Two years after the start of the devastating conflict in Sudan, Amnesty International and 12 civil society organizations call on the EU and other international actors to act meaningfully to protect civilians under attack.
Ahead of the Foreign Affairs Council on 24 February 2025, Amnesty International wrote to High Representative Kaja Kallas and EU Ministers of Foreign Affairs, urging them to act on the escalating human rights crisis in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).
We, the undersigned organisations, welcome the draft resolution entitled “Protecting the human rights and improving the lives of sex workers and victims of sexual exploitation” (Doc. 16044), adopted by the Equality and Non Discrimination Committee of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe on 12 September 2024. On 3 October, the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) will discuss and vote on the report and resolution. We encourage the members of PACE to vote in favour of this resolution, with no amendments to the text.
This submission, prepared for the first thematic evaluation round of the Group of Experts on Action against Violence against Women and Domestic Violence (GREVIO), provides an overview of Amnesty International’s main concerns about the Dutch government’s compliance with its obligations under the Istanbul Convention. Those concerns include the protection of women against psychological violence and the rights of refugees and migrants. This submission is based on topics that Amnesty International has been researching and monitoring. It is not exhaustive and does not cover all topics in the questionnaire for GREVIO’s first thematic evaluation round.
Today, the Council of the EU officially adopted the EU Directive on combating violence against women and domestic violence.1 As 13 civil society organisations2 which advocate for human rights, gender equality, and the right for all to live free from violence, we welcome this first ever binding EU legislation on this issue as a groundbreaking step.
One year on from the start of the conflict in Sudan on 15 April 2023, and as the Foreign Affairs Council meets on Sudan on 22 April 2024, Amnesty International and 10 other NGOs call on the European Union (EU) and its member states to take urgent, strategic and concrete steps to respond to the massive cost on civilians of the dramatic human rights and humanitarian crisis in the country and prevent further violations.
Reacting to announcement of the political agreement reached between the European Parliament and the Council of the EU on the Directive on combating violence against women and domestic violence, Director of Amnesty International’s European Institutions Office, Eve Geddie said:
On 24 January, as final negotiations on the EU Directive on combating violence against women and domestic violence are taking place, Amnesty International and 11 other NGOs called on negotiators to take effective action and ensure that a robust Directive is urgently adopted.
Dear Prime Minister De Croo,
As interinstitutional negotiations on the European Commission’s proposal for a Directive on combating violence against women and domestic violence reach a crucial phase, Amnesty International and 11 other civil society organisations call on the European Commission, the European Parliament and the Council of the EU to find meaningful compromises, to ensure that the Directive truly serves the needs of all survivors/victims of violence against women and girls and domestic violence, advances the achievement of gender equality and the effective protection of victims’ rights in the European Union, and recognizes the essential role of civil society organisations in ensuring prevention, protection, and direct support services for victims.
In an open letter, the organisations united under the European Coalition on Sex Workers’ Rights and Inclusion, of which Amnesty International is a member, call on all Members of the European Parliament to reject and to vote against the report Regulation of prostitution in the EU: its cross-border implications and impact on gender equality and women’s rights, 2022/2139(INI).
Los Estados miembros de la Unión Europea (UE) y de la Comunidad de Estados Latinoamericanos y Caribeños (CELAC) deben abordar con urgencia los graves problemas de derechos humanos que afrontan sus respectivos continentes, ha declarado hoy Amnistía Internacional en una carta abierta a los líderes y lideresas que asistirán a la cumbre de ambos organismos regionales que se celebrará en Bruselas los días 17 y 18 de julio.