Uspaskich on women leaders: sorry for Grybauskaitė

The men discussed this on LNK’s “Kissing. Route “.

According to V. Uspaskich, both women and men have their own purposes.

“Every living being, man or woman, has its own nature on this earth, no one will deny it. It is not necessary to think that we can choose our purpose, no. We come for that purpose, by nature. Who should have children in the family? Who should breastfeed for at least two years? If a woman has to do these important things according to her purpose, the question is: when will she be able to do business and a career? “The politician asked rhetorically.

If women are engaged only in professional affairs, according to V. Uspaskich, they feel unhappy because they do not perform their natural tasks.

“For example, people like Grybauskaitė feel sorry for me, she is one of the most unhappy women in Lithuania,” said the MEP.

However, when speaking of mothers of active politicians, V. Uspaskich said that he is not against them if they are able to coordinate all the work.

“A woman (…) can work, be in society, be a leader, politics and everything else, but at home she has to do the work of a woman, mother, wife,” he said.

When asked how some well-known women, for example, the president of the Seimas Viktorija Čmilytė-Nielsen is able to reconcile everything, V. Uspaskich said that the children of such a policy still suffer.

“I bow my head, I really want her to succeed in being the best Spokesperson for the Seimas, but she will not be able to fully fulfill her motherhood yet. The children will miss them,” said the politician.

He made no secret of his regret for not spending more time with his children, but, as Uspaskich explained, he realized himself with his career and leadership.

Dad babysitting – this is my realization

However, Simonas Urbonas, the husband of Ieva Kačinskaitė-Urbonienė, a member of the Seimas, who has been taking care of their children for seven years, did not agree with this position.

“I really like it, I really like strong women. This time I am happy. (…) When I look at entrepreneurial men, I don’t want to be like them, I never wanted to be. It seems to me that he is suffering, “he said on the program.

Mr. Urbon made no secret of the fact that, with the founding of the Super Parents movement, he had received messages accusing him of proving active fatherhood.

“I discovered self-actualization only because I want to show that parents are not afraid to be with their children. It seems to me that my mission, of which I was a pioneer, has settled here. I want to show that it is possible with the children, I am not saying take charge, but do not stay with the children at the door and cry while the mother is in the bathroom, ”said S. Urbonas.

Expert: Such statements are derogatory

Aurelija Auškalnytė, an expert at the Center for the Development of Equal Opportunities, did not hide her surprise when she heard V. Uspaskich’s words about women politicians on the show.

“I automatically want to ask if he was here recently or twenty years ago. My intuitive question is apparently the answer: it is completely inconceivable that such sexist discourses emerge in society and that elected MEPs hold such important positions. This is a completely inappropriate and unethical statement from any point of view, ”noted A. Auškalnytė.

According to the expert, this rhetoric is based on patriarchal attitudes, which state that women should sit at home, make food, raise children and men should earn money and speak in public.

“It just came to our knowledge then. Thank God things have changed a lot, but we and other women’s rights organizations in particular today, March 8.” Remember that despite these changes, there are all kinds of little aspects, nuances, where inequality occurs and where women face additional barriers ”, said an expert from the Center for the Development of Equal Opportunities.

A. Auškalnytė stated that these statements by politicians reflect the aforementioned barriers. According to her, many people think that gender inequality no longer exists, but this, A. Auškalnytė emphasized, is not true.

However, he pointed out that changes are taking place and some politicians, even with a similar vision of V. Uspaskich, no longer dare to say so in public.

“I think that a great leap has already been made. Many politicians understand that although they think that women should stay at home, they no longer dare to say it in public because they know the negative reaction,” said the specialist.

Referring to the words of V. Uspaskich, who feels sorry for the outgoing president Dalia Grybauskaitė, A. Auškalnytė affirmed that the phrase belittles the former head of the country.

“Basically, such an unequal relationship is to say that I am sorry, it is unhappy, it is already a form of some insult, psychological violence in certain circumstances. Imagine that there is a lesson in progress, the teacher says that, Maryte, I am sorry you are, you will be unhappy, you are studying so well and you will have to work very hard in life. Something unimaginable in other contexts seems like this, “emphasized A. Auškalnytė.