How institutions tackle violence
Image: Women protesting for women’s rights in Warsaw, Poland (Amnesty International)
Introduction
Following the recent US elections, concerns about the role of institutions have been put into question. Most evidently, Donald Trump’s win in the 2024 elections has raised concerns about the rights of women, people of colour and queer people across the US. [1] The issue of abortion being the biggest one can be seen as the pivotal question being discussed in current affairs.[1] The removal or limitation on the right to abortion can be seen as a form of manifested violence that is culturally embedded into our society. As such certain state institutions and courts have been trying to fight back to protect these rights and limit the violence towards marginalised or vulnerable communities.
Tackling Physical Violence - Protection of Abortion and Limiting Domestic Violence
In the context of the EU, the EU has long been committed to fostering peace, security, and the protection of human rights within its borders and beyond. However, following the elections, there have been concerns that member states of the EU may try to reduce the rights which protect minority groups. [2] The most evident example in recent history is the modification to the law of abortion. In 2022, Hungary's right-wing government passed a law requiring doctors to show women the vital signs of the foetus before an abortion. [3] This includes making women listen to the foetus's "heartbeat". [3] This can be seen as a form of violence that national institutions encourage as it puts the mother’s life at risk and encourages society to shame women who go through with abortion. As such, EU institutions have an obligation to tackle violence: whether it be direct or indirect.
Recognizing that violence undermines individual freedoms, societal cohesion, and economic stability, the EU employs a multi-faceted approach through its institutions to address this challenge. Firstly, to address physical violence, the European Commission had proposed The European Protection Order. [4] Proposed in 2011, the directive ensures cross-border protection for victims, particularly those at risk of domestic violence. In particular this directive is useful to help minority groups who are the highest at risk of physical violence. It also means that even if you move to a different country within the EU, as it is a cross-border directive, each member state is obliged to follow it. As of 2024, EPO’s have been used 7 times and the European Commission has partnered with 5 member states to partner with local national organisations such as NGOs and governmental institutions. [5] EPO’s are present in: Italy, Cyprus, Greece, Czechia and Croatia. [5] There have been updates since then and propositions for more directives such as the idea of having a Victims Act, pushed forward by Amnesty International. [6] Some of the biggest institutions such as Women Against Violence Europe (WAVE) and Center for Reproductive Rights are signatories for this directive. [6]
Tackling Modern Systemic Violence: Inequality and Eco-terrorism
Another way that the EU aims to tackle violence of both physical and non-physical forms is through the Citizens, Equality, Rights, and Values (CERV) Program. [7] The CERV programme was launched in 2021. The €1.5 billion initiative funds projects promoting equality, fighting violence against vulnerable groups, and building inclusive communities. It is inspired by the 3 pillars which were used to initially establish the EU and its current 4 pillars are used as a basis for which each member state should seek to attain.[7] However, whilst it is based on the Charter of Fundamental Rights, it is not legally enforceable but rather encourages the member states to participate. This means that whilst it sets a basis it does not necessarily mean that member states will nationally participate in it due to the competency that they possess. Nonetheless, there is still time to make many more changes and the programme has been partially effective in reducing physical violence.
The EU member states have also taken measures to strengthen regional law enforcement of Europol to ensure more crimes are covered and dealt with on a larger scale. Europol, the EU's law enforcement agency, supports member states in investigating and dismantling criminal networks. In particular, what is useful are there divisions for different categories of crimes, the most recent being crimes of Eco-terrorism, a new and more concerning form of violence that can be seen to be spreading in Europe. [8] Additionally, the European Arrest Warrant (EAW) ensures that perpetrators of violence cannot evade justice by fleeing across borders, in particular following the terrorist attacks which occurred during the mid-2010s in France and the UK. [9]
New Forms of Violence: Cybercrime and AI
Another key consideration is how institutions will start to deal with cybercrimes. With the development of AI it puts many people’s privacy and identity at risk. Due to this, people may experience violence in the form of being framed for crimes they did not commit, fraud or identity theft. As such the EU introduced the Digital Services Act (DSA). [10] The Act aims to combat online violence by holding platforms accountable for illegal content.
However, it is arguably much more difficult for the international and regional institutions to tackle the mental or indirect aspects of violence such as latent thoughts. It has been proven that re-education has been most effective globally to reduce violence with the UK government highlighting how early intervention since 1995 has reduced violence by 69%. Therefore, seeing the effectiveness of education, both the European Parliament and the European Commission jointly emphasise the importance of education in combating violence. Campaigns like the "No to Hate Speech" movement and the promotion of inclusive curriculums in schools aim to foster tolerance and understanding. [11] These include but are not limited to teaching young people about digital literacy to counter cyberbullying and online hate crimes.
Conclusion
Overall, there has been significant progress in terms of how institutions aim to tackle violence in different forms. Whilst direct violence is the highest focus for international institutions (following the abortion bans and wars), other forms of more subtle violence is also being tackled. The growing use of the internet and its uses for daily life means that protective measures must be introduced not only on a national scale but a supranational one as well. Moreover, crimes and violence against the environment are also becoming a growing focus following the growing concern and acknowledgement of protecting our planet. It is evident that institutions have taken many attempts to overcome not only physical violence but systemic violence. The question remains though whether this is sufficient especially in terms of our current political climate.
References
[1] Searcey D, ‘Was the Trump Election a Setback for Women? Even Women Do Not Agree.’ The New York Times (12 November 2024) <https://www.nytimes.com/2024/11/12/us/elections/women-feminism-harris-trump.html>
[2] Boyd F and Bermingham R, ‘Early Interventions to Reduce Violent Crime’ [2019] post.parliament.uk <https://post.parliament.uk/research-briefings/post-pn-0599/>
[3] Cursino M, ‘Hungary Decrees Tighter Abortion Rules’ BBC News (13 September 2022) <https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-62892596>
[4] EU, ‘European E-Justice Portal - European Protection Order’ (e-justice.europa.eu) <https://e-justice.europa.eu/360/EN/european_protection_order>
[5] Staff, ‘European Protection Order: How Much Do You Know about It? - Artemis’ (Artemis14 June 2021) <https://www.artemis-europa.eu/2021/06/14/european-protection-order/> accessed 20 November 2024
[6] International A, ‘EU: Joint Civil Society Reaction to the Adoption of the EU Directive on Combating Violence against Women and Domestic Violence’ (European Institutions Office7 May 2024) <https://www.amnesty.eu/news/eu-joint-civil-society-reaction-to-the-adoption-of-the-eu-directive-on-combating-violence-against-women-and-domestic-violence/>
[7] EU, ‘Citizens, Equality, Rights and Values Programme Overview’ (European Commission2023) <https://commission.europa.eu/funding-tenders/find-funding/eu-funding-programmes/citizens-equality-rights-and-values-programme/citizens-equality-rights-and-values-programme-overview_en>
[8] Europol, ‘Environmental Crime’ (Europol2022) <https://www.europol.europa.eu/crime-areas/environmental-crime>
[9] European Commission, ‘European Arrest Warrant’ (commission.europa.eu2022) <https://commission.europa.eu/law/cross-border-cases/judicial-cooperation/types-judicial-cooperation/european-arrest-warrant_en>
[10] European Commission, ‘The Digital Services Act Package | Shaping Europe’s Digital Future’ (digital-strategy.ec.europa.eu2022) <https://digital-strategy.ec.europa.eu/en/policies/digital-services-act-package>
[11] Council of Europe, ‘No Hate Speech Youth Campaign Website’ (No Hate Speech Youth Campaign2013) <https://www.coe.int/en/web/no-hate-campaign>