Strasbourg, 29 October 2001	CDEG-GM (2001) 03
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Steering Committee for Equality between women and men
Workshop on gender mainstreaming for Chairs and Secretaries of Steering Committees of the Council of Europe (CDCS, CDSP, CDDS, CAHAR) Strasbourg, 5 September 2001 Room 3, Palais de l’Europe
Opening at 9.30 am
Report of the Workshop

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Introduction
Items 1 and 2 of the agenda: Opening of the workshop and adoption of the agenda
Item 3 of the agenda: Introduction by Ms Mieke Verloo
Item 4 of the agenda: Discussion on how gender equality relates to the fields dealt with by the Steering Committees represented at the meeting
European Committee for Social Cohesion (CDCS)
Ad hoc Committee of Experts on Legal Aspects of Territorial Asylum, Refugees and Stateless Persons (CAHAR)
Item 5 of the agenda: Exchange of views on ways and means to introduce the strategy of gender mainstreaming into the work/some projects of the Steering Committees
Item 6 of the agenda: Follow-up to be given to the Workshop
Appendix I - List of participants
Agenda

Introduction 

1. 1. The Steering Committee for Equality between Women and Men (CDEG) held a workshop for Chairs of Steering Committees in the Palais de l’Europe in Strasbourg on 5 September with Ms Violeta NEUBAUER (Slovenia) in the Chair.

2. 2. The list of participants is set out in Appendix I of this report and the agenda, in Appendix II.

Items 1 and 2 of the agenda: Opening of the workshop and adoption of the agenda 

3. 3. The meeting was opened by the Chair, Ms Violeta NEUBAUER, who welcomed the participants to the workshop, the Chairs and Secretaries of Steering Committees of the Council of Europe (European Committee for Social Cohesion (CDCS), European Health Committee (CDSP), Committee for the Development of Sport (CDDS), Ad hoc Committee of Experts on Legal Aspects of Territorial Asylum, Refugees and Stateless Persons (CAHAR) and the expert consultant, Ms Mieke Verloo.

Item 3 of the agenda: Introduction by Ms Mieke Verloo 

4. 4. The introduction was made by Ms Mieke Verloo and followed by a question and answer session.

5. 5. In her introduction, Ms Verloo said that gender mainstreaming represents an important step towards attaining gender equality but that its implementation will not always be easy. Gender mainstreaming is a shift from traditional anti-discrimination policies aimed exclusively at women and which focus on their specific problems. Instead, gender mainstreaming is important not only for women, but also for men and for the whole of society. The objective is to recognise that “we want a society where people can be different, not necessarily equal but equally valued”.

6. 6. Another difficulty for the implementation of gender mainstreaming lies in the fact that men are always presented as being the norm, as the “standard” human being. Therefore, the risk of policies accidentally reinforcing gender inequalities is a real one. People conform to old norms and repeat the socially constructed gender patterns. The problem is not that people have a constructed gender identity, but that we connect this gendered identity to unequal access to resources and to gendered rules that constrain the choices of men and women in a different way. Therefore, careful attention must be paid to the ways policies are made and whether they are gender sensitive.

7. 7. Ms Verloo then explained the definition of gender mainstreaming of the Group of Specialists of the Council of Europe which worked on this issue. The definition is as follows: “The (re)organisation, improvement, development and evaluation of policy processes so that a gender equality perspective is incorporated in all policies at all levels at all stages by the actors normally involved in policy making”.

8. 8. Attention to gender should be organised in a systematic way, in the regular procedures. There is not just one way of doing this, but many ways and different tools are needed. One of the questions that must be asked whenever a new programme or a new policy is being elaborated is whether it will not (accidentally) reinforce inequalities. It should also be borne in mind that gender norms and differences are not static; they are always under construction, and change over time. Norms are reinforced by institutions and society and every person is influenced by them. Gender norms are foundational in our societies. Gender is considered such a crucial element of difference that it figures on everyone’s passport. An analysis of the impact new programmes and policies will have on gender relations should be finalised by a revision of the original proposals which counters negative and furthers positive impact. The main thing to be avoided is a hierarchy based on gender, the main goal is gender equality.

