Freie Wähler on equality and diversity

The Free Voters want no woman to be punished for ending her pregnancy. Mandatory pregnancy conflict counseling is to remain in place. At the same time, access to safe medical care is to be available everywhere and without discrimination.

No woman should be punished for an abortion. That is what the Free Voters want. Counseling before an abortion should stay mandatory. Women should find safe medical care everywhere. Paid advertising for abortions should stay banned.

The platform calls for the best possible care and legal certainty for pregnant women. The party describes mandatory pregnancy conflict counseling as exceptionally important and insists on keeping it. Doctors who provide information about the abortion services they offer are to have legal certainty. Commercial advertising for abortions, by contrast, is to remain unlawful.

The Free Voters want to raise the standing of occupations in which mostly women work and to narrow the gender pay gap. They also want more women in leadership roles and political office. The platform notes that women earn 18 percent less than men on average.

Women earn less than men on average. The Free Voters want to change this. Jobs done mostly by women should get more respect and better pay. More women should become bosses. More women should also take part in politics.

The platform calls for equality standards and monitoring, stronger and more independent equal opportunity officers, and labels that recognize notable progress. Programs in media and education are meant to break down gender stereotypes. Training programs are to raise the share of women in science, technology, business and politics. Municipalities should create structures that let mothers of small children attend meetings. The share of women is also to be promoted at the state and federal levels.

The Free Voters want to revise the Selbstbestimmungsgesetz (Self-Determination Act) in the next legislative term. They accept the right to recognition of one's gender identity but say the law does not balance it properly with women's rights and child protection in every area.

The Self-Determination Act sets rules for changing a person's legal gender. The Free Voters want to change this law. They say the law pays too little attention to women's rights and child protection. The rights of trans people should still remain.

The platform cites the Federal Constitutional Court, under which self-determined gender identity is part of a person's individual rights. That right is to be reconciled with women's rights and the protection of children. In the party's view, the aim of the change is to restore social peace and to prevent the two sets of rights from being played off against each other. For children and adolescents, medical procedures should take place only after intensive expert counseling.

The Free Voters want to reform the Prostitution Act in order to combat forced prostitution and human trafficking. In the platform's view, the current law and weak oversight encourage these abuses.

Some people are forced into prostitution. The Free Voters want to stop this. To do so, they want to change the Prostitution Act. They say today's law and today's checks are not enough.

The platform blames the existing law, together with insufficient oversight, for the spread of forced prostitution and human trafficking in Germany. It points to neighboring European countries that, according to the party, have already curbed these problems. From this the party derives its call for reform.

The Free Voters want to create a government coordination office that pools efforts against violence toward women and girls. Support services and awareness campaigns are to be expanded. The platform justifies this with a sharp rise in violence and with the Istanbul Convention.

Many women and girls suffer violence. The Free Voters want a new government office to fight this. The office collects data and brings agencies together. There should be more help and more information. Police and courts should get training on this.

The office is to collect and analyze data on violence against women and connect ministries, agencies, police, courts, social services and women's shelters. It is to promote research on causes and effects and work toward a legal right to protection and help for those affected. Easy-access services such as social work, workshops, programs in daycare centers and schools, and professionally run social media channels are to grow. Agencies should cooperate more closely across state lines. Nationwide training is planned for the judiciary and police.

The Free Voters want to rehabilitate people convicted under the former criminal provisions against homosexuality. Health care for trans people is to improve through more expertise at agencies and in medical training. The platform also affirms the diversity of family forms.

In the past, gay men were punished in Germany. The Free Voters want to recognize this injustice. Trans people should get better medical care. Doctors should learn more about this. Nobody should be treated unfairly in nursing homes either.

The party supports appropriate recognition of the injustice suffered by those convicted under Section 175 of the Criminal Code and Section 151 of the East German Criminal Code. On trans health, it sees individual applications for cost coverage as a barrier and wants to pool expertise at the responsible offices and anchor the topic in medical studies and continuing education. For the platform, family exists wherever parents and children take responsibility for each other, whatever their gender or orientation. In senior and nursing homes, trained staff are to ensure living and working without discrimination. Sexuality is to be taught in school in an age-appropriate way, free of ideology and discrimination.

The Free Voters want transport, housing, schools, cultural venues and health care facilities to be usable without barriers for people with disabilities. A nationwide hotline would answer questions about inclusion quickly.

The Free Voters want fewer barriers for people with disabilities. Buses, trains and taxis should work for everyone. The same goes for doctors' offices, museums and theaters. A phone number should help with questions.

Local public transport, taxis and ride services would have to be accessible everywhere, with training for drivers. Conversions that create accessible housing would receive financial support, especially in rural areas. Schools would keep Braille books and audiobooks as standard. Cultural venues would offer subtitles, sign language interpreters and tactile tours. Medical facilities would have to be physically accessible and train their staff. A hotline modeled on the 116 117 medical number would also help in emergencies, such as rides to important appointments.

The Free Voters want to support companies that employ people with disabilities in regular jobs. Assistance services would be easier to apply for, those affected would have more say, and guardians would get more leeway.

More people with disabilities should get regular jobs. Companies should get help for this. Everyday assistance should be easier to apply for. People affected should have more say in decisions.

Businesses would receive targeted support when they bring people with disabilities into the regular labor market. Assistance services for independent living would be available with little paperwork and usable flexibly. People affected and their relatives would be more involved, for example through local disability advisory councils. Family and court-appointed guardians would be freer to handle everyday errands and purchases. Rules would be revised so that applications and approvals move faster.

The Free Voters want to write protection of the recognized national minorities into the Basic Law, Germany's constitution. They also want to promote Jewish life and take action against antisemitism.

Germany has recognized minorities. They include Danes, Frisians, Sorbs, and Sinti and Roma. The Free Voters want to protect them in the constitution. The party also wants to support Jewish life.

The platform points out that these groups' rights so far appear in only three state constitutions. They are recognized through a Council of Europe framework convention. The party also stands for protection from discrimination in all areas of society. It counts promoting Jewish life and acting against antisemitism and anti-Israel efforts as part of society's basic consensus.