Tearfund disaster management team – good practice guidelines on gender sensitivity
Tearfund
Disaster Management Good Practice Guidelines
Gender
Written by David Bainbridge, Shona Macpherson and Mandy Marshall
Version 2, September 2010
Aung Hlaing Gone Village, Myanmar:
Survivors of Cyclone Nargis are asked to share their experience, yet the
women remain silent
The ‘Good Practice Guidelines’ provide practical guidance on how to implement
Tearfund’s Quality Standards. The guidelines are designed for Tearfund staff and
partners and are intended to be simple and user friendly guides that provide
practical information for practitioners in the field. They are freely available for
use or adaptation by other organisations committed to good practice in disaster
management.
To download this document go to:
http://tilz.tearfund.org/Topics/Disasters
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Tearfund disaster management team – good practice guidelines on gender sensitivity
Tearfund good practice guidelines on gender
Contents
Page
Introduction
3
1. Definitions and context
3
1.1
1.2
1.3
1.4
1.5
3
3
4
4
4
Definition
Biblical justification
Role of the church
Developmental justification
Gender in Disasters
An example of exploitation of girls from Liberia
5
2. Good practice theory
in a gender transformative approach
6
2.1 Understanding practical and strategic needs
6
3. Practical Steps for carrying out
our Gender commitments
8
4. Case studies
17
5. Where to look for more information
20
Appendix A: The UN Convention on the Elimination of
All Forms of Discrimination against Women
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Tearfund disaster management team – good practice guidelines on gender sensitivity
Introduction
Gender refers to the roles and responsibilities of men and women that are
socially determined. It is different from sex which is the biological differences
between men and women. Neither is it solely about the role of women.
However, in many cultures, women suffer from considerable inequality. UN
statistics highlight some of these disadvantages. Women represent the majority
of the working poor in all regions of the world. Out of the 550 million working
poor in the world, an estimated 330 million, or 60%, are women. Worldwide,
over 60% of people working in family enterprises without pay are women.
Despite some progress in the 1990s, women typically earn less than men, even
for similar kinds of work. Almost two thirds of the world's non-literate people are
women. Women hold only 16% of parliamentary seats worldwide. In subSaharan Africa, 59% of adults with HIV/AIDS are women. In the countries
hardest hit by the epidemic, HIV is up to three times as prevalent among young
women as among their male peers. In addition more than half a million women
die in pregnancy and childbirth each year.1
1 Definitions and context
1.1 Definition
‘Gender’ reflects the expectations, opportunities and behaviours expected by
society of men, women, girls and boys. Roles and expectations differ according
to social status. They change over time within a society and they differ from one
society to another.
1.2 Biblical justification
Tearfund believes the bible teaches that Men and Women are equal before God
and the relationship between them is to be one of partnership. God’s original
intentions for partnership have been distorted by power, abuse and selfishness.
Injustice and oppression have many forms in different cultures but gender
injustice can be seen in the way women lack access to power, wealth and
resources. They often have little access to education or employment and the
work they do is frequently not recognised economically.
Tearfund is committed to the vision of the restoration of God’s original intention
of relationship between men and women. Jesus treated both men and women as
1
These statistics are taken from a number of UN reports; 2008 Report on the global AIDS
epidemic, UNAIDS (2008); State of the world population. The promise of equality: gender equality,
reproductive health and the mdgs UNFPA (2005); EFA Global Monitoring Report 2005: Education
for All, the Quality Imperative. Statistical Annex, Table 2. Paris: UNESCO (2004); Source: The
Millennium Development Goals Report, 2005 . New York: United Nations (2005); Department of
Economic and Social Affairs. Statistics Division. Progress towards the Millennium Development
Goals, 1990-2005. United Nations (2005).
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Tearfund disaster management team – good practice guidelines on gender sensitivity
individuals worthy of his full attention. He encouraged and affirmed women
throughout his teaching, at a time when society gave women little value.
