185. The representative confirmed, in relation to article 7. that, although no legal barriers existed, women’s participation in top managerial and administrative poeitions was not commensurate with their overall level of The aau”efi inaluded the low participation of women in the Seym, education. political parties, trade unions and assoaiations; their double burden and 2, traditional family responsibilityr the lack of strong women’s organisations; and their limited possibilities for political education, participation in politfaal campaigns and lobbying. A leak of women in the leadership of Solidarity was also noted. It was observed that women only provided active In order to redress the situation, training seminars support to male leaders. had been initiated. The Government Plenipotentiary for Women’s Affairs had -established a Women's Forum, the main task of which was to encourage women to take a more active part in politics, inaludinq elections. 166. In terms of article 8, the representative said that following the reorganisation of the Foreign Ministry, the recruitment and promotion of both men and women to higher posts had been subject to open competition. Of the ~~~793 Winistry employees, 263 were women; of the 366 persons in the professional ~~aateqory, 46 were woment of the 105 persons at the executive level, 3 were ~women) and of tho 927 persons posted abroad, 37 were women - 1 with the rank of ambassador and 16 with diplomatic status, It had been acknowledged that -~the participation of women in the foreign service, in international ~-aonferenaes and in the work of international organisations had been insufficient. The situation had been a result of the previous system, which -haa used discriminatory practices, Over the past few- months, 24 women had been appointed to dAplomatic posts. 187. In relation to article 11 and in response to several questions concerning employment, the representative reiterated the negative effect of the present economic situation on women's employment, She mentioned certain measures to combat unemployment that would be undertaken by the new Minister for Labour --and Social Policy to benefit both men and women, such as retraining workers, providing them with vocational guidance and granting them loans for starting their own enterprises. The Government Plenipotentiary for Women's Affairs intended to elaborate a specific proqrenune for women in regions that were With regard to the protection of particularly affected by unemployment. women’s work, the representative provided additional information on the lack of protection for pregnant women and women on child-care leave or maternity leave-when enterprises were liquidated; all entitlements related to maternity leave, however, had been retained. In response to a question of whether praatiaes in Poland complied with IL0 Convention No. 103 concerning Maternity Protection, which prohibited the dismissal of a woman on maternity leave, the representative noted that, under present legal regulations, it was possible to but -terminate the employment of such a woman if the enterprise was abolished, ; there wae a requirement that she should continue to receive maternity benefits. It was asked whether it was possible to obtain further employment in the case of closure of an employing organisation. The representative noted that, although Poland was not yet party to the most recent IL0 conventions, because of the aountry’e political situation in the 19806, the country had been reviewing its position yio-8-v&i those conventions and intended to accede to them in the future, -36-