EWL holds General Assembly in Brussels, 3-5 June 2016

Published onJune 16, 2016

[Brussels, 16 June 2016] From 3 to 5 June, the European Women’s Lobby held its Annual General Assembly and Board meetings. It was an exciting few days in which we discussed how to progress in the implementation of our vision of a Feminist Europe. We said an emotional farewell to our outgoing President Viviane Teitelbaum, who has served as President for the past 4 years. She will continue her feminist engagement as President of the Conseil des Femmes Francophones de Belgique (one half of our Belgian member). Elections for a new President, Executive Committee and Board On 5 June, our Board elected a new President and Executive Committee. President: Edith Schratzberger-Vecsei, Chair of the Medical Women International Association, a practicing doctor and psychotherapist from Vienna was elected President of the EWL. She has already served as Vice President during the past 2 years. In a first reaction EWL new President said “I am looking forward to working together with all of you and together we will make sure that EWL continues to be the voice of the women in Europe, campaigning for a Feminist Europe.” A new Executive Committee was elected comprising, in addition to our new President, Edith Schratzberger –Vecsei, the following officers and members: Vice-Presidents

Iliana Balabanova-Stoycheva, Bulgaria
Elvy Karolina Svennerstål, Sweden

Treasurer

Annelies Pierrot-Bults, University Women of Europe

Members of the Executive

Laura Albu, Romania
Eilís Canny, Ireland
Barbara Cleary, UK Joint Committee on Women

The General Assembly also elected a new Board which will serve for the coming 2 years:

Board 2016 – 2018 National coordinations

Board 2016 2018 EU wide organisations

#ourfuturestartsnow

EWL 2017 work programme The General Assembly discussed and approved our activity report and accounts for 2015, and an exciting work programme for 2017 was debated and approved. The 2017 work programme is based on the 8 goals of EWL Strategic Framework and will be online soon. Emergency Motions We also debated and passed 2 emergency motions: 1. “Creating a working group of EWL members in the Mediterranean countries.” “We propose that the EWL member organisations present in the countries which are part of the Union for the Mediterranean organize themselves in the EWL and build a working group to think and exchange about suitable practices reinforcing women role in society. This group will propose a shadow report offsetting the governmental reports the 43 countries of the UfM have to present in 2017 as required by the evaluation of the Paris Declaration.” 2. “Promotion of women protection in EU and UN refugee policies” “We, the EWL, request the following urgent actions:

• that EU Member States should increase the number of UNHCR quota refugees and give priority to women within the quota system;
• that EU Member States implement the principle of family unification upheld in the UN Refugee Convention of 1951, in order that mothers, sisters and daughters of men refugees travel to Europe safely and avoid becoming victims of human traffickers;
• that EU Member States apply the principle of human rights to women refugees and children including internally displaced persons (IDP), taking into account especially women’s asylum claims, including child, early and forced marriages, as contained in international instruments such as CEDAW and the Convention on the Rights of the Child;
• that EU Member States implement EU law dealing with asylum, including relevant Directives on gender and women’s rights.”

More pictures and detailed info on the new board members will be online soon!

Board 2016 - 2018 National coordinations

WEBINAR: Towards a Safer Digital Space for Women and Girls Combatting Cyber Violence

EWL Contribution to the EU Civil Society Strategy

SRHR

Sign the petition - $10 Million worth of contraceptives set to burn by Trump Administration

Share article