Seven women are beaten to death everyday in Europe, Secretary General Thorbjørn Jagland declared today.
“Many more are hurt, physically and psychologically and marked for life,” he said on the opening day of the organisation’s Parliamentary Assembly.
The Council of Europe’s convention on preventing and combating violence against women and domestic violence is “a historic opportunity” for Europe, he added.
“We now have an international instrument allowing us to make a difference. The Convention will be opened for signature in Istanbul and I expect you to call on your government to be among the first to sign it.”
The Secretary General also announced that proposals to help Council of Europe member states to deal with the “massive arrival” of asylum seekers and migrants will be unveiled next week.
He confirmed that the organisation’s response to events in Egypt and north Africa – “Europe’s immediate neighbourhood” – would be “in strict compliance” with human rights standards
“Our reaction has been immediate, pertinent and aimed at producing concrete results,” the Secretary General declared.
Jagland said the organisation would reveal detailed proposals of a Council Neighbourhood Policy, including countries in the east and central Asia, at a ministerial meeting in Istanbul next month.
This policy aimed to enhance democratic political transition and promote good governance in neighbouring countries.
The Secretary General said he wished to “reinforce Council of Europe regional action in combating trans-border and global threats such as trafficking in human beings, cybercrime, organised crime and terrorism.”
Jagland pointed to the imminent Group of Eminent persons report as a source of “constructive proposals” as Europe debates the merits of multiculturalism.
“European societies are culturally diverse,” he added. “They have always been and it is to this that Europe owes many of its greatest achievements.”
