IMPORTANCE OF MAKING 'ROOM AT THE TOP' FOR WOMEN AT UNITED NATIONS STRESSED BY UNITED STATES IN STATUS OF WOMEN COMMISSION

10 March 1997

Press Release
WOM/958

IMPORTANCE OF MAKING 'ROOM AT THE TOP' FOR WOMEN AT UNITED NATIONS STRESSED BY UNITED STATES IN STATUS OF WOMEN COMMISSION

19970310 European Union Says in No Single Country Women and Men Enjoy Equal Opportunities, Calls for Discrimination To Be Actively Challenged

The United Nations could best achieve full equality for women by making more room at the top, where it counts, the Commission on the Status of Women was told this afternoon as it continued its debate on the follow-up to the Fourth World Conference on Women (Beijing, 1995).

The representative of the United States said women's contributions at that level would serve as an inspiration. He added that his country found the Secretary-General's stated goal of considering a woman for the position of deputy secretary-general in the Organization laudable.

The representative of Indonesia agreed that the United Nations bodies should reflect the equality on which the Organization was founded. In that regard, mainstreaming of a gender perspective within the United Nations system and other forums was of considerable importance.

Speaking on behalf of the European Union, the representative of the Netherlands expressed disappointment that there was not a single country in the world where women and men enjoyed equal opportunities and in some countries discrimination was still enshrined in legislation. She emphasized that occupational segregation and all other forms of employment discrimination needed to be actively challenged and a critical mass of women in strategic decision-making positions should be appointed.

Speaking on behalf of the Southern African Development Community (SADC), the representative of Namibia welcomed the appointment of Angela King as the Special Adviser to the Secretary-General on Gender Issues and the Advancement of Women. However, the group would have been happier to see the high-level post at the level of under-secretary-general, she said.

Statements were also made by the representatives of Chile, Argentina, Dominican Republic, Republic of Korea, Ghana, Paraguay, Brazil, Malta, China,

Russian Federation, Israel, Ecuador, Spain, Poland and Kyrgyzstan. A representative of the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC) spoke on behalf of the five regional commissions. Statements were made by representatives of the International Federation of University Women and International Council of Women. In addition, the Commission heard a statement read on the behalf of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, Jose Ayala-Lasso.

The Commission will meet again at 10 a.m. tomorrow, 11 March, for a panel discussion on "women and the environment", which will be followed by a question and answer session.

Commission Work Programme

The Commission on Status of Women met this afternoon to continue its discussion of the follow-up to the 1995 Fourth World Conference on Women.

The Commission had before it a note by the Secretary-General on the agreed conclusions adopted by the Economic and Social Council at its 1996 coordination segment concerning United Nations system activities for poverty eradication, a report of the Secretary-General on the improvement of the status of women in the Secretariat, and a note by the Secretary-General on the implementation of General Assembly resolution 50/166, on the role of the United Nations Development Fund for Women (UNIFEM) in eliminating violence against women.

The note by the Secretary-General on the conclusions adopted by the Council on coordination of the United Nations activities for poverty eradication (document E/CN.6/1997/6), highlights those paragraphs and aspects of the agreed conclusions addressed directly to the Commission on the Status of Women or having a direct impact on the Commission's work. Those paragraphs address the themes of poverty eradication, women in poverty, gender equality, review of the Beijing Platform for Action, human rights, education and training of women, and national plans of action. The note says reports of the Secretary-General on United Nations system activities in support of the Platform for Action will be prepared on a rolling basis.

The Secretary-General's report on the status of women in the Secretariat (document E/CN.6/1997/7) states the Secretary-General's commitment to the mainstreaming of a gender perspective in all policies and programmes of the United Nations systems. As a first step towards the fulfilment of that commitment, the Secretary-General has appointed a Special Adviser on Gender Issues and the Advancement of Women at the level of Assistant Secretary- General. The Special Adviser reports directly to the Secretary-General.

