Gonzi hits out at opposition attitude

Social Policy Minister Lawrence Gonzi hit out at the opposition's reaction to the gender equality bill at the end of the second reading debate on the bill in parliament yesterday.

Dr Gonzi said the opposition's criticism was unfair and confrontational even though the two sides agreed on the bill in principle.

The opposition had said the bill was half baked, yet when the bill was published in draft form in a White Paper eight months ago, the opposition had not said a word.

It was not true that the government had ignored the work done by the former Labour government in this sector. Indeed, as the White Paper itself said, that work was followed up. Dr Gonzi tabled a report by a working group drawn up at the time of the former Labour government, and said he would challenge anyone to say what had been omitted in this bill.

Neither was it true that this bill incorporated only EU directives, as the opposition had claimed. Indeed, the provisions of several other international conventions, including the UN convention on discrimination against women, had also found their way into the bill.

Dr Gonzi said the government disagreed with what was apparently the opposition's position that there should be one law grouping all areas dealing with the elimination of discrimination and the promotion of equality. The concept of gender mainstreaming meant that when one, for example, enacted an employment law, it should be that law which included provisions to eliminate discrimination and promoted equality in the employment sector, as in fact had been the case in Malta.

Laws on all matters should within themselves provide for gender mainstreaming. This was also the thinking internationally. All ministries and departments had a role in gender mainstreaming, and not just the Ministry of Social Policy.

This bill, however, set up the national machinery needed to enable the government to ensure there was gender mainstreaming across the board and to act when there were complaints of discrimination and harassment, wherever they occurred.

Dr Gonzi said that while much remained to be done to bring about gender equality, progress was being made. Women's participation in the labour sector was rising. The female labour supply in the four years up to 2001 had risen from 37,000 to just under 41,000. The number of full-time gainfully occupied women had risen from 36,000 to 40,000, the fastest rate of growth ever, and more women were now working in direct production, services, the public sector and as self-employed.

Much headway had been made in the civil service agreement signed four years ago, and the innovations that agreement had introduced would gradually be extended to the private sector, Dr Gonzi said.

Opposition leader Alfred Sant, who spoke on Monday, said the bill fell far short of what could really be done.

The bill was an example of how things should not be done, having ignored preparatory work that had already been done by the former Labour government in the sphere of gender equality.

The title of the bill was misleading in giving the impression that it sought to foster gender equality; in fact it was simply tackling some forms of gender discrimination, especially against women.

Between 1996 and 1998 Labour had addressed the situation even through the setting up of a parliamentary secretariat to redress gender discrimination. It had been expected that the post-1998 government would have taken up the cue on the work that had already been done.

The drafting committee under Labour had carried out a survey of the laws on gender equality in several European countries and the USA. The resulting proposals were not only in line with the EU but went much further to address Malta's needs.

Dr Sant said the opposition would be voting in favour of the bill, but only because it contained aspects that Labour had been working on. A new Labour government would take it up again and take it further towards real gender equality, taking advantage of what Brussels had to offer but adapting it to Malta's particular needs.

Notary Tony Abela (PN) said that even though it was not perfect, the bill was a significant step forward in gender equality.

Today men and women were looked upon equally with regard to potential, but officially things were not yet always on an equal footing. Unfortunately, in some cases, the police still refused to issue a licence to a woman instead of a man, as in the case of port workers.

The civil code placed women morally in a disadvantageous position with regard to men. In certain circumstances the tables were turned on the male: the tendency was for widowers to suffer more than widows.

Post-war Malta had started to see more women in executive positions. The situation today was much more level in careers that basically involved women, such as in the medical field. The educational sector was possibly the one where gender equality had been in force longest.

Other sectors where women had successfully brought fresh ideas included tourism, business and government corporations. Just as some sectors, like construction, would always beckon men there were others, like child rearing, that would always be better served by women.

Even though women might need months of maternity or parental leave, this should not be allowed to lead to gender discrimination in employment.