PLIGHT OF WOMEN IN ARMED CONFLICT AND FOREIGN OCCUPATION STRESSED AS THIRD COMMITTEE CONTINUES DEBATE ON ADVANCEMENT OF WOMEN
Press Release
GA/SHC/3475
PLIGHT OF WOMEN IN ARMED CONFLICT AND FOREIGN OCCUPATION STRESSED AS THIRD COMMITTEE CONTINUES DEBATE ON ADVANCEMENT OF WOMEN
19981015 The plight of women in situations of armed conflict and foreign occupation was highlighted this afternoon by speakers addressing the Third Committee (Social, Humanitarian and Cultural) as it continued its consideration of issues related to the advancement of women and implementation of the 1995 Fourth World Conference on Women in Beijing.The representative of Kuwait said that women in her country had suffered from severe psychological and social problems as a consequence of the Iraqi occupation. Those problems were often even more serious than the physical problems they had faced. For the widows of men who had been killed during the occupation, and for the wives of those being held by Iraq, life had become like a prison, which their children were condemned to join them in.
The situation of Afghan women under the Taliban occupation was extremely grave, said the representative of Afghanistan. The Taliban had done everything they could to prevent the participation of women in social, economic, educational and political life in the areas they occupied. Women were forbidden to work, attend universities and sometimes to leave their homes. As well as contravening international law, the situation in Afghanistan was a flagrant violation of the principles of Islam.
The representative of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) said countless women had become victims of serious abuses as civilians had become targets in recent conflicts. Women were affected by armed conflict not so much because of a lack of humanitarian rules to protect them, but from a failure to implement existing rules. The changing nature of warfare had not rendered those rules obsolete, but it posed challenges to all engaged in promoting their implementation.
Statements were also made by representatives of Senegal, Brazil, France, Guatemala, Turkey, the Republic of Korea, Malaysia, Singapore, Syria, Mongolia and the United States. The representative of the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) also addressed the Committee.
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The Committee will meet again at 10 a.m. tomorrow, 16 October, to continue its consideration of issues related to the advancement of women and implementation of the Fourth World Conference on Women in Beijing, and to take action on draft resolutions on the International Year of Older Persons (1999); preparations for the Tenth United Nations Congress on the Prevention of Crime and the Treatment of Offenders; transnational organized crime; and mutual assistance and international cooperation in criminal matters.
Committee Work Programme
The Third Committee (Social, Humanitarian and Cultural) met this afternoon to continue consideration of issues related to the advancement of women and the implementation of the outcome of the Fourth World Conference on Women (Beijing, 1995). (For details of the documents before the Committee, see Press Release GA/SHC/3473 of 14 October.)
Statements
ADELA HACHEMI FARHADI (Afghanistan) said the status of women in Afghanistan was already well known in the Committee. The situation there was extremely grave, and the Committee had expressed concern for the women in Afghanistan under Taliban occupation.
The Taliban mercenaries had done everything they could to prevent the participation of women in social, economic, educational and political life in the areas occupied by them, she said. In the past year, the situation had worsened, and even female staff members of the United Nations, and other international organizations and international journalists had been restricted in their work. Women were prevented from leaving their homes, and even widows were not allowed to go out in order to support their families.
Since the military occupation of Mazar-i-Sharif last August, the last women's university in Afghanistan had been closed, she said. All girls schools in the north had been closed, bringing the situation there to the same level as other occupied areas of the country. Women were deprived of their right to work, and the situation regarding access to health establishments was catastrophic. The situation had been well documented by the international press.
The situation in Afghanistan contravened various United Nations resolutions related to human rights, she said. As well as going against international law, the situation in Afghanistan was also a flagrant violation of the principles of Islam. More than half a billion women in the world were living in Islamic societies. Islam recognized the equal rights of women. In several cities of Afghanistan, under the occupation of a reactionary group, obstacles were put in front of girls and women in their participation in society. In other Islamic countries, girls schools remained open and women participated in society.
IBRA DEGUENE KA (Senegal) said there was a need to guarantee the rights of displaced women and refugees, and to focus on conflict prevention and on peace consolidation. The issue of peace had to be stressed because in Africa and elsewhere peace was the precondition for all development. Scarce resources were being lost in armed conflict.
