17/08/2012 Equality and Non-Discrimination
Strasbourg, 17.08.2012 – “Inequality between men and women has no place in a democratic constitution,” according to Fatiha Saïdi, rapporteur of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE), on "Equality between women and men: a condition for the success of the Arab Spring".
“In the text of Article 27 of the draft constitution as approved by the Rights and Freedoms Committee of the Tunisian Constituent Assembly, it is affirmed that women are ‘complementary’ to men. Dropping the concept of equality in favour of the concept of complementarity means challenging it, taking a step backwards from the situation enshrined in the 1956 Constitution and sending out a negative signal to Tunisian society and to other countries in the region.
Equality between men and women does not imply that women and men are identical, but that they have the same dignity as human beings, that their rights and responsibilities are the same, independently of each other, and that they have the same opportunities. That is a fundamental and universal principle which is all too frequently infringed and therefore needs to be included in the text of the constitution,” said the rapporteur.
“While welcoming the fact that Article 27 of the draft constitution confirms Tunisia’s commitment to combating the scourge of violence against women, I call on the Constituent Assembly to amend its wording, clearly and unequivocally introducing the concept of equality between women and men,” Ms Saïdi concluded.