Mr President,

Distinguished panellists,

The EU would like to reiterate its firm commitment to advancing gender equality, to promoting and protecting women’s and girls’ full enjoyment of human rights and to empowering women and girls at all levels. We particularly recognize the power and potential that lies in ensuring that girls and women have equal access to quality education at all levels. These core values are enshrined within the EU's legal and political framework. Eliminating all forms of violence against girls and women is a key priority for the EU, in conflict and post-conflict situations as well as in times of peace.

We welcome the focus of this afternoon’s panel on the impact of online violence on women human rights defenders. We strongly condemn violence perpetrated through or facilitated by digital technologies and welcome the increased awareness of online gender-based violence.

Online spaces provide key channels for inclusion and activism. Online tools facilitate women human rights defenders to spread their human rights-related messages. However, the online world is also a "mirror" of the offline world, reflecting both positive and negative trends.  Women and girls, far too often encounter misogyny, marginalisation, discrimination, harassment and violence online. Digital technologies are increasingly used against them to install fear and isolation and thus make the work of women human rights defenders even harder. Women human rights defenders often face double exposure: they are threatened and abused not only because they are human rights defenders, but also for being women. They receive defamatory comments and slanders about their role as women, mothers, daughters, their looks, and their sexual orientation and beyond. They face hatred, threats, harassment, intimidation and incitement to violence, often of sexual nature.

On the occasion of the 20th anniversary of the UN Declaration on human rights defenders, the EU fully recognizes the vital role that women Human Rights Defenders play in making the UN Declaration a reality. States are responsible for ensuring a free and safe access to the digital space and internet to women human rights defenders. Intimidation, threats, violence and reprisals against women human rights defenders need to be investigated promptly and independently, whether committed by State or non-State actors. Protection measures need to take into account the particular challenges and types of violence and harassment faced by women human rights defenders online and offline.

The EU remains fully committed to its work with women human rights defenders and civil society organisations. This partnership is the most valuable partnership we can rely on to protect human rights, combat the shrinking democratic space and build opportunities for all.

With this in mind, the EU expresses its gratitude to the government of Canada for its resolution on Accelerating efforts to eliminate violence against women and girls: Preventing and responding to violence against women and girls in digital contexts presented to this Council. We hope that today’s panel debates will help to inform those discussions and we stand ready to engage constructively.

Mr President,

We would be grateful if the panellists could further elaborate on the alarming impact of online violence on women human rights defenders and if there are any specific actions that global, regional, national, sub-national and local actors can take to eliminate this violence.

Thank you.