Pedestrian crossing signs deserve a gender equal footing (pun intended), as Cyprus has begun aligning itself with a global policy of both male and female traffic figures, in the framework of pushing forward a gender campaign in public spaces.
The female figures were presented today by Transport Minister Alexis Vafeades and Gender Equality Commissioner Tzozi Christodoulou at the Mikis Theodorakis Avenue crossing, right across from the capital's Municipal Theatre and the Cyprus Archaeological Museum, on both sides of the road.
During the first phase of this initiative, six figures will be placed across all districts, with Vafeades describing the initiative 'as a small change talking big', and noting that at some stage, traffic light figures will be distributed equally between genders.
'The balance is still being worked out', he added.
Gender Commissioner Christodoulou said that this worked towards further strengthening the promotion of equality across the board in daily lives, 'breaking down stereotypes, mostly about the younger generations'.
Similar initiatives have been implemented in Germany, Switzerland and Spain.
But there's something we haven't considered. How do we call them? Traditionally, in both Greece and Cyprus, crossing lights have been named 'Stamatis' (a name signifying the meaning of the word stop) and 'Grigoris', marking the green light, a name signifying being fast. Such is the current play of words.
The government is considering a school competition to name the female figures, so pupils can also get talking about gender issues and decide on what to call them in the process of learning.