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Globalisation
Edited by Joanna Kerr and Caroline Sweetman
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Front cover: China, near Shenzen. Migrant labourersfrominland provinces working in a toy factory
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Resources 150
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Editorial
Joanna Kerr and Caroline Sweetman
'The world's giant transnational corporations, gender equality movement. Yet there was
and the governments and multilateral clear agreement on the major analysis:
institutions that cling to them, are globalising globalisation processes, in their current
the wrong things, things that are of benefit to form, are a threat to the gains women have
them and no one else. And they're refusing made over the past three decades, in
to globalise the right things, which would struggling for an end to poverty and equal
benefit all of us.' status and rights with men: in their families,
(Jorquera, 2000) the community and the state. As shown in
this collection of articles, radical action is
'Globalise this - women's rights now.' needed, if globalisation is to be re-routed
(AWID Forum, 2002) down a just and sustainable path.
In this brief editorial we will distinguish
This collection of articles comes from the between two interpretations of what
Association for Women's Rights in globalisation actually means: a largely
Development (AWID)'s Ninth International technical process, and one that is inherently
Forum, on Reinventing Globalisation. The political. The phenomenon of globalisation
Forum was held in Guadalajara, Mexico, needs to be demystified if we are to work
from 3-6 October 2002. The collection was a together to challenge its current course. We
collaborative effort between AWID and will go on to outline the connections
Oxfam GB. It has been jointly edited by between globalisation and gender inequality.
Joanna Kerr, Executive Director of AWID, Finally, we introduce each article in this
and Caroline Sweetman, of Oxfam GB. collection, and consider how its writer
The goal of the Forum was to under- addresses the key issue: that is, how should
stand globalisation and its impact on we turn gender analysis of globalisation
women's rights and gender relations better, into action for social change?
and to pinpoint ways in which we can But first, here are a few words to
mobilise to ensure these complex processes introduce AWID.
can guarantee human rights, development
and peace for all. Obviously, there were
Introducing AWID
many different takes on globalisation, what
it is and what it is doing, from different AWID began its life in 1982, as a member-
individuals and organisations at the AWID ship organisation offering support, and a
Forum. This range reflects the overall forum for discussion for policymakers,
diversity to be found within the feminist/ practitioners and academics promoting
gender equality in developing countries. mainstream economists, or your local IT
Since then, AWID has grown in both size provider, use the word 'globalisation' in a
and scope, to become the dynamic network technical, rather than a political way, to
of thousands of women and men working refer to the increasing ease with which
in development research, policy and people can communicate and do business
practice that it is today. More than half of internationally. This means that inter-
AWID's members live and work in the national financial transactions can be
global South, Eastern Europe and the executed in a split second, changing the fate
former Soviet Union. AWID aims to of national economies overnight. Events
facilitate ongoing debates about funda- unfolding in Asia can be beamed into living
mental and provocative issues, as well as to rooms in South America in the course of a
build the individual and organisational few minutes.
capacity of those working for women's Some critics of globalisation see these
empowerment and social justice. new technologies as being inherently bad
The AWID Forum occurs every three for human rights and the sustainable
years, and is the largest regular inter- development of the planet. They decry the
national meeting focusing on women and way in which global technologies promote
gender equality outside the United Nations an international Western-dominated culture
system. It has become a key event for of consumerism and capitalist develop-
feminists in development. In Guadalajara, ment. They emphasise that the most
around 1,300 leaders, scholars, and appropriate, just and fair economic and
practitioners gathered to consider not only political decision-making is made at local
the economic, but also the political, social, level, by women and men who have full
ecological and cultural implications of knowledge of the realities of the social and
globalisation. In more than 150 workshops, cultural context.
plenaries, skills-building sessions and In contrast, some opponents of global-
debates, they discussed their experiences of isation can see the potential of the new
current models of globalisation of the technologies for change that benefits
economy and the political system, and people. For example, they believe that if
debated viable alternatives to the unsus- free trade was genuinely free and
tainable, undemocratic, and exploitative protectionism was lifted in the global
forms that globalisation has taken so far. North, developing countries would poten-
tially be able to challenge global inequality.
Women around the world could benefit
What is globalisation? from buying food, clothing, or computers at
Reams of paper and thousands of key- cheaper prices. Another example, which is
strokes have been expended in theoretical often pointed out by feminists, is that of the
debates about globalisation. But the potential of the Internet to build a new and
concerns of the readers - and writers - of this genuinely participatory kind of democracy.
collection of articles are about formulating Using the Internet, global networks of
development policy and practice which activists can meet up, develop their ideas in
promotes gender equality as a part of its real-time chat rooms, and plan political
vision. Two key points emerge from the action.
debates, which help to clarify what
globalisation actually is, and its impli- Globalisation as a political process
cations for womens' rights. People who see the technical processes of
globalisation as potentially useful often
Globalisation as a technical process tend to use the word 'globalisation' as a
Some, such as broadcasters on CNN, shorthand term for the ways the new
Editorial
technologies are being used by the current expanding tendency of Western countries,
generation of economists and politicians. economies and capitalism to dominate the
Some - the supporters of neo-liberal rest of the world? ... All formal empires,
development strategies - think globalisation with the possible exception of the
in its current form is broadly beneficial to American Empire, if you want to call it
humanity. They argue that speedy global that, have disappeared from the world'
travel and communications enable (Giddens, Lecture 1, Reith Lectures 1999).
companies to invest in parts of the world Gidden's mention of the U.S.A. here
which have hitherto been isolated from chimes with critics of the current model of
international production and world trade, world development, who highlight the way
and speak of the level playing field which in which the global North (that is, both the
globalisation can potentially create. U.S. and other prosperous countries,
Globalisation is 'sold' as apolitical, including Canada and those of the
concerned only with economics; as pro- European Economic Community) is forcing
growth and pro-poor. its political convictions and its preferred
However, there is now a vast and economic model onto poor countries in the
weighty body of evidence that proves global South and Eastern Europe. The
globalisation to be profoundly political: countries of the global South have a history
states play a very significant role in of economic exploitation by richer nations,
facilitating the activities of transnational and many are hugely in debt to inter-
corporations. The evidence also shows that national financial institutions (IFIs). This,
globalisation in its current form does not together with a lack of democracy in IFI
challenge deep-rooted, structural poverty, decision-making, creates a very weak
either for nations or for individuals and bargaining position for most of them.
their families. Critics decry the present Through the 1980s and beyond, Southern
model of globalisation for eroding human countries have been forced to introduce a
rights, and diminishing the ability of package of neo-liberal economic policies,
individual governments to protect their which are supposed to encourage economic
citizens' rights. Governments are not able growth.
to determine their own economic policies to Their borders have been forced open to
suit the particular context of the country trade and investment. While international
they have been elected to rule, and their regulation of world trade by the World
ability to address and solve problems of Trade Organisation (WTO) is supposed to
inequality and poverty is therefore create equal opportunities for all economies
dramatically compromised. in a global marketplace, in fact 'free trade'
Many governments of developing is really a misnomer. International trade
countries, and NGOs involved in develop- rules purport to bring prosperity for all, by
ment in North and South, argue that enabling all countries to compete on equal
globalisation processes are consolidating a terms for shares of the international
new kind of colonialism. Increasingly, market. Yet, the rich countries of the global
power and resources are being held by a North do not follow the same rules as those
relatively small number of global players, in the South: for example, protectionist
who are unaccountable to the vast popu- policies continue to shelter farmers and
lations of people in poverty in the global industrialists in Northern countries. In the
South. These global players are inter- global South, transnational corporations
national businesses, states in the global offer desperate workers precarious and
North, and elites in North and South. exploitative employment. Their bargaining
Antony Giddens has asked: 'Does position is usually too weak to enable them
globalisation mark the increasing ever- to attain better conditions, since the
international migration of workers is income. Women who used to spend their
prevented by harsh laws protecting the US time cultivating staple crops for family
and 'Fortress Europe' from immigrants in consumption are now obliged to labour on
search of a better life. fields of sugar or flowers for export. They
rarely see the money earned, and cannot
use the new crops they grow to feed their
Why is globalisation a families. Women are overworked and
gender issue? disempowered, and their children can go
How is globalisation affecting the power hungry.
imbalance between women and men, Another strand in the feminist research
which is a feature of almost all cultures on globalisation looks at the impact of
throughout the world? What does it do to employment for global markets on
women's daily lives? For over 20 years, individual women and on gender relations
gender and development and feminist more widely. In industry, globalisation has
researchers have studied aspects of resulted in a profound change in the
globalisation, and their impact on women. relationship between factory workers and
The economic 'reforms' of the 1980s and the companies whose products they make.
1990s promoted a shift in emphasis from The propensity of factories to employ a
production for domestic consumption, in female workforce was first noted by
both industry and agriculture. A wealth of feminist researchers in the 1970s and 1980s.
research now exists to show the impact of Then, women were directly employed by
this supposedly 'gender-neutral' change in national companies. Nowadays, local
emphasis, on women's daily lives and on employers are part of an international
their status in society. chain which links vast transnational
Much of this research examines the corporations to individual women workers,
links between ordinary women and their turning out garments, toys and other
dependents, international rules about consumer commodities for a US-inspired
trade, and policies imposed on debtor global market.
countries by the international financial Many commentators assert that women's
institutions. Far from being gender-neutral primary responsibility for their dependents
in their impact on communities, inter- makes them more desperate then men for
national financial policies have a^ dramatic work, willing to accept lower wages,
direct impact on individual women and on precarious terms of employment, and poor
gender relations throughout society. Some working conditions. Much energy has gone
kinds of impact have been researched more into debating whether employment in
than others, over a longer period of time. industry is, overall, a good or bad thing for
For example, one well-established body individual women's daily lives, and for the
of work looks at the effect of structural status of women more widely. But this is a
adjustment on women - in particular, in sterile debate, which is based on a false
relation to cutbacks to social services and premise that women's working conditions
shifts to cash-crop cultivation for export. In cannot be challenged. Every worker, male
agriculture, pressure from governments to or female, throughout the world, should be
produce cash crops for export has led to a able to find a job that offers a fair wage in
reduction in women's control over the safe conditions.
fruits of their labour. This is because there More recent analysis in the field has
is a correlation in the majority of societies examined the many new challenges that
between male domination of women and have arisen in the context of a globalised
male control over activities which earn world. At first glance, these challenges
Editorial
seem quite unrelated to each other; yet and 1990s. International financial institu-
globalisation connects them. The escalation tions imposed a rigid package of 'reforms',
of trafficking in women is an outcome of aiming to open up markets and reduce the
globalisation that pushes women into new role of the state. Niliifer £agatay outlines
forms of precarious transnational employ- the impact on women and gender relations
ment. Drug treatments for HIV /AIDS - a of SAPs and macro-economic stabilisation.
disease which is highly gendered - have She highlights the fact that these have
become pawns in an international struggle typically led to a fiscal squeeze by putting
for intellectual property rights, as multi- pressure on public budgets, asserting that
national companies try to control the 'The fiscal policies of most governments in
accessibility of generic drugs through trade the last 20 years reflect the increased power
laws. And the rise in fundamentalism is of capital vis-a-vis labour, on the one hand,
also connected to globalisation, as politico- and of foreign and national investors vis-a-
religious movements react to Western- vis the rest of the citizenry, on the other'
imposed cultural domination. These (this issue). State spending on social
emerging right-wing movements promote welfare has reduced, throwing the burden
their own interpretations of 'tradition' and of social welfare provision back into the
'culture', at the expense of women's rights, home. Because, in most societies, the
and often their lives. gender division of labour leaves women
with chief responsibility for the care of the
Turning analysis into action family, reductions in health, education and
sanitation spending challenge them to
So, we have the analysis of the impact of create an alternative. The article points out
aspects of globalisation on women and that a variety of feminist policy positions
gender relations. Yet, all too often, we have have been developed on global taxation,
not taken up this analysis and transformed debt cancellation, antimilitarism, and
it into action, whether we work in women's overseas development assistance. These
organisations or in development organi- policies can be - and need to be - supported
sations working on gender equality. It is by the advocacy efforts of mainstream
easier to pinpoint what is wrong with the development organisations as well as
world than it is to suggest ways of putting feminist organisations, in order to gain
it right. Much analysis of the gendered visibility and have a real impact on
impact of globalisation has gathered dust international policy-making.
on the shelves of resource centres and
libraries. It is critical now to ensure that Ruth Pearson's article provides an
political action is taken, based on women's accessible guide to some of the key agree-
experience of globalisation - both the ments in world trade, and states why
considerable losses, and the undeniable international trade cannot be seen as a
gains - to ensure that international laws 'gender-free zone'. The existence of
and regulations work for women in culturally-condoned gender roles in all
poverty rather than against them. This was human societies leads to seemingly neutral
the starting-point for AWID's Forum. policies having different implications for
women and men. In order to challenge
Envisioning economic policy which is policies which lead to greater inequality
friendly to women between women and men, these policies
In her article here, Niliifer (Jagatay traces need to be demystified by feminist
the impact on women of economic liberal- economists who are committed to rendering
isation policies, imposed on countries in the them comprehensible and accessible to
grip of financial crisis through the 1980s organisations who want to lobby for
change. Pearson devotes the second half of high on the agenda of the international
her article to outlining ideas for alternative institutions responsible for economic
policies, some currently being activated reform. These are: the false message that
and others that need energy from activists economic policy is apolitical; the pressing
to be turned from ideas into reality. need to ensure good governance of inter-
Economic policy that is friendly to national trade; and the need for women in
women needs to be based on accurate data Africa and beyond to speak out against the
which reflect the nature and scope of way in which human security concerns are
women's contribution to global production. currently being equated with the security
Marilyn Waring's article reminds us of the of states and corporations, at the expense of
fact that international institutions continue the security of individuals.
to use outdated, inaccurate and illogical For others, thinking about the political
measures of economic activity, which dimension of globalisation means
ignore key parts of women's economic considering the implications of the rapidly-
activity. These are work within the home, changing world order over the past
and work in the informal sector. Despite 15 years. Many factors, including the fall of
challenges from feminists for the past three the Communist bloc, the rise of the
decades, worthless statistics are still religious right in many countries, (both
collected year after year, and used to form Islamic and Christian), continuing turmoil
national and international economic policy. in the Middle East, and the attack on the
Waring discusses and critiques some World Trade Centre, have transformed the
practical alternatives that have been
world we live in. At the AWID conference,
developed. Improved methods of data
there was much discussion around feminist
collection and analysis have potential to
responses to various forms of restrictions
involve women, and entire communities, in
on civil liberties, and in particular those of
determining the information relevant to
women. In her article, Fatou Sow, of
policy-formulation, and reporting it
accurately. Women Living Under Muslim Laws and
DAWN, highlights the way in which 'the
Acknowledging globalisation's political woman is the symbol of ethnic purity for
dimension nationalists'. The need to protect the nation
Time and again, at the Forum and again in often results in curtailing women's
their articles in this collection, writers freedoms and violations of their human
highlight the political dimensions of rights.
globalisation. In her article, Brazilian lawyer and
For some, this means challenging the activist Valeria Pandjiarjian explores this
idea that economic development is theme further. Enormous advances have
somehow separate from the political been made in international human rights
sphere. Zo Randriamaro of the GERA law in the past few decades, to ensure it
(Gender and Economic Reforms in Africa) meets the needs and interests of women.
network addresses this issue in the context This is globalisation working in women's
of African women's varied experiences of favour. It is essential that the advances of
globalisation. GERA is a pan-African the past few decades are not lost, and that
research and advocacy programme, set up where international law has not yet
in 1996. It aims to increase the participation advanced sufficiently far, it is allowed to
of African women in the formulation of do so. Valeria Pandjiarjian's organisation,
economic policy. Zo's article focuses on CLADEM (Latin American and Caribbean
three important issues, which she argues Committee for the Defence of Woman's
GERA and others need to ensure are placed Rights) is part of a network of organisations
Editorial
of the most important challenges in the reproductive rights discourses can be, and
health and human rights fields in an era of are being, misused by organisations
globalisation' (this issue). employing whatever means possible in
their fight for the right to develop
HIV/AIDS: the globalisation of a disease processes such as the cloning of human
HIV/AIDS is clearly an overwhelmingly beings for their own ends. This article
huge current concern in sub-Saharan argues that such technologies are not one
Africa. It will be an issue of equal enormity more advance in the fight for 'reproductive
in Asia and Eastern Europe in a few years' choice', but are actually a global threat to
time. In her article, based on a plenary the interests of women and children, and to
presentation delivered at AWID, Sisonke wider humanity.
Msimang outlines the process through
which HIV infection spreads in situations Trafficking and sexual slavery
of poverty and gender inequality. She A significant strand of the discussions at
emphasises that AIDS and death come all AWID was concerned with the globalisation
the quicker to HIV sufferers who lack good of trafficking and sexual slavery - the most
food, water supplies and a safe, comfort- abhorrent aspect of the globalisation of
able place to stay. In the context of labour. One key aspect of the ideal of truly
Sisonke's home country, South Africa, free trade is that people should be free to
colonialism and apartheid, with their travel, across state boundaries if necessary,
extreme exploitation of African workers to take up employment opportunities. But
and destruction of family life, have created the fact that international migration has
a recipe for mass HIV infection. The been clamped down on in the past 50 years
challenge now is to ensure global action to has now led to a situation where such
prevent future infections, and enable those migration is limited or non-existent. A key
who already have the disease to arrest it, survival strategy on which whole families
using anti-retroviral drugs which are depend is women migrating for work as
currently available only to the affluent, due domestics or sex workers. For women from
to world trade regulations protecting the poor backgrounds who are uneducated, it
interests of international drug companies. can often only take place illegally, via a
globalised network of traffickers in human
Feminist concerns about new beings. Desperate for a livelihood, some
reproductive technologies travel in full or partial awareness of the
Moving from the grim ongoing realities of dangers they face, yet they take the gamble
maternal mortality and AIDS to a health- in the hope of bridging the extraordinary
related issue which is entirely new, a gap between their lives of poverty and the
pioneering article in this collection affluence of life in the US and Europe. This
discusses the need for a concerted rejection issue, and the need for international action
of new genetic technologies. Lisa Handwerker to solve the problem is discussed in this
recognises the great diversity of feminist collection by Pamela Shifman and an
perspectives towards new reproductive international panel of activists.
technologies, but argues that we need to
unite to oppose human reproductive
cloning. Despite the fact that this issue Building a global voice to
appears only to be relevant to a minority of
affluent people in the global North, its
promote women's rights
relevance to human rights activists all over It is implicit in all the above that action on
the world should not be underestimated. the part of the international women's
All of us need to be aware that women's movement and gender and development
Editorial 11
macro-economic stabilisation, which was for three decades, were not immune to
viewed as critical for achieving sustained deep crises. The world economy became
growth. The broader objective was the more volatile, as economic crises spread
reduction of the role of the state in from one country to another with lightning
economic life. speed. The international integration of
Fiscal policy1 was usually reoriented national economies through trade and
toward combating inflation and reducing investment flows has made it more difficult
current account deficits. Public spending - for governments to shield their economies
especially on social sectors - was cut in against crises that break out in other
country after country, in order to achieve economies.
fiscal balance. Because the state was seen as The increased mobility of short-term
crowding out the 'efficient' private sector, capital flows means that relatively few
employment in the public sector was financial investors could potentially wreak
reduced, and the privatisation of public havoc in the world economy by moving
services became a key policy objective. User funds from one country to another in a
fees were adopted in order to increase the short period of time. This vulnerability has
efficiency of public service delivery, and caused insecurity. At the same time, in
raise revenues. To be credible to financial many countries, inequality has worsened
investors, governments had to keep budget across households, between capital
deficits low and interest rates high, which (business owners) and labour (their
introduced a deflationary bias (that is, a workforce), and among different segments
bias in favour of deflation) into the world of labour (highly skilled versus unskilled
economy. All these policies were expected workers). Numbers of people living under
to produce sustained growth, increased poverty have either increased or remained
efficiency and benefits that would improve constant in many countries, (van der
the well-being of all, through the trickle- Hoeven 2000; UNDP 1999, Milanovic 2003).
down of wealth.
The record of the last 20 years shows Double jeopardy: the fiscal
that market liberalisation policies have
failed to deliver on many fronts. While the squeeze
fiscal balances of many countries did As outlined above, many of the liberal-
improve, inflation rates did come down, isation policies implemented as part of
and international trade and investment SAPs and macro-economic stabilisation
flows did increase immensely, the promise programmes have led to a fiscal squeeze by
of higher and sustained growth rates has putting pressure on public budgets
not materialised. The lower world growth (Grunberg 1998). On the revenue side,
rates in the world economy (compared to market liberalisation has led to erosion of
its record of the previous decades) reflect public revenues, as I explain below. On the
the deflationary bias of current economic expenditure side, it has had the effect of
policies. In many Latin American and sub- increasing economic insecurity and
Saharan African economies, growth rates vulnerability, because increasing volatility
over the last two decades were very low, of markets leads to a rise in the demand for
and macro-economic performance was social protection (Rodrik 1997). The
generally characterised by stop-and-go preferred way of closing deficits has been
cycles. The East Asian crisis of the late to cut expenditure.
