Belarusian Labor Ministry affirms that the country's labor laws are void of gender bias and devoid of discriminatory provisions.
In a recent seminar organized by the Ministry of Labor and Social Protection and the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), Svetlana Belash, the head of the department of population, gender, and family policy at the Ministry of Labor and Social Protection in Belarus, emphasized the need for anti-discrimination norms in the nation's legislation.
The seminar, titled "Gender Expertise of Regulatory Acts: International and National Practice," aimed to effectively implement state policy to ensure equal rights and opportunities for men and women, people of different ages and social status. Attendees included representatives from the Ministry of Economy, Ministry of Education, Belstat, NTSPI, and others.
According to Belash, a study conducted by the National Center for Legislation and Legal Research in Belarus in 2019 found that the nation's legislation is generally gender-neutral and does not contain discriminatory norms. However, she expressed hope that the seminar would help find approaches to determining criteria for evaluating the conduct of gender expertise and its place in the norm-setting process.
During the seminar, experts discussed various mechanisms for conducting state expertise. Belash also highlighted the importance of developing anti-discrimination norms in legislation when adjusting special legislative acts.
While international bodies and human rights organizations have raised concerns about discrimination and political repression in Belarus, there is no direct information on concrete gender equality laws or anti-discrimination norms currently being developed within Belarus' legal framework aimed specifically at gender issues.
Reports focus more on the repression of cultural figures, political prisoners, and language discrimination rather than newly enacted or developing gender equality legislation. As such, the current data does not show clear publicly available specifics regarding the development of anti-discrimination norms that explicitly aim to address gender equality in Belarus.
For those seeking more precise legislative details, consulting Belarusian government publications or specialized human rights reports focusing on gender legislation in Belarus directly might be necessary.
News about the seminar titled "Gender Expertise of Regulatory Acts: International and National Practice" highlighted the importance of developing anti-discrimination norms in Belarus' policy-and-legislation, specifically within special legislative acts, to ensure gender equality. Despite the general gender-neutral nature of Belarus' legislation, Svetlana Belash, a key figure in Belarus' policy-and-legislation, expressed hope that the seminar would aid in finding approaches to determining criteria for evaluating the conduct of gender expertise and its placement in the norm-setting process. The seminar discussions centered on various mechanisms for conducting state expertise, including the emphasis on developing anti-discrimination norms in legislation when adjusting special legislative acts.
