Introduction

The Republic of Slovenia endeavours to comply with the reporting obligations set forth in Article 18 of the Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Discrimination against Women. In our view the reporting to the monitoring body is an opportunity to assess – through an overview of national legislation, policies and practices – the progress made in the realisation of the ideals and standards of the Convention and, furthermore, as an opportunity to identify the problems and obstacles which prevent women from fully enjoying their fundamental freedoms and all civil, political, economic, social and cultural rights in the Republic of Slovenia, and thus adjust our policies on the basis of such evaluations.

In the preparation of the Combined Fifth and Sixth Report, the following documents were taken into account:

–CEDAW specific reporting guidelines on the content and format of States parties reports adopted by the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women in 2008;

–harmonized guidelines on reporting under the international human rights treaties, including guidelines on a common core document and treaty-specific documents;

–national guidelines on preparing and presenting Slovenia’s reports on international covenants, UN conventions and protocols relating to human rights, and for the implementation of recommendations of the bodies which monitor the fulfilment of international obligations by States parties, adopted by the Government of the Republic of Slovenia on 3 March 2005;

–general recommendations on provisions and cross-cutting themes of the Convention adopted by the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women;

–recommendations contained in the concluding observations issued by the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women upon the consideration of the Slovenia’s Fourth Periodic Report at its forty-second session (on 24 October 2008).

This report presents in particular the changes that have occurred in the implementation of the provisions of the Convention in the period from the consideration of the previous report up to October 2013, as well as the information and data requested by the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women in its concluding observations on the Forth Periodic Report of the Republic of Slovenia. All competent ministries participated in drafting this report; NGOs active in the area governed by the Convention were invited to submit their opinions and proposals to supplement and amend the text.

The report was adopted by the Government of the Republic of Slovenia on 9 January 2014 and submitted for consideration to the Parliamentary Assembly.

The concluding observations on consideration of the Forth Periodic Report of Slovenia adopted by the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women at its 42nd session in 2008 were presented to the general public by a delegation of the Republic of Slovenia at a press conference. The representative of the non-governmental organisation that had followed the consideration of Slovenia’s report by the Committee was invited to participate in the presentation. The Government of the Republic of Slovenia considered the report of the delegation and the concluding observations of the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women at its 6th regular session on 24 December 2008 and adopted a decision assigning the competent ministries and government offices the task of examining the Committee’s concluding observations and adopting measures to implement recommendations contained therein so as to ensure that Slovenia submits as much information and data required by the Committee as possible in its next periodic report. The public at large has been informed of the progress made and any deficiencies in implementing the provisions of the Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Discrimination against Women also through the publication of Slovenia’s fourth periodic report and the translation of the concluding observations issued by the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women and their appearing on the website of the Office for Equal Opportunities. In March 2011, the concluding observations on the fourth periodic report and the follow-up information on the implementation of the recommendations requiring priority attention specified in the concluding observations were also considered by the Commission for Petitions, Human Rights and Equal Opportunities of the National Assembly of the Republic of Slovenia.

General Information *

A.The framework within which Slovenia approaches the elimination of discrimination against women in all its forms

Population

Basic data

At the end of 2012, the total population of the Republic of Slovenia was 2,055,496, with 1,038,765 women (50.54 per cent). In comparison with the data from the Fourth Report, the number of inhabitants grew slightly (57,906), while the share of women fell by 0.5 percentage point. Citizens of the Republic of Slovenia account for 96 per cent of the total population, 51.4 per cent of whom are women.

Fertility and abortion

The data for the 2004–2012 period show that the fertility rate in Slovenia increased to 1.58. The average age of the mother at first childbirth has risen; in 2012, it was 30.5 years compared to 29.2 years in 2004 (data on age of women with live births). The number of legal abortions has been steadily decreasing. In 2011, the legal abortion rate was 9.0 per 1,000 women of reproductive age compared to 12.7 per 1.000 women of reproductive age in 2004.

Marriage and divorce

In recent years, the number of marriages and divorces has remained approximately the same. Slight increases or decreases occurred in individual years. In 2012, the number of marriages increased by 499, and the number of divorces by 98 compared to 2004. The average age of bride and bridegroom at marriage has been rising consistently; in 2012, it reached an average of 34.3 years for men and 31.5 for women.

Aging of the population and mortality

Data on the age structure of the population show that the process of aging, typical of developed societies, has continued. In 2012, life expectancy at birth was 76.96 years for men and 82.89 for women. A comparison with the data for the period 2003–2012 shows that life expectancy rose by 3.46 years for boys and 1.79 for girls.

The mortality rate data show no significant changes over the past five years (18,523 deaths in 2004 and 19,257 in 2012). The share of women among all deaths in 2012 was 51.12 per cent. The infant mortality rate is low and has continued to decrease in recent years; infant deaths per 1,000 live-born children recorded in 2012 and 2004 stood at 1.6 and 3.7 respectively.

Education

Primary and secondary education

Primary education is compulsory in Slovenia. In the 2012/2013 school year, 161,051 pupils were enrolled in primary schools, of whom 78,409 (48.7 per cent) were girls. In the same school year, 78,208 students were enrolled in secondary schools, of whom 37,887 (48.4 per cent) were women.

Higher vocational and university education programmes

More women enter tertiary education than men. The share of women enrolled in higher education institutions and universities is higher than the share of men; the share of women who complete tertiary education is also higher. In the 2011/2012 academic year, 104,003 students were enrolled in higher education study programmes, of whom 57.7 per cent were women. In the same year, 20,461 graduates were enrolled, of whom 60.3 per cent were women.

Post-graduate education

In 2011, there were 60.5 per cent of women among masters of science and specialists who had completed their studies; in 2008, their share was 57.7 per cent. In 2011, doctoral degrees were attained by 523 students, of whom 42.7 per cent were women, a slightly lower share compared to previous years.

Economic situation

Economic development

In 2012, Slovenia’s per capita GDP was EUR 17,171.90. A decline was recorded in comparison to 2008, when it amounted to EUR 18,419.90. In real terms, GDP decreased by 2.3 per cent in 2012. In that year, Slovenia recorded a 2.7 per cent average annual inflation rate.

Employment and unemployment

In 2012, the activity rate of the population was 56.9 per cent (women 51.6 per cent; men 62.4 per cent) and the labour force participation rate 52.3 per cent (women 47.1 per cent; men 57.6 per cent). A decrease in both the aforementioned rates was recorded in comparison to 2008. The surveyed unemployment rate increased from 4.2 per cent in 2008 to 8.2 per cent in 2012. In women, the rate increased from 4.9 per cent to 8.8 per cent and in men from 3.5 per cent to 7.7 per cent.

Labour market structure

There is strong horizontal and vertical gender segregation on Slovenia’s labour market. Women prevail among persons employed in services, in particular in health and social work and education. The construction and mining sectors employ the fewest women. The share of women in the highest ranking and best-paid groups of occupation (senior officials, managers and legislators) is lower than in men, even though on average women attain higher levels of education and qualifications than men.

Income policy

Data for 2011 show that in terms of average earnings, women lag behind men by 4 percentage points. The biggest difference between the average salary of women and men – almost 19 percentage points – is noted among higher vocational and university graduates.

Public and political life

The Election of Slovenian Members to the European Parliament Act, the Local Elections Act and the National Assembly Elections Act specify the lowest share of women and men in the lists of candidates.

In the 2011 elections to the National Assembly of the Republic of Slovenia, 29 women were elected (32.2 per cent); in comparison with the previous term of the National Assembly, the number of women MPs increased significantly (by 17 women MPs or by 18.9 percentage points).

The share of women in political decision-making also remains low at the local level. In the local elections in 2010, the share of women elected municipal councillors amounted to 22 per cent. Ten woman mayors (5 per cent) were elected in those elections.

From 20 March 2013, the Government of the Republic of Slovenia has been led by a woman Prime Minister. There is one woman minister among the total of 12 ministerial posts (8.3 per cent), namely the Minister of Labour, Family, Social Affairs and Equal Opportunities. The Office of the Government of the Republic of Slovenia for Slovenians Abroad is headed by a female minister without portfolio and the Secretariat-General by a female secretary-general. There are eight female State Secretaries (33.3 per cent).

For the 2009–2014 term of office, Slovenia has elected four women MPs (50 per cent) to the European Parliament.

B.Measures adopted to implement the Convention and the effect of ratifying the Convention on the Slovene general, social, economic, political and legal situation

The Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women, the general recommendations adopted by the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women regarding the obligations of the States Parties to the Convention, the Committee’s views arising from the consideration of individual communications and inquiries under its competence in accordance with the Optional Protocol to the Convention, and the Committee’s recommendations contained in the concluding observations adopted upon the consideration of Slovenia’s reports under the Convention provide a framework for formulating policies, programmes and other measures to achieve substantive equality between women and men in Slovene society, and are applied by the legislative and executive branches of power. The provisions of the Convention and the recommendations of the Committee provide an important basis for substantiating initiatives and measures proposed to ministries by the authority responsible for equal opportunities. NGOs also apply the provisions of the Convention and recommendations of the Committee as a basis for their activities.

C.Institutions promoting gender equality, women’s rights and remedying violations of the prohibition of discrimination against women

Commission of the National Assembly of the Republic of Slovenia for Petitions, Human Rights and Equal Opportunities

The Commission for Petitions, Human Rights and Equal Opportunities, also responsible for gender equality, was established after the 2004 National Assembly elections and continued its work after the 2008 elections and the 2011 early elections.

The Ministry of Labour, Family, Social Affairs and Equal Opportunities

After taking office in 2012, the new government started the process of institutional reorganisation of public administration within which the Office for Equal Opportunities was closed; its tasks and staff were taken over by the Ministry of Labour, Family and Social Affairs. To be specific, the tasks and staff were integrated into the International Affairs and European Coordination Service, renamed the Equal Opportunities and European Coordination Service. The Service is organisationally positioned under the Minister and the State Secretary, which enables its horizontal operations. With the new government, the Ministry was renamed the Ministry of Labour, Family, Social Affairs and Equal Opportunities in 2013, as the mandate for equal opportunities was added. The closure of the Office for Equal Opportunities and the transfer of its tasks and staff to the Ministry gave rise to no substantial change in the performance of tasks in the area of gender equality. The implementation of de jure equality of men and women and de facto gender equality in all spheres of life has remained the basic principle of the work. The competencies and tasks of the Equal Opportunities Service are laid down in the instrument regulating internal organisation and the classification of posts in the Ministry, in the Equal Opportunities for Women and Men Act and in the Implementation of the Principle of Equal Treatment Act. The Equal Opportunities Service carries out activities to promote gender mainstreaming into all Government policies and also designs measures to eliminate inequalities based on sex and gender and socially constructed relationships between women and men in all spheres of life, and monitors their implementation. In doing so, the Service cooperates with ministries and other public services, with international, domestic and foreign governmental and non-governmental organisations and other institutions, as well as with foreign and domestic experts.

The Equal Opportunities and European Coordination Service employs the head and five staff members engaged in the area of gender equality (of whom one is currently on one-year sabbatical and one on parental leave), two staff members engaged in the area of European coordination and the Advocate of the Principle of Equality. In comparison with 2005, when Slovenia submitted its Fourth Report to the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women, the number of persons employed in the area of equal opportunities has decreased.

Advocate of the Principle of Equality

In compliance with the Equal Opportunities for Women and Men Act, an Advocate of the Principle of Equality operated within the Office for Equal Opportunities whose responsibilities included the issues related to the equal treatment of women and men. Upon the closure of the Office for Equal Opportunities and the transfer of its tasks and staff to the Ministry of Labour, Family, Social Affairs and Equal Opportunities, the institution of the advocate of the principle of equality was reassigned to the said Ministry. This has triggered no change in the Advocate’s tasks and powers. As already noted in the follow-up information of the Republic of Slovenia on the implementation of recommendations requiring priority attention specified in the concluding observations on the 4th Report adopted by the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women upon the consideration of the Fourth Periodic Report, efforts have been made to regulate the status of the Advocate of the Principle of Equality more appropriately.

In June 2010, the Government set up an interministerial working group to prepare comprehensive institutional arrangements for the area of ensuring equality and protection against discrimination. The analysis prepared by the interministerial working group was to provide the basis for comprehensive institutional arrangements of the area of equality promotion and protection against discrimination. In addition to the analysis of the existing situation, it also included a proposal for regulating the status of the Advocate of the Principle of Equality. Two options have been proposed. One was to establish an independent national institution for protection against discrimination; the other proposed that the tasks of the national institution for protection against discrimination be transferred to the Human Rights Ombudsman.

In 2011, the Government also established an interministerial group to prepare amendments to the Implementation of the Principle of Equal Treatment Act; its task was to draft amendments to the said Act, particularly regarding the arrangements of the institution of the Advocate of the Principle of Equality. Given the new government and the reorganisation of public administration in 2012, the working group failed to complete its work. However, efforts to regulate the status of the Advocate of the Principle of Equality more appropriately have been continued by the Ministry of Labour, Family, Social Affairs and Equal Opportunities, to which the Advocate was transferred in 2012. Bearing in mind the current situation of the Advocate of the Principle of Equality, the need for a clearer delineation of competences between the Human Rights Ombudsman and the Advocate of the Principle of Equality as regards the public and private sectors, the rather small Slovenian population and the current economic situation, and in view of the ambition to ensure victims of discrimination easier access to assistance by providing protection through a single point, the initial proposal was to combine the administration of the institutions of the advocate of the principle of equality and the human rights ombudsman. Following unsuccessful negotiations with the Human Rights Ombudsman on the administrative integration of the two institutions, efforts are now focused on finding more appropriate arrangements for the institution of the advocate by providing a clear definition of his or her powers as regards the private sector, where the Human Rights Ombudsman has no authority, and enabling the advocate to manage relevant financial and staff resources independently.

In 2010, the Office for Equal Opportunities implemented the ‘Equal in Diversity’ project, co-funded by the European Commission through the Progress Programme, which included the creation of a new website of the Advocate of the Principle of Equality. The website provides information, advice and recommendations on how to act when experiencing discriminatory practices and information on good practice in the field of non-discrimination; in addition, it facilitates the exchange of opinions (in the form of online surveys) and the opportunity to lodge an initiative to address a case of alleged discrimination with the Advocate of the Principle of Equality. The Advocate’s website appears in several languages (Slovenian, Bosnian, Serbian, Albanian, French, German, English, Romani, Italian and Hungarian). The website has been supplemented with a leaflet (also printed in several languages) and a fold-out in Slovenian, which also serves as teaching material for raising anti-discrimination awareness.

In 2012, the Advocate of the Principle of Equality received eight applications alleging discrimination against women. Six cases referred to unequal treatment in the labour market, while two cases referred to media contents. No opinion has been issued. In three cases, the Advocate of the Principle of Equality informed the applicants about potential courses of action; in two cases, no discrimination was found; three cases are still pending.

Equal opportunities coordinators in ministries

In accordance with the Equal Opportunities for Women and Men Act each Ministry has a coordinator for equal opportunities for women and men responsible for implementing the tasks specified by the Act and for cooperating with the authority responsible for gender equality policy. The Office for Equal Opportunities and/or the Ministry of Labour, Family, Social Affairs and Equal Opportunities cooperate with the coordinators at regular meetings, where the work, experience and issues related to gender equality are discussed. With a view to formalising these meetings and promoting gender mainstreaming, the Equality of women and men bill (more under paragraph 1) stipulates the establishment of a permanent coordination group composed of the gender equality coordinators. Its tasks are to include the exchange of experience, the dissemination of results and good practices and the monitoring of the application of gender mainstreaming.

