For the past fifty years the emancipation of women has been progressing rapidly. They got equal rights, the right to vote, universities are full of women and there are even special swimming-pool nights where no men are allowed. Even though, as a man, I cannot understand these swimming pool nights (not all men are sexual predators, really), it is something most guys can live with. We too are happy with the equal rights of women. It benefits everyone.

With equal rights come equal opportunities. Every woman in the European Union should have the chance to pursue an education, apply for a job or not do anything, just like men can.

This also means that when I apply for a job as a man, I will have to compete with a woman. Since we are supposedly equal, we should be judged on our quality. Emancipation means that gender, like race, religion and sexual orientation, is not a factor. Not in a negative, nor in a positive way.

By clearly stating that a certain number of women is preferred in the Commission (or in any job), both men and women should be offended. Women get a little push in the back because the employer seems to think they can’t get the job based purely on their qualities. Men have a disadvantage compared to women applying for the same job, because of their gender.

If the definition of discrimination is “treatment or consideration based on class or category rather than individual merit”, this is discrimination. Yes, the women in the Commission are capable women. But because of Barroso’s women-policy and the lobbying of women’s groups, they could be reduced to mere ‘token ladies’, like the token Chinese, black and gay person in every politically correct film. They’re not there because of what they have to add to the product, but because of the way they were born.