Representatives from the Women 20 engagement group were invited to Rome this week to participate in talks on violence against women.
ADVERTISEMENTThe lack of a standard definition of rape in Europe's first-ever law on violence against women has taken centre stage in talks ahead of the Women 20 delegation traveling to the Group of 20 summit in Brazil later this year.
“The W20 is launching an appeal to reject the EU directive that will be put to a vote in parliament in April," said Linda Laura Sabbadini, who served as the Chair of W20 in 2021. "We want it to be rejected as it doesn’t include rape and sexual harassment in the workplace, so it does not meet the requirements of the Istanbul Convention.”
In Italy, at least 31.5 per cent of women aged 16 to 70 have faced some form of physical or sexual violence. According to the United Nations, 106 women were killed in Italy between January and November 2023.
The Italian Interior Ministry found that partners or ex-partners were responsible for 55 of these cases.
While the EU has not agreed on a definition of femicide, it is generally understood to mean the killing of women or girls based on gender.
The primary objective of W20 is to ensure discussions on gender equity are on the G20's agenda at the annual summit.
The W20 engagement group, made up of volunteer delegates from each of the G20 members, actively participates in talks and recommends policies that foster women's economic empowerment so that they can be implemented at a national level.
Watch Giorgia Orlandi's report in the media player above.