Today 56 MPs and peers urge the Government to ratify the Istanbul Convention without exceptions.

Today, 8 June 2022, marks a decade since the Government first committed to the Istanbul Convention.

After seven years of campaigning, earlier this month we finally heard news from the Home Secretary, Priti Patel, that the Government plan to ratify the Convention, making it legally binding. This is a huge step forward for the campaign and women across the UK.

But despite this good news, the Government’s approach to ratification includes ‘opting out’ of life-saving support and protection for migrant women. Such reservations reinforce the power of the perpetrators and increases the risk faced by migrant survivors.

To ensure all women are protected, we gathered with MPs and peers and a coalition of organisations in Parliament to call on Government to ratify the Convention without reservations.

The power of the Istanbul Convention lies in its protection of all women without discrimination. All women means all women. We will not settle for less.

We’re incredibly grateful to the hosts of today’s event, Gavin Newlands MP, Jess Phillips MP and Wera Hobhouse MP and to all 56 MPs and peers who attended or shared their support online. It was a reminder of the power we hold when we come together to call for a safer world for women.

We couldn’t continue to campaign without the support of the coalition, including the Women’s Institute, the End Violence Against Women Coalition (EVAW), Rape Crisis, Solace Women’s Aid, the Centre for Women’s Justice, Southall Black Sisters, Safety4Sisters, and the Latin American Womens Rights Service.

Our event comes two weeks after sending a letter to the Home Secretary, led by EVAW and co-signed by over 80 supporting organisations, calling on Government to ratify the Istanbul Convention without reservations.

A huge thank you to everyone who has supported the campaign so far and invited their MP to our event today. We couldn’t have done this without you.