“Promoting gender equality is an important part of this country’s commitment to transformation,” says Sandra Burmeister, CEO of the Landelahni Recruitment Group. “The question is whether we have the resources to meet the proposed 50% targets.”

The draft Gender Equality Bill aims to empower women and prohibit unfair discrimination. It proposes 50/50 gender equality and is applicable to organisations of all sizes in the public and private sectors.

“Equity targets can assist in increasing representation of women in the workforce, provided they are realistic,” says Burmeister.

“The black economic empowerment industry charters have set specific gender targets by sector. This allows industries to set realistic, achievable targets for sectors where there are simply not enough suitably-qualified women. However the new Bill shows no distinction between industries.”

The Bill states that public and private entities must eliminate discrimination and empower women, unless they can put forward “good cause” for non-compliance due to justifiable inherent requirements of the sector. However, the bill states explicitly that such “good cause … does not include lack of capacity, scarcity of skills or limited resources”.

“Setting realistic targets depends on the pipeline of candidates available for entering the workforce in a particular discipline,” says Burmeister. “Before we start raising the bar, we need to look at the pipeline of available skills.

“A blanket target of 50% women will pose difficulties for sectors where two-thirds of workers are technical – such as in construction, infrastructure and mining. A fixed 50% target is not realistic since there simply may not be enough women to fill half the positions in all types of jobs. It puts enormous pressure on finding technical people.

“In engineering, for example, only 2.8% of all professional engineers are women. Women have accounted for only 21% of all engineering graduates over the past 13 years. Insisting on a 50% target simply results in the few women engineers available being poached around the system at ever escalating salaries, while increasing the ire of their colleagues.

“Favouring women who are skilled for technical jobs only makes sense if such people are available. The objective is to empower and increase the number of women in gainful employment. That means hiring skilled people for the job.

“If we want gender empowerment to succeed, we must take into account the pipeline of young women coming into the professions and set targets appropriate to this.

“Globally, there are significantly fewer women working in technical and engineering disciplines. Nowhere in the world do women represent 50% of engineers or artisans.

“On the other hand, industries such as retail, financial services and healthcare could accommodate targets higher than 50% since there is a much greater availability of suitably-qualified women in these sectors.”

The Bill gives wide powers to the Minister of Women, Children and People with Disabilities to issue a compliance notice to an entity which she believes is not complying with legislation, with harsh penalties for directors who fail to comply. “It is difficult, in principle, to support legislation that is so broad and which gives a minister this kind of unfettered power,” says Burmeister.

“South Africa has had progressive gender legislation for more than a decade. BEE regulations, industry charters and the Employment Equity Act have had a positive impact on increasing gender equity at every level of the organisation.”

According to Commission for Employment Equity annual reports from 2001 to 2011:

• Women in top management increased from 13% to 18.7%
• Women in senior management increased from 21% to 27.7%
• Women in professional and mid-management showed a marginal decline from 43% to 42%
• Women in skilled positions increased from 40% to 46.2%.

South Africa leads the way in regard to women directors compared to the United States (16.1%) and the United Kingdom (15.0%). The country is well ahead of its BRICS colleagues: China (8.5%), Russia (5.9%), India (5.3%) and Brazil (5.1%).

“We have been ahead of the game with our focus on gender equity,” says Burmeister. “The draft Bill itself lists 36 existing pieces of legislation that aim to eliminate discrimination against women and provide for the empowerment of women.

“The first step, however, is to align our educational systems to support more robust gender equity. Only in this way can we empower women and achieve 50% workplace equality.”

References:

• Commission for Employment Equity’s Annual Report 2011-2012, published 11 September 2012 (and previous annual reports dating from 2001).
• Women Empowerment and Gender Equality Draft Bill, published 29 August 2012.

AUTHOR: Shout Africa
URL: http://www.shout-africa.com
E-MAIL: news [at] shout-africa.com

Roshni, who is in her late thirties, has a Bachelors degree in Education, a Masters degree in Child Education and an MBA in Educational Management. She has plenty of teaching experience, including as a PYP (Primary Years Programme) coordinator in an international school in Bangalore, and also serves on the board of trustees in a reputed school in Bangalore. Her interests lie in home schooling, e-learning, special education and international curriculum planning.

However, Roshni prefers to talk about her role as counselor of CRISP, a Bangalore-based NGO, that was founded a few years ago by Kumar Jahgirdar, among others, to combat the serious effects of parental alienation on children of divorced/separated parents. CRISP is concerned by the growing number of custody battles over children, and the consequent effect it has on young minds.

The organisation is pushing for reforms in family laws such as granting of immediate and equal child access to separated parents within 30 days from the date of filing for divorce and making co-parenting mandatory. It wants all cases related to custody of children to be disposed of within six months of application and punishment for misuse of laws, particularly related to dowry harassment and domestic violence.

Roshni counsels young men whose wives have resorted to the anti-dowry law and Domestic Violence (DV) Act to harass their husbands and deny them access to their own children. She feels women are, by and large, better communicators and are able to win the sympathy of judges in courts, thanks to their glib talk and persuasive manner. She says that it doesn’t matter if the husband is right — the courts are almost always swayed by the better communicator (the wife in nearly all cases), even when she is wrong.

