Irène Pétry
Irène Pétry | |
---|---|
Secretary of State for Cooperation and Development | |
In office 1973–1973 | |
Deputy for Liège | |
In office 1974–1977 | |
Senator for Liège | |
In office 1977–1984 | |
President of the Council of the French Community of Belgium | |
In office 1980–1982 | |
Judge at the Constitutional Court | |
In office 1984–1991 | |
President of the Constitutional Court (Francophone group) | |
In office 1991–1992 | |
Personal details | |
Born | Waremme, Liège, Belgium | 19 June 1922
Died | 17 April 2007 Uccle, Brussels-Capital Region, Belgium | (aged 84)
Occupation | Politician |
Irène Pétry (19 June 1922 – 17 April 2007) was a Belgian socialist politician. She was the first female president of the Constitutional Court (formerly known as the Court of Arbitration). She took part in founding a movement called the "Femmes Prévoyantes Socialistes". She was one of the first women to pursue a political career that took her to the highest levels. The main idea for which she fought her whole life was the equality and emancipation of man and woman.[1]
Youth
Irene Pétry grew up with five brothers in a working-class family. Her parents were fervent members of the Belgian Workers Party, ancestor of the
Femmes Prévoyantes Socialistes (FPS)
Irène Pétry began work as a private employee in a company located in Liège.[2][3] Later, after the war, she joined the Socialist Mutuality in her hometown of Waremme, where she developed a section called "Femmes Prévoyantes Socialistes" (Forward-looking Socialist Women). This group was located at the Joseph Wauters Clinic, also in Waremme.[4] Today it is a medical analysis laboratory.[5] The Femmes Prévoyantes Socialistes (FPS) movement has evolved greatly since the time when Irene Pétry inaugurated it. Today, this movement prioritizes the equality of men and women (fighting wage inequality and the issue of part-time work). The FPS movement also militates for the rights of citizens (voluntary termination of pregnancy, fight against insecurity) while conducting prevention campaigns with the aim of raising citizens' awareness about the fight against domestic violence, prevention of
At the same time, she had other duties. She was the editor-in-chief of a monthly magazine published called La Femme Prévoyante, and she was one of the presenters of the television program "La pensée socialiste" (Socialist Thought) at RTBF.
Irene Pétry's political commitment did not stop with the FPS movement. She also agitated for women's rights. As early as the 1950s, she fought for economic and legal gender equality. Later, in the 1960s, she emphasized the development and growth of more and more family planning centers. She continued to advance, and in the 1970s militated for decriminalizing abortion prior to legalizing it. However she chose to take a step back when faced with "extremist" feminist groups that emerged in the 1970s.[8]
Political career
From 1959 to 1964 Irène Pétry was a communal councilor in Uccle.[4] In 1966, she became vice-president and then president of the International Council of Women of the Socialist International. Subsequently, she was appointed Vice President of the Socialist International.[4] The Socialist International Women is the international organization of women's organizations of socialist, social democratic and labor parties affiliated to the Socialist International.[9]
Meanwhile, in the late sixties, Irene found herself involved in government, without being a member of parliament. In the early seventies, she joined the office of the
Irène then ran for election for Liège (where she resided at the time) in the March 1974 legislative elections, where she was elected as a deputy. In October 1976, following the fusion of the Belgian municipalities, she became communal councilor at Sprimont, for a period of 7 years (from 1977 to 1984). A few months later, she was elected to the Senate. The president of the Senate at that time was
From 15 October 1976, she participated in the meetings that inaugurated the
Finally, Irene Pétry became a judge at the Court of Arbitration as early as the 1980s.[2] Belgium, which was at that time unitary, took the path towards federalism in 1970.[10] The Court of Arbitration was created after the constitutional revision of 1980, renamed from 7 May 2007 the Constitutional Court.[10] It was born in September 1984 and Irène Pétry was designated by the Socialist Party to represent it. After this, she abandoned her various political mandates to devote herself fully to her new task. She took over from Jean Sarot as President of the French Court of Arbitration from 19 February 1991. She also held the general presidency until 1992.