The coordinators attended various events on gender equality (panel discussions, conferences, workshops) and actively participated in the preparing and organising training on gender mainstreaming at the Ministries (more under paragraph 4).

Equal opportunities coordinators within self-governing local communities

Pursuant to the Equal Opportunities for Women and Men Act, the self-governing local communities may appoint a coordinator for equal opportunities for women and men. Following the Committee’s recommendation, the Office for Equal Opportunities made every effort to promote and facilitate the appointment of the coordinators. Inter alia, letters were sent to Mayors at the beginning of their respective terms with information about the provisions of the Equal Opportunities for Women and Men Act concerning the appointment of coordinators and inviting the Mayors to appoint them. Coordinators for equal opportunities for women and men have been appointed in 45 out of 211 municipalities.

Commission for the Promotion of Women in Science

The Commission for the Promotion of Women in Science is an expert body working within the Ministry of Education, Science and Sport; it is composed of 14 members. In the years following its establishment, the Commission carried out numerous important tasks. It has been very active in the field of informing and raising public awareness on issues concerning women in science, collected data and was also engaged in abolishing discriminatory provisions relating to the provision of funding for research work, it has supported gender balanced representation in scientific decision-making bodies, gender-sensitive language, etc. The Commission prepares its annual work plan and draws up a report thereon.

D.Funds and methods to ensure and promote positive changes in the status of women

Budget funds

The organisational changes that made gender equality the responsibility of the Ministry of Labour, Family and Social Affairs were also followed by changes in funding. The Equal Opportunities and European Coordination Service is independent in allocating budget resources earmarked to co-fund projects of non-governmental organisations; it is also autonomous in distributing funds acquired through successful applications to the European Commission’s PROGRESS Programme and the Norwegian Financial Mechanism. Staff salaries, material expenses and expenditure related to implementing activities are provided from the budget appropriations of the Ministry. In 2013, the Equal Opportunities and European Coordination Service had EUR 20,000 for the area of gender equality at its disposal to co-fund gender equality projects of non-governmental organisations; through its successful application for the PROGRESS Programme of the European Commission, it obtained EUR 130,000; it also obtained EUR 78,027 from the Norwegian Financial Mechanism to implement a project.

Budget funds earmarked to co-fund projects of non-governmental organisations have remained approximately the same. In 2008, EUR 21,000 were earmarked for co-funding; in 2009, this amount stood at EUR 19,200; in 2010, it was EUR 22,600; in 2011, EUR 22,900; in 2012 and 2013, it was EUR 20,000. In this way, funding for up to ten projects of non-governmental organisations from various areas was provided every year. In 2012, five projects were co-funded (women in politics, mental distress among women, single mothers, elimination of stereotypes, more active role of women in social sub-systems); in 2013, co-funding was provided to six projects (economic violence against women, women entrepreneurship, encouraging young women to work and research in the areas of science and economy, anti-crisis measures and gender equality, women’s soccer, promotion of female experts in media).

Gender equality is achieved through gender mainstreaming and the application of general and specific measures. i.e. through two complementary approaches which the ministries and government services must follow. The ministries and government services fulfil the objectives and implement measures specified by the Resolution on the National Programme on Equal Opportunities for Women and Men 2005–2013 on the basis of periodic two-year plans, mostly by shifting the budget expenditure focus to more efficient and accelerated use of gender mainstreaming within processes already underway.

Civil society organisations

Civil society organisations are important partners in the implementation of different projects; they actively participate in ensuring gender equality by launching initiatives, reacting to legislative proposals and measures, monitoring the situation, reporting on the status of women and men in Slovenia, highlighting any obstacles met by women in the enjoyment of their guaranteed rights, etc. The participation of NGOs in implementing the provisions of the Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Discrimination against Women is presented in more detail in the section on the implementation of individual articles of the Convention. As already mentioned in previous Reports, a particularly important role in implementing the provisions of the Convention is played by NGOs engaged in the areas of gender equality and combating violence against women, among others: Women’s Lobby of Slovenia, Peace Institute, Legal Information Centre, SOS Society, a helpline for women, children and victims of violence, Society for Non-Violent Communication, Society for Women’s Counselling Ljubljana, Emma Institute – Assistance to Victims of Violence Centre, KLJUČ Society – Centre for Fight against Trafficking in Human Beings, Centre for Information Service, Co-operation and Development of NGOs – CNVOS, special working bodies of trade unions and organisations of employers for the area of equal opportunities, etc.

IMPLEMENTATION OF THE PROVISIONS OF INDIVIDUAL ARTICLES OF THE CONVENTION

Article 1

DISCRIMINATION AGAINST WOMEN

1.On 26 September 2013, the Government of the Republic of Slovenia adopted the Equality of women and men bill, which is to replace the applicable Equal Opportunities for Women and Men Act, and submitted it to the National Assembly of the Republic of Slovenia for discussion and adoption. The bill specifies in more detail the issues of gender equality and the prohibition of sex- and gender-based discrimination. Gender equality means that women and men are equal in dignity, have equal rights and responsibilities, participate equally and possess equal power to influence planning and decision-making in all areas of public and private life, have equal status and equal opportunities to enjoy all rights and develop their personal potential to contribute to social development and benefit equally from the results of the development (Article 3). Article 5 of the bill prohibits any conduct constituting sex- and gender-based discrimination in any area and also prohibits any incitement to conduct constituting discrimination and the encouragement of such conduct; it also prohibits retaliatory measures against persons discriminated against because of sex and gender and persons who assist a victim of such discrimination. Conduct constituting discrimination is specified in Articles 8, 9, 10, 11 and 12, namely indirect and direct discrimination, gender-based harassment, sexual harassment and gender-based violence. The bill lays down penalties for violating the prohibition of discrimination (Article 36).

Articles 2 and 3

MEASURES TO ENSURE THE EQUALITY OF WOMEN AND MEN

2.In compliance with the recommendations of the Committee, the Government intensified its efforts to prevent discrimination and ensure de facto equality for women. In the period following the submission of the Fourth Report, significant steps forward in combating violence against women and family violence were taken at the legislative and implementation levels. (For more details, see paragraphs 19 to 23 on Article 5 – Elimination of prejudices and stereotypes, Violence against women and family violence.)

3.One of the priorities of the Office for Equal Opportunities in recent years has been to strengthen the institutional capacity for gender mainstreaming. In 2009 and 2010, within the Progress Programme of the European Commission, the Office carried out the project ‘Making Gender Mainstreaming Work’, and in 2011 and 2012 the project ‘Gender Mainstreaming – Strategic’.

4.Within the ‘Making Gender Mainstreaming Work’ project, a manual ‘The Road to Gender Equality: Effective Implementation of Gender Mainstreaming into Policies’ was issued; it gives an overview of the situation in gender mainstreaming in the state administration, covers the methods and techniques of gender mainstreaming and provides guidelines for gender mainstreaming in the areas of social protection, social inclusion and employment. The manual was sent to all major government actors and was used as educational material at training seminars. A training module was developed within this project and applied in the subsequent project ‘Gender Mainstreaming – Strategic’; the module was used in gender mainstreaming training organised at different ministries; its content was adjusted to their respective policies and competencies. As part of this project, the training on gender mainstreaming in the budget process was carried out and two tools were designed: a list of questions for gender mainstreaming in the budget process and an online tool for gender mainstreaming.

5.An expert panel ‘Equal Treatment of Women and Men in Access to and Supply of Goods and Services’ was organised by the Office for Equal Opportunities in cooperation with the Market Inspectorate of the Republic of Slovenia and the Insurance Supervision Agency in March 2009. The expert panel was dedicated to raising awareness and identifying practices that constitute violations of gender equality principle as regards access to, and supply of, goods and services.

Article 4

ENCOURAGING DE FACTO GENDER EQUALITY WITH TEMPORARY SPECIAL MEASURES

6.As already stated in previous Reports, the Equal Opportunities for Women and Men Act provides the legal basis for the adoption of special measures. The Equality of women and men bill envisages no substantial changes regarding the adoption of special measures. Article 13 of the bill lays down that general and specific measures and gender mainstreaming are to be applied to promote and implement de facto gender equality. Pursuant to Article 16 of the bill, special measures are defined as temporary measures aimed at achieving the de facto equality of women and men in areas where an unbalanced gender representation of persons or social groups of women and men or unequal position and role of persons of one sex has been established. The inclusion of social groups in the bill provides legal basis for the concept of intersectionality of discrimination. When a special measure is adopted, the period of its validity and/or method of examining whether it is still necessary must be specified.

7.No amendments have been made to the legislation governing elections to the European Parliament and the National Assembly and local elections. In line with the transitional periods set forth in the electoral legislation, the lowest share of female and male candidates in the lists of candidates has increased gradually. In the 2010 local elections, a minimum 30 per cent quota for the representation of both, women and men in the candidate list applied; in the 2008 and 2011 National Assembly elections, the applicable quota was 25 and 35 per cent, respectively.

8.A number of measures which are deemed special because of their nature or the purpose of introduction are included in programme documents intended, for example, to promote employment, eliminate unemployment and increase social inclusion.

9.In the area of entrepreneurship, the 2012–2013 Action Plan for the Implementation of the Small Business Act provided for the introduction of vouchers for women to co-fund the training of women entrepreneurs and covering general subject matters and specific themes for particular target groups. Its objective was to raise the level of competencies of women in areas important for their further entrepreneurial development.

Article 5

ELIMINATION OF PREJUDICES AND STEREOTYPES

Education for gender equality

10.As already noted in the previous Report, education on gender equality is identified as a special objective in the field of education, as determined in the Resolution on the National Programme for Equal Opportunities for Women and Men 2005–2013. Numerous activities were carried out in this area.

11.Within the framework of the European Social Fund’s call for proposals for projects addressing social and civic competences, a two-year project (2008–2010) was carried out by Ravne na Koroškem School Centre and the network of education institutions; the project’s aims were to analyse the circumstances, situation and values relating to gender equality, to raise awareness about stereotypes and establish reasons thereof and to design strategies to challenge stereotypes. On the basis of the analysis and other activities (training, interviews) model lessons for various school subjects and activities to cover gender issues were prepared, a collection of papers ‘Education for Gender Equality’ was issued and proposals and recommendations to include education on gender equality in the curriculum and training of professionals in education were made.

12.In 2009, within the ‘Gender and Gender Discrimination’ project, the National Education Institution prepared an analysis of the syllabuses used in the first three years of primary school for Slovenian, mathematics, introduction to the environment, physical education, music education and environmental education, in which the representation and inclusion of the principle of equal opportunities for women and men (terms written in masculine and feminine grammatical forms, objectives, contents and implementing activities relating to both sexes) were examined.

13.In 2010 and 2011, the Office for Equal Opportunities carried out the project ‘Equal in Diversity’; the project was co-funded by the European Commission through the Progress Programme, and included the production of an educational feature film for youth, ‘Smiles’, which addresses the issue of the stereotypes emanating from different personal characteristics and prejudices that the young have regarding diversity. The film was sent to all secondary schools in Slovenia, accompanied by discussion starting points and additional sources of informational about diversity and non-discrimination.

14.Public sector employees are being educated on gender equality, primarily through various forms of training, workshops, materials and publications and websites. The Judicial Training Centre, which is the main provider of training for judges, state prosecutors and state attorneys, organises training and seminars that also include the protection of human rights of women. Similar education and training programmes are also available to employees in the police, the health sector and social work centres.

15.Within the framework of Slovenia’s EU Presidency in 2008 and in cooperation with the European Commission, the Office for Equal Opportunities organised a conference ‘Elimination of Gender Stereotypes: Mission (Im)Possible?’. The Conference reviewed progress and identified the key challenges faced at various stages of life as regards the elimination of gender stereotypes, in particular in education and training, employment, private and family life, participation and decision making, and in the media. Commitments were undertaken to facilitate the development of policies and programmes to challenge gender stereotypes and promote gender equality in education and training programmes and practices, including training on and raising awareness and understanding of gender equality among teaching staff and students enrolled in programmes for educational professions.

16.The Office for Equal Opportunities contributed to education on gender equality by forwarding various documents of international, intergovernmental and regional organisations to target groups and interested individuals, by preparing and issuing publications and organising conferences, discussions and round tables.

17.The Commission for the Promotion of Women in Science (see the chapter General Information, (c) Institutions promoting gender equality rights and remedying violations of the prohibition of discrimination) plays an important role in challenging stereotypes and raising gender equality awareness in science; through its activities, it draws attention to practices that discriminate against women in science and promotes awareness of these issues. In 2012, it organised a conference ‘Inequality in Science: Gender, Ethical and Civil Perspective’ and, in 2013, a conference ‘Hidden Discrimination against Women in Science’.

Family life

18.In 2012, the Ministry of Labour, Family, Social Affairs and Equal Opportunities commissioned a study on how to follow the principle of gender equality in family life and in partner relationships. The study showed that daily housework is done predominantly by women (in more than two thirds of cases, it is mostly done by women) – women prepare meals, do the washing up or load the dishwasher, do the laundry, clean the house and iron much more frequently than men or couples together. The more demanding chores are distributed more equally: for the most part men, do small repairs in the apartment or house, maintain outdoor areas and look after the car; gardening is done equally by both partners; in nearly two thirds of cases, couples decide on home interior design and maintenance and/or house construction or renovation together; where this is not the case, men alone decide on these issues approximately five times more often than women. Most decisions about daily life in a partnership are taken by couples together (use of the family car, what to eat at special events, with whom the couple socialises in free time, how the family spends spare time) – with the exception of two questions more frequently decided by women, i.e. when the home is clean and tidy enough and what to serve for dinner. Several stereotypes were also exposed in connection with the tasks related to children. In cases where the couples do not carry out these tasks together, women more often than men play and socialise with children, take them to the doctor, dress them, attend to administrative matters related to children, organise child care in emergencies and organise transportation for children to leisure activities. The study showed that the majority of couples living in partnerships (61.4 per cent) combine their incomes and manage them jointly. If this is not the case, housing loans are mostly paid by men (40.8 per cent), as are car loans (49.0 per cent) and consumer credits (46.0 per cent). The major housing expenses (monthly housing costs, substantial housing costs and major repairs or renovation works), minor household expenditure (mobile phones, Internet, food, household appliances) and family holiday and/or travel costs are evenly shared by most couples otherwise not managing their funds together. In most instances, the expenditure related to children is also evenly shared by partners otherwise not jointly managing their money. When these costs are paid for by one of the parents, they are paid for mainly by women (payment for nursery, school essentials and school costs, non-regular baby-sitting, children’s clothing). Children’s leisure activities are an exception, being paid for slightly more often by fathers. In most cases, child benefits, maintenance, reduced payments for nursery school and child care allowances are claimed by women; child benefits were received by almost two fifths of all households included in the study and maintenance by almost one twentieth of respondents; reduced payments for nursery fees were claimed by more than one tenth of households, and child care allowances by slightly more than one per cent of all persons with children.

Violence against women and family violence

19.Significant steps forward in combating violence against women and family violence have been taken at the legislative and implementation levels since the previous Report.

20.In 2008, the Family Violence Prevention Act was adopted; it defined different forms of family violence and determined the role, tasks, network and cooperation of different state authorities and non-governmental organisations in dealing with family violence; it also defined measures for the protection of victims of family violence. On the basis of Article 11 of the aforementioned Act, the Resolution on the National Programme of Family Violence Prevention 2009–2014 was adopted in 2009; it lays down the objectives, measures and key bodies required to implement policies for the prevention and reduction of family violence. The tasks and activities needed to achieve the objectives and implement particular measures have been defined in biannual action plans. Currently, the second action plan, i.e. the 2012–2013 action plan, is being carried out; it is focused on increasing the quality of services for all users and ensuring the best possible coordinated actions of competent authorities and services. Activities to date have shown that the inter-ministerial integration of activities under the Family Violence Prevention Act, which brings together all policy and programme makers, plays a key role in coordination and professional discourse with a view to increasing the efficiency of measures and reducing the prevalence of violence in the family and society in general.