Tearfund will work towards this vision of restored relationships by ensuring
that its policies and practices and the programmes it supports are sensitive to
issues of gender. This commitment includes supporting positive models of
masculinity. In keeping with this commitment we are aware of our own need to
reflect this in our own corporate life as an organisation.
1.3 Role of the church
Religious communities, including churches and Christian organisations, are often
observed by wider society to see how they implement their understanding of
gender relations. The church in the community is often expected to take the lead
in setting the moral framework within which society should operate. However, in
general the church has been slow to engage in the issue of gender awareness
and sensitivity. Indeed, it is an issue that often divides Christians, many of whom
believe that there is a biblical basis for men to maintain authority within the
church. This debate often deflects attention from recognising the equal value of
men and women in the sight of God, both within and outside the church.
The church is centrally placed to challenge cultural and social behaviour which is
not biblical. Churches should advocate for, and support, the equal worth of men
and women.
1.4 Developmental justification
Developmental reasons for addressing gender inequalities include:
•
•
•
•
•
•
Gender inequalities are a social injustice that often contravenes people’s
basic human rights
Millennium Development Goal 3 is to promote gender equality and
empower women.
Women are often disproportionately affected by disasters
Failing to address gender inequalities can lead to unsuccessful
development programmes
Programme effectiveness can be improved by including women and men
and, as a result, the whole family
Research has shown that educating girls is the single most effective tool
in poverty reduction
1.5 Gender in disasters
Women and children form up to 85% of all those displaced by conflict and
disasters. In emergency situations men and women have different needs,
interests, vulnerabilities, capacities and coping strategies. Widespread armed and
ethnic conflict also has a gender dimension - women and girls are vulnerable to
sexual violence, intimidation and abuse. Large scale population
displacement can lead to a break down in family and social structures, moral
norms and a lack of traditional protection systems. Commercial sex work and
coercive sex (giving sex in order to receive assistance) will often increase.
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An example of exploitation of girls from Liberia2
“Monrovia, 9 May 2006 (IRIN) - The Government of Liberia and the UN
peacekeeping mission on Tuesday promised to conduct investigations into a
report by British-based charity Save the Children that Government workers ,
peacekeepers and aid workers are giving Liberian girls money, food and favours
in return for sex. In its report released this week, Save the Children said officials
at camps for displaced Liberians, peacekeepers, government employees and
teachers were among those abusing their positions of authority to have sex with
girls as young as eight.
In all the camps, people cited distribution centres as places where men look for
girls for sex, and video clubs and nightclubs, dance areas or entertainment
centres. ‘Ghetto’ areas of the camps are areas where alcohol and drugs are sold
and consumed. Some children sell alcohol and they are at particular risk of rape
and sexual exploitation. The surrounding bush land is also referred to as a
dangerous place for children as some children collecting firewood, etc, have been
raped. Latrines, washing areas, and the area around the hand pumps are places
where men may go to look for girls to have sex with, often at night time. In the
camps, however, camp officials or NGO workers were reported to approach girls
in their homes.”
In this situation, what actions should
NGOs consider to reduce the vulnerability
of high risk groups?
Things that NGOs should consider include:
• the location of latrines and wells
• the means to protect women and
children gathering fire wood (or if
necessary external provision of fire
wood)
• provision of alternative livelihood
options for those reliant on the sale of
alcohol or sex as a source of income
• sensitisation of men
2
From “From Camp to Community: Liberia Study on Exploitation Children” Save the Children, 2006
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Te Tearfund disaster management team – good practice guidelines on gender sensitivity
2 Good practice theory in a gender transformative
approach
2.1 Understanding practical and strategic needs
In many societies men and women have traditionally different culturally
constructed roles and responsibilities. They also have different needs; practical
and strategic. Practical needs are to do with what people need to carry out
their current roles and strategic needs are concerned with the changing of
position and status in society.
