 Changing the status quo There is nothing immutable about the violent oppression of women and girls. It is a construct of power, as was apartheid, and one that can be changed. But because it has been so deeply ingrained, for so long, in virtually every culture remaining on earth, the effort to dismantle the societal structures that tolerate it, or patently refuse even to see it, will require creativity, patience and action on many fronts. Stopping violence against women and girls is not just a matter of punishing individual acts. The issue is changing the perception—so deep-seated it is often unconscious—that women are fundamentally of less value than men. It is only when women and girls gain their place as strong and equal members of society that violence against them will be viewed as a shocking aberration rather than an invisible norm. The old saying that the longest journey begins with a single step applies
here. All over the world, many people have begun to take small steps towards
establishing full citizenship for women and girls in a just society. They
include the husband and wife who refuse to subject their daughter to FGM;
the judge who metes out the maximum penalty to a rapist; the young man
who participates in a ‘take back the night’ rally; and the parliamentarians
who reform their countries’ laws in fulfilment of women’s and girls’ human
rights.
Globally, that first step must be implementation of the Convention on the Rights of the Child (ratified by 191 countries as of June 1997) and the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women, or CEDAW (ratified by 160 countries). Although beliefs and practices do not change magically with the ratification of treaties, they are a vital first step because they lay the groundwork for ongoing social and legal reform. The Convention on the Rights of the Child is critical because of the broad overlay between women’s and children’s rights. Gender violence becomes a feature of a girl’s life long before adulthood, whether in the home or as part of a broader social pattern of abuse. The Convention obliges ratifying States to take all appropriate measures to protect children from "all forms of physical or mental violence." Specific injunctions target harmful traditional practices, sexual abuse and trafficking in children. Now that the Convention has been ratified by all but three countries on earth, actions are under way in many nations to make it a real force in children’s lives. For example, juvenile justice systems are being reformed in about half the countries in Latin America, and a number of countries, most notably the Philippines, have strengthened laws protecting children against sexual exploitation. Similar efforts are under way to bring CEDAW to life. In Botswana and Zimbabwe, judges have used CEDAW to prevent discrimination against women in citizenship laws. Brazil has drafted a new Constitution reflecting CEDAW’s goals, and Tanzania has reversed a discriminatory customary law relating to clan land. Several Latin American countries and Sweden have established ombudswomen to address women’s concerns. At least six countries have set up police stations just for women, and Mexico has appointed a special prosecutor for sex crimes. Cameroon and China recently opened their first shelters for domestic abuse victims. These institutions not only protect women but serve as a constant reminder to all of society that women’s rights are an issue of state concern. These are important steps for women’s rights in general and for stopping violence in particular, but so far there are too few steps taking place in too few countries. The majority of countries that have ratified CEDAW have yet to incorporate its principles into domestic law and practice. CEDAW faces deep resistance, as indicated by the fact that it has more substantive reservations entered against it than does any other international treaty. (See accompanying news story.) Implementing these rights must start with the education of girls. Their unequal access to education is one of the most fundamental abridgements of human rights and one that perpetuates their weakened position, making them vulnerable to oppression and ultimately to violence. In addition to the obvious benefits of literacy and numeracy, education gives girls the confidence to make the most of their abilities. The educational system also provides a forum for challenging attitudes about violence—for both boys and girls. In addition, having girls in the classroom sends a potent message to boys about equality. Girls’ education is the assured route to women’s economic empowerment.
Earning money elevates a woman’s self-esteem and her standing in her home
and community. It can also propel a woman out of a destructive relationship
or encourage her to change its terms.
Building on the famous example of Bangladesh’s Grameen Bank, schemes that establish revolving funds to give women small business loans are springing up in all regions. More than 20 countries have begun microcredit programmes that often link loans to social and health services, helping women to care for themselves and their children. The credit is used for such projects as livestock raising, opening small shops and paying school fees. More than 15,000 Cambodian women have obtained small loans, for example, and Viet Nam has seen a dramatic increase in school enrolment among daughters of borrowers. Efforts are also under way to end traditional practices that violate women and girls. A number of groups are beginning to have some success in persuading both men and women that FGM claims too high a price. Some clerics have begun to speak out against it, and efforts are under way in the Gambia and Kenya to develop a coming-of-age ritual that does not involve any cutting. Another hopeful sign is recent action by Canada and the US to grant political asylum to some women threatened by FGM in their home countries, thereby defining the practice as a legitimate criterion for refugee status. Political power is also crucial to women’s empowerment. Although a female Head of State does not guarantee equal rights for her sex, women in positions of authority throughout political systems clearly have a beneficial effect, not least by the example they set. But there is far, far to go. And while women have the right to vote everywhere except in six Middle Eastern countries and Brunei Darussalem in South-East Asia, worldwide they hold just 7 per cent of high-level elected and appointed offices in government. (See league table.) Women’s climb into the halls of power challenges the existing power structure, and replacing that structure will require the collective efforts not just of women but also of supportive men. The State and other institutions of authority can be indispensable allies. The 1990s have been a decade of unprecedented achievement in women’s human rights. But international recognition of violence against women as a human rights issue did not happen without a struggle. Women had to organize in a global campaign to demonstrate the extent of violence and its impact on their ability to exercise their human rights. The international community was called to witness its own failure to protect women’s fundamental right to personal security. The defining moment of this campaign—the Global Tribunal on Violations of Women’s Human Rights—came during the 1993 World Conference on Human Rights in Vienna, where participants sounded a call to eliminate "violence against women in public and private life" and declared that the rights of girls and women are "an inalienable, integral and indivisible part of universal human rights." For an entire day in Vienna, many delegates and others at the Conference listened as 33 women gave riveting personal testimony to the abuses they had suffered. On the scale of what takes place every day in every community of the world, it was a miniscule but emblematic summary of the anguish long faced by women. But it was apparent, looking around the room, that facts and figures had been transformed into flesh and blood, and the rapt audience was profoundly changed by the experience. The Tribunal marked an official end to the centuries-old cover-up of these atrocities, and it awakened many women and men to the international community’s responsibility to protect women from such abuse. Later that year, in response to the momentum generated in Vienna, the United Nations General Assembly adopted the Declaration on the Elimination of Violence against Women, considered a formal elaboration of CEDAW, which did not itself specifically address gender violence when it was drafted in 1979. This Declaration was a landmark document in three ways: It framed violence against women within the dialogue on human rights; it identified being female as the primary risk factor for violence; and it broadened the definition of gender violence to include all aspects of women’s and girls’ lives. Another milestone was the 1994 appointment of a UN Special Rapporteur on Violence against Women. A systematic effort to raise the profile of violence against women must involve every sector of every society—the judicial system, the media, educators, health care authorities, governmental and non-governmental agencies, politicians, religious leaders and, of course, individual women and men. For the most part, it is women’s movements with their many non-governmental working across national, cultural, religious and class lines that have initiated and energized the effort. Few social movements have registered as great an impact in as short a time—and with such remarkably peaceful methods. And yet, these small, determined groups continue to work largely alone. How many government officials have staked their careers on resolving the problem of gender-based violence? It is time for them to do so.
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