ABSTRACT
Over the last few decades, gender-based violence has been a persistent topic at the international level with the repeated reiteration of the responsibility of states under international law to take steps to prevent such violence, punish perpetrators, and provide support to survivors. Adopted international instruments have contributed to bringing the sensitive issue of gender-based violence to the attention of states and the international community, elaborated on the concept of gender-based violence itself, and called for changes at the domestic level. Instruments focusing on gender-based violence have also been adopted at the regional level. In the European region, the leading organisation active in this field is the Council of Europe, which has developed several important recommendations as well as the widely known Istanbul Convention. In addition, ending gender-based violence remains on the EU agenda with the recent proposal for a directive on combatting violence against women and domestic violence confirming the EU’s efforts to contribute to addressing this negative phenomenon.
This chapter seeks to overview the international and European instruments addressing the problem of gender-based violence. The chapter presents an overall international framework and identifies common standards and trends, while specific attention is given to the case law of the European Court of Human Rights.