Roshni counsels men and young fathers on how to communicate better and get their point across to others so that they can be heard. She says it doesn’t matter if the husband is highly educated. “All too often, I counsel MBAs and engineers from IITs who are simply unable to correspond effectively,” she says. “Men need to learn to communicate so that the harassment they are suffering on account of gender biased laws is brought to light.” Roshni has appeared on many television programmes to voice her demands for children’s rights, and she also wants safeguards to come into place so that men do not have to suffer because of the rampant abuse of laws that were made to protect women, such as Sec 498A IPC and the DV Act. These laws, she feels, are grossly biased against men as husbands who face abuse at the hands of their wives cannot take recourse to the DV Act to demand justice. The anti-dowry law (Sec 498A IPC) is often used by vengeful wives to harass entire families, including aged in-laws, married and pregnant sisters-inlaw and young brothers-in-law, apart from the husband. And, thanks to our judicial system, the courts take many years to deliver a verdict. Convictions in cases filed under these Acts are low, and many times innocent people have to run from pillar to post, and putting their lives on hold for many years, to prove themselves not guilty.

India is a secular democracy and everybody should stand equal before the law, says Roshni. But the laws of the land have been heavily tilted against men and in favour of women, especially in the marital sphere. For instance, even when a man declines dowry, the girl often comes with abaggage of wealth. If anything goes wrong, it is the husband and his family who get the legal boot. “I’m a warrior for women’s rights, but I strongly believe that agood number of men are suffering ignominies for no fault of theirs,” she adds.

Roshni says the National Commission for Women, and Health and Family Welfare both deal with issues confronting women. However, forget a ministry, there is not even a platform for men. She believes that there must be more awareness that men are not always aggressors who ill-treat women. They often share responsibility for the entire family. They ought to get equal justice at the hands of society, the judiciary and the media. “This is an argument for gender parity, not dominance,” she adds.

Roshni is also concerned about daughters facing abuse, deprivation, neglect and maltreatment in their natal homes. She has launched the ‘All India Daughters Protection Forum’ and regularly blogs on how children, especially daughters, need to be protected from exploitative parents, relatives and siblings. She wants inheritance rights for daughters in their parental homes and she is also demanding an integrated approach to the protection of the rights of daughters. The forum, Roshni says, is also against false allegations of domestic violence and dowry against husbands and in-laws. False charges, says Roshni, is tantamount to legal abuse and is an affront to real victims.

Roshni hopes to continue blogging and counselling until any real change comes about towards the problems of men in society. This is one determined lady who has vowed to make a difference.

By Nivedita Choudhuri, guest author about Roshni Mathan Pereira (author of NL-Aid).

AUTHOR: Roshni Pereira
URL: http://voiceofwomenindia.blogspot.com
E-MAIL: roshniper [at] gmail.com

A father in Mali, West Africa, helps his son and daughter with their homework. Photo: Plan Canada

I came across this quote this morning and it truly summed up all one should say on a day, such as today-Father’s Day;

A truly rich man is one whose children run into his arms when his hands are empty. Author Unknown

Today many fathers woke to smiling children excited to give them their special gifts-many handcrafted with nothing less than love-and ready to treat Dad to a special day. However for many Dads there is no special day as they fight to provide and care for their children. In developing countries, many fathers struggle to try and find regular income to provide their family with the very basics – food, water, shelter and medicines -let alone provide their children with an education.

How many of you heard your father say; “When you grow up, you can be whatever you want to be.”? It is what all father’s really wish -and what all children deserve. However many simple dreams are shattered as many children are denied an education, as many father’s feeling pressured by the inability to provide adequate food and shelter- are forced to send their children to work.  For many father’s providing these basic essential’s comes at an overlooked cost, as they work long hours -often in dangerous and harsh conditions- to provide for their families.  The children in these families are then denied a solid family core and relationship with their father’s.  In my recent post, International Day of Families, I noted; ”… it is vital that family-friendly policies are enacted that support a healthy and sustainable work-family balance, in order to ensure that individuals and families are able to provide both economically and emotionally for their dependents and members.” For Families -including father’s- are the core of our global stability and provide the foundation for a child’s development. Fathers play a unique and crucial role in nurturing and guiding children’s development and therefore their role must be increasingly valued by international development and aid. Nonetheless all men -especially father’s- must be made a central part of the battle for education, against child labor and gender discrimination. Thankfully many men in developing countries are increasingly rejecting wide-spread cultural stereotypes of manhood and stepping forward to challenge gender roles that compromise their well-being and the health of their their families.  Father’s who fight for a change in gender norms, not only have a positive impact on their family, but that of their entire community.

Fatherhood is one of the most important and undervalued jobs of all and today for all those who give selfishly each day to provide for your children today we all thank you.  For all fathers -rich or poor- may today you see the wealth and meaning of your life in the eyes of your children. May you know that the love, humility and wisdom that you bestow upon your child each day is truly the greatest gift you will ever give them. Happy Father’s Day!

AUTHOR: Cassandra Clifford
URL: www.bridgetofreedomfoundation.org and http://children.foreignpolicyblogs.com
E-MAIL: Cassandra [at] btff.org

Dear Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh:

I am William Nicholas Gomes, Human Rights Ambassador for Salem News.com. I would like to urgently bring to your notice and reiterate my concern about the treatment and care given to women and children who experience sexual assault in light of a series of disturbing news reports on this issue.

