The Commission on the Status of Women

Transcription

1 The Commission on the Status of Women Background guide INMUN 15

2 Committee background The Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) is the principal global intergovernmental body exclusively dedicated to the promotion of gender equality and the empowerment of women. A functional commission of the Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC), it was established by Council resolution 11(II) of 21 June The CSW is instrumental in promoting women s rights, documenting the reality of women s lives throughout the world, and shaping global standards on gender equality and the empowerment of women. A major part of the committee is to discuss women rights questions. The committee addresses important questions of social advancement relating to women, and girls. In this session of INMUN you will be discussing one of two topics: 1. Human trafficking and prostitution of women and girls. 2. Women empowerment in a patriarchal society. Topic 1: Human trafficking and prostitution of women and girls What is human trafficking? According to the UNHRC (United Nations Human Rights Council) Trafficking in persons shall mean the recruitment,

3 transportation, transfer, harboring or receipt of persons by threat, or other forms of coercion, of abduction, of fraud, of deception, of the abuse of power for the purpose of exploitation. Human trafficking amongst women and girls: Poverty, and the lack of economic opportunities for women, as well as the lack of education for girls make them extremely vulnerable and potential victims of human trafficking. They are fooled by the false promises of job opportunities that traffickers would often offer. Women and girls are typically trafficked into the commercial sex industry; meaning they are forced into prostitution or other forms of sexual exploitation against their will. Sex trafficking is the exploitation of women and children, within national or across international borders, for the purposes of forced sex work. Commercial sexual exploitation includes pornography, prostitution and sex trafficking of women and girls and is characterized by the exploitation of a human being in exchange for goods or money. Each year, an estimated 800,000 women and children are trafficked across international borders. Adult women make up the largest group of sex trafficking victims, followed by female children, although a small percentage of men and boys are trafficked into the sex industry as well. Some sex trafficking is highly visible, like street prostitution. However, many more trafficking victims remain unseen by the public eye.

4 Human Trafficking as a violation of basic human rights Violations of human rights are both a cause and consequence of human trafficking. Accordingly, it is essential to place the protection of human rights at the center of any measures taken to prevent and end trafficking The phenomenon of trafficking in persons comprises of a large range of basic human rights violations, the most common ones being the right to personal autonomy, the right not to be held in slavery, the right to be free from cruel/inhumane treatment, the right to liberty and security of a person, the right to safe and healthy working conditions and the right to freedom of movement and expression. Trafficking in women violates specific protections of several international declarations such as the United Nations Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking in Persons, Especially Women and Children, it also violates more general human rights norms such as the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR), Convention on the Elimination of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) and several others. Additionally, under the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court, trafficking can be considered a crime against humanity or a war crime under some circumstance. When recruiting, traffickers typically charge women large sums (inflated prices) for securing travel and employment documentation and transportation. Once they have arrived in a destination country, women are held in a form of debt bondage while they attempt to pay these debts. In many cases, women are held in sexual servitude. Prevalence of trafficking How common is trafficking in women and girls? Trafficking in persons, particularly women and children, impacts every country. Due to its hidden nature, it is difficult to determine the precise magnitude of the problem. The worst thing about

5 Human Trafficking is that, it had been made completely or partly illegal in few of the countries causing it to infringe the rights of women more, deteriorating their social status to an unrealistic level. The countries, which are infamous for trafficking of women, are Bangladesh, Brazil, Haiti, Pakistan, India, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Uganda, Ghana, China etc. The practice of legalized prostitution in various countries had lead to the increase in the percentage of trafficking. With 48 countries practicing Trafficking as legal, there are 12 countries, which have made it partly legal in their law and 39 have gone against this type of violation of rights. Trafficking is surely a matter of concern, which has to be looked into if the goal of proper establishment of women rights needs to be achieved. Criminalizing and preventing human trafficking Human trafficking is a very serious crime, due to its overreaching and broad affect worldwide, the United Nations has has made valiant efforts to criminalize and eliminate human trafficking. In 2000, the General Assembly created the United Nations Convention against Transnational Organized Crime. This organization is guided by three protocols, which target specific areas and manifestations of organized crime. 102 The first protocol was enacted to prevent and suppress and therein punish the people responsible for human trafficking, especially in regards to women and children. The second protocol fights the smuggling of migrants by land for force

