SDG 5
Achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls.
§ Legal entitlement to protection and assistance for women affected by violence
With the entry into force of the Istanbul Convention in February 2018, Germany has committed itself at all levels of government to do everything possible to combat violence against women, to offer protection and support to those affected and to prevent violence. In order to fulfil this obligation, a legal entitlement to protection and assistance under federal law must be established by law. This gives women affected by violence a legal basis on which they can claim protection, counselling and support in cases of violence and, if necessary, sue for it. It substantiates the general duty of the state to protect life and physical integrity, which is anchored in the Basic Law. With this legal entitlement, the state fulfils its responsibility to protect women and to combat violence against women. In addition, this legal claim recognises the unlawfulness of violence for people affected by violence. Gender-specific violence is recognised as a problem for society as a whole and not as a private problem. Women's shelters and specialised counselling centres gain more financial and planning security through the legal entitlement. They are no longer dependent on voluntary state benefits or budgetary situations in the municipalities and states. If remuneration agreements fail, they can appeal to arbitration boards. The federal government's reservation against Article 59 of the Istanbul Convention, which grants refugee or migrant women affected by violence an independent right of residence, must be withdrawn so that all women in Germany are protected from violence. Another important step in the fight against violence against women is the swift ratification of the ILO K-190 Convention, which addresses ending sexual violence in the workplace. The convention establishes for the first time a globally valid definition of sexual harassment and violence and does not only refer to the workplace, but to the world of work in general. Germany should sign the convention and thus set an example in the fight against violence against women. In Spain, there is already a specific criminal offence of violence against women, which gives a special legal right to protection and help for women affected by violence and offers protection for victims of gender-based violence. This is also necessary in Germany.
For further reading and discussion:
https://www.frauenhauskoordinierung.de/arbeitsfelder/rechtsanspruch-auf-schutz/
In Germany, so-called "catcalling", i.e. (non)verbal sexual harassment in public, is not punishable as such. Only if offensive words are used in the context can the harassment be punished as an insult. A ban on catcalling should therefore be enshrined in law. This would be possible by amending section 184i of the Criminal Code, which regulates the offence of physical sexual harassment. Verbal sexual harassment should be added here. At the same time, more comprehensive rules should be introduced for any forms of "imposed sexuality" that interfere with one's sexual self-determination. Although it can be difficult to prove, the adoption of such a law can raise awareness of the problem and make it clear that such behaviour is unwelcome or prohibited by the state. In various European countries (France, Portugal, the Netherlands, Belgium) verbal sexual harassment has been punishable for years and can be sanctioned with fines of up to 750 euros. In Finland, a corresponding law is also planned.
For further reading and discussion:
https://www.openpetition.de/petition/online/es-ist-2020-catcalling-sollte-strafbar-sein
§ Introduction of a criminal offence of verbal sexual harassment
§ Deletion of paragraphs 218/219 from the Penal Code
Abortions are part of basic medical care and must be regulated outside the penal code. The existing criminalisation with compulsory counselling and waiting periods patronises unintentionally pregnant women and deprives them of their right to physical and sexual self-determination. In the GDR, abortions up to the twelfth week were already possible without further requirements, but with the so-called compromise in 1995, pregnant women were deprived of their right to physical and sexual self-determination. For doctors who perform abortions and want to inform about them, there is still no legal certainty despite the new regulation of section 219a. In order to support and protect unintentionally pregnant women and doctors in the best possible way, abortion must be decriminalised and sections 218/219 must be deleted from the penal code. There is also a need for a right to competent, sufficient and local medical care and a legal regulation according to which the statutory health insurance funds cover the costs of an abortion in the same way as for other standardised medical services.
For further reading and discussion:
This also works at the federal level
Since 2020, companies in Spain have been legally obliged to pay women and men equally for equal work. This is ensured by transparent salary scales broken down by gender and severe penalties of up to 187,000 euros for violations. New principles will be provided to measure the equivalence of work. In New Zealand, too, an Equal Pay Act was unanimously passed in 2018 to ensure equal pay regardless of gender. Both laws can serve as a model for Germany. Here, there is only the Pay Transparency Act of 2017 so far, but the survey by the Federal Statistical Office shows that the gender pay gap was still 20 per cent in 2019. According to the Pay Transparency Act, only people who work in companies with more than 200 employees receive information about their colleagues' pay. Two thirds of employed women work in small and medium-sized enterprises. Furthermore, the Pay Transparency Act does not prohibit different levels of pay, but only discloses them. Companies therefore do not have to expect any sanctions.
For further reading and discussion:
https://www.fpi-lab.org/aktuell/fair-pay-neuseeland/
https://www.lw.com/thoughtLeadership/lw-new-spanish-employment-law-imposes-equal-opportunity-regs
https://www.deutschlandfunknova.de/beitrag/gender-pay-gap-spanien-erlaesst-neues-gesetz
§ Equal Pay Act between women and men in Spain and New Zealand
§ Constitutional anchoring of gender budgeting in Austria
In order to realise actual gender equality, so-called gender budgeting evaluates concrete effects of budget processes in a gender-related way. The different effects of financial policy measures on men and women are to be made visible in order to identify possible starting points for change. Austria included gender budgeting in its federal constitution in 2009 (Art. 13, para.3; Art. 51, para.8) and has been committed to implementing gender-equitable budgeting since 2013. The Berlin Senate, among others, also included corresponding approaches in its principles.
For further reading and discussion:
https://www.imag-gmb.at/gender-budgeting/rechtsgrundlagen-zu-gb.html