Addressing parliamentarians from all over the world, Gojkovic said that achieving gender equality is the best way to combat violence, pointing out that the biggest obstacles to achieving complete equality between the sexes are prejudice, stereotypes and economic inequality.

“A comprehensive improvement of the standards of living and regulation of our societies is the cornerstone of achieving gender equality and ending violence against women”, stressed Gojkovic, adding that these challenges can only be overcome by progressive reform policies.

Gojkovic said that the Serbian Assembly has recognised the need to bolster gender equality pointing out that women make up more than a third of the current parliamentary legislature in Serbia and head eight of the 20 parliamentary committees.

This year’s autumn session of the Inter-Parliamentary Union is attended by 744 parliamentarians from 141 countries, including 144 parliament speakers and their deputies from all over the world.