21.On the basis of the Family Violence Prevention Act, four implementing regulations were adopted: the Rules on the organisation and work of multidisciplinary teams and regional services and on the activities of social work centres in dealing with domestic violence, the Rules on cooperation between the police and other authorities in the detection and prevention of domestic violence, the Rules on procedures for dealing with domestic violence in the implementation of health activities and the Rules on the treatment of domestic violence for educational institutions. In addition, various instructions and guidelines on the operation of institutions engaged in combating family violence were prepared. The Rules specify the conduct of institutions in dealing with family violence with a view to connecting measures in various ministries and ensuring efficient activities to reduce family violence at the level of identification and prevention.

22.A new Criminal Code was adopted in 2008; it introduced a definition of the criminal offence of family violence, which was not covered in the previously applicable Code reported on in the Fourth Periodic Report. Article 191 of the Criminal Code provides that ‘whoever within a family mistreats another person, beats her/him, or in any other way treats her/him painfully or degradingly, threatens with direct attack on her/his life or limb to throw her/him out of the joint residence or in any other way limits her/his freedom of movement, stalks her/him, forces her/him to work or give up her/his work, or in any other way puts her/him in a subordinate position by aggressively limiting her/his equal rights shall be sentenced to imprisonment for up to five years.’ This Article also applies to violence committed in any other permanent partnership. If the aforementioned conduct is directed at a person with whom the perpetrator formerly lived in a family or other permanent partnership and this conduct is connected to the partnership, the perpetrator is to be sentenced to up to three years imprisonment. The statute of limitations for criminal offences against marriage, family or youth and in criminal offences against sexual inviolability was changed by the new Criminal Code (Article 90). The statute of limitations was extended. The Act amending the Criminal Code, adopted in 2011, defined the criminal offence of threat. In cases of threats carrying a fine or up to three years imprisonment, the prosecution is initiated upon a private action (Article 135), while under the previous Act it was initiated ex officio. This is a step back as regards the prosecution of perpetrators of violence against women.

23.We stated in the previous Report that the Government of the Republic of Slovenia adopted the Protection of public order bill, which was subsequently passed by the National Assembly and entered into force in 2006. The minor offences related to family violence are specified in Article 6(4). The provisions of this paragraph protect persons from domestic violence (victims are predominantly women) in closed private premises and also in public places when the conditions and/or elements indicating criminal offence are not (yet) found. Perpetrators committing family violence also receive higher fines (aggravated minor offence). The Act also promotes anti-discriminatory actions. The provisions of Article 20 are intended to prevent discriminatory conduct, as stronger sanctions are envisaged for the listed minor offences (such as violent and indecent behaviour, etc.) committed with intent to discriminate. Monitoring of this area has improved since the passage of this Act.

24.The Tasks and Powers of the Police Act was passed in 2013; it extended police powers in cases when a restraining order is issued, and provides that perpetrators not respecting it can be held in custody (Articles 60 and 61).

25.On 8 September 2011, the Republic of Slovenia signed the Council of Europe Convention on preventing and combating violence against women and domestic violence adopted by the Council of Europe Committee of Ministers on 7 April 2011. This international legal instrument provides comprehensive approach to the obligations of the state parties to prevent violence, protect and support victims, prosecute perpetrators, act in an inclusive and coordinated manner and strengthen the responsibility of the states to promote gender equality and the protection of human rights of victims of such violence. Currently, activities to ratify the Convention are underway.

26.The Ministry of the Interior is a key source of data on the prevalence of violence against women. According to the Ministry’s data, 4,682 restraining orders with respect to place or person were issued between 2008 and 2012. Most restraining orders were issued in 2009 (1,121) and the least in 2008 (556).

27.A decline in the number of minor offences against public order has been recorded in recent years; 10,016 cases were recorded in 2008 and 6,286 in 2012. The number of minor offences of family violence decreased slightly, from 2,171 or 21.7 per cent in 2008 to 812 or 12.9 per cent of all minor offences against public order in 2012. One of the reasons for this can be found in the fact that some conducts previously defined as minor offence are now treated as a criminal offence of family violence. Between 2008 and 2012, the share of women victims of minor offences against public order increased from 44.3 per cent to 54.8 per cent.

28.From the end of 2008 – when the new Criminal Code entered into force and introduced the new criminal offence of family violence (more under paragraph 22) – to 2012, the percentage of women among the victims of family violence was 87.9. The perpetrators were men in almost all cases (99.4 per cent). Between 2008 and 2012, 50 rapes on average were committed per year. In 98 per cent of cases the victims were women. In all cases except one, the perpetrators were men. In the mentioned period, most victims of sexual violence were women (95.2 per cent); the perpetrators were men in all cases except one. In the period from 2008 to 2012, women were victims of murder in 46 per cent of cases; the perpetrators were men in 92 per cent of cases. 74 cases of murder/manslaughter (including attempted) occurred in the family; 42 victims were women (57 per cent).

29.In the period from 2008 to 2011, the first national survey on violence in private life and partnerships ‘The Extent and Responsiveness to Violence in the Domestic Sphere and in Partnerships’ was carried out in Slovenia; it was co-funded by the Office for Equal Opportunities, the Ministry of the Interior/Police and the Slovenian Research Agency. The survey consists of two parts. The first part covers empirical research on violence in the domestic sphere and in partnerships, while the second part analyses the effects of enacted and amended legislation on the work of institutions in dealing with family violence. The data on violence were collected from a representative sample of women aged between 18 and 80 years. According to the survey, every second woman (56.6 per cent) has experienced one form of violence since turning 15. They most frequently experienced psychological violence (49.3 per cent), followed by physical (23 per cent) and property-related violence (14.1 per cent), restriction of movement (13.9 per cent) and sexual violence (6.5 per cent). Most women who experienced violence in the previous year were faced with psychological violence (49.9 per cent) and a smaller share with physical (5.9 per cent), sexual (1.5 percent) and property-related violence (7 per cent) and restriction of freedom (6.1 per cent). With psychological violence excluded, every fifth woman experienced one of the listed forms of violence in the previous year. The survey also revealed that women experiencing violence are less healthy than women in the general population. They suffer more often from stress, anxiety, indigestion, loss of appetite, stomach problems, headache, sleep disorders, poor concentration, etc. The second part of the survey provides an analysis of cases in which police imposed the restraining order, an analysis of the effect of the Family Violence Prevention Act on higher courts’ case law, the criminal law aspect of dealing with family violence and an analysis of the work on family violence prevention carried out by social work centres. The survey also showed that institutions are more frequently detecting, identifying and dealing with cases of family violence. This was supported by legislation demanding and enabling the institutions to efficiently assist victims and deal with perpetrators. The reasons for the increase in the number of considered cases may also be attributed to the greater willingness of victims to seek assistance and in the better knowledge and sensitivity of staff of institutions responsible for assisting victims of family violence. The survey showed an increasing trend in the number of restraining orders issued. In 2005, police imposed 152 measures, while in 2010, the number of measures increased to 1,080. Between 2005 and 2010, a total of 3,694 restraining orders were imposed. The data show that police protect victims by imposing this measure in almost half of the family violence cases detected. The analysis of the restraining orders imposed by police further showed that as many as 97 per cent of perpetrators were men – most of the victims were wives and cohabiting partners (48 per cent); victims were also found among perpetrators’ parents (19 per cent), minor children (15 per cent), ex-partners (7 per cent), adult children (5 per cent) and other relatives (6 per cent). Police imposed restraining orders because of psychological violence (different forms of threat) not accompanied by physical violence in 28 per cent of cases. Police supervise the imposed measure twice a day on average. The number of violations has been decreasing; in 2009, the measure was respected by 85 per cent of perpetrators. The analysis of the work of social work centres showed that they dealt with 1,928 cases of family violence in 2010 (2,975 victims and 1,854 perpetrators) and convened 463 teams with the participation of representatives of different institutions to consider the cases. In dealing with family violence, social work centres cooperated mainly with police, who participated in multidisciplinary teams in 330 cases. The highest non-response (60 per cent) to invitations to participate was recorded in the health service sector. In 2010, 1,010 individual assistance plans were prepared. As already mentioned in paragraph 29, the Criminal Code specifies the criminal offence of family violence. According to the law enforcement authorities and court data for 2009 and 2010, the police dealt with 4,822 criminal offences of family violence, the prosecution services brought 807 indictments against perpetrators and the courts pronounced 275 judgements of conviction. Almost half the perpetrators were detained on remand. The analysis also showed that in more than 80 per cent of cases the procedures from indictment to final judgment were concluded in less than 6 months.

30.Various education and training courses on violence against women and family violence prevention have been carried out in the reference period. The Judicial Training Centre plays an important role in the education and training, as it is responsible for providing training on family violence prevention pursuant to the Family Violence Prevention Act. In 2008, a seminar on family violence prevention was organised, where the Family Violence Prevention Act was presented; in 2009, a two-day expert panel, ‘Family Violence’ intended for state prosecutors was organised in cooperation with the State Prosecutors’ Association of Slovenia; new features of family legislation, including family violence, were presented at a two-day event, the Days of the Judiciary. In 2010, the Judicial Training Centre organised a discussion, ‘Open Questions Related to the Application of the Family Violence Prevention Act’ and a two-day seminar, ‘Family Violence’. Training also addressed specific sets of issues related to the application of the Family Violence Prevention Act, the Criminal Procedure Act and the Police Act. In 2011, training for ‘Efficient Cooperation in the Area of Family Violence’ was organised in cooperation with the Legal Information Centre for NGOs; a consultation, ‘Violence against Children’, was organised in cooperation with the State Prosecutors’ Association of Slovenia and the General Police Directorate. In addition to training devoted exclusively to issues of family violence, these issues were also included in criminal law courses in 2010 for judges, seminars for investigating judges and the training ‘Role and Importance of the State Prosecutor in relation to Criminal Offence Victims and Injured Parties’.

31.As mentioned in the previous Report, the police established a system of regular annual training for police officers, including training and specialisation on family violence and violence against children and women. The General Police Directorate and individual police administrations held round tables and consultation meetings on family violence. The police carry out various activities, such as campaigns and issuing posters and fold-outs, with a view to disseminating information about the possibilities of preventing, and providing appropriate responses to, violence. One of the widely-known actions by the Ministry of the Interior and/or police was carried out in 2009 in cooperation with NGOs. A campaign to prevent violence against women ‘Do You Hear?’ drew attention to the unacceptability of violence, encouraged victims to rapidly seek help and others not to turn a blind eye to this problem when they are alerted to it in their environment and to play an active role in the fight against violence; the campaign also focused on motivating perpetrators to take responsibility for their actions.

32.The Ministry of Labour, Family, Social Affairs and Equal Opportunities also plays an important role in education and awareness raising. In 2010, two seminars were carried out on preventing family violence for professionals working at social work centres, safe houses, maternity homes and emergency shelters and coordinators. The emphasis was on work with victims and violence perpetrators. In 2011, two seminars were carried out on preventing family violence and one dedicated to preventing violence against the elderly.

33.In recent years, the capacities to shelter victims of family violence have been increased. In 2012, the Ministry of Labour, Family, Social Affairs and Equal Opportunities co-funded the programmes of 20 safe houses, shelters, havens and maternity homes providing approx. 445 beds. One safe house is adjusted to accommodate persons with disabilities and one crisis centre to accommodate elderly people.

34.Within the Ministry of Labour, Family, Social Affairs and Equal Opportunities, various preventive campaigns to promote life free from violence were carried out. Fold-outs for persons who have experienced violence, fold-outs about restraining orders for specific places or persons and fold-outs with information for perpetrators were issued. These were translated into several languages, including Romani. A fold-out intended for all primary school pupils ‘Let’s Create a Society free from Violence’ was issued. Within its annual public calls under family support programmes, the Ministry co-funded family mediation and family centre programmes.

35.The Office for Equal Opportunities has carried out various activities related to the prevention of violence against women in the reference period. In addition to the first research on violence against women (more under paragraph 29), which was presented at two public consultations, the Office started to address less known issues on the prevention and elimination of violence against girls and women. In 2008, it carried out a study and organised a discussion on violence against people with disabilities; in 2010, it organised a discussion on dating violence titled ‘Just This Once’ and prepared materials to raise awareness of this issue. The discussion on dating violence was intended for counsellors at primary and secondary schools, staff at social work centres, health-care professionals, police, prosecutors, NGOs and other interested public. A fold-out ‘Do You Date?’ was published for secondary and tertiary students, while a special brochure on dating violence was issued for primary school pupils.

36.Based on a public invitation to tender for co-funding projects of non-governmental organisations, the Office for Equal Opportunities financially supported the implementation of 13 projects addressing violence against women in the 2008–2012 period. Among others, the projects focused on detection and handling cases of violence against elderly people, the functioning of self-help group, training for adolescents related to violence against women, individual and collective counselling and support for victims, violence prevention and raising the awareness of the general public.

37.The Ministry of Education, Science and Sport has been involved in several violence prevention activities since 2008. In addition to various training courses on peer violence and non-violent communication for better mutual relations and the non-violent conflict resolution in interpersonal relationships, professionals in education were also trained in dealing with family violence. The training was carried out by the Institute of Criminology and was aimed inter alia to appropriately empower professionals to detect, prevent and deal with family violence; as trainer for trainers, the participants then disseminated the newly acquired knowledge in their educational institutions.

38.Non-governmental organisations working in this field play an invaluable role in preventing and eliminating violence against women and family violence, so cooperation with these organisations is imperative. Educational, research and other institutions, international non-governmental organisations and media are also active in preventing violence against women and family violence.

Sexual harassment at work

39.Article 6a of the Act Amending the Employment Relationships Act, passed in 2007, prohibits sexual and other harassment and mobbing at work. Article 45 of the Employment Relationships Act, passed in 2002 and reported on in the previous Report, has been supplemented to ensure the protection of dignity of workers at work. In 2013, a new Employment Relationships Act was passed; it made no substantial changes to the provisions on sexual and other harassment and mobbing at work. Article 7 of the Act lays down the prohibition of any sexual or other harassment and mobbing and specifies such conduct. Sexual harassment means any form of unwanted verbal, non-verbal or physical action or behaviour of a sexual nature with the effect or intent of adversely affecting the dignity of a person, in particular when creating an intimidating, hostile, degrading, humiliating or offensive environment. Harassment means any unwanted behaviour associated with any personal circumstance with the effect or intent of adversely affecting the dignity of a person or of creating an intimidating, hostile, degrading, humiliating or offensive environment. Workplace mobbing is any repeated or systematic wrong or clearly negative and offensive treatment or behaviour directed at individual workers in the workplace or in connection with work. Sexual and other forms of harassment are deemed to be discriminatory; the rejection of such action or behaviour on the part of an affected candidate or worker cannot serve as grounds for discrimination in employment or work. Workers who are victims of mobbing may not be exposed to unfavourable consequences as a result of actions aimed at fulfilling the prohibition of workplace mobbing. Article 45 was renumbered Article 47 of the new Employment Relationships Act and supplemented by the employer’s obligation to inform workers of measures to ensure a working environment such that no worker is subjected to sexual or other harassment or mobbing by the employer, a superior or co-workers; information must be provided in a manner customary for the employer (for example, on a notice board on the business premises of the employer or by means of information technology).

