Brussels, (EFE).- The autonomous governments of La Rioja and Cantabria demanded today in the plenary session of the European Committee of the Regions (CdR) more efforts to guarantee equality for people with disabilities and women in rural areas.
In a debate on inclusion held in Brussels, La Rioja demanded from the European Commission a “more ambitious” proposal for the future European Disability Card with which the Community Executive intends to recognize this condition in all Member States of the Union and give a coverage series.
According to the La Rioja Minister of Finance, Francisco Celso González, the Commission’s final proposal, which he expects by the end of this year, must include labor benefits within the coverage of the Card.
In his opinion, the card must go beyond offering preferential conditions for equal access throughout the EU in some areas such as culture, leisure, sports and transport.
Cantabria focuses on rural women
For its part, the Government of Cantabria focused on the situation of women in the rural world, for whom it claimed “equal rights” in an environment where they have more obstacles to denounce sexist violence.
“The women of the towns take an average of 20 years to get out of the cycle of sexist violence, compared to the average of 8.8 years for the rest of the population,” warned the Cantabrian Minister of the Interior and Justice, Paula Fernández Viaña, who He cited a Diagnostic Study of Equality in the Rural World made by the Government.
In the plenary session of the Committee of the Regions, Fernández Viaña stressed the need to “combat gender inequalities and promote equal opportunities” between men and women in the rural world, since, according to him, it is “an effective way to fight against depopulation”.
The counselor also vindicated the government action carried out on equality by the Cantabrian Executive, and gave as an example the creation of offices for the attention of women in towns and the development, according to what she said, of programs to alleviate the digital gap of the women in the rural world.
The European Commission is accountable
The European Commissioner for Equality, Helena Dalli, intervened in the Committee of the Regions debate, which this May coincides with the celebration of the European Diversity Month, to ensure that the EU is “making progress” in order to eradicate inequalities.
Dalli vindicated the approval, during her tenure, of the first European action plan against racism, which she defined as “an aggression against democratic societies” that requires “well-targeted measures” to eradicate it at the state, local and regional level.
The commissioner mentioned the discrimination experienced by the Roma people in Europe and urged the Member States to “redouble their efforts” in terms of housing to “prevent and eradicate segregation” of this group in towns and cities.
“We call on Member States to make effective use of EU funds to improve the situation of affected communities,” Dalli said.
Coinciding with the European Diversity Month, the European Commission has awarded several Spanish candidates with the European Capitals of Inclusion and Diversity Awards 2023.
Brussels has awarded Catalonia for its policies in favor of the LGTBI community, the Catalan city of Terrassa for its strategies to encourage the participation of civil society and the municipality of La Zarza in Extremadura for setting an example in hiring the elderly and people with disabilities .