9. The first step is to determine which of the available tools would be the best ones for the Committees. There are three types of tools:

• Analytical, eg gender impact assessments, sex segregated statistics;
• Educational: training for the people dealing with gender mainstreaming (accompanied by publication of guidelines, leaflets, etc);
• Consultation: consult users/people concerned to have a better idea of their needs; consult experts who should look at gender for each field and come up with proposals;

10. 9. Following Ms Verloo’s introductory remarks, the participants held an exchange of views during which a number of questions and remarks were put forward. These can be summarised as follows:

• Gender inequality has many faces and is expressed in different ways from country to country. This can make it difficult to define a gender perspective to work from for committees such as the CAHAR which deals with migrants and refugees in a host society. However, as the Council of Europe has certain standards and norms regarding respect for and protection of human rights, these would prevail when it came to determining the gender equality perspective which should be adopted by the CAHAR;
• The Committees wondered whether gender mainstreaming meant that policies supporting women should be abandoned (such as policies favouring women’s entepreneurship). Ms Verloo replied that special programmes for women could be useful to speed up the process of moving towards gender equality, but they could also contribute to the reinstallation of gender hierarchy as they tend to identify women as a vulnerable group, and usually fail to address men as a group, or the male norm that is hidden in policies. The important action regarding entrepreneurship would be to screen all policies for entrepreneurship, and reorganise them so that they work as well for women as for men.
• Some participants pointed out that the consequences of applying a strict equality perspective had sometimes not favoured women. To give an example, the retirement age of women had gone up and was now equal to that of men in most cases. Why had men’s retirement age not decreased? Ms Verloo replied that gender mainstreaming was not about applying simple rules of formal equality. It is rather about making sure that the gender equality is the result of policies. It is well known that to apply formally equal rules on people in unequal conditions will often only increase inequality.
• She also emphasised that each Committee would have to implement gender mainstreaming in its own special way. Therefore, a “mission statement” on what gender equality means/ should mean for each Committee should be drafted and discussed within that Committee. The CDEG could be consulted on the content of such “mission statements” if need be.

Item 4 of the agenda: Discussion on how gender equality relates to the fields dealt with by the Steering Committees represented at the meeting 

11. 10. Ms Verloo presented a framework of gender analysis, specifying that this framework originates in gender studies. It is based on 3 elements:

12. 1. Structures
13. a. gendered division of labour (all sorts of segregation, balance care and labour, women work in health care, education, etc)
14. b. organisation of intimacy (love, friendship, resonance of history, property in marriage)

15. 2. Mechanisms
16. a. resources, distribution of resources (money, time, information, positions)

17. b. rules and norms about gender (what is considered right/wrong for men and women. What is valued higher/ lower)

18. There are certain norms in different aspects of life, such as the following: Some sports are considered as “male”, others as “female”; caring activities are expected of women. Norms can also be conflicting: gender rules in a society where refugees come from can conflict with those in the host country.

19. 3. Criteria
20. a) equality (formal equality)
21. b) autonomy (ability for a person to decide by himself or herself within the framework of human rights – political, economic, sexual, physical autonomy)
22. c) care/social responsibility

23. 11. It was noted that sport is gender segregated and that this is accepted as normal. It could be divided differently but this is not the case. The same might be true for labour division. There’s a gender division of labour, but maybe we want to maintain that kind of division, just as we want to maintain the gender division in sport.

24. 12. Ms Verloo answered that, theoretically, gender distinction might or might not be linked to gender inequality. Gender distinction was a problem in practise if it resulted in inequality. The problem is that many gender distinctions are linked to inequality of some sort. The gender division of labour may result in different valuation, which in turn results in lower salaries. It should be noted that women often find themselves limited to jobs with low career prospects (the example of secretarial work was given by Ms Verloo) and to jobs that are less well paid than those traditionally undertaken by men. The fact that we see some segregation as “normal”, points to the existence of gender related norms. What we should consider if we need to decide whether or not to maintain a division, should not be guided by what is normal, but by what we consider right.

25. 13. It was also pointed out that individual autonomy could be considered as a problem for solidarity, social cohesion and social responsibility. In this context, “ethics of care” was a interesting concept which can be developed in the future. We can then analyse to what extent policies facilitate or obstruct (free) decisions of people to take care of each other. Where is solidarity made difficult? For whom?