40.Article 23 of the Health and Safety at Work Act, passed in 2011, lays down employers’ obligation to ensure that workplace arrangements and equipment for workplaces with a higher risk of violence are such as to reduce the risk of violence and facilitate the delivery of assistance to the workplace at risk. Employers must prepare procedures for cases of violence, and inform workers working in such workplaces thereof. Employers must also take measures to prevent, eliminate and control instances of violence, mobbing, harassment and other types of psycho-social risk in workplaces that might endanger the health of the workers (Article 24).

41.With a view to ensuring an appropriate working environment free of sexual and other harassment and mobbing, the Government adopted the Decree on measures to protect the dignity of employees of state administration in 2009. The Decree provides measures to prevent sexual and other harassment or mobbing and measures to be implemented in cases when sexual or other harassment or mobbing has already occurred. Each authority must designate a previously trained counsellor to provide assistance and information. To date, almost 500 participants have attended the training for counsellors previously organised by the Office for Equal Opportunities and now by the Ministry of Labour, Family, Social Affairs and Equal Opportunities. The Office for Equal Opportunities prepared and issued the Guidelines for the protection of employees against sexual and other harassment or mobbing in the workplace.

42.In May 2009, the Office for Equal Opportunities organised a discussion ‘Protecting the Dignity of Employees – from Legislation to Practice’; legislation and measures to prevent and eliminate sexual and other harassment and mobbing in the workplace were presented along with the results of an analysis of mechanisms adopted by employers to prevent and eliminate sexual and other harassment and mobbing in the workplace carried out by the Office for Equal Opportunities; good practice examples and the tasks and roles of the labour inspectorate, trade unions and employers were also presented. The discussion was intended for employers, trade unions, lawyers, HR professionals and the professional and lay public (the police, justice, NGOs).

43.Labour inspectors have rarely found violations related to sexual or other harassment and mobbing. The reason for this can be attributed to the fact that in practice harassment and mobbing are difficult to prove. It is much easier for labour inspectors to establish whether an employer is ensuring protection against sexual and other harassment and mobbing in accordance with the previously applicable Article 45 or current Article 47 of the Employment Relationships Act; 60 violations of this provision were found in 2012.

Article 6

TRAFFICKING IN WOMEN AND EXPLOITATION OF PROSTITUTION

44.A new Criminal Code was adopted in 2008; it made no changes to the most relevant criminal offences in the area of combating trafficking in human beings, which were reported on in the Fourth Report. The amendments were made only to the numbering of individual Articles referred to in the Fourth Report. Article 387a (Trafficking in human beings) was renumbered Article 113, while Article 185 (Exploitation through prostitution) was renumbered Article 175. The Act Amending the Criminal Code was passed in November 2011 and entered into force on 15 May 2012; it amended Article 113 of the Criminal Code (Criminal offence of trafficking in human beings), particularly as regards control over victims and the issue of their consent to trafficking in human beings. A new third paragraph was added to Article 199 of the Criminal Code (Criminal offence of illegal employment) to explicitly address the exploitation of victims of trafficking in human beings. On 23 April 2011, a new Employment and Work of Aliens Act entered into force; it ensures victims of trafficking in human beings, deemed a special group of aliens, access to the Slovenian labour market under more favourable conditions, i.e. on the basis of a personal work permit. Personal work permits are issued to victims of trafficking in human beings by the Employment Service of Slovenia solely on the basis of the status of victim of trafficking in human beings and without the verification of any other conditions. In this way, victims of trafficking in human beings can find employment and/or work.

45.According to the data of the police, 41 women and 4 men were found to be injured parties to the criminal offence of trafficking in human beings (Article 113 of the Criminal Code), 4 women and 3 men injured parties to the criminal offence of establishing slavery relations (Article 112 of the Criminal Code) and 51 women and 4 men injured parties to the criminal offence of exploitation through prostitution (Article 175 of the Criminal Code) in the period 2008–2012. In most cases, the perpetrators of these offences were men (74 per cent).

46.In 2012, police dealt with 4 criminal offences of trafficking in human beings under Article 113 of the Criminal Code, whereby criminal complaints were brought against ten male suspects, 3 female suspects and one legal person; they also dealt with six criminal offences of exploitation through prostitution under Article 175 of the Criminal Code, whereby criminal complaints were brought against 7 men and 2 women.

47.Eight judgements of conviction were passed in 2012 for criminal offences of trafficking in human beings, establishing slavery relations and exploitation through prostitution. The lowest prison sentence was one year and the highest three years and eight months.

48.Numerous education and training courses related to trafficking in human beings have been organised for public employees and other target groups that deal with this issue in their work. As they are the first to face the issues of trafficking in human beings in their work, criminal police officers and other police officers participated in continuous education and training on this topic. Much attention has been paid to identifying the various forms of trafficking in human beings, the detection of criminal offences and perpetrators, the recognition of indicators of potential victims of trafficking, and the special criminal investigation of these offences.

49.Regarding the prevention of trafficking in persons, the police have cooperated very well with the relevant NGOs in education and training and also in handling of particular criminal offence cases.

50.The Ključ Society and Caritas Slovenia are two key non-governmental and humanitarian organisations carrying out various education and training courses and, with the financial assistance of the competent ministries, offering support, assistance and protection to victims of trafficking in human beings. In 2012 and 2013, Caritas Slovenia carried out the programme ‘Care of Victims of Trafficking in Human Beings – Emergency Accommodation’, which was funded by the Ministry of Labour, Family, Social Affairs and Equal Opportunities in the amount of EUR 71,250. Within the 2012 emergency accommodation programme, Caritas Slovenia provided a total of 20 days of care and dealt with 8 people, of whom 6 were women; they were provided with accommodation, first psychosocial support, food, material assistance and assistance in repatriation. In 2012 and 2013, Caritas Slovenia also carried out the programme ‘Care of Victims of Trafficking in Human Beings – Safe Accommodation’, which was funded by the Ministry of the Interior in the amount of EUR 40,000. In 2012, four women were placed in the safe accommodation and 395 days of care were provided within the safe accommodation. Persons in safe accommodation were provided with accommodation, food, weekly pocket money, monthly bus pass, permanent psycho-social support, health-care services in the out-patient infirmary for persons without health insurance and in private out-patient clinics, counselling, information on their legal rights, assistance in settling documents and acquiring the status and related rights, learning the Slovenian language, companionship, escort and recreation. Each person in safe accommodation participated in drafting his or her individual social plan and signed an agreement on the rules of the programme prepared in his or her language.

51.Activities focusing on awareness-raising among expert and the wider public are also carried out. The Vijolica project has been carried out by the Ključ Society for a number of years.

Article 7

WOMEN IN POLITICAL AND PUBLIC LIFE

52.Slovenia provided detailed information on the activities to increase the number of women in political life in the Follow-up Information on the implementation of the recommendations contained in the concluding observations issued upon the consideration of the Fourth Periodic Report requiring our priority attention. We have described the initiative of the Office for Equal Opportunities to examine the possibility of financing women’s groups and/or equal opportunities groups functioning within political parties. The initiative was included in the bill amending the Political Parties Act, adopted by the Government of the Republic of Slovenia in July 2013. The bill lays down that women’s organisations within political parties which hold the status of an organisation in the public interest in the area of gender equality may acquire public funds to co-fund projects and programmes in accordance with the regulations governing public interest in the area of gender equality. We have also submitted information on the bill amending the National Assembly Elections Act, which is to provide a minimum 40 per cent quota for the representation of both sexes on the candidate list instead of the current 35 per cent; the bill includes a new provision on the ranking order laying down that women and men on the first half of any candidate list must appear in alternate order, whereby in four (out of total eight) constituencies, persons of one sex must be placed first in the candidate lists, while in the remainder of constituencies persons of opposite sex must be placed first. The bill was submitted to the National Assembly’s procedure in 2010. The legislative procedure of the bill amending the National Assembly Elections Act was discontinued at the first reading, as the deputies decided that the Act was not suitable for further consideration. In 2013, a group of deputies submitted a bill amending the National Assembly Elections Act; it lays down at least 40 per cent representation of each gender on any candidate list. Furthermore, in the first half of any candidate list women and men must be placed alternatively; the candidates of one sex are to be featured at the top of the same list in one half of the constituencies, while in the other half, candidates of the opposite sex are to be placed first. Where the same list of candidates is submitted for an odd number of constituencies, the difference at the top of the candidate list must not exceed one female or male candidate.

53.Legislation laying down the minimal share of women and men on candidate lists, already presented in the previous Report, has contributed to increasing the share of women holding political decision-making positions.

Women in political decision-making positions

54.The share of women on the candidate lists for the 2008 National Assembly elections was 35.28 per cent. Of the 90 deputies elected, 12 were women (13.33 per cent). The share of women on the candidate lists for the 2011 early elections was higher, i.e. 43.15 per cent; 29 women, or 32.22 per cent, were elected. The increase in the share of women is attributable to the large number of female deputies elected from the lists of two new parliamentary parties which were not in a position to assess in advance the eligibility for election in individual electoral districts. The recent elections show that women are willing to enter politics and that quotas produce results, provided, of course, that political parties do not calculate by entering women on the lists in electoral districts where they have no chance of election.

55.In 2011, the Women’s Lobby of Slovenia performed an analysis of the impact of electoral districts on women’s eligibility, which was co-funded by the Office for Equal Opportunities. The results clearly showed that the success of a female or male candidate depends on electoral potential in the district where he or she appears. Repeated appearances in elections allow political parties reliably to assess which electoral districts or female/male candidates in these districts will be allocated the mandates won in the constituency. According to the authors of the analysis, the main obstacles to balanced representation of women is the lack of political will and inadequate electoral system, poorly adjusted to measures providing equal opportunities of women and men. The aforementioned analysis and the analysis of the candidate lists of political parties and candidate lists for the 2011 early elections to the National Assembly were presented at a press conference, ‘Do Gender Quotas Work?’, held at the end of November 2011 by the Women’s Lobby of Slovenia and the Office for Equal Opportunities.

56.A persistent very low share of women on the National Council has been noted, where there are only 3 women (7.5 per cent) among 40 members after the last elections in 2012.

57.The share of women candidates on the lists for the position of councillor on municipal councils has been increasing since the introduction of quotas. In the 2010 elections, the share of women on the candidate lists was 38 per cent, and 23.26 per cent of women were elected, which is a slight increase over the 2006 election results, where the share of women on the candidate lists was 32.28 per cent, and when 22 per cent were elected. In the 2006 and 2010 local elections, the statutory gender quotas in the candidate lists were exceeded. Article 40 of the Local Elections Act requires 40 per cent representation of women and men on any candidate list, but this minimum share required will take effect in the 2014 local elections; in the transitional period, 20 per cent representation was required in the 2006 elections and 30 per cent in 2010.

58.The Local Self-Government Act provides for a Roma representative to be instituted for municipal councils in areas where Roma communities live. Among 18 elected Roma councillors (in the 2010 elections), there is one Roma woman councillor, or 5.5 per cent. Pursuant to the Roma Community Act, an umbrella organisation of the Roma community, the Roma Community Council of the Republic of Slovenia, was established in 2007; since February 2012, it has been headed by a female president, a graduate in social work.

59.In the local elections in 2010, the share of women mayoral candidates was 11.95 per cent, a 2.53 percentage point increase over the 2006 elections; 10 women (or 5 per cent) were elected to 208 mayoral posts.

60.The Office for Equal Opportunities commissioned analyses of the candidate lists for members of local community councils and mayors and the election results for the 2006 and 2010 elections. The analyses were aimed at examining the impact of quotas on gender balanced representation on the lists of candidates and women’s eligibility to be elected. The analysis of the 2010 local elections showed that the positive measures contributed to the higher representation of women in candidate lists. The alternate placing of women and men candidates on the candidate lists proved less effective, given that the majority of political parties and other list proposers merely observed the minimum legal requirements and placed women alternately in every subsequent third position on the list. It follows from the analysis that positive measures are an important but not sufficient mechanism to increase the share of women in political decision-making at the local level. In addition, measures of less technical nature and activities aimed at creating a political culture conducive to gender-balanced representation in decision-making positions must be introduced.

61.A balanced representation of women and men has been achieved as regards Slovenian members of the European Parliament, with four women and four men MPs in the 2009–2014 term. Its 50 per cent women representation places the Republic of Slovenia significantly above the EU average in women’s representation in the European Parliament.

62.With a view to raising awareness and supporting the greater involvement of women in politics, a pilot project, ‘Mentor Day with a Female Politician’, was carried out in 2011. The aim of the project was to offer female students interested in politics an opportunity to become closely acquainted with the process of political decision-making by providing them with mentorship by female politicians at the highest level (ministers and MPs). On 8 March 2011, International Women’s Day, female students spent one day with female politicians, accompanying them in their duties and becoming closely acquainted with their work. The mentorship to female students was offered by most of the female deputies, by all female ministers and by the head of the Office of the President of the National Assembly. The mentor day ended with a public discussion in the National Assembly, where the female students and politicians exchanged their experience and discussed incentives to increase women’s participation in politics. The experience and observations of the female politicians and students on the mentor day and proposals for further work were issued in the publication ‘Day with a Female Politician – mentoring young women pilot project’. On the initiative of a female expert and professor working on political participation, the project was carried out by the Office for Equal Opportunities in cooperation with the Government of the Republic of Slovenia, the National Assembly and several faculties.

Women in government

63.With the appointment of the new Government on 20 March 2013, the Republic of Slovenia got its first woman Prime Minister. One female minister (8.3 per cent) and one female minister without portfolio hold ministerial positions (of a total 13). Since 2004, the highest share of women ministers was recorded in 2008, when the newly appointed Government had five women ministers or 27.8 per cent. The Secretary-General of the Government is a woman; eight women hold secretary of state positions, accounting for 33.3 per cent.

64.Women and men are more equally represented in government agencies and public authorities than in politics, with 43 per cent of women among director-generals, 56 per cent of women among the heads of government offices and 59 per cent of women among the heads of administrative units.

Women in the judiciary

65.On average, the judicial branch of power records a higher share of women among judges. There are more women than men among the judges of the Constitutional Court. The Constitutional Court is composed of nine judges, of whom five (or 55.5 per cent) are women; the Constitutional Court is headed by a male president. In 2011, the share of female judges was highest in local courts (82.8 per cent) and lowest in the Supreme Court (53.3 per cent). In recent years, a positive trend is observed regarding women holding managerial positions. The Supreme Court is headed by a man, but women account for 50 per cent of the heads of higher courts, while the Higher Labour and Social Court and the Administrative Court are also led by women.

66.Among state prosecutors, the share of women is slightly higher than that of men. However, the share of women among senior staff of the prosecution service declines higher in the hierarchy. The share of women among senior staff of district state prosecutor’s offices is 36.4 per cent. The position of State Prosecutor General is held by a man; likewise, the Specialised Office of the State Prosecutor is headed by man.

Women in the economy, employers’ organisations and trade unions

67.The number of women in leading positions in companies, social partners’ organisations and other associations and organisations has been persistently low. In 2012, there were 11 per cent of women among the presidents of management boards of the largest listed companies, and 14 per cent among the members of management boards (in 2010, six per cent and ten per cent respectively). Among persons holding managerial positions in 2010, 27 per cent were women.

