Ramallah, 8th March 2014 - Today we mark the 100th anniversary of the International Women’s Day. Equality between women and men is a fundamental right, a common value of the EU, and a key principle of its external action. That said, more needs to be done at all levels in order to achieve gender equality.
Consistent with the UN Security Council resolutions on Women, Peace and Security, EUPOL COPPS continues to assist its Palestinian partners in developing and implementing policies and supporting institutions with the goal of preventing and combating violence against women and children in the West Bank. To fulfill that important goal, EUPOL COPPS works on a daily basis in partnership with the Palestinian Civil Police (PCP) and Criminal Justice Institutions as well as with international stakeholders in several areas.
EUPOL COPPS supports the institutional development of the Family Protection Unit (FPU) of the Palestinian Civil Police and as a result, the PCP launched last year a Strategy to equip the Police with the necessary tools to strengthen their capacity to prevent and respond to family violence and offer effective protection to victims. The number of cases the FPU has dealt with attests that citizen’s trust in the police has increased with regard to domestic cases. The Mission also supports the training of specialized prosecutors of the Attorney General’s Office who will be assigned to investigate and prosecute cases of domestic and gender-based violence. Finally, our Mission assists the development of a draft law on protection of the family from violence by the Ministries of Justice, Women Affairs and Social Affairs.
EUPOL COPPS will continue to support these national efforts. The equal, indivisible and interdependent rights of all women and men to live free from violence demand us to do so. Equality for women is progress for all.
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