26. 14. However, it should be borne in mind that no social structures existed as such, they were always organised in a historically specific form. One had only to think about the development of inheritance laws within a family structure to see that they had been made somewhere in the course of history, and favoured bonds between specified family members over other social bonds.

27. 15. The Workshop then went on to analyse how the different Committees could use the strategy of gender mainstreaming in their work.

28. Committee for the Development of Sport (CDDS):

29. 16. Ms Verloo pointed out that sport is deeply rooted in male life. The bulk of resources in sports go to competition sports, which are essentially a male domain.

30. 17. Physical differences are organised in sports: Weight is a crucial divider in some sports (boxing, to give a formal example); height is also one (in basketball, as an informal example). But gender is generally used as a shortcut for physical ability, which has materialised as a clear distinction in sport along the lines of gender.

31. 18. An important question to be examined when it comes to sport is the process of exclusion. Who is excluded from which sport? How can citizens engage in sport? It is clear that physical differences are the basis of exclusion. The question then should be: is the resultant exclusion wanted, or legitimate?

32. 19. Motivations to do sports seem to be very different for men and women. Men want to win and increase their strength. Women want to become more beautiful, and sports that offer this possibility are often not considered as sports and are therefore not given assistance by governments. An example of this is recreational sport and sports such as aerobics, which seem to be considered less important and therefore receive less funding from national or local authorities. These are nonetheless the sports preferred by many women.

33. 20. The distribution of resources is different for men and women sports. Resources often go to male sports and to high-level sports which are male dominated. In fact, the community does not facilitate the practice of sport for women. An example was given of sports centres which are located outside cities, in areas which are hard to get to and not very safe for women. So it is harder for women to use these sports centres, which in practice puts them at a disadvantage.

34. 21. When it comes to the media, coverage for women is 20% - 25% of the coverage given to male sports. Tennis is a good example of this. The majority of press coverage is given to the men’s tennis matches. Women’s tennis is often only mentioned afterwards, with a paragraph listing the matches played and the winners of these matches.

35. 22. Ms Verloo added that the connection between sport and health should not be forgotten. Sport and exercise are very important for health promotion, especially for health in later life. The fact that women suffer from a disadvantage where sports are concerned could have an impact on their health in the short and the long term.

36. European Health Committee (CDSP):

37. 23. There are a number of differences between men and women in the field of health, most of which seem to result from biological differences. It should be kept in mind that it is not most important whether or not these differences are essentially biological or not. If they do exist, and are connected to health issues, they should be taken into consideration.

38. For example:

• Women wake up more quickly than men from anaesthesia;
• The same drugs have different effects on men and women (eg. alcohol);
• Women have a stronger immune system but also suffer more often from multiple sclerosis.

39. 24. These differences are not a problem in themselves, unless they result in inequality. An example of inequality in health care is that research still often is undertaken on males, even on male rats in the case of tests on animals. Ms Verloo pointed out that the different effects of alcohol on male and female rats were demonstrated for the first time in 1991. There is a strong gender bias in data resulting from medical research that merits more attention.

40. 25. Another example of male biased research is that, even if women account for 70% of cases of depression, most of the research regarding depression is carried out on men. This research is therefore of little help to women.

41. 26. Some health problems could be related to women’s multiple roles. Examples in the literature point at the risks for depression, burnout and other diseases, which are stress-related. In the Netherlands there is an ongoing discussion linking the occurance of burnout in young women to society’s expectations towards them, that are high and contradictory.

42. 27. The health risks associated with masculinity are different. The statistical fact that men die earlier, should not be attributed to their biology only. Masculinity is also linked to mortality, because it is linked to violence (suicide, car accidents, homicide) and force. In this sense, violence is a public health problem.

43. 28. To give another example of the connection between gender roles and health, results from research are cited that show that social alienation is often a heavier health risk for women than for men. Most of the time, it is connected directly to their personal life and their relationships. Men’s health problems are often linked to their jobs, for example if their job is very demanding, or if they lose their job. Moreover, there is a gender difference in the occurrence and timing of consulting health professionals: men do it less, and later than women.

