NGO demands that future government promote gender equality

The Partnership for Development Center calls upon the Alliance for European Integration to observe and promote gender equality by its new government program. The Center formulated a series of recommendations for the Presidential Office, the Government and the Parliament, particularly instituting the post of consultant on issues of gender equality, age and ethnicity at every legislative body, Info-Prim Neo reports. ”Given the political, social and economic changes in Moldova, we consider that the governance should be improved so that the gender equality is promoted and respected,” the NGO says in a letter. According to the Center, the improvements will lead to major changes in the economic, social and political life of the men and women in Moldova. Moreover, Moldova will thus fulfill its international and regional commitments and the recommendations made by the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women. The Partnership for Development Center recommends the Parliament to set up the Group of Women Parliamentarians (according to the model of the Women’s Parliamentary Caucus) so as to emphasize women’s possibilities in discussing and adopting laws and other initiatives and to step up the activities for the promotion of gender equality. According to the Center, there should be set up a subcommission on gender-related matters as part of the parliamentary commission for human rights. The NGO also suggests hastening the adoption of the amendments to the law on the prevention and combating of family violence, of the bill with modifications to the Labor Code by promoting gender equality, etc. The future MPs will have to adopt measures to increase women’s participation in decision making, including by introducing amendments to the Electoral Code and to the law on the insurance of equality of chances between men and women. The Center recommends creating a commission on matters of gender equality, ethnicity and disabled persons under the president of Moldova. It asks the head of state to order an examination of all the documents formulated and/or signed so as to see to which extent they address the issue of gender equality. According to the NGO, the Government should approve a national program on gender equality for 2009-2015 and a plan of action for implementing it for 2009-2011, in close cooperation with the civil society. The Center considers that the gender aspect should be included in the policies on health insurance, maternal mortality and morbidity, with emphasis on the difference between the average length of life of women and men Both the Parliament and the Government are asked to ensure the proportional representativeness of women in the composition of all the decision-making bodies, not only in the areas traditionally considered for women (health, education, social protection). The Center says that the proposed modifications do not need additional budgetary allocations, but political will and commitment to observe gender equality. The NGO sector will monitor how the new government addresses the gender issue.