1990s brought home the point that even the Specifically, the Washington consensus
'miracle' economies of East Asia, which had has led to the following effects on the
experienced sustained high growth rates revenue side:
Gender budgets and beyond 17
expenditure has kept its importance. The issue over the last 20 years. Because of this,
peace dividend that it was hoped would little public debate has taken place on
accompany the end of the Cold War has alternative patterns of taxation and public
not materialised. While many governments spending, and their impact on different
have continued to plead poverty, they have social groups (ECLAC 1998), leading to a
resisted reducing military expenditure, and lack of accountability and transparency.
some of the poorest countries have While fiscal credibility and accountability
continued to develop nuclear arms.3 vis-a-vis potential foreign investors has
been of utmost importance, their signifi-
cance for the citizenry at large as an aspect
The implications of fiscal of economic democratisation is hardly
retrenchment for growth, recognised (Elson and Cagatay 2000).
development and equality
Effects on growth and stability
These changes in the fiscal stance over the
last two decades have many implications 1. Anti-deficit radicalism
for economic growth, and for equality (in It is argued that inflation is detrimental to
terms of class as well as gender relations). economic growth and works against the
These are interconnected to some extent. interests of people in poverty, and that
Cuts in government spending and market budgets therefore need to be balanced in
liberalisation have had adverse effects on order to achieve zero inflation rate.
the ability of the state to promote growth However, this 'anti-deficit radicalism' is
and employment, human development, misguided: while high levels of inflation do
and social equity (ECLAC 1998). This has had have adverse effects on economic growth,
profound implications for redistribution of moderate levels of inflation do not have
income between classes (to the detriment of such an effect. (Sen, A.K. 1998; van der
workers), and between women and men (to Hoeven 2000). As keeping budgets in check
the detriment of women). is accomplished through cuts in social
The way a government allocates its services, anti-deficit radicalism has
spending shows its vision and economic jeopardised long-term human develop-
priorities, as well as the balance of power ment, well-being, social equity and growth
among different social groups. The fiscal (Sen, A.K. 1998, Sen, G. 2000). Limiting public
policies of most governments in the last 20 spending on infrastructure, which as a rule
years reflect the increased power of capital encourages private investment, and limiting
vis-a-vis labour, on the one hand, and of and/or cutting health and education
foreign and national investors vis-a-vis the expenditure, reduces social equity (as poor
rest of the citizenry, on the other. As men segments of the population and women are
generally own and control a higher prop- more likely to benefit from these services)
ortion of capital compared to women, this and human development. In addition, such
also represents the increased economic limitations also have negative feedback
power of men vis-a-vis women. effects on the long-run growth potential of
However, the social content of macro- an economy (Sen, A.K. 1998).
economic policies (Elson and Cagatay 2000) At the same time, high interest rates
- that is, the fact that they reflect, and that are intended to attract foreign invest-
affect, the balance of power across different ment have discouraged domestic investment
social groups because of the way in which and employment generation by the private
they affect the distribution of resources - sector. The expected flows of foreign direct
has been obscured because fiscal policy- investment have materialised in only a few
making has been presented as a technical countries, mostly in Asia, while the cost of
Gender budgets and beyond 19
borrowing has remained high for domestic The gender implications of liberalisation
firms. 1. Cutbacks in social spending
Gender equality and pro-poor budget
2. Failure to stabilise during economic initiatives undertaken in the last two
downturns decades have shown that the impact of
Another related problem of the last two public spending and various revenue-
decades is that the approach to government raising methods are seldom, if ever, gender
spending in many countries has heightened or class-neutral. Excessive reductions in
the peaks and troughs of the economic social programmes that directly enhance
cycle, rather than evened them out, as it used human capabilities are harmful for all
to during the Keynesian consensus. living in poverty. However, social pro-
Despite the achievement of low grammes ameliorate the impact of gender
inflation rates and fiscal balances, which inequality within households, and cutbacks
were envisioned as important elements in in these services therefore affect women
and girls disproportionately. In extreme
stabilising the economy, there are other
situations, gender inequality results in
sources of instability in the Washington
female deaths. For example, gender
consensus policy package. National inequality means that in many societies,
economies are potentially less stable due to women and girls are less likely than men
the liberalisation of capital flows.4 Govern- and boys to be well-nourished, or to have
ments are unable to take measures to access to health care. There are an
stabilise the economy during downswings, estimated up to 100 million 'missing
partly because multilateral finance agencies women' worldwide (Sen, A.K. 2001). Given
that monitor structural adjustment pro- these facts, the state has an extremely
grammes overemphasise deficit indicators important role to play in order to offset this
without regard to whether the economy is gender bias, through social provisioning.
in the upswing or downswing of a cycle In most countries, poor or otherwise,
(ECLAC 1998). Budget deficits are likely to the major responsibility for caring for the
change over the course of a cycle, usually sick (as well as other forms of unpaid
increasing during the downswing. This caring labour) at home falls on the
practice of ignoring the impact of the cycle shoulders of women. This results in another
in the monitoring of deficits has led to type of gender bias that can be seen in the
drastic adjustments, with adverse conse- unequal labour burden borne by women,
quences for the economy. For example, one which is largely invisible in traditional
of the initial policy positions, formulated macro-economic analysis and policy making,
by the IMF in response to the East Asian since the latter focuses on the monetised
crisis (despite opposition from the World economy. Cutbacks in state spending on
Bank), was to cut public expenditure social provisioning affect women disprop-
(Stiglitz 2002). Increased restraint in ortionately because of this unpaid labour.
government spending during a crisis only An example is state cutbacks in the
exacerbates the economic downturn. In provision of clean water. Lack of clean
water is a major cause of disease and ill
economies with little or no social protection
health for women and men alike. However,
to speak of, the adverse distributive
there are additional consequences for
consequences for poor people and poor women and girls, as in poor countries it is
women, in particular, are immense. their responsibility to fetch water.
20
A third gender bias may result from the analyses, which are sometimes accompanied
fact that income disparities may increase by broader analyses of the macro-economic
between men and women, as women framework, then serve as the basis for the
crowd further into female-stereotyped formulation of gender-equitable budgets.
work, which is often informal. A fourth These initiatives have far-reaching political
gender bias may come about when girls, and economic implications, and are very
rather than boys, are pulled from schooling important tools for women and poor people
during periods of economic distress to care to make governments accountable, and for
for younger siblings or other family them to make claims on public resources.
members when their mothers seek paid However, in the context of global-
work. They may also be pulled out isation, fiscal policy cannot be rendered
disproportionately from schooling when gender-equitable or broadly equitable at
family incomes go down, even if the cost of the national or local levels alone. It is also
schooling remains the same (i.e. no new necessary to address these concerns at the
fees are imposed). Even if family incomes international level, and to ensure that there
are restored after the economy enters a is coherence among the international
period of macro-economic recovery, the dimensions of policy and advocacy and the
educational losses incurred are not easily national and local ones. A variety of policy
remedied, and translate into permanent positions (for example, on global taxation,
gender inequalities. debt cancellation, anti-militarism, and
A fifth problem is that crises and overseas development assistance) are taken
instability may lead to increased social by civil society organisations, including
violence and domestic violence, as some feminist ones, and these need to be
dimensions of the ideologies of mascu- supported by broader constituents of
linity, such as the male breadwinner feminists with greater focus and visibility.
ideology, are challenged. This may result in There also needs to be more debate and
more violence against women, as men dialogue on how to shape these positions in
attempt to regain a sense of power and ways that are more gender-equitable.
agency. A number of feminist groups, such as
DAWN (Development Alternatives with
Democratising fiscal policy Women for a New era) have been involved
in these debates for a long time. The point
and increasing here is not the absence of feminist analysis,
accountability to women but rather the strengthening of advocacy
However, during the last two decades, based on it. This can be accomplished
there have also been a wide range of efforts through greater dialogue between a)
around the world to democratise fiscal feminists who are involved in national or
policy in the form of pro- poor and gender- local budget initiatives and those who do
sensitive budget initiatives (Cagatay, advocacy at the international level; b)
Keklik, Lai and Lang 2000). The latter focus between feminists and other groups who
mostly on the expenditure side, and focus on democratising macro-economic
analyse not only government allocations policies (such as those who focus on pro-
specifically targeted at women, but rather poor budgets or other types of progressive
all allocations. The purpose is to uncover macro-economic policy making at the
the differential impacts of allocations on national and global levels and c) between
women and men; boys and girls feminists involved in budget initiatives in
(Budlender, Sharp and Allen 1998; the South and the North. Some of these
Commonwealth Secretariat 1999). Such areas are briefly outlined below.
22
Global taxation and redistribution company with others. More than ever
schemes before, the current danger in the world
Schemes like the Tobin tax, 5 or the economy is not inflation, but deflation.
institution of a global taxation authority, Assessments of social equity, more
need to receive more attention from specifically, the gender equity and growth
feminist activists. Revenue generated by implications of alternative fiscal policy
such taxation could be an important source scenarios (including scenarios with
of universal public provisioning of basic alternative budget deficit assumptions) can
social services, including healthcare, be important feminist tools in opposing
education, nutrition, sanitation and water, anti-deficit radicalism (Sen, G. 2000). These
and funding to realise country-specific would require integrating gender analysis
gender equity goals. A portion of the into macro-economic modelling.
revenues could be awarded to govern-
ments for the design of gender-equitable Demand for increased international
social protection systems. A Tobin tax mobility of labour
would be likely to reduce market volatility As pointed out above, a major reason
(Erturk 2002), a phenomenon which, as we behind the shift in the burden of taxation
have seen above, has disproportionately between labour and capital stems from the
detrimental effects on women. relative immobility of labour compared to
capital. Such an asymmetry has also led to
Debt cancellation campaigns the erosion of workers' rights. Feminist
Many feminists from the South support advocacy should include demands for
unconditional debt cancellation. Others increased international mobility of labour,
advocate attaching conditions relating to as well as demands for increased national
gender equality to such efforts. Even and international resources for the
without specific gender-related conditions, protection of workers' rights (for example,
debt cancellation would benefit women, as from global taxation schemes). These are not
long as this was accompanied by a parallel only important as demands in themselves,
demand for universal provisioning of but also because they have implications for
social services. Women have more to gain taxation patterns. Campaigns to eliminate
than men from universal provisioning, as tax havens, which allow corporations to
they are the ones who suffer more from a reduce their taxes, could also constitute
lack of such services, as outlined earlier. another venue for feminist activism on
gender-equitable taxation.
Reallocation of military spending
toward poverty reduction and social
equity in North and South Conclusion
This is another important demand, which
was put forward recently in Brazil. Feminist advocacy in these policy contexts
Feminist activists working on gender would further the efforts toward democrat-
budget initiatives in the North can demand isation of macro-economic policy making at
from their governments a reallocation of all levels, from the local to the national and
their own military expenditures toward the international. They would help render
increased overseas development assistance. gender budget initiatives, which have been
the most important feminist macro-
Opposition to anti-deficit radicalism economic policy challenge so far, more
Feminist activists need to oppose anti- effective by helping build greater solidarity
deficit radicalism more forcefully, in within the global justice movement.
Gender budgets and beyond 23
Sen, A.K. (2001) 'Many Faces of Gender UNDP (1999) Human Development Report,
Inequality', Frontline, 18 (22). Oxford: Oxford University Press
Sen, G. (2000) 'Gender mainstreaming in UNDP (2003) Making Global Trade Work for
finance ministries', World Development People, London: Earthscan Publications
28(7) UNIFEM (2000) 'Progress of the World's
Stiglitz, J. (2002) Globalization and Its Women 2000', New York: UNIFEM
Discontents New York: WW Norton van der Hoeven, R. (2000) 'Poverty and
UNCTAD (1997) 'Trade and Development Structural Adjustment: Some Remarks
Report, 1997', New York and Geneva: on the Trade-off Between Equity and
United Nations Growth', Geneva: ILO, Employment
United Nations (1999) 'World Survey on Paper
the Role of Women in Development:
Globalization, Gender and Work', New
York: Division for the Advancement of
Women, DESA
25
Feminist responses to
economic globalisation:
some examples of past and future
practice
Ruth Pearson
In order to challenge unfair international trade rules, it is essential to understand how each of them
works. This article presents an overview of the various agreements concerning different kinds of
economic activity, which are enforced by the World Trade Organisation (WTO). It aims to make
these agreements comprehensible to non-economists, so that proposals to make international trade
more gender equitable can be understood. The argument goes beyond the usual rhetoric that
women's concerns must be central to international trade regulation, and reviews some existing and
new initiatives which seek to do just that.
T
he world of economic globalisation is
confusing. International regulation of exchange to meet their import requirements.
world trade by the World Trade Different agreements within the WTO
Organisation purports to offer a level structure - such as TRIPS and GATS - all
playing field to rich and poor countries refer to specific parts of the new rules
alike; but often in the name of regulation concerning different kinds of international
the WTO imposes rules which prevent economic activity.
developing countries from supporting
industrial activity for domestic consump- TRIPS
tion, for example, garment production or
food production. Under the new regime, all TRIPS stands for Trade Related Intellectual
economies are being moved towards a Property. The TRIPS agreement is concerned
unitary system, whereby investment can with the freedom of transnational corp-
move freely between countries, and orations (TNCs) to protect their brand
enterprises will meet no obstacle in names and production know-how from
sourcing or marketing their produce from copying or adaptation by others without
anywhere in the world. While this is the agreement (and payment). Well-known
theory, in practice the level of protec- examples of companies that have been
tionism in the North (in terms of ongoing protected under TRIPS are the pharma-
subsidies to local producers, or tariff ceutical companies, which have developed
barriers against imports) remains extremely effective drugs to treat malaria or to delay
high. In spite of the apparent 'level playing the onset of AIDS and to prevent mother-
field' that the new rules offer all parties, to-child transmission of the virus. TRIPS
developing countries continue to face prevents other companies from copying
difficulties in accessing markets in the the basic (generic) form of a drug and
26
marketing it under a different name (and structures, they are considered by mainstream
often at a much lower price). Already there orthodox economists to be 'gender-free' -
have been 'trade disputes' at the WTO that is, to have no special implications for
about TRIPS - with Brazil successfully women or men, or for power relations
challenging the pharmaceutical companies between them. Rather, they are believed to
to allow it to manufacture anti-HIV drugs be concerned with flows of factors of
relatively cheaply. However, so far the production - finance, investment, and
TNCs have resisted allowing generically trade. The new institutions have gone so far
produced drugs to be exported to other as to categorically exclude considerations
countries by their producers. about labour from their remit, even though
labour is clearly a requisite for any
production or trading system. Discussions
GATS over the new international economic order
GATS refers to the General Agreement on have been conducted at a level of abstraction
Trade and Services. Trade in services was where it is assumed gender analysis is
always a difficult area for international irrelevant. But of course the agreements
negotiation. The new agreement does not outlined above - like other economic
only regulate trade in services, it is also structures, such as government budgets
about systematising the markets for invest- or tax systems - are deeply gendered.
ment in service sectors. Ultimately, this Changing trade rules means changes to the
means that developing countries' service structure of incentives and rewards to
sectors - which include health, education, different people.
sanitation, water, transport, communi- For example, in agriculture, the effect of
cations, tourism, and so on - have to be taking away subsidies for food production,
opened up to competition from inter- and encouraging farmers to switch to
national investors. This move is considered export production is very different for men
to offer the prospect of ongoing investment and women. Women generally control the
and improvements in efficiency. There is a production of food crops for family
relatively long lead-in period over which consumption and local markets. In contrast,
countries can sign up to the GATS agree- men tend to control larger-scale agriculture
ment, and decide which of their economic undertaken for national and international
sectors they wish to open up to inter- sale. If control over export production does
national investment and competition. But remain in the hands of women producers,
many NGOs and campaigners have warned reaching distant markets tends to be harder
of its implications for developing countries, for women since they face obstacles in
particularly since once a country agrees to accessing financial assets, information,
be bound by GATS it cannot withdraw, transport and storage networks (Harriss-
even if its economic circumstances or White 1998).
political rule have changed since the If you turn land over to cultivation of
original agreement was signed. export crops, women may be the major
source of labour for the new NTAEs (non-
traditional agricultural exports) such as
The impact of new trade seasonal fruit (grapes and kiwi fruits) and
rules on women, men and vegetables (beans and mangetouts)
gender relations (Barrientos 1999, Dolan 2001). However,
even if such production is carried out by
New multilateral trade systems are the smallholders, male heads of household
institutional face of economic globalisation. generally have control over production and
As with most economic policies and the income from it. If production is
Feminist responses to economic globalisation 27
the WTO should include a 'social clause' relocate the labour-intensive parts of
which would require members to demons- production processes to 'cheap' labour
trate a certain level of protection for the countries. Here, the workers were mostly
labour force involved in production for young, relatively educated, manually
international trade. For example, the social dexterous, single, childless women. They
clause would involve adherence to the ILO were employed to assemble electronics
Core Labour Standards which oblige states components, or sew fashion clothing, to
to guarantee freedom of association and the provide Northern consumers with cheap
right to collective bargaining, the elimi- goods. Most of the investment came from
nation of all forms of forced or compulsory North America or Europe, a lot of it was
labour, the effective abolition of child located in Free Trade Zones, and the
labour and the elimination of discrim- dominant mode of investment was direct
ination in employment and occupation investment by the multinational company.
(Murray 2002). But today, things have changed
Developing countries have responded considerably. Now, there is little direct
that a social clause could be a disguised investment in so-called 'off-shore production'.
form of protectionism; that is, a means by Instead, transnational 'brand' companies,
which developed countries could refuse such as The Gap or Nike, are involved in a
entry of goods and services exported from whole series of sub-contracting links to
the global South to their domestic markets. produce fashion clothing, sports goods,
This would constitute a new form of non- jewellery, electronics, or computer goods.
tariff barrier. Since many people complain They do not invest directly in the countries
about the high level of protectionism that where the production is taking place,
remains in the North, in spite of the instead contracting local producers to
existence of the new international manufacture products according to their
frameworks, it is argued that the intro- specifications, using their materials,
duction of a social clause would produce designs and logos. Often, a particular
further obstacles to the growth of trade, contractor - say, a company making
and therefore the possibilities of develop- trainers in Indonesia - will be contracted by
ment in poor countries. Instead, it is several companies to produce shoes in the
argued, international regulation about same factory, to be sold under different
labour force conditions and protection brand names in North America or Europe.
should be the preserve of the International In some cases, parts of the production
Labour Organisation (ILO), which is process will be sub-contracted to informal
organised along tripartite representation - workshops, or even home-based workers
that is, governments, employers and trade who do not enter the factory at all. Many of
unions participate in it, thereby dealing the subcontracted enterprises are owned by
with labour-related issues in a labour- Japanese, South Korean, Taiwanese and
related, rather than trade-related, context. (overseas) Chinese entrepreneurs, as these
However, economic globalisation has countries have developed experience in
also wrought huge changes in the ways in export production and their successful
which both production and the labour force industrialisation has generated surpluses to
in internationally traded sectors are invest in the global economy. In China
organised. In the 1970s and 1980s, we were itself, on the other hand, production is
told we were operating under a New contracted to national companies, often in
International Division of Labour (Frobel joint ventures with local or state govern-
et al. 1980). The model for this new way of ment, who produce under licence for the
producing for international markets was to overseas buyers.
Feminist responses to economic globalisation 29
negotiating strategies. Even in situations in job which amounts to a living wage, and
which trade unions are permitted to the right to collective organising and
operate, they may deal directly with bargaining; they have also made a series of
company management, but women workers demands which reflect their position vis-a-vis
rarely get a seat at the negotiating table. men, and their responsibilities according to
Also, as many people are swift to point the gender division of labour.
out, however hard and exploitative the For example, the VCC drawn up by the
conditions of work might be, most of the members of the Central American Women's
women have no better alternative. They are Network (CAWN) included organisations
therefore concerned to keep their jobs, of women workers in Nicaragua and
rather than forcing companies to take their Honduras. They committed their signatures
contracting business elsewhere. Given the to a policy of no discrimination, job security
flexible and cross-border nature of global for all, but in particular for pregnant and
production, it is easy to understand that the post-natal women, consideration in the
buying companies do have alternative work place (no verbal, physical, or mental
sources for their manufactures. What the abuse), working conditions which guarantee
women workers want is 'Trabajo - si pero workers' physical integrity (relating to
con dignidad' ('Work, yes - with dignity') health and safety, sanitary facilities and so
(Red CentroAmericana de Mujeres en on), access to national social security
Solidaridad con las Trabajadoras de la benefits, a minimum wage, limits to the
Maquilas, cawn@gn.apc.org). length of the working day, pay for over-
In many instances, a much wider range time, freedom to organise and to conduct
of stakeholders has been involved in collective bargaining, and a ban on child
drawing up VCCs, including community- labour.
based NGOs, women's organisations, and Although there is little concrete evidence
coalitions of groups representing women that VCCs have the power to coerce TNCs
workers. Whilst the idea of this kind of to treat their workforce with dignity and
voluntary regulation has been dismissed by fairness, they have provided a voice for
some as a public relations gimmick, it is women's groups, so they can publicise the
also the case that companies are very reality of their work situation and connect
vulnerable to changes in consumer prefer- with international systems of solidarity,
ences, and the young affluent consumers monitoring and verification of the imple-
who are the main purchasers of branded mentation of VCCs. They have also
clothing and sportswear are also very challenged the assumption that TNCs can
attuned to information available on the operate in a borderless global economy,
Internet about conditions of production all accountable to no one, and that the right to
over the world. It is for this reason that exploit cheap labour in the pursuit of
some companies have been willing to co- economic efficiency is to be tolerated in the
operate with VCC initiatives. global market.1
Although it is cannot be claimed that
VCC initiatives have changed the situation A gender equity clause in the WTO
of women involved in export production Although, as explained above, many
overnight, one thing that they have done is developing country governments have
bring into the public domain women's objected to the introduction of a social
priorities which have often been over- clause in WTO negotiations on the grounds
looked by male labour representatives. In that it would constitute a disguised form of
many instances, women have stressed not protectionism, the idea of proposing a
just their rights to appropriate pay for the gender equity clause could also be explored.
