In Chisinau, round table focuses on the Republic of Moldova’s work to tackle violence against women and implement the Istanbul Convention
A parliamentary round table at the Parliament of the Republic of Moldova in Chisinau focused on what parliamentarians can do to implement the Istanbul Convention, the Council of Europe’s legal standard on combating violence against women, and heard from leading Moldovan officials the progress made by the country to keep women safe, protect victims and prosecute perpetrators.
Taking place on the margins of the PACE Standing Committee meeting just ahead of the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women (25 November 2025), the event was opened by the Speaker of the Parliament of the Republic of Moldova Igor Grosu and PACE President Theodoros Rousopoulos.
Mr Grosu underlined Moldova’s early commitment to the Istanbul Convention, recalling that “we ratified from the beginning of our mandate the Istanbul Convention of the Council of Europe […]. This government will have zero tolerance towards any type of violence against girls or women.”
President Rousopoulos stressed that tackling gender-based violence is essential to protecting democratic life itself. “Every act of harassment, every threat, every silencing attempt is an assault on democratic participation,” he said, calling on parliamentarians to uphold the Convention: “Let us defend the Istanbul Convention, because it’s a promise that no woman should face fear in her home, her street or her parliament.”
Participants also included the Republic of Moldova’s Ministers of Internal Affairs and of Justice and the heads of the country’s national agency for combating violence against women and the national centre for the prevention of child abuse, as well as other leading officials and parliamentarians.
Summing up the proceedings, Petra Bayr (Austria, SOC) from the Assembly’s “Women free from violence” network and Women@PACE network set out 13 examples of good practice emerging from the event, including Moldova’s legal recognition of feminicide, the creation of “one-stop shops” for survivors, steps to improve the economic independence of women, capacity-building among parliamentarians, and efforts to tackle what she termed “siolence”, the combination of violence and being silent about it.
Other conclusions included the importance of involving men in tackling gender-based violence, and the important role of encouraging sensitivity in the police when they deal with perpetrators and victims.
The event was organised by the PACE Parliamentary and Electoral Co-operation Division in cooperation with Women@PACE and the Moldovan delegation to PACE.
