ROMANIA
Address by H.E. Mrs. Norica
Nicolai, Secretary of State,
Ministry of Labour and
Social Protection of Romania,
on the occasion of the
twenty‑third
special session of the
General Assembly, entitled
"Women 2000: Gender
Equality, Development and Peace in
the XXIst Century".
New York, 5 June 2000
Mr. President,
Excellencies,
Ladies and
Gentlemen,
It is a great honour for me
to take the floor today as representative of my country to the twenty‑third
special session of the General Assembly entitled, in such a challenging way for
us all, "Women 2000: Gender Equality, Development and Peace in the XXI
Century".
My delegation fully
associated itself with the statement delivered this morning by the
distinguished representative of Portugal, on behalf of the European Union.
Therefore, in my intervention, I will touch upon a few aspects of particular
importance for my country.
Five years ago, the Fourth
World Conference on Women (Beijing, 1995) adopted a comprehensive action‑oriented
global strategy for the realisation of the human rights of women, as an
integral part of the universal human rights, for the equal participation of
women in all fields of the social life and for the elimination of the
discrimination based on gender. This international agenda for women has had a
great impact on the policies of governments, international organizations and
civil society all over the world, in terms of thinking and putting in practice
new strategies and solutions for the full achievement of gender equality and
the advancement of women. A new awareness has arised, that sustainable
development can not be achieved without democracy, promotion and protection of
all human rights, gender balance and participation of women, as equal partners,
in all spheres of life.
In many countries of the
world, the implementation of the Beijing Declaration and Programme of Action
was understood as an integral part of the overall democratisation processes,
which created new opportunities for women's equal participation and for the
enjoyment of their human rights.
However, many of the
ambitious goals set up five years ago in Beijing are still to be achieved. We
are gathering these days in New York to reaffirm the full validity of the
Beijing Platform, to give new impetus to national and international relevant
efforts and to adopt, through the Outcome document of the Special Session,
further measures for the implementation of the 12 critical areas of concern in
the Platform for Action.
A renewed commitment to this
cause, through increased dialogue and partnership between Governments,
international organisations and civil society, will stimulate and inspire our
future action in this area.
Mr. President,
Ladies and
Gentlemen,
The Fourth World Conference
on Women has had an essential contribution to the development of the Romanian
policies towards the promotion of the human rights of women and the
implementation of the principle of equal opportunities between men and women.
Specific institutional and legislative steps have been made following the adoption
of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action.
A national machinery aimed
at promoting equal opportunities between men and women was established in
October 1995, in the framework of the Ministry of Labour and Social Protection,
and is meant to address the main challenges pertaining to the situation of
women in Romania: ensuring de facto respect for the principle of non‑discriminatory
access of women to the labour market, improvement of their working conditions,
improvement of the legal framework relevant for the enjoyment of women's human
rights and monitoring of the implementation of this legislation, elaboration,
in cooperation with other governmental and nongovernmental actors, of studies
and assessments of the situation of women and formulation, on this basis, of
adequate action oriented proposals.
The national institutional
framework was gradually developed, so as to involve a wide range of responsible
actors: the Sub‑commission for Equal Opportunities of the Parliament of
Romania, with the participation of parliamentarians from all the political
parties represented in the Parliament; the Department for the Protection of
Children, Women and Family of the institution of the Romanian Ombudsman; the
Commission on Equal Opportunities of the Economic and Social Council, which
brings the issues of gender equality into the agenda of the tripartite
consultations among the social dialogue partners.
Improved coordination and
coherence between all those public authorities responsible with women's issues
are still needed for the successful implementation of policies and measures in
the field of equal opportunities. In this respect, a recent Governmental
Decision establishes an Interministerial Consultative Commission on Equal
Opportunities between men and women, which is expected to substantively
contribute to mainstreaming a gender perspective into all sectorial policies
and programmes.
Among recent legislative
measures, aiming at promoting equal opportunities, an equal sharing of
responsibilities within the family, as well as supporting the conciliation of
the family life with the professional one, I would like to mention the draft
Law on equal opportunities, which prohibits and punishes direct or indirect
discrimination based on gender, in the labour field, as well as the Law on
paternal leave which aims at increasing the role of men in the rearing and
education of the child. Both these laws, drafted in the process of
harmonisation of our national legislation with the European Union's
legislation, are currently in different stages of the parliamentarian
procedure.
Let me now turn briefly to
an area of concern for all of us, namely the phenomenon of the domestic
violence, which, due to its reduced visibility, is still very difficult to
prevent, alleviate and control. Steps have been made in this direction,
especially through the establishement, in close partnership with Romanian
NGO's, of a Pilot Center of Assistance to Victims of Family Violence.
Amendments have been also proposed to the Criminal Code, in order to penalize
explicitly the domestic violence. However, there are still mentalities and
traditional behaviours regarding the status of women which need to be addressed
through the cooperation of central and local authorities, communities and civil
society.
Increased cooperation at
national and international level is also required in order to prevent and
combat phenomena such as forced prostitution and traficking of women and girls.
We are very much encouraged
by the increased role of Romanian nongovernmental organizations, in raising
the awareness about women's issues, especially in the field of civil and
political rights, economic participation, development of business
opportunities, health care, reproductive rights and family planning. Their dynamic
and innovative spirit gives us confidence in the future of the dialogue and
partnership between government and the civil society in the benefit of women's
rights.
An evaluation of progress in
my country in the field of the advancement of women since 1995 shows a number
of encouraging evolutions and trends. A particular reference should be made in
this respect to the development of the private sector and the solid presence of
women at the managerial level. Women are valuable and competitive partners in sectors
such as trade, banking, health, education, culture, new technologies,
journalism, to mention only a few of the areas where women bring their
important contribution.
At the same time, we must
not forget that women are also the most affected by economic hardships,
reduction in social security, unemployment, be it their own or their family
members' unemployment, or by different forms of violence.
Measures are still needed to
stimulate and support the political participation of women, to ensure a greater
presence of women in power and decision‑making, with positive influence upon
reforms designed to benefit them.
Mr. President,
Ladies and Gentlemen,
Without an active and direct
involvement of women in democratic processes, development and peace, the objectives
of the Platform of Action will remain mere aspirations.
We have to join our efforts
to build societies based on equality and full participation of women and men,
tolerance and respect for women's human rights.
I take this opportunity to
reaffirm Romania's commitment to continue its efforts to overcome obstacles and
undertake further actions for the full and accelerated implementation of the
Beijing Platform for Action.
Thank you for your
attention.