A Happy CEDAW Mother's Day!

This is a guest post by Students for CEDAW co-founders Lara Yeo & Alex Hayes. For more information find them on Facebook or email them at studentsforcedaw[at]gmail.com.


President Carter signed the United Nations Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) in 1980. Today, the United States (US) remains one of seven countries – alongside Iran, Nauru, Sudan, Somalia, Palau, and Tonga – that has yet to ratify the Convention. The failure of the US to ratify a UN treaty is not unprecedented. In fact the United States has a history of not ratifying the majority of UN treaties, including the nine core human rights tools of which CEDAW is one.

Such a failure, however, is no cause for complacency. CEDAW matters. The American ratification of CEDAW has been decades in waiting and in such time the global relevance and importance of CEDAW has increased. Reports, statistics, and news articles on CEDAW abound, and the overwhelming conclusion is positive. CEDAW is the single most comprehensive human rights tool that outlines the full spectrum of women’s equal rights. It has also proved practical, translating into concrete change, be it legal, political, social, or cultural, in countries all over the world.

The US has not forgotten CEDAW, as is has proven itself pivotal in bringing about landmark change for the betterment of women and girls all over the world. CEDAW passed through the US Senate Foreign Relations Committee in 1994 and again in 2002, both times never making it to a vote in Senate Treaty No. 96-53. November 2010, marked the first time CEDAW had a Senate hearing scheduled in eight years. The witness testimony one can read online shows resounding American support for CEDAW. President Obama, Vice-President Biden, Secretary of State Clinton, and Senator Boxer, to name a few of the many CEDAW supporters in the Administration and Congress, have been public CEDAW advocates.

CEDAW matters in advancing the full recognition and protection of women’s and girls’ human rights. This has been recognized by the current Administration and select members of Congress, and so what about you?

Senator Kerry, Chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee (SFRC), has yet to schedule a SFRC hearing on CEDAW. The scheduling of a SFRC hearing would allow for CEDAW to come up for a vote in the SFRC, bringing it one step closer to ratification. We need an SFRC hearing on CEDAW now, as the longer CEDAW remains invisible without a hearing the less likely is its passage this congressional session.

What you can do as a belated Mother’s Day gift is to share CEDAW:

• SIGN THE PETITION calling for CEDAW to be ratified in the United States.
• Learn more about CEDAW at the CEDAW Taskforce website
• Don’t let this be the last time you think about CEDAW today. Read about it, talk about it, write about it, blog about it!
• If you are a student, visit “CEDAW: Students for U.S. Ratification,” on Facebook and learn about what other students are doing to raise awareness about CEDAW in their communities.

CEDAW matters and Mother’s Day is an occasion to remember that and to act on behalf of the all the women and girls in your life by calling for CEDAW ratification in the US!

Reproductive Rights Centered on the Global Stage: 15the Anniversary of Cairo Conference

Optimism is truly an understatement of the energy I feel after hearing the resounding and remarkable words of our Secretary of State, Hillary Rodham Clinton in her address commemorating the 15th Anniversary of the International Conference on Population and Development. Also known as the Cairo Conference of 1994. It is exceptionally refreshing to not only see an undoubtedly pro-choice feminist represent the global interests of this nation, but to also spotlight reproductive health and rights as a fundamental element for the advancement of our world is significantly profound. Her charge to the global community, including the US, to recommit itself to the goals embraced 15 years ago, I think, will be the breakthrough feminist activists have been longing for.

For a moment, let's revisit 1994. A time where 10% of women worldwide used modern forms of contraception, gross inadequacies and inaccessible women's healthcare and health education, AIDS hitting center stage, high illiteracy rates among women and girls, high maternal and infant mortalities, low numbers of female political representation, and increased vulnerabilities resulting from national instability such as the genocide in Rwanda. Though we've come a long way, many of these issues still exist today.