Examples of actions that address practical needs might include the following;
• providing water sources in convenient locations
• providing grinding mills
• providing health care
• providing skills training and income generating activities
• providing household fuel or safe access to it
• facilitating safe access to markets
Examples of actions that address strategic needs might include the following;
• involvement of women in community decision making
• improving legal status over land ownership
• improving education opportunities
Some emergency projects are designed to meet the practical needs of both men
and women without necessarily changing their relative position in society. If a
gender commitment is absent from project design altogether, the project may
actually heighten inequity or make women even more vulnerable to abuse. In
many societies the strategic needs of women are not met and they have little
chance of changing their position and status.
Our commitment is to design our projects in a way that addresses both practical
and strategic needs in an appropriate and sensitive way and therefore to see
restored relationships in project communities, where the equitable value of men
and women is recognised and participation and decision-making is enjoyed by
all. Where appropriate, we are committed to challenging cultural norms that
increase women’s vulnerability and can lead to abuse.
Achieving equality is most effectively approached by changing the unequal
relations of men and women to one another, rather than by changing the
situation of women in isolation. An example of this can be seen in section 4 in
the case study about addressing strategic gender needs in Sierra Leone.
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On the scale below, where would you place your programme? What do you need
to do to move up the scale and become more sensitive to gender?
Bad practice
Projects
make the
situation
worse due to
a lack of
gender
sensitivity
Neutral
Take steps to
avoid projects
making gender
relations
worse
Good practice
Ensure
project
meets
practical
needs in a
gender
sensitive way
Seek to
meet
strategic
needs
relating
to gender
At a minimum Tearfund should aim to ensure that projects meet men’s and
women’s practical needs and seek to address strategic needs in an appropriate
way. Addressing strategic needs often takes time as it requires the changing of
people’s attitudes and behaviour and sometimes formal legal changes. During
project design, it is vital that this is taken into consideration so that realistic and
achievable objectives are set that are appropriate for the project timeframe.
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3 Practical Steps for carrying out our Gender
commitment
Assessment
Step 1: Understand the
existing roles and
perspectives of men and
women
Step 2: Ensure assessments
gather the perspectives of
women, men, girls and
boys
Design
Step 4: Encourage and
facilitate participation of
women and children as well
as men
Step 3: Design project
activities appropriate for
the target group
Step 5: Ensure projects
enhance safety for women
and children
Implementation
Step 6: Address underlying
attitudes and help to shape
positive values
Step 7: Model positive
gender relationships within
the team
Step 8: Measure and monitor
the impact of the project on
men and women
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Step 1: Understand the
existing roles and
perspectives of men and
women
In order to understand the existing roles and perspectives of men and women,
you need to know the following:
• the traditional roles and responsibilities of men and women
• traditional authority structures
• traditional barriers to participation
• whether these have changed in the crisis
• possible forms of violence against women
• division of labour and workload
• access to/control over resources
How you gather this information can be by asking the following quick questions:
1. Who does what?
- Activities
2. How? With what?
- Access to resources
3. Who owns what?
- Ownership of assets
4. Who is responsible for what?
- Obligations
5. Who is entitled to what?
- Claim/Rights
6. Who controls what?
- Income/Spending
7. Who decides what?
- Power
8. Who gets what?
- Distribution
9. Who gains and who loses?
- Redistribution
10. Why? What is the basis of this situation?
- Rules/customs/norms
A quick and easy way to understand traditional roles and responsibilities is to
review the activities of both men and women in a typical 24 hour period. This will
bring to light the different roles and responsibilities, the daily schedules and
workloads. It will often highlight an unequal workload between men and women.
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Step 2: Ensure assessments
gather the perspectives of
women, men, girls and boys
Women can be relatively more invisible in times of crisis and may be more
confined to their homes than normal. A determined effort may be needed to seek
out their views and opinions separately from men.
