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Commission on the Status of Women

CSW Challenges

Beijing plus 15:

This was the subject of CSW 54. So thousands of women registered with great enthusiasm to follow through on that marvellous platform for action agreed fifteen years ago at the historic meeting in Beijing. The problem was that the ground was in a sense taken from under our feet when the Commission issued a statement right at the beginning which reinforced the original declaration as an agreed conclusion. This left little for concrete discussion for the NGOs that were there intent on influencing the event.

The other frustration was GEAR. This is an ongoing campaign to build a United Nations that really works for women. GEAR stands for gender/equality/architecture/reform. A mouthful, but what it means is that four separate entities, for example UNIFEM, that have carried forward the women’s agenda will be merged. There will be an Under Secretary appointed to run this women’s agency and it will be adequately funded .Although a statement was issued in support of this and the Secretary General Ban ki moon has indicated his support, it is still not agreed.

Challenges for Soroptimists:

We were there in force, 42 of us.Some for just the first week and some for the whole time. Meeting up was difficult because of all the restrictions in the UN  building.However due to the sterling work of our representatives in New York we were able to run six workshops. This was way and above what we might have expected as space was at a premium and with so many NGOs wanting to be involved we did very well. We ran workshops themed on the issue of trafficking. We focused on how we can help, not solve the problem, but care for those who have been trafficked and raise awareness of the problem.

At one of our workshops we had a very powerful speaker, Tina. She had been abused and trafficked by her father at a very young age. So now every day she works to prevent this happening to others. In Washington DC she runs Courtney House this is the first home for trafficked minors.They have a waiting list of 45.She has 75 women volunteers who go out on the street at night and look for women and girls who are in danger. She gave us an example of a young girl aged 14,on the street at 2a.m in temperatures of 10%.She was crouching down between cars as a car is circling round She is trying not to be seen. Tina was able to go and help her and that was the inspiration for her work. An amazing woman and we were privileged to share in her story.

We topped off our effectiveness when Ulrike who is the Programme Director of Europe was able on our behalf to actually make a statement to the assembly where she highlighted our concerns re the trafficking of women and girls. This may sound nothing to you all. But I can assure you that to get the chance to speak in the debate in the main meeting is very difficult and we should all be proud that our representative was able to speak on our behalf.Of course the statement was based on the work that you all do ,report and therefore give our work credence.

Challenges to us all as women who care:

Some stories for you

Liberia:

Women being the agents of change in a post- war conflict zone.It now has a woman president .We were told about a project were they identify a key area needing help.They send in a medical team to help They stay for two weeks in this remote area.They train community leaders and carry out medical treatment.In two weeks they carried out 207 operations.One example was the story of Ozata. She was 19 years old and she suffered from elephantitis.This had affected her breasts so that each one weighed 16 lbs and hung down below her waist. She couldn’t continue with her education and she was despised as a witch in her community .So they were able to take her to Monrovia and operate and she now looks normal, smiles and is able to continue with her education and is accepted back into her community.

Congo: Jimmy Briggs

A war correspondent in the Congo. He called it the forgotten war. He has written a book about this called “Innocence lost when women go to war”. It has been estimated that over ½ million women from 6 months to 85 years old have been victims of rape, trafficking and used as weapons of war The most shocking thing he said was that women are raped with guns and sticks!

The results of this are fistulas, HIV/Aids.The perpetrators are never brought to justice.So why is this happening?It is for control of resources that include uranium, gold, diamonds and timber. So why are we involved? He made the point that the uranium is used in our cell phones and lap tops so we are all involved. it brought home to me the saying form Ernest Hemingway” No man is an island entire unto himself “

Iraq: Yanar from the Women’s Freedom Movement in Iraq

She had to leave Iraq in 1993 because of the UN sanctions.She and her son were starving. In 2003 she returned, determined to be there as a woman activist. She opened small room in a burnt out  bank and hung up a sign Women for Freedom. They met every week and  collated reports trying to find out what was happening.They became aware that about 10 women a week were disappearing. In 2004 they establishes a women`s shelter and started to take in women,often very young who had run away. Why? because they were being prostituted. This is very typical and we heard many reports that in a war torn country this is what happens to women. Pimps look for girls as young as 11 to sell across the border into very rich countries and where law and order has broken down this is prevalant.They have raised this with the authorities and are told this is not happening.A TV programme they made about this was stopped. She was asked does she fear for her safety and her answer” how can I not speak out”.

Mary Robinson: Women Faith and development

“An Idea whose time has come”

A positive challenge from a great woman.She is now an elder statesman together with people like Nelson Mandela and Archbishop Desmond Tutu. Someone who should be listened to and respected. She is involved in this movement to work together with faith groups, women’s groups and development groups, Partnership she said is the way forward. She stressed that all human beings are born free and equal in both rights and DIGNITY.A very powerful message and one that resonated.She said what we must do is to hold people to commitments and have a shared concept of human rights and dignity.

She was a real inspiration to all who heard her speak.