς λαμβάνω τον λόγο και θέλω να ενημερώσω και εσάς κυρία Επίτροπε και το Ευρωπαϊκό Κοινοβούλιο για το γεγονός ότι σε χώρα μέλος της Ευρωπαϊκής Ένωσης, στην Ελλάδα, υπάρχουν γυναίκες δικηγόροι, και ειδικότερα γυναίκα δικηγόρος και βουλευτής του Ελληνικού Κοινοβουλίου που υπερασπίζεται στο δικαστήριο βιαστές γυναικών. Η συγκεκριμένη κυρία μάλιστα είναι προοδευτικών αριστερών αντιλήψεων.

Και ερωτώ κυρία Επίτροπε: πώς το σχολιάζετε; Τι θα κάνουμε για να προστατεύσουμε τις γυναίκες και από τέτοιου είδους συμπεριφορές που θα πρέπει να εκλείψουν;

  Inês Cristina Zuber (GUE/NGL). - Não podemos isolar o problema da violência contra as mulheres e raparigas do conjunto das políticas transversais que são aplicadas pela União Europeia, aqui mesmo nos 27 Estados-Membros.

Erradicar todas as formas de violência contra as mulheres implica combater o empobrecimento, o desemprego, o aumento de fenómenos de marginalidade e de dependência que arrastam consigo o aumento das causas, como a prostituição, que vitima hoje cada vez mais mulheres. Combater a violência implica combater a violência doméstica e, para tal, é necessário o reforço das políticas sociais, ou seja, o investimento público que é bloqueado pelas políticas fiscais da União Europeia.

Erradicar a violência contra as mulheres implica erradicar, no trabalho, a imposição de extenuantes ritmos de trabalho, os salários baixos que mantêm as mulheres em ciclos de pobreza e as impossibilitam de realizar a sua independência económica, implica terminar com as desigualdades salariais.

Ora, as medidas de flexibilização laboral que tanto animam o conceito de competitividade das instituições europeias só contribuem para impossibilitar que as mulheres consigam romper com os ciclos de violência a que estão sujeitas. Não vale a pena pregar igualdade e aplicar, na prática, a desigualdade, que é hoje crescente e tem responsáveis políticos.

  Iosif Matula (PPE). - După cum o recunosc înalţi oficiali ai UE, violenţa împotriva femeilor reprezintă cea mai răspândită formă de încălcare a drepturilor omului în societatea actuală, indiferent de zona geografică, de mediul cultural, economic, educaţional sau social.

Pentru a combate această formă de discriminare, Uniunea Europeană mai are încă lucruri de făcut, inclusiv din perspectiva rolului asumat pe plan internaţional, unde violenţa împotriva femeilor atinge cote alarmante. Luând în considerare formele teribile pe care le ia agresiunea, este importantă reunirea tuturor măsurilor în cadrul unei strategii UE de eliminare a formelor de violenţă, document cerut de Parlamentul European încă de acum câţiva ani. Consider că eforturile depuse de UE şi ONU pentru a le oferi siguranţă femeilor trebuie completate printr-o abordare de jos în sus, mai exact prin schimbarea mentalităţii încă de la o vârstă fragedă prin programe educaţionale. Totodată, este important să contribuim la eliminarea stereotipurilor de gen difuzate în mass-media, care prezintă riscul de denaturare a imaginii femeii şi de perpetuare a relelor tratamente.

  Catherine Stihler (S&D). - Mr President, we are debating this issue today on what would have marked Rosa Parks’ 100th birthday, and I am sure she would have agreed that a zero-tolerance approach to violence against women and girls – wherever it occurs – has to be our goal. The Commissioner outlined the shocking statistics that one in five women in the EU had suffered violence, and that one in ten had suffered forced sexual violence. This cannot be tolerated. We have to do more.

I was also pleased to hear from the Commissioner this evening that our approach to condemning violence against women and girls also applies to her external relations policy. During the last Strasbourg session we debated the tragic case of the young medical student in India who died from her injuries after a horrific gang rape. According to Amnesty International, a rape is reported every 21 minutes in India, but not all rapes are reported. Of those rapes that were reported in 2011, only one led to a conviction. It is therefore right that this Parliament expresses solidarity with the victims of these crimes to ensure that, across the world, violence and sexual assault against women is a crime.

