Brussels, 17/11/2009 (Agence Europe) - Some 300 participants representing governments, the European Commission, civil society, the social partners, the business sector and the media gathered in Stockholm on Monday 16 and Tuesday 17 to discuss how to cooperate on equal rights and opportunities (see EUROPE 10017). At the same time, negotiations chaired by the Swedish Presidency on a new anti-discrimination directive are ongoing. This new legislative text, part of the social agenda renewed for the 21st century, which was adopted by the European Commission on 2 July 2008, will seek to ban discrimination on the grounds of disability, age, religion or belief, and sexual orientation in situations not covered by existing EC rules, that is, outside the area of employment (see EUROPE 9695 and 9693). The Equality summit highlighted a range of issues, including diversity in the public and private sectors and how cooperation between the various players can be improved, said the joint organisers, the Swedish Presidency and the Commission, in a joint press release, indicating that specific attention was given to the situation of the Roma and LBGT (lesbian, bisexual, gay and transsexual) issues.
“Europe should be characterised by openness, respect and equal rights and opportunities for all in society. We still face major challenges today, not least violations of the rights of the Roma and of LBGT people,” said Swedish Integration and Gender Equality Minister Nyamko Sabuni. “Discrimination is still a problem in the EU - 16% of people report experiencing it in the last year - and Europeans fear it could get worse with the economic downturn,” said Equal Opportunities Commissioner Vladimir Špidla. “We have a strong legal framework to tackle discrimination in Europe, but we need to continue our efforts to make sure that people know their rights to equal treatment and can use them in practice. And we need the skills of everyone to overcome this crisis: an equal opportunities workplace is good for both workers and business,” he added.
ETUC and Social Platform call for more effective measures
In their joint statement, entitled “Fight discrimination and guarantee equality for all”, presented at the Equality summit in Stockholm on 16-17 November, the European Trade Union Confederation (ETUC) and the Social Platform of social NGOs call on decision makers to take more effective measures to tackle discrimination. In their view, equality and non-discrimination policies are indispensible ingredients of any sustainable perspective for economies, societies and labour markets in member states and the European Union. The two organisations, then, urge decision makers to take action on the following six points: (1) ensure the adoption by the European Council of the proposed Article 13 Directive which protects against discrimination on the grounds of age, disability, religion or belief, and sexual orientation in all areas of life; (2) tackle remaining gender gaps in gender equality policies and legislation and ensure effective implementation of gender mainstreaming in all EU policies; (3) mainstream equality in all EU policies; (4) invest in strong social policies and public services that support equality; (5) develop rights-based migration and integration policies; (6) work in strong partnership with trade unions and civil society organisations at European and national levels. (G.B./transl.rt)