Commission on Status of Women - 3 - Press Release WOM/958 2nd Meeting (PM) 10 March 1997

According to the report, the General Assembly's mandated goal of achieving 35 per cent representation of women by the year 1995 had finally been achieved in 17 of 33 offices and departments. However, the matching goal of 25 per cent women in posts at the decision-making level has not been achieved. The report notes that its data does not reflect the appointment of two women at the level of Assistant Secretary-General.

A note by the Secretary-General on the implementation of General Assembly resolution 50/166, on the role of UNIFEM in eliminating violence against women (document E/CN.6/1997/8), transmits a report by the Fund on the matter. Some of UNIFEM's efforts include support for the Council for Women's Rights of Brasilia in their preparation of a model campaign to eliminate violence against women, the development of a project that trained Brazilian police officers on the effects of violence against women, the production and dissemination of information on the contents of a new law on violence against women in Ecuador and the support of public awareness initiatives on the issue in Senegal.

INA BROUWER (Netherlands), speaking on behalf of the European Union, said that although great strides had been made in the struggle for equality, there was not a single country in the world where women and men enjoyed equal opportunities and, in some countries, discrimination was still enshrined in legislation. Strong political determination was needed to ensure the effective, prompt, full and continued implementation of the commitments undertaken at the Fourth World Conference on Women. Responsibility for integrating a gender perspective into all policies and programmes of the United Nations system rested with the highest levels of the Organization.

The European Union had made substantial progress in implementing the principle of mainstreaming, she said. An important aspect of mainstreaming concerned the promotion and protection of human rights of women throughout the system. Steps needed to be taken to promote and strengthen women's active and full participation in the economy and in the structures and processes of economic decision-making. Occupational segregation and all other forms of employment discrimination needed to be actively challenged, and a critical mass of women executives in strategic decision-making should be developed.

BILL RICHARDSON (United States) said the United Nations could best achieve full equality for women by making more room at the top, where it counts. Stressing that women's contributions at that level would serve as an inspiration, he urged the United Nations to appoint more women to all levels of the Organization. The United States found the Secretary-General's stated goal of considering a woman for the number two position in the Organization laudable. Leadership should also come from the intergovernmental process.

Commission on Status of Women - 4 - Press Release WOM/958 2nd Meeting (PM) 10 March 1997

The Commission should be aggressive and forward-looking, he said, adding that women's rights were an integral part of his delegation's foreign policy. In response to the Beijing Conference, the United States had established task forces or working groups to identify new initiatives for improving the lives of women and girls and to make women's rights an integral part of conducting business.

NETUMBO NANDI-NDAITWAH, Director-General of the Department of Women Affairs of Namibia, speaking on behalf of the SADC -- Angola, Botswana, Lesotho, Malawi, Mauritius, Mozambique, Namibia, South Africa, Swaziland, United Republic of Tanzania, Zambia and Zimbabwe -- said women in every country, every society, every community continued to occupy a subordinate position. There was still a long way to go. However, the goals were achievable.

She congratulated Angela King on her appointment as the Special Adviser to the Secretary-General on Gender Issues and the Advancement of Women. As a group, the SADC had always maintained the view that an identifiable focal point within the United Nations system was needed for the coordination of gender issues. By appointing Ms. King, the Secretary-General had made a necessary link between his office, the Division for the Advancement of Women and the focal point for women. However, the group would have been happier to see the high-level post at the level of the Under-Secretary-General.

The Secretary-General should also seriously address the operational and programme aspects of women's advancement in the United Nations system, she said. The country and in particular the grass-roots presence of the United Nations needed to be strengthened. She stressed, in particular, that the UNIFEM presence at the country level was still very weak. In fact, so far as the projected utilization of its general resources for 1997 was concerned, the entire budget for UNIFEM was just $13 million. She also stressed that the most important part of the Beijing Conference was the implementation of its outcome.

MARIA JOSEFINA BILBAO (Chile) said the President of her country had reiterated the aim of equality between men and women and had made it clear that the Government was committed to it. In fact, article 1 of the country's Constitution made a reference to such equality. The country was also in the process of implementing policies on strengthening the family.

