The Council of Europe Group of Experts on Action against Violence against Women and Domestic Violence (GREVIO) has published its baseline evaluation report evaluating Croatia’s efforts in implementing the Council of Europe Convention on Preventing and Combating Violence against Women and Domestic Violence, also known as the Istanbul Convention. GREVIO analysed information obtained from the authorities and various organisations during a five-day evaluation visit to the country in October 2022.
GREVIO’s report praises “many Croatian initiatives, past and present”. These include the National Strategy for Protection against Domestic Violence, the National Plan for the Promotion of Gender Equality and the National Plan for the Suppression of Sexual Violence and Sexual Harassment. For GREVIO, the independent expert group responsible for monitoring, these steps demonstrate the “commitment to incorporate gender equality and the combating of violence against women into the national policy framework.”
GREVIO also welcomes the introduction of a consent-based definition of rape in the Croatian Criminal Code and amendments enacted in 2021 that criminalise image-based abuse and introduced the ex officio prosecution of sexual violence offences, which were previously prosecuted only at the request of the victim.
