International norms hit Portuguese organizations work on domestic violence against women

Pereira Guerreiro, Alexandra Isabel

4. term

Development and International Relations, Master

2019

58

This thesis examines how international norms have shaped the work of Portuguese civil society organizations addressing domestic violence against women. Grounded in social constructivism and the Europeanization of norms, it analyzes the diffusion of human rights–based standards from bodies such as the UN, Council of Europe, and EU into national practice. The study uses a qualitative design combining literature and document review with semi-structured interviews with staff from three feminist NGOs—MDM (prevention and awareness), AMCV (victim protection), and PpDM (coordination and advocacy)—with additional insights from youth-focused organizations (AFP and Graal). The analysis finds that international cooperation and EU support have helped develop protective and preventive systems and align NGO strategies, yet persistent patriarchal social norms continue to hinder progress. A key gap identified is the limited prioritization of education as a countermeasure to reshape gender norms. The thesis highlights similarities and differences in how organizations translate international norms into campaigns and services and points to areas where national efforts could be strengthened.

Dette speciale undersøger, hvordan internationale normer har formet portugisiske civilsamfundsorganisationers arbejde med vold i hjemmet mod kvinder. Med udgangspunkt i social konstruktivisme og europæisering analyserer studiet, hvordan menneskerettighedsbaserede standarder fra bl.a. FN, Europarådet og EU spredes til national praksis. Undersøgelsen anvender en kvalitativ tilgang med litteratur- og dokumentgennemgang samt semistrukturerede interviews med medarbejdere fra tre feministiske NGO’er—MDM (forebyggelse og oplysning), AMCV (beskyttelse af ofre) og PpDM (koordination og fortalervirksomhed)—suppleret med indsigter fra ungdomsrettede organisationer (AFP og Graal). Analysen peger på, at internationalt samarbejde og EU-støtte har bidraget til at udvikle beskyttende og forebyggende indsatser og til at ensrette NGO’ernes strategier, men at vedvarende patriarkalske sociale normer fortsat hæmmer fremskridt. Et centralt hul er den begrænsede prioritering af uddannelse som modforanstaltning til at ændre kønsnormer. Specialet fremhæver ligheder og forskelle i, hvordan organisationerne omsætter internationale normer til kampagner og services, og peger på områder, hvor nationale indsatser kan styrkes.

[This apstract has been generated with the help of AI directly from the project full text]

domestic violence against women ; Europeanization ; social norms ; international relations ; Portugal ; channels ; norms diffusion ; discourses ; humanitarian norms ; social development

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