Editorial

What are women's human rights exactly, and how is it different from human rights as such? One wonders if it does not further perpetuate the notion of women as 'other'?

But with the increase of violent acts against women - ranging from rape and domestic violence to femicide - it is clear that women's rights are ever more at risk. It is for this very reason that women's rights need to be protected and guaranteed more than before. It is, however, not enough to speak about the protection of these rights at international conferences, but to expose every instance of violation to ensure that it is not repeated. The act of silence, however, is as much a violation of the women's human rights as the violation itself. The original text of the Beijing Platform for Action called on governments to take "urgent action to eliminate all forms of violence against women in private and public lives".

Often the mere indifference of the state and the failure to investigate and prosecute every violation of these rights fuels the occurrence of violations of human rights. It is unfortunate that the law is the only real way to ensure that these rights are secure, and that we do not own them by virtue of being. Because of gender inequality, women as a group have less access to use, promote and protect the enjoyment of their rights. Any government that ratified the BPFA cannot go back on its word by weakening the outcome of this review. Like Patsy Robinson says, "there simply is no going back on Beijing". And right now, it seems as if that is our only tool.

Cyberfemmes: A TV Channel on the Web

In 1999, French women's organization Les Pénélopes started a new communications project using new technologies. "Cyberfemmes" then became the first feminist television programme on the web. The weekly shows are issue-oriented, interactive and multimedia. The channel has a chatroom open to the public that allows it to intervene directly, and a book with the text and reference images. All the shows are archived for later viewing. This web TV activity is accompanied by a monthly publication entitled "Femmes", with international affairs analysis from a gender perspective.

In their web TV programmes, "Les Pénélopes" reflect the diversity and the richness of the activities developed by the women's movement all over the world. During the Special Session of the UN General Assembly, this very professional group of women were part of the WomenAction 2000 team and broadcasted daily programmes on different issues, including women and armed conflict, reproductive health, globalization and environment and food security. They invited women from different countries to discuss them live. The programmes are also being screened in the Internet Café, in the Church Centre.

The members of "Cyberfemmes" are Joelle Palmieri (coordinator), Marina Galimberti, Michele Dessenne, Isabelle Massu and Dominique Foufelle. For more information, see: www.penelopes.org Contact them at: penelopes@penelopes.org

Publication: "Marginalised Women: Documentation on Refugee Women and Women in Situations of Armed Conflict"

The National Committee of Women for Democratic Iran challenged the government report, saying that Iran's government makes token gestures toward the advancement of women. The Revolutionary Association of Women of Afghanistan denounced Islamic fundamentalism, since it is the main cause of women's lack of human rights.

Published by the Asia Pacific Development Centre (APDC), the book is a compilation of information on a unique category of women - refugee women and women in situations of armed conflict in the Asia-Pacific region. It focuses on women and countries that represent less well-known conflicts and have hardly been represented in the Asia-Pacific Beijing Review Process. The countries covered include: Afghanistan, Azerbaijan, Bhutan, Bougainville, Burma, Cambodia, East Timor, West Papua and Tibet.

A panel entitled "Governments Against Women: Religion, Politics and the Women's Movement" was the perfect (albeit late) opportunity to present an alternative women's report on Iran. It was also an opportunity to openly denounce any form of fundamentalism following a presentation on the experience of Afghanistan which is presently under Islamic fundamentalist rule. Held on 6 June 2000, the panel presented to a packed room. The National Committee of Women for Democratic in Iran (NCWDI), a women's organization presently in exile in Washington D.C., claimed misrepresentation of the real status of Iranian women on government reports. Furthermore, it called for the instating of a democratic government in Iran as the only means to uplift the present conditions of women in Iran and to address political stability in the country.

Shirin Panah of NCWDI presented the report which was organized according to the 12 critical areas of concern as outlined in the Beijing Platform for Action (BPA). In the area of women's participation in politics and decision-making Panah said that the practice of tokenism is blatant in Iran's political systems, as well as in the government's attitude towards the advancement of its women.

Panah further said that those women who have made it to the token positions are actually "in some way connected to the ruling clerics."

Meanwhile, the Revolutionary Association of Women of Afghanistan (RAWA) openly denounced Islamic fundamentalism that is presently in force in Afghanistan. Sajida Hayat, a member of RAWA, spoke in firm resolve that the only solution to fundamentalism as a political system is its overthrow. Women's emancipation can only come with a national emancipation based on democracy, respect for human rights and women's human rights.

