European Women's Lobby 35th Anniversary
I’ve been the SIE representative to the European Women’s Lobby (EWL) since 2020. These five years have been both inspiring and challenging in the ongoing fight for women’s rights, freedoms and human dignity. While we have seen great achievements, we are constantly reminded that the fight is far from over. The deterioration of women’s rights and life chances in many parts of the world shows that gains once made can never be taken for granted.
The European Women’s Lobby began its journey at a conference in November 1987, when 120 women met in London calling for the creation of a unified structure to influence policy. They invited all interested women’s organisations to join them in exerting pressure on European and national institutions to ensure better defence and representation of women’s interests. In 1990, their efforts were rewarded when the European Commission supported the foundation of the European Women’s Lobby.
On 6 June 2025, we celebrated EWL’s 35th anniversary in the impressive Gothic City Hall on Brussels’ Grand Place. Representatives of women’s organisations from all over Europe gathered to reflect on past struggles, celebrate successes, and discuss the path ahead. The discussion spanned a wide range of urgent topics: education, employment, political and business decision making, sexual and reproductive health and rights (including abortion), freedom from all forms of violence against women, and the need for shared responsibility in care work. We also reaffirmed the abolitionist stance on all forms of trafficking and prostitution of women, including surrogacy, and the commitment to building sustainable societies. The road ahead is complex. EU decision-making processes are long and challenging. But through knowledge and endurance, combined with sisterhood and cooperation, amplified through campaigns and advocacy, we can move mountains.
During the event, EU Commissioner Hadja Lahbib (on the left picture above) presented the Roadmap for Women’s Rights, demonstrating genuine concern and insight into women’s living conditions. It reminded me of the survey’s results I conducted for the EWL on the impact of COVID-19, which highlighted how crisis management severely harmed women’s economic security, increased gender-based violence, and the amount of unpaid care work landing on women. We must learn from these experiences to ensure better outcomes in future crises.
Panels also addressed growing threats like cyberviolence and AI-generated abuse targeting women and girls. For the second consecutive year, SIE’s “READ THE SIGNS” campaign, for the 16 Days of Activism Against Gender-Based Violence, will tackle these issues. I believe it is time to incorporate the ethical red lines in CEDAW and the EU Charter, which guarantee women the right not to be discriminated against based on sex. There was also encouraging news: the European Council has ratified parts of the Istanbul Convention.
In 2025, we celebrate more than just the EWL’s 35 years. We also mark:
- 50 years since the First UN Conference on Women in Mexico City, which led to the drafting of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW).
- 45 years since the Second UN Conference in Copenhagen 45, where violence against women and Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) were formally addressed.
- 40 years since the Third Conference in Nairobi, where future strategies and sex disaggregated data were first presented.
- 30 years since the Beijing Platform for Action.
- 25 years of the Women, Peace and Security Agenda (WPS)
- And 10 years of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
All these milestones were made possible by the women’s movement having a free and courageous voice that refused to be silenced. So let us also celebrate one another: every club and every woman who has worked over the years for the best of women.
Happy 35th Anniversary to the European Women’s Lobby!