ZAGREB, March 22, 2018 – Member of the European Parliament (MEP) Biljana Borzan of Croatia’s Social Democratic Party (SDP) on Wednesday won the MEP Award or the so-called EU Oscar, which is given every year to the most successful members of the European Parliament in 18 categories. For each of the 18 categories three MEPs were shortlisted.
Borzan won the award in the category of women’s rights and gender equality and she was nominated by 29 women’s rights and gender equality organisations, primarily from Croatia but also from neighbouring countries, as well as by European organisations.
After receiving the award, Borzan called on the Croatian parliament to ratify the Council of Europe Convention on preventing and combating violence against women and domestic violence (Istanbul Convention).
“I believe that it is very important to send a message to Croatia that here in Brussels someone is watching the situation in our country because women’s rights have been increasingly under attack. We need more positive stories. I have been eagerly awaiting the government’s new bill on abortion and have been carefully following the process of ratification of the Istanbul Convention,” said Borzan.