While on the one hand we acknowledge that the increasing numbers of news reports of sexual assault in the country could be indicative of women’s improved ability to report the crime, what concerns us about these reports is that they consistently reveal the woefully poor treatment meted out by state authorities to those who experience such violence.

One of the more recent and disturbing examples of this is the case of Soni Sori, who, after alleging sexual assault in police custody in Chhattisgarh state in October 2011, has waited for a long time for independent medical treatment and care without police intimidation or bias. The Chhattisgarh police took her to the Kolkata medical college hospital for independent medical treatment and examination following a Supreme Court order on October 20, 2011. After a hiatus of over six months, the Supreme Court of India issued another order on May 2, 2012, directing that Soni Sori be taken to New Delhi for follow-up medical treatment. Even six months after the alleged sexual assault, the Chhattisgarh state government has yet to register any First Information Report (FIR) and investigate the allegations of custodial torture.

The reports of bias and damaging stereotypes against survivors of sexual assault are endemic and cut across a range of government or other officials who provide assistance. These include the police, local government officials, public prosecutors, hospitals, staff of children’s homes, and even some judges in many parts of the country.

I remain deeply concerned by the extent of such bias and the poor care for those who experience sexual assault and would like to draw your attention to government reports that have recommended further government action:

• Recommendations of the Planning Commission Working Group on Women’s Agency and Empowerment: The Working Group recommended a ban on the two finger test, a medical examination that reinforces damaging stereotypes about rape survivors, and also stated that a range of services should be provided to rape survivors, including one stop centers. In particular it recommended that the government consider the “[s]etting up of One Stop Crisis Centres, on pilot basis, for providing shelter, police desk, legal, medical and counselling [sic] services to victims of violence under one roof” and that such a “center should be connected to a 24 hour Helpline.” The Working Group also recommended that “a Helpline for women preferably, an all-India one, with an effective back office social-legal support system should be established in the XII Plan. This would cover victims of domestic violence, rape and other atrocities against women.”

• Recommendations of the High Level Expert Group on Universal Health Coverage: The expert group recommended that the role of a community health worker be expanded to include prevention of gender-based violence and promotion of mental health services, and also envisaged post-violence trauma care at the village level (sub-center).

• The report of the Working Group on National Rural Health Mission for the XII Five Year Plan (2012-2017) states that “there would be a greater emphasis on rolling out programmes related to the prevention and a health system response to gender–based violence.”

Sexual assault could jeopardize the health of a survivor in many ways. These include pregnancy, exposure to HIV and other sexually transmitted diseases, and mental health concerns. The Indian government has an array of programs as part of its National Rural Health Mission, the Integrated Action Plan for Selected Tribal and Backward Districts, the proposed National Urban Health Mission, and the National Mental Health Program, but these have thus far not included detailed norms, monitoring parameters, guidelines, or related training for reproductive, sexual, and mental health care services for women and children who experience violence, especially sexual assault or abuse.

The Ministry of Women and Child Development announced a scheme for financial assistance for victims/survivors of rape in the country, which will in some ways assist women who have little or no money to pay for the post-trauma services they desperately need, but this scheme has yet to be implemented.

India is party to many international treaties that oblige it to respect, protect, and fulfill women’s and children’s rights to life, health, freedom from violence, and access to justice without discrimination. The Indian Constitution also guarantees the fundamental rights to life and equality before the law and equal protection of the law.

I hope you will treat this as an urgent national priority and take the following measures:

• Instruct all state governments to actively monitor the progress of registering first information reports (FIRs), investigating and prosecuting reports of sexual assault, and hold accountable those police officers who are not promptly registering FIRs, investigating crimes, and filing chargesheets.

• Constitute a high-level task force on response to violence against women and children. The expert group should develop a multi-pronged, coordinated response to gender-based violence, especially sexual assault, within a clear time frame and in a transparent and consultative manner.

Such a high-level task force should include representatives from the ministries of home, health, finance, women and child development, law and justice, road transport and highways, department of information technology, and leading experts in the fields of forensic science, reproductive and sexual health, mental health, and human rights.

The high-level task force should advise the government concerning the creation of a set of accessible, affordable, quality multidisciplinary joint response teams, one-stop crisis centers, and witness and victim protection programs, which are together funded by the central and state governments. These should have clearly specified norms for implementation, monitoring, and evaluating such responses. In particular, there should be a clear standard protocol for police action in accordance with international human rights law and existing Supreme Court guidelines and mechanisms. There should be a clear mechanism for monitoring police action and holding police accountable for inaction and interference while providing health care to those who experience violence.

The high-level task force should outline norms and standards for responses to violence against women and children, especially sexual assault, without discrimination based on language, caste, tribe, religion, political or other opinion, occupation, sex, gender, marital status, sexual orientation, disability, migrant, HIV or other status. In particular, the task force should ensure that treatment for those living with HIV, disability, persons from transgender communities, sex workers, and those reporting sexual assault by police is provided in a nondiscriminatory manner.

• Integrate within programs like the National Rural Health Mission, the proposed Urban Rural Health Mission, and the Integrated Action Plan for Selected Tribal and Backward Districts, a strong response to violence against women and children, especially sexual violence, outlining clear entitlements and services that should be provided at the village, block, and district levels, both community-based and facility-based. These services should include access to emergency contraceptives, prophylactic medications, counseling, and information about HIV and other sexually transmittable diseases.

