Ratification of the Istanbul Convention

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Ukraine ratified the Council of Europe Convention on preventing and combating violence against women and domestic violence, known as the Istanbul Convention. Ukraine participated in the development of this document and was among the first countries to sign it in 2011.

The United Nations called on Ukraine to expedite the ratification process. However, it took the country 11 years to fully ratify the Convention.

The ratification was delayed mainly due to stereotypical interpretations of the term “gender” and the position of the All-Ukrainian Council of Churches, which argued that the Convention could threaten the “moral foundations and family values of Ukrainian society.”

Eight Members of Parliament voted against ratification. Members of the “Batkivshchyna” faction and the “For the Future” parliamentary group abstained.

As noted by the organization ZMINA Human Rights Center, ratification of the Convention was to some extent linked to Ukraine’s path toward obtaining EU candidate status, which contributed to the accelerated consideration of the document.

A civil society coalition, “Ukraine for the Istanbul Convention,” was established to support ratification in Ukraine.