It is important to carry out separate discussions with groups of men, women,
boys and girls in order that they can speak freely about their needs, capacities
and vulnerabilities. In some cultures it will be inappropriate for men to interview
female community members. Female staff members should participate in focus
group discussions with women and translators for these groups should also be
female, so that the discussions can be open. You need to consider the time and
place of the assessments to ensure that women are able to attend in safety and
security.
Example
An assessment was carried out in Eritrea and a women’s group was facilitated by
a woman however only male translators were available and this led to limited
contributions from the women’s group during the assessment.
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Step 3: Design project
activities appropriate for
the target group
Project activities place demands on men and women which they have to manage
alongside their regular routines and responsibilities; domestic duties, child care
and livelihoods. One of the reasons why the traditional method of therapeutic
feeding has been replaced by a community based therapeutic care model was
because of the additional burden it placed on mothers.
It is important to design the activities in a way that is appropriate for the group
in question that considers daily routines, time limitations and multiple roles:
•
Project activities, meetings and training events will be most convenient at
certain times of the day. For example, food for work and cash for work
schemes should be scheduled at times that are convenient for the
participants. This may vary according to the time of year, depending on
the agricultural seasons or other livelihood commitments.
•
Meetings and training events may be more appropriate in single sex
groups or in mixed groups
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Step 4: Encourage and
facilitate participation of
women and children as well
as men
Our commitment is to address both practical and strategic needs, which includes
participation and decision-making being enjoyed by men and women alike:
•
•
•
•
•
Find culturally appropriate ways to challenge traditional gender inequity,
which often include women not being able to participate in decisionmaking. Begin to challenge some of the unhelpful cultural aspects that
restrict or restrain either women or men from fully participating in the
project or in the community.
Consider how the community structure overseeing the project can be
inclusive (development committee, water committee) and how best to
explain this expectation to the community. Some projects have made
female representation a condition for the committee, but careful
explanation and sensitisation is needed if their participation is to be
meaningful.
Consider what work can be done to strengthen the partnership of men
with women in their shared responsibilities in the home, workplace,
church or place of worship and community.
Recognise that some jobs can be undertaken by both men and women,
even when this goes against tradition.
Consider the differing needs of women and men in participating. In some
countries women have low literacy levels so adapt participation
techniques accordingly.
Example
A partner working in Sri Lanka had weekly community meetings which were open
to the public, as part of monitoring their project and getting feedback.
Recognising that in the local religious context women were not speaking out,
they organised an additional meeting each week specifically for women in order
for them to be able share their concerns freely.
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Step 5: Ensure projects
enhance safety for women
and children
Consult with women to understand the physical environment and encourage
them to decide the location of project services (e.g. wells, latrines, meeting
places etc), and daily routines (day, evening, night activities), in order to offer
protection from gender based violence and abuse.
Monitor community attitudes in case there are any unforeseen outcomes of the
project (heightened tensions, jealousies etc).
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Step 6: Address underlying
attitudes and help to shape
positive values
There are often underlying attitudes in a culture which are highlighting gender
disparities. Where there are local churches in a community these churches are a
key shaper of values. As a shaper of values, the church can play a very
significant role in addressing underlying negative attitudes. The same applies in
settings where there are other local faith based organisations (FBOs) shaping
values. What is critical is that discussion on the local culture and underlying
attitudes and values is led by people from within that culture rather than
outsiders. Project staff can model positive, healthy relationships and can work
with these leaders to begin to tackle unhelpful traditional attitudes,
discrimination and stigma, built on a relationship of trust and respect.
Examples
In Liberia, as part of a hand dug well project, the team successfully trained
female as well as male pump mechanics selected from the village. Despite this
going against tradition, it was accepted by the community and contributed to
more effective and sustainable pump maintenance.