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In following the outcome of the World Conference on Women and in preparation for the meeting in Beijing in 2000, his Government had drawn up a plan of social action for the advancement of women, he said. For the past 18 years, Senegal had allotted two weeks every year to examine the situation of women. Heads of the State had awarded prizes to distinguished groups of women. It favoured a decentralized approach, involving NGOs and women's associations, among others. A plan of action, covering 1997 to 2000, showed his Government's commitment to advancing women's role, to raising the literacy level of young women, and to the enhancement of women's status in social and political life. He welcomed the report of the Secretary-General, which called for concerted action to achieve equality between the sexes. Also, much needed to be done with regard to customary practices harming women and children, particularly female genital mutilation. His Government's parliament would soon be considering laws to seriously punish perpetrators. That draft law would include cases of sexual harassment and paedophilia.
MARIAM AL-AWADI (Kuwait) said the situation of Kuwaiti women was characterized by speedy change. The economic situation of Kuwaiti women was noteworthy. Plans and programmes put in place by the Government had focused on the advancement of women. There were equal opportunities in education and vocational training, with Kuwaiti women making up a capable sector of the workforce. The Constitution provided for women to work and to choose the area in which they wanted to work. Women constituted more than 30 per cent of the economically employed population. They also had a role in leadership of the country. They had assumed administrative, academic and social posts.
The participation of women was not limited to the salaried workforce, she said. They also volunteered in various non-governmental organizations (NGOs). The Constitution confirmed the principle of equal rights for men and women, and provided legal rights for women in education and work, commensurate with Kuwaiti culture. Kuwaiti women had suffered severe psychological and social problems as a consequence of the Iraqi occupation. Those problems were often even more severe than the physical problems they had faced. For the widows of men who had been killed during the occupation, and for the wives of those being held by Iraq, life had become like a prison, and their children were condemned to join them in it.
MARCELA MARIA NICODEMOS (Brazil) said the advent of an open dialogue between civil society organizations and the Government had given renewed impetus to the women's movement. Its active participation had helped to draw up the 1988 Constitution, which ensured unprecedented recognition of the human rights of Brazilian women. The same open and constructive partnership between the Government and women's organizations was present in preparing for Brazilian participation at the Fourth World Conference on Women and the follow-up to the Conference through the joint debate of the "Strategies for Equality", the national plan to implement the Beijing Platform for Action. The "Strategies for Equality" consisted of an integrated set of public policies and initiatives by civil society, towards eliminating gender
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discrimination and consolidating full citizenship for women. They covered health, education of women, professional training, creation of job opportunities, prevention of violence against women and participation in political life, among others.
Women's participation in political life was the key to achieving gender equality and to introducing a gender perspective to all Government policies and programmes. Brazil had adopted new electoral legislation, which stipulated at least 30 per cent of candidates should be women. It had also drawn up a national programme to promote equality of opportunities in the public service. The programme was designed bearing in mind the catalytic role the public sector could play in promoting equal opportunities between men and women. It thus constituted a model example for society as a whole. The programme also reflected the importance Brazil attached to the equal participation of women in the decision-making process as a right, and as a means to strengthen democracy.
FRANCOISE GASPARD (France) said the question of equality was a transverse theme and part and parcel of the debate on the advancement of women. The last half century had seen persistent abuse of power, chief among them the discrimination against women. The United Nations had sought to end that by preparing standards that revealed how women were victims. For example, the Convention on Elimination of Discrimination against Women had established fundamental principles for the respect of human rights. The High Commissioner for Human Rights, Mary Robinson, had paid tribute to the work of the Commission. The situation was disastrous throughout the world, as evident in the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) report. All States proclaimed equality, but women continued, for example, to pay the highest price in war. Such proclamations on the equality between the sexes only reflected that the reality was contrary. There was no justification for women to live in those conditions; there was no justification, on grounds of custom and tradition, for the sexual mutilation of women, which was an attack on the body of persons.
