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Doc. 8731

18 April 2000

Follow-up action to the United Nations 4th World Conference on Women (Beijing, 1995)

Report

Committee on Equal Opportunities for Women and Men

Rapporteur: Ms Yvette Roudy, France, Socialist Group

Summary

      The committee considered that it was necessary to assess progress made since the conference in Beijing in 1995.

      Although member states have undeniably implemented policies to improve the situation of women and reduce inequality, progress still remains to be made.

      The committee proposes that the Assembly ask states not to relax their efforts and to recommend that measures be taken in the areas of employment, social protection and violence, as well as training and information.

I.       Draft resolution

1. The Assembly recognises the value of a world debate on issues concerning equality between women and men.

2. The Assembly maintains that inequality and disparities between women and men in the field of human rights are inconsistent with the principles of genuine democracy. That was why it considered it important that states, especially the member states of the Council of Europe, honour the commitments entered into at the 4th World Conference on Women in Beijing in 1995.

3. Five years on, it has become necessary to assess the progress made by member states since 1995 and to decide what steps should be taken in the years to come.

4. Although many member states have implemented policies designed to improve women's situation and reduce inequality, progress still needs to be made in many areas.

5. The Assembly reiterates its belief that women's rights are inalienable and indivisible and an integral part of human rights.

6. In this context, the Assembly recalls its Resolution 1212 (2000) on rape in armed conflicts, in which it reaffirms “the inalienable right of women who have been raped to undergo voluntary termination of pregnancy if they wish”;

7. The Assembly therefore urges the governments of member states to introduce legislative and administrative measures designed to:

i. reduce inequality as regards access to employment and working conditions by establishing equal treatment, parental leave for both fathers and mothers and part-time work for women and men;

ii. provide for the social protection of mothers;

iii. recognise that violence in general constitutes a violation of human rights, and combat it, particularly by means of prevention and information campaigns aimed at all those concerned (police, judges, social workers, etc);

iv. ensure that women who have been subjected to violence are given assistance and increased protection by providing social and psychological and, where appropriate, financial assistance;

v. ensure an adequate information on and budgeting for birth control;

vi. ensure a medical assistance for women wishing to terminate an unwanted pregnancy;

vii. establish an education system based on parity, from the primary school stage onwards, in order to ensure equal access to all levels of training;

viii. organise information campaigns for teachers, journalists, social workers and civil servants to heighten their awareness of equal opportunities;

ix. encourage women to take up studies, particularly in science and the new technologies;

x. develop training courses for women at all stages of their life;

xi. ensure equal access to credit for women wishing to start a business;

xii. encourage the media to produce programmes aimed at promoting equal opportunities;

xiii. implement measures to prevent and combat trafficking in women and prostitution by harmonising criminal law in this field and stepping up national and international co-operation between the authorities concerned, including the police, the authorities responsible for migration, the customs authorities and the non-governmental organisations concerned;

xiv. encourage and promote increased participation by women in the decision-making process;

xv. promote parity at political and public level, in particular by asking political parties to draw up lists composed of equal numbers of women and men and make their financing subject to the achievement of this objective.

II.        Explanatory Memorandum by Mrs Yvette Roudy

Introduction

1. The Committee on Equal Opportunities for Women and Men of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe, which was set up on 26 January 1998, was given the specific task of "supervising the implementation of commitments undertaken by Council of Europe member states in the Platform for Action adopted by the 4th World Conference on Women in Beijing in 1995 and reporting periodically on this issue to the Assembly".

2. Since it was set up, the Committee has adopted a report on parity in politics and has drawn special attention to the problems of violence against women, rape in armed conflict, the sexual mutilation of women, trafficking and prostitution, as well as domestic slavery.

3. All of these themes are closely linked to the recommendations formulated during the Beijing conference.

4. The aim of this report, in accordance with the afore-mentioned terms of reference, is therefore to take stock of the progress made in the different sectors and in relation to the recommendations in the domains which the committee considered most relevant.

5. The United Nations Fourth World Conference on Women which was held from 4 to 15 September 1995 in Beijing attracted delegations from 189 countries in order to make progress in reaching “Equality, Development and Peace” for all women in the interest of all the humanity.