A post-tsunami housing project planned for home-owners to oversee all areas of
construction themselves. This meant that funds would have to be advanced to
each home-owner. It was proposed by an experienced community worker on the
partner staff that the funds should go through a bank account opened in the
name of the woman of the home. The senior engineer was sure this would not
work, but allowed the process to begin. 116 people built their own homes using
grants paid through the bank accounts of women with no-one misusing this
money. The men themselves said, “If you had put the money into bank accounts
in our names we would have used it for other things but our wives, they really
wanted the houses and would not allow us to use their money for anything else.”
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Step 7: Model positive
gender relationships within
the team
We have an important role to play on our project teams in the way we model
positive gender relationships. Never condone or participate in behaviour that
increases gender inequity, humiliates, shames or degrades either women or
men.
We must strive to have a good overall balance of men and women on the team,
even when local educational levels are a constraint. Having a balanced project
team of men and women can also reduce the potential for sexual exploitation
and abuse to be carried out.
We also need to ensure that the gender of the staff member is appropriate to the
activities he or she is carrying out, recognising that some roles are only
appropriate for men and some only for women, e.g. teaching mothers about
breastfeeding and weaning practices can only be carried out appropriately by
women.
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Tearfund disaster management team – good practice guidelines on gender sensitivity
Step 8: Measure and
monitor the impact of the
project on men and women
Ensure that beneficiary statistics and project data records the numbers of men,
women and boys and girls separately. Design project indicators which can
monitor and measure the impact of the project on men and on women separately
(this is called ‘disaggregated’ data).
Based on this monitoring of impact, change the project approach where needed
to make improvements.
Example
After a health promotion project was completed in Kashmir, Pakistan, an external
evaluation was carried out and the evaluator was told by the women participants
that the single most important impact of the project was that women in the
community could meet together because of the health groups they formed.
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Tearfund disaster management team – good practice guidelines on gender sensitivity
4 Case studies illustrating how projects have
addressed practical and strategic gender needs
4.1 Addressing strategic gender needs in Sierra
Leone
The Village Development committee (VDC) in Magbil was set up after Tearfund
had run a workshop for the community on gender sensitivity. There are 10
members (including 3 female members) who are responsible for making
decisions in Magbil. The treasurer Isatu Sesay is a woman and she was chosen
by the committee, not only because she was numerically literate but also
because there is a general belief that women do not squander money at the
same rate men do! She is very transparent and effective in her position and she
has served the position for two years. The project has raised the gender
awareness in Magbil Community and women are now a recognised group in the
Community.
The Vice Chair, Kadie Koroma, also a woman said:
“I am happy about my appointment into the VDC, in this way the women’s views
are included in the decisions of the community. We are experiencing the changes
gradually…”
This is an example of addressing strategic gender needs using a sensitive and
culturally appropriate approach. The workshop focused on both men and women
and the decision for electing Isatu came from the community, not from Tearfund.
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4.2 Challenges met when addressing practical
gender needs in South Sudan
In a Tearfund nutrition project in South Sudan, to develop the “community-based
therapeutic care” model for therapeutic feeding Tearfund needed to recruit local
Nutrition Extension Workers (NEWs) to visit mothers in their homes, to follow up
on children in the feeding programme and to provide teaching on breastfeeding
and weaning.
The team was unable to find local women who spoke English and so recruited
male NEWs who spoke English and therefore could be sufficiently trained for their
role. The team however found it awkward and inappropriate that men were
teaching mothers about breastfeeding and weaning.
Another NGO carrying out the same nutrition work in the neighbouring district
chose to recruit local women but found it a challenge to train them effectively
and ensure a high quality of work because they could not speak English.
In this example Tearfund prioritised technical knowledge to the detriment of
cultural and gender appropriateness. The other NGO prioritised cultural and
gender appropriateness over technical knowledge. Both approaches are
problematic. The approach of not prioritising cultural gender roles could
potentially lead to the community not accepting a project. However not
prioritising technical knowledge could lead to erroneous and potentially
dangerous health messages being communicated to beneficiaries.