The challenges in the area of equality were enormous, she said. In 1997, the aim was to remove discrimination by a far-reaching reform of education. Such reform was to be implemented by amending the curricula and the textbooks, among other measures. Stress was also being given to professional and vocational training for adults. It had been recognized that a socializing environment was important. In the sphere of employment, women's

Commission on Status of Women - 5 - Press Release WOM/958 2nd Meeting (PM) 10 March 1997

access to employment was being improved. It had also been recognized that a more active role of society in caring for working women's children was required. Efforts were also being made to improve the presence of women in decision-making.

ZELMIRA REGAZZOLLI (Argentina) said she endorsed the statement to be made by the representative of Paraguay. Her Government had taken steps to ensure that priority issues vis-a-vis women were identified. It had held open-ended seminars at the national and provincial level. Some of the priority areas which had emerged in those seminars had included poverty, women's role in the economy and their presence in the areas of power and decision-making.

In the area of women and poverty, the focus had been on providing better opportunity to women through equal pay, better work and access to technology, she said. It was universally recognized that the elimination of poverty was related to education. In that context, the provision of scholarships to families with little resources was important. Moreover, practices that restricted the access of women to education must be emphatically condemned.

GLADYS GUTIERREZ (Dominican Republic) said that important achievements had been attained in the Dominican Republic in four critical areas of concern of the Beijing Platform: political power, elimination of poverty, education and health, and violence. Important modifications had been made in the electoral law allowing a fair proportion of women candidates. The present administration was creating a governmental woman's department. Efforts to eliminate poverty were seen in home jobs for women, cooperative enterprises, work and technical training and programs of support to rural women in the matter of access to land, credits and training. In the area of health and violence, actions were being taken to diminishing the maternal death rate.

YUN DUK KIM (Republic of Korea) said the Korean Government had developed a national plan of action with 10 policy priorities as a follow-up to the Fourth World Conference on Women. The "Women's Development Act" of 1996 provided a legal basis for adequate institutional and financial support towards the advancement of women. Last year, a national women's development fund had been created with the intention of securing as much as $100 million by the year 2001. In an effort to increase women's participation in the decision-making process, a 20 per cent target for the recruitment of women into public service had been established.

Concerning the vulnerability of women to sexual violence, she said Korean women accounted for the vast majority of the innumerable victims forcibly constricted into military sexual slavery by the Japanese Imperial Army throughout the First World War and as early as 1932. Many of those victims were still alive and continued to be haunted with physical and

Commission on Status of Women - 6 - Press Release WOM/958 2nd Meeting (PM) 10 March 1997

emotional trauma. The recommendations of the Special Rapporteur on violence against women offered specific guidance towards the resolution of that issue. They included, among others, that the government concerned should accept legal responsibility for the violations, pay compensation and make a public apology to individual victims.

MARY GRANT (Ghana) said that following Beijing, her country already had high-level governmental machinery in place, including the National Council on Women and Development, and was able to quickly formulate action-oriented plans to achieve all the objectives in the Platform for Action. Much had been done to mainstream gender concerns in all aspects of development, including draft legislation and a request for affirmative action in education, employment opportunities and senior management and decision-making positions. During recent parliamentary elections, the political parties were urged to consider gender-based parliamentary quotas. All the action was necessary because only a critical mass of women's representation at all levels of national affairs would guarantee women's human rights.

She went on to say that the efforts were increasingly showing signs of fruition. Major obstacles to the advancement of women had been identified as aspects of cultural, traditional and value systems as well as stereotyped perceptions which sought to perpetuate the marginalized role of women in Ghana. For example, of the large number of women who entered the recent electoral campaign, only 18, or 9 per cent, of the 200 seats were won by women, despite the fact that women constituted more than 50 per cent of the electorate. Corrective action had been undertaken to raise awareness of women's rights and the intrinsic value of women to society.