68.In October 2011, the Office for Equal Opportunities sent a questionnaire about the situation regarding balanced gender representation in decision-making positions to almost 800 (782) of the largest employers. The response rate was 32.35 per cent. The research showed that in just over one-fifth of organisations (in 21.8 per cent) a woman held the top position. Most of the reporting companies were in the financial and insurance sector, trade and the processing industry. In 2.8 per cent of organisations, an internal act or measure had been adopted regarding gender balanced representation. When explaining the main reasons for the failure to achieve a balanced representation of women and men in decision-making positions, the companies pointed to the substantial prevalence of one sex (40.2 per cent) and to the fact that, rather than a group, top management consisted of one person only (28.6 per cent). Persistent prejudices can be noted in the responses stating that there are not enough experienced and appropriate candidates among women (5.6 per cent) and that men choose men for promotion.

69.On 8 March 2012, on the occasion of International Women’s Day, the Office for Equal Opportunities, the Faculty of Social Sciences and the Manager’s Association – Section of Women Managers held a thematic press conference ‘Do We Unlock All the Potential?’, at which attention was focused on the issue of unbalanced gender representation in decision-making positions in business. The aforementioned research, the guidelines on promoting equality in decision-making positions in the economy ‘Include.All’ and the fold-out ‘Do We Unlock All the Potential?’ were presented.

70.In all major Slovenian trade unions confederations a man occupies the presidential position. The survey of the managerial structure of trade unions that are members of confederations indicates that most presidents are men, while women slightly more frequently occupy the position of vice-president, although their share is still quite low.

71.The situation is similar in employers’ organisations (Association of Employers of Slovenia, the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Slovenia, the Chamber of Craft and Small Business of Slovenia), where no woman holds the presidential position.

Article 8

WOMEN AS GOVERNMENT REPRESENTATIVES IN INTERNATIONAL ORGANISATIONS AND DIPLOMACY

72.According to the data of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, a slight increase in the share of women ambassadors (26.6 per cent) has been noted compared with 2004 (22.6 per cent), when the preparation of the previous Periodic Report started. The shares of female ministers plenipotentiary and minister counsellors have also increased and now stand at 56.1 per cent and 63.6 per cent, respectively (in 2004, the figures were 38.6 per cent and 62.1 per cent respectively). Women hold 50 per cent of the first counsellor positions (three out of five); parity is recorded in the counsellor positions (12 women and 12 men). Women prevail in holding the position of secretary (75 per cent); there is one male attaché (one post).

73.In supranational parliaments, the European Parliament and the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe, women’s representation is as follows: four Slovenian women MPs (50 per cent) in the European Parliament, as already noted; in the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe, the composition of the six-member Slovenian delegation (three representatives and three substitutes) consists of two women and four men. On the European Union Committee of the Regions Slovenia has 14 members (seven representatives and seven substitutes), of whom 14.3 per cent are women, while all seven representatives of Slovenia in the EU Economic and Social Committee are men.

74.Out of 18 Slovenians engaged with the UN, there are ten women; there are seven Slovenian employees/posted workers in the OSCE, of whom two are women; three women are seconded to the European Commission as national experts, accounting for 37 per cent.

75.In cooperation with the Slovenian Migration Institute and the Scientific Research Centre of the Slovene Academy of Sciences and Arts, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs carried out a research project and issued a scientific monograph, ‘Equal Opportunities in Slovenian Diplomacy’, in 2009. The aim of the research project was to theoretically and empirically examine equality of opportunities of women and men and other factors in Slovenian diplomacy and propose measures for improvement based on the findings of this analysis. Following the publication of the results, an equal opportunities working group was established at the Ministry; its task was to examine the results of the research, identify the main problems and outstanding issues in the area of equal opportunities and interpersonal relations and propose adequate measures to tackle them. The working group outlined four areas, identified problems therein and proposed measures to address them. One of the areas was the status of women in diplomacy. The measures and recommendations in this area referred to management structure balance, the issue of the poor representation of women in ambassadorial posts, gender balance in the middle hierarchy of the Ministry and gender-balanced recruitment.

Article 9

CITIZENSHIP

76.There have been no changes in the implementation of this Article in the reference period.

Article 10

EDUCATION

77.Several amendments were made to the Organisation and Financing of Education Act passed in the reporting period, but none concern gender equality.

78.Some changes have been made in the area of education of Roma in recent years. The Strategy for the Education of Roma was amended in 2011; among other things, its objectives focused on the education of adult Roma, with a view to improving their education and developing human resources and on establishing consultancy centres or networks in areas inhabited by Roma. The strategy has devoted particular attention to the education of Roma girls and women. An appendix to the pre-school curriculum for work with Roma children and instructions for implementing the programme of nine-year elementary schools for Roma pupils were adopted. Nursery school units with Roma children have a more favourable pupil-staff ratio, which also applies to primary-school classes attended by at least three Roma pupils; Roma culture is offered as one of the optional subjects; in the first grade of primary school, classes attended by Roma children are taught by two teachers; a primary school attended by Roma pupils may employ an additional teacher or social worker; if there are more than 45 Roma pupils, the school may employ two additional teaching staff members to provide teaching and other assistance.

Pre-school education in nursery schools

79.The number of children attending nursery schools has increased substantially in recent years. In the 2012/2013 school year, 83,090 children, or 77.7 per cent of all children aged 1–6 years, were attending nursery schools, which is 16.3 percentage points above the 2004 enrolment. The increase in the number of children enrolled in nursery schools can be partly attributed to the amendments to the Nursery School Act enacted in 2008. The amended Article 32(4) provides that in cases where more than one child from a family is enrolled in a nursery school, parents pay a fee reduced by one category for the older child and are exempt from payment for younger children. This right was changed by the Fiscal Balance Act passed in 2012. Parents with two or more children attending nursery school pay 30 per cent of the fee, which is set as a reduced payment in accordance with the Act, for the youngest child only and are exempt from the payment for any subsequent younger child. Nursery schools get the amount of difference in payment from the budget. The share of girls among children attending nursery school is slightly over 48 per cent, similar to the share of girls in all live births.

80.The increase in the number of children attending nursery school triggered the increase in the number of nursery schools and staff. Staff structure by sex has remained almost the same; most are female.

81.With a view to facilitating the successful inclusion of Roma children in primary school education, a highly successful project was carried out in the period from June 2010 to August 2013; its aim was to enhance social and cultural potential in environments with Roma communities. The project developed innovative and creative forms of educational work in the Roma community, with special emphasis on pre-school education. One of the innovative elements of the project is the establishment of Roma education incubators, which can be described as a comprehensive programme providing various forms of work with Roma children, young people and their parents in their environment. In July 2011, 28 nursery schools and schools were included in the project; learning assistance, other forms of educational work and pre-school and extra-curricular activities were attended by 545 children, pupils and students; 153 teachers and other professionals in education participated in training programmes.

Primary and secondary education

82.In Slovenia, the share of girls and boys in primary schools is approximately equal. In the 2010/2011 school year, the share of girls in primary school population was 48.6 per cent and 49.2 per cent in secondary school population.

83.With regard to secondary school education, in the school year 2010/2011 most students were enrolled in the general education programme (41.3 per cent of all students). The gender structure shows that there were slightly more girls (59.5 per cent). In addition to the general education programme, an equal participation of both sexes is observed in programmes providing education for services (56.8 per cent of girls), agriculture, forestry, fishery and veterinary medicine (51.5 per cent girls). The gender imbalance is most apparent in the natural sciences, mathematics and computer science, where male students prevail (96.5 per cent); these areas are followed by engineering, manufacturing and construction (93.6 per cent male students), while female students prevail in education and teacher training programmes (93.3 per cent of female students).

84.In the 2012 school year, 1,724 pupils were enrolled in primary schools and institutions providing special needs education, of whom 646 or 37.5 per cent were girls. In the same year, 3,508 students with special needs were enrolled in secondary education, of whom 37.9 per cent were girls.

85.Various projects have been carried out with a view to successfully integrating Roma children into pre-school and primary school. A project coordinated by the Union of Roma of Slovenia was carried out between May 2008 and August 2011. The primary aim of the project was to introduce Roma assistants to help children overcome emotional and linguistic barriers and act as a bridge between the pre-school institution, school and the Roma community. Thirty Roma assistants were trained; school project teams were established; training was organised; the handbook for professionals in education and teaching material and didactic tools were prepared. In September 2011, a project coordinated by the Kočevje People’s University was launched to continue the aforementioned project and expected to end in August 2014. In addition to attaining higher standards of knowledge of Roma pupils in primary schools and their widest possible integration in secondary education, the project also aims to raise the education levels of Roma assistants. By 2014, at least 30 educational institutions, 500 Roma children and pupils and 20 Roma assistants were included in the project.

Higher vocational and university study

86.Except for the last two years, the number of students attending universities and higher education institutions has been increasing consistently. At present, every second Slovenian resident in the 19 to 24 age group is enrolled in tertiary education. Ten years ago, only 35 per cent of the population of this age group was enrolled in the tertiary education.

87.In 2011, 104,003 students were enrolled in higher education study programmes, of whom 60,044 or 57.7 per cent were women, and 14,403 students enrolled in higher vocational education programmes, of whom 6,403 or 44.5 per cent were women.

88.No substantial changes have been noted as regards the choice of study programmes in recent years. As in previous years, female students have continued to prevail in higher vocational colleges, higher education institutions and universities offering programmes of health care, social work and education. A change was recorded in study programmes in the areas of science, mathematics and computer science, where the share of female students increased by almost ten percentage points in the 2004–2011 period. The share of female students completing education has been higher than for male students.

89.The number of post-graduate students increased as well. In 2011, a master’s degree was obtained by 1,630 students, of whom 896 were women, accounting for 60.5 per cent. A doctoral degree was attained by 469 persons, of whom 212 or 42.7 per cent were women.

90.Various activities were carried out with a view to reducing gender segregation in secondary and higher vocational education programmes and in curricular and extra-curricular activities. In 2009, one school centre carried out a project and prepared information on the labour market and gender structure and held discussions on gender and profession with third-year students; the Faculty of Education prepared a professional training programme ‘Equal Opportunities of both Sexes’, which also included various active and targeted methods of encouraging girls and boys to enrol equally in secondary (vocational) programmes and tertiary programmes and to participate equally in curricular and extra-curricular activities. ‘Researchers’ Night’ was organised with a view to acquainting young people with science and the profession of scientist and promoting the enrolment in the tertiary study programmes.

Scholarships

91.Almost one-third (29 per cent) of all students in Slovenia received scholarships in 2011. In comparison with 2008, the number of students receiving scholarship grew by 22 per cent. In 2011, the majority of students (20,149) received state scholarships.

92.An average scholarship in 2011 amounted to EUR 150.69 for secondary school students and EUR 220.45 for students attending tertiary education programmes. 38,521 or 55.7 per cent of women were among all scholarship-holders in 2011, of whom 20,043 or 51.4 per cent were girls attending secondary schools and 18,374 or 61.3 per cent female students attending tertiary education programmes. As to the type of scholarship, the lowest share of women is found in company scholarship holders (26.6 per cent of female secondary students and 38.8 per cent of female tertiary programme students), while the highest share is seen in holders of Zois scholarship for talented students (64.7 per cent of female secondary students and 62 per cent of female tertiary programme students).

Life-long learning

93.Every year, the Government adopts a programme of education in the area of adult education identifying education programmes and activities to be (co)funded from public funds. The main aim of the National Programme of Adult Education for 2013 is to improve general education, raise the level of education, increase employment opportunities and improve the possibilities of learning and participation in education for adult population. The Programme notes that in order to attain a target 15 per cent of the adult participation in lifelong learning by 2020, proper attention is to be paid to the obstacles such as poor motivation and lack of educational institutions to assist women and men in reconciling family and professional obligations and learning.

94.In 2011, the share of women in the population aged 18 to 64 participating in one of the forms of education was slightly higher than the share of men. The most frequent forms of learning include learning via television, using audio- and video-cassettes, professional literature, computer, visiting libraries and education centres.

95.Within the call for applications for the 2012–2014 period, Roma women have been included in the following general non-formal adult education programmes: ‘Education for the Roma to Improve the Quality of Life’ with adult Roma who wish to improve the quality of life as the target group, ‘Let’s Learn and Play Together’ dedicated to Roma parents, ‘Institutions in Roma Daily Life’, dedicated to adult Roma and ‘I–You–We’ dedicated to less-educated Roma women and men.

Article 11

EMPLOYMENT

Women in the labour market

96.Several new acts that regulate the area of employment have been adopted since the submission of the Fourth Periodic Report: the new Employment Relationships Act (adopted in 2013), the Health and Safety at Work Act (adopted in 2011), the Pension and Disability Insurance Act (adopted in 2012) and the Labour Market Regulation Act (adopted in 2010), which substituted the Employment and Insurance Against Unemployment Act. With the exception of the Pension and Disability Insurance Act, which introduced the gradual equalisation of retirement conditions for women and men, these Acts introduced no substantial changes regarding the status of women.

97.The new Employment Relationships Act, which entered into force on 4 April 2013, brought about no substantial changes related to gender equality to the provisions of the 2002 Employment Relationships Act and the 2007 Act Amending the Employment Relationships Act. Article 6 thereof provides that employers must ensure that equal treatment is afforded to job seekers in gaining employment or workers during their employment relationship and in connection with the termination of employment contracts – irrespective of their ethnicity, race or ethnic origin, national or social background, sex, skin colour, state of health, disability, faith or conviction, age, sexual orientation, family status, union membership, financial standing or other personal circumstance in accordance with this Act, the regulations governing the fulfilment of the principle of equal treatment and the regulations governing equal opportunities for women and men. Employers must ensure equal treatment in respect of the aforementioned personal characteristics, especially regarding access to employment, promotion, training, education, retraining, pay and other remuneration from employment, absences from work, working conditions, working hours and the cancellation of employment contracts. Direct and indirect discrimination based on any personal characteristic are prohibited. Any instructions for discrimination against a person on the basis of any personal characteristic are deemed direct or indirect discrimination. Less favourable treatment of workers in connection with pregnancy or parental leave is also deemed discriminatory. Different treatment based on any personal characteristic is allowed and does not constitute discrimination if, owing to the nature of the work or circumstances in which the work is performed, the personal circumstance concerned represents a major and relevant condition for work, provided that the requirement is proportionate and justified by the legitimate objective. In a dispute in which grounds for the suspicion that the prohibition of discrimination has been violated are given, the employer must demonstrate that the principle of equal treatment and the prohibition of discrimination have not been violated. Person subjected to discrimination and persons who help victims of discrimination may not be exposed to unfavourable consequences as a result of actions aimed at fulfilling the prohibition of discrimination.

98.The Act prohibits sexual or other harassment and mobbing in the workplace (Article 7). (For more details, see Chapter 5 – Elimination of prejudices and stereotypes, Sexual harassment at work.) When the prohibition on discrimination or workplace mobbing is violated, employers are responsible and are liable for damage caused to candidates and/or workers as provided by the general rules of civil law. Non-pecuniary damage caused to a candidate or worker also covers mental distress suffered due to unequal treatment and/or discriminatory conduct of an employer and/or failure to provide protection against sexual or other forms of harassment or workplace mobbing. When determining the amount of non-pecuniary damage compensation, the following must be taken into account: the compensation must be effective and proportionate to the damage suffered by the candidate and/or worker and must discourage the employer from repeating the violation. (Article 8).

99.With the new Employment Relationships Act, the right to a breastfeeding break during working time, afforded to female workers who breast-feed and work full time, has been defined in terms of duration and cannot be shorter than one hour per day. Article 188 lays down that a female worker who breast-feeds is entitled to this right until the child is 18 months old. Under previously applicable Act, she was entitled to this right for the whole period of breast-feeding.