European Committee for Social Cohesion (CDCS)

44. 29. Ms Verloo noted that changes in today’s societies are often seen as a threat for social cohesion. In particular, the move away from the traditional family structure is sometimes seen as a threat, because of the persistence of the conservative assumption that the only good family is a traditional family.

45. 30. It should not be forgotten that childcare institutions are a place where many children learn social skills. When it comes to social cohesion, child care institutions are an important institution.

46. 31. It was pointed out that the CDCS was planning a project on access to sustainable jobs for marginalised people and for those outside family structures. The target groups which had been identified were:

47. the homeless;
48. former prisoners;
49. ex-service people, veterans.

50. In the discussion that followed, it emerged that these were essentially male groups. It would therefore be appropriate to consider the inclusion of other target groups such as former patients of psychiatric hospitals, the majority of whom are women.

51. 32. It is important to take a helicopter view when it comes to developing social policy, so as not to forget any group of people. This view makes it possible to avoid targetting men only, and to consider also target groups that consist mainly of women and to ensure that they are not forgotten. It should be borne in mind that the problems of men are often more visible than the problems of women (because of the dominance of men in the public sphere), yet both problems are equally important.

52. 33. Moreover, it should be borne in mind that the labour market is not necessarily a best or only place to solve the problem of social inequality. It should be remembered that a majority of women over 45 have never been on the labour market and will never have a place there. In fact, the idea that employment is the only way to social inclusion still prevails, but maybe it is not the only way.

53. 34. The Chair of the CDEG pointed out that the Committee does not necessarily see the changing family as a threat to social cohesion, but it is interested in ensuring respect for and promotion of the rights of children. Matters regarding custody need to be taken care of, as it is often taken for granted that the mother will give better care to children even if that may not necessarily be the case.

54. 35. Old conventions on social security need to be studied from the gender perspective. It was also necessary to make clear that jobs fill many functions other than giving a person financial security. Having a job contributed to one’s own self-definition and status in society; it was in the workplace that many people found their life partners and friends.

55. 36. In the discussion which followed, many issues related to social cohesion and equality were raised. There was the changing role of the father, which was linked to changing norms and ideologies. Women themselves often resisted these changes – they did not want men/fathers to have a bigger role in the family. A Recommendation on child care was being prepared by the CDCS – the gender implications would have to be borne in mind when drafting this text.

Ad hoc Committee of Experts on Legal Aspects of Territorial Asylum, Refugees and Stateless Persons (CAHAR)

56. 37. The case of the CAHAR was different from the other committees in that it deals with a targeted group. Any policy for a targeted group is bound to discuss the distribution of resources and setting of rules. So, for the case of the CAHAR, it was important to look at the underlying rules. Could the existing rules be a problem for either women or men?

57. 38. The CAHAR should look at the existing resources, at the distribution of these resources and whether there was any discrimination based on gender in this regard.

58. 39. It was clear, for instance, that men and women should have the same access to legal status and integration policies. Another question which should always be kept in mind was that of the number of men and women refugees, and that gender norms differ from society to society. There was also a need to look closely at the grey area between being a refugee and an immigrant, and this should be done through gender-sensitive eyes. The CAHAR should specifically look at situations where women are vulnerable.

59. 40. The Chair of the CAHAR said that the Geneva Convention on refugees reflects the organisation of society as it was 50 years ago. The convention recognises as persecuted people those who are in danger in their own country because of their nationality, their religion or their political opinion, but not because of gender. This needs thorough discussion.

60. 41. The question of the subsidiary protection of asylum seekers will be discussed soon by the CAHAR. It would perhaps be possible to look at the gender perspective within that discussion. This is a sensitive point, where policies related to refugees must be examined to distinguish between men and women and respond in specific ways to their specific needs.

Item 5 of the agenda: Exchange of views on ways and means to introduce the strategy of gender mainstreaming into the work/some projects of the Steering Committees 

61. 42. After an exchange of views on this item, the following conclusions were reached:

62. How to introduce the strategy

• Each Committees should draft and adopt a mission statement about gender mainstreaming;
• Each Committee should look into which tools for gender mainstreaming would be appropriate for the Committee;
• As committee experts change, but the Secretariat remains, it would be useful to give the Secretariat training in gender mainstreaming techniques;
• It might be useful to modify the terms of reference of the committees, adding a sentence about the necessary integration of a gender perspective.

