Fieldtrip of Dreams

St Mogue's TY Class visits EU Parlament

A Transition Year class from St Mogue’s College in Bawnboy embarked on an extraordinary journey to Strasbourg last week, having clinched a coveted opportunity to participate in the Euroscola programme.

The 23 local students made up some of the 700 plus from Europe and the UK in the European capital for the event, a record for this school year, with a thousand more tuning in online.

The Euroscola programme is an EU-led, decision-making initiative that offers secondary students the chance to immerse themselves in the working day of a Member of the European Parliament.

The theme of this visit, and the focus of the discussions, was the question: ‘A Europe of equal opportunities? The European Parliament’s defence of women’s rights and gender equality.’

The setting meanwhile couldn’t be more fitting - the iconic European Parliament building, renowned for its magnificent hemicycle, the grand stage for plenary sessions and debates, and the very heart of European democracy.

The opening address was presented by Roberta Metsola, President of the European Parliament, via video link from Brussels, followed by a stimulating question and answer session with Vice-President Dimitrios Papadimoulis.

It was Mr Papadimoulis’ belief that countries lagging behind in terms of implementing equality measures should “become inspired” by others leading the way.

In order to “have more equality”, he said, people needed to be prepared to “fight for it daily”.

He accepted the EU is “not a paradise”, but rather an “ongoing experience evolving since 60 years now” that aims to allow citizens live better than previous generations. “We have not succeeded yet. There is still much to do. It is like a bicycle. If you don’t want to fall, you always have to keep going ahead.”

The morning session also featured the valuable insights of Henry Wasung, Secretariat of the Committee on Women’s Rights and Gender Equality, who spoke of the legislative efforts and policy initiatives being undertaken to promote gender equality within the wider bloc.

When questioned about gender representation at parliament level, he told the gathering that close to 38% of the more than 700 elected members are female. “It’s not quite 50%, but it’s not too bad,” he remarked.

It falls, he said, on political parties to strike a better balance.

The same, he noted, is true regarding the type of roles women find themselves in.

“Are they given the traditional hard powerful posts, or are they given more soft diffusive roles where they have less influence?”

He was asked too about the conflict between religion and the guarantee of women’s rights.

“We guarantee freedom of religion. We also guarantee women’s rights. Is there a conflict? Very much depends on the religion, on the people, and how it is interpreted. The most important thing is that the rights of the individual have to be guaranteed.”

He added, under a separate question on the same topic, this time with reference to abortion rights: “People have their different points of view today on how they value religion, science, different philosophical moral considerations. So there’s no easy answer... This is the European Parliament. We have 705 elected members. They span the political spectrum. So very much there are MEPs who talk in favour of banning abortion or severely restricting it.”

On the role of men, and the worry that masculinity is being undermined, Mr Wasung suggested: “We have to get away from these gender stereotypes where men can’t show motion. They have to be always strong. And it is very much discussed at the European level. We have our chairman who constantly says that men are not just allies, but they benefit from gender equality too.”

Genuine and lasting change however begins with “structured dialogue”, stated the Secretariat, who called on the young people present to share their opinions by writing to their own local MEPs on subjects poignant to their respective core group or community.

“It’s really about just freedom and allowing each person to achieve what they should be able to achieve without being hindered by gender stereotypes, by these negative constraints. And I think that’s the key message for me, at least. Don’t worry less about women dominating, worry about those people who are often women, but also men, who are constrained by these stereotypes, by these traditional attitudes which, perhaps, stop them being what they want to be.”

In the afternoon, the students stepped into the shoes of Members of the European Parliament by participating in a simulation of parliamentary proceedings. With a specific focus on gender equality, lively debates and discussions ensued, with participants gaining first-hand experience in the democratic process and the complexities of policymaking. Manuela Renjo, Project Leader of Euroscola, explained that the project has been in place for more than 30 years and is the flagship for instigating engagement between schools and European politics.

Her hope is that the young people taking part in these sessions will be left with a lasting impression that politics, even on a European scale, is accessible, and that they realise the issues affecting them are actively being considered and talked about in the halls of power.

“It has been steadily and continuously evolving,” she said of Euroscola, which continued even during Covid. “The main purpose is to educate, and to encourage young people to remain curiously and actively engaged with European Affairs, to make their voice heard, and to use their voice now as we’re approaching the European elections.”

She noted that many countries had already lowered the age limit to vote to 16 years. Some of those in attendance in Strasbourg were eligible to vote for the first time come June.

“We know from the UK that youth abstention was drastically having an impact on the turnout, and this is why we think Euroscola is extremely useful in terms of raising awareness and engagement.”

She states that Euroscola visits to Strasbourg often focus on subjects that matter to youth, and that the idea is they would work together to create debate and challenge counterpoints together.

“You can be stronger if you are united. If you share the interests beyond borders and beyond silos.”