100.The Pension and Disability Insurance Act, which entered into force on 1 December 2013, lays down in Article 27 that men and women acquire the right to an old-age pension at 65 years of age and with an insurance period of at least 15 years. The new conditions will be introduced gradually (by the end of 2019); during the transitional period, different age requirements for women and men will apply, subject to an insurance period of at least 15 or 20 years. Notwithstanding this provision, both men and women are entitled to an old-age pension at the age of 60 after a qualifying period without a purchased period of 40 years. This right will also be introduced gradually by the end of 2018.

101.The retirement ages for entitlement to an old-age pension may be lowered due to care for every born or adopted child holding citizenship of the Republic of Slovenia who the insured person took care of in the first year of the child’s life, unless specified otherwise in a relevant international agreement; the retirement age is lowered by 6 months for a single child, by 16 months for two children, by 26 months for three children, by 36 months for four children, and by 48 months for five or more children. The lower retirement age entitlement pertains to a woman, unless parenthood-related benefits were received by a man. On these grounds, the retirement age of 65 for men and women who have completed 38 years of pensionable service without purchase may be lowered, but not below 61 years of age. If a woman or man has completed 40 years of pensionable service without purchase, the retirement age of 60 may be lowered, but not below 56 years of age (for women) and 58 years of age (for men). A transitional period has been set until the end of 2018 (Article 28).

102.Because of the economic crisis, and with a view to providing a stable and sustainable national macroeconomic environment, the Fiscal Balance Act which includes a set of measures aimed at balancing public finances was adopted in 2012. The measures in the area of employment also include a reduction in parental compensation, which is a temporary measure adversely affecting women rather than men, given that women take child nursing and care leave more often than men. With the exception of maternity benefit, the amount of parental compensation was reduced from 100 to 90 per cent of the basis if it exceeds the minimum salary amount (EUR 763.06) (Article 146 of the Fiscal Balance Act). The parental compensation ceiling was decreased from 2.5 to 2 times the average salary (EUR 2,862.84 monthly) (Article 145). With the adoption of the Emergency Measures in the Field of the Labour Market and Parental Protection Act, the 2 times average salary ceiling started to apply in respect of maternity benefit on 1 August 2013; maternity benefit was also reduced from 100 to 90 per cent of the basis (Article 3).

103.Labour inspectors seldom find violations related to the prohibition of sex- and gender-based discrimination. Nevertheless, it may not be claimed that these violations are seldom. They are difficult to prove within an inspection procedure, and a worker subjected to such violations usually does not want to reveal his or her identity. In 2010, five violations of discrimination of a job seeker in giving employment were established (four violations in 2011); in one case it was found that an employer employed only men for certain types of work and only women for other types of work. In 2010, inspectors also found two violations of the prohibition on discrimination of a worker during the employment relationship; in 2011, three such violations were established. Inspectors detected one violation concerning advertisement of job vacancies in contravention of Article 25 of the Employment Relationships Act (equal treatment with respect to sex) in 2010 and one in 2011. Two violations in connection with the termination of employment contracts, i.e. cases of discrimination, were also found (in 2011, no such violations were established). One violation concerning less favourable treatment of workers related to pregnancy or parental leave (deemed discrimination) was also found. In 2011; no such violations were established. Instructions to discriminate against persons on the basis of a personal characteristic are considered discrimination (Article 6(3)) and were found in one case in 2011, while no such violations were found in 2010. In 2010 and in 2011, no violations were detected concerning the employer’s conduct prior to the conclusion of an employment contract in contravention of Article 26 of the Employment Relationships Act.

104.The Parental Protection and Family Benefits Act, already presented in the Fourth Report, was amended in 2006; the manner of exercising the non-transferable right of a father to paternity leave of total 90 days was changed. Fathers must take 15 days of the paternity leave by the time the child reaches six months of age (previously during 105 days of the maternity leave) and use the remaining 75 days by the child’s age of 3. In 2013, the Ministry of Labour, Family, Social Affairs and Equal Opportunities drafted a new Parental protection and family benefit bill specifying the existing 260 days of childcare leave as an individual 130-day right of a father and an individual 130-day right of a mother, of which 100 days may be transferred from one parent to another. The bill included a provision stipulating that all 130 days may be transferred to the other parent in certain cases. There was a heated response from the public during the public debate, stating that the option to choose had thus been interfered with and that the manner of taking leave had been imposed on parents. After the public debate concluded in August 2013, the competent Ministry deleted or amended the provisions concerned. The bill, adopted by the Government on 11 October 2013, now includes a provision laying down that each parent has the right to a 130-day parental leave. Mothers may transfer 100 days to fathers, while fathers may transfer 130 days to mothers. The 15-day paternity leave (entitling fathers to paternity leave compensation) has been extended to 30 days, and the 75-day paternity leave in respect of which fathers were paid minimum salary social security contributions was abolished. This right is to be introduced gradually.

105.Legislation enabling both parents to care for a child and stimulating fathers to increasingly share related responsibilities is vital to encourage equal sharing of parental responsibilities in childcare by women and men. Most fathers take 15-day paternity leave and receive related paternity leave compensation. In 2012, 15-day paternity leave was taken by 17,468 fathers (app. 85 percent), while 3,586 fathers took more than 15 days (subject to entitlement to the payment of minimum salary social security contributions). Mothers and fathers are entitled to the right to take 260-day child nursing and care leave; in practice, it is predominantly taken by mothers. In 2012, part of this leave was taken by 1,517 fathers accounting for approximately 7.2 per cent. In the last ten years, the share of fathers who took at least some days of child nursing and care leave increased by approximately five percentage points.

106.In 2006 and 2007, the Office for Equal Opportunities carried out a media campaign ‘Daddy, get active!’, which was co-funded by the European Commission through the Progress Programme. The objectives of the campaign were to encourage fathers’ involvement in family life, present the positive aspects of responsible and active fatherhood, challenge traditional gender role stereotypes, promote the equal distribution of family responsibilities between both partners and present the benefits of shared and reconciled professional and family life for employees and employers. The campaign consisted of a radio spot, shows on active fatherhood and an educational documentary broadcasted on the national TV. Fathers were encouraged to spend active time with their children and informed about the rights of fathers and positive aspects of active fatherhood for children also through a sport and awareness-raising event ‘Daddy’s Runs’ organised by the Office for Equal Opportunities in cooperation with the local communities in 2006, 2010 and 2011. Fathers ran with their children; they pushed prams, carried children in their arms and piggyback and ran hand in hand or side by side with their children. In some local communities the run has become an annual event.

107.In November 2010, the Office for Equal Opportunities organised a conference ‘Diversity between legislation and practice. The role of management in formulating policies free of discrimination’ in cooperation with the Manager’s Association – Women Managers Section, the Faculty of Social Sciences and the Slovenian Association for Human Resource Management and Industrial Relations. The aims of the conference were to present the results of a study on the prevalence of various forms of discrimination in the workplace, employers legal obligations, the role of the management, the rights of employees related to protection against discrimination and also to acquaint the participants with the Labour Inspectorate, the Advocate of the Principle of Equality and the Labour Court’s practice regarding inspections and actions taken. The conference was attended by executive and managerial staff, people working in the personnel services, employees who deal with the issue of discrimination in employment in their work, trade unions, women and men from academic circles and other interested public.

Employment

108.A slight decrease in the activity rate of the population and the labour force participation rate has been recorded in recent years. In 2012, the activity rate of the population was 56.9 per cent (women 51.6 per cent; men 62.4 per cent) and the labour force participation rate 52.3 per cent (women 47.1 per cent; men 57.6 per cent). The highest labour participation rate has been recorded in the 25 to 49 age group for both men and women (in 2012, it was 87.0 per cent for men and 82.2 per cent for women). In comparison with previous years, the highest decline in the labour force participation rate was recorded for the 15 to 24 age group. In the 2008–2012 period, it decreased by 11.2 percentage points for women and by 11.5 percentage points for men.

109.The structure of the active working population by employment status shows that persons in paid employment comprise by far the greatest share. In 2012 (second quarter), the majority of active working women were employed (86.6 per cent), followed by self-employed (7.9 per cent) and unpaid family workers (5.5 per cent). A similar distribution was seen in men, where 81.6 per cent were employed, 15.8 per cent were self-employed and 2.6 per cent were unpaid family workers.

110.An increasing trend in the share of self-employed women and men has been recorded in recent years. In 2007, the share of self-employed among the active working population was 11.5 per cent, while in 2012, it was 12.2 per cent. In 2012, the share of women in self-employed was 29.8 per cent, which was slightly more than in 2007 when it was 28.1 per cent.

111.The majority of the active working population are people in full-time employment. In 2012, the share of part-time employed women and men stood at 12.4 and 8.9 per cent, respectively. A slight upward trend has been recorded in the part-time work of women and a slight downward trend in the part-time work of men.

112.The share of the active working population employed in the public sector was 29.1 per cent in 2012. Women account for 61.0 per cent of the active working population employed in the public sector, while men are in the majority among the active working population employed in the private sector (61.5 per cent).

113.The share of women in the highest-ranking and best-paid groups of occupation (senior officials, managers and legislators) is lower than in men, even though women attain a higher level of education and qualifications on average than men. In 2012, the share of women in these positions was 39.6 per cent. As regards the occupation, in 2012 the share of women exceeded that of men in specialists (61.5 per cent), officials (56.2 per cent), services and sales staff (61.9 per cent), in technical and administrative services (51.6 per cent) and in unskilled workers (56.9 per cent); the lowest share of women was recorded in craft and related trades workers (9.6 per cent).

114.Women prevail among staff employed in services (55.3 per cent), particularly in health and social work, education, financial intermediation and catering and tourism. In the non-agricultural sector, the share of women amounts to one third of the active working population; the construction sector employs the fewest women.

115.In 2012, 29,832 people with disabilities were among the active working population, of which 46.5 per cent were women.

116.The 2011 data show that the average gross salary of women was 4.6 percentage points below the average gross salary of men. The gap was widest among the tertiary educated, where women earned in average 81.32 per cent of men’s salary. On average, women earned less than men in both the public and private sectors. Likewise, on average, women earned less than men in all occupational groups, except for officials where, in 2011, women earned EUR 12 more per months on average than men. The data by age groups show that, on average, women earned less than men in all age groups, except in the 55 to 64 age group.

Unemployment

117.Unemployment has increased in recent years during the economic crisis. In 2012, the surveyed unemployment rate stood at 8.2 per cent, which is a 3.6 per cent increase over 2007. It is slightly higher in women (8.8 per cent) than in men (7.7 per cent). Likewise, the registered unemployment rate is higher in women than in men. In 2012, it was 12.3 per cent in women and 11.1 per cent in men.

118.The highest surveyed unemployment rate was recorded among young people aged 15 to 24 years; in 2012, it was 18.5 per cent for young women and 17.3 per cent for young men. The highest share of unemployed by duration of unemployment was recorded among those seeking employment for more than two years (26.9 per cent of men and 30.4 per cent of women).

119.Education is one of the factors that influence employment opportunities. People with lower levels of education or education not in demand in the labour market continue to be more likely to be unemployed. The surveyed unemployment rate is highest among people with incomplete primary education, completed primary education or who acquired a lower vocational education (14.7 per cent in women and 16.2 per cent in men) and lowest among those who concluded at least two-year higher vocational education or university or higher education study programme (6.8 per cent in women and 5.8 per cent in men).

Measures to achieve gender equality in the labour market and employment

120.The following strategic documents focused on promoting active forms of increasing employment, addressing unemployment issue and developing human resources have been adopted: the Operational Programme for Human Resources Development 2007–2013, the Active Employment Policy Programme 2007–2013 and the Guidelines for the Implementation of Active Employment Policy Measures 2013–2015; on their basis two-year implementation programmes are prepared. Equal opportunities of women and men in employment and work have been identified as one of the strategic objectives in the Resolution on the National Programme for Equal Opportunities for Women and Men 2005–2013.

121.The realization of the principle of gender equality has been included in activities under the Operational Programme for Human Resources Development in various ways. In the area of entrepreneurship and flexibility promotion, gender equality is ensured as regards the possibility of application and selection, and at all stages of implementation. In the area of promotion of employability of job seekers and the inactive, the overall objective at the level of operations is to include at least 55 per cent of women. Under the development priority ‘Equality of opportunity and promotion of social inclusion’, instruments focusing on gender equality are being implemented. The ‘Family Friendly Company’ project facilitates the reconciliation of professional and private life, positively influences the reduction of discrimination in the labour market and strengthens the equal opportunities concept. The ‘Girls Day’ project provides an opportunity for girls attending primary school to learn about typical male occupations and promotes the enrolment of girls in secondary schools programmes where boys are in majority.

122.In 2012, 191,789 persons were included in the activities carried out under the Operational Programme for Human Resources Development, of whom 64 per cent were women. The share of young participants was 21.2 per cent, of whom 56.5 per cent were women. Women also recorded a higher share than men among participants with disabilities (61.3 per cent).

123.With a view to reducing differences in female employment and unemployment rates, which is a separate objective identified in the Resolution on the National Programme for Equal Opportunities for Women and Men 2005–2013, special programmes to promote employment and work activity were carried out within active employment policy measures. Among others, the following programmes were carried out: the ‘Promotion of Employment for the Long-Term Unemployed 2009–2010’ with 63.2 per cent of women included; ‘On-the-Job Training’ included 56.8 per cent of women in 2010 and 53.1 percent in 2011; ‘Employ.Me’ was aimed at facilitating the employment of hard-to-employ unemployed persons and included 44.3 and 49.8 per cent of women in 2010 and 2011, respectively; and the ‘Promoting the Employment of First-Time Job Seekers in the Area of Social Assistance – Trainees’, which involved 262 female and male trainees in the area of social assistance included in 2012.

124.The active employment policy measures adopted for each separate calendar year or planning period identify types of programmes and target groups of unemployed who may participate in these programmes, including Roma women and men. In 2008, 890 Roma women and men were participating in active employment policy measures, of whom 366 were Roma women (41 per cent). The number of those who found job totalled to 79, of which 27 or 34.2 per cent were women. The number of Roma women and men included in active labour market policy programmes has been increasing. There were 1,100 included in 2010 and 1,311 in 2011. Within the Operational Programme for Human Resources Development 2007–2013, a project ‘Romano kher – Roma House’ was carried out; its aim was to encourage Roma women and men, improve their self-image and equip them with knowledge to successfully enter the labour market. There were 100 Roma women and men participating in the project.

125.Various programmes and projects were carried out to increase and promote women’s self-employment and entrepreneurship, identified as specific objectives in the Resolution on the National Programme for Equal Opportunities for Women and Men 2005–2013. In 2010, there were five ‘Women, Let’s Become Entrepreneurs’ promotional events organised for women entrepreneurs and were positively received by the participants. The events were attended by more than 500 established and potential female entrepreneurs. In 2011, the Public Agency for Entrepreneurship and Foreign Investments organised a conference ‘Social Entrepreneurship = Humane Entrepreneurship’, with special emphasis on the presentation of good practices by female entrepreneurs. Entrepreneurship has also been encouraged through subsidies for self-employment. In 2010, 5,148 persons were included, of whom 1,989 were women (38.6 per cent); in 2011, the number was 4,502 persons, of whom 1,832 were women (40.7 per cent).

126.Various events were organised with a view to highlighting the issue of inequality between women and men in the labour market. In 2010, the Office for Equal Opportunities organised a conference ‘Diversity between Legislation and Practice’ in cooperation with the Manager’s Association – Women Managers Section and the Faculty of Social Sciences with a view to underlining the role of management in formulating policy free from discrimination; through the ‘You do not have to tell your employer – You can tell us!’ campaign, the office for Equal Opportunities and the Employment Service of Slovenia encouraged candidates to anonymously report violations of Article 26 of the Employment Relationships Act, which prohibits employers from asking candidates questions at job interviews about their marital status, number of children, family plans and pregnancy. On the one hand, the purpose of the campaign was to warn employers that legislation prohibits such questions, and, on the other, to raise awareness among candidates that they are not obliged to answer such questions.

