COUNCIL OF EUROPE

                                       COMMITTEE OF MINISTERS

                                              ________

                                    RECOMMENDATION No. R (90) 4

                           OF THE COMMITTEE OF MINISTERS TO MEMBER STATES

                             ON THE ELIMINATION OF SEXISM FROM LANGUAGE

                    (adopted by the Committee of Ministers on 21 February 1990,
                          at the 434th meeting of the Ministers' Deputies)

   

   The Committee of Ministers, under the terms of Article 15b. of the Statute of the Council of
   Europe,

   Considering that the aim of the Council of Europe is to achieve a greater unity between its
   members for the purpose of safeguarding and promoting the ideals and principles which are
   their common heritage;

   Considering that equality between women and men falls within the scope of those ideals and
   principles;

   Welcoming the fact that the principle of equality between the sexes is gradually becoming part
   of law and practice in Council of Europe member States;

   Considering, however, that the achievement of real equality between women and men is still
   being hindered by social, cultural and other barriers;

   Stressing the fundamental role of language in forming an individual's social identity, and of
   the interaction between language and social attitudes;

   Convinced that the sexism characterising current linguistic usage in most Council of Europe
   member States - whereby the masculine prevails over the feminine - is hindering the
   establishment of equality between women and men, since it obscures the existence of the women
   as half of humanity, while denying the equality of women and men;

   Noting also that the use of the masculine gender to denote people of both sexes is, in today's
   social context, a source of uncertainty about the people - men or women - involved;

   Aware of the importance of the role played by education and the media in shaping attitudes and
   behaviour;

   Welcoming the initiatives already taken at national and international level to adapt language
   to the social and psychological trends towards equality between women and men;

   Having regard to its Recommendation No. R (85) 2 on legal protection against sex
   discrimination;

   Having regard also to the Resolution on policy and strategies for achieving equality in
   political life and in the decision-making process and to the Resolution on policies to
   accelerate the chievement of real equality between women and men adopted respectively by the
   1st (Strasbourg, 4 March 1986) and the 2nd (Vienna, 4-5 July 1989) European Ministerial
   Conferences on equality between women and men;

   Bearing in mind its Declaration on equality of women and men, adopted on 16 November 1988,

   Recommends that governments of member States promote the use of a language reflecting the
   principle of equality of the women and men and, take all measures they consider appropriate
   with a view to:

   1. encouraging the use, as far as possible, of non-sexist language to take account of the
   presence, status and role of women in society as current linguistic practice does for men;

   2. bring the terminology used in legal drafting, public administration and education into line
   with the principle of sex equality;

   3. encourage the use of non-sexist language in the media.