Oldal 31 [31]
EQUAL RIGHTS BETWEEN SEXES
favour of the under-represented sex.” In the Treaty of Amsterdam (1997) and as
a result of the democratic process, efforts to promote gender equality have been
put forward through legal regulations, even in science. In other words, the EU is
determined to eliminate inequalities and actively promote equality between men
and women in science as well, and it applies positive discrimination to this end.
To promote gender equality in science, the European Union established a wom¬
en’s science department in 1998. It has also set up the “Helsinki Group” of Mem¬
ber States’ representatives to coordinate policies on these issues across Europe.
The practical implementation of positive discrimination relative to women is
represented by the program allowing for women to get two more years to com¬
plete any application related to age or the deadline for obtaining an academic
degree if they have a child under the age of 10. In the case of female educators, the
age limit for children is postponed by two years. This was an important step to¬
wards addressing the structural disadvantage of women.”
The possibility of positive discrimination is also explicitly provided in the
Hungarian Fundamental Law (Article XV, paragraph 4.5). It is based on the
principle of equity, which we have already outlined. It is known that discrim¬
ination would occur if something (right, benefit, etc.) were to be favourable for
everyone, but that would not benefit anyone. However, in the case of positive
discrimination, the beneficiary will receive some form of entitlement even
though it is not due to others. However, positive discrimination can only be
justified by the creation of equal opportunities and the realization of social
inclusion, so the benefits cannot be distributed arbitrarily. Families, children,
women, the elderly and people with disabilities receive special protection, but
in their case, this positive discrimination only offers a chance of catching up
and in no way replaces performance.
It can be seen therefore, that the true equality of opportunity based on the
principle of equity has been ensured by both national and international regu¬
lations of contractual value, as well as the so-called soft law rules. That is why
it is necessary to look more closely at why, in practice, there is still discrimina¬
tion between the genders.
Nota bene, all of these efforts, the success in applying various legal docu¬
ments can be considered only together with their evolutive interpretation, and
the different scope and speed of implementation in states with different religious
and cultural backgrounds and with different interpretational frameworks also
# EU Charter of Fundamental Rights, Article 23 — Equality between women and men, https://
fra.europa.eu/en/eu-charter/article/23-equality-between-women-and-men (accessed 11 De¬
cember 2019).
50 Pető, A.: A nők a tudomanyban, Magyar Tudomdny, 2018/04. Retrieved from https://mersz.
hu/dokumentum/matud__173 (accessed 12 December 2019).
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