That is a heart-wrenching statistic. Specifically, one in four suffer from some form of physical violence while at least 10% are sexually abused. To address the problem, the EU is considering a common European-wide single telephone number for victims.
The European Parliament today decided that the full physical and sexual autonomy of women is a first step for any policies designed to combat violence against women. They are therefore proposing initiatives whereby women would have full control over their sexual and reproductive rights. This translates to easy access to contraception and abortion.
Abortion consultation would be free of charge.
Other issues that impact women in the EU include human trafficking, equal pay, establishing paternity leave entitlements, migrant women and gender balance in high level positions.
Problems persist and a lot the Member States are dragging. For instance, a Convention on Action against Trafficking on Human Beings outlines some tough legislation. But only 16 Member States out of the EU total of 27 have even signed it. Czech Republic, Germany, Estonia, Ireland, Greece, Italy, Lithuania, Hungary, the Netherlands, Finland and Sweden have not signed it.