In her remarks, Secretary Clinton highlighted very startling facts that set a tone for urgency to meet the goals of Cairo by 2015. She stated, "Nearly half the women in the developing world deliver their babies without a nurse, a midwife, a doctor, or access to crucial medical care. Global rates of maternal mortality remain perilously high..." She goes on with this alarming statistic, "...one woman dies every minute of every day in pregnancy or childbirth, and for every woman who dies, another 20 suffer from injury, infection or disease every minute."

These disheartening rates are sad, but real. Unfortunately, we've entered into a new decade where the discussion of reproductive health--a direct correlation to a woman's ability to meet and fulfill her greatest potential--is still a debatable topic. How can we debate or compromise on the more than 215 million women globally lack access to contraceptives which contributes to nearly 20 million unsafe abortions each year? How can we argue about the estimated 70 million girls around the world subjected to female genital mutilation? How can we explain the millions suffering from stigma, injury, and in very many cases, fatality due to fistula; often brought about due to pregnancies occurring in girls at a young age? We cannot. Secretary Clinton put it best, "these numbers are not only grim, but after 15 years, they are intolerable. For if we believe that human rights are women's rights and women's rights are human rights, then we cannot accept the ongoing marginalization of half the world's population. We cannot accept it morally, politically, socially or economically."

Along with heavy feelings about these dark realities came some relief. Clinton exemplified a renewed hope in the new direction the US is taking, supporting the United Nations in creating global programs that integrate women's issues as a way to solve the world's most devastating problems. She admitted that the US has recommitted funding of reproductive healthcare through the United Nations Population Fund and Congress has recently appropriated more than $648 million in foreign assistance dedicated to family planning and reproductive health services worldwide. The US has also pledged funding for new programs and is committed to achieving the U.N.'s Millennium Development Goal Five by reducing 3/4 of the global maternal mortality rate, and instituting universal access to reproductive healthcare.

She also mentioned that the US has launched the Global Health Initiative, a new program that will become the "centerpiece of our foreign policy". Its aim is to assist countries in strengthening their own health care systems, and to ensure that the social and economic factors that impact women's health is ingrained in all global health programs. In addition, this Initiative also serves to reach out to men and boys and encourage them to take part as advocates and allies.

Aside from focusing on women's health care and making available services and programs, the State Department is also interested in expanding opportunities for women to participate in peacebuilding, reversing climate change, and investing in entrepreneurship as a considerable matter for national security. Attitudes and social taboos, she presumes, will shift because of this investment.

At the closing of her remarks, Secretary Clinton drew attention to our role as women, where we may be separated by economic status or education, we must demand, for all of us, to no longer be denied of basic rights. "I've been in many places in many parts of the world where the rich, the educated, the well off, the connected, the powerful, the elite had access to every single form of healthcare. And yet it was denied -- denied by law, denied by culture, denied by taboo, denied by regulation, denied by resources to the vast majority of women in the same societies."

"So part of what we need to do is not only provide services to those who need them, but to change the minds and attitudes of those who can be responsible for delivering those services in countries around the world." She suggests that we close this gap between the haves and the have-nots when it comes to granting rights for all women, "the right that women who have a position in society are able to command cannot, therefore, be denied to the women who live down the street or care for their children or clean their homes or plant their crops, and that we have to do a better job of making the equity argument on behalf of girls and women...."

The anniversary of the International Conference on Population and Development is a testament to where we are and where we're going as a global community. The journey for gender equity around the world is by no means over. And though the world may look favorably upon the Obama administration, it is certainly our duty to ensure that they will stay true to their word. I am hopeful that our Secretary of State will continue to lead in charting the pathway to a future where women can live and live freely.

Check out FMF's Global Reproductive Health Campaign and join in the struggle for universal reproductive health care everywhere!

This article was featured in our January 2010 monthly Choices eZine. Sign up for our alerts to stay up-to-date with the latest feminist news and to receive the monthly eZine.

Survivors have their voices heard at the UN

Equally worthy news sources Time Magazine and FMF blogger Kat have been getting buzz going: the recession has brought with it an increase in human trafficking, particularly in cases of child sex trafficking.

