If alone in the woods, would you rather encounter a bear or a man?
This recent TikTok trend has revived an important debate about women’s safety, as almost all women on the platform, as well as X and Instagram, chose the giant wild animal.
Their responses are unsurprising. In every corner of Europe, offline and online, women face abuse. Some are stalked, some harassed, some assaulted. The problem is so entrenched and widespread across the EU that one in three women have suffered some form of sexual or physical violence.
While this viral discourse misses how most violence is perpetrated by intimate partners, it is a fact that, in the shadows of pandemic lockdowns, domestic violence cases have been rising sharply. In France, for example, more than 100 women are killed by their current or former partner every year, while a rape or attempted rape takes place every 2.5 minutes.
In even greater danger are LBTIQ+ women, women with disabilities, and migrant women. A recent study found that migrant women in France are nine times more exposed to sexual violence and 18 times more likely to be victims of rape.
There’s good news: not only has the EU ratified the Istanbul Convention, an international instrument for the protection of women, but it also recently adopted legislation to combat violence against women, including a ban on female genital mutilation, forced marriages, and cyber violence.
An unfinished business
But two years of back-and-forth in Brussels negotiation rooms revealed a shocking lack of political will to end all forms of gender-based violence. France and Germany had scandalously allied with Hungary to exclude from the new law a definition of rape based on lack of freely given consent.
Rape is one of the most horrific but frequent forms of violence. It is estimated that 5% of all women in the EU have been raped.
Yet most women and girls don’t report for fear of not being believed, among other reasons. “If I got attacked by the bear then at least everyone would believe me”, one social media user said.
Before French courts, the burden of proof is on the victim to prove that it was committed under threat, duress, surprise or violence ... This is an outdated and dangerous approach. Without an informed and freely given "yes", it is rape.
Introducing a consent-based definition of rape in the EU would have benefited survivors in more than 15 countries, including France.
Before French courts, the burden of proof is on the victim to prove that it was committed under threat, duress, surprise or violence. Establishing one of these four elements is much harder than it sounds, and, too often, consent is assumed by default.
This is an outdated and dangerous approach. Without an informed and freely given "yes", it is rape.
Historically, the presence of feminist movements has been shown to be the most important factor in a country’s willingness to address gender-based violence. Feminist organisations need and deserve more support so they can push for ambitious legislation, offer support to survivors, and raise public awareness.
However, when it came to criminalising rape across the EU, women’s demands fell on deaf ears, with the French justice minister saying the legal change would end up “contractualising sexual relations” by requiring explicit consent. There’s more work ahead to challenge such harmful myths.
Gender equality on the ballot
Over the past five years, debates in the European Parliament have demonstrated that policymakers' commitment is anything but guaranteed. Oxfam France's research shows a polarised landscape: while left-wing, green, and socialist parties have advanced measures ranging from pay transparency to LGBTQ+ rights, far-right groups have consistently opposed these initiatives.
And despite some advances in gender equality across Europe, national laws concerning rape, abortion, contraception, sex education, and LGBTQ+ rights are as varied as chalk and cheese.
The outcome of the upcoming European Parliament elections will directly influence whose rights are protected, which freedoms are upheld, and how we weed out gender-based violence going forward.
Why should our rights, freedoms, and safety depend on where we live? They shouldn’t, says feminist association Choisir la cause des femmes.
After touring Europe to meet experts and activists, Choisir is now pioneering “the most favoured European clause”: a proposal to harmonise standards with best-in-class laws, such as Spain’s progressive “only yes means yes” rape law.
Their goal is to urge electoral candidates to commit to these highest standards so that all Europeans can benefit from the most robust protections.
This initiative is especially urgent as political tides shift towards conservatism in countries like Italy, Slovakia, and Sweden, where rights are at risk of being rolled back amidst virulent anti-feminism rhetoric and millions of euros pouring into anti-gender groups.
The outcome of the upcoming European Parliament elections will directly influence whose rights are protected, which freedoms are upheld, and how we weed out gender-based violence going forward.
That’s why we need more, not less, elected officials who will listen to grassroots groups like Choisir, who are not only aware of community needs but also passionate about solutions.
Every vote cast has the power to determine whether women will feel safer at home or alone in the woods.
Sophie Pouget is Executive Director at the RAJA-Danièle Marcovici Foundation, a member of the Alliance for Gender Equality in Europe, a collaborative supporting progress for gender equality and women’s rights in Europe.
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