By IC Change

Have you seen black and white photographs going viral on Instagram with the hashtag #ChallengeAccepted? Women are sharing these photos of themselves as part of a campaign about women’s empowerment and to show solidarity with women in Turkey. 

Although there was some confusion about the campaign's origins and purpose, Turkish women's rights activists have used the hashtag to highlight the high rates of violence against women in Turkey. 

In 2019, 475 women were killed in gender-based violence in Turkey. These are heartbreaking and alarming figures. Yet the Turkish government is considering withdrawing from the Istanbul Convention, a key piece of legislation designed to protect women from multiple forms of violence. Earlier this month, we also heard that the Polish government was similarly considering exiting the Convention. This is a trend that we cannot let happen. 

Whilst Turkey and Poland look into stepping back from their commitment they made to addressing violence against women when they ratified the Istanbul Convention, the UK has still not even ratified it. Despite signing the agreement on 8 June 2012, and promising repeatedly that they would, over 8 years later the UK has still not followed through with ratification.

Both home and abroad, there is a pattern to withdraw support from this legislation that enshrines women's right to live lives free from violence; we have to take a stand against this. 

IC Change is a volunteer-led campaign calling on the UK government to ratify the Istanbul Convention. At IC Change, we stand in solidarity with women in Turkey and Poland whose rights are being threatened as their governments consider stepping back from the Istanbul Convention.

What is the Istanbul Convention and why does it matter?

The Istanbul Convention is the most comprehensive legal framework that exists to tackle violence against women and girls. UN Women have commended it as the ‘gold standard’ approach.

It has provisions that cover domestic violence, rape, sexual assault, female genital mutilation (FGM), so-called honour-based violence, and forced marriage. 

It provides a strong set of minimum standards for governments to meet in order to protect and support women, prosecute perpetrators and prevent violence against women. Most importantly, when a government ratifies the Convention, they are legally bound to follow it.

If Poland and Turkey withdraw from the Istanbul Convention, they would no longer be obligated to adhere to these standards for protecting women and girls. This would be a huge step backwards for women’s rights. 

We must stand in solidarity with women in Poland, Turkey, across Europe and beyond, to ensure that this does not happen. We want women to remain protected by law under the Istanbul Convention.

We must also urge European governments that have not yet ratified the Istanbul Convention, like the UK, to do so without delay. 

Find out more about the IC Convention on our website, here or on the Council of Europe’s website here. 

How can you help?

Help us keep the pressure on the UK Government and urge them to ratify the convention in the UK. Sign our petition and follow us on Twitter and Facebook (@ICchangeUK) to stay up to date with our campaign.

Support organisations working with women in Poland and Turkey. You can follow @auturkishculturalclub & @small.projects.istanbul on Instagram to learn more about what is happening in Turkey and donate to organisations supporting women there. In Poland, you can follow the Women's Rights Centre (@cpk.wroclaw) and learn more and donate to support their work here. 

Now is not the time to take a step back from action to address violence against women.