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WOMEN
QUOTAS YES OR NO?
Spain has recently approved the
draft for a new set of
regulations aimed at putting an end to women
discrimination in the Spanish business world. The draft establishes a min. presence of 40% for both genders in the oncoming ballot lists and Government Administrations offices, and also establishes incentives to foster female presence in the Board of Directors of private companies. This suggestion / warning to the private industry will
turn into a mandatory law should the latter chose to turn a deaf ear on the matter.
The draft is
obviously praiseworthy and politically correct, but is it realistic? Can a government put an end to years of female sex discrimination blandishing a set of regulations that “penalize”- on this occasion- the opposite sex?
Positive discrimination, recommended by United Nations as a means to change world perception regarding the role of women, has proved to be efficient, succeeding in moving women forward into prominent positions, especially in Africa or Latin America. It has also succeeded in teaching children of both sexes to view women in power as something natural. The benefits of this new perception, aside from setting right a historical wrong, are obvious. The gender population balance should obviously be reflected in the ruling bodies of companies and countries.
But – there’s always a but – results of positive discrimination (or “women quotas” as they are known in Europe) are not always what they seem. Used by some countries merely to operate a facelift seeking western acceptance or being appointed as ghost candidates by some political parties wishing to comply with current regulations or obtain popular support, are only some of the examples of the status quo that has done very little in favor of women’s true equality status.
J.L.Zapatero, and G. Persson will propose an Equality Pact in the next European Summit. All initiatives are very welcome, but true change will only be possible once our men share the housework on an equal basis, and our daughters put no frontiers to their ambitions. Hopefully, by then, “quotas” will be either unnecessary or outdated.
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