The Regional Conference for Central and Eastern Europe on “Making laws work to end violence against women and girls” took place at the Palace of Parliament between June 12-14, 2017 . The event was organised by the Romanian Parliament together with the Inter-parliamentary Union in collaboration with the “Global Rights for Women” and “Vital Voices” organisations in the United States of America.

The regional event brought together representatives from Central and Eastern European parliaments, NGOs who advocated for the respect of gender equality and women’s rights and other reputable institutions, and brought attention to the issue of violence against women, an important topic on the agenda of the EU Commission in 2017. Representatives of parliamentarians, members of non-governmental organisations and government representatives from 20 Central and Eastern European countries, as well as representatives of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Black Sea Economic Cooperation and the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe, were present at the event.

The main topics of discussion were the determinant aspects of domestic violence and sexual violence, the international and regional legal framework on the elimination of violence against women, essential services for victims and the prosecution of criminals. During the three days, two thematic groups were set up: “Good practices on the response of the civil and criminal justice system to violence against women” and “Good practices of multisectorial cooperation in the implementation of laws on violence against women”.

On the last day of the conference each participating delegation worked on an action plan to apply the knowledge acquired at the conference at national level, giving the conference a lasting and lasting impact. The Action Plan of the Romanian delegation includes a close cooperation of all stakeholders in the development of the new National Strategy on preventing and combating domestic violence.

At the end of the conference, all those present were invited to take on a series of strategies and elements to help achieve progress. These include: developing co-ordination, collaboration and multi-sectoral partnerships for a stronger community; having a common theory of violence belonging to all agencies; better understanding and meeting the needs of victims by providing affordable services; providing a wide range of services for victims; the use of danger assessment plans and safety plans as instruments that can counteract this widespread problem; investing in a justice system based on the protection of surviving women and their rights; organising as many awareness campaigns as possible; education from early childhood; mobilising and engaging men in this change movement.

The event has brought to the attention of all that although we live in different countries with different background, the problems we face are similar and we all have the common goal of allowing women to live a life without violence.