6. The first impulse for these conferences was made in Mexico City in 1975. Since then, at regular intervals (5 to 10 years), official delegations from the different countries which have participated tried to establish a consensus on subjects concerning women’s rights and welfare, health problems, political and economic life. Parallel to the official meetings of the conferences, forums have been held by NGOs and several associations.

7. These world conferences represented a major step forward in attitudes and bring into the open certain realities which have been always occulted.

8. They have also allowed to disseminate more information about what women’s lives are really like in order to try to give more weight to the introduction of gender policies.

9. The Beijing Conference aimed to two objectives: first, to examine the results of the policies introduced after the UN Third World Conference on Women in Nairobi in 1985 and ensure their implementation up to the year 2000 and secondly, to draw up a new platform for work, as it turned out a Declaration and Platform for Action to give fresh impetus to the process of improving the situation of women’s rights throughout the world.

10. The Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action are based on the different studies that emerged from the United Nations Decade for Women (1975-1985), the earlier conferences on women (Mexico City (1975) and Nairobi (1985)), as well as other United Nations conferences on precise themes but with links in this field: Rio Summit on the environment (1992), Vienna Conference on Human Rights (1993), Cairo Conference on population (1994) and the Copenhagen Summit for social development (1995).

11. The Declaration states once again the crucial role played by women in sustainable economic development, protection of the environment and respect for democracy and the principle that women’s rights are an integral part of the universal human rights and fundamental freedoms and as such inalienable. Any form of violence against women is a violation of these rights and the provision of health and education services, among others, is crucial for the exercise of these rights.

12. The Platform for Action highlighted 12 specific areas (poverty, education and training, health, violence, armed conflicts, economic activities, power-sharing and decision-making, institutional mechanisms, human rights, the media, the environment, and young girls). For each of these particular fields, governments, together with the United Nations Organisation, the international community and the NGOs, have undertaken to set objectives and do everything possible to achieve them.

13. However the Platform for Action is not binding and it implementation depends mainly on the responsibility and the will of governments, but also on public and private institutions and NGOs.

14. Five years after the signing of this document, the Parliamentary Assembly considered that it was the moment to examine what the different governments have done and evaluate the progress made in the different fields of action. The fact is that the commitments entered into in Beijing must not be allowed to remain a dead letter and the problems which have been evocated and for which certain countries have taken adequate measures should be studied.

15. To prepare this report, a questionnaire has been sent to the national parliaments of the 41 member States. 16 countries responded to this request: Austria, Belgium, Croatia, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Finland, Iceland, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Slovakia, Spain, Sweden and Switzerland. However it should be noted that most of the information received do not give figures to permit the impact of policies to be properly evaluated.

16. Lastly, it should be pointed out that this report is not exhaustive. It focused on points common to the 41 Council of Europe member states, taking account of their different political, economic and social situations. The aspects of international co-operation, aid or armed conflicts are excluded. However, this aid and co-operation do exist and many European countries support development projects oriented towards women. We should also take note of the spontaneous solidarity shown towards women in the case of armed conflicts. Unfortunately 1999 has shown many concrete examples of this and it was seen that there was a need for greater involvement of women in the resolution of conflicts, and involvement in the humanitarian aid programmes.

I.       The different actions implemented

A.       In the economic and employment fields

17. In Beijing, the governments undertook to fight against poverty affecting women and to accordingly modify macro-economic policies to take account of the economic well-being of women, who should be fully integrated in the economic structures of the country and be able to enjoy the fruits of growth on an equal footing with the men. As a result, all economic decisions of a structural nature should be examined from the standpoint of gender by taking into consideration their impact on women’s lives. This is what is known as mainstreaming, that is to say the integration of the concept of equal opportunities in all policies.To this we must add the necessity to increase the proportion of women in decision-making posts.

18. The principle of “equal pay for equal work” should be reaffirmed and guaranteed by governments through appropriate legislation. Some countries (France, Czech Republic, Norway, Belgium, Finland, Luxembourg, Switzerland, Slovenia), have set up a special government department to implement and enforce policies aimed at promoting equality between women and men in the economic field. A first task here was to collect statistics and in so far as legislation already existed, to ensure that it was more effectively enforced.

