Addressing intersex genital mutilation (IGM) in the directive on combatting violence against women and domestic violence

Post updated 25.04.23

Lunch briefing
(download the agenda as a pdf)

Since March 2022, when the European Commission first published its proposal for a directive on ‘combating violence against women and domestic violence’¹ Members of the European Parliament and diverse actors from civil society have been working tirelessly to close gaps in protection and access to justice for vulnerable groups. FEMM-LIBE co-rapporteurs, shadow rapporteurs, members of the LGBTI Intergroup and many other MEPs have worked with dedication on this file, to ensure that it will be more inclusive of LBTI women and LGBTIQ people. 

Intersex women and girls are specifically vulnerable to being exposed to forms of gender-based violence that present evident specificities with other forms of violence against women and girls, such as female genital mutilation (FGM), which are both based on harmful gender stereotypes and aim to exert control over the person’s sexuality and physical appearance. The VAW & DV directive offers a unique opportunity to legally clarify that intersex genital mutilation (IGM), like FGM, is a harmful practice that should be criminalised. The directive should also include preventative measures, and ensure that intersex people are able to access protection, safe justice and victim support services. 

A dedicated event for MEPs and their teams on the subject of Addressing intersex genital mutilation (IGM) in the directive on combatting violence against women and domestic violence would help significantly to draw attention to the fact that adequate measures and provisions to guarantee the protection of intersex women’s and girls’ rights, still remain to be fully included in this directive.

This event aims to bring together MEPs and their advisors and to provide them with an opportunity to engage with and hear from civil society about why the inclusion of intersex women and girls – and specifically the recognition of intersex genital mutilation as a form of gender-based violence – in the text of this directive is crucial. It would allow for in depth exchanges between experts from civil society and MEPS and their policy advisors.

Footnote:

¹ European Commission (8 March 2022), “Proposal for a Directive of the European Parliament and of the Council on combating violence against women and domestic violence”, accessible at https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=CELEX%3A52022PC0105