High-Level Consultative Meeting: Economic Empowerment as a Precondition for the Prevention of Domestic Violence and Gender-Based Violence



To mark the 25th anniversary of the Beijing Platform for Action and the 20th anniversary of Resolution 1325, "Women, Peace and Security", KGSC held a consultative meeting on the topic of, "Economic empowerment as a precondition for the prevention of domestic violence and gender-based violence".

Edi Gusia, Chief Executive of the Agency for Gender Equality and Luljeta Demolli, Executive Director of the Kosovar Gender Studies Center, hosted the event which was attended by the Prime Minister of Kosovo, Avdullah Hoti, the Ambassador of Sweden to Kosovo, Karin Hernmarck Ahliny, Ulrike Richard from the United Nations Development Program (UNDP), Igo Rogova who is the Executive Director of the Kosovo Women's Network and several representatives of civil society and politics.

"Violence is a constant threat in our world. In addition to combating violence, it should also be reflected in the economic development of Kosovar women. Many women have lost their jobs due to COVID-19, many women have had their businesses closed and are financially overwhelmed. We are also concerned about the lack of representation of women in negotiations and peacebuilding," stated Demolli.

"I want to close my speech with three words: Mobilization, responsibility and equality," she said.

Meanwhile, Gusia has stated that there can be no elimination of cultural norms without placing girls and women at the center of development.

"In addition to calling on governments to act, the Beijing Platform for Action also calls on the civil society to act."

The Prime Minister of Kosovo, Abdullah Hoti, said that Kosovar society has made considerable progress in promoting and raising awareness of gender equality, although the situation on the ground does not fully reflect this awareness.

"The presentation of violence against women is a reflection that there is a lot of work to be done. The pandemic has given the world different directions. Jobs held by women are more affected, therefore within the Economic Recovery Package, in addition to the support that businesses receive, we have a special package to support women in business", said Hoti.

The Swedish Ambassador to Kosovo, Karin Hernmarck Ahliny, was also on the panel and emphasized that it was very important for her to address such topics at today's conference."Women are people. If you do not support women you will fail as a society. Social empowerment is a very important element. There are times when the victim feels ashamed and not the perpetrator. Economic empowerment means autonomy and the chance to break free if you are not treated as a human being."

According to Ulrike Richardson from UNDP, if more women were to enter the economy, Kosovo could have an annual budget of three billion euros. Richardson stated that, "I would recommend that Resolution 1325 be taken into account in Kosovo. COVID-19 has had a huge impact, so I can say it has been something that has affected everyone, but it has affected some more than others. If we look within countries we discern the inequality of the impact of COVID-19, which has affected those who are most vulnerable. We see that the main people in this category are women"

Igballe Rogova from the Kosovo Women's Network has expressed criticism of the institutions: "Women's organizations have worked so hard, but it seems to me that this year we moved backwards in regards to gender equality. There has been a push back due to many factors. We do not see proper political will in regards to this topic. There will never be any change without having a strong political will behind it".

The Member of the Assembly of Kosovo from AAK, Teuta Haxhiu, has emphasized that gender equality starts with each family. She announced that the deputies will take an initiative to reimburse the funds of women in Kosovo, which they will withdraw from the Pension Savings Trust. She states that, "This will not be for women in politics, for MPs, but we will decide rationally which women we will support. In the Parliamentary Commission for Equality we are all women. Behind a successful man is a successful man, but there must be another side - behind a successful woman is also a man."

"Economic empowerment of women would affect the prevention of domestioc violence cases. We have daily reports on cases of domestic violence. Unfortunately, only cases of physical violence are reported, but we have no information on cases of psychological and economic violence."

Meanwhile, Ardita Dushi from the Office of the Prime Minister said that the Republic of Kosovo is in full international harmony in regards to their commitment of human rights and gender equality. "Recently we have also applied the Istanbul Convention. To further advance in the legal framework we are taking concrete steps for the Gender Equality Plan 2020-2023. This program should serve as a reference platform with the allocation of funds for gender mainstreaming in policy making. "