Feminist responses to economic globalisation 31
systems. The gender budget initiatives Elson, D (2000) Progress of the World's
illustrate a number of examples of how Women, UNIFEM Biennial Report,
gender interests can be mainstreamed NewYork, United Nation Development
within national fiscal and monetary Programme (UNDP); full text available,
policies. Similar processes also need to be in English, French and Spanish at
undertaken with respect to international www.undp.org / unifem / progressww
economic systems. The proposals for a Evers, Barbara (2002) 'Gender, International
gender equity clause in the WTO, and a Trade and the Trade Policy Review
'Maria tax', are not yet detailed concrete Mechanism: Conceptual Reference
proposals. Rather, they are ideas which are Points for UNCTAD'. Available on:
intended to stimulate debate about how to http: / / www.gapresearch.org / governance
mainstream gender issues in international /wto.html (downloaded 20/03/2003)
trade, and to help focus attention on the Frobel, Heinrichs and Kreye (1980) The
contribution women continue to make in New International Division of Labour,
the production of goods and services Cambridge University Press, Cambridge
within the global economy. Hale, A. and J. Hurley 'What does the
phase out of the MFA quota system
Ruth Pearson works at the Centre for Develop- mean for garment workers?' in Gender
ment Studies, University of Leeds, LS2 9JT. Trade and the World Trade Organisation,
r.pearson@leeds.ac. uk www.poptel.org.uk/women-
ww/gender_trade_and_the_wto
(downloaded 10/03/2003)
Notes Harriss-White, B. (1998) 'Female and male
1 For a review of VCCs and the views of grain marketing systems: analytical and
different stakeholders see Jenkins et al. policy issues for West Africa and India',
(2002). in Jackson, C. and R. Pearson (eds.)
Feminist Visions of Development : Gender
Analysis and Policy, London: Routledge
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Barrientos, S., A. Bee, A. Matear and I. (2002) Corporate Responsibility and Labour
Vogel (1999) Women and Agribusiness: Rights: Codes of Conduct in the Global
Working Miracles in the Chilean Fruit Economy, London: Earthscan
Export Sector, Basingstoke: Macmillan Molyneux, M. (1985) 'Mobilization without
Budlender D, D. Elson, G. Hewitt and T. emancipation? Women's interests, the
Mukhopadhyay (eds) (2002) 'Gender state and revolution in Nicaragua', in
Budgets Make Cents: understanding Feminist Studies 11, Summer
gender responsive budgets' London: Murray, J. (2002) 'Labour rights /corporate
Commonwealth Secretariat responsibilities: the role of ILO labour
Canas, M., Y. Martinez, M. Pastora standards', in Jenkins, R. R. Pearson and
Sandino, J. T. Cortez Magana (1998) Los G. Seyfang (eds.) (2002) Corporate
derochos hjumanos y la maquila en El Responsibility and Labour Rights: Codes of
Salvador, Procuraduria Adjunta para la Conduct in the Global Economy, London:
Defensa de los Deroechos Humanos de Earthscan
la Muhr, San Salvador, El Salvador C.A. Oxfam (2002) Make Trade Fair: Rigged Rules
Dolan, Catherine (2001) 'The good wife: and Double Standards: Trade, Globalisation
struggles over land and labour allocation and the Fight Against Poverty, available
in the Kenyan horticultural sector', in from Policy Department, Oxfam GB, 274
Journal of Development Studies 27:3. Banbury Road, Oxford OX2 7DZ, or
34
S
ince the Second United Nations
Women's Conference in Copenhagen invisible as a producer in a nation's
in 1980,2 feminists have strategised to economy, you are invisible in the distrib-
force global and national accounting bodies ution of benefits (unless they label you a
to make women's economic contribution welfare 'problem' or 'burden').
visible in their data. A main focus for In 1993, the rules of the UNSNA (United
attention has been the United Nations Nations 1993) were changed. This was an
System of National Accounts (UNSNA). opportunity to address feminist concerns,
UNSNA was instigated in 1953, with the and incorporate essential work performed
aim of enabling comparisons to be made for home consumption into the accounting
between national economies, and serving as system. However, this chance was missed.
a guide to countries developing their own Paragraph 1.25 of the 1993 UNSNA
accounting systems. In the UNSNA, national establishes the 'consumption boundary',
economies are defined in terms of market enumerating the many domestic and
transactions; consumption, investment, and personal services which do not 'count'
saving measures are given in addition to when they are produced and consumed
income and production totals. A vast within the same household. Women all
amount of work performed by women is over the planet perform the bulk of these
for household consumption or unpaid tasks. They are the cleaning, decoration and
work in the informal economy. This work is maintenance of the dwelling occupied by
not counted in UNSNA. The lack of the household; cleaning, servicing and
visibility of women's contribution to the repair of household goods; the preparation
economy results in policies which perpetuate and serving of meals; the care, training and
economic, social and political inequality instruction of children; the care of the sick,
between women and men. There is a very infirm or old people; and the transportation
36
of members of the household or their and the dye (active and inactive labour). All
goods. These services do count in the this time she will carry the baby on her
UNSNA when they are supplied by back (inactive work).
government or voluntary agencies, and Of particular importance to feminists is
when they are paid for. The 'uncounted' paragraph 1.22 of the 1993 UNSNA, which
tasks are termed 'indicators of welfare'. describes the UNSNA as a 'multi-purpose
Out of a breathtaking conceptual system ... designed to meet a wide range of
ignorance, and undoubted Western bias, analytical and policy needs'. It states that
the UNSNA fails to grasp there is no 'a balance has to be struck between the
demarcation for women in the subsistence desire for the accounts to be as compre-
household between production inside or hensive as possible', and their being
outside the consumption boundaries. Just swamped with non-monetary values. The
picture the following. A woman wakes; revised system excludes all 'production of
she breastfeeds her four-month-old child services for own final consumption within
(unproductive inactive primary production, households ... The location of the production
consumed by a member of the household). boundary ... is a compromise, but a deliberate
There is no accurate way of ascribing value one that takes account of most users [my
to this activity, even in the proposed emphasis - it is difficult to make extensive
'satellite accounts'. (The satellite accounts use of statistics in which you are invisible]
are the 'add on' compromise that will ... If the production boundary were
include unpaid work. They have to be extended to include production of personal
separate so as not to disturb what the and domestic services by members of
experts call the 'internal integrity and households for their own final consumption,
international comparability of the current all persons engaged in such activities
accounting framework'.) There is no market would become self-employed, making
price for breast milk, so the satellite unemployment virtually impossible by
accounts will price that food at its nearest definition.' Rather than justifying leaving
replacement equivalent. But infant formula, most of the work done by most women out
whatever cost is ascribed to it, cannot of the equation, this statement surely
compete with the quality of breast milk, demonstrates that the current definition of
which means that its use will have a cost unemployment is inappropriate.
impact on the future health and education The International Labour Organisation
of the child. (ILO) specifies that the production of
Let's continue with the picture. The economic goods and services includes all
woman goes to collect water. She uses some production and processing of primary
to wash dishes from the family evening products, including that for home consum-
meal (unproductive work) and the pots in ption, with the proviso that such production
which she previously cooked a little food must be 'an important contribution' to the
for sale (informal work). Next, she goes to total consumption of the household (ILO
the nearby grove to collect bark for dye for 1982). In a 1993 resolution concerning the
materials to be woven for sale (informal international classification of status in
work), which she mixes with half a bucket employment, the International Conference
of water (informal work). She also collects of Labour Statisticians defined subsistence
some roots and leaves to make a herbal workers as those 'who hold a self-
medicine for her child (inactivity). She uses employment' job and in this capacity
the other half of the bucket of water to 'produce goods and services which are
make this concoction (inactivity). She will predominantly consumed by their own
also collect some dry wood to build the fire household and constitute an important
to boil the water to make both the medicine basis for its livelihood.' (ILO 1993).
Counting for something! 37
Compare the concepts of 'an important public policy, yet the framework of the
basis for livelihood', and 'an important UNSNA remains intact. However far
contribution' to the total consumption of removed from reality the UNSNA becomes,
the household, with the specific exclusions governments, business and multilaterals
from production in the 1993 UNSNA. are committed to it, in the misguided
The distinctions made in terms of the conception that it accurately measures the
boundary of production and consumption, thing which matters most: economic 'growth'.
and the definitions of the informal sector John Ralston Saul opined in his CBC
worked on so earnestly for the last ten Massey Lecture Series: 'I would suggest
years, are in these few sentences revealed that we are in desperate need of a reform-
as a load of patriarchal nonsense. As the ulation of the idea of growth...It is difficult
example above shows, women's lives are to imagine how we might escape our
not so meaninglessly divided. All tasks of ongoing economic crisis unless we can
survival in such circumstances are related. reconsider [its] nature... By reconsideration,
The Statistical Commission reported: 'As I mean that we must attempt to draw back
far as household production is concerned, far enough to see where value lies in
the central framework includes for the first society' (Ralston Saul 1997, 156-7). In the
time all production of goods in households, next section, I look at some work which has
whether sold or not, and services if they are resulted from such attempts.
supplied to units other than their producers'
(my emphasis) (UN Statistical Commission,
www.un.org / Depts / unsd / sna / sna2-en. Information on real life:
htm). As concerned as they have been with alternative models
conceptual and measurement difficulties,
In the past 12 years, some very fine work
and boundaries of consumption or
has resulted from the consideration of such
production, the designers of the new
issues. The figures feminists needed, to
UNSNA just miss the point, and in so
ensure that the realities of women's and
doing fail to reflect the reality of the
children's lives are made visible to econ-
majority of women on the planet.
omists and politicians, are finally starting
The problem is systemic, and encom- to be produced. Data on the ways in which
passes issues other than gender inequality. we survive in a context of resource
There are other significant measurement exploitation and environmental degradation
problems in the current UNSNA frame- are emerging. What alternative models
work. Among the research topics of the have been developed which yield such
Inter-Secretarial Working Group on national material, and render it useful for public
accounts, co-ordinated by the UN Statistical policy purposes? The new feminist challenge
Commission, have been the indirect is to identify and use these models.
measurement of financial intermediation
services; services in the informal sector; the The Index of Sustainable Welfare (ISEW)
classification of the purposes of non-profit The authors of this model, Herman Daly
institutions serving households; a work- and John Cobb, share a concern that 'what
shop on intangible assets; the issue of is needed is a new measure.' (Daly and
measuring e-commerce; and more on Cobb 1994, 378). They are particularly
counting the hidden economy. All of these concerned that 'costs' should be registered
pose significant technical, measurement as deficits or depletions, not as 'goods' or
and valuation problems. Wild, speculative 'benefits' in production and consumption,
abstractions regarding these concerns have as in the UNSNA .
resulted in the figures produced being Daly and Cobb propose the Index of
absolutely meaningless for the purposes of Sustainable Economic Welfare (ISEW).
38
In this method of data collection and In addition, Daly and Cobb's valuations
analysis, growth is no longer God; the are based on old inequalities. In ascribing a
emphasis is now on sustainability. The value to unpaid work, they adopt Robert
characteristics used in the ISEW are Eisner's method of estimating the value of
personal consumption, distributional time spent on unpaid household work on
inequality, household labour services, the basis of the average wage rate for
consumer durables, services provided by household domestic workers (Eisner 1989).
highways and streets, improvement in This, they say, avoids the problem of using
health and education by way of public differential market wage rates for men and
expenditures, expenditures on consumer women. However, this does not avoid the
durables and defensive private expendi- problems thrown up by using traditional
tures on health and education. Costs low wage rates from a female occupation to
included are the costs of commuting, the estimate the value of the work of domestic
costs of personal pollution control, costs of workers, especially when much of that work
automobile accidents, costs of water is in the management of a small business,
pollution, air pollution, noise pollution, even if there is no market exchange!
losses of wetlands, losses of farm land, The results of the ISEW are measured
depletion of non-renewable resources, long- in per capita dollars. They have been
term environmental damage, cost of ozone calculated in the USA for the years
depletion, net capital growth, (that is, the 1950-1990, and show variations when
growth in the stock of goods used to measured against the GDP in each of the
produce other goods) and a change in net four decades, and a decline in the 1980s. In
international position (indebtedness). retrospect, these studies can demonstrate
Attempts to ascribe a value to leisure that improvements in car safety and
were omitted from the ISEW, because 'the reductions in air pollution have made
rather arbitrary assumptions upon which such contributions to raising the level of
a calculation is based ... are particularly economic welfare. So have social policies to
reduce income inequality (ibid., 507). The
problematic'(ibid., 455). However, Daly
categories included in the ISEW make this
and Cobb include 'a rather speculative
method of data collection yield a far more
estimate of long-term environmental
recognisable picture of reality. But the
damage, particularly from climate modifi-
ISEW still remains one conglomerate, a
cation' (ibid.). They admit to being forced
single new measure, and the dollar is the
to make 'heroic assumptions' in compiling measurement tool.
the ISEW, such as the cost imposed on
future generations by the depletion of The Human Development Index (HDI)
natural resources (ibid.). Since its inception in 1990, the United
The ISEW falls down on the issue of Nations Human Development Report
unpaid work. While it shows evidence of series has been dedicated to ending the
new thinking, it remains patronising. mis-measurement of human progress by
'Which of the activities within the house- economic growth alone. 'To be valuable and
hold should be classified as work as legitimate, development progress, both
opposed to leisure or an intrinsically nationally and internationally, must be
satisfying activity?' (ibid., 457), they ask. people-centred, equitably distributed and
There is an easy response to this point: environmentally and socially sustainable ...
members of the paid workforce also take time If present trends continue economic dis-
for leisure in paid time, and find elements parities between the industrial and developing
of their employment intrinsically satisfying. nations will move from inequitable to
We still count all their activities as work. inhumane'(United Nations 1996, iii).
Counting for something! 39
To make the HDI capture gender- are estimated where possible, but in the
related inequalities, life expectancy, adult GPI it is not necessary that all components
literacy and education are disaggregated by should have a financial value attributed to
sex, as are data on share of earned income. them.
A 'Gender Empowerment Measure' (GEM) The indicators of the GPI include
includes data on the proportion of seats in statistics on unpaid work, divided into
parliament occupied by women, data on voluntary and community work, unpaid
women as a percentage of administrators housework and parenting, and the value of
and managers, professional and technical unpaid overtime and underemployment.
workers, and women's percentage of These figures can be gender-disaggregated.
earned income. The Human Development The monetary valuation method used in
Reports are augmented with other data this study for calculating the economic
relevant to gender-based poverty and value of unpaid work is the replacement
inequality. Despite the data limitations of cost (specialist) method. This reflects the
timeliness and availability, the problems of hourly wage rate that would be paid in
currency conversions to the USD baseline, Nova Scotia to replace existing activities at
differing concepts, classifications and market prices for the same kind of work.
methods, and charges that there are too While this financial valuation is used to
many data with too many different demonstrate linkages between the market
indicators, the HDI begins to approach
and non-market sectors of the economy, a
approximate accurate input for the purpose
clear focus of the analysis is on time. In 1997
of policy making.
Nova Scotians contributed an estimated
134 million hours of their time to civic and
Genuine Progress Indicators voluntary work, and more than 940 million
One key indicator that is missing from the hours to unpaid household work. Their
UN HDI is time-use. Time-use has figured unpaid work in these two categories was
prominently in the work to establish the equivalent of 571,000 full-year full-time
Genuine Progress Indicators (GPI) in Nova jobs!
Scotia. Prepared by Dr Ronald Coleman,
the Nova Scotia GPI project has been The GPI work in Nova Scotia is the
designated as a pilot with Statistics Canada, most sophisticated measurement work for
which is providing ongoing assistance in policy outcomes anywhere. I recommend it
data collection and analysis, and staff to you. Of particular use are the cross-
support. In addition to the national census, cutting sectoral work in the forestry
the GPI uses data from the Canadian accounts, the water accounts, and the
System of Environmental and Resource unpaid work accounts in both the house-
Accounts. The index consists of twenty hold, and voluntary and community
components with a sectoral approach and sectors. Only the key points and press
an emphasis on policy relevance. statements in each area appear on the
The GPI indices distinguish direct website at www.gpiatlantic.org, but full
contributions to economic welfare from reports can be purchased.
defensive and intermediate expenditures, The original aim of the GPI for Nova
and from activities that produce an actual Scotia was to create an economic data set in
decline in well-being. Natural resource which all activities had an estimated
accounts include fisheries, soil and agri- monetary value - obviously, the involve-
culture, forestry, wildlife, and greenhouse ment of Stats Canada and the Nova Scotia
gas emissions. There are data on the costs Provincial Government had to be appeased.
of crime, income distribution, and trans- But it is the ground-breaking work in the
portation cost analysis. Monetary values policy field that has saved this from being
40
just another data set, and moved it on so-called reasonable degree of accuracy.
inestimably from Cobb and Daly's work, Sometimes the choice of what data to
which continued to 'Redefine Progress'.3 collect depends simply on what is on the
Rather than producing pages of retro- UN agenda for that year.
spective alternative data sets with alternative
explanations for policy outcomes, GPI Presenting and interpreting data in non-
Nova Scotia's publications look forward to monetary terms
The fine policy work in Nova Scotia also
raising the key questions for policy decisions
today and tomorrow, and with cross- mitigates the second problem of data
which cannot be presented and interpreted
sectoral trade-offs explicit in the equations.
It is superb work. It is also written in other than in monetary terms. This means
totally accessible language, for non- that all sections of the population - not just
economists. The ongoing engagement of academic statisticians and economists, can
the Nova Scotia community in the analysis participate in debates about the research.
of the GPI has also been a breakthrough in It is expressed in the way that people might
talk about it in a community meeting,
all the projects on alternative indicator sets
of which I am aware. in 'real world' terms. It is also important
that data can be debated in terms of its own
integrity, instead of the somewhat far-
Key challenges remaining fetched abstractions that result when
The process in Nova Scotia partially solves everything is given a monetary value. For
two of the key problems that remained example, if we think of gender inequality
(at that point) with the GPI approach and the potential users and objectives of
(which was originally Daly and Cobb's time-use data relating to women's and
successor to the ISEW). men's workloads, we know that it is not
necessary for policy discussions to ascribe
Asking people to set their own indicators monetary values to that work. For example,
of well-being awareness of unequal time-use may spark
The first of these partial solutions is that off discussions about the need for day
while the indices seek to measure the well- nurseries to offer more flexible services so
being or development of a people or peoples, that women's need for child-care can be
community, nation state or region, it is not met. These discussions do not require
usual for anyone to ask people themselves information about the value of the work
what indicators they would use to describe which women are undertaking for such
their well-being, and how they would long hours. Nor do debates about policy
measure outcomes of policies based on this regarding assistance to private businesses,
data. Instead, the indicator sets are either or the planning and production of goods
what the authorities determine as being the and services for home care. The need for
figures they will collect (because the World monetary values to be ascribed occasionally
Bank or IMF says so; because you can get a is not a reason to abstract all time-use data
lot of software and hardware and vehicles to the economic model. Far more rigorous
if you collect particular data in a develop- planning can be achieved by retaining the
ment assistance programme; because they time-use framework, and it makes much
support a corrupt government and can be more sense.
easily manipulated; or just because they are Ascribing monetary values to labour
the ones that have always been collected results in a loss of detail and specificity in
and there is comparability over time), or policy analysis. Nowhere can the conse-
the figures that can be collected, from a quences of this be more starkly seen than in
logistical and technical standpoint, with a the case of children who work. Stories in
Counting for something! 41
the State of the World's Children 1997 That ought to be sufficient for effective
illustrate this. The ILO Minimum Age policy planning. Different units yes, but
Convention allows light work at age 12 or with judgement exercised. But the econo-
13, but prohibits hazardous work before 18. mists want one baseline, so that depletion
It also establishes a general minimum age of capital could include not just depreci-
of 15 years for paid work, provided 15 is ation of physical capital, but depletion of
not less than the age of completion of natural resources along with deterioration
compulsory schooling. Yet, of the projected of environmental quality. The problem is,
190 million working children in the 10-14 they say, that so much expenditure for
age group in the developing world, three- environmental protection compensates for
quarters work six days a week or more, and the negative impact of economic growth, so
one half work nine hours a day or more it should be a cost to be deducted from
(UNICEF 1997, 25). In a 1993 study in national income.
Malawi, 78 per cent of the 10-14 year olds, There's an attractive logic here, and it
and 55 per cent of the 7-9 year olds living parallels the 'costs' component of Daly and
on tobacco estates were working full- or Cobb's ISEW system. The UN satellite
part-time (ibid., 38). One quarter of the system has been tested in several countries.
work force - around 50,000 - in the glass For Mexico between 1986 and 1990, it was
bangle industry of Firozabad in India are found that the environmentally-adjusted
children under 14, working in indescribably domestic product was 13 per cent less than
unsafe and inhumane conditions (ibid., 37). the conventionally measured net domestic
Haiti has an estimated 25,000 child domestics, product. The new accounting measures
20 per cent of whom are 7-10 years old also showed that net investment, which
(ibid., 30). In the United States, at least conventional measures showed as positive
100,000 children are believed to be involved at 4.6 billion pesos, was a negative 700
in child prostitution (ibid., 26). As many as million pesos. Net savings, also assumed to
3 million children aged 10-14 are estimated be positives, were actually close to zero. A
to work in Brazil's sisal, tea, sugar cane and case study for Papua New Guinea over the
tobacco plantations (ibid., 38). The most same period produced similar results.
reliable estimates available for the United There consumption exceeded output so net
Kingdom show that between 15-26 per cent savings were negative (UN 1996, 63).
of 11 year olds are working (ibid., 20). But there had to be a better way.