6 labor purposes. The final protocol calls for the condemnation of illicit manufacturing of human trafficking of firearms. Because it is widely supported by nearly all member nations, it signifies that there has been some recognition toward the seriousness of the problem of trafficking and helps to foster and enhance international cooperation to tackle this global issue. States that have ratified this convention have committed themselves to taking a series of measures against transnational organized crime. Effects and Consequences Victims of human trafficking have absolutely no freedoms, and experience horrors such as abuse, violence, deprivation and torture. These kind of conditions often lead to trauma Woman who have been trafficked may suffer from serious physical and mental health problems. Physical abuse can result in serious injuries and long lasting heath problems for women; trafficking victims may also contract diseases such as HIV/AIDS or Tuberculosis, which are life threatening. With that it mind, it can be understandable how victims would feel the urge to escape. Unfortunately, this misdeed will never go without punishment, which are never minor. Since some women are used as sexual objects, pregnancies are an inevitable consequence. Human traffickers force these women to have abortions with unsterile instruments by non- certified practitioners. The lack of sanitation contributes to the spread of HIV. Although trafficking most directly affects individuals, it also has broader consequences. Trafficking directly affects the societies from which victims are removed, resulting in cultural and economic losses, and threatening public health. Previous UN action: The United Nations has passed several documents relating to this issue, the most important amongst them all being the

7 UNITP. This document provides a universal definition to eliminate confusion. The protocol outlines three main points of the trafficking: act, means and purpose. Act refers to what is done to get the people trafficked, such as recruitment, transportation and harboring of persons Identification of traffickers is easier if the act is known. The protocol also outlines the means by which they were trafficked, such as threat, or use of force, abduction, fraud The Protocol describes the last bit, the purpose, as applicable in situations that involve monetary profit, such as, prostitution of others, sexual exploitation, forced labor, slavery, removal of organs, or any other types of exploitation. By using this all- encompassing, coherent definition, it has been easier to catch offenders and provide justice for victims. In addition to the UNTIP, the UN GIFT United Nations Global Initiative to Fight Human Trafficking is a committee that looked at how the global community is fighting this issue. The UN GIFT conducted research that happened four years after the UN TIP was introduced. The research in UN GIFT spanned over a year, included information from over 155 countries, and mainly focused on a country s response to trafficking offenses. They first researched the legislative effects of the Protocol. From data taken in November 2008, 105 of the 155 countries sampled had laws that addressed the main forms of trafficking: labor and sex. 25 of the countries had made specific laws that covered all the punishable trafficking offenses outlined by the Trafficking in Persons Protocol.

8 Questions to consider: 1. Besides funding and education, what are other ways to combat human trafficking? 2. How does gender inequality affect human trafficking for both males and females? 3. How should victims of human trafficking be treated post- experience? 4. How should human- trafficking criminals be punished post- experience? 5. Who should be responsible for international human- trafficking crimes? 6. What steps has your country taken to prevent human trafficking and the prostitution of women and girls OR/AND what methods of eliminating human trafficking and the prostitution of women and girls can be taken by your country given the resources it has to offer? 7. What forms of human trafficking has your country faced? 8. Has your country ratified any of the United Nation s legislations that it has signed? Topic 2: Empowerment of women in a patriarchal society What is patriarchy? A system of society or government in which men hold the power and women are largely excluded from it. Patriarchal societies are usually also patrilineal- which means that property and title are inherited by the male lineage. Historically, patriarchy has manifested itself in the social, legal, political, and economic organization of a range of different cultures Feminists describe patriarchy as an unjust social system that enforces gender roles and is oppressive to both men and women. It often includes any social mechanism that evokes male dominance over women. Feminist theory typically characterizes patriarchy as a social construction, which can be

