Many misconceptions exist on what the Istanbul Convention requires from states and what it means in practice for citizens. Have a look at this short video and find out what the Istanbul Convention really says.

On 11 May 2021, we celebrated the 10th anniversary of the opening for signature of the Council of Europe Convention on Preventing and Combating Violence against Women and Domestic Violence, also known as the Istanbul Convention. It is the most far-reaching international treaty to set out obligations to prevent and combat violence against women. Thirty-five member states of the Council of Europe have ratified it and the– along with the European Union has signed but not yet ratified. It is also used as a roadmap for action by many countries outside Europe.

Azerbaijan is one of the two Council of Europe member states that has not yet signed the Istanbul Convention. Under the project “Raising awareness of the Istanbul Convention and other gender equality standards in Azerbaijan” the European Union and the Council of Europe are supporting the Azerbaijani authorities to bring its national legislation and policies in the field of violence against women and domestic violence further in line with European standards, as well as to implement the existing national policies and action plan on preventing and combating domestic violence. In addition, the project aims to provide guidance to the Azerbaijani authorities on accession to the Istanbul Convention.

This video was produced under the joint project ‘Raising awareness of the Istanbul Convention and other gender equality standards in Azerbaijan’ currently implemented within the second phase of the Partnership for Good Governance (PGGII), a European Union and Council of Europe joint programme in the Eastern Partnership countries:

For further information on the project, please visit the project’s website.

Further information on PGGII is available on the PGGII’s website.