Do we want to lose the detail of what
we do to children by ascribing monetary Alberta GPI
values to their production? I certainly do The latest work in which I have been
not, but that would be the result of including involved as an adviser appears to have
their labour and its outcome under a addressed both these major impediments to
generic 'producer' category. Similarly, I do using the GPI in a major tool for policy
not want to lose the complexity of the planning. My challenge to the Alberta GPI
impact of human activity on our eco- Project Director, Mark Anielski at the
system behind dollar signs. Yet that is the Pembina Institute, was that the character-
direction being pursued to give 'visibility' istics of well-being to be utilised in the
to environmental issues. To establish the Alberta GPI should reflect the values seen
United Nations satellite system of integrated as indicative of well-being by Albertans
economic and environmental accounting, themselves. The values held by Albertans
the first step for each country is to draw up should also determine how a characteristic
a comprehensive balance sheet of natural in the GPI approach is treated. For example,
resources, measured in physical quantities. in some communities, divorce is seen as a
42
negative social cost. We know it usually I believe there is now this model. It is
leads to the economic downward mobility based on the healing circle used by the First
of women. Most governments focus on Nations People of North America. It requires
single-parent-headed households as a no expensive software: it is a simple radar
negative phenomenon. Yet we all know diagram in an Excel Programme. The work
cases where the separation or divorce can be downloaded from www.pembina.org.
brings about an end to prolonged violence, I believe this approach offers enormous
and the well-being of children and mothers possibilities, but it must not be abused. (I
improves substantially. Divorce can dread to think of it as a tool in the hands of
therefore, in some contexts, be seen as unethical postgraduate students who need
positive. Similarly, some communities a thesis.) In the first place, users should
would see the rate of oil extraction in know the origins of opposition to the
Alberta as a positive contribution to well- UNSNA approach, and how and why this
being; others might see such extraction as a alternative approach evolved. It must come
cost, particularly in terms of inter- as a whole piece of work, which is initiated
generational equity. by the communities whose well-being (or
In the time available, the Alberta GPI level of poverty, or development indicators)
team was not able to conduct new research, is or are being determined. These people
but it was able to undertake a meta-data themselves should determine the indicators
analysis of the Canadian and Albertan to be included, and this list should be
research on community values as reflected revisited with them every five to ten years.
in the past five to ten years. This had the You can see immediately that the open
immediate effect of increasing the character- architecture could deal with all the
istics to be included to over 50, as opposed following: inflation rate, daily caloric
to the 26 in the original GPI or the 20 used intake, maternal mortality, the cost of a litre
in Nova Scotia. of water, last year's rainfall, notifiable and
The next challenge was to find a way of contagious disease levels, levels of education
presenting all the data without ascribing or literacy or school attendance, access to
notional monetary values, in such a way and use of family planning, agricultural
that all characteristics were measured in extension programmes, micro credit schemes,
terms of their own integrity. It would the retention of indigenous languages,
obviously be useful if the system or model natural disasters, pollution of air and
could also make trade-offs visible, and water, deforestation - the list can be as long
could be accessible for communities to as a community determines. They should
understand and to participate in the also be party to the interpretation of the
analysis and planning that flows from the radar diagram, which would determine the
presentation of data. It would also be a vast policy inputs required for desired out-
improvement if the system could have comes, with trade-offs being very explicit.
'open architecture' - that is, when a comm- I believe this model can be rigorous,
unity or nation state demonstrated that a ethical and accessible in our hands as a real
particular characteristic was no longer breakthrough for policy work, with and for
important to them, it could drop out of the women and their communities.
system. Similarly, whenever a new measure-
ment deemed important presented itself, it Conclusion
too could be introduced, without the tedium
of 'not disturbing the comparability of the The UNSNA is still the most influential
model over time', which is the outdated model being used universally, but it is
approach of the UNSNA and its policy of failing women miserably as a policy
satellites. instrument, regardless of all its other
Counting for something! 43
G
ERA is a pan-African research and
advocacy programme, which aims economic policy, trade and human security
to increase understanding of the in the context of globalisation. Responding
different impact of economic reforms on to these questions is a critical element of the
men and women in the African setting, and African women's movement's contribution
ensure greater participation of African to re-inventing globalisation so that it
research organisations and women's works for women and for people in poverty,
groups in research, analysis and advocacy. rather than against them.
It is the common dream of a group of
African women, who created it to order to
deconstruct and transform economic
The conception and
policies from a gender perspective. The mission of GERA
economy is a central site of struggle for GERA was set up in 1996. Since then, a
African women's empowerment in the era growing number of African women
of globalisation. Nowadays, daring to researchers and activists have joined the
dream and to write about a dream is not an initial group, to help make the dream come
innocent exercise, or a simple exercise of true. To date, GERA has provided support
style: it is a political statement. This article for 16 research and advocacy projects on
discusses the concept behind GERA and the gender dimensions of economic reforms
some of its achievements so far, and in 12 African countries, and for 11 projects
considers its position in relation to key focusing on the gender dimensions of trade
The conception and mission of the GERA programme 45
a technical system that should be protected concerns the vision of society that is
from political interference. This can be promoted through the monopolisation of
clearly seen in the current liberalisation economic policy making by experts, which
and privatisation drive in African countries. implies the exclusion of ordinary citizens
It has led to a debate among African from the major form of political action and
intellectuals and activists over the role of subsequently, further marginalisation of
the state in African countries.3 While this women.
issue has become part of the advocacy In the past few years, African civil
agenda of civil society groups in Africa, society and women's organisations have
there is a need for wider awareness of the been increasingly involved in consultations
huge political implications. Attempts to about some processes led by the World
remove economic policy from political Bank and donors, such as the PRSP (Poverty
control, by reducing economic policy to a Reduction Strategy Plan) processes.
set of technical prescriptions, imply that However, members of the GERA network
economic policy is the territory of experts have voiced their concerns about the way
and should not be subject to democratic in which women's voices have been turned
debate and participation. Yet, the ever- into instruments to legitimise economic
increasing power of international financial processes imposed by the World Bank and
and trade institutions shows that economic donors (Mbilinyi 2001). In our view, in
policy has actually become the major form many cases, this willingness to give a voice
of political action at the global level. This is to African women seems to be mainly
a major threat to democracy in general, and motivated by the need to legitimise those
women's rights in particular. processes. It comes as no surprise that the
GERA advocates for a political economy formulation of the macro-economic frame-
approach to gender, trade and investment work of the PRSPs, like other macro-economic
as the most appropriate way to uncover policies, remains the preserve of experts -
issues that have been hitherto considered as most of whom are male - and closed to
unintended effects of, rather than inherent public debate and participation.
to, these policies themselves. GERA counters
the depoliticisation of economic policy in What are real policy
all its research: the starting point for its
analysis of the gender dimensions of trade
alternatives from a gender
liberalisation and the multilateral trading perspective?
system is a thorough understanding of the While most women's rights and gender
way in which inequalities are created and equality advocates agree on the need to
maintained by the global economic system. oppose neo-liberal economic policies, there
Production, consumption and savings may is still little consensus on what a feminist
appear to be purely economic issues, but they position should be on a number of issues.
are sustained by the ways in which society At GERA, we believe that the debate
is organised. Therefore, attention needs to among women's organisations and activists
be given to the social dimensions of macro- has been obscured by the overwhelming
economic policies (Elson and Cagatay 2000). focus on the impact of neo-liberal policies
on women and gender relations, at the
expense of a systematic analysis of the
The role of civil society in structural and inter-related causes of this
economic policy-making impact.
A critical question that we at GERA believe An example is the issue of social
should be raised whenever possible protection under globalisation (that is, the
The conception and mission of the GERA programme 47
extent to which the state should be able to Multilateral trade and the
protect and fulfil the social rights of its WTO: the ghost of tyranny
citizens, including the rights to employ-
ment and social security, in a globalised GERA' s work on the gender dimensions of
economy). In some cases, discussions trade seeks to inject African women's
within the women's movement focus on perspectives in trade policy-making and
processes. In this section, I will examine
social protection and policies to ensure this,
some different approaches to the gender
without relating these issues to gender
dimensions of trade liberalisation, to show
biases and structural inequalities between the compartmentalised nature of current
women and men in the economy. But these debates. These debates miss the inter-
discussions on women and social protection linkages between macro, meso and micro
do not deal with the key factors which issues, as well as the connections between
lead to women's requirement for social different types of economic reforms and
protection. Looking at social protection in policies. From the point of view of African
this isolated way legitimises the idea that women, this suggests that there is an
women are a category of people who only urgent need to transform the economic
require measures to address their welfare model underlying the international trade
needs, but not actions or policies for regime, because of the structural and
addressing the root causes of their political biases that undermine gender
marginalisation in the globalised economy. equality and disempower women in the
This gives rise to a 'politics of compassion', economy.
deployed by the promoters of neo-liberalism,
Gender issues forgotten: mainstreaming
in order to counter the mounting protest trade into development
against the negative effects of their policies. The depoliticisation of economic policy
'Engendering' economic policies is discussed above can be seen in current
different from institutionalising compassion WTO processes, and the governance of the
towards women. Promoting gender- multilateral trading system. On one level,
sensitive economic policies is not only the undemocratic and manipulative practices
about establishing safety nets. It is that characterise the WTO processes are
primarily about ensuring that there will be major issues, because gender issues and
no need for safety nets. In this regard, a women's empowerment cannot be on the
feminist approach would posit that sound agenda when people are ignored. At
and equitable economic policies require another level, the governance of the
men and women to have equal access to, multilateral trading system has been - and
and control over, productive resources, remains - a key issue for the advocacy
equal participation in decision making, and work of women's organisations and
equal distribution of the benefits of their activists. This is not only because gender as
work. Gender-sensitive economic policies a category of analysis, and gender relations
as a key set of social dynamics, are not
would not be obsessed with budget
recognised in trade policy decision-making
deficits, inflation and macro-economic
(Williams 2002). Most importantly, it is
stability. They would take the care because trade policy formulation and
economy fully into account. They would decision-making needs to be challenged, if
give each country enough flexibility to trade liberalisation is to be re-configured to
meet the needs of their peoples, giving ensure gender equality (Williams 2002).
primacy to human rights and develop- The convergence between the policies of
mental needs. the IMF, the World Bank and the WTO has
48
not only created a dominant discourse GERA research aims to support the
which promotes the trade liberalisation development of such a policy framework.
agenda. It has also given rise to mech- In our view, the framework needs to take
anisms such as the IMF Poverty Reduction account of the following:
and Growth Facility (PRGF) and the World • the distributive effects of trade policies
Bank-led Poverty Reduction Strategy Plan on African economies;
(PRSP), which are particularly powerful
since they are backed by all three • the interaction between trade
institutions. These mechanisms impose liberalisation and other types of
conditions on countries in a similar way to economic reforms and policies;
Structural Adjustment Policies (SAPs). The • the extent to which this general context
Integrated Framework for Technical Assist- empowers or disempowers women -
ance, which is meant to ensure the integration their empowerment in trade also
of trade and development, involves the depends on the general economic and
combined efforts of the IMF, World Bank political conditions into which they
and WTO, along with other UN agencies. integrate the trading systems.
One cannot but ask why similar but The framework needs to be based on an
separate mechanisms have not been put in acknowledgment of the multiple ways in
place and used to further gender equality which African women are disempowered
and women's empowerment. by international trading arrangements. This
is not only to do with WTO agreements
and rules, but also to do with the role of
Gender and trade: towards international financial institutions and
an African perspective 4 transnational corporations, as well as the
African analyses of trade liberalisation state, and institutions at national level.
need to be heard. African countries have Most importantly, GERA advocates for
been integrated into the multilateral trading African gender researchers and activists to
system, through the General Agreement on re-claim the concept of gender main-
Tariffs and Trade (GATT) and the establish- streaming, so that it plays the role of a
ment of the World Trade Organisation political tool for women's empowerment,
(WTO), without any kind of meaningful instead of a technical device for legitimising
participation. Their integration has also inequitable trade and economic policies.
taken place under peculiar conditions that The prevailing approaches to addressing
define their weak position in the global the gender implications and impact of
trading arrangements. In addition, there is trade policies should be critically evaluated
an unresolved controversy around the and challenged. The findings of GERA
issue of gender mainstreaming into the researchers5 demonstrate that, as a first
WTO. In particular, the lack of attention to step in this direction, the ways in which
African women's perspectives on this issue different forms of inequality intersect each
is important, since it has critical impli- other to create different forms of disempower-
cations for them. The first step to ensure ment for particular individuals and groups
these perspectives are heard is to ask should be incorporated in the analysis of
African women the right questions, and trade and economic policies. Forms of
develop a coherent analysis which articulates inequality would include those created by
their interests. The second step is to define gender, class, race, ethnicity and other
a policy framework which will ensure not forms of identity.
only that women gain from trade liberal-
isation, but also that the structural causes of
their economic subordination are addressed.
The conception and mission of the GERA programme 49
that are crucial for women and the poor, to perspectives and concerns into the agenda
defence budgets. of the global women's movement while
GERA has pointed to the risk that integrating into its own thinking those
initiatives such as the New Partnership for elements of universality that give a sense to
Africa's Development (NEPAD) pose to the women's common struggles in the context
rights of women in poverty in Africa. of globalisation as well as to our solidarity
They could just be the new policy platform with other marginalised groups. To that
to fight international terrorism from Africa, end, GERA will continue to bridge the gap
as opposed to tackling the other issues that between researchers and advocates in
are critical for women and the poor order to give a stronger voice to African
(Randriamaro 2002). Solidarity is urgently women from the national to the global
needed among the peoples affected by level.
current developments within national
boundaries by which democracy and Zo Randriamaro is a gender and human rights
human rights - including women's and activist from Madagascar. She is working with
children's rights - are traded away in Third World Network-Africa as Manager of the
exchange for their countries' support for GERA programme. Address: PO Box AN
the international war against terrorism. It is 19452, Accra, Ghana.
a strategic requirement, as well as an gera@twnafrica.org
ethical imperative for the global women's
movement.
Notes
1 The GERA programme's achievements
Conclusion
have been described in more detail in
The AWID Forum raised awareness among Kerr et al. (2000).
participants about a number of critical 2 The Washington Consensus refers to the
questions that require strategic responses shared neo-liberal vision of development
from women's rights and gender activists. on the part of the international
This article argues that the depoliticisation development financing institutions,
of economic policy, the governance of including the World Bank and IMF. The
multilateral trade, and the re-conceptual- Washington Consensus inspired the set
isation of human security are some of the of prescriptions imposed on developing
issues that require responses from the countries under the structural adjust-
national to the global level. These are also ment programmes (SAPs) and economic
pointers to common front lines for reforms, from the early 1980s. These
solidarity within the global women's prescriptions included fiscal discipline,
movement, which include the right to sit at deregulation, privatisation of state
the table (but also to determine what is on enterprises and trade liberalisation.
the table and the structure of the table 3 See, for example, Taylor 2000, for the
itself, as well as the right to dream as a debate within the African women's
prerequisite for developing alternatives) in movement.
economic and trade policy decision- 4 This subsection draws from a lecture
making; the primacy of people's security given by the author at the 2002 Session
and the integration of gender differences of the CODESRIA Gender Institute,
and inequalities in the international human Dakar, 1-6 July 2002, on 'Gender, Trade
security agenda. Liberalisation and the Multilateral
A major challenge for the African Trading System: Towards an African
women's movement will be to inject its Perspective'.
The conception and mission of the GERA programme 51
In search of an alternative
development paradigm:
feminist proposals from Latin America
Members of the Feminist Initiative of Cartagena1
This article is taken from five presentations given at AWID by members of the Feminist Initiative of
Cartagena. Its main goal was to suggest that there is a Southern - more specifically, Latin American
- vision of globalisation, and to identify what is needed to develop a new model of development.
1 Why did the Feminist networks in the region, which provides all
Initiative of Cartagena its members with an opportunity to react to
start? changing economic issues. Networking of
organisations from different sectors of civil
Alejandra Scampini, Co-ordinator, IFC,
Uruguay society, including women's organisations,
can strengthen their ability to discuss and
In July 2001, a seminar took place in influence the design, execution, follow-up
Cartagena, Colombia, in preparation for the and evaluation of public policy, with
UN Conference on Financing for Develop- governments and international organisations.
ment (held in Monterrey, Mexico, 18-22 After Monterrey, the IFC continued
March 2002). The seminar was organised by producing research and developing advocacy
DAWN (Development Alternatives with activities. The organisations involved in the
Women for a New era), REPEM (Red de IFC take a collective position on regional
Educacion Popular Entre Mujeres) and the macro-economic issues. Monitoring public
UNIFEM Socio-Economic and Cultural policy and undertaking advocacy is 'a
Rights Programme in the Andean region. prepositional and pragmatic answer to
The Feminist Initiative of Cartagena global and local political contexts that
(IFC) was founded as a result of the today are more receptive to requests for
seminar. It was set up because Latin gender equity' (Alvarez 1997). We propose
American feminists wished to influence the to advance the analysis of macro-economic
UN conference, which brought together issues faced by our region, building on the
governments, private sector (business and work of other groups and existing
NGOs) and international funding organi- initiatives. We want to share our experience
sations. The IFC is an association of active and proposals with women from Latin
Feminist proposals from Latin America 53
America and other regions of the world. In influence the UN Conference on Financing
common with other feminist organisations, for Development, which brought together
we are developing ways of linking work at governments, private sector (business and
grassroots level with activities at the 'macro NGOs) and international funding bodies.
level' of public governmental and inter- We have centred our analysis on a number
national politics. of key issues.
We aim to combine rigorous analysis
with good political practice from a feminist Financial resources and development
perspective. The IFC is intended to provide The basis for our analysis is to ask: 'What
an open space to strengthen the different type of development are we thinking of, as
knowledge and abilities of its members, groups of feminist women?' That is, in
who have different experience and expertise. what way can our vision of the economy
It is flexible about how it does this. In terms and economic development incorporating a
of our ways of working, we aim to: commitment to gender equality, contribute
• meet common objectives, without to critical analysis of the current economic
becoming too formal or institutionalised model? And how can our vision contribute
to the development of alternative economic
• create a common position and discourse models? The dominant economic policies
which is built on a genuine recognition have not guaranteed equality or brought
of all the personal and organisational about an end to poverty, and have not
contributions of everyone in the IFC tended to achieve expected rates of
• maintain active and participatory economic growth. And all of those are
communication, and a dynamic of essential elements in sustainable develop-
permanent consultation, among ment.
members
• sustain exchanges with other networks Expectations of the Financing for
and organisations. Development (FFD) process
Quite reasonably, the debate around the
So far, we have faced some challenges. It is FFD process at Monterrey created expect-
challenging and complex work to generate ations among those who took part. First,
critical debate about the impact of neo- there is a need to mount a concrete
liberal globalisation, and suggest alternatives challenge to the existing development
into which gender issues have been model. Second, all those involved in
integrated. It is particularly hard to keep up development need to reach some essential
with the rhythm of regional and global agreements in order to overcome the
events while relying mostly on short-term failures of the current development process
voluntary work, and little funding. Further- and guarantee a level of sustainability in
more, there are challenges in developing development. This is critical not only for
new and timely responses while simul- poor countries, but also to ensure the future
taneously maintaining our commitment to of life on our planet.
a collective process in reaching policy
positions. By the end of the 1990s, we could
already see that 'free trade' was only really
free for some. Free flows of capital, in the
2 Putting the IFC proposal form of speculative flows of currency in
into practice and out of government control, were
Alma Espino, Uruguay destabilising different economies. As the
decade came to an end, private capital flow
As outlined above, the IFC is the result of surpassed development support as the
the wish of Latin American feminists to main foreign source of capital available for
54
developing countries. Direct investment economies were not able to revitalise it. The
operating in a borderless market without forecast in terms of growth continues to be
effective regulations conditioned the bleak. Conditions set by the international
availability of funds for development, and financial bodies not only affect the
thus conditioned state policies in our sovereignty of states from the point of view
countries. of the economy, but also threaten demo-
The Monterrey Consensus2 threw all cracy in states where this is weak.
our expectations overboard. The consensus
reflects the complete failure of the The challenges
conference to address the poverty and Today, we in the Latin America region face
hardship faced by women and men in poor the familiar challenges of development in
countries which are integrating their conditions of growing economic decay and
economies into a 'globalised' world. The fragile democratic governance. The lessons
consensus did nothing to increase the we have learnt through our experience
availability of resources for developing make us more entitled each day to insist
countries, or improve their access to that power relations among countries and
markets. Nor did Monterrey support regions cannot depend on economic theory
developing countries through the develop- alone. Policy making cannot neglect the
ment of a control mechanism, or capital realities of the relationship between
regulation, which would reduce the risks of economics and politics. Social and political
financial crisis associated with the inter- exclusion and economic poverty should be
national free market, and increase the addressed in economic proposals. Aside
options in terms of which economic policies from being socially unjust, the exclusion
countries are able to adopt. and economic want experienced by
particular groups of people according to
Regional crisis their sex, race and religion, and so on, can
During the 1990s, the Latin American influence the success of economic policy.
region experienced a production crisis and So the equality issue cannot be left until
a large increase in unemployment, even poverty has been addressed: there is either
though measures had been taken to make growth with equity, or there is no growth.
the labour market 'flexible' - that is, to As feminists, we need to perfect our
deregulate it. These problems occurred at a analysis and proposals, but gender analysis,
time of financial and banking crisis. State together with feminist practice, can
sovereignty was decreased because of a contribute to the necessary changes in
number of related factors, including the fact terms of access to welfare, social justice,
that national debt levels were high and and the strengthening of democracy and
increasing, the institutions intended to peace.
regulate national economies were weak,
and the necessary regulations were lacking.