CRISTINA MUNOZ (Paraguay) said it was a pleasure for her country to be a member of the Commission. It was crucial that a gender perspective be included in the United Nations agencies. Paraguay had been experimenting with participatory strategies which would enhance the role of women. She hoped those strategies would be successful. She emphasized that it was important to include gender aspects in public policies. Moreover, a strategy that enabled the equal provision of opportunities to women was essential. Paraguay was keenly looking forward to contributing to the Commission's work, she added.

WIEK WIBADSWO (Indonesia) said the mainstreaming of a gender perspective within the United Nations system and other forums was of considerable importance. The United Nations bodies should reflect the equality on which the Organization was founded. Indonesia was strengthening its national machinery for the advancement of women and had completed a national plan of follow-up to the Beijing Conference consisting of five priorities. Specific programmes were designed to alleviate poverty faced by women, including those aimed at eradicating illiteracy and programmes that better prepared women for participation in the development process. Indonesia was also advancing the

Commission on Status of Women - 7 - Press Release WOM/958 2nd Meeting (PM) 10 March 1997

role of women in health matters by improving the quality and quantity of community health care centres.

Ms. NICODEMOS (Brazil) said that while there was reason to be proud of the progress made by the work of the Commission, pride had to be matched by a sense of responsibility for how much remained to be accomplished. The great challenge ahead was to turn the Beijing Platform for Action into reality. In Brazil, 1996 was a fruitful year for the advancement of women. According to the commitments made in Beijing, the Government had dedicated itself to elaborating its own National Plan of Action, in order to better coordinate its efforts of implementing the Platform for Action. It was an enriching experience, where federal, state and municipal governments together with representative organizations of the women's movement and other sectors of society had shared their views and expectations on how to shape the future of women.

JOANNA DARMANIN (Malta) said the new administration in her country had embarked, during its first few days, on the enhancement of women's position in society at the decision-making level, where they were few in number. A Parliamentary Secretary for Women's Rights had been appointed within the Office of the Prime Minister, thus upgrading the existing Department of Equal Status of Women. For the first time in Malta's history, a woman occupied the post of Speaker of the House of Representatives. The number of women representatives in Parliament had quadrupled during last year's elections. Although still at an overall low level, diverse initiatives were contemplated to further encourage women to participate more fully. Publicity campaigns were being undertaken to encourage women to contest elections both at the national and local level.

For the coming years, she said the Government had set itself a full agenda to implement gender equality in all strata of society. The new Administration had already embarked on implementing the allocation to women of at least 30 per cent of nominations for governmental boards and committees as well as other boards established by law. A study was also under way to introduce for the first time the quota principle in the public service, whereby at least 20 per cent of executive posts must be assigned to qualified women. Steps were being identified on ways to facilitate reinstatement in the public service of women who had been constrained to abandon their posts due to familial obligations.

FENG CUI (China) said for the last 50 years women of all countries had been increasingly awakening. At present, whether it was at the national, international or regional level, no problem relating to equality, development and peace could be solved without the participation of and efforts made by women. No politicians or leaders could ignore that fact.

Commission on Status of Women - 8 - Press Release WOM/958 2nd Meeting (PM) 10 March 1997

According to a Programme for the Development of Chinese Women, the Chinese Government in the past year had made more endeavours in publicizing the follow-up activities to the Fourth World Conference on Women from the national level down to the grass roots. It had also strengthened its national machinery for the advancement of women. Apart from the central leading body, the National Working Committee on Women and Children of the State Council, 30 provinces, autonomous regions, had established such offices. They had formulated their own development programmes for women. In addition, a number of government ministries had taken measures in the area of poverty alleviation, women in decision-making, their education, employment and health care.