  Francesca Barracciu (S&D). - Signor Presidente, onorevoli colleghi, grazie signora Commissario per le parole che ha pronunciato qui stasera e per il rinnovato impegno nei confronti di questo fenomeno, di questa piaga che è una piaga sociale. È un problema sociale enorme che colpisce tutti gli Stati, come dicevamo prima, è un fenomeno che non conosce differenza di religione, di censo, di livello culturale, un fenomeno che purtroppo attraversa tutti gli strati sociali.

È un problema sociale e, in quanto tale, è la politica che deve farsene carico e la politica delle istituzioni deve pensare a farsi carico di questo problema. L'Europa può fare molto, può fare molto sul versante giuridico, inducendo gli Stati a mettere a punto delle norme sulla certezza della pena che siano sempre più stringenti, perché la certezza della pena è quello strumento attraverso il quale le donne possono piano piano fidarsi di più delle istituzioni, avere meno paura e rompere il silenzio che invece purtroppo ancora copre questo fenomeno che si porta appresso oltre che la paura anche la vergogna.

Sul versante culturale c'è ancora da fare molto. Se anche in questo Parlamento assistiamo ad interventi dove si addita una religione piuttosto che un'altra e la si addita indicandola come la culla della violenza di genere e della violenza sulle donne, è evidente che la strada culturale da fare è elevatissima e l'Unione europea può fare molto. La direttiva…

(Il Presidente interrompe l'oratore)

  Νικόλαος Σαλαβράκος (EFD). - Κύριε Πρόεδρε, από όσα άκουσα, τα επικροτώ όλα. Η βία κατά των γυναικών μέσα στην οικογένεια, στα σχολεία, στους χώρους δουλειάς, έχει λάβει εκρηκτικές διαστάσεις τελευταία και θέλω να θέσω το θέμα ως στοιχείο διατάραξης της ισορροπίας μέσα στην κοινωνία.

Η γυναίκα ως μητέρα έχει προέχοντα ρόλο στη διαπαιδαγώγηση των νέων και στη διαμόρφωση και εξέλιξη της κοινωνίας και των νέων γενεών. Δεν είναι άμοιρο λοιπόν το γεγονός ότι η αύξηση των ψυχικών νόσων συνδέεται με την αγωγή που λαμβάνουμε στη νεαρή ηλικία. Έχει αποδειχθεί ότι όσοι νέοι έχουν ζήσει σε ομαλό οικογενειακό περιβάλλον, χωρίς οικογενειακή βία ιδιαίτερα κατά της μητέρας και των γυναικών, έχουν καλύτερη θέση στην κοινωνία και μεγαλύτερη εξισορρόπηση. Μια οικογένεια ήρεμης συμβίωσης δημιουργεί καλούς πολίτες. Στην Ελλάδα λέμε ότι «την γυναίκα δεν τη χτυπάμε ούτε με λουλούδι».

Εύχομαι, κύριε Πρόεδρε, αυτό να γίνει πράξη. Προσωπικά καταδικάζω τη βία κατά των γυναικών και συνδράμω κάθε προσπάθεια της κ. Επιτρόπου. Είμαι αρωγός στο έργο της για την καταπολέμηση της βίας.

  Teresa Jiménez-Becerril Barrio (PPE). - Señor Presidente, tengo la convicción de que, cuando hablamos de «eliminar la violencia de género», estamos todos en el mismo barco. No hay diferencias políticas ni ideológicas ante esta tragedia europea y mundial que, a pesar de nuestras leyes, parece no tener freno.

Yo solo puedo decir que las dos Directivas presentadas por la Comisaria, para las que he sido ponente, a saber, la Directiva sobre la orden europea de protección de víctimas y la Directiva por la que se establecen normas mínimas sobre los derechos, el apoyo y la protección de las víctimas de delitos, han dado un papel fundamental a las víctimas de la violencia de género, ofreciendo todo el apoyo práctico para que estas mujeres se atrevan a denunciar los delitos y no callen por miedo a ser víctimas de nuevo.

Pero para ello es necesario contar con medios, que todo este esfuerzo legislativo no se quede en papel mojado. Hay que dotar de recursos a los programas que sirven a nivel europeo y mundial, para que las mujeres confíen en quienes tenemos el deber de protegerlas.