Regional initiatives like MERCOSUR 3 Placing equity at the heart
were virtually paralysed. MERCOSUR (the of the agenda on external
Common Market of the Southern Cone) is a debt and trade
customs union between four member states Norma Sanchis, Argentina
(Brazil, Argentina, Paraguay and Uruguay)
and two other associate members (Bolivia Latin America continues to be the most
and Chile). MERCOSUR was established in unequal region in the world. As feminists
1995. It is the third largest trading bloc in who recognise the importance of noting
the world. The East Asian crisis had a strong economic and political trends, we have
impact on MERCOSUR, and the regional consistently emphasised the importance of
Feminist proposals from Latin America 55
equality as a human value which trans- Aside from these differences in wealth
cends gender, social, economic, ethnic and within countries, there are obvious inequal-
national differences. Over the past few ities between countries which increase
decades, wealth has been increasingly vulnerability in the global free-market
concentrated in a few hands, and social economy. The large foreign debts of
injustice has increased. developing countries are a key issue which
In the 1990s, structural adjustment has been taken up by sectors of civil society
policies (SAPs) led to the opening up of and social movements in the Latin America
markets and financial deregulation in Latin region in recent years. The current debt of
American countries. At the beginning of Latin America is several times larger than it
the 1990s, the open market seemed to be was 20 years ago, even though over the
leading towards a promising rise in exports past few years debt repayments have been
and growth from the countries in the made which are higher than the value of
region. At the same time, some analysts the loans. According to data from the
flagged up the fact that countries in the World Bank and ECLAC, Latin America
region needed to transform their pro- has repaid US$1.4 billion over the past 20
duction processes in order to improve their years. This means that there was a resource
reach into the world market, and that this transfer five times larger than the original
change must be linked to proposals to debt, even though today the debt is three
improve social and economic equality times larger.
(ECLAC 1991). To be competitive, we International trade is another way in
needed to upgrade our technology and the which asymmetrical power relations
skills and qualifications of the work force. between countries, which shape international
These analysts warned us of the fact that relations, is manifested. International trade
improvement in the ability to compete is usually seen as a technical field, in
could not be achieved on the basis of which the negotiation mechanisms of
tightening labour costs, or overexploiting exchange are analysed according to the
the natural resources in the region. specific interests of each country or region.
Throughout the 1990s, the inequalities However, this perspective ignores the fact
in wealth distribution that characterise the that power defines the primary interests of
region remained strong. While economies the stronger economies. In the case of the
were growing, it was not possible to FTAA (Free Trade Area of the Americas)
counteract the patterns of unequal distrib- negotiations, the supremacy of the northern
ution which were observed in the 1980s. In economies is evident - in particular that of
2001, the ECLAC Social Panorama of Latin the US, which represents about three-
America (ECLAC 2001) showed that in all quarters of the region's GDP. The remaining
Latin American countries except for Costa quarter is produced by the other 33
Rica and Uruguay, the richest 10 per cent countries that are part of the agreement.
owns 30 per cent or more of the wealth. In This level of asymmetry, which became
Brazil, the country with the highest indexes evident in the political and military spheres
of wealth concentration in the whole as well, after September 11, allows for the
region, the proportion owned by the richest FTAA to serve, not only as a trade agree-
10 per cent is as high as 45 per cent, while ment, but also as a tool for the political,
the share of the poorest 40 per cent is economic and cultural dominance of the
around 10 per cent in all countries except US. Civil society movements in Latin
Uruguay, where it is 22 per cent. In all the America are mobilising to address this.
countries in the region as a whole, the It is necessary to encourage an agenda
inequality in distribution became sharper that places social and gender equity at the
during the period 1997 to 1999. centre of economics and politics. Growth in
56
itself is not enough. We need institutions • sectors that are not part of the paid
that promote equality, and gender equality labour market are excluded from social
as a part of this; we need political systems protection
and politicians who will fight against the • hence, the economic security of women
inequalities that remain in our societies. is dependent on their spouse or father.
They need to promote discussion on issues
such as intra-state and international There have always been forms of employ-
asymmetries in power, strategies to build ment that are outside of this 'norm', such as
alliances and negotiate, to challenge the contracts for specific services. But since the
1970s, the gap has widened between the
focus on wealth creation in favour of
norm and reality. The laws governing this
more equal distribution, and to promote
kind of relationship between employers
the universality of human rights (including
and workers are not only used less because
economic, social, political and cultural of direct law evasion, but because their
rights), as a guarantee of global citizenship. application is restricted to an ever smaller
population of workers. The system loses its
4 Forming institutions in protective strength if it only applies to
response to the new labour certain groups of workers. Yet, while most
employment now does not conform to the
relations norm, the regulations and forms of
By Rosalba Todaro, Chile protection are still thought of as standards
by which labour relations are defined.
We are facing a crisis of what has been termed
'normal labour relations'. By this phrase Although the changes in the way labour
I mean the type of labour relations and is regulated have happened in the context
protection of workers that characterised of neo-liberal politics, it would be too
the capitalist industrial era in Western simplistic to say that this is the sole reason
economies. they have occurred. This would bypass
other important factors that influence
The fundamental characteristics of
labour structures, including new tech-
'normal labour relations' are the following:
nologies, especially information and
• full-time work, mostly performed by communications technologies. These make
men, in jobs of indefinite duration, it possible for employers to co-ordinate
designed as a long-term relationship labour processes that may be taking place
between worker and employer simultaneously in geographically distant
• job provides family income, sufficient locations. This makes for greater financial
for family sustenance flexibility, and a more elastic relationship
• women perform essential work at home between workers and working tools. The
with dependents, which subsidises fact that productive processes can be
'farmed out' to distant regions, facilitated
men's paid work
by technological advances, dilutes the
• the relationship between worker and nature of the relationship between the
employer is part of a set of legal norms, company and the worker and creates a grey
negotiated by different social actors area between employment and self-
• job is of standard duration, and employment.
regulated by the working day On the other hand, important changes
• workers' rights to social protection have taken place in the relationships
depend on their presence within the between women and men, linked to changes
paid labour market in the economic needs of families. In the
Feminist proposals from Latin America 57
If I were Minister of
Finance...:
gaining understanding of financial crisis
through a simulation workshop
Mehrene Larudee and Caren Grown
Financial crises (also known as debt crises, currency crises or balance of payments crises) have
become endemic in the modern world. The countries at greatest risk have been developing countries.
This article discusses a workshop/If I were Minister of Finance...', which we ran at the Association
for Women in Development (AWID) conference in Guadalajara in October 2002. In the workshop,
participants took part in a simulation of the Argentine currency crisis. The simulation sought to
give participants a better understanding of the causes of a currency crisis, and the tough, limited
choices a government faces in trying to prevent it. Simulations like the one described in this article
can be helpful to activists and women's organisations in moving a gender-sensitive economic policy
agenda forward.
D
eveloping countries which have
faced financial crises in the past One must pay in dollars. Of course, if credit
two decades include Mexico (1982 is available one does not have to pay those
and 1994-5), Chile (1982), Brazil (1982, dollars immediately. But, sooner or later,
much of 1986-1993 and 1999), Thailand one has to come up with enough dollars to
(1997), and Russia (1998), to name only a pay - and if it is later, of course one has to
few. But even Finland (1992) and Sweden pay back not only the principal (that is, the
(1990) have faced similar crises, and even original money borrowed), but interest as
so-called 'fortress' Britain was compelled to well.
devalue the pound in 1992, when it came The second step in understanding
under speculative attack. (Speculative financial crises and why they arise is to
attacks are explained below in Round 3.) recognise that anyone who wants to obtain
Why do financial crises arise at all? The dollars normally gets them by selling the
first step is to understand that most local currency and buying dollars. (For
countries' currencies - Thai baht, Indian convenience, local currencies were repre-
rupees, or Argentinian pesos - are not sented by the peso in the simulation.) In
accepted as payment when goods are sold most countries, only the Central Bank, or a
across borders. To carry out international financial institution authorised by the
transactions, one has to have so-called Central Bank, is allowed to sell dollars and
'hard currency': dollars, euros, or one of a buy pesos. (At least, this is the theory.) In
very few other currencies such as the yen, practice, there may be a black market, but
the Swiss franc or the British pound the simulation ignores that complication in
sterling. (In the simulation, all kinds of the first round.
hard currency are referred to as 'dollars'.) The third fact to bear in mind is that
For example, suppose one wants to import although the words 'crisis' and 'devaluation'
60
suggest pain and suffering, there are both unfolded into a crisis. At times, the work-
losers and winners in a currency deval- shop seemed near chaos, as workers
uation. The losers are those who are holding feverishly manufactured 'soccer balls'
pesos when the devaluation happens, while toy manufacturers struggled to sell
because after the devaluation, the pesos can them and remain profitable in the face of
buy fewer dollars than before. For instance, imports, which were suddenly cheaper
after the Mexican peso devaluation of than local products. Meanwhile, Argentina's
1994-5, there was a steep drop in cross- Central Bank tried to hang on to its dollar
border shopping by Mexicans from Ciudad reserves, as the rich put their money into
Juarez, who normally spend considerable dollar savings outside the country, and
money in El Paso in the USA, buying currency speculators waited to pounce.
clothes, toys, appliances and other goods. In our simulation, the nine players sit
Women who are responsible for repro- around a table, and each is given a quantity
ductive work can also lose out from of pesos (white beans), dollars (black beans),
devaluation, as the prices of necessities and and debt (red cards) that are appropriate to
basic goods rise; women then have to make her role. There are three foreign and six
do with less. domestic players. The foreigners are a
In contrast, the winners from deval- Foreign Lender, a Foreign Investor who
uation are those who successfully anticipate also runs an export-import business, and a
it and buy dollars just in advance of it. Currency Speculator. The domestic players
After the devaluation, they can buy back are a Central Banker, a Local Banker, the
twice as many pesos, and may well end up Argentine Government, a Rich Argentine, a
better off. In fact, all those who are holding Toy Manufacturer and a Worker in the Toy
dollars after devaluation have an advantage. Manufacturing Business. The central banker
For example, after the Asian financial crisis, and the toy manufacturer are the busiest and
the Wall Street investment firm Goldman have the most complex tasks; at the other
Sachs was able to buy up hotels and real extreme, the currency speculator does nothing
estate in a number of Asian countries. except watch for the first couple of rounds,
and springs into action late in the game.
The worker and the manufacturer start
The workshop process out with nothing. The manufacturer borrows
The AWID workshop simulation was pesos from the local bank at 20 per cent
designed for participants with no previous interest to pay local wages, and also borrows
knowledge of economics. The workshop dollars from the foreign lender at 10 per
was run twice and, all together, a total of cent interest to import inputs (sheets of
about 30 women were taught the basic purple paper) with which to produce soccer
principles of balance of payments, as this balls. The workers then manufacture soccer
affects the lives of people in developing balls (by crumpling the paper into balls),
countries. The same simulation has also and the soccer balls are sold, some abroad
been used in a class at the University of (to the foreign investor with the export-
Kansas, and a simpler version was run import business) and some at home (to the
during the 2002 UN Committee on the rich Argentine). With the sales revenue, the
Status of Women meetings in New York at manufacturer pays the worker, and then
a teach-in hosted by UNIFEM. repays the loans with interest, making a
Each participant took one of nine roles, small profit. The worker spends some of
and followed a script spelling out her her money on imported goods, as does the
actions during four rounds of play, during rich Argentine.
which balance of payments problems The Argentine government already has
became progressively more serious, and $200 debt at the beginning of the simulation,
Gaining understanding of financial crisis through a simulation workshop 61
and in each round has to pay 10 per cent even if for some temporary reason the
interest on that debt. To do so, it has to use inflow of dollars slows or the outflow
its tax revenues and exchange them for increases, the country will still have
dollars with the Central Bank, since the enough dollars to continue making its debt
interest must be paid in dollars. (We hand payments as well as buying imports to
four rounds of tax revenues to the keep its economy going. In a very real
government at the beginning of the game, sense, the central banker is happiest if
in order to keep matters simple.) However, nothing happens to her dollar reserves at
the government does not have any net all. But once the dollar reserves fall close to
principal repayments on the $200 debt, zero, pandemonium breaks out. The
since it rolls over the loan each round; that approaching crisis sets off behaviour by
is, it pays back exactly as much principal as certain economic actors which make that
it borrows anew.
crisis far harder to avoid.
In addition, though, the government But this is getting ahead of our story.
happens to have a persistent budget deficit Our workshop unfolds over four rounds of
- a common, though not universal, feature the simulation.
of economies headed for crisis - and the
deficit is financed by borrowing from
abroad. For this purpose, the government How the simulation works
also borrows an additional amount in each
round, so that in each subsequent round it Round 1: A stable peso, no balance of
has to pay additional interest at the payments problem; learning basic
world interest rate, which stays at 10 per principles
cent throughout. In the simulation, the action focuses on the
Similarly, each player buys, sells, Central Bank: the central banker sells
borrows, lends, invests, or disinvests, as dollars to some players, receiving pesos in
specified in the script. Each time such a exchange, and buys dollars from other
transaction involves changing pesos into players, giving pesos in exchange. In
dollars or dollars into pesos, the players see Round 1, the exchange rate is set at 1 peso
the Central Bank's stack of dollars fall or = $1. In this round, the players just get
rise. The main point for participants to take accustomed to their roles in a situation in
away is this: a financial crisis simply means which there is no crisis, and the balance of
that the Central Bank is running out of payments is balanced. Dollars flow in and
dollars. That stack of dollars in Argentina's out of the Central Bank, but at the end of
Central Bank - which in real life is actually the round (which represents a time period
kept in a bank somewhere in New York - of a year or so) the Central Bank holds the
is called the Bank's 'foreign exchange same $100 with which it started.
reserves' or 'foreign currency reserves'. In this round, players see that it is the
Some transactions cause dollars to be taken flows of dollars into and out of the country
from the stack. Others cause dollars to be that matter, and they see the various
added to the stack. reasons why foreigners, local manu-
As a rule of thumb, a central banker is facturers, the government and various
happiest when the stack contains enough private producers and consumers might
dollars to pay for at least three and want to buy dollars and sell pesos, or sell
preferably six normal months' worth of dollars and buy pesos.
imports, and when, year after year, the The simplest example of this is imports:
stack remains around that size. The dollar if an Argentine has pesos and wants to
reserves act as a kind of guarantee to import a car, he needs to go to the Central
international investors and lenders that, Bank, sell his pesos and buy dollars. He will
62
be able to pay for the imported goods with buyers, or else the Central Bank will have
his dollars. (Equivalently, the car dealer or to use some of its dollar reserves to buy up
importer may actually obtain the dollars; the extra pesos.
the point is that someone has to give up Once dollars seem to be flowing out
pesos for dollars in order for the car to be faster than they are flowing in at the
imported.) Likewise, if an Argentine prevailing exchange rate, players begin to
bicycle manufacturer exports bicycles, then see the dilemma facing the Central Banker.
she receives dollars in payment, and goes She has three options, none of them
to the Central Bank and exchanges these for appealing. The first option, the one which
pesos, which she uses to pay her employees
the script dictates in Round 2, is to go
and local suppliers. For simplicity, in the
ahead and use her dollar reserves to buy all
simulation we slightly altered the details of
the extra pesos offered for sale, and so
this scenario, but the basic idea is sound. If
Argentina has $40 billion in imports and maintain 'parity' at one peso per one dollar.
$40 billion in exports, then the overall effect This has the advantage that it offers
on the dollar reserves in the Central Bank is potential foreign investors a stable,
to leave them unchanged. But if Argentina predictable exchange rate. It prevents
imports $5 billion more in goods than it devaluation for the moment, but unfor-
exports, and nothing else changes, then the tunately it also reduces the Central Bank's
Central Bank's dollar reserves will fall by stack of dollars. Next year, if there are more
$5 billion as long as the exchange rate is pesos for sale than offers to buy them, the
still 1 peso = $1. Central Bank will face the same choices.
Of course, there are many kinds of But if the Central Bank sops up the extra
transactions besides trade that bring dollars pesos each time this occurs, it will very
into the Central Bank: foreign lending to soon run out of dollars, and a financial
Argentine private firms or to the govern- crisis will ensue. At that point the govern-
ment, for instance. There are also many ment will have to appeal to the International
kinds of transactions that vacuum dollars Monetary Fund (IMF) for an emergency
out of the Central Bank, such as payments loan, and knuckle under to the IMF's
of interest on foreign loans (which have to demands for austerity measures.
be paid in dollars). A variety of these sorts A second option is to let the value of the
of transactions are illustrated in subsequent currency be determined by letting all
rounds of the simulation. parties freely trade it. In other words, the
Central Bank may drop its insistence on
Round 2: Brazilian currency is devalued;
carrying out all peso-dollar trades and
Argentina's dollar reserves shrink
In Round 2, Brazil, a major trading may let the currency float down to a new,
partner of Argentina, undergoes a large lower value which the Bank believes will
devaluation, just as it did in January 1999. eliminate the outflow of dollars. The bank
Suddenly, Brazil's goods are much cheaper. can then announce its intention to defend
Argentina now has a harder time exporting the new, lower value of the peso. This is
to Brazil and, within Argentina, consumers what is meant by a devaluation. It is often
buy more Brazilian goods. A decline in unpopular - especially just before an
exports and an increase in imports throw election - because it typically causes
the balance of payments out of balance. In inflation. In the simulation, the devaluation
this round, about twice as many pesos are happens only in Round 4 after all other
offered for sale as dollars. So if the options have been exhausted.
exchange rate is to remain at 1 peso = $1, The third option is the one used in
either some peso sellers will not find Round 3, and is explained below.
Gaining understanding offinancialcrisis through a simulation workshop 63
Round 3: Central Bank raises interest loan with interest - and to keep the
rates; a crisis approaches remaining dollars as profit. In 1992, when
The third tool in the Central Bank's toolbox George Soros used $10 billion of his money
- to raise interest rates - is no more to force devaluation of the British pound,
politically attractive than a devaluation. he ultimately made $2 billion on the deal
Round 3 illuminates why increasing (www.soros.org).
interest rates can be temporarily effective. Although the high interest rate can slow
By the beginning of the round, the level down the exit of capital, it can unfortunately
of dollar reserves has fallen so low that, at also have negative effects on the economy.
most, one or two months of imports can be The toy manufacturer finds that all her
purchased. This triggers responses by profits are eaten up by interest on the loan.
certain players which set in motion a If high interest rates persist, she will go out
destabilising process that is hard to stop. of business, and her employees will lose
One response is capital flight: the rich their jobs. And if this happens to many firms,
Argentine sells pesos and buys dollars, in the local banks may also become insolvent.
anticipation of the devaluation. Similarly, Foreign lenders may then stop lending
the foreign investor sells the shares in the altogether, and this will trigger a crisis.
toy manufacturing firm which she bought
in Round 2, and takes her dollars out of Round 4: Capital flees, currency
Argentina. Alarmed by these develop- speculator attacks, Central Bank
ments, and seeing that its ability to sop up devalues the peso
the additional pesos sold is limited by its In Round 4, the situation deteriorates
dwindling dollar reserves, the Central Bank even further. Both the rich Argentine and
imposes higher interest rates. Raising the foreign investor sell their pesos and buy
interest rates persuades the foreign investor dollars, and - even if nothing else changes
not to take her money out of the country - this capital flight uses up the Central
just yet. It also slows down the currency Bank's last dollar reserves, forcing it to
speculator, who senses an approaching declare a currency devaluation.
devaluation and seeks to borrow pesos in
order to sell them later for dollars.
