Fury after Polish MEP says women 'less intelligent', should earn less

Strasbourg, March 3 (IANS/AKI) A Polish nationalist member of the European Parliament faced a backlash on Friday after he said women should earn less than men because "they are weaker, smaller and less intelligent".

Janusz Korwin-Mikke, an MEP who leads a marginal rightwing party, said during a debate on the pay gap between men and women: "Of course women must earn less than men because they are weaker, they are smaller, they are less intelligent. They must earn less, that's all."

To bolster his argument, he also pointed out there were no women among the world's top 100 world chess players.

The Socialists and Democrats (S&D) group urged Parliament President Antonio Tajani to sanction Korwin-Mikke for his "shameful" comments.

Tajani is investigating whether Korwin-Mikke's remarks broke the body's rules ban defamatory, racist or xenophobic language or behaviour, the parliament said.

Penalties for such behaviour range from a reprimand to a fine and temporary suspension.

"Women must earn less than men" ? In 2017. In the European Parliament. Unbelievable... @IratxeGarper sets this misogynist straight," tweeted outraged female Socialist MEP Iratxe Garcia-Perez.

--IANS/AKI

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