19. Most countries (France, Norway, Belgium, Sweden, Spain, Finland, Luxembourg, Poland, Slovakia, Estonia, Slovenia) have already adopted in their legislation the principle of the professional equality of women and men, which prohibits any gender-based discrimination in the exercise of a gainful activity, especially as regards refusal to hire a woman, unfair dismissal or the wording of job vacancy advertisements.

20. Some member states (France, Spain, Italy, Luxembourg, United Kingdom, Switzerland, Poland, Slovenia) have developed strategies to meet the needs of women living in poverty, by facilitating namely the access to social assistance, to housing and health care by simplifying procedures and co-ordinating the actions of public authorities and associations.

21. On the whole, measures have been introduced to make it easier for women set up their own businesses and to allow them to take more frequent advantage of special training leave. For example, real possibilities now at last exist for women to acquire an education they were unable to get when they were younger. In the field of vocational training, measures are taken to permit unemployed women wishing to return to the world of work to receive appropriate training. Enterprises are also being called upon to invest in the education and continuing training of their employees.

22. Some countries (Portugal, Austria, Spain, Slovenia) have taken into account the domestic work by trying to evaluate it. The fact is that women spend most of their time in domestic work, which is not included in the national accounts figures. Furthermore, it has been noted that in the developing countries, women are active in the grey economy, which is difficult to detect and evaluate.

23. To permit a better integration of women on the labour market, some member states (Spain, Luxembourg, Slovakia, Slovenia) have taken action to help both women and men to better reconcile family and working life, by amending the texts of the laws governing work, maternity and parental leave, improvement of the social services system, above all services for children and home care.

24. Lastly, the most obvious cause of poverty among women is their lack of economic independence which is the result of insufficient training, menial and badly paid work, and too much dependence on the income of the couple. As a result, if the family cell splits up, some women find themselves in very precarious situations.

B.       In the public sector: power-sharing, institutional arrangements and parity

25. In Beijing, States undertook to promote equality between the sexes within their institutions, in political parties as well as in the international bodies by introducing measures aiming at optimising the policies for advancing women in public life.

26. Some member States (Italy, Switzerland, Slovakia, United Kingdom, Luxembourg, Finland, Slovenia, Estonia, Austria, France, Norway, Belgium, Sweden, Spain) set up ministries or ministerial departments with specific responsibility for managing policies for women and ensuring their implementation. They are generally transversal institutions which work with several ministries. Mention should be made for example of the national committees for the achievement of equality or parliamentary committees, etc., whose main activity is to favour the political activity of women, but also to promote equality between women and men in all fields, help governments to draft texts intended to implement this equality, and to advise private and public bodies on the application of the principles of equality. While for some States, this activity dates from well before the Beijing Declaration, the fact remains that these equality bodies have more and more power and weigh more heavily in governments’ decisions.

27. States have therefore made considerable efforts to try to achieve equality between women and men in recruitment to the public service. The clearly announced aim is to achieve a ratio of 50/50 (United Kingdom) or at least 40/60 (Finland). Although such ratios are still mostly difficult to achieve, some countries are getting close and this is a major step forward.

28. Action is also being taken by political parties, which are reviewing their procedures and structures in order to eliminate all obstacles to the participation of women. The same applies to trade unions and all other representation bodies in public life. It is in fact generally through political parties that women can enter political life, so this door should be opened as widely as possible. Political parties have in fact sometimes been ahead of any legislation and under pressure of its militants have applied either a quota system or full parity with the name of a man then a woman appearing alternately on voting lists. The use of quotas remains very controversial in some political parties, but has been proven in countries which have adopted this system, as in Finland for example, that it is an effective instrument for achieving better female participation in political life. Only one country out of 41 has adopted a legislation favouring equal access for men and women to electoral functions: France.

C.        In the field of training and information

29. The signatory States of the Beijing Declaration recognised that the problem of sexual discrimination is very much a cultural problem: children are taught right from their infancy to act as men or women, and to become adults whose role in society will be determined by their sex. Remedying such a situation therefore means tackling the root of the problem and modifying the education of not only young girls and boys but also of adults (parents and teachers). Some countries therefore have undertaken to give the same basic education to all children, without distinction of sex, and to eliminate the disparities between girls and boys in primary and secondary education.