The International Labour Organization (ILO) estimates that 12.3 million people are being trafficked at any given time, with that number mostly being compiled of women and girls.

In response to this dangerous snowballing threat to safety, the UN responded with a series of recently-held hearings specifically on the issue. Truth be told, this is not the first time human trafficking has been brought up in the halls of the UN; its an issue they've been grappling with for quite some time. It is, however, the first time the UN has approached the topic by putting the specialists to the side and the spotlight on survivors. The results were fascinating.


Heart-wrenching stories were shared from all walks of life from Rachel Lloyd (who founded the non-profit GEMS after escaping her own forced sexual exploitation horror story) to Charlotte Awino of Uganda (who was imprisoned 8 years by Ugandan rebels at the age of 14,) Buddhi Gurung of Nepal (who, unlike many, survived being duped by a false work ad, having his passport confiscated and forced to work in a war-zone) and Kikka Cerpa of Venezuela (who was taken to NYC by her boyfriend, under the guise of being a nanny, only to get sold into his family's brothel.)

While the stories came from different corners of the globe, they oozed of the same plea: these people are victims and the official world needs to start seeing them as victims.

In all cases, there was an opportunity for action that was not taken. Awino explained when found by authorities, people in her situation are often mistaken as compliant terrorists, and treated as such. Cerpa reported the multiple times the police raided her brothel, either to demand sex or to arrest the workers. Each time, she was denied the aid she needed because it was never assumed that she was there against her will. Gurung is currently suing the US government (specifically the federal contractors KRB) for human trafficking and is still shocked that in his many encounters with officials, it was always assumed he was a voluntary immigrant worker, even though his papers did not match.

UN Rapporteur on Trafficking in Persons Joy Ngozi Ezeilo emphasized penalizing the guilty, not the victims, pushing for stronger law enforcement in each country and financial compensation for the victims.

Reminding those in the hearing of shared humanity, Ezeilo closed by saying "it will be irresponsible if we fail to act. We are humans and we should not support inhuman action...The slave trade has been abolished and we can't accept that in our world today.""

photo credit: mvcorks on flickr.com

Great Opportunities with UN Practicum!

Join governmental and NGO delegations from all over the world for the 54th session of the Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) at the UN headquarters in New York from February 26th-March 6th 2010.

The Practicum offers an opportunity for observing how the UN works to address issues requiring multilateral engagement and coordinated action. Students participate as delegates of the Women's International League for Peace and Freedom, and contribute to the official documentation of both official and informal meetings.

The program is open to women enrolled at any college or university in the United States, and provides ample opportunity for peer-to-peer learning and exploring career opportunities in international relations and advocacy work.

This year's conference promises to be especially exciting because the CSW will undertake a 15-year review of the implementation of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action, which the UN General Assembly will also mark.

For more information and applications go to:

http://www.wilpf.org/practicum_UN_2010

or email csw2010@wilpf.org

Application Deadline: Noon on November 15, 2009

Image courtesy of www.un.org

UNESCO International Guidelines on Sexual Education

At what age do you think it is appropriate to talk about sexuality and how should it be discussed?

This question has been floating around the global community, especially due to the ever-growing HIV crisis and its links to sexuality.

The United Nations Education Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) gave us their take by drafting the International Guidelines on Sexual Education, presented this June at the 19th World Association for Sexual Health (WAS) Conference.

The goal was to provide a comprehensive, systematic approach to sexual education, covering everything from love and relationships, orientation, pleasure, family planning and HIV/STD prevention options in an evidence-based, health-focused, culturally sensitive way. The curriculum is categorized in age-appropriate lists, teaching sexuality in digestible doses.

After getting wind of the draft, conservatives jumped. Feeling uncomfortable with “teaching masturbation to five year olds,” the protests began. Parents complained that it is inappropriate for teachers to and Focus on the Family’s vice president Chong Cheh Hoon said that the Guidelines are like “telling…kids not to smoke and yet providing them with cigarette filters.”

