"Women in European Politics" Conference 2 November in Athens
CONFERENCE “WOMEN IN EUROPEAN POLITICS” - ATHENS, 2 NOVEMBER 2018
Conference held on the anniversary of the signature of the Athens Declaration “Women in Power” on 2 November 1992.
Venue: Representation of the European Commission in Greece, 2, Vasilissis Sofias Avenue, Syntagma
Simultaneous Interpretation in/to Greek/English
AGENDA
9.00-9.30 - Opening addresses
Maria Stratigaki Vice-Mayor for Social Solidarity, Welfare and Equality, Municipality of Athens Agnès Hubert President of G5+European Feminist Think Tank Giorgos Markopouliotis Head of the European Commission's Representation in Greece Constantinos Tsoutsoplides, European Parliament Liaison Office in Greece
Honorary Address: Vasso Papandreou, former EU Commissioner
9.30- 11.00 - Session I : How does the EU support women's rights?
Women in Europe today enjoy rights which compare positively to those available to many women in other parts of the world, and which are a direct result of progressive EU policies. This session will briefly present what the EU has done to improve the position of women, how European women themselves have struggled to achieve progress and what are the challenges in view of the 2019 European Elections.
Coordinator: Maria Stratigaki, Vice-Mayor for Social Solidarity, Welfare and Equality, Municipality of Athens, Member of G5+European Feminist Think Tank
Keynote speaker: Zita Gurmai MP Hungary, President of European Socialist Party Women, “Women in European Politics: from gaining to owning power”
Projection of film “Eliane Vogel- Polsky, a Champion of the Cause of Women in Europe” (25’) / Agnès Hubert President of the G5+European Feminist Think Tank, and film co-director: “Introduction to the film”
Presentation of the Report of the G5+ European Feminist Think Tank / Alazne Irigoien Gender expert, Member of Young Feminist Europe, "The Importance of the EU and parity democracy for women, and the challenge of the 2019 European Elections".
Interventions- Discussion
11.00 -11.30 - Coffee Break
11.30- 13.30- Session II: How can women participate more in European decision making?
The Athens Declaration, signed in 1992 in Athens by 20 women leaders, stated that a democratic system should entail equal participation of citizens in public and political life, demanded equality of participation by women and men in public and political decision making, and underlined the need for changes to the structure of decision-making procedures in order to ensure such equality in practice. A quarter of a century later, this session will explore whether women are participating more in politics and decision-making, and with what objectives, and how women can play a more active role in European politics and the 2019 European elections in order to help solve Europe's burning issues.
Coordinator: Fotini Sianou President of the Center for Research and Action on Peace (KEDE), ex-Chair of the European Trade Union Confederation (ETUC) Women’s Committee
Round Table Participants
Anna Karamanou former Member of the European Parliament and Chair of the European Parliamentary Committee on Women's Rights
Marietta Giannakou former Minister, former Member of the Hellenic Parliament, former Member of the European Parliament
Afroditi Stampouli Member of the Hellenic Parliament, President of the Parliamentary Committee for Equality, Youth and Human Rights
Gabriela Bischoff President of Group II (Trade Unions) of the Economic and Social Committee. Candidate for the EP elections in Berlin.
Ana Sofia Fernandez Vice president of the European Women’s Lobby (EWL)
Ιnterventions-Discussion
13.30 -14.00 Lunch Break
14.00- 15.45 - Session III: What can women expect from the EU in the years ahead?
Even though progress has been achieved through EU equality policies, this progress is more than ever uneven, fragile and linked to the future of the EU and democracy. It is important that women's voices should be heard on what they expect from the EU and its policies in the coming years, particularly in view of a newly-elected EP and a newly-appointed Commission in 2019.
Coordinator: Joanna Tachmintzis Founding member of G5+European Feminist Think Tank, former Senior Official of the European Commission
Round Table Participants
Johanna Kantola Professor, University of Tampere, "European Parliament and political groups: Challenges and opportunities for gender equality"
Andrea Kriszan Research Fellow at the Center for Policy Studies, Central European University, Budapest, “What can European politicians learn from feminist resilience in Central and Eastern Europe?”
Angeliki Papazoglou Sociologist-MSc, Coordinator of the Department of Feminist Policy of the Coalition of the Radical Left (SYRIZA), “The debate for the “Future of Europe” and the gender equality agenda”
Gwendoline Lefebvre President of the European Women’s Lobby (EWL), “Women For Europe: what do we want?”
Ιnterventions- Discussion
15.45-16.00 - Concluding remarks and closing of conference
Agnès Hubert President of G5+European Feminist Think Tank Maria Stratigaki Vice-Mayor for Social Solidarity, Welfare and Equality, Municipality of Athens, Member of G5+European Feminist Think Tank