• Allocate and disburse funds for the implementation of the existing scheme for financial assistance for victims/survivors of rape and develop a monitoring framework to evaluate how well this scheme is being implemented across the country.

I hope you will treat this as urgent national priority. I look forward to receiving information regarding the steps taken by your office to initiate measures in response to the concerns raised and recommendations made in this letter. Please do not hesitate to contact me for additional information.

AUTHOR: William Nicholas Gomes
URL: www.williamgomes.org
E-MAIL: williamgomes.org [at] gmail.com

He narrated how difficult it was to arrest women who are engaged in women circumcision popularly known as ‘ngariba’ in Kiswahili. “This is a culture which is deeply rooted in some ethnic groups in Tanzania, so people tend to take it as a normal practice,” he commented.

He elaborated that recently his organization in collaboration with the Police Force managed to tail activities of one woman who looked like a much respected person, only to find that she has been conducting such activities for more than 15 years. It was very difficult to pin this woman because unfortunately she is a disabled person, a situation which would have just attracted sympathy to her.

Selasini added further that FGM and many other forms of gender based violence (GBV) could only be eradicated if education is extended to dwellers in rural areas constantly and if monitoring is conducted regularly. He added that currently the main problem is that many gender and human rights activists are concentrated in urban areas leaving the rural areas to very few NGOs like his.

He thanked efforts by some volunteers and legal institutions like the Legal and Human Rights Centre (LHRC), for their constant intervention but asked other organizations particularly religious bodies to forward strong messages against GBV, matrimonial violence and other forms of malpractice like FGM.
He challenged the Ministry of Education and Vocational Training to arrange ways to conduct awareness training in areas which have been identified as hot spots in violation of human rights against women and children, but also the media to address this problem more seriously.

He revealed that women and children in remote areas are living in extreme poverty due to limited opportunities for education, economic empowerment and other social services. It is unfortunate in these communities a girl child is expected to marry and bring wealth to the family. To her the only respectable opportunity she has is to get married and before that she has to undergo FGM to make her valuable in the society.

Female Genital Mutilation (FGM), has been an agenda of activists in many parts in Tanzania where it has been enshrined, however there have been deliberate actions to counter these activists including intimidations from perpetrators of these immoral acts.

“FGM is brutally conducted without any medical justification; the cutting often done by elderly women is performed without anesthesia causing severe pain, excessive blood loss, wound infection and other lifelong complications. Further the increasing number of women with fistula is directly linked to difficult or prolonged deliveries caused by the scar formed after genital cutting,” he added.

Elaborating further Selasini said that the financial support from the Japanese people will help in a strong training programme that is meant to create awareness to parents, girls and other stakeholders in a bid to protect more women and girls from having their human rights abused which is characteristic of many African families.

On his side Ambassador Okada said that his Government decided to assist financially this network including its centre of Lekrimuni after realizing that in some Africa families the women are subjected to treatment which is retrogressive and could contribute to abject poverty if there are no intervention measures.

According to Selasini, with this financial assistance the centre is expected to provide children with pre-school studies, being sensitized against FGM and other harmful traditional practices, being constantly monitored and prevented from parents’ temptation to put them through FGM and marrying them off.
So far the following areas have been identified as being notorious in FGM in Tanzania – Dodoma, Singida, Tarime, Simanjiro and Siha among the Maasai communities. But in essence forced marriages exist in many pastoral communities whereby girls are seen as sources of income through cows which are obtained in the form of dowry.

Other projects that were sponsored by the Japanese Government included the Rungwe District Council for the expansion of Katumba 11 Primary School for the Disabled which received US$ 112,092. Another beneficiary is the Registered Trustees of Share and Care Foundation for the construction of orphan’s hostels at Kakora Primary School in Kwimba District, Mwanza Region US$79.054.

The grant was also extended to Buza Primary School for improvement of Safety and Sanitation at Buza Primary School in Temeke Municipality, Dar es Salam Region US$111, 095.

AUTHOR: Elias Mhegera
URL: http://mhegeraelias.blogspot.com
E-MAIL: mhegeraelias [at] yahoo.com

Thanks to the efforts being made by some non governmental organization that such issues are being made public and since they are significant development it needs to be highlighted.

The subject of discussion is the meeting of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgendered (LGBT) that held on March 10, 2012 in Chennai. This was the third meeting of such kind within three months and consisted of twenty women who self define as lesbian, bisexual or transgender (female to male).

The group identified from their experiences within Tamil Nadu that due to their sexual orientation some members face; rejection from friends and family members, discrimination within society and within the workplace, forced marriage, domestic violence, depression etc.

Some felt isolated and alienated after coming out due to a lack of social networks. Members felt that there was an overall lack of understanding about lesbianism due to a lack of education and information.

They felt that Lesbian Gay Bi sexual Transgender (LGBT) organizations remain to focus on the needs of the MSM community.

They requested that they have their own women only space to express their own views, to ensure that their voices are heard and that their needs are met.

During the meeting the group decided that it is essential to ensure that support systems are put in place, by creating a peer led support group which will meet once every two months and provide a congenial atmosphere to discuss the concerned issues.

They also aim to provide peer advocacy to ensure that women feel empowered to accept and express their identities fully and to reduce the marginalization and stigmatization which they face within society.

The Indian Community Welfare Organisation is the Non Governmental Organisation that’s working for multiple marginalized people.