UNESCO employee Mark Richmond defended the Guidelines saying, “At the moment, education is the best weapon we have for dealing with these issues… Evidence tells us that by and large, young people do not have access to the knowledge that could help them make informed decisions and thereby avoid tragic consequences.” The agency is certain that the youth are interested and deserve to know the facts.

The draft was given a second chance at the Sex and Relationships Education Conference on September 7th-9th. UNESCO stood by its goals, but reworked some areas with attending specialists.

A finalized version is said to be out by the end of this year.

While this has been debated for some time, now is the time to sit up and pay attention! Read the June 2009 guidelines to decide what you think and keep your eye out for the final draft!

photo credit to lamont_cranston on flikr

UN internship in NYC!

From UNIFEM's Facebook note:

UNIFEM is looking for an intern working on Social Media for the campaign "Say NO to Violence against Women"

Starting October 1st 2009; 3-6 months (New York Headquarters)

Background

Say NO – UNiTE to Violence against Women is a public awareness and advocacy initiative presented by UNIFEM as part of the UN Secretary-General’s campaign, UNiTE to End Violence against Women. Launched as a signature campaign in 2007, Say NO submitted 5,066,549 signatures to Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on November 25, 2008, representing a global call to make ending violence against women a top priority for governments everywhere.

Scheduled to launch in fall 2009, Say NO Phase II will trigger and showcase actions by individuals, governments, civil society and corporate partners to prevent and address violence against women and girls worldwide. Actions can range from advocating for legislation, reaching out to students at schools, volunteering at shelters, to signing a petition and donating money towards programmes that protect the rights and dignity of women and girls. The initial target is to record 1 million actions by March 2010, which will be counted and reported on the campaign’s web site.

Working through traditional as well as online networks, the campaign will engage strategic audiences such as men, youth and faith-based communities towards changing perspectives and preventing violence against women and girls; and mobilize new online constituencies through social media.

To this end, the Communications Unit of UNIFEM’s OBDT (Outreach Business and Development Team) is looking for an intern to help with social media outreach for a period of three to six months.

Duties and Responsibilities

Under the overall guidance of the Head of Communications, and the direct supervision of the UNIFEM focal point for social media, the intern will help maintain the Say NO social media platforms and actively engage in social media outreach for the campaign.

Specifically, s/he will be responsible for the following:
• Recruit new followers/ friends, reply to friends requests etc. on the different social media platforms;
• Post news items from the Say NO campaign website to the different social media platforms;
• Screen incoming content from users of the campaign website, select appropriate content, and post on social media platforms;
• Monitor postings and interactions on social media platforms;
• Moderate discussions on social media platforms; reply/ react to content;
• Monitor blogs and online media for interesting stories on the Say NO campaign to be edited and highlighted on both the campaign page and social media platforms;
• Other tasks as assigned by the supervisor.

Qualifications

• Graduate student, enrolled in a Masters Degree Programme in Communications, Journalism, International Affairs or related field
• Experience in social media and/or blogging
• Excellent writing skills in English; Arabic or writing skills in any other language an asset
• Knowledge of gender issues in general; knowledge of the thematic area of violence against women an asset
• Interest in the mission and values of the United Nations

If interested, please send your CV to beatrice.frey@unifem.org, indicating your availabilities.

Male or Female, Sexual Violence Is the Arm of Oppression

The Congo is going through one of the most unstable, violent periods of its history. We have heard about the thousands of women who are raped in an effort to control the population. But what we are probably less aware of is the growing number of male rape survivors in the area.

The New York Times has a piece about this less well known epidemic. According to the article, there are probably hundreds of male rape survivors in the area.

Just as sexual violence has been used to exert power over women for centuries, it is being used to destroy the lives of these men for the same reason. The article states that being raped is a socially stigmatizing experience for these men who are often ostracized because of a negative view of homosexuality. They are often viewed by others as being less masculine.

I think it is important to look at how sexual violence is one way that power relations and oppression can be enacted against everyone, regardless of sexuality, gender, race, or class. The problem is sexual violence and traditional norms of masculine behavior. Regardless of whether or not the victim is male or female, the aggressors are using behaviors that they have been taught to use to reinforce their masculinity and power positions that are completely inhumane and unacceptable.