Ms. REGENT (Russian Federation) said there was a need to concentrate on the practical aspects of implementing the Platform for Action, stressing that the feminization of poverty was on the rise. The United Nations shared the concern for the situation of women in transitional economies. Women accounted for over half of the displaced persons arriving in Russia, she noted. Laws protecting women migrants had been introduced. However, the lack of financial resources limited their effective implementation. There was also legal machinery protecting women in the workplace and matters related to health, and those laws were being put into place. She stressed that particular attention should be given to protecting women from violence in cases of armed conflict.

EMUNA ELON (Israel) said over the past half century of statehood her country had faced tremendous challenges. Those included coping with an ongoing security threat, attempting to meet the needs of significant ethnic minorities, accommodating large waves of immigration of nearly 100 different countries, and maturing as a nation. The country had learned to include gender among the many identities competing for a position in its developing mosaic. Attention had also been paid to the needs of minority women.

While Israel's politics was highly factitious and deeply polarized, more than once female members of its parliament had broken party ranks and voted together for the benefit of women, she said. Israel had 90 non-governmental organizations which dealt with women's issues. The newly elected Prime Minister of the country, Benjamin Netanyahu, had also pledged commitment to the advancement of women. A statutory authority for the advancement of the status of women had been proposed. It would formulate policies to further gender equality and eliminate gender discrimination.

XIMENA MARTINEZ DE PEREZ (Ecuador) said there was strong pressure on her Government to pass a bill that would provide greater access for women to higher level posts and greater participation in the government. There had been tremendous advances in education in Ecuador. At universities and technical schools the percentage of women students had risen to a greater percentage than men. There were also many projects being carried out in

Commission on Status of Women - 9 - Press Release WOM/958 2nd Meeting (PM) 10 March 1997

cooperation with the Department of Women to assist especially poor women. She congratulated the Commission on its 50 years of indefatigable work, which had not been in vain. Through its work, the status of women had improved and international awareness of women's rights had increased.

CONCEPCION DANCAUSA (Spain) said a third plan for equal opportunity had just been adopted in her country. It had been adopted in order to implement the Platform for Action of the Fourth World Conference on Women. The plan provided for equity and equality. It had emanated from cooperation with non- governmental organizations and social interlocutors. Specific lines of action to promote elimination of gender discrimination were being planned. Women had to be protected in all areas of the world. Specific attention would be focused on education, employment, their role in the economy, health, power and decision-making. In the coming years, pamphlets would be disseminated to inform people about the plan.

ELEONORA ZIELINSKA (Poland) said positive changes for women had taken place in her country in the economic area. Those changes were closely associated with the overall economic growth -- gross domestic product (GDP) was assessed at 6 per cent in 1996. With the over-unemployment level falling by 10 per cent in 1996, the unemployment rate among women was reduced by 1 per cent. Women still, however, constituted more than half the number of registered unemployed (52 per cent). In 1996 special programmes were initiated to grant active forms of aid to persons threatened with long-term unemployment, including single parents, which were usually women. The programmes aimed at such areas as training and advisory services and access to credit for those planning various business activities. A growing number of women were establishing their own businesses. In addition, new legal instruments had been introduced to improve the situation of women in employment, which further equalized employee rights for child care to women and men.

The positive changes, she continued, were not seen as fully satisfactory as yet. More specific solutions were needed to reconcile family and professional life and to protect employees from sex discrimination. In the revised Law on Social Aid, a regulation had been introduced to grant a targeted welfare benefit to cover all or part of child care in a nursery or kindergarten. Financial aid for unemployed single persons was also expanded. Regarding the retirement insurance system, a principle must be considered which included the duration of child-care leave into calculation of pension standing. A number of actions were being considered to increase the participation of women in power and decision-making organs, which did not exceed 13 per cent at either the local or parliamentary levels.

MIRIAM KRAWZYX, a representative of the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC), also spoke on behalf of other regional

Commission on Status of Women - 10 - Press Release WOM/958 2nd Meeting (PM) 10 March 1997

commissions -- Economic Commission for Europe (ECE), Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP), Economic Commission for Africa (ECA) and Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia (ESCWA). She said that ESCAP had focused its programmes on the eradication of poverty, the promotion of economic participation, government participation, the improvement of legal conditions for women, strengthening national institutions for the mainstreaming of gender roles and the systematic collection and analysis of information.

