Belgium - Women’s organisations establish a Feminist Socio-Economic Platform

[Brussels, 25 January 2013] The Feminist Socio-Economic Platform was set up by a board alliance of 21 French-speaking and Dutch-speaking women’s organisations [[The organisations include : ABVV/FGTB ; Action Chrétienne Rurale des Femmes (ACRF) ; ACV/CSC ; asbl Flora vzw ; Centre Féminin d’Éducation Permanente (CFEP) ; Comité de Liaison des Femmes ; Conseil des femmes francophones de Belgique ; Ella ; Femmes et Santé ASBL ; Genderatwork ; FEMMA ; La Voix des Femmes ; Les Femmes Prévoyantes Socialistes ; Le Monde selon les femmes ; Marche Mondiale des Femmes / Wereldvrouwenmars ; Nederlandstalige Vrouwenraad ; Synergie Wallonie pour l’égalité entre les Femmes et les Hommes ; Vie Féminine ; VIVA-SVV ; Vrouwen Overleg Komitee ; 29, Rue Blanche ASBL]] to draw attention to the impact of the government’s economic policies on women and gender equality. Increasingly budgetary decisions are being made to reduce public deficits, putting extensive pressure on governments to revise their budgetary policies, all which is happening in the absence of a gender equality framework. The Feminist Socio-Economic Platform calls on the government to commit to identifying the gender impact of socio-economic measures and to rectify these and to cushion what may seem to be ‘gender neutral’ policies when in fact they are contributing to greater gender inequalities. The Feminist Socio-Economic Platform calls on the government to apply its own rules in line with the law, adopted in 2007, on gender mainstreaming and to apply this to budgetary measures to determine how budget and financial decisions are impacting on women and men. But five years later, this law has yet to be fully implemented and the Platform is calling for an audit to be carried out to determine the costs of the crisis on women and men. The organisations remain vigilant and are closely monitoring the gender implication of current reforms being implemented to revise unemployment conditions, « credit time » schemes, social inclusion benefits, pension reforms and part-time work and have been invited to discuss these with the Minister responsible for Gender Equality. Contacts have also been made with the ministries of Employment and Pensions. The Feminist Socio-Economic Platform is also calling for a structured consultation on all portfolios that relate to women and gender equality. For more information, contact : Hafida Bachir, Presidente-nationale@viefeminine.be

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