However, in light of higher interest rates, The impact of financial
she waits to be sure she has her timing crises
right, because the higher the interest rate, When crises hit, countries often turn to the
the more costly any mistake will be. International Monetary Fund for help. The
The other factor that precipitates the Fund usually imposes a structural adjust-
crisis is that in Round 3 the currency specu- ment programme as a condition of its
lator goes into action. She borrows huge lending, which is not included in our
quantities of pesos, and then exchanges the simulation. Many readers will be familiar
pesos for dollars at the one-for-one exchange with the features of structural adjustment
rate. Because she is adding to the number but, in brief, the IMF forces the government
of pesos being offered for sale, she essentially to balance its budget so that it will not keep
forces the Central Bank to buy those pesos, adding to its debt, and usually also forces a
and so speeds up the exhaustion of its devaluation of the currency, which restores
dollar reserves. If she gets the timing right, near equality between exports and imports
she forces a devaluation of the peso. Once and halts that source of drain on the dollar
this happens - in Round 4 - she will be able reserves. Countries often balance their
to use only about half her dollars to buy budgets by cutting public expenditure,
back all the pesos she needs to repay the often for education, health, and other
64
services essential to the poor and working participants said they had had no idea how
class, and by imposing fees for service. extraordinarily important it was to
Public sector workers may suffer wage cuts understand these basic principles. Perhaps
or retrenchment, as government is down- most startling was the realisation of how
sized. Public utilities like water and very narrow the scope is for central banks to
electrical power are often privatised, and manoeuvre, once a crisis is well underway.
fees are raised, hurting the poor. Teaching about financial crises through
Some financial crises have not been role-play works surprisingly well, even
preceded by significant government when the simulation is complicated. In
budget deficits. For instance, in Chile in order to play their roles, participants have
1982, and several Asian countries in to ask questions. Through the game, they
1997-8, there was little or no government gain clarity about various currency trans-
budget deficit, and the crisis was rooted in actions, the reasons why one buys or sells
private sector debt. Nevertheless, a budget dollars, and the effect of these transactions
deficit might appear after the crisis breaks on different sectors of the economy. All the
and austerity measures may be imposed to players see the Central Bank's dollar
minimise that deficit, as was the case in reserves declining, and they see that the
East Asia. one recourse - to raise interest rates -
The impact of financial crises is, by makes matters worse in many ways. They
now, quite well known. Analyses of the see, too, that once the crisis approaches, the
1998 Asian financial crises have shown that efforts of the Central Bank to avert it can be
women bore a disproportionate share of thwarted by capital flight and speculative
the costs - see Lim (2000) and Frankenberg, attacks on the currency. Like it or not, the
Thomas, and Beegle (1999). Poor and country ends up in the stifling embrace of
working-class women, especially, provided the IMF.
the unpaid work that was critical to family So what is the solution to financial
and community survival. Low-income crises? The proposal by late Nobel prize-
women - and their daughters - spent more winner James Tobin is still on the table, for
time and effort to produce non-market a tax on international financial transactions
substitutes for goods and services that which would limit the lurching of capital
became too expensive or were no longer into, and then out of, developing countries.
available. In addition, women sought more Billionaire and wizard investor George Soros
paid work, often in informal employment, has advocated the same thing, and has
where returns were low, to make up for some ideas of his own, spelled out in his
reduced family income. Girls were pulled out recent book, George Soros on Globalisation
of school before boys, in order to help their (2002). Several feminist economists -
families. In South Korea and Indonesia, job including Diane Elson, Niliifer Cagatay,
losses were higher for women than for men Irene Van Staveren, Stephanie Seguino
as the public and private sectors contracted. and others - have also made the case for
Studies on financial crises in other regions Tobin-type taxes on speculative financial
of the world find similar impacts. capital, as well as for national-level actions
that include controls on both inflows and
outflows of capital, as well as changes in
Conclusion fiscal and monetary policy. Each of these
Simulations like the one described here are proposals should be put on the agenda of
an effective tool for teaching a complex and the international women's movement.
technical subject. At AWID, the response
was overwhelmingly positive; several
Gaining understanding offinancial crisis through a simulation workshop 65
Fundamentalisms,
globalisation and women's
human rights in Senegal
Fatou Sow
One response to the phenomenon of globalisation in politics, economics and culture has been a
resurgence offundamentalist movements. To fundamentalists, women symbolise ethnic and cultural
purity, and their rights and status have become an enormous issue. But the links between
fundamentalisms, tradition and modernity are very complex. In this article I look at the example of
Senegal, where traditional spiritual beliefs are mingled with the newer world religions, in very
complex ways. Consequently, it is difficult to understand the connections between fundamentalism,
globalisation and women's human rights. But this understanding is critical if women are to obtain
and retain equal rights with men. This article is taken from a presentation given at a workshop
entitled 'Fundamentalisms, globalisation and women's human rights', at the AWID Forum.
T
he issues of human rights, democracy
and citizens' participation have never policies reduce social budgets, and privatise
been debated as much as they are resources and basic services to the poorest
today - both internationally, and in Africa. populations. How can we sustain the few
The world is now dominated by the ideas gains made for equality between women
and rules of the free market, which are and men, when states are unable to
forcing political changes, obliging states to guarantee that these are reflected in women's
open up to the world market. These changes lives? Women experience globalisation
are altering the relationship between states daily when they go in search of water at the
and citizen. The state is reshaping itself, in hydrants in poor neighborhoods, or when
line with the prescriptions of the inter- they busy themselves in thousands of other
national financial institutions (IFIs) and the ways to fulfill the needs of their families.
World Trade Organisation (WTO) that These are needs that men are no longer able
there should be a lesser state presence or to meet, or needs arising from the cutting of
even a total absence of the state, in contexts state provision for education or health
where the role of the state was previously services, under the constraints of structural
very prominent. States currently seem adjustment policies. It is primarily women
more concerned about their sheer survival who pay the actual costs of the privati-
in the world market than in satisfying the sation of the economy.
interests of their citizens. All these factors have favoured the
The talk of human rights heard in emergence of fundamentalist movements,
international fora masks the violation of in environments where religion is an
citizen's rights in general - and women's integral part of culture. This article focuses
rights in particular - which accompanies on the example of Senegal. The resurgence
globalisation. In particular, it is increasingly of Muslim discourse, and its impact on
70
women, is what interests us most here, these practices represent a call to the spirit
because of its impact on national life. world, to enlist the ancestors' protection.
Senegalese of all religious denominations,
and of all ranks and social standing,
Religion and culture in depend on religious laws and rites to define
Senegal their collective identity.
Senegal is a country located on the west Many of these rites lie within women's
coast of Africa, which had a long spiritual realm. They participate in them either as
tradition even before Judeo-Christianity actors or leaders of worship. Female
and Islam set roots. Pre-Islamic and pre- divinities govern the areas bordering the
Christian religious underpinnings are sea and rivers, between Dakar, Cape Verde
deeply embedded in daily social attitudes and Saint-Louis on the north coast of the
and practices. These form the basis for country. Fishermen's wives make offerings
numerous informal social norms, and to Mame Jaare and Mame Coumba Bang as
formal laws. For example, it is customary in boats prepare to leave the shore at the
many Senegalese communities to sacrifice beginning of the fishing season. This is an
an animal when a newborn child is given important activity in a country with over
a name, or during funerals. There are other 600 kilometres of coastline. Women healers
(facckat) preside over fertility rites (to cure
similar examples. People still spill animal
infertility, or protect a pregnancy), and
blood before undertaking an important
possession rites (including ceremonies of
event, to call upon the spirits (rab) and
exorcism), and administer drug-yielding
enlist their support, or in order to mollify
plants for therapeutic purposes, in cases of
their wrath. People bury cola nuts and
physical or mental illness or emotional
charms, or pour sour milk or animal blood
crisis brought on by different types of
on the foundations when starting to build a problems, including difficult marital
house. Others drink and smear their bodies relationships.
with all kinds of mixtures for luck, before
In the newer world religions there is
taking an exam, applying for a job, or to
much less of a leading role for women. In
ensure that their professional or political Islam in particular, leadership of religious
job remains secure. rites is mostly taken by men. This has had
Islamic and Christian practices have an impact on the traditional rites. By
flourished and mingled with traditional adding a few verses from the Koran to their
practices. In the first example given above, incantations, male healers have taken over
a Muslim rite may be used for the animal from female healers, giving the rites a new
sacrifice, with people facing Mecca, and 'holy' dimension. Women have given up
reciting Koranic prayers. Good luck charms their roles as high-priestesses. The masters
are made from soaked paper inscribed with of worship and healers (who were referred
Koranic chapters. A Sereer Christian from to as 'shamans' in colonial ethnological
Sine would use the Bible for this purpose. terminology), have attained an even
All these types of behaviour are looked higher status than they had before the
upon as familiar and sensible. Whether coming of the new religious beliefs. Thus,
they are popular or not, they are never we are now witnessing subtle changes to
considered fetishist or pagan. It does not cultural practices, in line with the gradual
matter to the people who practise this Islamisation of the country. A spiritual
behaviour what traditional healers or patriarchy is now established. The important
priests think of it. To the majority of titles of Serigne, Thierno or Marabat are
believers, whether they are Muslims, given to men, but never to women, no
Christians, or follow indigenous beliefs, matter what the degree of their acquired
Fundamentalisms, globalisation and women's human rights in Senegal 71
wisdom. The male title Serigne (nowadays traditions, which make up the cultural base
used for 'Mr') designates a religious man; of Senegal. And matriarchal lineage still
the female title, Sokhna (now used for 'Mrs' defines the fundamental foundations of
either designates the female relative of a Senegalese kinship systems, in the face of a
Muslim holy man, or a woman who has patriarchal Islam.
religious knowledge and learning. In pre-colonial Senegal, a strong religious
sensibility was governed by tolerance. Into
this context, French colonialism imposed
Senegal, the land of Islam the separation of religion and state. The
Senegal has slowly become Islamised since Napoleonic code was imposed in governing
the ninth century.1 Today, almost 90 per family relationships. This was a partial
cent of its population (close to 10,000) are success, with Christian families undergoing
members of four religious brotherhoods. a civil ceremony before a church wedding.
Each is led by a marabout or spiritual All civil marriages forced the spouses to
leader. These are the Tijaania, of Algerian abide by rules of French law, especially
origin, the Xaadria of Mauritanian origin mandatory monogamy, legal divorce, and
(Boutlimit), the Mourides (Touba) and the so on. But the Muslim communities - even
Layeen. These last two brotherhoods are of including individuals within them who had
local origin and can be seen as nationalist been most influenced by the French -
responses to colonialism, when people categorically opposed the use of the civil
strengthened their sense of collective code. Koranic law, adapted in line with
identity in the face of Westernisation and local traditions, continued to be admin-
Judeo-Christian beliefs imported through istered. Muslim jurisdictions managed by a
formal education and changes in social and Cadi (Islamic judge) were reinforced as
political models. While France, the colonial well. Their legal decisions covered various
power, spent a century crushing monarchies areas of expertise, especially family law
from Senegambian soil, the traditional (divorce, child custody, family conflicts or
authorities gathered strength and dynamism inheritance, for example). They were, until
around Islam. independence, recognised by the colonial
Even though Senegal is a Muslim state. The colonial state was unable to ban
country, its culture is not an Arab culture. polygamy, or to make civil marriages
There are certainly Arabic terms in local mandatory. The legislation which it tried to
languages, especially from the Koranic introduce was not respected in cities or
legal code, but Arabic is only spoken in the villages. People continued to abide by laws
country sparingly, in order to read and enacted by traditional custom, and then by
recite the Koran. The Arabic alphabet was religious law (if not at the same time).
used to transcribe national languages,2 even Senegalese Islam, while giving shape to
before Latin characters were adopted. moral and social life, has been relatively
Many rules of civil and social conduct such gentle towards women. It recognises the
as the proper way to say 'hello', 'thank importance of each family system, whether
you', or conduct marital and social customs, this is patrilineal or matrilineal. Beneath the
testify to a deep Islamic imprint. This general principle that women should be
imprint has mingled with other influences, obedient to men, women have a degree of
in harmony with some and in opposition or choice in negotiating their status and their
contradiction with others. For example, it authority within the family and society.
needs to be emphasised that women
wearing a veil, or female seclusion within
domestic space, are not practices from
Wolof, Sereer, Pel, Mandeng or Koniagi
72
'from the outside'. For them, the important Muslim communities as a guarantee and
thing is to reconquer and reclaim a traditional symbol of female purity - a concept which
identity. In the eyes of fundamentalists, is so important in Islam. It is sometimes
nothing should be changed (even though proclaimed that women who are not
change is an inevitable process) and a genitally mutilated cannot say prayers or
woman is a symbol of ethnic 'purity'. serve meals. This is a context in which
Challenges to these religious and patriarchal ideas of cleanliness are closely linked to
power structures are presented through ideas of religious purity: where to perform
Senegalese women's new access to education one's ablutions before prayers, and to
(a symbol of modernisation), and the abstain from praying and from fasting
intellectual and professional freedom they during menstruation, are religious obli-
can potentially gain. It should be noted, gations. This affects gender relations:
however, that while religion - which sexual activity during menstruation is
freezes ideas of women and their status in prohibited for reasons of impurity. At the
time - does not bring women freedom, end of a menstrual period, women must
modernisation and Westernisation do not undergo a ritual cleansing before being
necessarily guarantee that freedom either. allowed to pray again. Islam is invoked by
those who wish to continue with the
practice of FGM and to legitimise its
The globalisation of continuation.
women's human rights A similar analysis can be produced
regarding violence against women. Since
The globalisation of the issue of human
the reform of the penal code in 1999, this
rights should open infinite possibilities to
type of violence is punished more severely
promote the rights of women. We cannot than before. In the old French and
talk about African women's rights without Senegalese penal codes, domestic violence
taking into account the globalisation of this to women was permitted if there were
issue. Women's claims to equality have extenuating circumstances. In Shari'a law,
been strengthened by the international beating one's wife is allowed in specific
recognition of universal human rights, and circumstances. Male public opinion was
by scrutiny of the extent to which these strongly opposed to the first public
rights are upheld in particular contexts. campaigns against domestic violence led by
Two decades of world conferences on women's organisations, which were
women, from 1975 to 1995, have allowed sparked off by the death of Dokki Niasse.
debates about women's struggles for their Dokki Niasse was a young woman who, in
rights to be heard at national and inter- 1993, was beaten by her husband while
national levels. Women's claims have been she was in the early stages of pregnancy.
legitimised by various conventions signed Taken to hospital, she died a few hours
by states. later. Her husband was arrested by the
For example, international campaigns to police, and jailed only after women from
outlaw the different forms of female genital her neighbourhood marched, and petitions
mutilation (FGM) have pushed some were signed nationwide. The case against
African states to legislate to abolish these him was dismissed three years later
practices. In Senegal, this occurred in 1999. because the doctor was unable to establish
Forms of FGM were found in the regions of that her death was a result of the beating.
Hal Pulaar and Soninke, in the north and Finally, international debates about the
north-east, and in the south, in Mandeng need to ensure women's equal access to
and Pulaar. While FGM is actually a pre- politics and decision-making has contri-
Islamic practice, it has been embraced in buted to a larger contingent of women
74
entering the public sphere of political and Muslim President. Certainly, he allied
economic power, sometimes through himself spiritually to the very powerful
positive discrimination. brotherhood of Mourides, mentioned
earlier, which controls the production of
peanuts, 5 other tradeable products, and
Fundamentalism as a craft industries. Migrations of people from
response to globalisation the Mourides brotherhood to other parts of
During important international gatherings Africa, and to North America, have
in the recent past, the church and the resulted in significant sums of money being
mosque have forged an alliance in order to sent back for re-investment in the country.
limit women's rights. It is widely acknow- During his 20-year presidency, between
ledged that the Christian discourse of Pope 1981 and 2000, manipulation and mutual
Jean Paul II plays a role in constraining influence became established between the
women's freedoms, especially in terms of Senegalese state (initially ruled by a single
their sexuality and reproductive rights. The party system, then a multi-party system),
condemnation by the Vatican of contra- and the religious leaders, for the control of
ception, including condoms, and abortion, the mainly rural electorate. The Mourides
weighs heavily on the sexual and repro- spiritual leader would encourage the
ductive rights of Christians. Muslim believers to vote for a particular candidate.
women are relatively free: they may use The March 2000 elections overthrew the
contraception, and therapeutic abortion, if socialist party in power for the previous 40
life is threatened. However, Muslim women years. The new President proclaimed
cannot refuse to see pregnancy to term for himself a Muslim, a talibe6 of Mourides, to
any personal reasons, or undergo an the surprise of the political establishment.
abortion if they have been raped. Hundreds A lawyer and professor of economics - an
of women have died from secret pregnancies exemplification of modernity - he has
and abortions as a result of the imposition encouraged the progression of a funda-
of these religious dictates. mentalist discourse. This has caused
During the 1970s, the Koranic discourse concern to civil society and women's
was brought together with the power of organisations. It is true that Senegal is
money. Islamic power emerged as a major certainly not a religious state such as Iran
force with the Iranian revolution, and with or Algeria. There is no 'Islamist' power as
the wave of activism generated from the such; indeed, the constitution prohibits the
escalating price of oil from countries in creation of political parties based on
the Maghreb and the Middle-East. The religious, ethnic or gender affiliation.
influence of this new religious movement Nonetheless, during the presidential
has been significant in the sub-Saharan elections of March 2000, three parties
Muslim world, and gave a boost to already claiming Islamic denomination offered
existing movements within the region. As their candidatures. They were effectively
Islamic power became evident in the ignored by the electorate, but their speeches
Senegalese political landscape, Senghor, about a return to faith and to Shari'a law,
the Christian President of Senegal for over and their promise to abolish the Family
30 years, made efforts to strengthen Law Act in the event of an electoral victory,
secularism, and maintained a certain presented a threat to women.
balance between communities of different Dahira, and other fundamentalist
religious denominations. religious groups have now emerged, and
In 1981, his successor was immediately attempt to impose a totally retrograde and
seen by a part of public opinion as a alienating rhetoric on women, which is
Fundamentalisms, globalisation and women's human rights in Senegal 75
A daring proposal:
campaigning for an Inter-American
Convention on Sexual Rights and
Reproductive Rights
Valeria Pandjiarjian
Can women in Latin America and the Caribbean really exercise their sexual and reproductive
rights? Are economic globalisation and state policies in our region creating conditions which will
help us claim the rights we have gained in international fora, or are we going in the opposite
direction? And is it possible to have a society which respects human rights under a neo-liberal model
of development? These questions were asked in a workshop at the Association for Women in
Development (AWID) Forum, which focused on the new Campaign for an Inter-American
Convention on Sexual Rights and Reproductive Rights.
S
ister Juana Ines de la Cruz lived in
Mexico from 1651-1695. She was a than taking on the conventional roles of
poet and nun, a woman of genius, wife and mother, with no control over her
whose intellectual prowess, ideas and sexuality and fertility.
accomplishments were ahead of her time. Sexuality and reproduction are essential
She was a precocious writer who, from an dimensions of the life of each human being.
early age, was renowned not only for her Historically, women's ability to express
beauty, but for her wisdom and poetry. choices in these areas of life have been
When she was 16, Sister Juana joined a conditioned and constrained under economic,
convent, since this was one of the few political, religious and cultural patterns,
places in the seventeenth century in which responding to a model of 'normality',
a woman could gain access to education which disallows any kind of behaviour
and intellectual pursuits. which deviates from this. Reproduction has
At the ninth AWID Forum, an actor been the basis for the social inequality
playing the role of Sister Juana opened a between men and women; women's
workshop which focused on women claiming identities have been limited to motherhood.
their sexual and reproductive rights in the Society and the law have repressed any
era of globalisation. There could be no behaviour that could challenge the repro-
better image than that of Sister Juana to ductive role of women in societies
open such a workshop. Her life shows how throughout the world.
women throughout history have found The dramatisation of Sister Juana's life
ways of gaining control over their minds at the AWID workshop prompted the
and desires, as well as over their sexuality participants to learn about and discuss a
and fertility, to enable them to be free to bold and daring proposal, for a Campaign
contribute to the good of the world. Being a for an Inter-American Convention on
78
wife and mother. The sexual freedom of international legislation on sexual and
lesbians is not respected, and neither are reproductive rights. But an inter-American
the choices of bisexual, transsexual and convention on sexual rights and repro-
transgender persons. These women present ductive rights would not regulate our
a challenge to religious and moral mandates, bodies, in order to control our sexual and
and the traditional male-dominated family, reproductive lives, as many of our national
with its objective of reproduction. They laws have done in the past. On the
challenge ideas of what is 'normal' and contrary, it would be an instrument
'natural', and undermine the idea that the guaranteeing the full enjoyment of this
traditional family is the only type of family important dimension of human life,
possible. establishing standards that respect and
strengthen the conditions for women and
Distinguishing between sexuality and men to make choices and decisions on their
reproduction own reproductive and sexual lives, based
Following on from the last paragraph, the on principles of gender equality and non-
assumption that there is always a link discrimination.
between sexuality and reproduction - i.e.
