The European Network of Migrant Women (ENoMW) has submitted a detailed Explanatory Memo in response to the Council of Europe’s Draft Feasibility Study on Preventing and Combating Intersectional Discrimination. The memo raises critical concerns about the study’s conceptual and legal approach, particularly the failure to recognise sex as a foundational ground of structural oppression.
Grounded in international human rights instruments such as CEDAW and the Istanbul Convention, the memo outlines the need for legal and policy frameworks that:
- Clearly distinguish between sex, gender, and gender identity to uphold existing protections for women and girls
- Recognise sex as a material and non-interchangeable category in law and data collection
- Anchor intersectionality in sex-based analysis, not vague or fluid identity markers
- Protect sex-based language and terminology to ensure legal clarity and accountability
- Include the voices of women speaking from sex-based perspectives in all knowledge and policy processes
The memo emphasises that meaningful intersectional approaches must centre the material realities of sex-based oppression and ensure that legal protections are not diluted by conceptual ambiguity.