In a debate in plenary on Wednesday 25 October, the European Parliament firmly condemned sexual harassment in general and at the European Parliament in particular. A common resolution in favour of an EU directive against gender-based violence will be put to the vote on 26 October.
The MEPs put the subject on the agenda for the plenary following the Weinstein scandal in the United States and people revealing that they have been abused using the #MeToo hashtag, but they moved the debate to a more visible time given the raft of articles in the media about cases of sexual harassment at the European Parliament itself. The website Politico.eu talks about more than 30 allegations of rape, aggression and sexual harassment at the European Parliament.
In this connection, the MEPs took to the floor to denounce sexual harassment, which affects half of women in the EU. Some focused in their speeches on the situation of the most vulnerable, refugees and domestic workers, for instance, while others, like Karima Delli (Greens/EFA, France), called on the European Parliament to clean up at home. We should all say #MeToo said Beatriz Becerra Basterrechea (ALDE, Spain), wearing a T-shirt with this hashtag.
An email to all MEPs
Édouard Martin (S&D, France) said there was not any more harassment at the European Parliament than elsewhere. Along with other MEPs, parliamentary assistants and policy advisors from the S&D, Greens/EFA, GUE-NGL and ALDE, he is co-signatory to an email to this effect sent to all MEPs. The email calls for an external audit to be commissioned on sexual harassment at the European Parliament. It also calls for a special committee to be set up on sexual harassment, comprising a legal advisor and representatives of medical staff, to investigate formal cases, keep a confidential register of harassment and ensure zero tolerance at all levels of the European Parliament.
This demand was made during the plenary and was firmly rejected by EPP MEP Élisabeth Morin-Chartier (France) who chairs the EP’s committee for tackling sexual harassment. She said sexual harassment is psychological too and therefore a separate body did not need to be set up. Instead, she recommends setting up a network of people of confidence with whom victims can speak freely.
Resolution expected on 26 October
The MEPs are expected to decide on Thursday on a common resolution calling for an EU directive against all types of violence against women and girls or other gender-based violence and a European strategy in this domain. The resolution also calls on the Council to activate the bridge clause by adopting a unanimous decision to identify violence against women and girls (and other forms of sexist violence) as a crime under Article 83, paragraph 1, of the EU treaty. (Original version in French by Sophie Petitjean)