There was no justification for giving different wages for the same work, no cultural justification when women were excluded from the Olympic Games, she said. Even in developed States, there was no equality of the sexes. There was a need for balanced participation in decision-making to move towards peace. Gender parity had appeared in Beijing, and was now at the heart of the work today, she said, citing the work of Angela King, Assistant Secretary- General and Special Adviser on Gender Issues and Advancement of Women. It showed policies could be effective. France had a draft revision of the constitution, the purpose of which was to adopt legislation for equal access of men and women to attain parity. Equality was not natural, but a construction: it had to be built.
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MARIA ROSA NODA-NUNEZ (Guatemala) said half of the women in Guatemala belonged to the various indigenous groups, and about 60 per cent of them lived in rural areas. Most Guatemalan women lived in dire poverty, which made their active participation in the country's development difficult. They were also faced with discrimination and inequalities. But there were some encouraging signs. The Beijing Platform for Action of the Conference on Women had been a guiding principle for Government policies, where equal rights for women was a priority concern. The Government aimed at the full participation of women in all aspects and levels of society. Since the signing of a peace treaty between the Government and the Unidad Revolucionaria Nacional Guatemalteca (URNG), Guatemala had concentrated on implementing its commitments laid down in the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women and the Beijing Platform for Action.
She said women had an important role to play in the consolidation of peace. Women had a basic guiding role in the society, and above all in the family; they were the custodians of the roots of society. Women also occupied many high-level posts in the Government and judiciary of Guatemala. Their voices were heard in the Government and society, but there was still a long way to go. In particular, that was true when it came to the economic empowerment of women. To a great extent, that was dependent on the development of society as a whole and the alleviation of poverty.
AHMET SARDA (Turkey) said only a generation ago, it was not possible to discuss the rights of women as human rights. Now, it was universally recognized. States were moving at different paces, but all were headed in the same direction. There was improvement everywhere. The United Nations Secretariat -- which had played a key role in improving the status of women everywhere -- was itself in need of affirmative action. His Government supported the call of the Commission on the Status of Women for the eradication of traditional and customary practices harmful to or discriminatory against women. Those were violations of women's human rights.
The main United Nations entities such as the International Research and Training Institute for the Advancement of Women (INSTRAW) and the United Nations Development Fund for Women (UNIFEM) could be instrumental in providing a more comprehensive data on traditional and customary practices that adversely affected women, he said. Turkey considered it an inherent right of women and girls to have access to confidential, affordable and responsive health services that provided advice on and assistance in all aspects of health, including sexual and reproductive health. Lastly, Turkey considered the inclusion in the statutes of the International Criminal Court of sexual crimes including rape and enforced pregnancies as crimes against humanity and war crimes as a positive development.
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SUH DAE-WON (Republic of Korea) said his country was pleased to note that many States had integrated gender equity principles into the formulation of their national action plans. However, the implementation of the Beijing Platform for Action had been hindered in many regions by the lack of political will, financial difficulties and other obstacles.
Gender mainstreaming represented one of the most crucial strategies in attaining a variety of goals set in Beijing, he said. The success of gender mainstreaming depended on its implementation at national, regional and international levels. To that end, the United Nations was expected to play a leading role in concert with other international and regional organizations. Closer coordination among relevant organizations was a prerequisite in promoting efficiency and synergy.
In order to fully and duly reflect women's perspectives in policy-making, more attention should be given to collecting gender specific data, he said. Moreover, preventing de facto discrimination and serious violations of women's rights further required the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) to provide a solid foundation for legal remedies.
He said among the barriers standing in the way of the full realization of gender equality and the respect for women's rights were the harmful and traditional practices existing in many countries. Discriminating practices were invoked in the name of tradition and custom, for example, regarding property rights, ownership, reproductive health and employment. The Republic of Korea was especially concerned by the potential victimization of young girls by most of those practices, many of which had harmful long-term effects on the development of their physical and mental health.
The Republic of Korea was seeking to build a society where women and men worked together and enjoyed the benefits equally, he said. It was one of the 100 policy priorities of the current Government. It was his country's firm intention to examine every case where gender was a discriminating factor, both in regard to government agencies and private entities. Furthermore, even though the current economic crisis had shifted much of the attention away from the Beijing Conference's vision of gender equality, the Republic of Korea remained convinced that the full participation of women in society was an essential part of sustainable development and prosperity.
