Anger grows over UK's four-year failure on abuse of women

Four years ago MPs backed a private member’s bill brought by a Scottish MP that should have forced the Tory government to ratify the Istanbul Convention, seen as the “gold standard” to tackling domestic violence, rape, sexual assault, forced marriage, FGM and so-called “honour-based” attacks on women.

The legislation, brought by then-Banff and Buchan MP Eilidh Whiteford (pictured below), was the first and only act the SNP has ever secured in the UK Parliament.

The bill was supposed to bring the UK into line with Armenia, Romania, Turkey, Denmark, Finland, Italy and all of the other 30-plus nations who have ratified the convention.

But as the four-year anniversary nears, that still hasn’t happened – even as the killings of women in England and Wales increase, thousands of sexual offences are reported yearly in Scotland and specialist services report evidence of increased intensity of abuses in homes during lockdown.

The Home Office says it will ratify the convention, drawn up by the Council of Europe, “as soon as possible”.

But it is currently under no legal obligation to meet the requirements of the convention, meaning it can pick and choose and change which areas it will uphold.

And as pressures on services grow, many are now questioning whether “as soon as possible” is soon enough.

Scottish Women’s Aid told the Sunday National: “We have long stood with campaigners around the country in calling for the Istanbul Convention to be ratified.

“It remains the leading legal framework for tackling violence against women across Europe and we think it maps well onto Scotland’s Equally Safe Strategy, our national strategy for ending violence against women and girls.

“As long as the UK Government delays in ratifying, it sends the message that ending violence against women can come later – that the needs and safety of those living with abuse and other forms of gender-based violence are not a priority.”

Back in 2017, Whiteford said she’d brought her bill forwards because “the Istanbul Convention has the potential to change the lives of women in my own constituency of Banff and Buchan, across the whole of the UK and also globally”.

READ MORE: Concern as Scots council defunds Women’s Aid groups to better help men

“I’m very pleased to have been able to steer through legislation,” she said, “but it’s only the beginning.”

Whiteford lost her seat to Tory David Duguid in the snap contest of 2017. In June last year 45 MPs from the SNP, Labour, LibDems and SDLP noted their “disappointment” in the UK Government’s lack of action in an early day motion brought by Gavin Newlands, who chairs the all-party parliamentary group for the White Ribbon Campaign. That campaign works with men and boys to end male violence against women.

“Violence against women and girls is one of the gravest issues facing society and it is incumbent on governments at every level to do everything they can to tackle it using the powers at their disposal,” the Paisley and Renfrewshire North MP told the Sunday National.

“It shouldn’t be for the UK Government to decide which Acts it chooses to follow – implementation of the Istanbul Convention is the law of the land as voted on by MPs, despite the Government’s original attempts to block it.

“The UK Government claims that ‘the UK already complies with, or goes further than, almost all the Convention’s articles’. There can be no reason, therefore, for dragging its feet on full implementation as soon as possible.

“Eilidh Whiteford’s Act is a tribute to not just her hard work and dedication, but the work undertaken by domestic violence campaigners over a number of years to get parliamentary action on the convention. The UK Government should respect that and get it ratified as soon as possible.”

READ MORE: Scottish Women's Aid condemns 'callous' council for defunding groups

Domestic abuse survivors, Scottish Women’s Aid says, “face a postcode lottery” on access to support as specialist services “rely on patchwork, precarious, short-term funding to provide their vital support”.

The Istanbul Convention, it says, “makes access to specialist support services a right and would guarantee a minimum level of service provision across the country”.

SHARON Aitchison, chief executive of Monklands Women’s Aid, had to launch a crowdfunder this week after North Lanarkshire Council’s education and families committee voted to defund its domestic abuse service in accordance with the findings of a procurement review.

It’s now the only region of Scotland where the council does not fund local Women’s Aid groups, but there’s significant concern in the sector that the approach could be taken elsewhere.

Aitchison’s organisation and two others involved have decades of experience but the review found gaps in the help offered for male victims, as well as LGBTI and BME people. Monklands Women’s Aid holds an LGBT Scotland charter mark and has been, Aitchison says, scrutinised accordingly.

But she’s clear that its governing document states that it exists to “promote the welfare and relieve the needs of women and children experiencing domestic abuse”.

READ MORE: 'Callous': Scottish Women's Aid condemns council for cut cash for local groups

“We abhor violence of any form, but we are a feminist organisation who do not provide direct support to men. We would always direct them to appropriate male services,” she says. “If a person identifies as a woman, we would of course support them by virtue of them being a woman.

“Domestic abuse is rooted in gender inequality and there still exists an imbalance around power, equity and fairness,” she adds.

“No one disputes the statistical evidence that women, by virtue of their gender and position, are predominately the victims/survivors of domestic abuse. Appropriately-funded women’s aid specialist services need to be available locally to meet that demand”.

The Home Office said: “In most respects the UK already complies with or goes further than the convention requires, and we remain committed to ratifying it as soon as possible.

“The Home Office has taken decisive action to combat violence against women and girls – our landmark Domestic Abuse Bill is now in its report stage, and our call for evidence on tackling violence against women and girls closed last week, and people’s lived experience that they have bravely shared will inform our comprehensive strategy.”

Scotland’s Domestic Abuse and Forced Marriage Helpline is available 24/7 on 0800 027 1234

Aitchison's crowdfunder is here