The "women’s lobby"” “

As Women’s Day on 8th March approaches, we examined EU policy on equal opportunities with Fiona McPhail , secretary general of the “European Women’s Lobby”, the largest coalition of women’s organizations in Europe, founded in 1990 and comprising over 3000 women’s groups in the fifteen member states. What’s the current situation of equality between man and woman in Europe? “There is undoubtedly still a long way to go: one woman out of five in the EU suffers violence from men; there are more women than men living below the poverty threshold; 83 women out of 100 receive a lower wage than men for doing the same work; and women form the majority of those occupying less well paid, less skilled or part-time jobs. Also at the level of social protection and health care, many women only benefit if they are married”. What are the possible future developments? “The only solution consists in reinforcing the existing legislative provisions. The new directive on equality of treatment in employment, vocational training, promotion and general conditions of work, currently in phase of preparation, ought to enter into force in June this year. But regulation is also needed on matters concerning education, health care, mainstreaming (i.e. the integration of equal opportunities in all EU policies). Equal opportunities must be considered a fundamental right, and as such incorporated into the new Treaty”. What are the main objectives of the future activity of the “European Women’s Lobby”? “There’s a need for a radical change in approach, also to legislate on violence against women, the trade in women and prostitution. The European Women’s Lobby will also dedicate its efforts to reconciling family life with women’s work, which is perhaps the most significant area and one that also involves the feelings of men”.