30. In most Council of Europe member States, schooling for girls is no longer a big problem and most of them at least go to primary school. More and more girls outnumber the boys at university level and some countries (Spain, Sweden, Austria, Portugal, France, Luxembourg, Slovenia and Finland) are trying to encourage girls to take scientific and technical subjects.

31. We can observe that the higher we go in the school and university system, the less women we find in teaching posts. Primary education is mainly in the hands of women, whereas at university level most of the teaching staff are men. As part of their policy to increase opportunities for women in the scientific community and increase the number of women teaching in universities, governments have introduced various measures, in particular study grants and facilities for the realisation of scientific projects.

32. Studies and tests are being carried out to determine whether, in some cases, single-sex classes would not be better for girls’ education (Austria, Finland). It has been noted that in scientific and technical classes with girls only they have more confidence in themselves and obtained better results than in mixed classes.

33. Moreover, courses concerning health and sex education are also introduced in order to give more confidence and more knowledge of themselves to young people of both sexes (Austria, Portugal, Spain).

34. Change of mentalities goes also through the information carried by the media. This is why the media have been invited to promote the image of woman, namely in the case of violence and pornography. The fact is that the press and the broadcasting media are an important factor in socialisation since they carry images of the family and of the roles of individuals in society. Despite a considerable increase in the number of women working in the media, few occupy important, decision-making posts where they would have a chance of changing the communications strategy.

D.       Health, sexuality and combating violence

35. The countries which committed themselves to the Beijing Platform for Action are endeavouring to provide women with health services. This means family planning and information services and access to social security on the same footing as men. In addition, regarding more specifically the AIDS virus, women must be fully associated with the framing of national decisions, laws and programmes on the one hand, and be protected against any discrimination in this field on the other.

36. In some Council of Europe member States (Luxembourg, Spain, Switzerland, Finland, Estonia), the fundamental rights of women in the field of health exist and uphold namely the free choice in matters of sexuality and childbearing, as well as the necessary information and assistance in this field. Furthermore a woman's health is taken to mean general emotional, social and physical well-being. The field of action has thus been extended.

37. An effort has been made in the provision of health services (Luxembourg, Spain, Switzerland, Estonia, Finland, United Kingdom) in the field of information and family planning to make access easier for women and adolescent girls. Information campaigns have been launched as well as a greater communication with the different associative actors. Health information must also provide a training programme for the young and the adolescent girls. As already mentioned above, health education in schools aims to give girls more confidence in themselves and a better knowledge of their bodies so that they can monitor their health themselves. More sex education has been implemented for both sexes in the belief that the resulting mutual respect and understanding will lead to improved health conditions for women and limit the effects of violence suffered due to simply belonging to the female sex. The aim is to encourage both sexes to behave more responsibly. The family planning services now provide more information on sexual behaviour and the prevention of sexually transmitted diseases.

38. States have also permitted women who are HIV positive or infected with AIDS to be involved in the framing of policies and programmes to combat AIDS and STDs right. In addition, the public sector (Luxembourg, Spain, Finland, United Kingdom) has adopted non-discriminatory policies and practices towards women infected by HIV and AIDS. Associations are also involved in efforts to prevent drug abuse and the creation of a network of neighbourhood aid for women infected by the virus of AIDS.

39. Being able to provide women with better health care also means paying more attention to typically female diseases and more generally the changes that take place over the course of the biological cycle. For this reason financial support is given to preventive, biomedical, epidemiological and behavioural research. Networks of researchers, decision-makers, health professionals and women's associations are formed to permit the greater diffusion of the research findings.

40. There are international norms concerning violence and some Council of Europe member states comply with them (Luxembourg, Spain, Finland, Estonia, United Kingdom). These countries have therefore taken steps to reinforce the implementation of the already existing instruments, in particular through amending the criminal legislation to make it more effectiv.

41. The physical, mental and sexual violence that women suffer causes serious problems for governments in so far as this phenomenon unfortunately concerns all strata of society, in both family and public life. This problem was not taken into account until very recently and the solution is a matter above all of changing attitudes and behaviours. Governments have tried to set up a system of courts, police, health services and associations to cope more effectively with violence against women and inform them of their rights and possible remedies.