9 overcome by revealing and critically analyzing its manifestations Patriarchy and its effect on women Despite the fact that women in developing countries provide nearly 70 percent of the agricultural labour, they continue to account for over 60 percent of the world s hungry. Lack of gender equality limits a woman farmer s access to agricultural inputs, credit services and a market to sell her products. These constraints lead to lower crop yields, produce sold at a lower price and, ultimately, continued poverty and hunger for her and her children. Given the opportunity to generate and control an income, women routinely invest significant portions of their income in food, healthcare and education for their families. Unfortunately, at the moment, the majority of women in developing countries lack economic power, resulting in a higher rate of girls kept out of school, minimal access to basic health care, increased HIV/AIDS prevalence and higher maternal mortality rates. Yet women continue to bear almost all responsibility for meeting the basic needs of the family. Patriarchal societies Most agricultural civilizations downgrade the status and potential of women, at least according to modern Western standards and to the implicit standards of hunting- and- gathering societies. Agricultural civilizations are characteristically patriarchal; that is, they are run by men and based on the assumption that men directed political, economic, and cultural life. Furthermore, as agricultural civilizations started to develop over time and became more prosperous and more elaborately organized, the status of women deteriorated from its initial level. Individual families were normally set up on a patriarchal

10 basis, with the husband and father determining fundamental conditions and making the key decisions, and with humble obedience owed to this male authority. Patriarchal family structure rested on men's control of most or all property, starting with land itself; marriage was based on property relationships and it was assumed that marriage, and therefore subordination to men, was the normal condition for the vast majority of women. A revealing symptom of patriarchal families was the fact that, after marrying, a woman usually moved to the orbit (and often the residence) of her husband's family. Characteristic patriarchal conditions developed in Mesopotamian civilization. Marriages were arranged for women by their parents, with a formal contract being drawn up. The husband served as authority over his wife and children just as he did over his slaves. How do men in these societies dominate women? 44% of society believes that today, we are still living in a patriarchy. 1. Women are still underpaid. 2. Women are still massively underrepresented in the sciences. Despite substantial gains in the number of women pursuing graduate degrees in the sciences, Studies show that women in science experience discrimination and double standards 3. There are too few female tenured professors. Despite the fact that women have been at least half of all college undergraduates since the 1980 s in many countries 4. Women are underrepresented in corporate leadership. 5. Women are poorer. Women constitute about 70% of the world s absolute poor

11 6. Slavery still exists! Women and girls are the majority of the 800,000 to nearly 4 million people trafficked (bought and sold as property) internationally every year. 7. Violence against women These are only a few ways in which women have been neglected of equal rights, and have been dominated by men. In spite of real progress in women's rights around the globe better laws, political participation, education and income the bedrock problems that have dogged women for centuries remain. Even in wealthy countries, there are pockets of private pain where women are unprotected and under attack. Some countries, often the poorest and most conflict- ridden, have a level of violence that makes life unbearable for women. Richer ones may burden them with repressive laws, or sweep the problems of the least advantaged under the carpet. In any country, refugee women are among the most vulnerable. So widespread are the disadvantages that it's hard to pinpoint the worst places in the world for women. Some surveys rate their problems by quality of life, others by health indicators. Human rights groups point to countries where violations are so severe that even murder is routine. Empowerment of women in patriarchal societies Empowerment of women has been an area of study for quite some time in the past. Studies on empowerment of women have focused on factors like autonomy, women s land rights, domestic economic power, gender equality and countering gender discrimination. Each and every country across the world has taken many steps to uplift the status of women, and provide them with equal rights, however the global community needs to come up with solutions to empower women in patriarchal societies in the

12 developing counties. This would require a sustained effort from all member nations. 1. Does patriarchy exist in society in your nation? 2. In what way has the status of women changed in your country over the last few decades? 3. What furthur empowerment, in which area s of society is required for women in your nation? 4. How can women be granted equal rights in a spheres? Research resources n_rights development/ pdf survival- quarterly/burma/stop- trafficking- and- prostitution- women- and- girls 14/12/IMUN CSW.pdf impact.html society- and- ways- living