DOCSLIB.ORG

Gender Equality in Iceland

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Gender Equality in Iceland GENDER EQUALITY IN ICELAND Information on Gender Equality Issues in Iceland Centre for Gender Equality Iceland Updated January 2012 2012 © Jafnréttisstofa | The Center for Gender Equality Iceland Address: Borgir v/Norðurslóð | 600 Akureyri |Iceland Email: [email protected] | Website: www.jafnretti.is Table of Contents Introduction .......................................................................................................................... 1 Facts about Iceland ................................................................................................................ 2 Stepping Stones..................................................................................................................... 3 A Brief History of Women´s Rights and Gender Equality in Iceland .......................................... 4 Current Context ..................................................................................................................... 7 The Economic Crisis and Gender Equality ................................................................................... 8 Current Government Policy on Gender Equality ................................................................... 10 Issues in Gender Equality ..................................................................................................... 14 Economic Participation and Opportunity .................................................................................. 14 Women and Men in the Private Sector ..................................................................................... 15 The Gender Pay Gap .................................................................................................................. 16 Parental Leave ........................................................................................................................... 16 Taxation System ........................................................................................................................ 17 Political Representation ............................................................................................................ 18 Parliament - Althingi .................................................................................................................. 18 Municipal Councils .................................................................................................................... 19 Women and Men in Ministries .................................................................................................. 19 Education ................................................................................................................................... 20 Health ........................................................................................................................................ 21 Reproductive Health and Rights ................................................................................................ 21 Birth Rates ................................................................................................................................. 22 Abortions ................................................................................................................................... 22 Cancer ........................................................................................................................................ 22 Artificial Insemination ............................................................................................................... 23 Other Health Issues ................................................................................................................... 23 Violence against Women ........................................................................................................... 25 Research on Violence against Women ...................................................................................... 25 Changes in legislation ................................................................................................................ 26 Plan of Action to Deal with Violence in Close Relationships and Sexual Violence .................... 27 Services ...................................................................................................................................... 27 Human Trafficking ..................................................................................................................... 28 Media......................................................................................................................................... 30 Men and Gender Equality ......................................................................................................... 30 Youth and Gender Equality ....................................................................................................... 32 Rights of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender persons ...................................................... 34 Legal Framework ................................................................................................................. 35 Constitution ............................................................................................................................... 35 Act on Equal Status and Equal Rights of Women and Men ...................................................... 35 Act on Maternity/Paternity Leave and Parental Leave ............................................................. 36 Amendments concerning gender quotas in Corporations ........................................................ 36 Gender Based Violence ............................................................................................................. 37 Sexual offences .......................................................................................................................... 37 Prostitution ................................................................................................................................ 37 Strip clubs .................................................................................................................................. 38 Violence in Close Relationships ................................................................................................. 38 Other Legislation ....................................................................................................................... 38 International Obligations and Legislation concerning Gender Equality .................................... 38 Action Plans and Strategies .................................................................................................. 39 Parliamentary resolution on a four year gender equality action programme, 2011-2014....... 39 Plan of Action to deal with Sexual Violence and Violence in Close Relationships .................... 39 Action Plan against Human Trafficking ..................................................................................... 39 National Action Plan for the implementation of UN Security Council Resolution 1325 ........... 40 Institutional Mechanisms for Gender Equality ...................................................................... 41 The Centre for Gender Equality................................................................................................. 41 The Gender Equality Complaints Committee ............................................................................ 42 Gender Equality Council ............................................................................................................ 42 Municipality Gender Equality Committees ............................................................................... 42 Gender Equality Representatives .............................................................................................. 43 University Programmes and Institutions .............................................................................. 44 University of Iceland .................................................................................................................. 44 Gender Studies .......................................................................................................................... 44 The Centre for Women´s and Gender Studies (RIKK) ................................................................ 44 GEST - The Gender Equality Studies and Training Programme ................................................. 44 Centre for Children and Family Research (ICE-CCFR) ................................................................ 45 MARK – Centre for Research on Diversity and Gender ............................................................. 45 RannKyn – Centre for Research on Equality, Gender and Education ........................................ 45 The Centre for Disability Studies ............................................................................................... 46 Women's History Archives ........................................................................................................ 46 University of Akureyri ................................................................................................................ 46 Research Centre against Violence ............................................................................................. 46 Other Mechanisms and Institutions ..................................................................................... 47 Emergency Rape Wards ...........................................................................................................
