The Committee on Women’s Rights and Gender Equality in the European Parliament has said that harassment cases in Parliament should be dealt with more quickly and transparently.
The committee has also called for tougher sanctions to be imposed on Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) who do not complete anti-harassment training.
These views were expressed by committee members in a draft report prepared to review institutional procedures and laws to prevent sexual harassment in European institutions and Member States following the Me Too campaign.
It has been said that EU institutions need more stringent restrictions and faster procedures.
This is due to the longer process that a victim of sexual harassment has to go through during the complaint process.
It was further pointed out that cases of sexual and psychological harassment are still under-reported in the European Parliament, as victims do not use existing channels for fear of reprisals.
There is also general mistrust in the way harassment cases are handled, the lack of a comprehensive system for reporting, support and mental health care for victims.
Committee members say more steps need to be taken to increase awareness of reporting procedures and support available to victims to prevent all forms of harassment.
MEPs say EU institutions should introduce a network of confidential advisers and external mediators to provide guidance and support to victims.
Harassment cases can take years to process, causing unnecessary harm to victims, they say.
The two advisory committees dealing with harassment complaints in Parliament should complete cases brought before them as soon as possible within 6 months and keep all parties involved in the process informed.
It was suggested that the President should make a decision on possible sanctions within 6 weeks of receiving the initial report and inform all parties concerned of the decision before any public announcement.
It was further reported that only 36.9% of MEPs have so far attended anti-harassment training, with 260 out of 705 MEPs wanting to make the training mandatory and impose sanctions on members who do not complete it.
Committee members have called for a public list of MEPs who have completed and those who have not completed the training to be published on Parliament’s website, along with a certificate of completion for the respective member. be published on the individual page of
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