Brussels, 06/02/2009 (Agence Europe) - On Tuesday 3 February, the European Parliament decided to follow the Greens/EFA Group by adopting (358 votes in favour, 271 against and 28 abstentions) the alternative resolution submitted to the report by Anna Zaborska (EPP-ED, Slovakia) on non-discrimination based on gender and intergenerational solidarity. The resolution was submitted by Monica Frassoni, Hiltrud Breyer, Raül Romeva i Rueda and Heide Rühle.
The Parliament thus rejected the own-initiative report by Ms Zaborska, which had been adopted in the parliamentary committee on womens' rights/equal opportunities (with the disagreement of the Greens/EFA), the key messages of which are: (1) the concept of intergenerational solidarity is not limited to childcare alone but also extends to responsibility for the elderly and dependent, contributing to respect for human dignity and its promotion among future generations; and (2) persons who devote their time and skills to looking after and bringing up children or caring for the elderly should receive social recognition and this could be done by giving such persons individual rights, particularly regarding social security and pensions.
Following the Greens/EFA, the Parliament placed emphasis on childcare, calling on the member states to meet their commitments taken in this field during the European Council in Barcelona in 2002 - i.e. to introduce by 2010 childcare for 90% of children between three years old and the mandatory school age and for at least 33% of children under 3 years old. The Parliament also fears that the Czech EU Presidency's proposal for childcare as a “fully fledged alternative to a professional career” is geared towards the traditional division of labour between men and women, this being a real step backward. This, the Parliament says, is the “the traditional concept of a worker being male, available on a full-time basis, whose personal needs are taken care of by 'invisible' hands (women) organising the home and the family”. It is very concerned by the fact that, especially in times of economic recession, the Czech Presidency's proposal forces women to give up their jobs in order to follow their “natural path”, i.e. to look after children and other dependents. The Parliament also calls on the European Commission to present a new directive regarding specific rights and safeguards in relation to the reconciliation of working and family life where there are dependent family members (children, elderly and disabled people). (G.B./transl.jl)