Contributed by: Agnieszka Mrozik, Poland National VAW Monitor
On January 16, during the 37th Session of CEDAW in New York, Poland’s delegation presented the fourth, fifth and sixth periodic report detailing the compliance with and implementation of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women.
“Progress has been made in mainstreaming gender equality into Poland’s national legislation,” the Women’s Anti-Discrimination Committee said. But Committee experts expressed concern over the focus on labour and employment, saying government action should address all aspects of the Convention.
Since becoming a full European Union member in May 2004, Poland had made headway in mainstreaming gender equality into national policies and enacting legislation to strengthen the protection of women against domestic violence, workplace discrimination and human trafficking rings, Joanna Kluzik-Rostkowska, Under-Secretary of State of the Polish Ministry of Labour and Social Policy, told the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women as it considered Poland’s sixth periodic report.
The 2005 Law on Counteracting Violence in the Family gave police the green light to swiftly remove perpetrators from their homes and ban all future contact with their victims and witnesses, said Ms. Kluzik-Rostkowska, who also headed the delegation. Polish law enforcement and community groups were partnering to reduce violence and support victims, while a government-appointed team was hammering out standards of conduct for police officers, judiciary and others aiding victims of domestic violence and rape.
Poland was cooperating with neighbouring countries through regional agreements to end another serious violation of women’s rights: abduction, particularly for sexual exploitation, she said. In 2005, Poland had signed the Council of Europe’s Convention to combat human trafficking and made it legal for trafficking victims to reside legally in Poland. The IRIS--Partnership for Development, funded in part by the European Social Fund, helped female victims of trafficking re-enter the job market and raised public awareness of groups vulnerable to trafficking, forced labour and slavery.
However, the greatest focus was reserved for erasing discriminatory labour practices -- a widespread problem, particularly for older Polish women. Unemployment in Poland was among the highest in the European Union. Ms. Kluzik-Rostkowska said the Department for Women, Family and Counteracting Discrimination of the Ministry of Labour and Social Policy was promoting anti-discriminatory labour regulations, especially for women over aged 45, better opportunities for rural women and back-to-work programmes for new mothers. It also spearheaded campaigns to combat gender stereotypes and promote women entrepreneurship.
While Committee experts applauded those efforts, several questioned the Polish Government’s justification for replacing the now defunct Government Plenipotentiary for Equal Status of Women and Men with the new Department run by the Labour and Social Policy Ministry. They expressed concern over the emphasis on labour and employment, stressing that Poland’s main Government structure for women’s advancement should comprehensively address all aspects of the Convention.
Experts noted that the country report lacked sufficient data on Article 7 of the Convention concerning the role of women in political and public life, and they pressed the 20-member Polish delegation on the cause of the recent drop in the number of women Parliamentarians.
The debate also centered on the growing rate of divorce in Poland, and women’s rights in terms of alimony and asset allocation, as well as on family planning options for women, particularly for rural women.
Published in: Progress Made In Mainstreaming Gender Equality Into Poland’s National Legislation, Women’s Anti-Descrimination Committee Told; Press Release; last access January 21, 2007.