When the men who run the European Union pick its new leaders this year, they mig...
BRUSSELS - When the men who run the European Union pick its new leaders this year, they might finally appoint a few more women. But don’t expect a radical change any time soon.
Negotiators in Brussels and European capitals will have to weigh the interests of north and south, right and left, big countries and small, richer and poorer. But this year, there is more pressure than usual to balance the sexes too. French President Emmanuel Macron and outgoing Council President Donald Tusk are among those demanding that women be chosen to fill two out of four senior posts - Commission chief, Council president, head of the European Parliament and the EU’s top diplomat. For now just one is: that of the outgoing foreign policy chief, Italy’s Federica Mogherini.BOYS’ CLUB
But the leadership of the EU reflects domestic politics in the bloc, still overwhelmingly dominated by men. National EU capitals nominate each of the 28 commissioners, and in the outgoing Commission, only nine are women. The gap is particularly glaring at the European Central Bank. Just two women sit on its 25-member governing council. One, Sharon Donnery, acting head of the Irish central bank, is due to step down on Sept. 1 and will be replaced by a man.
EU institutions are not only more male than the electorate, they are whiter too. Minorities make up a tenth of the EU population but just 5% of incoming European lawmakers, says Sarah Chander of the European Network Against Racism group.“There is some improvement,” she said. “We’re still very far from a true representation of the European population.”
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