Commitment to gender justice. Twenty Years of Policy for Equal Opportunities in Rostock

After the political changes in 1989, the life and professional biographies of people suffered a dramatic change. Women were displaced from their usual jobs. Instead of a female tram driver, a man took place in the cabin. Despite being well qualified, young girls suddenly had poor chances in the training and labour market to learn, for example, for a technical career. The great migration wave began - a process that still casts its shadow. Many well educated young women left Rostock. Here the course for a successful policy for equal opportunities for women was set in 1990. Associations and societies were founded, which now contribute to more gender justice in the cities.

Brigitte Thielk, since 1990 working as Gender Equality Officer: Women in the GDR perceived their equality mainly in the job as more than 90 per cent of women were employed. There were enough nurseries and kindergartens, and one house work day per month, helping to combine the tasks in family and job. On the other hand women in the GDR were hardly to be found in political office or at leading positions. Almost exclusively men were the decision makers.

Women who wanted to start a business had to overcome harder obstacles to get loans from banks. Microcredits were not interesting for the banks. Today, female business starters and entrepreneurs get support from the association "Frauen in dieWirtschaft" ("Women into Business"), founded in 1994 and running since years a Women Business Starter Center in Rostock.

Violence against women - once a taboo subject - is a wide field of work for the association "Frauen helfen Frauen" ("Women Help Women"). Since 1990 they run the Autonomous Women's Shelter, where they offer advice and support. They belong to the Round Table on "Traffic of Humans and Forced Prostitution" which is coordinated by the Gender Equality Officer.

After reformation of the national legislation, violence at home is not any more a private affair but attracts public interest. In Rostock a well working intervention chain was set up - in close cooperation Kristiansand's regional project, "Free Choice" promotes equal opportunities for children in schools and kindergartens, so that when they choose their occupation, it will depend more on their interests than on gender and tradition. Perhaps it is never too early to achieve equal opportunities. with the police, prosecutors, courts, the city offices and the association.

Also, there was a need to create a framework that could help women to combine job, family and private life. This is the mission of the Competence Center "Vereinbarkeit Leben in MV" ("Live Compatibility in Mecklenburg-Vorpom-mern"), which acts together with many partners from business and politics in order to take the right measures. Together with the holders of Child Day Care Centers they negotiate, if necessary, the extension of the opening hours in order to make them fit to the demands of the job. In addition, a special network for single parents, coordinated by "Institut für Beru-fliche Schulung" (the Institute for Vocational Training), was founded with the aim to analyse problems and to find solutions.

Rostock Equal Pay Day Manifestation

The local Alliance for Families is working to create a family friendly city. The institutions of parents' and family education are involved, as well as the district community centers, enterprises, associations and clubs.

Women are still not representative in leading positions. Since 1998 the city administration has been working on the basis of the Promotion Plan for Women with the aim to occupy more leadership positions in case they have the same qualifications, aptitude and ability as their male colleagues, striving this way to put an example for the business sector. From thirty departments, eleven are headed by women, and out of three public corporations, two have a female director.

Brigitte Thielk promoted the creation of Future Workshops in all parts of the city. Here, women can contribute directly with their ideas to a better living environment. Women should be motivated to actively participate in the local policy and to introduce their female point of view. Since 2008, Rostock has been running the campaign "Frauen Macht Kommune" ("Women Power Community") together with many partners and the network of the "FrauenPoli-tischerTisch" ("Roundtable of Female Politics"). At the moment, among 53 delegates in the city parliament, there are 20 women with mandate, and out of 265 members in 13 parliament commissions, 89 are women, including 4 chairwomen. In the local district council, among 19 councils with 191 members, there are only 47 women, including 4 chairwomen. Since 2001, based on the decision of the municipal parliament, the administration is working on the implementation of the conception of gender mainstreaminig in all departments.