63. 43. Committees should ask all their members to look at what is happening in their home countries in the field of gender mainstreaming and report back.

64. How to speed up the process

• Look into whether recent reports commissioned/drafted by the Committees can be assessed from the gender perspective;
• Consider organising specific meetings with gender experts and representatives of organisations (eg the WHO), which are using gender mainstreaming;
• gender mainstreaming should always be on the agenda of Committee discussions and meetings, and not only limited to a few projects;
• Committees should consider consulting women’s organisations at an early stage when preparing a new project.

Item 6 of the agenda: Follow-up to be given to the Workshop 

65. 44. It was agreed that Ms Verloo would draw up a draft mission statement for each Committee before mid-November 2001, to be discussed at their forthcoming meetings. She will also, before mid-November, draft a detailed report around the issues discussed at the workshop.

66. 45. The CDEG will continue organising workshops for other Chairs of Steering Committees in 2002. It would also be possible, should any of the Committees present be interested, to organise a small joint seminar on any specific issue of interest to the CDEG and the committee concerned.

Appendix I - List of participants

Ad hoc Committee of Experts on Legal Aspects of Territorial Asylum, Refugees and Stateless Persons (CAHAR)
Ms Andrea BARSOVÁ
Vice-Chair of the CAHAR
Human Rights Department
Government Office
Vladislavova 4
110 00 PRAGUE

Committee for the Development of Sport (CDDS)
Mr Zoran VEROVNIK
Chair of the CDDS
Senior Adviser Responsible for International Affairs
Ministry of Education and Sport
Sports Department
Stefanova 1
1000 LJUBLJANA

European Committee for Social Cohesion (CDCS)
Mrs Renata CVELBAR-BEK
Chair of the CDCS
Head of the Department for International Affairs
Ministry of Labour
Family and Social Affairs
Kotnikova 5
1000 LJUBLJANA

European Health Committee (CDSP)
Dr Vlasta MOCNIK DRNOVSEK
Chair of the CDSP
Counsellor to the Government
International Relations Department
Ministry of Health
Stefanova 5
1000 LJUBLJANA

Steering Committee for Equality between Women and Men (CDEG)
Ms Violeta NEUBAUER
Chair of the CDEG
Co-ordinator for International Co-operation
Equal Opportunities Office of the Slovene Government
Tomsiceva 4
1000 LJUBLJANA

* * *
Expert Consultant
Dr Mieke VERLOO
Lecturer in Political Science & Women's Studies
Nijmegen School of Management
P.O. Box 9108
NL - 6500 HK NIJMEGEN

Secretariat
Mr John MURRAY
Head of Social Policy Department
Secretary to the CDCS
Tel: (33) 3 88 41 21 67
E-mail: john.murray@coe.int

Mr Géza TESSENYI
Directorate General of Legal Affairs
Secretary to the CAHAR
Tel: (33) 3 88 41 22 22
E-mail: geza.tessenyi@coe.int

Ms Diane MURRAY
Directorate General IV
Secretary to the CDDS
Tel: (33) 3 88 41 30 27
E-mail: diane.murray@coe.int

* * *

Ms Olöf ÓLAFSDÓTTIR
Head of Equality Division
Secretary to the Steering Committee for Equality between Women and Men (CDEG)
Tel: (33) 3 88 41 23 39
E-mail: olof.olafsdottir@coe.int
Fax: (33) 88 41 27 05

Mme Caroline BOIVIN
Trainee
Equality Division
Directorate General of Human Rights

* * *

Mme Monique CHALUDE
Equality Administrator
Human Resources Department
Administratice pour l'égalité
Service des Ressources Humaines

Agenda

Opening of the Workshop

Adoption of the Draft Agenda

Introduction by Ms Mieke Verloo, expert consultant, followed by a question and answer session

Discussion on how gender equality relates to the fields dealt with by the Steering Committees represented at the meeting

Exchange of views on ways and means to introduce the strategy of gender mainstreaming into the work/some projects of the Steering Committees

Follow-up to be given to the Workshop