Croatia is eagerly awaiting the gender equality strategy and its binding measures on pay transparency, which the European Commission is due to present on 26 February. Especially since, as the Croatian Minister for Family Affairs, Vesna Bedeković, acknowledged in the European Parliament committee on Thursday 23 January, the proposal on quotas for women on the Boards of Directors of listed companies is totally blocked in the EU Council.
Little hope on quotas for women
The Croatian Minister of Family, Youth and Social Policy was at the Parliamentary Committee on Women's Rights to present her country's priorities for the next 6 months. She stressed the importance of enabling more women to enter the labour market, indicating that Zagreb was planning a conference on this topic in January and EU Council conclusions during the semester.
In response to a request from parliamentary committee Chair, Evelyn Regner, she also expressed scepticism about unblocking the directive on quotas for women on Boards of Directors. “The dossier has been blocked for 2 years and there is no new debate in the EU Council. The document is ready, but at the moment there is no reason to believe that the blocking Member States will change their minds. We'll keep an eye on it and if things change, we'll play our role”, said Vesna Bedeković.
Concerns about sexual and reproductive rights
The Minister was also confronted with the concerns of MEPs, notably those of Gwendoline Delbos-Corfield (Greens/EFA, France) and María Eugenia Rodríguez Palop (GUE-NGL, Spain). “The insistence on demographics raises fears of attacks on sexual rights for a controlled demographic”, the Frenchwoman said. And Mrs Rodriguez Palop asked: “Are you on the same page as Mr Orbán?”, before continuing on to denounce the deteriorating situation in Croatia and pointing out that migration could be a solution to the current demographic decline.
“There is a demographic shift that poses real challenges. All Member States are faced with this. But the situation is very heterogeneous. We therefore need flexible solutions that are tailored to national and even regional realities”, the Minister replied. As for sexual and reproductive rights, on which Parliament is planning to adopt a non-legislative own-initiative report, the Minister kicked into touch: “Here, I represent the Presidency-in-Office, not the Croatian Ministry, not my country”, she replied, stressing that women's right to self-determination and self-management of their bodies were fundamental principles to be respected. (Original version in French by Sophie Petitjean)