EU Parliament vows to combat sexual harassment, abuse

By Hajer M'tiri

PARIS (AA) - The European Parliament lawmakers on Thursday voted for a motion condemning sexual harassment and calling for a "task force of independent experts" to examine allegations of sexual harassment and abuse within the Parliament.

The vote comes a day after lawmakers debated sexual abuse within the EP following media reports detailing a number of rape, assault and harassment allegations against MEPs.

Politico Europe newspaper said it had so far collected the testimonies of 87 women and six men coming especially from junior assistants, interns and trainees.

The resolution --passed by 580 votes to 10, with 27 abstentions -- calls on the Parliament to "urgently examine recent allegations of sexual harassment and abuse, introduce mandatory training for all staff and Members on respect and dignity at work, maintain a confidential register of cases, set up a task force of independent experts and improve formal procedures and support for victims in proceedings within the European Parliament and/or with the local police".

"Member states should also examine the situation in their national parliaments and take appropriate measures," read the text of the motion.

The debate on sexual harrasment came to surface earlier this month after several women accused Hollywood producer Harvey Weinstein of sexual assault, reaching in some cases rape.

Since than, several victims, mainly women took to social media their personal experiences of sexual harassment and assault with the trending #MeToo hashtag.