SHAMSUDIN ABDULLAH (Malaysia) said that while his country remained committed to meeting its national objectives and implementing the recommendations of the Beijing Declaration, it was increasingly concerned over the negative effects of globalization and market liberalization on the most vulnerable sections of society. The Beijing Conference marked a major milestone in the advancement of women. Following up on the recommendations of
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the Platform for Action, Malaysia had implemented an action plan on the advancement of women. Malaysia had also withdrawn its reservations on certain articles of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women.
He said the policies of the national plan included strengthening the national machinery, establishing mechanisms for the enforcement of laws against domestic violence, public education efforts and gender sensitization training. Special attention was also being given to the role and status of women in development programmes. Poverty was one of the most crucial factors inhibiting efforts to enhance the quality of life of women. Concrete measures had been taken to address poverty. A Government funded loan scheme benefiting the poor, particularly women, had been launched to help reduce extreme poverty.
PANG SZE YUNN (Singapore) said that at the turn of the twentieth century, conditions of women were still far from ideal. It was true that statistics indicated some progress. Under United Nations programmes, more women were getting access to health care and female participation in the public sphere was rising. In Singapore, the literacy rate of women over 15 years old was more than 15 per cent; females were expected to live more than 78 years -- the same as in industrialized countries. Yet, despite progress in pockets of the world, the overall situation was dismal.
Of the 1 billion illiterate people in the world, two-thirds were women, of which 77 per cent lived in Asia, she said. Fewer girls were enrolled in school at all age groups. Seventy per cent of the world's population living in extreme poverty were women. In the 1998 Human Development Report, the human development achievement of women fell below that of men in every country. The Report had also stated that there had been a serious delay in creating opportunities for women.
In fact, in some areas, the situation of women was getting worse, not better, she said. Issues of war, poverty, prostitution, violence against women and others had already surfaced in the Committee's deliberations. One aspect of the situation should be highlighted: a woman's increasing responsibilities. As more countries joined the global market economy, more women than ever were in paid jobs or self-employment. Between 1970 and 1990, in all regions, the women's share of the labour force had increased by an average rate of 10 per cent per year, double the increase of men. With growing poverty, women had been forced into work to make up the family wage. Already, in 30 per cent of global households, women were the primary breadwinners.
She said that women also continued to bear a vast range of unpaid household duties. As a result of both domestic and income-generating
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activities, in practically every society, women worked longer hours than men. The gap was widest in Africa and Asia where women worked 12 to 13 hours longer than men every week. The global economic crisis that was slowly enveloping the world could only worsen the situation as more families fell below the poverty line. The world should guard against giving the impression that there was a basic conflict between work and family, she said. When women could not balance work with family, it was easy to conclude that there was a fundamental antagonism between the two. Men and women should never have to choose between personal fulfilment and family obligations. It undermined the whole idea of family as the core institution in human life.
AHMAD AL-HARIRI (Syria) said the advancement of Syrian women occupied centre stage in the national programme of action. Women made up 50 per cent of the enrolment in educational establishments in Syria, a figure that was even greater in institutions of higher education. They were therefore well- equipped to participate in all levels of society. The Syrian national committee for the advancement of women worked in cooperation with international organizations and agreements, and oversaw domestic implementation of the Beijing Plan for Action.
The authorities had continued to update the appropriate legislation and laws to ensure the equal rights of women, he said. Twenty per cent of lawyers and 15 per cent of judges in Syria were women. In cooperation with the International Labour Organization (ILO) and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), Syria had executed various employment projects for women. Women accounted for 20 per cent of the work force, and Syria was working to increase that figure. The number of family planning and maternal health centres had increased, and there was an increased participation of women in communications. However, Arab women continued to suffer under the hateful occupation by Israel of the Syrian Golan, southern Lebanon and the occupied territories.
TSOGT NYAMSUREN (Mongolia) said that following the recommendations of the Fourth World Conference on Women, Mongolia had adopted and was implementing a national programme of action for the advancement of women. The programme identified 10 critical areas of concern, including women and economic development, the status of rural women, violence against women and human rights. The programme also set the target of reducing the population living in poverty to less than 10 per cent. The Government had taken measures to involve women in nationwide project activities and training by focusing on the creation of jobs and income-generation. Those efforts were being administrated in cooperation with the Asian Development Bank, the UNDP, and the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), among others.