It is seeking to address the issues which LGBT women face within Chennai as patriarchal systems and moralistic attitudes towards lesbians within the city continue to prevent many from coming out. Such discriminatory and oppressive views can cause a variety of psychological and emotional issues for these concerned women, says A.J. Hariharan, Secretary – ICWO.

‘ICWO began to address these issues in 2009 by initiating Chennai’s first lesbian helpline (04465515742) as a response after two married women committed suicide by setting themselves ablaze in North Chennai in May 2008, due to their relationship being prohibited,’ says Hariharan.

‘Despite the helpline being in place this lesbian, bisexual and transgender (female to male) women remain somewhat invisible within the city’.

‘The organization estimates that there are many women within the city who are in a dilemma about accepting their sexual orientation, are fearful of others finding out about it, may be experiencing isolation or are facing harassment or discrimination for having spoken out about it,’ he adds.

‘As a response to theses concerns ICWO has engaged in creating a peer led women’s LGBTQ support group, for those who identify as women who love women’.

‘The aim of the group is to create a safe social space where Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgendered women can share their experiences and talk openly about their sexuality. Where they can meet other women who can offer support, help and to build a mutually supportive network’.

‘ICWO is also committed to engage in explorative research on the experiences of lesbians within Chennai. It aims to setup a panel of support including counselors, lawyers and LGBT activists’.

‘It plans plan to hold workshops to identify the specific needs of this population’. ICWO is networking with similar groups and organizations within other cities and aim to create a women’s only LGBT drop in centre in its premise’ Hariharan concludes.

AUTHOR: Mujtaba Syed
URL: http://mujtabas-musings.blogspot.com
E-MAIL: syedalimujtaba [at] yahoo.com

This counsel was given by Ms Agnes Mwasembo when speaking to human rights defenders in Mbozi town, Mbeya region, Southern Highlands of Tanzania recently, during a visit to her office by representatives of the Tanzania Human Rights Defenders Coalition (THRD).

The survey was aimed at looking ways of merging activities of human rights activists and employees in the social welfare department and NGOs in seeking for gender parity.

Ms Mwasembo, apart from being a district community officer is an activist, and deputy secretary with the Mbeya based Human Rights National Association of Educators for World Peace. The NGO has been dealing with the needy, amongst the population with regard to human rights issues.

She says in her office she has been receiving cases of desertion, domestic violence, abandoned children, street children and matrimonial conflict, where some cases are still in court at present. She elaborates that it is hardest for widows who are so often kicked out of their family houses.

“I have been receiving sad cases where women are harassed, pointed to as having bewitched their husbands, and even at times blamed that they are the source of HIV/Aids infection in cases where their spouses have passed away as a result of this deadly disease,” she said.

She was supported by Ms Gift Sichone, a social welfare officer who says that in many matrimonial separations which her office has handled, she has witnessed a wrangle over child care where the two sides claim that they can look after the children well, but that is not true in many cases. “It is sadly true that at times divorcees claim the children simply because they know that this will guarantee them a flow of money, but men want to take their children simply because they want to cut off communications with their former spouses altogether, this is a serious challenge,” she commented.

She further related that in situations of this nature women were susceptible to Gender Based Violence (GBV), particularly if they had established new matrimonial relationships, and since it is a right for both parents to see their children there was always a necessity to escort them in order to avoid intimidation.

Statistics at the Mbozi offices indicate that from December 2010 to December 2011 there were 16 GBV cases that reached the district welfare office. In the same period there were three estate and land cases regarding widows who had been kicked out of their homes.

Two cases reached the office where women had lost everything after their husbands passed away, four cases were resolved in the same office. In Tunduma one parent who was granted care of the children after a separation had submitted a written statement not allowing his former wife to visit their children in their boarding school.

In the same period there were four rape cases but it is claimed that family members and some Police officials had colluded for an out-of-court settlement. Efforts to get comments from the Mbozi OCD, Vitus Dudu, proved futile.

AUTHOR: Elias Mhegera
URL: http://mhegeraelias.blogspot.com
E-MAIL: mhegeraelias [at] yahoo.com

Indian girls celebrate Holi Fesival

Over the past few years I have written a number of posts on the issue of gender-based discrimination resulting in infanticide, especially regarding the heartbreaking case of India’s alarming rate of ‘missing girls’. As mentioned in my posts Indian Infanticide Causing A Population Imbalance, India’s Infanticide Shame, and India’s Missing Girls, the case of infanticide in India is not a new story. The alarming rate of infanticide in India may amount to what could be easily considered the worst form of gender inequality.

Despite international attention and outcry over the years, the use of sex-selective abortions remains common in India.  Indian laws outlawed the practice since 1994, however  infanticide continues to remain widespread, shifting underground.  In 2008 Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh stated that the country should be ashamed of this practice. It is estimated that each year 500,000 female fetuses are aborted because of their gender.

“This is a national shame and we must face this challenge squarely here and now. No nation, no society, no community can hold its head high and claim to be part of the civilized world if it condones the practice of discriminating against one half of humanity represented by women,” Prime Minister Manmohan Singh stated at a conference on ways to “Save the girl child” on Monday (Google/Associated Press).