42. Information continues, however, to be the prime instrument for combating violence and making the public aware of the seriousness of the problem and to ensure that it no longer remains a taboo subject.

43. Special training has been given to the various police and health services who are the first to have contact with the victims in order to improve and above all to co-ordinate the different actions to take care of the persons who are victims of violence.

44. Most member States are affected by trafficking in women and prostitution either as destination countries or as countries of origin. Inter-ministerial committees and associations are working in close collaboration in order to help the victims in the medical and social fields. A considerable effort has been made in the legal field to issue temporary residence permits and to give them the possibility to take part in legal proceedings.

II.       Difficulties in implementing the Beijing commitments

A.       In the economic and employment fields

45. Despite the efforts made since the Beijing Conference, the statistics and other data show that women are still not integrated into all functions and professional sectors, that their contracts are less secure, that their pay is still lower than men’s for equal work, that they still tend to be kept out of decision-making posts and that domestic work still has a considerable effect on their professional careers.

46. Luxembourg rightly points out that there is still a real difference between the sexes in the possibilities for access to economic power and decision-making: “Women are virtually not represented in the fields of financial, monetary, commercial and economic policy making, or in the determination of tax and wage regimes”.

47. Despite a growing presence of women on the labour market in recent years, the fact remains that they are generally confined to the same types of “traditional” jobs which require little in the way of qualifications or skills. This large scale arrival of women has not resulting in a diversification in the type of work they do. Women have also higher unemployment rates and more precarious contracts than their male counterparts. Older women have difficulty in returning to the labour market and the younger ones with the same qualifications as male candidates are not hired because employers suspect they will become pregnant.

48. In Spain and Estonia for example, women have recently appeared on the labour market and have some difficulty in granting them all the legal and social security protection they need and they have the right to have.

49. In countries in transition, it is hard to implement policies for the economic welfare of women, for they are the first victims of the transition from one economic system to another. Paradoxically, at a time when everything is being done to reduce the inequalities in these countries, the gap between men and women is widening. Previously the socialist system guaranteed work for women and by the same token economic equality between women and men. Now the transition is creating inequalities and the women find themselves in unskilled, badly-paid and precarious jobs. Estonia notes for example that the inequalities between women and men are growing because while women had equal status to men according to the official standards under the soviet governments they had no right of decision over their own lives.

50. Many of the country reports on the follow-up to the Beijing Conference underline the increasing use of part-time work. Caution is called for here, because while part-time work may make it a little better to reconcile family and working life, for the moment it is mainly confined to women, and men feel little concerned. It should be noted that this type of arrangement is usually found in occupations in which women are already present in large numbers, badly-paid and held in low esteem. Part-time working also carries less guarantees and social security coverage, which makes these women’s position all the more precarious. Furthermore, some women are more or less forced to adopt these new hours. Finland rightly points out that women are more willing than men to accept fixed-term contracts and other unconventional types of employment. This is a consequence of the unemployment which affects them in the “traditional” women’s sectors : office work, health and shops.

51. In this connection, we should also stress the difficulties encountered by women when they apply for loans to start up a business.

B.       In the field of participation in public life

52. There is still very marked inequality between the sexes as regards access to leading positions in business and politics. It is regrettable to see that in most countries very few women hold important positions in parliaments, in government or in leading positions in political parties. In Poland women make up only 17% of the members of parties and only 12 or 13% of parliamentarians. They are better represented in local institutions but only in the traditionally “female” fields. Diplomatic services also tend to be reluctant to give representation posts to women. Unfortunately, some countries have not yet had the opportunity to introduce specific legislation concerning the equal status of women and men even though this principle is recognised in the national constitution, and have not yet set up an institution responsible for equality issues either (see appendices).

C.       In the training and information fields

53. It should be underlined that the illiteracy rate for women is higher than that for men, and generally speaking women make up over two-thirds of the total illiterate population. The principle of compulsory education up to a fixed age for both girls and boys must therefore be recognised as a prerequisite for equality in education.

54. As it was already mentioned above, there are still very few girls who take science or other traditionally male subjects in secondary education. At university level too there are more young women in the social sciences and humanities than in science and technology. Gender and stereotypes still have too much influence on education and career choices and it is therefore necessary to provide more career guidance to make them aware of this problem.