También es importante decir que quizá va siendo hora de aumentar las penas y, sobre todo, de que estas penas se cumplan.

  Anna Hedh (S&D). - Herr talman! Det är förfärligt att behöva stå här och be om kvinnors trygghet i Europa 2013. Men det är tyvärr nödvändigt. Frågan måste sättas högt på dagordningen både på EU-nivå och i medlemsstaterna. Därför stöder jag helhjärtat FEMM:s arbete med att prioritera den här frågan, precis som FN också gör under det här året. Trots Redings stöd vill jag se mera ansträngningar från kommissionens sida.

Redan för två år sedan lyfte vi socialdemokrater i Europaparlamentet det här problemet. Då var det sju kvinnor som varje dag misshandlades till döds och siffrorna har inte precis sjunkit. Våldet mot kvinnor måste tas på fullaste allvar och kommissionen måste se till att EU får verktygen att kunna stödja FN:s arbete för att förhindra att våldet fortsätter.

Vi vet också att en av tre kvinnor blir slagen eller våldtagen under sin livstid och det kan inte under några omständigheter som helst accepteras. Därför uppmanar jag nu kommissionen att presentera konkreta åtgärder mot mäns våld mot kvinnor. Tack!

  Edite Estrela (S&D). - A violência contra as mulheres e as meninas é uma questão de direitos humanos e deve ser considerada crime público para que qualquer pessoa possa apresentar queixa e não apenas a vítima. Não podemos ser condescendentes com práticas criminosas que, em nome da tradição, põem em causa a integridade e a saúde física e psicológica das mulheres, como, por exemplo, a mutilação genital feminina, os casamentos forçados e precoces. Precisamos de melhor legislação europeia e precisamos de ser mais exigentes também com os nossos vizinhos e os nossos parceiros. Precisamos de formação de todos os agentes, incluindo os judiciários. Muitas vezes, os tribunais, os juízes não têm sensibilidade para estas situações e tomam decisões incompreensíveis. E quase sempre é a vítima que é obrigada a sair de casa e o agressor fica.

Não é possível que situações destas se repitam. Precisamos de melhor legislação.

  María Irigoyen Pérez (S&D). - Señor Presidente, señora Comisaria, nunca nos cansaremos de repetirlo: hay que frenar la violencia de género. Porque sabemos que la violencia de género es uno de los casos más graves de violación de los derechos humanos: una de cada cuatro mujeres sufre violencia de género.

La crisis ha traído el desempleo, pero también recortes en las áreas esenciales como son las políticas sociales, las ayudas a las casas de mujeres, las ayudas a las asociaciones de mujeres. Sin duda, la euroorden es un paso importante en la buena dirección, pero no es suficiente: hay que prevenir.

Hay que prevenir en las etapas más tempranas, educando desde la igualdad, desmontando estereotipos, acabando con la educación machista, fomentando la formación crítica que rechaza cualquier tipo de discriminación.

En estos tiempos de incertidumbre, de austeridad y de cambio, es necesario poner la violencia de género en el centro de la agenda europea. Es imprescindible reiterar nuestro compromiso para articular una estrategia conjunta a nivel europeo.

  Димитър Стоянов (NI). - Г-н Председател, преди шест години внесох известен смут сред колегите, когато изпратих до тях едно писмо по отношение на ситуацията с циганските момичета в България. И до ден днешен тази ситуация още не се променила. Продължават ежегодно да се организират пазари, на които десетгодишни момичета биват продавани като добитък, за да сключват след това насилствени бракове, след което те биват изнасилвани, биват маргинализирани, прекъсват образованието си и в крайна сметка насилствено биват превръщани или в наркоманки или в просякини, или в проститутки.

Аз категорично не съм съгласен. Това се практикува единствено от циганското население в България. Аз категорично не съм съгласен, че една такава средновековна културна традиция може да бъде практикувана само заради това, че уж е „културна“ традиция, в нарушение на всички наши европейски ценности. Нали, колеги?

