Should domestic violence be considered a gender crime?
This question is discussed as part of a podcast review of the progress of the Council of Europe’s 2011 ‘Women’s Safety’ treaty – the Convention on preventing and combating violence against women and domestic violence – which was opened for signature in Istanbul.
Podcast
As England and Wales celebrate their highest ever domestic violence conviction rates , Mark Brooks, chairman of the Mankind Initiative, reveals that men now account for one in three victims of abuse.
He also challenges the “old fashioned and politically correct” view of domestic abuse as a gendered crime, which he says “governs” public policy in the United Kingdom.
Paula McGovern, Policy and Communications Officer at the Dublin-based Sonas Housing Project, takes a different approach and she explains why her organisation only helps women.
The Council of Europe’s Liri Kopaci-Di Michele completes the roster of featured speakers. The head of the equality division looks back on the year since the ‘Istanbul’ convention was launched and talks through the process of bringing its benefits to women in all of the Council of Europe’s 47 member states.
Campaign: Safe from fear, safe from violence
News: The Council of Europe targets domestic violence