Photo courtesy of www.flickr/halfcrazy

Humanitarian Funding FAIL

According to commondreams.org, on Tuesday, the UN reported a large gap in their humanitarian funding. A $4.8 billion gap, which is less than half of what it had asked for. The areas most impacted by this shortfall include Sudan, Zimbabwe, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Somalia, and Pakistan.

This gap in funding comes from an increased need for help in Pakistan and economic problems in many countries. While there seems to be less money available, there is an increasing need for relief to help people find clean water, food, shelter, and the other basic needs for survival.

Women desperately need aid because of their role in the family and their direct connection to their environment. Women are often the people who go to get water for their families, and so they are often the first hit by water-bourne infections and diseases. There's also a great need for improved maternal and women's healthcare in the world.

In order to help these women, and their families, there needs to be an increased focus on the important issues in their lives and a corresponding change in policy and funding. These are the lives of millions of real people.

Photo courtesy of www.flickr/lukeredmond

FemNews: CEDAW

In this edition of FemNews, we're talking about CEDAW. As many of you might know, CEDAW is a UN treaty from 1979 that works to advance women and cut down on discrimination. The United States is one of 8 countries that hasn't ratified it yet. Sort of a big deal.

Saving Women's Lives: A Global Priority

As my colleague Emily Kadar very graciously gave me my very own "Blogging 101" session, I couldn't help but kick myself. Why didn't I start my blog last month?? With so many exciting events on global reproductive health and rights kicking off in March, including FMF's own rockstar leadership conference, there was no shortage of events to blog about. Kadar assured me it's never too late to reflect on some of the amazing events I have attended in the last month on one of my favorite subjects: women's health.

If I could choose one event to start off my blogging career, it would without a doubt be the the 42nd Session on the Commission of Population and Development! Before you ask yourself, "Huh, what is that about?" let me enlighten you ;).

Out of my two trips to the UN in New York last month, one really stands out. The Commission on Population and Development (CPD) is the United Nations' Commission that pretty much changed how we talk about population policies. Does the 1994 International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD) in Cairo, Egypt, ring a bell? Commonly referred to as "Cairo", the ICPD marked a real "Ah-hah" moment in the formulation of population policies. Cairo is when population policies shifted from being about controlling population growth, to focusing on real efforts to empower women. The basic idea: if women have equal access to higher education and better salaried jobs, they would choose to have smaller families, thus lowering fertility rates.

This year's CDP was unbelievable! The US Delegation's reproductive health, women’s empowerment, and family planning language seemed like the Feminist Majority Foundation had written their script! They offered very strong support for women and women’s health and renewed commitment to women’s empowerment and gender equality around the world--pointing out that Cairo is very clear in its commitment to women’s empowerment, and that is the framework they would be sticking to.

Before heading to New York the International Family Planning Coalition (IFPC) in Washington was invited to the State Department (which I attended on behalf of FMF), affirming that we're the experts who they rely on for input and language. Last year, the US delegation didn't even utter the words reproductive health services or family planning, and totally shut out groups like FMF. What a change!

Once in New York, the US delegation briefed us again before reading their statement to the UN Commission. The IFPC was assured that the goals set out in Cairo 15 years again would be reaffirmed by the US, something not heard in the past 8 years.

The US delegation noted that funding to the UNFPA had been reinstated, GGR repealed, and that US funding to IFP was much higher this year than any other year in US history, (despite still being drastically lower than what is needed). They assured us that more action reaffirming Cairo would be seen and taken as the Obama Administration got under way!

As anyone who has met me can tell you, I can always go on and on, but I'll stop here for now. I highly recommend you take five minutes to read the amazing statement made by the US Delegation to the UN Commission. It is music to our ears and a testament to the fact that the new Administration supports and encourages our work. The US leadership on global reproductive health and rights just made a few huge steps forward!

Yay for FMF's Global Campaign! :) And more from me soon.