  Zbigniew Ziobro (EFD). - Panie Przewodniczący! Brutalne gwałty wobec kobiet zasługują na największe potępienie, ale też na konkretne działania. Niestety nie wystarczy nieuchronność kary i wykrycie sprawcy, nie wystarczy wprowadzenie ścigania z urzędu. Konieczna jest również odpowiednio surowa kara. Pamiętajmy, że dla kobiet, które padły ofiarą gwałtu, tego rodzaju przestępstwo to ogromna trauma, to powód do zawstydzenia, kiedy zgłaszają one zawiadomienie do organów ścigania, kiedy toczy się postępowanie, kiedy muszą to wszystko przypominać sobie, mówić, zeznawać, czasami też i przed mężczyznami, później przed sądem. To jest dla nich kolejny dramat. I ten dramat musi mieć sens. Muszą one widzieć cel: po co to mają robić. Nie dla czystej satysfakcji, ale dla poczucia bezpieczeństwa, dlatego że mają też i poczucie sprawiedliwości, że to zło, które zostało uczynione, będzie miało należytą odpłatę, że ta kara, która zapadnie, będzie je chronić w przyszłości od tego rodzaju przestępstw. Jeśli system nie będzie dawał tej gwarancji, poczucia sensu zaangażowania kobiet w proces dochodzenia prawa, to wtedy kobiety nie będą chętne zgłaszać tych spraw do prokuratury.

(Λήξη της διαδικασίας "Catch-the-Eye")

  Viviane Reding, Vice-President of the Commission. − Mr President, I agree with all the men and women who have stood up in this House to speak out against violence, against the negation of the human rights of women and against the crime most commonly committed against 50% of our population.

Because I agree with all of you, I also agree with all those who are outside this House. That is why on 14 February I will be proud to be one of the billion people around the world who will race on V-Day as part of a global movement to end violence against women in order to say clearly that we no longer accept it and that we would like our legal systems to function as they should. We would like our practitioners to get special training and we would like all our Member States to apply the legislation to help the victims of this commonly perpetrated crime against women.

I would like to tell them that we are not only there to protest or to fight crime with words. We are there to act. We are there to act, for instance, when our Member States do not ratify the Council of Europe’s Convention. This is the first international instrument which is legally binding. Seventeen Member States have signed it, but only one, Portugal, has ratified it.

So I ask all of those here who are not Portuguese to go to their governments, their national parliaments and their media and protest in their Member States, asking why on earth our Member States have not ratified the first international legally binding instrument against violence against women. What are they afraid of? Do our legal systems in our Member States work or not? If they work, then nobody, no Member State, has to be afraid of ratifying the Convention of the Council of Europe.

Yes, we need action. We need action, for instance, so that all the good work which has long been carried out in the Daphne Programme can continue. Are we going to take a stand if some people want to cut funding to initiatives within the Daphne Programme?

I myself have not reduced the money available to the programme and I have added money from the justice budget. We need to take action to train our justice practitioners so that when they are confronted with violence – and they will be confronted, as even if we speak up and even if we pass another resolution, there will be violence – they will to know how to deal with it. We need those who perpetrate this violence to understand that they cannot go unpunished and the victims to know that they will have a helping hand. So, yes, we do need action.

To all those who said that we do not need action only inside the European Union but also outside it: yes, I agree. That this is why my colleagues, Baroness Ashton, Ms Georgieva and Mr Piebalgs, who are responsible for approving the disbursement of funds for projects which help women, have joined forces to speak up. Lady Ashton is doing it regularly in her bilateral meetings, and Ms Georgieva and Mr Piebalgs are helping victims. Mr Piebalgs is building up a society in third countries where women can have their rights. Yes, that is action.

You also asked me about supplementary action. You asked me for a strategy and you asked me for a directive on violence with minimum standards. Did you listen to what Ms Pietikäinen has just said? She underlined that, unfortunately, it is not possible to have a directive on violence with minimum standards because this area does not fall within the EU’s competence.

Look at Article 83 of the Treaty and see what is possible under this Article and then look at what you have on the table, at what has been done so far. You will see that we have the most wide-ranging strategy we have ever had, a strategy of action, a strategy taking action in favour of victims, important laws which have been agreed and which have already been published in the Official Journal, because you have done your work here. You have helped us to get these directives agreed.

We have to make the Member States aware of the fact that they must implement them. That is our common strategy, to ensure that our actions make a difference. To maximise the impact we will keep focusing on concrete action in areas where we do have a clear legal basis, and that will yield tangible results.

