Stefanishyna: Istanbul Convention to be ratified in 2022

Author

Mariia Makukha

The Istanbul Convention will be ratified in Ukraine in 2022. Olha Stefanishyna, Deputy Prime Minister for European and Euro-Atlantic Integration of Ukraine stated this in an interview with Interfax-Ukraine.

"The extensive experience of non-ratification of the Convention gives us an understanding of which instruments are not effective. On the other hand, we have done several important things that bring us closer to ratification, and we will continue this work in 2022. In particular, we have formed reservations to the Convention the document will be submitted for ratification with. These warnings are the quintessence of all discussions with different parties and with the conservative wing of society, with the religious community and with the expert community. They assume that the provisions of the Convention in no way affect the provisions of the Constitution of Ukraine, that the Convention does not apply to any issues of gender ideology or identity, and accordingly, these reservations remove the discrepancy between the provisions of the Convention itself," Stefanishyna said.

The Deputy Prime Minister also stated that she had received a letter from the Secretary General of the Council of Europe officially explaining on behalf of the Council the content of the Convention itself. The letter confirms that the Convention has nothing to do with gender identity issues, that it concerns exclusively the possibility of protecting persons suffering from domestic violence, it provides additional instruments for international cooperation and the protection of Ukrainian citizens abroad.

In addition, Stefanishyna noted, this allows Ukraine to become an object of pan-European monitoring.

To a clarifying question, she stated that the Istanbul Convention will be ratified in 2022.

Context. In November 2021, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy stated that he supported Ukraine’s joining the Istanbul Convention. Later he noted that the issue of the Istanbul Convention ratification lies in the plane of the Verkhovna Rada's activities.