55. To this end, it is also important to establish an education system based on parity, from the primary school stage onwards and to organise information campaigns, notably for teachers and civil servants, to heighten their awareness of this issue.

56. Moreover, this equality in the area of education and information must also be achieved with the help of the media, which must produce programmes aimed at promoting equal opportunities.

D.       In the health and violence fields

57. Some members states have not implemented effective policies to improve women’s health. There is no sex education and no information campaigns. The medical services available for women remain minimal and the doctors themselves are reluctant to give advice. Access to care is not the same for women and the family planning centres cannot meet the growing demand for information and aid with contraception.

58. It should also be noted that although there are laws prohibiting prostitution and violence against women, they are not enforced. Member states have enacted laws to suppress domestic violence by being more strict in the case of rape, but the application of these laws is far from being satisfactory, because apart from the fact that there are patriarchal attitudes, the law is not enforced and the courts take no action!

59. As a result, women are still all too often the victims of violence and abuse. Even though society is starting to condemn such acts more than in the past, the fact remains that the cases we hear about are still only the tip of the iceberg. It is difficult to change attitudes and social pressure and shame hang over the heads of the victims.

Conclusion

60. In conclusion, even if there is no denying that countries have genuinely implemented policies to make things better for women and reduce inequality, progress should still be done. This is a result not only of a lack of political will but also of the widely diverging economic and social conditions in member states. Some countries did not have the same baseline conditions, the same needs or the same problems as far as reducing inequalities was concerned. Each state has therefore proceeded at its own pace and implemented different actions, but the important thing is that thanks to the Beijing commitments there has been a real consensus on the basic problem.

61. Accordingly the Assembly asks states to keep up their efforts and proposes that they focus on a number of key sectors they consider essential without, however, ignoring the others, which should be borne in mind for the future.

62. The Assembly therefore recommends that the governments of member states introduce measures in the fields of employment, social protection, violence and trafficking in women.

63. The Assembly also recommends encouraging the media to produce programmes on equal opportunity.

64. It also wishes to stress how important it is that women should participate in decision-making and in politics.

65. Lastly, it also proposes that measures be introduced to encourage women to take up studies, particularly in the fields of science and new technologies.

APPENDICES

WOMEN IN PARLIAMENT

In the Council of Europe member states

1998 figures from the Inter-Parliamentary Union

WOMEN AND MEN IN GOVERNEMENT

In the Council of Europe member states

1998 figures from the Inter-Parliamentary Union

Reporting committee: Committee on Equal Opportunities for Women and Men

Reference to Committee: Doc. 8329 and Reference No. 2368 of 30 March 1999

Budgetary implications for the Assembly: none.

Draft resolution unanimously adopted by the committee on 4 April 2000.

Members of the committee: Mrs Roudy (Chairperson), Mrs Busic, Mrs Poptodorova, Mrs Keltosova (Vice-Chairpersons), Mrs Aguiar, Mr Anusz, Mr Browne (alternate: Mr Connor), Ms Calner, Ms Cryer, Mrs Dade, Mrs Dromberg, Mrs Err, Mr Felici, Mrs Frimannsdóttir, Mrs Gatterer (alternate: Ms Wurm), Ms Gülek, Mr Hadjidemetriou, Ms Herczog, Mr Jakic, Ms Jones, Mrs Katseli, Mr Kofod-Svendsen, Mr Kurykin, Ms Lakhova, Mrs Laternser, Ms Lörcher, Mrs Nagy, Ms Ninoshvili, Mrs Paegle, Mrs Paleckova, Mr Popovski (alternate: Mrs Markovska), Mrs Pourtaud (alternate: Mr Neuwirth), Mrs Pozza Tasca, Mrs Pulgar, Mr Pullicino Orlando, Mrs Ringstad, Mrs Serafini, Mrs Stanoiu, Mrs Süssmuth, Mr Truu, Mr Volodin, Mrs Zapfl-Helbling, Mrs Zwerver.

N.B. The names of the members who took part in the meeting are printed in italics.

Secretary of the committee: Mrs Nollinger