INTERVIEW with Ursula von der Leyen - President of the European Commission.

She speaks with “The Dubrovnik

Times” about democracy, media freedom, gender equality and why Europe is simply the best place to live in the world. Oct
21, 2021
1. Dr. von der Leyen, usted ha dicho anteriormente que otra de las prioridades de la Comisión Europea es
fortalecer la libertad de prensa.
2. ¿Qué tan peligrosas son las noticias falsas para la democracia en Europa?
3. The pandemic has shown that disinformation can cost lives - literally.
4. Information is a public good: our health, our economy, and the very functioning of our democracies depend on it.
5. Democracy can only thrive if freedom of information, freedom of expression and media freedom are maintained.
6. Usted es la primera mujer en ocupar la presidencia de la Comisión de la UE. ¿Qué opina sobre la “igualdad
de género en Europa”?
7. We must strive for a system where women can always reach for the top, if this is what they want.
8. The first step for this is to give equal opportunities to women and men.
9. And for this, we are working to ensure quality education for all girls and women and to guarantee equal pay for
women.
10. Yet today, fewer than 7 percent of top companies’ CEOs are women.
11. So, we need to incentivize companies and organizations to give women their fair chance.
12. We simply cannot exclude half of our talents from leadership positions.
13. Muchos jóvenes no valoran realmente la idea de una Europa unida. ¿Cuál es su mensaje para esos jóvenes?
14. Europe is simply the best place to live in the world. In no other place in the world young people enjoy the same
opportunities to study, to travel and the same social protections.
15. And in no other place young people enjoy such a broad set of rights and freedoms.
16. This is what makes us who we are, and this is why we need to protect our fundamental rights.
17. Europe must always remain a place where all are equal before the law, and where everyone is free to love
whomever they want.
18. And one of our roles, as European Commission, is precisely to be the guardians of these values.
19. But we can only be successful if all European citizens - young and old - fight with us every day for these freedoms.

20. Las crisis se están convirtiendo cada vez más en una prueba para la democracia. ¿Qué piensa usted al
repecto?
21. Our response to the pandemic shows that a Union of democracies can better satisfy its citizens’ needs.
22. Look at all that we have achieved together. More than 75 percent of adults in the EU are fully vaccinated.
23. By working together, we make sure that all European countries had equal access to our resources.