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Judicial independence continues to cause concerns
- Europeans rank respect for democracy, human rights and the rule of law as EU’s primary asset
- Challenges to judicial independence continue to grow, underlining the need for effective coordination of efforts in this area in the EU and beyond
- Citizens and companies see government and political interference as the main reasons for the lack of independence of courts and judges
Advancing victims’ rights
- EU law sets minimum victims’ rights standards but shortcomings remain
- 2 out of 3 Member States adopted legislation to strengthen application of the Victims’ Rights Directive
- This includes more victim-friendly initiatives such as establishing separate waiting areas or better financial compensation for victims
- Some Member States also introduced or further strengthened victims’ rights awareness training for practitioners
Violence against women
- 20 EU Member States have ratified the Council of Europe’s Istanbul Convention to prevent and combat violence against women
- The EU continued ratifying the convention
- But, opposition remains at a political level and from national courts who are sometimes more lenient in their sentencing