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Changing Gender Perspectives in Iceland – the Women's Day
    Claudia Cuttriss Yr 10 NHC 2018 Changing Gender Perspectives in Iceland – The Women’s Day Off A dramatic shift took place on October 24th, 1975, irreversibly changing the perspectives of women in Icelandic society. Prior to this date a discernibly low level of respect was evident for women in domestic and waged positions. Infuriation caused by this disregard for female efforts in the community, led to the united decision of Icelandic women to take action in the form of a strike. Known by locals as, ‘Kvennafri’, the 1975 ‘Women’s Day Off’ was an undeniable success, with ninety percent of the country’s female population refusing to partake in any form of work for the entirety of the day. This symbolic act of social defiance altered the understanding of women’s role in society and was an important turning point that paved the way for many positive changes regarding gender equality in Iceland. Planning Kvennafri required an immense aggregation of determination and cooperation; however, the outcome was definitively worth all efforts. The event, with widespread support and participation, was exceedingly successful. A feminist organisation known as Redstocking first presented the idea of a strike in 1970, although it was not until 1975 that the suggestion was genuinely deliberated. According to the official Women’s History Archives in Iceland, a committee was formed in the spring of 1975 by representatives of the nation’s five largest female associations in addition to a spokesperson for the United Nations. This committee was tasked with the organisation of a congress for women in Reykjavik - the country’s capital - to be held later that year.
    [Show full text]
  • Centre for Gender Equality, Iceland
    United Nations Nations Unies Commission on the Status of Women Fifty-second session New York, 25 February – 7 March 2008 PANEL The equal sharing of responsibilities between women and men including caregiving in the context of HIV/AIDS Written statement* Submitted by Kristin Astgeirsdottir Centre for Gender Equality, Iceland * The views expressed in this paper are those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of the United Nations. Sharing responsibilities: Engaging the fathers. The Icelandic experience After the rise of the New Women’s Movement in Iceland in the early 1970’s, sharing domestic responsibilities was one of the main issues discussed in relation to equal opportunities for women and men. Women’s participation in the workforce was growing rapidly, while lack of childcare and short maternity leave was an obstacle parents were facing. Maternity leave in Iceland goes all the way back to 1945, but until the late 1980’s paternal leave was not a part of the picture. In 1960 the overall participation of women in the workforce was 34per cent, in 1971 it was up to 51per cent and 65per cent in 1981. It is now 76per cent. Over 80per cent of married women have a paid job, more and more of them working full-time. The demand for women on the labour market, women’s increased education and growing awareness of injustices facing women in society, explains the strength of the women’s movement in Iceland in the last 35 years. On the 24th of October 1975 – the day of the United Nations - women in Iceland took a whole day off, or in other words went on a strike, to prove the importance of women’s work for the economy.
    [Show full text]
  • Iceland's Implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development
    June 2019 Iceland's Implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development Voluntary National Review Government of Iceland Prime Minister’s Office Contents PRESS BOX TO GO TO CHAPTER Message from the Prime Minister very Friday at noon, hundreds of young people gather out- side Althingi, Iceland’s Parliament, insisting on radical action against climate change. They are a part of an international Emovement of young people who rightly point out the fact that today’s decisions determine their future. Climate change is a crisis for humanity as a whole; rendering traditional territorial borders meaningless. International collaboration is the only way forward. The Millennium Development Goals, adopted in 2000, were often referred to as “the world’s biggest promise”. They were a global agreement to reduce poverty and human deprivation. And they did. The MDGs lifted more than one billion people out of extreme poverty. The goals provided access to water and sanitation; drove down child mortality; drastically improved maternal health; cut the number of children out of school; and made huge advances in combatting HIV/AIDS and malaria. The Sustainable Development Goals are a bold commitment to finish what has been started. Coinciding with the historic Paris Agreement on climate change, the SDGs are the promise our young people are calling for, of sustainability, equality and wellbeing for all. The SDGs are also an important reminder that sustainable development is not just an issue for faraway places. Each and every one of us has both rights and obligations in this context. While some of the SDGs might feel distant from our daily lives, they encompass everything that makes life worthwhile, such as education, water, peace and equality, to name just a few.
