Women's Rights

Women refugees urgently in need

International women's day

According to UNHCR, women and children account for 55% of those reaching Greece to seek asylum in the EU since the beginning of 2016. On this year´s International Women´s Day, we lay a symbolic flower on the unnamed and floating graves of the women who died trying to reach Europe, in hope of a be...

The Greens/EFA Co-Presidents' briefing

LIVE press conference 8 March 2016 10:30-10:50

Greens/EFA co-presidents Rebecca Harms and Philippe Lamberts present the key issues of the plenary session and of the European agenda for the Greens/EFA group

EU boardroom quotas for women

Don't back down

Not voting can have serious consequences. Especially when a majority is needed in the European Council. EU ministers could not agree on Monday on a new rules on EU boardroom quotas for women. The vote was canceled and the proposal is now practically dead. The Dutch government has already announced t...

Elimination of violence against women in the EU

Plenary speech by Jordi Sebastià

International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women

This year's international day of eliminating violence against women coincides with the 20th anniversary of the adoption of the UN Beijing Platform for Action, where for the first time, after centuries of silence, it was established that violence against women is a manifestation of historically unequal power relationships between women and men

Historical commitment towards gender balance with the European court reform

The European Parliament approved the long-awaited European Union general court reform today in the plenary. Amending the statute of the court, the court's operating conditions were enforced by increasing the number of judges by 28 to a total of 56. We also witnessed a historical step towards gender balance.

Withdrawal of Maternity Leave Directive

European Commission decision a blow to social and family policy

The European Commission today announced its decision to withdraw the Maternity Leave Directive. With the current draft Directive blocked at the European Council, the Commission proposes to replace it with a new proposal in the coming year. MEP Monika Vana, member of the Women’s rights and Employme...

Women's Rights are Human Rights

Press release from SNP MEP Alyn Smith

Alyn Smith SNP MEP has today praised the European Parliament for adopting a groundbreaking new report on gender equality. Despite pressure from right-wing organisations, the EU Strategy for Equality Between Women and Men Post 2015, known informally as the Noichl Report after its rapporteur Maria N...

Paraguay: the legal aspects related to the child pregnancy

Greens/EFA motion for resolution

Tabled by Ernest Urtasun, Heidi Hautala, Linnéa Engström, Barbara Lochbihler, Ulrike Lunacek, Terry Reintke, Judith Sargentini, Jordi Sebastià, Monika Vana on behalf of the Greens/EFA group The European Parliament, –    having regard to the UN Convention on the Rights of the Chi...

VIIIth Conference on Feminicide/Femicide

the duty of due diligence in eradicating feminicide/femicide

This conference is organised by the Greens/EFA Group in the European Parliament and the Heinrich-Böll-Stiftung, EU Office in cooperation with AIETI, Alianza por la Solidaridad, APRODEV, Cooperacció, CIFCA, European Women’s Lobby, Feminicidio.net, Flora Tristán, Grupo Sur, Otro Tiempo, Oxfam I...

The Fight for Gender Equality and Against Gender-Based Violence

European Perspectives 2015

With International Women's Day approaching, the Green Group in the European Parliament in cooperation with the European Green Party is organising a conference, 'The fight for Gender Equality and Against Gender Based Violence: European perspectives 2015.'

Save Maternity Leave

Directive on gender equality and women's rights cannot be scrapped

The Directive on pregnant workers and workers who have recently given birth, also known as the Maternity Leave Directive, was first adopted by the European Parliament by a large majority in October 2010. 4 years later, the passage of this Directive remains blocked in the European Council by opposi...