Because we do not help those women who are victims if we write yet more pretty words; they need clear action in our Member States and the actions we have prepared for them. The action to protect of victims of gender-based violence, which is included in the directive on victims, and has been quoted in different terms by many around this House saying what we need to do in such and such areas – all this possible action is included in this directive.

So what needs to be done to help the specific cases which have been brought to our attention? All the specific cases are crimes – it is a scandal that they happen. But we need to reach out to the victims in order to help them, because by helping the victims we can show that we do not leave anybody who has been a victim of crime alone, no woman is left helpless. I think that will be the answer given by this Parliament, and we can work together on this both in this House and outside.

Another very important thing which each of you can do in your Member State is to say to your national media that yes, there is a scandal here. But the main scandal is that the laws that we have all been deciding together are improperly implemented and that the legal professions are not properly trained to implement the laws in such a way that there are no more women saying: yes, I was ill-treated; yes, I was raped; yes, I was punished although I did nothing wrong, and nobody helped me. No, we have the laws in order to help them, so help me implement the laws in the Member States.

  Πρόεδρος. - Έχω λάβει μία πρόταση ψηφίσματος1 σύμφωνα με το άρθρο 115, παράγραφος 5, του Κανονισμού.

Η συζήτηση έληξε.

Η ψηφοφορία θα διεξαχθεί την Τετάρτη 6 Φεβρουαρίου 2013, στις 11.30 το πρωί.

Γραπτές δηλώσεις (άρθρο 149)

1 βλ. Συνοπτικά Πρακτικά.

  Edit Bauer (PPE), írásban. – A nők elleni erőszak alatt leggyakrabban a családon belüli erőszakot vagy a nemi erőszakot értik. Sajnos az erőszak sokrétű, és a zaklatásból a kényszerházasságig terjed. A nők elleni erőszak egyik legdrámaibb formája az emberkereskedelem, s ne legyenek illúzióink, Európában a becslések 600 ezerig teszik évente a nőkereskedelem áldozatainak számát. S itt ismét fel kell hívni a figyelmet arra, hogy az áldozatok főként a szexiparban válnak az adás-vétel tárgyává, de nem ritka a kényszermunka, kényszerházasság, kényszerkoldulás vagy akár illegális örökbefogadás céljából való emberkereskedelem. Ami aggasztó, hogy a gyerekek, azon belül főleg a lányok aránya növekvő tendenciát mutat. Ezzel a témával foglalkozva szembeötlő, milyen gyakran válnak az áldozatok újabb viktimizáció tárgyává, milyen gyakran ítéli el őket még az igazságszolgáltatás is, mert könnyebb őket elítélni, mint a valódi elkövetőt megkeresni és bíróság elé állítani. A nők elleni erőszak nemcsak életeket tesz tönkre, de a negatív gazdasági vonzata is óriási.

Üdvözölendő az ENSZ igyekezete, hogy véget vessen a nők elleni erőszaknak, de az is elvárható, hogy a tagállamok ratifikálják az Európa Tanács egyezményét a nők elleni erőszak és a családon belüli erőszak megelőzéséről és leküzdéséről, és hogy a meglevő EU-s jogszabályokat mielőbb transzponálják a belső jogrendbe, hogy az elkövetők ne maradhassanak büntetlenül.

  Lívia Járóka (PPE), in writing. – One in every four adult women in the EU becomes a victim of violence once in her lifetime and 15 % of women are victimised every day, often by those who are closest to them. An appalling half a million women in the EU have been subjected to genital mutilation, 6 000 girls are being tortured everyday in the world. It is also alarming that there are no proper official data about the practice of forced sterilisation, which several Roma women have been subjected to throughout the EU and several experts on human rights allege that this practice is continuing to date. One of the primary prerequisites for stepping up action against all forms of violence against women is to have proper statistical data. Furthermore, effective sanctions need to be introduced against perpetrators, enabling law enforcement officials to mobilise all available instruments for combating violence and, taking into consideration that violence often takes place behind closed doors, the close cooperation of national authorities and institutions with civil society, women’s rights organisations and representatives of affected communities is essential for eradicating all forms of violence against women.