While infanticide is more widespread in rural populations, it effects all social classes, reaffirming girl’s social stigma as well as poverty. Girls are seen as a burden, while boys are considered an investment that will provide for their families; the gender balance is clearly heavily shifted towards the male population.  The long-term impact of female infanticide practices on the Indian population was revealed a few years ago, especially in the more densely populated states in the northwest of the country, such as Haryana, Punjab, and Uttar Pradesh. The practice is significantly tilting the gender ratio in these regions.  Research shows that India has lost 12 million females due selective abortions in the last three decades. However, India’s 2011 national census revealed that while the overall female-to-male ratio has marginally improved since the last census in 2001, fewer girls were born than boys and the number of girls under 6 plummeted for the fifth decade running.

Recently, the battle to fight infanticide in India has taken a new turn, seeking the help of technology.  A new mechanical device, ‘the Silent Observer’, allows authorities to track sonograms and monitor doctors’ abortion decisions.  The device is drawing fire from Indian activists as failing to be a solution to gender-selective abortions (Trust Law).   While this new technology may help prevent some of India’s infanticide, it is unclear whether it will only drive the practice further underground.  While it is true that the country must take a more proactive approach and stamp down on this unthinkable form of gendercide, the issue has been brought to light again and again, especially in the last five years, with only a small decrease in the practice.  It appears that little progress has been made and sustainable change seems to remain in the distant future. Until the government and international community really stamp down, but more importantly educate the population on the long term effects of sex discrimination and infanticide, the fate of girls across India is in danger.

AUTHOR: Cassandra Clifford
URL: www.bridgetofreedomfoundation.org and http://children.foreignpolicyblogs.com
E-MAIL: Cassandra [at] btff.org

Marisela Escobedo, with a wanted sign for her daughter's murderer

A Background Paper by Andrea Medina Rosas and Laura Carlsen

I. INTRODUCTION

Mexico is facing a major human rights and humanitarian crisis. Fifty thousand people have been murdered in the war on drugs just since 2007. Thousands more have been displaced, orphaned and forcibly disappeared. Mexican society is divided by fear between those who welcome a military approach to the growing chaos and those who believe that the military approach is the cause of it. The Calderon government, with encouragement and financial support from the U.S. government, refuses to consider alternatives to its drug war, even as the situation grows worse and the ruling conservative party risks paying a high political price in the 2012 presidential elections.

This crisis has revealed a deeper and more ingrained institutional crisis. While thousands of crimes are committed in the context of the current violence, the justice system fails to prosecute even a tiny fraction of them. Rampant corruption, accepted as a way of life in normal times, now erodes any attempt to bring the situation under control.

Although a peace movement has arisen that seeks to support justice for the victims and advocates policy changes in dialogue with government officials, the number of new cases emerging far surpasses its capacity to address them. The gendered aspects of the crisis remain invisible. Women are a minority of the victims, but it is usually women who lead efforts to bring about justice in the cases of their loved ones and their communities. These bold human rights defenders have become targets, with little means of protection or support. Gender-based violence has risen precipitously under cover of a society engulfed in violence and lacking basic institutional capacity—or political will– to deal with it.

II. CONTEXT

1) Weak institutions, corruption and lack of justice. Although Mexico did not experience the armed conflicts and military dictatorships of other countries in the region, its democratic and judicial institutions are weak and do not comply fully with their obligations. This is the result of 71 years of authoritarian, one-party rule (1929-2000) and the persistence of systematic corruption and use of the State apparatus in the interests of those holding political and economic power.

The justice system successfully prosecutes only an estimated 2% of crimes committed, excluding those that are not reported due to lack of faith in the system, those that are never investigated by authorities, and those that are thrown out of court. This situation encourages the continued commission of political crimes, crimes by cartels, gender crimes and common delinquency—without punishment, social or legal consequences, or transparency.

The system also routinely discriminates on the basis of sex, class, ethnicity and age (see below). Moreover, there is a severe shortage of resources to respond to violations of human rights, exacerbated by the extreme rise in complaints since the onset of the war on drugs.

2) Femicides, human rights violations and simulation. An important precedent to the current crisis is the case of the femicides in Ciudad Juarez, Chihuahua. First denounced in 1993, this case exemplifies gender-based violence since the murders of the young women share traits of extreme sexual violence and torture, and also reveals the lack of political will to investigate and resolve crimes against women in Mexico. In this case and others, the Mexican government has developed a response of carrying out formal and much-publicized actions to address the human rights problem without making any real changes or progress. Defenders call this tactic “simulation.” Thus, despite recent constitutional reforms on human rights and the fact that Mexico has ratified most international conventions, the enforcement of the law is totally inadequate due to the lack of real commitment by federal, state and local governments.

3) General violence and gender violence as part of the “war on drugs”. The war on drugs launched in December of 2006 by President Felipe Calderon and supported by the U.S. government led to the deployment of some 45,000 troops throughout Mexico and a dramatic increase in violence. More than 50,000 people have been killed and thousands more disappeared, displaced and orphaned. Complaints of human rights violations involving security forces have risen at least sixfold. Militarization has brought new threats and additional risks to women human rights defenders, especially in indigenous regions, along the northern border and in other zones of intense conflict. Cases of rape, abuse and murder attributed to the armed forces have risen, along with similar crimes attributed to the drug cartels.