Designing a convention like this is
that one leads to the other - reinforces the
going to be a long-term process, since it
widespread assumption that women must
have children. There has not been a free involves a set of complex issues on which
choice about this in our societies. Once, consensus will be hard to reach. There are
there was no contraception and only hetero- many steps to take before we can draft the
sexuality was allowed in our societies, text of the convention, and then work on
which meant that sex was usually linked to mechanisms for its implementation.
having children. But now we have sex The convention will sit beside those that
without reproduction due to contraception, already exist in the inter-American system
and even reproduction without sex through of human rights protection. We have good
fertility technologies ... so how can we, and models of how social movements can
why should we, keep dealing with these participate in constructing legislation in the
issues in a traditional way? inter-American system, for example, the
Each one of the topics above is very 1994 Inter-American Convention on the
complex, and cannot be discussed fully in Prevention, Punishment and Eradication of
this article. We want to be as democratic as Violence Against Woman (Convention of
possible in constructing our proposal for Belem do Para). Nowadays, the issue of
the convention, so we invite readers of this domestic violence against women is
article to join us in thinking about the understood and approached as a human
issues and designing the convention. The rights violation. However, it was a different
proposal is a seed to be watered by story until very recently. The Inter-American
creativity, dreams, and ideas. Convention on Violence against Women is
legally binding for those countries that
have adopted this convention, and it has
Designing the convention been incorporated into their national
In this first phase of the campaign, we are systems. Consequently, much national
spreading the idea and discussing its legislation on domestic violence has been
principles. This process is strengthening the created and implemented in different
campaign at national levels. We are aware countries of the Latin American and
that some sectors and groups can initially Caribbean region. In Brazil, for example,
feel resistant to the idea of a regional the state was declared responsible for
convention, because they do not want negligence, omission and tolerance related
Campaigning for an inter-American convention on sexual rights and reproductive rights 81
'The hidden hand of the market has been camouflaged in the current global
will never work without a hidden fist - war on terrorism. Pursuing this objective
McDonald's cannot flourish without means an extension of the state's long-
McDonnell Douglas, standing task of controlling populations,
both within and outside its borders. This
the builder of the F-15 [military jet fighter]'
(Friedman 1999) occurs through the criminal justice system,
as well as the military. The consequences of
Economic globalisation, in the form of Big Brother's2 increased control are less
reigning neo-liberal development strategies, freedom and more incarceration, supposedly
enshrines two key ideals: de-regulation of to ensure security. The tremendous economic
markets, and the notion that less govern- cost of this strategy carries liabilities for
ment is the best government. The creed of ordinary members of society - especially
'Davos Man'1 is that the key to allowing poor women in both the North and the
global markets to work naturally is to South.
minimise state intervention. However, this General familiarity with critiques of
conviction is based on a misrepresentation global economic restructuring exists among
of the state's active role in global economic gender and development analysts and
restructuring, over two decades (Beneria policy makers. We highlight certain of
1999). Often, so-called 'state de-regulation' those themes here, as they link in key ways
simply amounts to different regulation; that to our critical appraisal of the expansion of
is, protection and benefits now accrue to state control beyond the control of crime to
corporations and elites, rather than to homeland security and the global war on
workers or to the public. terrorism. Like the outcomes of market-led
Belief in that state power has contracted, development, evidence from the United
yet a dramatic expansion of state control States, our home country, shows that
Free markets and state control 83
support for free speech, including partici- profiling - for example, traffic stops of
pation in anti-war teach-ins. Even tenured African Americans or Latinos solely
professors are in danger of losing their jobs because of their race/ethnicity. Racial
for their political opinions and affiliations. profiling is now evident in the war on
terrorism as well, as officials selectively
Increased incarceration enforce immigration law on the basis of
State actions taken as part of homeland nationality, race and ethnicity. Men and
security and the war on terrorism are women of Middle Eastern appearance can
following the punitive pattern demons- expect to be stopped on the street or called
trated by the US war on crime and drugs, in for questioning by local and federal law
which is now in its fourth decade. While enforcement and immigration authorities.
there has been little decrease in drug use or The slightest visa violations can lead to
the problems associated with drug use, this imprisonment and deportation, and even
policy resulted in the incarceration of legal immigrants are being detained for
nearly 2 million people in prisons and jails minor offences and technical violations
in 2001 alone. This amounts to more than a (American Civil Liberties Union 2002,
fourfold increase in just 20 years. Another Human Rights Watch 2002). As state
4.6 million adults were under some other authority expands and civil rights shrink,
form of correctional supervision, such as practices associated with crime control and
probation or parole (US Department of now homeland security and the war on
Justice 2002). Over 167,000 of those terrorism will likely add immigrants and
imprisoned were women, and another citizens of Arab descent to the racial and
960,000 women were on probation or ethnic minorities with incarceration rates
parole (Beck, Karberg and Harrison 2002; far higher than their proportions in the US
Glaze 2002). population.
The rate of women's imprisonment has
increased nearly twice as much as the rate Counting the cost
for men, and 34 new women's prison units The final consequence of the expansion of
have opened across the US, beginning in the state in this context is the costliness of
the 1980s (Immarigeon and Chesney-Lind the control policies associated with the war
1992). The number of black women on terrorism. The White House has
imprisoned for drugs has increased to more estimated that the US will spend $100
than three times that of white women billion per year on homeland security, not
(Bush-Baskette 1998). Black men and including costs associated with the military
women are seven times more likely to be (Office of Homeland Security 2002, 63).
imprisoned than are white men and women Establishing the new Department of
(Beck and Karberg 2001); the expansion of Homeland Security is expected to cost $3
mandatory and increased sentences for billion (Congressional Budget Office 2002).
drug law violations accounts for much of The US Conference of Mayors estimated
this difference (Mauer 1990). African- that cities would spend more than $2.6
Americans, who represent 13 per cent of billion on additional security costs by the
the population, make up 45 per cent of end of 2002 (Hasson 2002). The latest
those incarcerated (Beck and Karberg 2001); estimates put the cost of a war in Iraq
25 years ago they were 35 per cent of those between $60 billion and $95 billion; and
locked up (Maguire, Pastore, and Flanagan higher outlays are expected to pay for
1993, 618). Nearly all of those behind bars occupation, reconstruction and humani-
are poor. tarian relief (The Washington Post 2003).
The war on crime and drugs has The effects of such high levels of
included a practice known as racial control-oriented spending are significant.
Free markets and state control 85
Note that the cost to imprison one person dominated by men. Finally, in the context
in the US stands at $20,000 per year. As a of more limited social services and fewer
result of increased incarceration, state jobs, female relatives must shoulder the
spending on corrections has grown at six emotional care and economic support of
times the rate of spending on higher the children of mothers and fathers in
education, and states now spend more custody, whose numbers will certainly
money building prisons than colleges increase with control-oriented state
(Ziedenberg and Schiraldi 2002). The expansion aimed at homeland security and
enormous and expensive prison construction fighting the war on terrorism.
programme undertaken during the 1990s This analysis depicts patterns in the US.
meant that prisons represented 'the only UN documents on crime and justice parallel
expanding public housing' in the US (The the US emphasis on drug trafficking,
Nation 1995, 223). And now the costs counterfeiting, and copyright piracy - in
associated with maintaining these facilities sharp contrast, we note, to their limited
and incarcerating citizens are dwarfing the attention to crimes of corporate theft and
costs of construction. In addition, the violence or to crimes of concern to feminists,
current economic downturn has resulted in such as human trafficking and the violation
significant shrinking of governmental of women's human rights. Through
budgets. Social service programmes aiming multilateral agencies as well as direct
to benefit people living in poverty, most of bilateral linkages, the US 'exports' experts
whom are women, are those frequently to the so-called developing world to
targeted; education and health care also support the creation of systems of criminal
face cuts. Budgeting for prisons and criminal law and crime control. In an ironic way,
justice agencies, however, remains relatively this importing of US models for state
safe. Thus, the expansion of state inter- control of populations fits the preference
vention aimed at crime control, the pursuit for 'trade not aid' incorporated in neo-
of homeland security and the war on liberal development strategies. However,
terrorism parallels the contraction of state we assert another connection between
activities devoted to meeting human needs. control-oriented state expansion and global
In addition to incarceration, women economic restructuring. That is, raising
bear many of the other visible, as well as challenges to the 'predestined' march of
the hidden, costs of expanding a punitive market-led development across the globe
and expensive criminal justice system likewise affirms the possibility of resisting
(Danner 1998). Not only do women as the prescribed strategies for the global war
beneficiaries suffer directly when the state on terrorism.
cuts education, health care, and social
services, but they also suffer indirectly due
to cuts in various services, which increase Alternatives to market-led
women's unpaid labour. To pay for state development
expansion beyond crime control into
homeland security and the war on terrorism, For the past two decades, neo-liberal
deeper cuts will be made to these services. economic policy - the so-called 'Washington
In addition, the jobs cut in education, Consensus'- has demanded dedication to
health care, and social services are principles of market-led development
primarily jobs done by women. In contrast, (Williamson 2000). The worldwide spread
the jobs created in the crime control/ of this ruling policy framework of market
homeland security/war on terror apparatus fundamentalism has propelled global
are, overwhelmingly, jobs in sectors economic change (Baker et al.1998). This
approach has intensified a longer-term
86
and exercised. Key analysts have dubbed do not simply impose forms of masculinity
the ascendant form of dominant mascu- from above; rather, they construct and
linity, typified by the men who control the reconstruct them in their ongoing social
institutions central to economic liberal- practices (Hooper 2001).
isation, 'transnational business masculinity' Who, then, is Guadalajara Woman? She
(Connell 2000). A leading publication of is not some essentialist vision of universal
mainstream economics, The Economist womanhood or the version of ever-compliant
(1997), created the character 'Davos Man' to femininity emphasised by dominant
represent the new style of elite masculinity masculinity. She has a complex identity
which fits a globalised world of accelerated and an activist agenda. She takes her name
capitalist accumulation. from the location of the AWID conference.
However, any form of masculinity is She knows another world is possible, and
subject to challenge. Just as processes of knows that the cumulative effect of scores
globalisation have disrupted and displaced of local small-scale feminist interventions
earlier forms of dominant masculinity, can round out large-scale global campaigns
current responses to ongoing international multiplying their potential for institutional
events may undermine the dominance of change (Hooper 2001).
Davos Man. The escalation of the global Thus, she participates in women's
war on terrorism has reinvigorated the NGOs and progressive community action
'control-oriented military-style' masculinity to resist control-oriented state expansion.
of Big Brother - who, before the attacks on An example is Families Against Mandatory
the World Trade Centre and the Pentagon, Minimums (FAMM), a woman-founded
was a 'fading threat' to the dominance of and -led organisation that challenges US
transnational business masculinity (Connell mandatory drug law imprisonment policies.
2000, 59). The competition between FAMM has had significant impact because
different potentially dominant forms of of the sophisticated use of new tech-
masculinity in global institutions offers nologies, including the World Wide Web,
feminists opportunities to take action. to organise against excessive prison
Because this competition shows that sentences to tell the stories of individual
masculinity is not fixed or monolithic, women and men sentenced to long prison
institutions - even those of international terms, and to reveal the plight of families,
finance and security apparatus - become poor communities, and communities of
vulnerable to feminist intervention colour, in the wake of high rates of
(Hooper 2001). imprisonment. Guadalajara Woman also
At the AWID conference, we introduced works with organisations such as Human
'Guadalajara Woman' as a character Rights Watch, challenging not only the
epitomising feminist action. She can be a conditions in prisons, including the sexual
potentially 'disruptive' presence in settings abuse of women in custody, but also the
where the masculinity of military control provisions of government legislation that
now vies for dominance with the mascu- endanger human rights. In addition, she
linity of fast capitalism. While enterprising supports civil liberties organisations to
alliances between these two groups of elite confront governments by filing freedom of
men are certainly possible, the tensions and information requests and lawsuits, and
contradictions between them can be generating publicity. Through these and
manipulated by feminists to undermine other progressive actions, Guadalajara
their power to maintain gender inequality. Woman struggles for institutional account-
And even in global social institutions, elite ability, and demands gender, racial and
men - despite their power and advantage - class justice from the state.
88
Connell, R.W. (1987) Gender and Power, Overused, San Francisco, CA: National
Stanford, CA: Stanford University Press Council on Crime and Delinquency
Connell, R.W. (2000) 'Masculinities and MacEwan, P. (1998) 'Comment' in D. Baker
globalization', in M. Baca Zinn et al. et al (eds.) Globalization and Progressive
(eds.), Gender Through the Prism of Economic Policy, Cambridge: Cambridge
Difference, Boston, MA: Allyn and Bacon University Press
Danner, M.J.E. (1998) 'Three strikes and it's Maguire, K., A.L. Pastore, and T.J. Flanagan
women who are out: the h i d d e n (eds.) (1993) Sourcebook of Criminal Justice
consequences for women of criminal Statistics 1992, Washington, DC: U.S.
justice reform', in S.L. Miller (ed.) Crime Department of Justice, Bureau of Justice
Control and Women: Feminist Implications Statistics
of Criminal justice Policy, Thousand Oaks, Mauer, M. (1990) Young Black Men and the
CA: Sage Criminal Justice System: A Growing
Davis, A. (2002) 'FBI's post-Sept. 11 "watch National Problem, Washington, DC:
list" mutates, acquires life of its own', The Sentencing Project
The Wall Street journal, A l , A10, The Nation (1995) 'The prison boom',
19 November 2002 20 February 1995
The Economist (1997) 'In praise of the Davos Office of Homeland Security (2002) National
man', 1 February 1997 Strategy for Homeland Security,
Elson, D. (1999) 'Labor markets as Washington DC: U.S. Government
gendered institutions: equality, Polanyi, K. (1957 [1944]) The Great Trans-
efficiency and empowerment issues,' formation, Boston, MA: Beacon Press
World Development 27(3): 611-27 Smallwood, S. (2002) 'University of
Elson, D. (1995) Male Bias in the Development Massachusetts faculty members protest
Process, New York, NY: Manchester FBI meeting with scholar', The Chronicle
University Press of Higher Education, 13 December 2002
Friedman, T.L. (1999) 'A manifesto for the Staudt, K.A., S.M. Rai and J.L. Parpart
fast world', New York Times Magazine, (2001) 'Protesting world trade rules: can
28 March 1999 we talk about empowerment?' Signs 26
Gibson-Graham, J.K. (1996) The End of (4): 1251-7
Capitalism (As We Knew It), Maiden, MA: Tickner, J.A. (1992) Gender in International
Blackwell Publishers, Inc. Relations, New York, NY: Columbia
Glaze, L.E. (2002) Probation and Parole in the University Press
United States, 2001, Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Justice (2002) U.S.
U.S. Department of Justice, Bureau of Correctional Population Reaches 6.6
Justice Statistics Million, Press release, 25 August 2002 '
Hasson, J. (2002) 'Funding holdup irks United Faculty of Florida (2003) The United
mayors', Federal Computer Week, Faculty of Florida Defends the Due Process
9 December 2002 Rights, and Academic Freedom and Tenure
Hooper, C. (2001) Manly States: Rights of USF Professor Sami Al-Arian.
Masculinities, International Relations, and http: / / w3.usf.edu / ~uff / AlArian / Over
Gender Politics, New York, NY: Columbia view.html .
University Press The Washington Post (2003) 'Tax cuts plus
Human Rights Watch (2002) Presumption of war equals a record deficit', 2 March
Guilt: Human Rights Abuses of Post- 2003, H2
September 11 Detainees, Washington, DC: Williamson, J. (2000) 'What should the
Human Rights Watch World Bank think about the Washington
Immarigeon, R. and M. Chesney-Lind Consensus?' World Bank Research
(1992) Women's Prisons: Overcrowded and Observer 15 (2): 251-64
90
T
here have been many statements by
governments that equality between carriers of information and messages, but
women and men is an integral part of also as interpreters, supporters and
democratisation. The need to reform the advocates of certain social, political and
way in which women are represented in cultural values. Today especially, the media
the media, especially in the mainstream play a significant role in determining
media, has been recognised as part of the people's perception of their view of the
process of achieving equality. For example, world and their place in it, regardless of
the Fourth Ministerial Conference on whether they are based in First-, Second-,
Equality between Women and Men, was or Third-World countries, as 'almost 80 per
held in Istanbul in 1997. This affirmed, in cent of the total news flow emanates from
its final declaration, 'Democracy must Western-based major transnational agencies;
become gender-aware and gender-sensitive; one-fifth of the total number of foreign
this includes gender-balanced represent- correspondents of the Western agencies are
ation as a demand for justice and a necessity based in the developing nations where
for attaining genuine democracy, which can four-fifths of the world's population lives;
no longer afford to ignore the competence, no wonder that Western agencies devote
skills and creativity of women...' only 20 to 30 per cent to developing
(www.humanrights.coe.int/equality/ countries' (Partanayak, 1985).
Eng / WordDocs / Document / 201ist.htm). The international media are dominated
The media, taken together, are a very by several (at the moment, eight) trans-
important societal institution, which shapes national corporations, and are predominantly
public discourse and gives legitimacy to profit-driven. The conquest of markets for
the existing social structure, describing, the benefit of economic gain also means
defining and creating a power basis within control over people, if the mass media are
92
used as transmitters of dominant ideology, through different media: the beauty myth,
and audiences lack media literacy in order with anorexic models who are paid to
to engage in independent analysis and expose their bodies, but are never allowed
arrive at a diversity of readings. Because of to speak; stories about women's lack of
all these facts, it is of utmost importance to interest in politics and economic issues;
initiate a debate to try to work out how fairy tales about women who are joyful in
feminist activists can use the master's tools serving others, but who have no interest in
in order to advocate for a more just gaining power and attaining decision-
presentation in the mainstream media. making positions.
Little progress has been made in imple- The most powerful and exciting part of
menting strategies in line with statements the workshop came when women activists
like the one above. The representation of presented video materials they had
women in mainstream media remains produced, to challenge such stereotypes
mostly stereotypical and discriminatory. and promote equality between women and
This reinforces the unequal terms on which men. These were a cartoon commercial
women participate in public life, and used in the '16 Days of Activism Against
prevents them from taking a more active Violence Against Women Campaign' in
role in shaping the political, cultural and Croatia, musical videos produced in India,
economic environment in society. This one of which had been nominated for an
remains a huge and seemingly very MTV award, and a video clip against
difficult problem to solve fundamentalisms produced in Uruguay.
It proved that it is possible to promote
gender equality through lively, interesting,
The workshop commercially competitive media products
If anyone needed proof of how important that can draw a wide audience.
the issue of the representation of women in However, the production of attractive
the public media remains, this was media artefacts - created according to the
provided at the AWID Forum in the shape highest professional standards, as well as
of the number of women who joined our being empowering and not sexist or
session, their interest in the presentations, discriminatory - has not been among the
and their participation in the discussion priorities of women's movement so far.
that followed. The panel at the workshop From time to time, women's NGOs have
were: Loreto Bravo, of CORSAPS (Area de been supported, usually with small grants,
Salud y Genero de la Corporation de Salud to research the media or produce materials
y Politicas Sociales), Chile; Mallika Dutt of independently. These materials have
Breakthrough, India /USA; Lucy Garrido of usually had connections to campaigns on
Cotidiano Mujer, Uruguay; Joanne Sandier violence against women. No ongoing
of UNIFEM, USA; and Sanja Sarnavka of Be education of women activists on media
active, Be emancipated (B.a.B.e.), Croatia. production and media literacy has been
The first part of the session presented conducted. Nor has the education of
facts from different surveys of media journalists on gender issues been a priority.
content, together with texts that illustrated While many donors and agencies have
persistent stereotypes of 'maleness' and given support of various kinds to
'femaleness'. It was important to show journalists and the media in developing
participants how media literacy should countries, and this support has been
become one of the priorities of the women's declared to promote professionalism,
movement if we want to empower women openness, and a non-partisan approach,
and enable them to become less vulnerable somehow gender discrimination was
to the messages that are disseminated daily always left out and 'forgotten'.
Feminism, media and ending violence against women 93
Conclusion Reference
At the end of the session, we concluded Pattanayak D. (1985) 'Diversity in
without any hesitation that if gender communication and languages.
mainstreaming is our true goal, more Predicament of a multi-lingual nation
elaborate projects addressing critical issues state: India, a case study', in N. Wolfson
related to the media should be carried out. and J. Manes, Language of Inequality,
We need to work in collaboration with Berlin: Mouton
each other - across countries and across
professions - and to take a long-term
perspective.
And the message should be sent to all
who want to re-think globalisation and
women's position in the world that,
without women's voices in the mainstream
media, all our struggles and networking
will remain marginalised and invisible.
'Health care systems that do not offer care - sets out eight broadly stated goals of social
that take a narrow or an abusive view of and economic development: the Millennium
their duties... contribute profoundly to Development Goals or MDGs, and specific,
people's experience of what it is to be poor' time-bound targets for each goal. A year
Mackintosh, 2001 later, in September 2001, the Secretary
General issued a Road Map to Implementation
There are moments for 'strategic advocacy', of the UN Millennium Declaration, that
when certain issues and approaches should structured and formalised the goals and
be raised and fought for because of the targets, and put forth a set of indicators to
considerable possibility they offer for monitor progress. The goals and targets that
advancing women's health and rights, and make up the MDGs are shown in Table 1.
because of the danger that looms if we fail That the Millennium Declaration is a
to seize our opportunity and instead allow negotiated political document becomes
other interests to take control. I believe we apparent when we see the fate of repro-
are in one such moment in the fight to ductive health, the central concept elaborated
secure good health and human rights for in the Programme of Action issued at the
women worldwide. International Conference on Population
In September 2000, the United Nations and Development (ICPD) in Cairo in 1994.
