Abstract
Gender stereotyping is recognised as a challenge by major international organisations. Various policies and legally binding instruments have been introduced to tackle it. Despite these commitments gender stereotyping continues to persist, putting their effectiveness in question. However, gender stereotyping has not sparked a notable debate in legal scholarship and this project addresses this gap. This interdisciplinary thesis studies how the biggest European human rights organisation, the Council of Europe (CoE), problematises gender stereotypes in its legal and policy work. The Council is strongly understudied, and this thesis contributes to filling this gap. This thesis employs political science methods to legal analysis and contributes to legal and political scholarship. Thanks to feminist legal theory and feminist institutionalism, this project critiques the transformative potential of law and recognises that legal norms can mirror and reinforce dominant patriarchal power structures. With the “What’s the problem represented to be?” approach to policy analysis, it examines how the “problem” of gender stereotyping is constructed by the CoE. Therefore, this thesis rejects the idea that the organisation reacts to an “objective” problem but is shaping it itself. The sample consists of 82 non-binding instruments and the legally binding Istanbul Convention. This project uncovered four aspects of problematisation of gender stereotyping by the CoE. Firstly, that it is represented as having damaging impact. Secondly, mostly women are considered to be affected. Thirdly, compounded gender stereotypes are addressed rarely. Lastly, the organisation does not see gender stereotyping as inevitable but offers an array of solutions. This thesis proposes recommendations for drafting anti-stereotyping instruments. In short, organisations should name gender stereotyping more often while ensuring that their approach does not reproduce patriarchal structures instead of dismantling them. Moreover, anti-stereotyping provisions should be more detailed to highlight the negative effects of stereotypes but also provide more guidance in implementing solutions.