WOMEN’S organisations across Scotland have launched a manifesto calling for 20 key commitments from all political parties in the run-up to the Scottish Parliament elections next year.

The hard-hitting Gender Matters Manifesto: Twenty By 2016 sets out a strategy for achieving women’s equality through taking action on the economy, welfare, care provision, education and violence against women.

The 24-page document, produced by feminist organisation Engender and endorsed by Scottish Women’s Aid, Close The Gap, Rape Crisis Scotland, Zero Tolerance and the Scottish Women’s Budget Group is the result of consultation with women across Scotland.

Engender’s executive director Emma Ritch said: “This Gender Matters Manifesto calls for real commitments to achieving women’s equality in Scotland.

“Through taking action on the economy, social security, care provision, education, violence against women, and all other areas where inequality exists, decision makers can improve women’s lives in Scotland.

Laura Tomson, co-director of Zero Tolerance, a charity working to end men’s violence towards women, claims key demands in the manifesto would create “a more equal and safer Scotland”.

Tomson added: “We welcome Engender’s Twenty By 2016 manifesto and share their vision for full social and economic equality for all women in Scotland. Gender inequality is a cause and consequence of violence against women.

“As an organisation that works to prevent violence against women we are particularly keen to see all parties commit to ending inequality in schools through a ‘whole school approach’, and creating a watchdog to tackle media sexism.

“Challenging public attitudes through education and media are core to our work.”

Scottish Women’s Aid chief executive Dr Marsha Scott called on all Scotland’s politicians to adopt the manifesto to “increase women’s autonomy, safety and choices”.

She added: “We welcome Engender’s manifesto. For the last 40 years, Scottish Women’s Aid has been working to support women and children experiencing domestic abuse.

“We know that tackling women’s economic dependence is vital in the fight to end violence against women, and adopting these measures would go some way to bolstering women’s resilience and self-determination in the face of domestic abuse.

“It is unacceptable that women and children who have experienced domestic abuse also face losing their home, and domestic abuse should be specifically addressed within current housing options prevention policy.

“Access to justice and measures to increase conviction rates for perpetrators of domestic abuse and sexual crimes must be a priority for the next government.”

The manifesto, lodged with the Scottish Parliament, states: “This manifesto sets out measures that, with political will, can be taken over the next parliamentary term in pursuit of these goals.

“The 2016 Scottish Parliament elections present an opportunity for political parties to show leadership on gender equality and take the bold action that is needed to truly address intractable problems like endemic violence against women, our unjust and unsustainable economy, social insecurity for women and multiple discrimination.

“All of the issues that we raise and calls that we make in this manifesto are from an intersectional and inclusive perspective.

“This means ensuring equal access to change for women from all backgrounds and for women who face multiple discrimination, including disabled women, women from black and ethnic minority (BME) communities, refugee and asylum seeking women, older women and women from deprived and rural areas.”

Number one on the list of commitments is to bring forward a Gender Equality Bill to ensure main-streaming across Scottish Government departments and drive forward action to tackle women’s inequality.

The second demands a “push for the devolution of power to set gender quotas at all levels of politics, ensure that a gender balance of candidates stand in all Scottish elections until 2020, and use new powers to set gender quotas for public boards at 50 per cent.

Next on the list wants to see an equality and wellbeing set of indicators established that are linked to national performance frameworks and fourth calls for an extension of the Equality Budget Statement process into a full gender analysis of the Scottish Budget. Demands for gender equality in economic development strategies, recognising gender and other forms of equality as preconditions of sustainable, equitable growth at the economy, sector, and enterprise level, comes in at number five.

Universal childcare is also a big issue and many women’s groups want a national system of quality childcare provision developed which is free and fits with all working patterns.

A call for a summit on women’s social security is number eight in their manifesto, to determine what action can be taken to redress the gender impact of welfare reform.

See the full manifesto at www.engender.org.uk/holyrood2016

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