Article 12

WOMEN’S HEALTH

127.Since the Fourth Report, the Health Care and Health Insurance Act has been amended to include a change in the health service prices for the diagnosis and treatment of reduced fertility and artificial insemination, sterilisation and abortion provided under compulsory health insurance. The share covered by compulsory health insurance was reduced to 80 per cent (Article 23).

128.Despite the fact that Article 23 of the Health Care and Health Insurance Act provides that women’s health care in connection with advice on family planning, contraception, pregnancy and childbirth is fully covered by compulsory health insurance, the Rules for the classification of medicinal products adopted in April 2013 stipulate that some means of birth control are to be additionally paid for. Given the opposition and concerns, primarily by female and male gynaecologists, the Rules have not been implemented.

129.The Resolution on the National Plan of Health Care 2008–2013 ‘Satisfied Users and Providers of Medical Services’ adopted in 2008 was based on the principle of equality and on ensuring the best possible health for every person; reducing gender health inequalities is one of its objectives.

130.In 2010, the National Strategy of Healthcare Quality and Safety (2010-2015) was adopted in order to effectively develop a systematic approach and expertise in activities related to the continuous improvement of medical treatment and patient safety. Among others, the Strategy also follows the principle of equality.

131.In 2010, the 2010–2015 National Cancer Control Programme for Slovenia was adopted; it lays down a programme of activities, tasks and measures necessary for effective cancer control in Slovenia and adds some new features to the already established activities with a view to controlling cancer in the future. Around 11,000 people are diagnosed with cancer every year in Slovenia, of whom approx. 5,500 are men and 5,200 are women, and more than 5,000 cancer deaths are recorded, approx. 2,800 men and 2,300 women. Half of men and 65 per cent of women survive for at least five years after being diagnosed. The reduced breast and cervical cancer mortality rates can partly be attributed to the cancer screening programmes ZORA and DORA, introduced in Slovenia in 2003 and 2008, respectively (more under paragraphs 135 and 136).

Health care for women

Reproductive health

132.Slovenia took further measures to reduce the maternal mortality rate as recommended by the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women in its concluding observations issued upon the consideration of the Fourth Periodic Report of the Republic of Slovenia. As we already stated in the Fourth Report, a working group was set up within the Institute of Public Health of the Republic of Slovenia to discuss cases of maternal death; it analyses all such cases and delivers an opinion. On the basis of these analyses, regular reports are prepared to include findings and recommendations for professional clinical and public health measures in the field of reproductive health and health care. Since 2008, the following activities have been carried out: an expert meeting was organised in 2009 on the topic ‘Mental Health and Pregnancy, Childbirth and Early Parenthood’; in 2010, workshops were organised for residents in gynaecology and obstetrics; in 2011, the workshops dealt with pregnant women with pre-eclampsia, eclampsia and HELP syndrome and the treatment of thrombosis and thromboembolism in pregnancy and obstetric haemorrhage; in 2009, an expert meeting of gynaecologists and obstetricians dedicated to obstetric haemorrhage and pre-eclampsia was organised, and guidelines covering these topics were issued; in 2013, the Development Strategy for Gynaecology and Obstetrics was being drafted.

133.In the 2005–2009 period, 15 cases of maternal death were recorded in Slovenia, or 15.0 per 100,000 live births.

134.In Slovenia, the right to comprehensive preventive health care for women with regard to reproductive health, pregnancy and childbirth is ensured. The following are provided: examinations and counselling on family planning, the use of contraceptives and the prevention of sexually transmitted infections and consequent infertility; preventive examinations during pregnancy comprising a total of 10 systematic examinations, at least two ultrasound examinations, individual counselling and laboratory tests (testing for the presence of syphilis, toxoplasmosis and hepatitis B); a screening test for Down’s syndrome is carried out for pregnant women aged between 35 and 37 years and amniocentesis for pregnant women over the age of 37; examinations and counselling after childbirth, spontaneous and permitted termination of pregnancy and extra-uterine pregnancies; examinations and counselling on menopause; preventive health activities in nursing care (preventive home nursing visits to pregnant women, and post-partum home care for mothers and newborns); the programme of early detection of precancerous and cancerous changes of the cervix (ZORA Programme); and the programme for the early detection of breast cancer (DORA Programme).

135.The ZORA National Programme was launched in 2003 and was reported on in the previous Report; it is implemented by reproductive health teams, out-patient gynaecologists, while the coordination, central information system and programme monitoring are managed by the Institute of Oncology Ljubljana (in the capital of the country). In the three year period from 2009 to 2012, the screening was attended by over 70 percent of all women aged 20 to 64. The largest number of examined women is from the 20 to 24 age group with over 80 per cent of women examined. The low number of women examined who are aged 50 or older is most worrying, given that the share of women examined in this age group stands below 70 per cent. Only half of women in the 60 to 64 age group attend the screening. In the eight years since the ZORA Programme has been running, the incidence of cervical cancer has decreased by over one third (from 210 new patients in 2003 to 138 new patients in 2011). The programme’s quality is ensured through standardised forms, uniform instructions and professional guidelines, the regular training of professionals engaged in the programme and supervision of the quality of work of the programme providers. In the coming years, activities will have to be focused on two objectives, namely cervical smear of 80 per cent of women aged from 20 to 64 examined every three years and cervical cancer incidence reduced by 50 per cent over 2002 incidence rate (100 new cases at most).

136.The DORA breast cancer screening programme was launched in Slovenia in 2008. It was first implemented in Central region of Slovenia and is to gradually cover the whole territory of the state. The programme is designed as a centralised system with two stationary diagnostic screening units (Ljubljana and Maribor) and mobile units, all equipped with digital mammography devices. The programme covers the population of women aged 50-69 years; all those with changes revealed by the screening mammogram are invited for additional examinations and treatment, if necessary. This Programme focuses on two objectives: 80 per cent inclusion of women aged 50 to 69, and a 30 per cent decrease in the breast cancer mortality rate in the population participating in the programme.

137.The School for Parents is intended for pregnant women, partners and other birth companions and provides education on the course of pregnancy, related physical and mental changes, problems and potential warning signs, healthy lifestyle, correct diet, hygiene and safe physical activity during pregnancy, care and nutrition of a newborn, anatomy and physiology of the female reproductive system, pregnancy, importance of physical activity during pregnancy, childbirth and the post-partum period, preventive dental care for pregnant women and children, psychological changes in pregnancy, childbirth and the post-natal period, and the mental development of the child. The data show that many men attend this school. In 2011, the school was attended by 11,993 women (56.1 per cent) and 9,383 men (43.9 per cent), while in 2001, 12,833 women (62.0 per cent) and 7,858 men (38.0 per cent) participated.

138.In Slovenia, reproductive health care is organised at the primary, secondary and tertiary levels. At the primary level (community health centres) a team composed of gynaecologist, a qualified midwife and nurse or medical technician provides comprehensive reproductive health care to women (women’s clinics). In Slovenia, women are thus cared for by specialists in gynaecology already at the primary level. In 2011, one physician at the primary level attended 6,797 women, which means that, given the set criteria, 95.6 per cent of women had access to a physician. In comparison with 2005, an increase in the number of women per physician was recorded. 671,600 preventive and curative visits were recorded for primary reproductive health care in 2011, which is 12.2 percentage points below the percentage recorded in 2005.

139.Good accessibility to gynaecologists at the primary level also means that women in all age groups have good access to contraception. In 2011, 80,343 women were using hormonal contraception and in 7,676 cases, an IUD was fitted. Compared with 2005, fewer women used hormonal contraception (89,923 in 2005) and more IUDs were fitted (4,917 in 2005).

140.The rate of legal abortion in Slovenia has been falling. It decreased from 15.2/1,000 in 2001 to 9/1,000 in 2011. The decrease was recorded in all age groups. In 2011, women in the 15 to 19 age group recorded the lowest number of permitted abortions (eight), while the highest number (1,081) was recorded for women in the 30 to 34 age group. Sex education (education on sexuality and reproduction) in primary and secondary schools and awareness-raising activities play an important role in decreasing the adolescent legal abortion rate and early motherhood. In 2009, the Institute of Public Health issued a leaflet ‘For Healthy and Safe Sex’ aimed at protecting and promoting the reproductive health of young people; it was distributed among students in the 3rd grade of secondary schools. On the occasion of World Contraception Day 2011, all 1st grade students in secondary schools received a brochure ‘All about Contraceptives’ presenting all the contraceptive methods available; in 2012, secondary schools students have been signing a safe sex statement which was made available to them.

Morbidity and mortality of women

141.Population morbidity and mortality rates are important health indicators. In Slovenia, women suffer from diseases common to both sexes and are also at risk as regards their reproductive health and specific related diseases. The life expectancy of women born in Slovenia in 2012 is 82.9 years, 5.8 years more than men. Even though men die younger, most research show that women suffer from diseases more often than men and spend a larger part of their lives ill. Slovenian woman can expect to spend 21 years or one quarter of her life ill.

142.One third of women aged 20 to 64 suffer from a protracted illness or health problem, and approximately seven per cent assess their general health as poor or very poor. They go to doctors more often than men, primarily because of acute respiratory and urinary tract infections, and gynaecological and musculoskeletal diseases; younger women also go to doctors because of injuries, and women over 50 years of age because of cardiovascular diseases, mainly high blood pressure. Preventive examinations are also frequent, mostly for cervical cancer screening, contraceptive consultation and examination during pregnancy. Musculoskeletal diseases, injuries, acute respiratory infections and mental disorders are the most frequent causes of absence from work; younger women record very frequent and protracted sick leave during pregnancy and frequent sick leave for family member care. Women aged 20 to 64 are treated in hospitals more often than men; the difference can be attributed to young women and their reproductive role. The main reasons for the hospitalisation of women under 40 years of age include pregnancy, childbirth and non-inflammatory genital diseases, which are also the most common diseases suffered by women under 60 years of age. Benign and malignant neoplasms, gastrointestinal disorders (primarily of the gall bladder), injuries and cardiovascular and musculoskeletal diseases are also among the leading causes of hospitalisation.

143.In 2009, 12,226 people were diagnosed with cancer, of whom 6,602 were men and 5,624 women; in that year, 5,787 patients died: 3,260 men and 2,527 women. The data of the Cancer Registry of Slovenia for 2009 show that among women, breast cancer ranked first, amounting to one fifth of all cancers (20.1 percent), followed by non-melanoma skin cancer, colorectal cancer and lung cancer. Among men, prostate cancer was most common, with almost 20 per cent of all cancers, followed by colorectal cancer, non-melanoma skin cancer and lung cancer. The most common cancers vary depending on age. Cancer is very rare in children and adolescents up to 20 years of age; in the 2005–2009 period, 34 boys and 31 girls were diagnosed with cancer per year on average. The most frequently diagnosed cancers in boys were leukaemia (24.0 per cent), followed by central and autonomic nervous system tumours (18.7 per cent) and Hodgkin’s disease (11.7 per cent); in girls leukaemia (30.1 per cent) and central and autonomic nervous system tumours (16.3 per cent) were followed by bone tumours (8.5 per cent). On average, 129 young adult men (aged 20 to 34) were diagnosed with cancer per year; almost half had testicular cancer (42.4 per cent), followed by melanoma skin cancer (9.6 per cent), non-melanoma skin cancer (7.1 per cent) and central and autonomic nervous system tumours (6.1 percent). Among young adult women (152 new cases per year on average) breast cancer was most common (15.2 per cent), followed by melanoma skin cancer (14.9 per cent) and cervical cancer (14.8 percent). An increasing trend seen in the incidence of breast cancer in the 1990s has stabilised in recent years. Lung cancer and uterine cancer incidence rates have increased, while cervical cancer has been recording a slow downward trend since 2003. Colorectal cancer, malignant melanoma and other skin cancers have recorded increased incidence rates in women and men, while incidence of gastric cancer in women and men continues to decline slowly.

144.Life expectancy and health are greatly influenced by the social and economic conditions of the population. Factors like education level, employment, income, social security and social network influence lifestyle, risk factors, the use of health and other services and, consequently, morbidity, mortality and life expectancy. In 2011, the Ministry of Health issued a publication ‘Health Inequalities in Slovenia’, which presents the health of the Slovenian population in relation to social and economic factors; it is intended to support the development of policies aimed at reducing inequalities.

145.In June 2013, the Institute of Public Health of the Republic of Slovenia and the Faculty of Social Sciences, University of Ljubljana, held a conference ‘Social Aspects of Health Inequalities of Women’ in cooperation with the World Health Organisation. Based on the findings presented at this scientific consultation, proposals aimed at reducing inequalities were drafted, including the need to systematically monitor health inequalities in future, and the requirement that in drafting new health policy measures their potential impact on widening the health inequality gap for women be considered.

Mental health of women

146.Mental health disorders are a major burden. Compared to men, women suffer from depression and anxiety more often, and also experience specific disorders, such as pre- and post-natal mental health problems. Depression is the most common mental disorder in women. According to 2007 data, 4.6 per cent of Slovenian women aged 20 to 65 years suffered from depression at least once in their lifetime. In view of the fact that the illness is frequently not detected, these data are probably underestimated. The incidence among women in Europe is estimated at 17 per cent. When left untreated, depression often results in suicidal behaviour. The attempted suicide rate is higher among women, but the share of actual suicide is higher among men than women.

147.In 2012, 443 deaths by suicide were recorded in Slovenia; of all suicides, 80 or 18.1 per cent were committed by women. The suicide coefficient (number of deaths by suicide per 100,000 population) was 21.54. The suicide coefficient has dropped from 30 to 20 per 100,000 inhabitants in the past decade. The reasons for this decrease can be found in numerous preventive activities and good cooperation between all key stakeholders.

Sexually transmitted diseases, AIDS and HIV

148.The most common sexually transmitted infections in Slovenia are chlamydial infections, gonorrhoea, non-specific urethritis, genital herpes and genital warts; syphilis cases occur as well. In 2011, infections were more common among men than among women, except for syphilis.

149.As already mentioned in the previous Report, all Slovenian residents may take a free HIV test that is equally accessible to women and men. Fifty-five cases of infection with HIV were registered in Slovenia in 2011, of which 7 were women and 48 men (and one boy); 12 men and 3 women developed AIDS.

Article 13

OTHER AREAS OF ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL LIFE

150.On 1 January 2012, two Acts started to apply: the Exercise of Rights to Public Funds Act and the Financial Social Assistance Act. The two Acts affected legislation governing social assistance, family benefits and subsidies to date, and introduced significant changes to the system of rights provided from public funds. In line with Slovenia’s efforts to consolidate public finance, two intervention Acts which further addressed the area of the rights to public funds were passed. The Additional Intervention Measures Act started to apply on 1 January 2012, i.e. on the same day as the new social legislation. The Fiscal Balance Act started to apply on 31 May 2012.

151.The Exercise of Rights to Public Funds Act provided for the establishment of a central registry of social transfers, the linking of information systems, the establishment of a single decision-making entity (social work centre) and the unification of elements influencing the decisions on social rights; it also amended eligibility criteria for some social rights.