Afghanistan has been in a state of war for more than two decades since the Russian invasion in 1979 which ended with the rise of religious fundamentalists to power. Hayat noted that the fundamentalist rule has stripped women of their basic human rights because of the mentality that "women are only fit for household slavery and a means of procreation." With the present Taliban rule, for example, all girls' schools were closed down, women could not work outside their homes, could not see a male doctor, could not sing because their voices "corrupt" males, could not laugh out loud, raise their voices... a long list of restrictions. Afghan women are also 'obliged' to wear burqa or chadaris - a thick robe that covers women from head to foot with only a small hole covered with mesh for their eyes. Such practices are paradoxical to the real practices of Islam, said a Muslim woman in the audience. It "is a moderate and peaceful religion," she said. Hayat, however, lamented that "with the coming to power of the Islamic fundamentalists (in Afghanistan) the wheel of history has really been turned back hundreds of years (past)."

Asia Pacific Young Women's Perspectives on Abortion

By Cheekay Cinco

Pro-choice and pro-life groups have dominated the debate on abortion, focusing on whether or not governments should legalise it. The statement presented by the Health Caucus during the 44th Session of the Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) called on governments "to remove legislation criminalising abortion and which punish health care workers who perform abortions and women who undergo abortion." On the other hand, the strong presence of right-wing fundamentalist groups at the CSW sent out an equally strong "pro-life/pro-family" message, urging governments not the legalise abortion on moral grounds.

The Network of Asia Pacific Youth (NAPY) offers a different perspective on the issue, highlighting the point that the debate does not fully reflect the realities and experiences of women in Asia and the Pacific. According to Lalaine Viado, coordinator of NAPY, "abortion is a very sensitive issue that could not just be discussed within the realm of choice, because some pro-choice advocates also base their reasoning within the same realm of morality as the church. From where it is, NAPY is not to be bound by the limited arguments that constitute current debates on abortion. We believe that anything confined simply to the two contending debates, which have become redundant over time, is definitely missing out on the Asian and Pacific context."

Within the region, abortion is not legal (or illegal) in all countries. There are several cases that underscore that without fully recognizing that abortion is about control over one's body, the "legal perspective" on abortion alone will not address the issue. In countries where it is legal, mostly in Central and East Asia, abortion has been used as a form of contraceptive. In countries where abortion is illegal, women are forced to have abortion procedures that are unsafe and hazardous to women's lives. Viado further says, "Abortion laws do not necessarily result to a woman's power to take control and decide for her own body. In the same vein, the absence of law nevertheless discourages exercise of such power."

Viado adds that in order to fully address and understand the issue of abortion, the cultural and social factors that influence women's realities must be recognized. For instance, in India, there is a growing rate of female fetucide (fetus killing). "The stigma of having a female baby is more than enough to compel a woman to undertake abortion - whether abortion is legal or not," she said.

Beyond the issue of abortion, NAPY has recommendations on other aspects of women's health, specifically on sexual and reproductive health issues that are relevant to young women from Asia and the Pacific. These include: access to education, specifically sex education; access to health services; and the differences in health needs and issues of rural and urban young women.

NAPY will hold a panel discussion entitled, "Me and My Own Body: Young Women of Asia Pacific Talk About Control of their Own Bodies" today from 3-4 pm at the Ballroom of the UN Plaza Hotel. The group seeks to address and discuss the perspectives of young women from Asia and the Pacific on health, specifically on sexual and reproductive health.

Crossing the Digital Divide

Access to information is dramatically changing the internal socio-economic and political structures of many nations, as well as the way in which nations communicate with each other. Globalisation has been fostered and accelerated by the rapid growth of the Internet and the use of Information and Communications Technologies(ICTs).

The Internet has also facilitated a process of democratizing access to information by allowing organizations, institutions and individuals to publish and distribute their own information and resources. The use of technological tools provide development activists a good opportunity to promote their issues.

Questions of connectivity and access, however, are challenges in developing countries, and so increase the possibility of increasing the information and digital access gap. The point, however, is not whether we have infrastructure that limits or facilitates the use of a computer and ICTs. It is much more than that.

We do not buy computers to make our presentations look better, or to help us do our budgets better. We buy them essentially because we want to communicate better. The freedom to communicate (to speak, connect) with each other is a fundamental right. The divide created by those who have access and those who don't is a great disparity, but at the same time it is an opportunity to break that very divide.

