Presentation of the Women’s Rights Committee at the Council of Europe

From left to right: Céline Cottalorda, Women’s Rights Officer; Véronique Ségui-Charlot, Director of Social Welfare and Social Services and Monaco’s expert on the Committee of the Parties; and H.E. Mr Rémi Mortier, Ambassador and Permanent Representative to the Council of Europe © DR

At the 7^th meeting of the Committee of the Parties to the Council of Europe Convention on Preventing and Combating Violence against Women and Domestic Violence (the Istanbul Convention) on 1 and 2 April, Céline Cottalorda, Monaco’s Women’s Rights Officer, visited Strasbourg to present the newly created Monegasque Women’s Rights Committee.

She gave her presentation as part of a thematic discussion on the trends, challenges and best practices encountered by the States Party to the Convention.

In her speech, Ms Cottalorda recalled “how a comprehensive and coordinated policy had been designed in a country as small as Monaco, where promoting women’s rights is a major challenge.”

Interactive discussions were held with other countries such as the Netherlands, Portugal, Spain and Norway, which shared their respective experiences of comprehensive and coordinated policies.

H.E. Mr Rémi Mortier, Monaco’s Ambassador and Permanent Representative to the Council of Europe, and Véronique Ségui-Charlot, Director of Social Welfare and Social Services and Monaco’s expert on the Committee of the Parties, were also at the meeting.

The role of the Women’s Rights Committee is to promote gender equality and combat all forms of violence. These issues are covered by the Istanbul Convention, which Monaco ratified in 2014.