II. The Current Crisis for Women Human Rights Defenders in Mexico

Mexican women human rights defenders confront threats and graves risks in carrying out their work while trying to assure their own personal safety. Government officials and security forces are often those responsible for the threats, along with conservative groups, hostile media, and criminal groups. The challenges for the protection of defenders are to guarantee their immediate security through their own social and civil networks, since it is not possible to trust the government to do it. At the same time, to bolster the democratic state and rule of law they continue to demands that the government fulfill its obligations to assure the safety of human rights workers.

There are three main aspects that characterize the current human rights crisis:

1. Lack of justice. Human rights violations and threats to human rights defenders are often not even investigated properly. There are seldom sanctions, reparations for damages, or programs of prevention. This makes it possible for organized crime or individuals to become more violent against women and women defenders, in collusion with the authorities. To carry out the defense of human rights safely, it is urgent to en impunity, since that is what causes the chain of violence against defenders for demanding justice, which often extends even to the families of victims or their own families.

In alarming contrast to the lack of effective legal proceedings in cases of human rights violations and attacks on human rights defenders, there has been an increase in the use of the justice system to criminalize social protest and the work of many defenders, in an effort to repress their activity.

2. Culture of discrimination against women

The Interamerican Human Rights Court has pronounced sentences against Mexico affirming that the Mexican government and its officials maintains a culture of discrimination against women that propitiates violence against women. This discrimination is more intense against indigenous, young, migrant, poor and lesbian women and women who demand justice. There are also more attacks on defenders who defend women’s reproductive and sexual rights. Conservative groups are attacking those who promote the right to choose and defend women in jail for aborting, and those who defend sexual diversity. Discrimination exists not only in the laws and rules, but especially in practices of government officials that result in unequal access to justice and the preservation of a misogynist culture.

This aspect is important since the majority of those who seek justice, are searching for loved ones, or denounce violations of human rights are women. They are the mothers, wives, daughters that are emerging as the new group of defenders.

3. Lack of real and effective public policy and defense from the Mexican state.

Military presence in many parts of the country, and the absence of the state in others, reveals that the actions being carried out in defense of human rights are isolated, and not coordinated between the three levels of government or between different offices, agencies and branches of government. Citizens do not know their rights or how the institutions set up to guarantee them work. Worse, there is a campaign to link the work of human rights defenders with criminals. The few guarantees offered by the government to defend rights, such as precautionary measures, are near useless since there is no budget to implement them and they are not coordinated among the institutions charged with applying them.

III. Cases

1. Josefina Reyes: Grassroots leader from Valle de Juárez, Chihuahua who worked for peace and denounced violations of human rights by the armed forces sent into the region as part of the drug war. Reyes was assassinated Jan. 3, 2010. Following her murder, her family has suffered threats, harassment and attacks, including the assassinations of her brother Rubén Reyes (murdered prior to Josefina’s death); and brother, sister and sister-in-law María Magdalena Reyes, Elías Reyes and Luisa Ornelas (murdered in Feb 2011).

2. Marisela Escobedo: In August 2008, Rubi Frayre, daughter of Marisela Escobedo, disappeared. Her remains were found as a result  of a search by the family that led to the culprit, Rubi’s former boyfriend, Sergio Barraza, who confessed to the crime. Incredibly, three state judges let Barraza go free. As a result of Marisela’s protests and public outcry, Barraza was later sentenced for the crime but had already fled. Marisela continued to demand justice and on Dec. 16, 2010 she was shot and killed as she protested outside the State Capitol. The crime has not been solved.

3. Blanca Velásquez: Defender and organizer for the labor rights in Puebla, Velásquez founded and directed the Center for Worker Support (CAT). Since 2008 she has been attacked repeatedly for denouncing violations of labor rights by transnational corporations. She ahs received death threats, beatings, and threats against her and other members of CAT. The organization has had its offices raided, robbing the archives, equipment and resources; it has had its phone lines tapped. Publicly its business leaders have named Blanca as a social danger and affirmed that government officials back them up. This has endangered the organization and its members.

IV. FACT SHEET

1. Since 2010, six women human rights defenders have been registered as murdered in Mexico: Chihuahua-Marisela Escobedo, Susana Chávez, Malena Reyes, Luisa Ornelas, Josefina Reyes; Oaxaca-Beatriz Cariño.

2. An estimated 98% of crimes committed in Mexico are never solved or sanctioned.

3. The war on drugs has left 50,000 dead, thousands of displaced and disappeared. Women represent the majority of those who file complaints in the search for justice for victims and their families.

4. The number of femicides in Chihuahua since sending the army in has risen to 837 for the period 2008-2011 June—nearly double total femicides in1993-2007.

5. The last report by the Special Rapporteur on Defenders recognized that threats and especially “explicit death threats, against women human rights defenders are one of the main forms of violence in the region, with more than half coming from Latin America, most of those (27) from Mexico.

IV. Petitions to the Mexican Government and International Organizations

1. Include a gender perspective in the diagnosis and risk analysis.

This implies studying the gender-specific nature of threats to men and women, and of the impact of measures designed to protect them.

2. Effective local protective measures.

Applying only individual measures has been shown to be counter-productive since instead of protection and modifying the situation of risk, they increase risks by giving the government more control over the defenders and their work. Protective measures should include: a) an assurance that full investigations will be carried out and sanctions applied to officials involved in attacks on or discrimination against women defenders, b) guarantee psycho-social support, even in case of displacement, c) include processes with the media and with communities affected by the attacks on defenders.

