GOVERNMENT’S PRIORITY TO REDUCE VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN
October 15th, 2016
Deputy Prime Minister of the Republic of Serbia and President of the Coordination Body for Gender Equality, Mrs. Zorana Mihajlovic, has said that one of the priorities of the Government of the Republic of Serbia is to reduce violence against women, as well as to increase their economic independence and employment.
At a panel discussion on Gender Equality held in the City of Nis Assembly, Mrs. Mihajlovic said that women in Serbia are paid approximately 30 to 40 percent less for the same job in comparison with men.
She also pointed out that women should be much more represented in social and political life, as well as in the highest state positions.
Deputy Prime Minister invited women to be unique such as men are, thus contributing to the creation of a modern Serbia.
The Coordination Body for Gender Equality was established on the proposal of the Serbian Prime Minister, Mr. Aleksandar Vucic, and in no European country such a body is set at such a high level, because it is chaired by Deputy Prime Minister, she noted.
Mrs. Mihajlovic commended the Mayor of the City Nis, Mr. Darko Bulatovic, for his great support to gender equality, considering the fact that Nis has a Safe House of a regional character.
The Chairman of the Assembly of the City of Niš, Mr. Rade Rajkovic, pointed out that the City of Nis has a large number of women participating in politics and that a lot of them are at important positions.
The director of the Safe House in Nis, Mrs. Sonja Šćekić stressed out that women suffer violence for a long time because of their economic dependence on men, and stated that the most difficult situation is when mothers who suffer violence from their adult children come to the Safe House.