Irene Pétry was appointed Minister of State in May 1992.[8] Although this title does not give any particular rights, it recognizes great services rendered to the country and the status of a "wise person". At the end of a political career it is more than a reward, it is a consecration. On 20 June 1992 she chose to end her activities at the Court of Arbitration. She was then 70 years old.[8]
Some writings
Irène Pétry wrote two articles for the feminist periodical Les Cahiers du GRIF.[11] In 1974 it published an issue with the theme "The social insecurity of women" where she wrote Inflation and the impossibility of predicting[12] and Housing and the impossibility of settling.[13]
Some quotes from Irène Pétry:
Too often, it is need that drives women to work and all of them are still needed at home.
— Irène Pétry[14]
What makes our feminine mutuality a living, dynamic and flourishing women's movement is its tireless action in the social, educational and advocacy fields.
— Irène Pétry[15]
It has never been said that the man who wanted to devote himself to his role as a father should not be prevented from doing so for economic reasons.
— Irène Pétry[16]
Notes
- ^ Éloge funèbre de Mme Irène Pétry.
- ^ a b c d e Delfosse 1989.
- ^ a b François 2013.
- ^ a b c d e Delforge 2014.
- ^ Le site du centre hospitalier...
- ^ site officiel des Femmes Prévoyantes.
- ^ a b c Schoune 2007.
- ^ a b c Delforge, Destatte & Libon 2000, pp. 486–487.
- ^ a b La Belgique, un Etat fédéral.
- ^ Irène Pétry ... le site de la bibliothèque.
- ^ Pétry 1974a.
- ^ Pétry 1974b.
- ^ Julémont 2008, p. 74.
- ^ Julémont 2008, p. 26.
- ^ Julémont 2008, p. 76.
Sources
- Delforge, P.; Destatte, P.; Libon, M. (2000), Encyclopédie du Mouvement wallon, vol. IVParlementaires et ministres de la Wallonie (1974-2009), Charleroi: Institut Destrée, EMW-T4
- Delforge, P. (December 2014), "Irène Pétry", PortailWallonie.be
- Delfosse, L. (7 June 1989), "Irène Pétry, juge à la Cour d'Arbitrage", LeSoir.be
- "Éloge funèbre de Mme Irène Pétry, ministre d'État", Sénat de Belgique: Annales, sessions ordinaires 2007-2008 (in French) (3-216 26 avril 2007 séance de l'après-midi), 2007
- François, J. (6 December 2013), "Irène Pétry, juge (Waremme-Belgique)", Chronique-Waremme.be (in French), archived from the original on 20 December 2017, retrieved 25 November 2017
- "Irène Pétry", le site de la bibliothèque de l'Université de Liège, collections ULg, ULG library (in French)[permanent dead link]
- Julémont, G. (2008), Femmes prévoyantes socialistes: des combats d'hier aux enjeux de demain, Bruxelles: FPS, p. 74, Julemont2008
- "La Belgique, un Etat fédéral", le portail des institutions belges (in French)
- Le site du centre hospitalier Bois de l'Abbaye (in French)
- Pétry, Irène (1974a), "L'inflation et l'impossibilité de prévoir", Les Cahiers du GRIF, 4 (4 L'insécurité sociale des femmes): 46–49, , Pétry-Inflation
- Pétry, Irène (1974b), "Le logement et l'impossibilité de s'installer", Les Cahiers du GRIF (in French), 4 (4 L'insécurité sociale des femmes): 50–53, , Pétry-Logement
- Schoune, C. (18 April 2007), "Elle incarna la voix des femmes", LeSoir.be (in French)
- Site de l'Internationale socialiste des Femmes (in French)
- site officiel des Femmes Prévoyantes (in French)