152.Pursuant to new social legislation, child allowance has become part of a uniform system of exercising rights to public funds. A parent or a child under the age of 18, regardless of her or his status, is entitled to child allowance. Under the previously applicable legislation, a parent or a child was entitled to child allowance after the age of 18, provided that he or she had the status of a pupil, apprentice or student, but only up to 26 years of age. In exceptional cases, a parent or a child was entitled to child allowance after the age of 26 if he or she was studying or had not finished his or her education within the stipulated time-limit because of a protracted illness, injury or military service. In these cases, they were entitled to child allowance up to the conclusion of education, extended due to the aforementioned reasons. Compared to previous legislation (reported on in the previous Reports), the income bracket scale applied in assessing child allowance has been changed, namely the income census for income brackets and the amount of child allowance for secondary school pupils were increased. According to the data, 296,077 minors were entitled to child allowance in December 2011 and 267,872 in November 2012. One of the reasons for the lower number of recipients can be attributed to the Fiscal Balance Act, pursuant to which no child allowance is provided for those in the seventh and eighth income brackets.

153.At present, the right to financial social assistance is regulated by the Financial Social Assistance Act (previously by the Social Welfare Act) and the Fiscal Balance Act. A key new element in granting social assistance is means testing. The data on disbursed financial social assistance show that in the past ten years, just over 50,000 people applied. In June 2011, there were 51,591 cases of financial social assistance being disbursed, of which 49.43 per cent were received by women.

154.In 2011, the risk-of-poverty rate, account taken of income in cash and kind was 13.3 per cent (11.9 per cent for men and 14.6 per cent for women). This means that approximately 271,000 people were living below the risk-of-poverty rate in Slovenia. The statistics of the at-risk-of-poverty rates covering various socio-economic categories of people and households show that people living in jobless households are the worst off (36.6 per cent of people below the poverty threshold), particularly those with dependent children (70.1 per cent). Considering the household type, single-member households (39.9 percent) were in the most unfavourable position: at-risk-of-poverty rates recorded for female and male single-member households were 42.4 per cent and 36.4 per cent respectively. Compared with 2008, the level of risk of poverty of single member households decreased slightly (by 4.4 percentage points: by 1.4 percentage point for women and by 8.4 percentage points for men). Households facing a risk of poverty higher than the Slovenian average are single-parent families with at least one dependent child (30.7 per cent), of which most are single-mother families. There is also a high risk of poverty in the unemployed (43.8% in women and 44.8% in men) and tenants (31.8% in women and 27.6% in men). In the 2008–2011 period, the at-risk-of-poverty rate increased for all these groups.

155.One tenth of the adult inhabitants of Slovenia engage in regular, high-intensity physical activity, and one fifth in moderately intensity activity; there are more men than women in both groups (EHIS, 2007). As a rule, physical activity increases with the level of education. The majority of physically totally inactive population (15 per cent) is found in the lowest-education group, while in the highest-education group, only 5 per cent are physically totally inactive. The share of physically inactive women is higher than the share of men in all education groups.

Article 14

RURAL WOMEN

156.The Rural Development Programme of the Republic of Slovenia 2007–2013 systematically encouraged equal opportunities and accessibility to all measures, regardless of sex, ethnic, religious or other affiliation. Within the rural development programme, the Ministry of Agriculture and the Environment emphasised gender equality in the preparation and implementation of measures. The principles of gender equality and equal opportunities were also included in the selection criteria for individual measures. Certain measures included positive actions focused on improving the status of women and increasing their participation.

157.On the occasion of International Day of Rural Women, the Statistical Office of the Republic of Slovenia publishes a special yearly report on rural women in Slovenia. 37,000 women were working in agricultural activities in 2012, accounting for almost 9 per cent of all active women working population. On average a rural woman was 51 years old and spent on average 39 hours per week working. Over the last ten years, the education level of rural women increased. In 2002, almost 70 per cent of rural women had primary or even lower education; in 2012, this share decreased to less than 50 per cent. In the same period, the share of rural women with secondary education increased from 26 per cent to 44 per cent, and the share of rural women with tertiary education from 5 to 9 per cent.

158.The 2010 Agricultural Census shows that 20,300 women managed family farms (27.3 per cent). Their average age was 60 (56 in men).

159.The Association of Country Women of Slovenia, a non-governmental organisation which covers 124 local organisations with over 9,000 members, plays an important role in linking rural women, educating them and promoting farm women activities. It organises various lectures, workshops, courses and excursions, enabling its members to acquire additional knowledge and skills. The Association is also active in raising awareness of the rights of female farmers and in preventing violence against women, children and juveniles.

160.The Ministry of Agriculture and the Environment provides funding to professional organisations and various associations with different target groups in rural areas and also supports programmes to improve the working and living conditions of farm and rural women, in particularly the most disadvantaged groups such as older and low-income women. In 2012 and 2013, the Association of Country Women of Slovenia carried out awareness-raising activities among its members with a view to improving the social status of its female members and strengthening their self-confidence through learning about the role of rural women and their influence on and/or endeavours towards promoting gender equality. To this end, the Association has carried out various activities. In 2013, two round tables, organised at regional level, were dedicated to the status of women and the importance of their role in rural areas. The participants pointed to the facts that women in rural areas do a lot of work, while credit often goes to others, and that women do not participate in decision-making equally with their partners and other family members; they also drew attention to the issue of family violence. At one of the round tables, a survey on the insurance of rural women was carried out which showed that very few women respondents were insured; in most cases, it is their partners who are insured. Most of insured women are owners of holdings.

161.Among rural women, Roma women are particularly adversely affected, given that many Roma families still live in inappropriate living conditions (no electricity or running water). Therefore, the improvement of Roma housing conditions and settlements are among the priorities of the National Programme of Measures for Roma 2010–2015. The activities include publishing examples of good practice, public tenders issued in 2012 for co-funding basic public utility infrastructure projects in Roma settlements issued, and the preparation of action plans for implementing measures under the National Programme in local communities with Roma population.

Article 15

EQUALITY BEFORE THE LAW

162.No changes in the implementation of this Article were made in the reference period.

Article 16

MARRIAGE AND FAMILY RELATIONS

163.No legislative amendments were adopted in the reference period. In June 2011, the new Family Code was passed by the National Assembly, but rejected by a referendum in March the following year. The new Family Code envisaged changing the concept of a long-term relationship: added to the long-term relationship of a man and woman, significant in terms of the reproductive function, were same-sex partnerships, which were to be equalised with marriage and cohabitation in terms of legal and social norms; the possibility of adopting a child was to be made available to same-sex partners; under the new Code, marriage was no longer recognised as being of particular importance to society because of its function of starting a family. The New Family Code also provided for a clearer definition of property rights that form joint property, a concern raised by the Committee in its concluding observations.

164.In the area of family life, Slovenia shares socio-demographic similarities and developments with the rest of Europe. Alongside the ‘traditional’ families of married couples with children is a growing number of single-parent families, reconstituted or reorganised families, cohabitations and same-sex partnerships.

165.According to the 2011 census data, single-parent families comprised 25 per cent of all families in Slovenia, which is 6 percentage points more than in the 2002 census. Single-mother families comprised 84 per cent of all single-parent families. The prevailing family type was the nuclear family, comprised of married couples with children (56 per cent); couples with children living in cohabitation comprised 12 per cent.

166.The number of marriages has been roughly the same, approximately 6,600 per year; likewise, no significant changes have been recorded in the number of divorces. On average, every third marriage ends in divorce. The majority of children are born out of wedlock. In 2011, 56.8 per cent of children were born out of wedlock. Approximately half of divorced couples had dependent children (49.5 per cent in 2012). In 77 per cent of cases, the care and upbringing of children was entrusted to mothers, and in 7 per cent of cases to fathers; in 14 per cent of cases, children were under joint care.

167.According to the data of the Ministry of Labour, Family, Social Affairs and Equal Opportunities, in most cases maintenance is fixed in court settlements (31,279), followed by maintenance judgements (15,200), mutual agreement between parents at social work centres (13,305) and enforceable notarial deeds (1,396). In most cases, maintenance recipients are mothers of children (in 71 per cent of cases) or children themselves (23 per cent of cases). In 90 per cent of cases, the person liable to pay the maintenance is the child’s father. Average maintenance amounts to EUR 130.

LEGAL SOURCES USED

1.Constitution of the Republic of Slovenia, Uradni list RS No. 33I/1991, 33I/1991-I-UZIU, 42/1997, 66/2000, 24/2003, 69/2004, 69/2004, 69/2004, 68/2006, 47/2013, 47/2013,

2.The Implementation of the Principle of Equal Treatment Act, Uradni list RS No. 93/2007-UPB1,

3.Equal Opportunities for Woman and Men Act, Uradni list RS No. 59/2002, št. 61/2007-ZUNEO-A,

4.Political Parties Act, Uradni list RS No. 100/2005-UPB1, 103/2007, 99/2013,

5.Election of Slovenian Members to the European Parliament Act, Uradni list RS No. 40/2004-UPB1, 41/2007-ZVRK, 109/2009,

6.Local Elections Parties Act, Uradni list RS No. 94/2007-UPB3, 45/2008, 83/2012,

7.National Assembly Elections Act, Uradni list RS No. 109/2006-UPB1, 54/2007 Odl.US: U-I-7/07-22, Up-1054/07-24, 49/2008 Skl.US: U-I-272/07-12,

8.Penal Code Act, Uradni list RS No. 55/2008 (66/2008 popr.), 39/2009, 55/2009 Odl.US: U-I-73/09-19, 56/2011 Odl.US: U-I-262/10-18, 91/2011, 34/2012 Odl.US: U-I-24/10-12, 50/2012-UPB2, 63/2013,

9.Criminal Procedure Act – official consolidated text, Uradni list RS No. 32/2012-UPB8, 36/2012 Odl.US: U-I-275/10-10, Up-1507/10-20, 55/2012 Odl.US: Up-402/12-16, U-I-86/12-1, 47/2013,

10.Police Act, Uradni list RS No. 66/2009-UPB7, 22/2010, 26/2011 Odl.US: U-I-271/08-19, 58/2011-ZDT-1, 40/2012-ZUJF, 96/2012-ZPIZ-2, 15/2013-ZNPPol, 15/2013-ZODPol,

11.The Protection of Public Order Act, Uradni list RS No. 70/2006,

12.Citizenship of the Republic of Slovenia Act, Uradni list RS No. 24/2007-UPB2,

13.Employment Relationship Act, Uradni list RS No. 21/2013-ZDR-1 (78/2013 popr.),

14.Marriage and Family Relations Act, Uradni list RS No. 69/2004-UPB1, 101/2007 Odl.US: U-I-328/05-12, 122/2007 Odl.US: U-I-11/07-45, 90/2011 Odl.US: U-I-85/10-10, 84/2012 Odl.US: U-I-30/12-12,

15.Parental Protection and Family Benefits Act, Uradni list RS No. 110/2006-UPB2, 114/2006-ZUTPG, 122/2007 Odl.US: U-I-11/07-45, 10/2008, 62/2010-ZUPJS, 40/2012-ZUJF, 63/2013-ZIUPTDSV, 99/2013-ZSVarPre-C,

16.Organization and Financing of Education Act, Uradni list RS No. 16/2007-UPB5, 101/2007 Odl.US, 36/2008, 22/2009 Odl.US: U-I-205/07-10, 55/2009 Skl.US: U-I-356/07-13, 58/2009 (64/2009 popr., 65/2009 popr.), 16/2010 Odl.US: U-I-256/08-27, 47/2010 Odl.US: U-I-312/08-31, 20/2011, 34/2011 Odl.US: U-I-205/10-23, 40/2012-ZUJF, 57/2012-ZPCP-2D,

17.Pension and Disability Insurance Act, Uradni list RS No. 96/2012-ZPIZ-2

18.Health Care and Health Insurance Act, Uradni list RS No.72/2006-UPB3, 114/2006-ZUTPG, 91/2007, 71/2008 Skl.US: U-I-163/08-7, 76/2008, 118/2008 Skl.US: U-I-163/08-12, 47/2010 Odl.US: U-I-312/08-31, 62/2010-ZUPJS, 87/2011, 40/2012-ZUJF, 21/2013-ZUTD-A, 63/2013-ZIUPTDSV, 91/2013, 99/2013-ZUPJS-C, 99/2013-ZSVarPre-C,

19.Health and Safety at Work Act, Ur. l. RS, št. 43/2011-ZVZD-1,

20.Social Security Act, Uradni list RS No. 3/2007-UPB2 (23/2007 popr., 41/2007 popr.), 122/2007 Odl.US: U-I-11/07-45, 61/2010-ZSVarPre, 62/2010-ZUPJS, 57/2012,

21.Aliens Act, Uradni list RS No. 64/2009-UPB6, 26/2011 Odl.US: Up-456/10-22, U-I-89/10-16, 50/2011-ZTuj-2 (57/2011 popr.),

22.Exercise of Rights to Public Funds Act, Uradni list RS No. 62/2010, . 40/2011, 40/2012-ZUJF, 57/2012-ZPCP-2D, 14/2013, 56/2013-ZŠtip-1, 99/2013,

23.Family Violence Prevention Act, Uradni list RS No. 16/2008,

24.Criminal Procedure Act, Uradni list RS No. 32/2012-UPB8, 36/2012 Odl.US: U-I-275/10-10, Up-1507/10-20, 55/2012 Odl.US: Up-402/12-16, U-I-86/12-1, 47/2013,

25.Police Tasks and Powers Act, Uradni list RS No. 15/2013,

26.Employment and Work of Aliens Act, Uradni list RS No. 76/2007-UPB2, 26/2011-ZZDT-1,

27.Local Self-Government Act, Uradni list RS No. 94/2007-UPB2, 27/2008 Odl.US: Up-2925/07-15, U-I-21/07-18, 76/2008, 100/2008 Odl.US: U-I-427/06-9, 79/2009, 14/2010 Odl.US: U-I-267/09-19, 51/2010, 84/2010 Odl.US: U-I-176/08-10, 40/2012-ZUJF,

28.The Roma Community Act, Uradni list RS No. 33/2007, 54/2010 Odl.US: U-I-15/10-13,

29.Pre-School Institutions Act, Uradni list RS No. 100/2005-UPB2, 25/2008, 98/2009-ZIUZGK, 36/2010, 62/2010-ZUPJS, 94/2010-ZIU, 40/2012-ZUJF,

30.Financial Social Assistance Act, Uradni list RS No. 61/2010, 40/2011, 110/2011-ZDIU12, 40/2012-ZUJF, 14/2013, 99/2013,

31.Labour market regulation act, Uradni list RS No. 80/2010, 40/2012-ZUJF, 21/2013, 63/2013-ZIUPTDSV, 63/2013, 100/2013,

32.Resolution on the National Programme for Equal Opportunities for Women and Men (2005 - 2013), Uradni list RS No. 100/2005,

33.Resolution of National Programme of Family Violence Protection, Uradni list RS No. 41/2009,

34.Resolution on National plan of health care 2008-2013 “Satisfied users and performers of medical services”, Uradni list RS No. 72/2008 (47/2008 popr.),

35.Decree on measures for protecting the worker’s dignity at work in state administration, Uradni list RS No. 36/2009,

36.Rules on the organization and work of multidisciplinary teams and regional services and on actions of the social work centres in dealing with domestic violence, Uradni list RS No. 31/2009,

37.Rules on cooperation between the police and other autorites in the detection and prevention of domestic violence, Uradni list RS No. 25/2010,

38.Rules on procedures for dealing with domestic violence in the implementation of health activities, Uradni list RS No. 38/2011,

39.Rules on the Treatment of Domestic Violence for Educational Institutions, Uradni list RS No. 104/2009

40.Rules on classification of medicines on the list, Uradni list RS No. 110/2010, 35/2013.