    [Show full text]
  • Gender Bias in the Media: the Case of Iceland
    n Fræðigreinar STJÓRNMÁL & STJÓRNSÝSLA Gender Bias in the Media: The Case of Iceland Valgerður Jóhannsdóttir, Adjunct Lecturer in Journalism, University of Iceland Þorgerður Einarsdóttir, Professor in Gender Studies, University of Iceland Abstract The news media are the most influential sources of information, ideas and opin- ion for most people around the world. Who appears in the news and who is left out, what is covered and what is not and how people and events are portrayed matter. Research has consistently shown that women are underrepresented in the news and that gender stereotypes are reinforced in and through the media. The 1995 Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action recognised the relation- ship between women and media as a major area of concern in achieving gender equality in contemporary societies. This article presents Nordic findings from the 2015 Global Media Monitoring Project (GMMP), which is the largest and longest-running study on gender in the world’s media. The findings show that women account for only 1 in 5 of the people interviewed or reported on by Ice- landic news media and that women’s overall presence in the news has declined compared to the last GMMP study in 2010. The proportion of women as news subjects is also considerably lower than in other Nordic countries. We argue that the number of women who are journalists, managers in the media industry and decision makers in society has increased, but this shift has not automati- cally changed the representation of women in the news, either in numbers or in their portrayal. This discrepancy indicates that the relationship between gender and the news media is complicated and needs to be approached from different perspectives.
    [Show full text]
  • Proposal for Parliamentary Resolution on a Gender Equality Action Programme for the Period of 2020–2023 by the Prime Minister
    Proposal for Parliamentary Resolution on a Gender Equality Action Programme for the period of 2020–2023 By the Prime Minister. Althingi resolves, in keeping with Article 11 of the Act on Equal Status and Equal Rights of Women and Men No.10/2008 to adopt the following governmental Action Programme for Gender Equality for the years 2020–2023: A. THE ADMINISTRATIVE SYSTEM 1. The Icelandic Gender Equality Fund A summary is to be made of all projects that have received grants from the Icelandic Gender Equality Fund which was founded in 2015 through parliamentary resolution No. 13/144 in celebration of the centenary of the granting of suffrage to women in Iceland and amended by parliamentary resolution no. 19/149 of 2019. The primary role of the Fund is to finance or support projects and research designed to increase gender equality in Icelandic society and internationally. The Fund has been allocated ISK 100 million annually for a term of five years from 2016–2020. The summary shall be made with regard to the objectives of the Fund and shall include an assessment of whether and how they have been fulfilled. Time-frame: 2021–2022. Cost estimate: ISK 1 million. Responsibility: The Prime Minister´s Office. United Nations Sustainable Development Goals: Upholds goal 5 and promotes its integration with the other sustainable development goals. 2. The Gender Equality Implementation Fund A total of ISK 40 million of the state budget shall be allocated to government ministries’ gender equality projects during the period of 2020–2023. The projects can be cooperative projects between ministries within the Government Offices of Iceland or between ministries and government institutions or the academic community, having the objective of using outcomes, experience and knowledge in the field of gender equality or to introduce proposals that can be regarded as the results of projects within the government’s Action Programme.