Using ICTs as a tool that works for us, not to be consumed by us, is essential.

Women'sNet is an example of how ICTs can work for us. The organization makes technology available accessible by repackaging web based information in audio and formats. In this way web-based information is gets a live outside and away from computers, in service of people.

For more information on appropriating ICTs for development, visit the Women'sNet web site at womensnet.org.za

Who Came in After the Communists left?

by Lenka Simerska

In the central and eastern European countries and the Commonwealth of Independent States (CEE/CIS) the answer is: men came into the play. Women won the freedom but it is more the "freedom from" then the "freedom to". In the global scene of the Beijing+5 Review, women from CEE/CIS want to make sure that the delegations, as well as other NGOs, are familiar with the issues that distinguish particularly their sub-region from other countries of Western Europe and North America. That is why these women united in the political statement produced and circulated during UNGASS.

The CEE/CIS societies declare themselves democratic. But they cannot be recognized as democratic until women are equally represented in decision-making bodies. Ten years after the start of the transitional process, women are more and more under-represented in public and political life. Women's NGOs are pointing out the return to traditional structures which often means the exclusion of women from the decision-making process. Democracies in the CEE/CIS countries remain fragile because of lack of democratic tradition, capacity and resources. The establishment of institutional mechanism have become essential for the implementation and protection of women's human rights. Governments change and existing machineries with them. Women's NGOs therefore demand that national machineries are based on legislation and implemented at the ministerial level. Relevant and qualified NGOs should be consulted and recognized as partners for government bodies, unlike the present reality.

The economic transition to the free market has had a negative impact on these women, especially through the process of privatization. Women are among the first to lose their jobs, and the last to obtain new employment. Many women are working in jobs that do not utilize their education and professional skills. Many struggle in the informal sector, without benefits and protection. In some countries, women are frequently exposed to sexual harassment while also struggling to maintain their jobs. The NGOs call upon the governments to counterbalance the negative impacts of privatization and globalisation on women workers.

Social security and pension laws must also ensure support for women in the informal sector. NGOs would also like to see laws against gender-based discrimination in the workplace. Education of employers and employees about gender discrimination and sexual harassment is highly recommended as well. In the conflict areas and adjacent countries, armed conflicts have destabilized economies and trade, weakened democratic processes by drawing economic resources away from development, and caused the proliferation of drugs, weapons, sexual exploitation, trafficking and HIV/AIDS. The failure to apprehend and prosecute war criminals has created a culture of impunity and reinforced instigators of hate. Many women oppose war and armed conflict, and contribute to negotiating peace, building confidence and spreading the culture of eace. Women of CEE/CIS are also appealing international community to guarantee that no one with a criminal record serves as a peacekeeper, and that all peacekeepers receive training about the rights of women and girls. Women should be guaranteed safe and voluntary return to their places of origin.

These women insist on the final UNGASS document to be a strong tool for the advancement of women in their region. In their view it should set out specific measures to achieve gender equality; protect women's human rights; empower women to enjoy those rights as individuals; and commit to supporting all women, irrespective of the diversity of their identities.

For the full text of the political statement of women from CEE/CIS, contact Lenka Simerska at gender@ecn.cz

COMMUNICATION IS VITAL FOR WOMEN'S EMPOWERMENT

Summary of NGO Media Caucus Declaration New York, June 7 2000

A revolution in communication, that has huge potential for furthering or impeding a more just and equitable gender order, is taking place across the world. Yet the booming communications industry is becoming increasingly concentrated in national and transnational monopolies.

Communication is fundamental for achieving the objectives of the Platform for Action. Women's access to all means of communication and public expression, including mass media, noncommercial access to broadcasting spectrum and communications technology. This is essential for women's equal and democratic participation in the development of their communities and societies.

To guarantee women the fundamental human right to communicate, civil society must be empowered to hold national and international media accountable. Codes of ethics must be articulated that respect the vital norms of pluralism, human rights and gender balance. We call upon the United Nations to create the conditions for a broad and inclusive debate on communication issues and their implications for democracy and social justice.

The full media statement is being circulated to garner support. For more information, contact the Media Caucus at info@womenaction.org

Will we still want it when we get it?

