Rape must be made an offence under the Directive on Violence Against Women

EU countries must reverse their omission of rape in Council’s position in ongoing negotiations, lead MEPs say in reaction to the State of the European Union speech.

Frances Fitzgerald MEP (EPP, IE) and Evin Incir (S&D, SE), co-rapporteurs for the European Parliament on the Directive on combating violence against women and domestic violence, warmly welcomed Commission President Ursula von der Leyen’s focus on violence against women in her 2023 State of the European Union speech.

Reacting to the statement by the President of the Commission that she would like to cast into law the basic principle that “no means no” and that there can be no true equality without freedom from violence, Parliament’s negotiators stressed that this statement sums up the importance of this Directive - that without a yes, there is no consent.

“As we proceed with negotiations with member states and the Council Presidency to conclude this important piece of legislation, once again, we call on the member states to join the European Parliament in standing up for women, so that across our Union, consent is our guiding principle.

Non-consensual sex, i.e. rape, must be included in any Directive on Violence Against Women. The essential element of that offence is consent, as highlighted by the Commission President. With the rates of violence against women continuing to increase across our continent, European women will not accept any justification from their governments that rape cannot be included in legislation. The member states must now stand up for women’s rights to be safe everywhere in Europe.

We in the European Parliament refuse to tolerate any violation of women’s autonomy and dignity. Our position is clear: the member states must know that there cannot be a Directive without paragraphs on consent,” they concluded.