    [Show full text]
  • Gender Equality in Iceland
    GENDER EQUALITY IN ICELAND Information on Gender Equality Issues in Iceland March 2017 2017 © Jafnréttisstofa | The Center for Gender Equality Iceland Address: Borgir v/Norðurslóð | 600 Akureyri |Iceland Email: [email protected] | Website: www.gender.is Table of Contents Introduction .......................................................................................................................... 1 Facts about Iceland ................................................................................................................ 2 Stepping Stones..................................................................................................................... 3 A Brief History of Women´s Rights and Gender Equality in Iceland .......................................... 4 Current Context ..................................................................................................................... 7 Current Government Policy on Gender Equality ..................................................................... 9 Issues in Gender Equality ..................................................................................................... 13 Economic Participation and Opportunity .................................................................................. 13 Women and Men in the Private Sector ..................................................................................... 14 The Gender Pay Gap .................................................................................................................
    [Show full text]
  • Madame Chair, Members of the Committee It Is an Honour To
    Madame Chair, Members of the Committee It is an honour to present the seventh and eighth periodic reports on Iceland’s implementation of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women. The reports give an account of the measures taken by Iceland during the period up to the end of June 2014. We felt it would be appropriate to touch briefly upon the economic situation in Iceland before informing you about recent developments on gender equality as well as Iceland´s implementation of individual provisions of CEDAW. Madame Chair, The last time Iceland came before this Committee was shortly before it became one of the first countries to be hit by the international financial crisis. A combination of a currency, banking and sovereign debt crisis led to a sharp increase in government and household indebtedness followed by an economic recession and a crisis of political and societal trust. A stabilisation program conducted with international support was successfully completed and Iceland graduated from the IMF program in 2012. In recent years economic activity has recovered steadily, returning to its pre-crisis level and economic growth (real GDP) has been continuous since 2011. An economic forecast from Statistics Iceland is predicting a growth of 3.5% in 2016 and between 2.5–2.8% in 2017- 2019. The employment situation between 2008 and 2015 has reflected levels of economic growth – when the crisis hit the unemployment rate went from less than 2% in 2008 to above 8% in the second quarter of 2009 – since then it has been below the EU average and it is coming on the whole slowly down.
    [Show full text]
  • Report Submitted by Iceland Pursuant to Article 68, Paragraph 1 of the Council of Europe Convention on Preventing and Combating
    Group of Experts on Action against Violence against Women and Domestic Violence (GREVIO) ____________________________________________ Report submitted by Iceland pursuant to Article 68, paragraph 1 of the Council of Europe Convention on preventing and combating violence against women and domestic violence (Baseline Report) Received by GREVIO on 3 September 2021 GREVIO/Inf(2021)9 Published on 9 September 2021 Baseline report by the government of Iceland - on legislative and other measures giving effect to the provisions of the Council of Europe Convention on Preventing and Combating Violence against Women and Domestic Violence (Istanbul-Convention) Government of Iceland Publisher: Government of Iceland September 2021 Design: Ministry of Justice ©2019 2 Table of contents 1. Introduction ..............................................................................................................................6 2. Integrated policy and data collection .....................................................................................7 A. Strategies and action plans ............................................................................................7 B. Allocation of financial resources .....................................................................................10 C. Civil society co-operation and support ...........................................................................11 D. Official bodies for coordination, implementation, monitoring and evaluation ...............14 E. Data Collection ................................................................................................................16
    [Show full text]
  • WIP Iceland Pack
    WIP Study Trip to Iceland Summary Report 3 & 4 April 2014 Althingi, Parliament of Iceland Reykjavik Iceland THE SPIRIT OF WOMEN IN PARLIAMENTS: ADVANCING SOCIETY INTRODUCTION The Women in Parliaments Global Forum (WIP) met in Iceland from 3 to 4 April 2014 in the occasion of the first WIP Study Trip. International female Parliamentarians, coming from more than 20 countries, gathered in Reykjavík for a 2-days Study Trip organized by WIP. The event was held in cooperation with the Parliament of Iceland, which for the first time opened its plenary for a conference of an international group of female Parliamentarians. Participants had the chance to meet with the President, the Prime Minister, Members of the Government and Members of the Parliament of Iceland. The WIP Study Trip gave participants first hand insights into Icelandic society, built on the values of gender equality and female social, economic and political empowerment. WIP Study Trip to Iceland | 3 & 4 April 2014 | Althingi, Parliament of Iceland ICELAND: THE SUCCESS OF LEGISLATION The WIP Study Trip to Iceland brought the spirit of the Women in Parliaments Global Forum (WIP) to the country with the best performance in gender equality in the world. Participants coming from more than 20 countries gained fantastic insights into Iceland’s path to gender equality and took home new ideas about women’s political empowerment and leadership which will now reach citizens all around the world. It was a pleasure to discovering the Icelandic society and grasping what it takes to be the country leader in gender equality. Grassroots movements, a common understanding on the ability and responsibility of everyone regardless their gender and a solid legislation on social and family affairs, have shaped the society of today.