  Elisabeth Köstinger (PPE), schriftlich. – Noch immer ist Gewalt gegen Frauen und Mädchen ein globales Problem. Sie tritt in verschiedenen Arten unabhängig von Einkommen, sozialer Schicht oder Bildungsstand auf und prägt den Alltag vieler Frauen und Mädchen weltweit. Dabei kommt es nicht nur zur physischen, sondern auch zur sexuellen und psychischen Angriffen: Neben sexuellem Missbrauch, Vergewaltigung, häuslicher Gewalt, Gewalt am Arbeitsplatz, Zwangsprostitution, Zwangsehen oder Genitalverstümmelung vermehren sich die Verletzungen gegen das Recht auf Selbstbestimmung, Entscheidungsfreiheit und Bildung der Frauen und Mädchen. Sie erleiden dabei massive seelische und physische Probleme einschließlich Fortpflanzungsschwierigkeiten und Todesfolge. Diese Menschenrechtsverletzungen führen zur Ungleichheit von Männern und Frauen, was nicht nur zu hohen sozialen und wirtschaftlichen Kosten, sondern auch zu massiven Schäden in Familien und Gesellschaften führt. Daher muss diesem Problem auf allen politischen Ebenen entgegengewirkt werden. Aus diesem Grund setze ich mich für verstärkte Maßnahmen und Zusammenarbeit zwischen den verschiedenen Organisationen, Frauenhäusern und Hilfsstrukturen ein. Außerdem sollen Maßnahmen auf internationaler Ebene verstärkt werden und mehr Finanzmittel bereitgestellt werden. Wichtige Positionen nehmen dabei die Vereinten Nationen ein. Bei der 57. Tagung wird es deren primäre Aufgabe sein, das Problem in den Fokus der Politikgestaltung zu rücken und die Öffentlichkeit aufzuklären, damit auch die EU zu weiteren politischen Maßnahmen veranlasst wird.

  Elżbieta Katarzyna Łukacijewska (PPE), na piśmie. – Koleżanki i Koledzy! Debata na temat zwalczania przemocy wobec kobiet i dziewcząt oraz eliminacji wszelkich form tego zjawiska pokazuje skalę problemu naruszania podstawowych praw człowieka. Jak pokazują statystyki we wszystkich kulturach czy społeczeństwach, w mniejszym lub większym stopniu, niezależnie od dochodu, klasy społecznej i kultury, kobiety i młode dziewczynki stają się przedmiotem fizycznej, seksualnej lub psychicznej przemocy.

Rozwijanie interdyscyplinarnego podejścia do rozwiązania problemu, a tym samym wyzwania, jakim jest wyeliminowanie przemocy wobec kobiet w obrębie rodzin, społeczeństw oraz państw, jest konieczne i możliwe do osiągnięcia. Aby zwalczać to niepokojące i coraz bardziej nasilające się zjawisko, należy prowadzić działania na każdym poziomie. Na płaszczyźnie międzynarodowej należy wspierać działania prowadzone przez Organizację Narodów Zjednoczonych czy Pekińską Platformę Działania, natomiast na płaszczyźnie krajowej powinno się propagować takie systemy edukacyjne, które popierać będą wzajemne poszanowanie i współpracę między kobietami i mężczyznami. Tutaj Unia Europejska ma do odegrania bardzo ważną rolę, dlatego uważam, że musimy nagłaśniać skalę tego zjawiska i skutecznie dążyć do jego eliminacji. Dziękuję.

  Anna Záborská (PPE), písomne. – Som rada, že tento Parlament aktívne poukazuje na potrebu hovoriť o násilí páchanom na ženách a dievčatách. Veľmi podporujem boj proti tomuto typu násilia, či už formou sprísnenia trestných zákonov, zlepšenia ochrany obetí alebo prevencie. Súhlasím s predkladateľom, pánom Gustafssonom, aj v tom, že európska diplomacia by mala aj v zahraničí podporovať tých, ktorí obhajujú práva žien. Len celkom nechápem, prečo sa v tomto uznesení požaduje, aby EÚ podporovala aj obhajcov práv lesbičiek, homosexuálov, bisexuálov a transrodových osôb. Hovoríme tu o násilí, ktorého obeťami sú ženy a dievčatá. A ja nerozumiem, ako s tým súvisia práva LGBT alebo takzvané reprodukčné práva. Jediné vysvetlenie je, že ide o ideologickú demagógiu. Takýto úzkoprsý a jednostranný pohľad nám bráni spoznať a riešiť skutočné príčiny problému násilia páchaného na ženách.