The ECE had refocused its activities, she said. Mainstreaming of gender roles in all areas was an important concern. In association with the Division for the Advancement of Women and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), the ECE had held a sub-regional conference for the implementation of the Platform for Action in central Europe, organized by the Government of Romania, in Bucharest in September 1996. In the area of peace and development, the ECA had organized a conference in 1996 which established the Committee of African Women for Peace to assist in the prevention and resolution of conflicts. The ESCWA had reoriented its focus on the activities for women and expanded regional coordination and implementation of programmes. The ECLAC was addressing mainstreaming of gender roles.

PURIFACION V. QUISUMBING read out a statement on behalf of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, Jose Ayala-Lasso. The High Commissioner/Centre for Human Rights was committed to the idea of mainstreaming a gender perspective into all policies and programmes, she said. In the entire restructuring of the Centre, effort had been made to remain consistently sensitive to gender perspective. The framework for the medium- term plan of the High Commissioner/Centre for the biennium 1998-2000 had clearly committed resources to "the full integration of the human rights of women and the girl child into the activities of the United Nations system as a whole and its human rights machinery in particular" in all aspects -- civil, cultural, economic, political and social rights as well as the right to development.

Also, the Special Rapporteurs of the Commission on Human Rights had decided to take gender-based issues as part of their monitoring of agenda and reports, she said. The Office of the High Commissioner had recently published a fact sheet on harmful practices affecting women and children. It had analysed the background to harmful traditional practices and their consequences on the health of women and children. Moreover, all treaty-based human rights monitoring bodies were now integrating women's issues and women's rights in their work.

CONCHITA PONCINI, a representative of the International Federation of University Women, said that eradicating illiteracy and improving labour standards were essential. There was also a need for a substantial increase in

Commission on Status of Women - 11 - Press Release WOM/958 2nd Meeting (PM) 10 March 1997

the number of women in positions of leadership. The important role of women was still not appreciated. Governments needed to strike at the root problems facing women. There needed to be comprehensive labour laws protecting women. Her organization had called attention to systematic inequity in the treatment of women. Equal participation for women in decision-making was a necessary pre-condition for equal rights. Women should be mobilized and leadership training given. She urged women to break through the "glass ceiling".

The High Commissioner for Human Rights had continuously acknowledged the significant role and contribution of non-governmental organizations in the field of human rights, she said. He was particularly grateful for their cooperation in Rwanda, Burundi, Cambodia, Croatia and Malawi. Moreover, the Office of the High Commissioner had offered its experience in support of the open-ended working group on the elaboration of a draft optional protocol to the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women.

Ms. ABDYLDABEK (Kyrgyzstan) drew attention to the problems of countries. After a long experience with the communist structure and ideology, those countries were undergoing economic and political transformation. That had led to change in the social situation and had also impacted the gender perspective. Today, many errors of the past were being repeated in those countries. While some scattered projects for women were being implemented, it had to be realized that the process of development should give rise to institutions which protected human rights. Any other kind of development was not sustainable.

Development which was human oriented had to take into account the gender perspective, she said. In that regard, regional seminars could help in engendering such development. However, very often such seminars did not share the same perspective on gender. So far as the visibility of women in decision-making positions was concerned, Kyrgyzstan had a 20 per cent representation of women in higher levels of decision-making.

KURA SINSUMHADI, of the International Council of Women, said she recognized the close interrelationship between the four themes for the Commission's discussions. The enhancement of women's role in matters related to the environment and improvement of educational opportunities available to them were important. She expressed appreciation for the United Nations role in placing women's issues as the top global priority. The International Council of Women had participated in all the international women's conferences and was following up on the Platform for Action adopted at Beijing. It wanted to offer its full support to the new leadership at the United Nations, particularly the Division for the Advancement of Women and the Commission on the Status of Women.

* *** *