Address by Ahmed Aboutaleb, State Secretary for Social Affairs and Employment in Turkey on 22 October 2008
Minister, Ambassador, ladies and gentlemen,
It is a matter of some pride to me to be standing here today as representative of the Dutch government.
This conference marks the conclusion of an ambitious project to promote the equal treatment of women and men in Turkey.
In the spring of 2007 we together embarked on its implementation. Some important steps have been taken in the meantime. But we cannot afford to rest on our laurels just yet. There is still much important work to be done.
Equal rights for women and men are a fundamental condition that should apply in every society.
A society that does not accord women and men the same rights does itself and its individual citizens a serious injustice.
My argument is that a society that does not dare to invest in women and does not use their talents sidelines half its population. Such a society may not, in my view, complain about a lack of progress and prosperity.
Progress and equal rights for women and men are closely intertwined.
This is something we have learned in the Netherlandsin the past 25 years. About fifty years ago, we were in a situation that women were fired after getting married.
Until the nineteen eighties Dutch society was based on the principle that men were heads of the family. Women looked after the children and did the housekeeping.
Men had the benefit of good social insurance schemes. The notion that married women should build up a good pension was considered less important.
After all, didn’t they have a husband to look after them? For men there was sufficient work, except in periods of economic malaise. Indeed, workers were even recruited abroad to work in the Netherlands. Yet in the very same period it was not easy for women to find a job.
The turning point came in the seventies. Also under the influence of European Union directives, discrimination between women and men was prohibited in the labour market. Men and women also obtained the same rights in the field of social security. In those years the authorities also conducted numerous information campaigns on radio and television and in the newspapers. In this way, people became aware of the need for equal treatment.
So this was an exciting period, which resembles in some ways what is happening in Turkeynow.
Minister, Ambassador, ladies and gentlemen,
The change in thinking about gender equality and the equal treatment of women and men in the labour market has been of great benefit to the Netherlands.
The labour market participation of women has more than doubled. Whereas some 30 percent of women worked 25 years ago, we’re now fast approaching 70 percent. The greatest growth has been among mothers with young children.
Many women work part time, the average working week of women is 26 hours. But this is the group who are expected to be at home every Wednesday afternoon waiting for their children with ‘tea and cookies’!
This is when the schools are closed in the Netherlands. This has always been the case and will continue to be for a good long time to come. Some patterns in a society become so ingrained that they change only very slowly. I should say that the government respects people’s individual choice of whether to work or not to work, to work a lot or only a little. But we do our best to make work as attractive as possible, for example by providing good child care facilities and tax measures, because we need to increase participation in payed labour to keep a high level of social services.
The most immediate effect of doubling the number of working women has been to increase the prosperity of their families – extra prosperity that also has a positive influence on the future of the children in these families. After all, there is more money for a good education.
It is also easier for them to join sports clubs and take part in other activities.
And, as a society as a whole, we have also benefited from learning to make better use of women’s talents.
First of all, the flow of women to the labour market is enormously important for sectors of the economy that are finding it increasingly difficult to obtain staff,
such as the health care and education sectors. These are real problem areas at present in the Netherlands. But there are other advantages too. As many more people are now working, we have broadened the financial base for our prosperity and for important facilities such as education, health care and social security.
There are now many more people contributing to this base through taxes and social security contributions than 25 years ago. The Netherlands, together with other countries like the northern countries, has learned how to take advantage of women’s talents.
Nonetheless, we aren’t there yet – even in the Netherlands.
At present, tens of thousands of women who have no work are on social assistance benefits. These are often divorced women with children. What’s more, they have had little or no education. Training is the best way of enabling these women to get a chance on the labour market. This is why the right to benefits is linked to learning, vocational training for example.
As a result of this ‘obligation to learn’ if they apply for income assistance they create the prospect of a paid job later.
As you see, in the Netherlandstoo, we are continually engaged in taking measures to involve as many women as possible actively in society. This is in order to give all women the opportunity to develop their talents.
We expect much of women, as mothers, as people who maintain family ties and as employees and as valuable citizens. This is why we may never rest when it comes to equal rights for women. In my view, this is a process that can never really be said to be completed.
This is perhaps the challenge that faces us in this area.
Minister, Ambassador, ladies and gentlemen,
Turkeyhas already done a great deal for equal rights for women in terms of legislation. The main thing now is to put this into practice in all policy fields and at all levels. During the implementation of the Promoting Gender Equality project too, important steps have been taken towards equal treatment, equal rights and equal opportunities for women and men.
A national Action Plan has been produced for the years 2008-2013. This announces measures to improve the position of women in the area of education, employment, poverty and health. Information has also been given about the importance of equal rights and equal opportunities for women and men.
Nearly 800 policymakers and others who are active in the field of equal rights have taken courses on this subject. During these courses they have immersed themselves in the art of balancing between special activities for women on the one hand and gender mainstreaming on the other. I understand that these courses are to be continued by Turkeyafter the termination of our cooperation project. That is good news!
These steps have already been taken.
But another important step has yet to be taken. I am referring to the establishment of a Gender Equality Body. A discussion document has been written on the form which such a ‘GEB’ might possibly take. We – as a partner in this joint venture – of course hope that the Turkish partners will take as soon as possible a decision on the basis of this document. And we of course hope that this decision will be a good one and that such a Gender Equality Body will play a fruitful role in the Turkish society -and by this way- also will be a step forward to the accession of Turkeyto the EU.
But the main message is of course that such a Gender Equality Body would be an important new step on the path to achieve complete equal rights for women and men. Such a ‘GEB’ would keep society alert in this respect.
In the Netherlandswe have good experience of a ‘GEB’ of this kind,
namely the Equal Treatment Commission. Although discrimination is prohibited by law, it still occurs in practice.
Each year the Commission deals with hundreds of complaints from people who feel they have been discriminated against. One example concerns women who believe that they have been wrongly overlooked for a promotion because of their pregnancy. Rulings of the Commission in such cases often generate publicity.
This has the advantage that we as a society are kept alert.
One such case in the newspapers can perhaps help to prevent a number of other cases in which people are wrongly discriminated against. So it’s good to have such a commission. The president of the Dutch Commission is here today.
She can explain Dutch practice in more detail.
Finally, I take this opportunity to wish you every success on your path to equal rights for women and men – rights that will bring all kinds of benefits. For individual citizens and for your society as a whole.
Thank you.