3. International monitoring to implement protective measures. The international community should monitor the situation to distinguish the rhetoric from the reality and measure real results. Follow up by international human rights organizations requires real indicators of evaluation, benchmarks and mechanisms for monitoring by civil society.

4. Focus support on the organizations and women human rights defenders themselves. Although guarantees of rights is the responsibility of the government, it is fundamental to strengthen the organizations and create networks of women human rights defenders to assure their immediate and effective protection.

V. Links and resources for more information:

Centro de Derechos Humanos Tlachinollan  www.tlachinollan.org (Español). For information on the case of Ines and Valentina http://www.tlachinollan.org/Ines-y-Valentina/ines-y-vale.html

Caso Campo Algodonero http://www.campoalgodonero.org.mx/   English: “Cotton Field” case

Articles and Report:

Report on the Situation of Women Human Rights Defenders (on line 2011 report )

Amnesty International on Josefina Reyes http://www.amnesty.org/en/news-and-updates/news/mexico-urged-protect-activists-after-campaigner-shot-dead-20100106

The Murdered Women of Juarez http://www.cipamericas.org/archives/3895

AUTHOR: Laura Carlsen
URL: www.cipamericas.org and http://americasmexico.blogspot.com
E-MAIL: lecarlsen [at] gmail.com

Women earn less than men for similar work and, despite the growing focus on reducing gender inequality in recent years, the pay gap is widening.

“Women in developing economies in particular are worse off today than they were last year, giving credence to the impression that women bear the brunt of economic downturns,” says Sandra Burmeister, CEO of the Landelahni Recruitment Group.

In South Africa, women earn on average 34% less than their male counterparts, compared to 33% a year ago. The pay gap is at its lowest in the non-profit sector at 5%. In the public sector it is 27%, with the private sector pay gap rising to 35.5%. When it comes to industry sectors, the trade, transport and hospitality sector performs best at a 24% pay gap, followed by commercial services, agriculture, manufacturing and building at 35%.

“Effectively, this means that women work for free for four months a year, while men work and get paid for a full year,” says Burmeister.

According to a recent World Economic Forum (WEF) survey of 134 countries, the gender gap as measured by economic participation and opportunity, education, health and political empowerment widened in 41% of the 134 countries surveyed. Globally, the average gender pay gap for similar work was 35%, up from 34% in 2009.

“According to research,” says Burmeister, “the gender pay gap for similar work exists across most occupations in both developed and developing economies, although it is wider in developing nations.”

A WageIndicator survey covering 37 countries confirms that men earn considerably more than women. Europe exhibits the narrowest pay gap, with an average of just under 20%. Africa shows a 29% gap, followed by the Americas, with a gap of about 33%. Asia shows the widest differential at a 40% pay gap.

Denmark leads the way as one of the world’s most egalitarian countries. On average a professional woman earns 91% of the pay of her male peers. By contrast, India and Brazil exhibit a wide income gap, with a female worker earning 64% of that of her male peers in the same occupation and with the same qualifications.

In Sub-Saharan Africa, SA comes second after Lesotho in terms of gender equality, followed by Mozambique, Namibia and Uganda, with Benin, Cote d’Ivoire, Mali and Chad trailing at the bottom of the list.

According to the WageIndicator survey, the gender pay gap widens with age. For women under 25 years, the gender pay gap is 15%. Between the ages of 25 and 34 years, it widens to 19%. This widening trend accelerates in the middle-age group (35-50 years) to reach 25%. Finally, during the later years of their working career, the earnings gap widens at a slower rate, with women over 50 experiencing a pay gap of 27%.

“Surprisingly, women with a degree earn on average 30% less than their male peers with similar levels of education, whereas the gap is lower for those with a basic or high-school education,” says Burmeister. “It seems that a graduate degree pays off for men more than it does for women.

“In the past, research attributed the gender pay gap largely to differences in the skills and experience that women bring to the labour market, differences in education and the career choices made by women, along with family status and carrying most of the household burden. Discrimination was also shown as a major factor.

“We need to look at gender issues more broadly. There are several progressive, yet practical options that exist for the 21st century organisation in narrowing the gender gap. We have found that women are becoming more independent, socially, financially and emotionally. Many are relinquishing traditional roles as they enter and advance in the work place. A recent Markinor survey shows that ‘the new breed of ambitious females reveals a level of contempt for traditional roles’.

“Many women are ambitious and committed to self-empowerment. They welcome the opportunity to be fast tracked in a career, based on recognition of their truth worth.

“Today’s workplace should include innovative practices such flexible working and job-sharing, and offer equal training and development opportunities for women. In addition, we need to change stereotypes that women are worth less and deserve to be paid less than men. The inculcation of gender stereotypes begins at an early age, and school is the place to tackle and change attitudes to gender issues.

“Improving gender and pay equality is good for business, and increases productivity and economic growth. According to the WEF, closing the male-female employment gap would have huge economic benefits, boosting GDP by as much as 16%.

“By drawing on the full complement of available talent at all levels of the organisation, particularly in top leadership teams, companies have been shown to produce better financial results, particularly as opportunities grow in the knowledge economy. It makes sound business sense for pay inequality and job barriers for women to be removed.”

AUTHOR: Shout Africa
URL: http://www.shout-africa.com
E-MAIL: news [at] shout-africa.com