By Malin Björk & Sonja Boezak

The whole range of NGOs that are here at the Beijing+5 United Nations General Assembly Special Session to monitor and support the adoption of a strong Outcome document, are now asking themselves how they will react if faced with the 'worst case scenarios'. The worst case scenario would be that the governments either do not finish the negotiations at all, or that the negotiations will finish, but having produced an Outcome document that is weaker than the strong statements of the Beijing Platform for Action (PFA). The main issues where the negotiations in some parts risk backtracking on the PFA have been the following: recognition of NGOs as autonomous partners, women's sexual- and reproductive rights, naming different forms of violence against women, recognition of the diversity of women, recognition of the fact that there are different kinds of families and that women have multiple roles within families; poverty, development and globalization issues, and finally the issue of international monitoring or not.

There is a febrile activity among NGOs trying to push the process away from the worst-case scenarios. However, even if a lot of lobbying work on strategic text parts are being done, many NGOs are already asking themselves at what point it would be better to abandon the process, or if they should continue.

When speaking to some delegates, it appeared as if they are as dissatisfied as the NGO community. Pregs Govender, ANC MP and Chair of the Portfolio Committee on the Improvement of the Quality of Life and Status of Women in South Africa, said: "It doesn't seem to be about how we go forward but how to ensure we don't go backwards. If it's watered down this Assembly has no right to adopt it." Devaki Jain, previously quoted in WomenAction, felt that "it is a minimalist expectation that we spend so much time making sure we don't lose what we already have".

She added: "I've lost interest in the Outcome document. The document sat around for four years and then when the international report was due it was brought out and all sorts of things were pulled together to make a positive report." It's just not enough. While the laceration of dissatisfaction is growing into an ulcer, two things become clear: that all the gains are fragile and this Beijing +5 process is one example of how we have to fight to maintain the advances we have already made; and that negotiations like these need to be driven by the women's movement and can't be left to the UN process which is by nature very bureaucratic. It is then reduced to arguments over language. Valuable time and energy has been spent arguing over language that was agreed on five years ago."

Although this debate is important, this coming together of women from different parts of the world gives us the opportunity to reflect on changes that have happened in the last five years, not to think of how to make sure that we can do as little as possible. NGOs want to go back home with an Outcome document to hold governments accountable to.

But perhaps Jain was right when she first said that we need a "council of wise women" to ensure participation and implementation. Maybe then NGOs and governments would be forced to make strong statements and put their money where their mouth are by acting on it.

No going back on Beijing

WomenAction Correspondent

The UN approached WomenAction to present it's case on access to participation and information during this special session. Yesterday, WomenAction reported that many NGOs were refused access to the building and conference rooms. We also reported that access to the building did not necessarily ensure an opportunity to participate in the process.

While it is true that NGO representatives have often been refused access to the building, the UN feels that it is creating a space that has not been there before. NGOs have been invited to attend this conference, and they are participating in the process, says UN representative Patsy Robinson. This is the first time that record numbers of NGOs have been invited to attend a UN conference.

The two passes per organization, that were given to NGO representatives, were meant to ensure that those accredited could enter the conference area. NGOs are also being given the space to speak at certain times during the plenary sessions. Realising that many NGOs would send more than two representatives, special efforts were made to arrange events outside of the UN compound. But the fact of the frustration of some NGO representatives being forced to stay outside the gates, remains.

Robinson feels that it is not quite fair on the UN to not give any credit for the arrangements that have been made. In addition to having arranged access for two representatives, numbers have to be limited. It is for this reason that even those with press cards have been turned away at the doors of conference rooms. The UN conference area can hold a maximum of 2000 NGO representatives in addition to the government delegates. And, says Robinson, even staff are being subjected to stricter security measures. Available space is being allocated to NGOs firstly, then media and lastly UN staff members.

When asked about the slow negotiating process and stalling on the delivery of the 'Outcomes Document', she agrees that negotiations are slow. But maintains that "we will all get the kind of document that we hope for; there's no going back on Beijing, because that's what we're here for."

Staff: Dafne Sabanes Plou (editor), Sonja Boezak, Mavic Balleza, Irene Leon, Anne Walker, Lenka Simerska, Malin Bjork, Thais Aguilar, Sonia del Valle, Maria Eugenia Miranda, Cheekay Cinco
Translators: Sharon Hackett, Nicole Nepton, Roxanna Sooudi
Photographers: Lin Pugh, Anoma Rajakaruna, Maria Suarez
Design and layout: John Napolitano