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Mongolia supported NGO initiatives to create jobs for women. The International Research and Training Institute for the Advancement of Women was planning to conduct a national training seminar next March in collaboration with her Government on sex-disaggregated data and the use of statistics and indicators on gender issues in policy design. Those actions were necessary, as violence against women and domestic violence were growing rapidly. Heavy consumption of alcohol and worsening poverty were identified as major causes of crime. Like many countries in transition, Mongolia was facing different challenges in the social field, and vulnerable groups of society were suffering, including children and women.
LINDA TARR-WHELAN (United States) said advancing the status of women was the smart thing to do. Women would be able to contribute their full potential only if they had equal rights, equal access and equal protection. Commitment was essential at the highest political level. It was important that every person at every level of the United Nations system had the skills and ability to follow through on that high-level commitment, and there were encouraging signs that the Organization was moving in that direction. Preparations for the five-year review of the Beijing Platform for Action should make for a forward-looking review, where strategies to overcome identified obstacles could provide impetus to full realization of agreements.
Trafficking in women and girls, which was nothing short of modern-day slavery, was a matter of grave domestic and international concern, she said. Her Government was working bilaterally and multilaterally to eradicate that fast-growing international criminal enterprise. In March, United States President Bill Clinton had issued an executive order on combatting violence against women and trafficking in women and girls. She urged governments and NGOs to work together to eliminate harmful traditional practices. Social investments in women, in their health, education and economic access, yielded the highest return to society.
SADIG RASHEED, Director, United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) Programme Division, said the "apartheid of gender" knew no age limit. It began at birth, sometimes even before, and had life-long ramifications. When girls and women were denied "full participation in the political, social and economic development of their communities", they were denied their basic right as human beings.
He said UNICEF had identified three priority areas for implementation of the Beijing Platform for Action: girl's education; the health of girls, including adolescents; and both children's and women's rights. The challenges were daunting, but the resources, knowledge and experience to translate these global commitments into concrete actions existed. Universal ratification of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women and the Convention on the Rights of the Child should no longer be delayed.
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After those Conventions were ratified, national laws and legislation must be brought into conformity with their standards. Thus, the foundations would be established to ensure the social, economic and political rights of girls and women. But, legislation alone was not enough. The challenge was to implement the policies and legal frameworks in a way that truly made a difference.
He said socialization processes in the family and through formal and informal education programmes provided a means for breaking old patterns of behaviour and created new values based on respect for human rights, including the rights of girls and women. Moreover, the adolescent age group needed more focused attention. Equally important was girls' participation. However, without effective mobilization of resources, achievements would be minimal. From past experience, it was known that budgets for women and children were hit hardest in times of economic crisis, severely jeopardizing social development.
WALTER FULLEMANN, representative of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), said countless women had become victims of serious abuses as a result of frequent targeting of civilians in recent conflicts. Yet, it would be wrong to say women constituted a vulnerable group solely because of their gender. Experience had shown women were often able, in exceptionally difficult and dangerous circumstances, to ensure the survival of their families and sometimes entire communities. It was possible, though, that women suffered from general patterns of discrimination, which were exacerbated during armed conflict by the effects of the hostilities or by an unravelling of the social fabric.
In the experience of the ICRC, women were affected by armed conflict not primarily because of a lack of humanitarian rules to protect them but, rather, from a failure to coherently interpret and implement existing rules. The changing nature of warfare had not rendered those rules obsolete, but it posed challenges to all engaged in promoting their implementation, including those who spread knowledge of the law's provisions, those who interceded with the warring parties and those who worked to repress breaches. The multiple and often complex problems faced by women called for a correspondingly multi- faceted and comprehensive approach, in which all concerned should respond according to their expertise and mandates. To mark the fiftieth anniversary of the Geneva Conventions, the ICRC would be circulating a questionnaire to a cross-section of the population, including the war-affected women, in a number of different countries. The information gathered would form the basis for an assessment of humanitarian law and operational activities.
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