To address both cultural gender roles and to ensure the NEWs have good
technical knowledge, ways need to be found to have both male and female NEWs
hired and trained to work together. The male NEWs could further train the
female NEWs in the local language and help with the documentation and record
keeping involved in the job. The female NEWs could deal directly with the women
in the project.
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4.3 Addressing practical and strategic needs in
Burundi
Many widows and orphans in Africa are denied their inheritance rights to
property or land which often go to the husband’s brothers or other male relatives
instead, leaving the family homeless and destitute.
Agnes was born in the province of Makamba in Burundi. Her parents were
farmers and lived a peaceful life with their nine children until 1994 when violence
began to sweep through their province. Believing their lives to be in danger, the
family fled with what they could carry into neighbouring Tanzania. Thousands of
others also fled Burundi to live in refugee camps. The family left the camps
because of over crowding and the constant threat of disease. For five years they
moved around, trying to make a living, but then Agnes’ father died. Her mother
decided to return to Burundi where she thought she could find support from her
relatives.
In 1999, Agnes’ mother died suddenly. Agnes and her younger brothers and
sisters were forced to find a new place to live. She sought help from her uncles
but they would not receive or protect them. They had taken her father’s lands
and left nothing for his children.
Desperate and with nowhere else to go, Agnes looked around for help. A
neighbour offered them an old ruined house next to his farm. Agnes made a roof
for it out of banana leaves and for two years the family lived there, scraping a
living, helped by the kindness of neighbours.
The government of Makamba made some marshland available for cultivation as
part of a Tearfund food security project. People were encouraged to form
agricultural associations where people could work together and support each
other. In 2003, Agnes joined one of these groups and began to farm. The group
provided her with help and advice as well as seeds and tools. She was now part
of a positive and supportive network. The group helped Agnes and her family
build a house. They built the walls of brick and used skills within the group to
provide the carpentry. Agnes used money she had earned herself from the sale
of seed to buy doors and windows for the new house.
In 2005, Agnes started income-generating activities to help support her family.
She has now rented more land and hires other people to work it. She continues
to serve her community by being active in the campaign against HIV and AIDS.
Agnes is also taking a leading role in the association’s application to the bank for
loans to increase their productivity.
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Section
5
5 Where to look for further information:
1. Tearfund Policy on Gender in relief and development
2. DFID Gender Manual: DFID, 2008
http://www.dfid.gov.uk/Documents/publications/dfid-gender-manual2008.pdf
3. UN Security Council Resolution 1325 on Women, Peace and Security
http://www.un.org/womenwatch/osagi/wps/
4. UNDP Eight Point Agenda: Practical positive outcomes for girls and women
in crisis http://www.undp.org/cpr/we_do/8_pa.shtml
5. UNDP Gender approaches in Conflict and Post Conflict Situations
http://www.undp.org/women/docs/gendermanualfinalBCPR.pdf
6. IASC Guidelines for Gender Based Violence Interventions in Humanitarian
Settings
http://www.humanitarianinfo.org/iasc/pageloader.aspx?page=contentsubsidi-tf_gender-gbv
7. ISDR: Gender Perspective: Working together for Disaster Risk Reduction.
Good Practices and Lessons Learnt 2007
http://www.unisdr.org/eng/about_isdr/isdr-publications/09-gender-goodpractices/gender-good-practices.pdf
8. The Gender and development Journal. Co-published by Oxfam and Taylor
& Francis. Available at http://www.genderanddevelopment.org/index.asp
9. Moser, C. Gender planning and development: Theory, practice, and
training: Routledge, London, 1993
10.Storkey, E. Created or Constructed? The Great Gender Debate:
Paternoster Press, 2002
11.Parker, R. Understanding the GAM, Another point of view: A manual for
Gender Analysis Training for Grassroots Workers: UNIFEM, 1993
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Section
6
Appendix A: The UN Convention on the
Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against
Women
The Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women
(CEDAW), adopted in 1979 by the UN General Assembly, is often described as an
international bill of rights for women. It defines what constitutes discrimination
against women and sets up an agenda for national action to end such
discrimination.3
The Convention defines discrimination against women as "...any distinction,
exclusion or restriction made on the basis of sex which has the effect or purpose
of impairing or nullifying the recognition, enjoyment or exercise by women,
irrespective of their marital status, on a basis of equality of men and women, of
human rights and fundamental freedoms in the political, economic, social,
cultural, civil or any other field."
