Gleichberechtigung: weiter entfernt, als wir denken?

On March 8th we celebrated international Women's Day. In many countries it is a holiday to commemorate the social, economic, cultural and political successes of women. Although there are many progress in the women's movement, there are still many obstacles to equality between women and men. The wage gap and political representation in particular are still major challenges.

Success of equality and women's rights in Europe

In Europe, considerable progress in equality and women's rights have been made in Europe. A number of laws, including the law on equality for gender, was issued in many European countries in order to combat discrimination based on gender and to promote equal opportunities. Gender mainstreaming, the integration of the gender perspective into all other policy areas, as well as special measures to promote women were also implemented.

A positive trend is the increasing number of women on the labor market and its progress in terms of education and training. In some countries, the majority of university graduates are female.

Challenges of equality and women's rights in Europe

Despite these successes, there are still challenges in equality and women's rights in Europe. Women are still overrepresented in poorly paid sectors and underrepresented in decision -making positions, which leads to a gender -specific wage gap. Gender violence against women and girls is still widespread. Women earn 14.1% less than men in the European Union, and in some countries the salary difference is even greater.

Goals of equality and women's rights in Europe

In order to address these challenges and further progress in equality and women's rights in Europe, the EU introduced the strategy for gender equality in 2020-2025 in 2020. The strategy pursues the goal of creating a union of equality in which women and men are free in all their diversity to pursue their chosen path in life, have equal opportunities and can equally participate in our European society.

The strategy includes various measures to promote gender equality in five key areas: termination of gender -based violence, challenge of gender -specific stereotypes, closure of gender -specific gaps on the labor market, achievement of the same participation in various economic sectors, closure of gender gaps in payment and pension as well as closing the gender -specific Supervision gap and achievement of a gender balance in decision -making and in politics.

The dangerous life of many women

There are terrifying numbers and facts about brutal reality that are exposed to women in many countries. It is reported that one of three women worldwide experiences violence during their lives. This is a shocking statistics that illustrates how deeply rooted the problem of violence against women in our society.

The location is even worse in some countries. For example, it is reported that a woman is raped every hour in India. This is an alarming fact that shows how dangerous it is for women to go on the street alone or how difficult it is to even be safe in your own home.

But women are not only exposed to violence in India. The situation is particularly serious in Afghanistan. There, women not only often become victims of sexual violence, but also by forced marriage and honor murders. This is a horrific reality that women in this country have to experience every day.

Women are also extremely endangered in other countries such as the Congo and Nigeria. In the Congo, for example, there are reports of rape as a weapon of war in which women are systematically raped in order to humiliate and dehuman. Many no longer think of education because it is neglected or even forbidden anyway.

Equality in Switzerland

Switzerland has made considerable progress in the legal equality between men and women in recent decades. As early as 1971, the right to vote and voting for women at the national level was introduced, followed by the anchoring of equality in the Federal Constitution in 1981. Article 8 (3) calls for the legal and actual equality of men and women, especially in family, training and training and Work.

An important milestone was also the accession of Switzerland to the UN Convention to Eliminate any form of discrimination against women (CEDAW) in 1997. Further legal changes such as the 1996 Equal Opportunities Act, which prohibits discrimination in working life and promotes equal opportunities in professional life at strengthening the legal equality between man and woman in Switzerland.

Challenges that you have to face

Despite this progress, however, there is still a considerable need for action in the actual equality between men and women in Switzerland. Women are still underrepresented in many areas, including economy, science, administration, politics and the public, and occupy less influential positions than men. According to a study by the Federal Office for Statistics, the gender Pay GAP in Switzerland is still 12.1% and there are still obstacles for women to rise in management positions.

Another challenge for the actual equality is the unequal distribution of unpaid work in the household and family. Women still do most of this work, which limits their career opportunities and financial independence. The introduction of legislative measures to promote the compatibility of family and work as well as to reduce the gender -specific division of labor would be an important step to improve actual equality in Switzerland.

Another important event that fueled the discussion about the actual equality in Switzerland was the 2019 women's strike. On June 14 of the same year, women strike across the country to draw attention to the continuing inequalities and discrimination and the government to implement the implementation of Drain measures for actual equality.

Women's rights in Germany

Furthermore, we take a closer look at the situation in Germany. When it comes to equality, there is still a few rooms upwards, especially at the workplace.

Wage gap

The wage gap between women and men is still a big problem. According to the State Office for Statistics in Lower Saxony, women earned 18% less than men in 2022. In Bremen, the wage gap was even 20 percent. The later the Equal Pay Day takes place in the year, the greater the wage inequality. The day symbolically stands for the wage gap.

It is important to close the wage gap to achieve equality between women and men. Women should receive the same high salaries as men for the same work. The German Trade Union Confederation also calls for better payment of professions that are mainly exercised by women, such as care and day care centers. If women are paid fairly for their work, this can also help to get into the labor market.

Political representation

Another challenge for equality between women and men is political representation. Although women in many countries have the right to vote, they are often underrepresented. In Lower Saxony, women are also significantly underrepresented in the current state parliament with a share of around 36 percent. 

It is important that women are represented in political decision -making processes. Women have different experiences and perspectives that they can bring in political decisions. If women are represented in politics, they can also ensure that political decisions take into account the interests of women.

Equality and women's rights in Romania

In Romania, women have experienced significant progress in relation to their rights and equality in recent years. Nevertheless, there are still many challenges in this country that have to be mastered.

An important step towards equality was the adoption of the Equal Opportunities Act in 2020, which prohibits the discrimination against women due to their gender in all areas of public life. The law also stipulates that women have to fill at least 40% of the jobs in management positions and in the public service.

However, the numbers show that there is still a lot of work to do. In Romania, women still earn 11% less than men on average, which is due to gender differences in labor market practice. In addition, unemployment in women is higher than in men, and women are more often affected by poverty than men.

Another problem is violence against women, especially domestic violence. According to a survey, almost 30% of women in Romania have experienced violence in their relationship. Fortunately, the government has taken measures to tackle this problem by issuing laws that improve the protection of victims of domestic violence and punish the perpetrators.

Despite this progress, the gender equality in Romania remains a challenge that must continue to be addressed. The government and society as a whole have to continue to promote equality of women by ensuring that women in all areas of life have the same opportunities and opportunities as men.

Conclusion

Equality between women and men is an important goal that - supposedly even 132 years - seems to be far away. In particular, the wage gap and political representation are challenges that still need to be addressed. We all have to work for women and men to be equal and that women have the same opportunities as men.

Sources

Written by Mara Schär

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