    [Show full text]
  • 2011 Annual Session Report by the Special Representative on Gender
    1 Table of Contents I. Introduction ............................................................................................................................................... 3 II. Women‟s Economic Independence .......................................................................................................... 3 a. Framing Women‟s Economic Independence ........................................................................................ 3 b. Women‟s Economic Independence in the OSCE Region ..................................................................... 9 c. OSCE initiatives .................................................................................................................................. 15 III. Gender in the OSCE Governmental Institutions ................................................................................... 17 a. OSCE Secretariat ................................................................................................................................ 19 b. Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) ....................................................... 20 c. Office of the High Commissioner on National Minorities (HCNM) .................................................. 20 d. Office of the Representative on Freedom of the Media ...................................................................... 21 e. Seconded Posts in the Institutions ....................................................................................................... 21 f. Field Operations .................................................................................................................................
    [Show full text]
  • Nordic Gender Equality in Figures 2015
    Ved Stranden 18 DK-1061 Copenhagen K www.norden.org This brochure gathers information on gender equality in the Nordic region. It briefly describes some important areas of life and society, such as family, work, Nordic Gender education, health, power, income and influence. This data will hopefully be useful for everyone who seeks reliable Equality and comparable data on gender equality in the Nordic countries. Please visit www.norden.org for more information. in Figures ISBN 978-92-893-4039-7 (PRINT) ISBN 978-92-893-4040-3 (PDF) ISSN 0908-4339 http://dx.doi.org/10.6027/ANP2015-733 2015 ANP 2015:733 2015_733_omslag .indd 1 23-02-2015 12:50:44 Nordic Gender Equality in Figures 2015 ISBN 978-92-893-4039-7 (PRINT) ISBN 978-92-893-4040-3 (PDF) ISSN 0908-4339 http://dx.doi.org/10.6027/ANP2015-733 ANP 2015:733 © Nordic Council of Ministers 2015 Cover design: Erling Lynder/SignElements Nordic Council of Ministers Ved Stranden 18 DK-1061 Copenhagen K www.norden.org/en/publications Nordic co-operation Nordic co-operation is one of the world’s most extensive forms of regional collaboration, involving Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, Sweden, and the Faroe Islands, Greenland, and Åland. Nordic co-operation has firm t aditions in politics, the economy, and culture. It plays an important role in European and international collabora- tion, and aims at creating a strong Nordic community in a strong Europe. Nordic co-operation seeks to safeguard Nordic and regional interests and principles in the global community. Common Nordic values help the region solidify its position as one of the world’s most innovative and competitive.
    [Show full text]
  • Iceland's Report on Beijing
    Submitted to UNECE September 2019 Iceland’s report on Beijing +25 Twenty-fifth anniversary of the Fourth World Conference on Women and adoption of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action (1995) Government of Iceland Prime Minister’s Office 2 Table of contents Introduction ........................................................................................................................................... 5 About the report ................................................................................................................................... 7 Framework for the Icelandic gender equality policy and coordination mechanisms .................8 International conventions ............................................................................................................... 8 Legal Framework ........................................................................................................................... 8 A new Anti–Discrimination Legislation ........................................................................................... 10 State Administration general and coordinative responsibility ............................................................. 12 Prime Minister’s Office .................................................................................................................. 12 The Directorate of Equality ........................................................................................................... 12 The Gender Equality Council ......................................................................................................
    [Show full text]