By accepting the Convention, States commit themselves to undertake a series of
measures to end discrimination against women in all forms, including:
• to incorporate the principle of equality of men and women in their legal
system, abolish all discriminatory laws and adopt appropriate ones
prohibiting discrimination against women;
• to establish tribunals and other public institutions to ensure the effective
protection of women against discrimination; and
• to ensure elimination of all acts of discrimination against women by
persons, organisations or enterprises.
On 18 December 1979, the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of
Discrimination against Women was adopted by the United Nations General
Assembly. By the tenth anniversary of the Convention in 1989, almost one
hundred nations had agreed to be bound by its provisions.
The convention consists of a preamble and 30 articles. It provides the basis for
realising equality between women and men through ensuring women's equal
access to, and equal opportunities in, political and public life - including the right
to vote and to stand for election - as well as education, health and employment.
States parties agree to take all appropriate measures, including legislation and
temporary special measures, so that women can enjoy all their human rights and
fundamental freedoms.
3
Text from http://www.un.org/womenwatch/daw/cedaw/cedaw.htm
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The Convention is the only human rights treaty which affirms the reproductive
rights of women and targets culture and tradition as influential forces shaping
gender roles and family relations. It affirms women's rights to acquire, change
or retain their nationality and the nationality of their children. States parties also
agree to take appropriate measures against all forms of traffic in women and
exploitation of women.
The main focus of the convention is the legal status of women as it relates to a
number of areas of life, work and home. The political rights of women are stated
in article 7, equal rights for women to represent their countries at the
international level (article 8) and article 9 providing for the statehood of women,
irrespective of their marital status. This draws attention to the fact that often
women's legal status has been linked to marriage, making them dependent on
their husband's nationality rather than individuals in their own right. Articles 10,
11 and 13, respectively, affirm women's rights to non-discrimination in
education, employment and economic and social activities. These demands are
given special emphasis with regard to the situation of rural women, whose
particular struggles and vital economic contributions, as noted in article 14,
warrant more attention in policy planning. Article 15 asserts the full equality of
women in civil and business matters. In article 16, the Convention returns to the
issue of marriage and family relations, asserting the equal rights and obligations
of women and men with regard to choice of spouse, parenthood, personal rights
and command over property.
Aside from civil rights issues, the Convention also devotes major attention to a
most vital concern of women, namely their reproductive rights. It advocates in
article 5 for ''a proper understanding of maternity as a social function",
demanding fully shared responsibility for child-rearing by both sexes.
Accordingly, provisions for maternity protection and child-care are proclaimed as
essential rights and are incorporated into all areas of the Convention, whether
dealing with employment, family law, health core or education.
The Convention gives formal recognition to the influence of culture and tradition
on restricting women's enjoyment of their fundamental rights. These forces take
shape in stereotypes, customs and norms which give rise to the multitude of
legal, political and economic constraints on the advancement of women. Noting
this interrelationship, the preamble of the Convention stresses "that a change in
the traditional role of men as well as the role of women in society and in the
family is needed to achieve full equality of men and women".
Where to look for more information:
http://www.un.org/womenwatch/daw/cedaw/cedaw.htm
and the full text of the convention is available here:
http://www.un.org/womenwatch/daw/cedaw/text/econvention.htm
December 2009
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