EWL News

News typewritter Latest news from the European Women’s Lobby in Brussels

EWL News
European Commissioners should support Reding’s effort to introduce a binding legislation on quotas, says EWL

Posted on 24 July 2012 |

[Brussels, 24 July 2012] The EWL welcomes the efforts that are being made by DG Justice, and especially, Commissioner Ms. Viviane Reding, leading a legislative process aiming at introducing binding measures at European level to achieve the equal representation of women and men on corporate boards; and has called to every Commissioner to give his/her support and being engaged to the initiative.
Following the 2011 European Parliament Report on Women and Business Leadership, which called on (...) Read more
EWL News
Slovenia - EWL members meet with national Olympic Committee

Posted on 23 July 2012 |

[Brussels, 23 July 2012] EWL President Sonja Lokar and Slovenian Women’s Lobby President Metka Roksandi? met on 10 July with the President of the Olympic Committee in Slovenia in order to convey EWL demands for equality at the Olympic Games.
The President of the Olympic Committee of Slovenia, Phd Janez Kociajn?i?, issued a press release after the meeting, in which he acknowledged the role of the EWL in putting the issue of gender equality in sport on the agenda. He also stated that "In the (...) Read more
EWL News
Serbia - National Olympic Committee takes stock of EWL demands for equality in sport

Posted on 23 July 2012 |

[Brussels, 23 July 2012] The EWL’s call for equality in the framework of the Olympic Games was this week presented to the President of the Commission “Women and Sport” of the Serbian Olympic Committee Milena Reljin Tati?, thanks to Dragana Petrovic and Lola Milojevic.
Dragana Petrovic, former Vice President of the Gender Equality Council and gender expert, and Lola Milojevic, gender expert as well as sport activist and expert, informed Ms. Reljin about the initiative of the EWL for the (...) Read more
EWL News
Belgium - Reform of nationality law will make things more difficult for women, say EWL members

Posted on 20 July 2012 |

[Brussels, 20 July 2012] The Belgian women’s association Femmes Prévoyantes Socialistes, a member of the Belgian Coordination for the EWL, has condemned in a press release a government agreeement for new rules regarding the acquisition of Belgian nationality. Economic criteria have been introduced and put women at a disadvantage.
The six ruling parties came to an agreement to reduce the number of administrative procedures which allow foreigners to apply for Belgian nationality and (...) Read more
EWL News
EWL puts prostitution and trafficking on the agenda in Bulgaria

Posted on 19 July 2012 |

[Brussels, 19 July 2012] The EWL and the Bulgarian Women’s Lobby last week organised in Sofia a European conference on ‘Trafficking in women and prostitution: Bulgarian and European perspectives’. The high-level conference attracted a substantial amount of media attention, ensuring widespread visibility and debate on this important issue.
On this occasion, EWL Policy Officer and Project Coordinator Pierrette Pape presented the European Women’s Lobby’s approach to trafficking in women and (...) Read more
EWL News
EWL condemns Ashton’s stand against quotas for EEAS staff

Posted on 18 July 2012 |

[Brussels, 17 July 2012] Commission Vice-President Catherine Ashton this week took a stance against quotas, in a move which could undermine recent efforts of the European Commission to increase women’s representation on boards.
In reply to a written parliamentary question, Catherine Ashton, High Representative for the Foreign Affairs and Security Policy as well as Vice-President of the Commission, declared that she would not apply quotas to the EU’s External Action Service (EEAS). This (...) Read more
EWL News
EWL calls on EU to promote equal sharing rather than privitisation of care

Posted on 16 July 2012 |

[Brussels, 16 July 2012] The EWL welcomes the European Commission’s proposal to address the issue of personal and household services, a sector where employment is predominantly female. However, the EWL is deeply concerned that the way in which the issue is framed relates merely to cost effectiveness and the reduction of undeclared work.
The EWL last week sent its Contribution responding the EC Public Consultation on the staff working document “Exploiting the employment potential of the (...) Read more
EWL News
EWL members meet with the President of the Macedonian Olympic Committee

Posted on 16 July 2012 |

[Brussels, 16 July 2012] Executive Director of the Macedonian Women’s Lobby Daniela Dimitrievska met today with the President of the Macedonian Olympic Committee, Mr. Vasil Tupurkovski, in order to present the seven recommendations of the campaign initiated by the EWL Coordination in France ‘London 2012 Olympics: Justice for Women’.
All seven recommendations are based on the principles established by the Olympic Charter including the rejection of sex-based or gender-based discrimination; the (...) Read more
EWL News
Spain - Good work-life balance: for whom and at what price?

by Sociologist Lourdes Pastor Martinez

Posted on 12 July 2012 |

[Madrid, 12 July 2012] Although today isn’t 25 November (the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women), nor 08 March (International Women’s Day), on this very ordinary July day Spanish public television has decided to dedicate a little viewing time to women.
A news item broadcast today celebrates the sucess of work-life balance. Curiously, and much to my regret, all the people who appear in the report are women, with the notable exception of two men, managers of large (...) Read more
EWL News
EWL calls on Commission to learn from failed attempt to make science more "girly"

Posted on 6 July 2012 |

[Brussels, 06 July 2012] The EWL has written to the European Commission following the rapid removal of its video clip ‘Science: It’s a girl thing!’ due to overwhelming popular outrage at its sexist content. The video clip, designed to attract more women into careers in science, featured three seductive young girls laughing and posing amid test tubes and microscopes full of the basic materials of make-up and nail polish. The EWL has called for more effective gender mainstreaming in all the work (...) Read more