General Assembly issued the Millennium The concept of reproductive health incorp-
Declaration, designed to focus and intensify orated many of the most significant
development efforts. Drawing on the UN developments in the analysis and practice
conferences of the 1990s, the declaration of women's health and women's human
98
Goal 2 Achieve universal primary education Ensure that all boys and girls complete a full
course of primary schooling
Goal 3 Promote gender equality and empower women Eliminate gender disparity in primary and
secondary education preferably by 2005, and at
all levels by 2015
Goal 4 Reduce child mortality Reduce by two-thirds the mortality rate among
children under five
Goal 6 Combat HIV/AIDS, malaria and other diseases Halt and begin to reverse the spread of
HIV/AIDS
Halt and begin to reverse the incidence of
malaria and other major diseases
Goal 8 Develop a global partnership for development Develop further an open trading and financial
system that is rule-based, predictable and non-
discriminatory. This includes a commitment to
good governance, development and poverty
reduction - nationally and internationally
Address the least-developed countries' special
needs. This includes tariff- and quota-free
access for their exports; enhanced debt relief
for heavily indebted poor countries; cancellation
of official bilateral debt; and more generous
official development assistance for countries
committed to poverty reduction
Address the special needs of landlocked and
small island developing states
Deal comprehensively with developing
countries' debt problems through national and
international measures to make debt
sustainable in the long term
In co-operation with the developing countries,
develop decent and productive work for youth
In co-operation with pharmaceutical companies,
provide access to affordable essential drugs in
developing countries
In co-operation with the private sector, make
available the benefits of new technologies -
especially information and communications
technologies
Strategic advocacy and maternal mortality 99
rights made during the decade that health policy actors, including the World
preceded ICPD - and has grown to capture Bank, UN agencies and bilateral donors,
many of the developments in those fields are taking these specific targets and
made since. Reproductive health had indicators seriously, investing enormous
therefore been one of the international amounts of time, energy, and political
development targets advanced during the capital on developing strategies for their
five-year process leading up to the achievement. There will be a push to use
Millennium Declaration (Devarajan, Miller the MDGs at the country level as well.
et al. 2002). But, at the last moment, under It is now critical, therefore, that the
apparent pressure from the United States women's health and human rights com-
and its conservative allies on this issue, munities turn their attention to maternal
reproductive health was expunged from mortality in a new and more intensive way.
the Millennium Declaration document As the target and indicators for maternal
(Berer 2001; Girard 2001). mortality reduction are translated into
Although achievement of many of the new policies, programmes, and spending
other MDGs will certainly have positive priorities, we will need to have a clear
effects on women's health, only one goal vision about their implications for women's
having any explicit connection to women's health and human rights. We will also need
health remained. Goal 5, to 'improve a clear strategy to ensure that the MDG
maternal health' is put into action with a targets are used to confront - rather than to
target on maternal mortality - that is, avoid - the globalisation policies that have
women's death in pregnancy and had such a profound influence on health
childbirth. The target is to 'reduce by three- and rights.
quarters between 1990 and 2015, the
maternal mortality ratio'. The road map
suggests two indicators for tracking Maternal mortality: basic
progress toward the target: first, the facts
maternal mortality ratio, and second, the Maternal mortality accounts for approx-
proportion of births attended by skilled imately 515,000 deaths of women each year.
health personnel. For each death, an estimated 30 to 50
Of course, reproductive health is women suffer short- or long-term disability
inextricably connected to the goal of due to complications of pregnancy and
improving maternal health. As countries childbirth (Fortney and Smith 1996). The
and the international community develop distribution of maternal deaths across the
strategies for achieving the MDGs, world is telling. As shown in Table 2,
reproductive health services will need to almost 99 per cent occur in poor countries,
play a central role - both as a matter of with Africa and South Asia over-
good evidence-based public health policy, whelmingly bearing the brunt. By contrast,
and as a matter of human rights in the global North, maternal mortality has
(Freedman, Wirth et al. 2003). Women's virtually ceased to exist as a public health
health and rights advocates will need to problem.
work hard to ensure their appropriate Why? Why has the level of maternal
inclusion. mortality registered barely any change
At the same time, it matters very much globally, despite nearly 15 years since the
what targets and indicators are chosen for Safe Motherhood Initiative2 was launched?
the maternal health goal. In public health Why have child mortality rates steadily
practice, what you count is what you do and declined, while maternal mortality rates
where your resources go. Many international have stayed unchanged? Why is there such
100
UN region Maternal mortality ratio Number of maternal deaths Lifetime risk of maternal death
(maternal deaths lln:
per 100,000 live births)
Source: WHO, UNICEF, and UNFPA, 'Maternal mortality in 1995: Estimates developed by WHO, UNICEF,
UNFPA', 2001, Geneva: World Health Organization
a dramatic difference in death rates same way as maternal mortality, with sub-
between rich and poor countries when it Saharan Africa doing dramatically worse
comes to death in pregnancy and childbirth on most social and economic development
(where child mortality shows a twenty-fold indicators than other parts of the world.
difference, maternal mortality ratios show But for women's health andrightsadvocates,
nearly a hundred-fold difference)? Why it is absolutely essential to push past these
does one in every 16 women in sub- broad associations between development
Saharan Africa die in pregnancy and and maternal mortality, to ask: what is the
childbirth, compared to one in every 5,000 mechanism of action? What is the route
women in southern Europe? through which gender inequity or income
Something is deeply wrong. While this poverty influences maternal mortality?
scenario can be taken apart and analysed in Until we can answer that question, we will
many ways, and through different lenses, fail to develop effective strategies that
I believe that the medical and historical focus on the critical things that can make a
evidence, and analysis of contemporary difference.
health policies, point to one critical fact: To understand the importance of a
without exception, high-mortality countries functioning health care system to reduction
have failing, grossly deficient, often of maternal mortality, it is crucial to
inequitable health care systems that have recognise several basic facts about how
been unable to provide the interventions maternal mortality happens. Eighty per cent
necessary to save women's lives. of maternal deaths are caused by five direct
Of course, there are many other obstetric complications: haemorrhage,
differences between high and low mortality infection, hypertensive disorders (pre-
countries that one could point to; differences eclampsia and eclampsia), obstructed
in income and poverty, gender equity, and labour, and unsafe abortion. 3 The vast
education would also map in roughly the majority of these obstetric complications
Strategic advocacy and maternal mortality 101
2001; Freedman 2001). The UN recom- social and economic determinants of poor
mendation for minimum levels of coverage health and the need to link health to other
is one comprehensive EmOC facility and sectors of social development. It thereby
four basic EmOC facilities per 500,000 made health work an affirmative, socially-
people.4 Progress in improving availability engaged, politically-aware process of
and utilisation of EmOC can be monitored action. Among PHC's most important
with a set of health system indicators which contributions was to move the focus of
were issued in 1997, by WHO, UNICEF and health work away from building high-tech
UNFPA (Maine, Wardlaw et al. 1997; urban hospitals - 'disease palaces', as some
Paxton, Maine et al. 2003) called them - into communities, engaging
In an ideal world, both strategies would with and empowering the people whose
quickly arrive at the same end result of health was at stake (Morley, Rohde et al.
every birth being attended by a person 1983).
with midwifery skills. That person would As originally articulated at Alma Ata,
be able to do some procedures that can PHC was a broad and comprehensive
prevent certain complications in women vision that contemplated an integrated
(for example, active management of third system of basic and referral health services,
stage labour to help prevent post-partum delivered in as close proximity as possible
haemorrhage) and in newborns as well to where people lived. PHC was intended
(for example, resuscitation for birth to respond to their most pressing needs
asphyxia). In the event of a complication, in a respectful and empowering way.
there would be an accessible facility able to But the idealism of PHC quickly hit the
deliver the appropriate level of emergency stone wall of international economics and a
care needed to save a woman's life; and the new development orthodoxy which was
skilled attendant could stabilise and ushered in with the debt crisis of the 1980s.
quickly refer the woman to that facility. The broad programme of PHC which had
been set in 1978 at Alma Ata rapidly
became an agenda of 'selective primary
Reaching this goal through health care' focused on households and
strategic advocacy and communities with simple interventions
health systems (such as oral rehydration therapy,
But how should most countries get to this immunisation and family planning) often
goal? And what should the international delivered vertically, and often side-
community do to facilitate the process? stepping the health system altogether
What should the health, human rights, and (Claeson and Waldman 2000).
development advocacy communities do to Such interventions have been vitally
ensure the most appropriate and effective important for people's health and the
steps are taken - and how does this relate attention to household and community-
to other advocacy agendas? based health care was long overdue. But
Activists in the public health field often the scaling back of PHC into almost only
find themselves in an ambivalent relation- these interventions has left the formal
ship with formal health systems. For many public health system unattended and
of us, the touchstone of our work has been unprotected. The decades of structural
Primary Health Care (PHC) and the adjustment and health sector reform
principles of PHC articulated in 1978 in the programs that followed have taken their
Alma Ata Declaration.5 Recognising that toll, not only on the health of people, but on
poor health is not just a biological the infrastructure and functioning of health
phenomenon, PHC brought into focus the systems (Simms, Rowson et al. 2001).
104
Today, health systems are in profound developing countries - has been allowed to
crisis. continue virtually unchecked, as health
In vast parts of the world, health centres systems crumble under economic reform
stand empty and deteriorating. In others, policies and a host of other domestic and
they are overwhelmed and unable to cope. international pressures.
User fees and exemption schemes have
routinely failed to protect the poor, with
'informal' or illicit payments sometimes Reconnecting households
being the only way health providers can and communities to health
earn a living wage, while drug shortages care systems
force patients into the streets to find life-
If, 25 years ago, the politically and medically
saving supplies or to forgo needed care
appropriate move was to take health care
altogether. In many countries, the public
out of the urban hospitals and into house-
health system is plagued by personnel
holds and communities, today the politically
posting and transfer policies that put
strategic - and medically vital - move is to
patients' interests last, and by absenteeism
reconnect those households and communities
as public employees (sometimes driven by
to local health care systems, but in a
necessity) engage in private practice and
new way - a way based on fundamental
steer patients accordingly. At the same
principles of human rights. That will
time, massive 'brain drain' draws trained
require a different vision of health care
professionals out of countries while IFI
systems - what they do, how they work,
(international financial institutions) policies
and who should guide them (see WHO
pressure for bans on government hiring.
2000). It will also require new, multi-
Those who remain are often poorly trained
disciplinary, flexible approaches to human
and supervised, leaving even the best-
rights (Freedman 2000).
intentioned providers without confidence
or skills. Over-worked and demoralised, A new vision should be premised on
they can barely cope with their workloads the recognition that, by its operation, a
much less follow protocols for improved health system forms part of the very fabric
inter-personal relationships with clients. of social and civic life. This fact often goes
And, all the while, patterns of social and unnoticed in societies where health systems
gender discrimination that shape society as basically work. But where health systems
a whole often end up reflected in health have failed - and even more, where they
systems where shocking maltreatment of have failed for poor and marginalised
patients and their families is almost populations - that failure is experienced, to
routine. quote Maureen Mackintosh, 'as a core
But for many health activists and public element of social exclusion . . . Health care
health professionals, attention has been systems that do not offer care - that take a
focused elsewhere. This has had profound narrow or an abusive view of their duties -
effects for women - not least because of the thereby contribute profoundly to people's
futile search for maternal mortality experience of what it is to be poor'
reduction strategies that could be (Mackintosh 2001; Tibandebage and
implemented regardless of the current state Mackintosh 1999). Equally important is
of national health systems. Despite the fact Mackintosh's insight that 'the culture and
that almost every single maternal death is operation of the health care system (as a
avoidable with access to appropriate whole, public and private) is the way in
treatment delivered through a health which claims are established, legitimated
system, maternal mortality - the leading and denied or fulfilled by "society"'
killer of women of reproductive age in (Mackintosh 2001,185).
Strategic advocacy and maternal mortality 105
This has significant implications for the inclusion and emphasis forces a confront-
development of rights-based approaches to ation with the social and economic policies
health, including mechanisms that will that, at the global and national levels, have
ensure constructive accountability. I use the decimated health systems and dramatically
phrase 'constructive accountability' to make increased health inequity. In short, a
clear that accountability is not primarily maternal mortality strategy that focuses on
about blame and punishment when things EmOC gives health and human rights
go wrong. Rather, it is about developing an advocacy a structural perspective and
effective dynamic of obligation and entitle- concrete, do-able agenda that simul-
ment between people and their government, taneously addresses some of the most
and within the complex system of relation- important challenges in the health and
ships that form the wider health system, human rights fields in an era of global-
both public and private. It is, first and isation.
foremost, about building health systems This strategy for women's health
that function for the benefit of people (see advocates can link synergistically to
Freedman 2000; Freedman 2001). emerging trends in the child health field
A strategy built on ideas drawn from and in the HIV and tuberculosis fields as
human rights transforms the health system well. For example, although household and
from a static agglomeration of buildings, community-based PHC interventions have
equipment, drugs and staff, into a dynamic certainly had a positive impact on child
entity through which citizens interact with mortality, coverage is beginning to plateau
their government and the wider civil or decline, as gaps between rich and poor
society. Mechanisms of constructive grow ever wider (see Leon and Walt 2001;
accountability give people the potential to Evans, Whitehead et al. 2000). Vertical
effect change - from the micro level of programs such as EPI (Expanded Programme
interactions with local health workers, to on Immunisation), once championed and
the macro level of health sector reform in supported by international donors, but
the context of international development often delivered outside the broader health
policies. system, are now experiencing stagnation or
In the context of the MDGs, the target even reversal, as donors begin to withdraw
on maternal mortality, and a strategy based and the health system is unable to sustain
first on EmOC, gives us an opportunity to immunisation coverage levels (Starling,
realise a new kind of analysis and activism, Brugha et al. 2003). There is growing
grounded in the basic needs and evidence that the weakness of health
perspectives of women, but linked to the systems, particularly in low-income,
wider set of social and economic forces that highly-indebted countries, now presents a
shape their experience. For just as people's serious constraint to the scaling-up of
health status cannot be detached from the appropriate child health interventions, such
social and economic conditions in which as IMCI (Integrated Management of
they live, so the health policies that Childhood Illnesses), and to efforts to
structure health systems are not set in address inequity (Black and Troedsson
isolation from the forces of globalisation 2002; Gwatkin 2001).
and the specific agendas of IFIs and other A similar concern is growing in the
actors (private and governmental) that community of health workers and activists
drive globalisation and the social and focusing on HIV/AIDS. Even if access to
economic changes it entails (Kim, Millen et al. essential medicines is ultimately secured,
2000; Lee, Buse et al. 2002). the need for a health system strong enough
Because EmOC cannot be delivered to deliver treatment adequately will still
outside of a functioning health system, its present an enormous obstacle in many
106
countries struggling to cope with the 3 The remaining 20 per cent are indirect
epidemic. The same is true for effective complications, i.e. pre-existing conditions
interventions to cope with the resurgence such as HIV and malaria that are
of tuberculosis, such as DOTS (Directly aggravated by pregnancy and delivery.
Observed Therapy Short-Course). Without In areas where HIV and malaria
a health system that is strong enough to prevalence is high and growing, these
support the therapy properly, the poorest indirect deaths may account for an
and most marginalised remain out of reach. increasing proportion of maternal
mortality.
4 Each country organises its health system
Conclusion differently. Basic EmOC can be delivered
The strength of the Millennium Develop- in a health centre that is more
ment initiative is that it brings these sophisticated than a health post, but not
different aspects of health together, and it a full-service hospital. Comprehensive
puts them at the table not only with other EmOC, which includes the capacity to
social sectors critical to health (e.g. water do blood transfusions and surgery (e.g.
and sanitation, education), but also with Caesarian sections), is generally delivered
representatives in ministries of finance and at the level of a district or sub-district
planning, and with the parts of World Bank hospital (see Maine, Wardlaw et al. 1997).
and other international actors, who truly 5 The Alma Ata Declaration was defined
hold the power and resources necessary to following the UN Conference on
make real change. It is a moment for Primary Health Care (PHC) in Alma Ata
strategic advocacy focused on accountable in the former USSR in 1978
health systems that can deliver the care (www.who.int/hpr/archive/docs/
necessary to save women's lives and almaata.html). Alma Ata recommended
improve their health. We dare not miss it. that development plans concentrate on
establishing community health centres
Lynn Freedman is Associate Professor of and training community health workers,
Population and Family Health, and Director of to benefit predominantly rural commun-
the Law and Policy Project at Mailman School ities, rather than funding expensive
of Public Health, Columbia University, 722 urban hospitals, advanced technologies
West 168th Street, Suite 1030, New York and specialist medical staff.
NY10032, USA.
Lpfl@columbia.edu.
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Notes health and the collateral damage to
1 At the Millennium Summit in September women of fundamentalism and war',
2000, the Millennium Declaration, Reproductive Health Matters 9: 6-11
signed by all UN member countries, set Black, R. and H. Troedsson (2002) 'The
out a number of Millennium Develop- Future Agenda for Child Health',
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2 The Safe Motherhood Initiative is a 2002 (on file with author)
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(2002) 'Goals for Development: History, Health Policy in a Globalising World,
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109
These factors all influence her vulnerability AIDS. What it really means is that women
to HIV infection. will do it. What it translates into is that
families split up, girls hook for money and
food,3 and a vicious cycle is born.
HIV/AIDS and feminism While there is some feminist analysis of
During the last eight years of my work on the AIDS epidemic, we have not yet heard
sexual and reproductive rights, my focus a rallying cry from the women's move-
has been primarily on HIV and AIDS. For ment. A recent article by Noeleen Heyzer,
me, the pandemic brings into stark relief UNIFEM's Executive Director begins to
the fact that states have failed to provide formulate some arguments about why
their citizens with the basic rights enshrined in the context of AIDS, women can no
in the declaration of human rights. longer wait for equality with men
Twenty years ago, AIDS was known as (www.csmonitor. com / 2002 / 0718 / pl3sO2-
Gay Related Immune Disease - so associated coop.html). Dr. Heyzer points out that it
was it with gay men. Today, the face of takes 24 buckets of water a day to care for a
AIDS has changed. It looks like mine. It is person living with AIDS - to clean sheets
now black, female, and extremely young. fouled by diarrhoea and vomit, to prepare
In some parts of sub-Saharan Africa, girls water for bathing (sometimes several times
aged 15-19 are six times more likely than a day), to wash dishes and prepare food.
their male counterparts to be HIV positive. For women who must walk miles, and still
Something is very wrong. do all the other chores that always need
In the next ten years, the epidemic will doing, the burden becomes unbearable.
explode in Asia and in Central and Eastern This past spring in New York, I was
Europe as well as in Latin America. The asked to speak to a group at a high school
pandemic will have profound effects on the in Brooklyn about HIV/AIDS and violence
burden of reproductive work that women against women in the South African
do, and this in turn will have far-reaching context. They were an intelligent group,
consequences for the participation of well versed in feminism. I was not the only
women in politics, the economic sector, and presenter. A young American woman who
other sectors of society. The very had worked with Ms. Magazine talked
maintenance of the household, the work about pop culture, and the politics of
that feminist economists like Marilyn wearing jeans and letting your G-string4
Waring, Diane Elson and others tell us show. I left the meeting feeling disconcerted.
keeps the world running, may no longer be I had made my presentation and received a
possible. few awkward questions about men in
As older women are increasingly called Africa. I cringed on behalf of my brothers
upon to care for children, and as life because I certainly was not trying to
expectancy shrinks to the forties and fifties, demonise them, but the students were
in Africa we face the prospect of a gener- feeding into a larger narrative of the
ation without grandparents, and an familiar discourse of black male laziness,
imminent orphan and vulnerable children deviancy and sexual aggression that I was
crisis that will effectively leave kids to take careful to point out to them. Aside from
care of kids. As the orphan crisis deepens, that, they found little else to talk about.
child abuse is on the rise. Girls without On the other hand, the woman from the
families to protect them are engaging in US struck a chord with them. They talked
survival sex to feed themselves and their about eating disorders and the media,
siblings, and we are told that communities about Britney Spears and Janet Jackson.
will 'cope.' There is a myth of coping that It was fascinating. Having lived in the US,
pervades the development discourse on I was able to follow and engage, but my
112
interests as an African feminist do not lie in We know that, in the vast majority of cases,
this subject matter. It was a clear example this is simply not true.
of how far apart we, as feminists, some- The Treatment Action Campaign (TAC),
times are from one another. a movement begun by and for people
Contexts vary, and of course the issues living with HIV/AIDS in South Africa, has
that are central in the global North will be managed to mobilise national and inter-
different from those of Southern feminists. national support for the idea of universal
And amongst us there will be differences. I access to drugs for people with AIDS. The
understood where the high school students group began their campaign by using
were coming from. Indigenous feminism pregnant women as their rallying cry. The
must be rooted in what matters most to right to nevirapine for pregnant women
women at a local level. At a global level opened the door for TAC's broader claims
within feminism, however, I fear that about the rights of all people with
we may be in danger of replicating the HIV/AIDS to HIV medication. The
G-strings versus AIDS conversation. I am campaign has been hugely successful.
worried by the relative silence from our TAC encouraged the South African
Northern sisters about a pandemic that is government to take the pharmaceutical
claiming so many lives. industry to court and the government won,
paving the way for a win at the World
Trade Organization. Companies' patent
A way forward rights can no longer supersede the rights
In the context of HIV/AIDS, it is no longer of human beings to access life-saving
enough to frame our conversations solely medicines.
in terms of race, class, and gender. These TAC's strategy needs to be vigorously
are primary markers of identity, but debated and analysed by feminists. TAC
increasingly, we need more. We need to did not use arguments about reproductive
look at where women are located spatially and sexual rights. They simply said, 'It is
in relation to centres of political, social, and unfair for the government not to give drugs
economic power. We need also to examine to pregnant women so they can save their
how where we live - rural, urban, North or babies' lives.' It was a classic 'woman as the
South - intersects with poverty and gender. vessel' argument. TAC's interest was not in
We also need to think about how the women's rights - but in the rights of people
experience of poverty interacts with, and living with HIV/AIDS, some of whom
not just intersects with, gender. Culture is happen to be women. The campaign's
another factor that deserves attention. success was largely based on the notion
We are beginning to see dangerous that the average South African found it
patriarchal responses to the epidemic - difficult to accept that 'innocent' babies
from virginity tests to decrees about female would die because of government policy.
chastity from leaders. In part this is simply This requires some serious feminist
an extension of deeply rooted myths about interrogation. TAC has since been pushed
female sexuality. However, with HIV/ by gender activists within the movement to
AIDS, it can also be attributed to the fact ensure that the drugs do not stop when the
that in many cases women are the first to baby is born.
receive news of their sero-positive status. Gender activists to date have struggled
This is often during pre-natal screening, or to get their voices heard in the doctor-
when babies are born sick. Bringing home dominated AIDS world. The mainstream
the 'news' that there is HIV in the family women's movement needs to get on board
often means being identified as the person and face up to the challenge of HIV/AIDS.
who caused the infection in the first place. AWID's 'Globalise This' campaign provides
HIV/AIDS, globalisation and the international women's movement 113
n late January 2001, a breaking news cloning unsafe and to recommend a ban.
bound to exist among and between women doing, I am focusing on the potential
and women's groups about new human technological harms, and discussing these
genetic manipulations. Where individual within the broad context of US culture.
women draw the line between acceptable
and unacceptable practices will be influenced 1 Diseases, abilities, and personalities
by our multiple identities, including are genetically determined; thus,
ethnicity, class, wealth, sexuality, religion, solutions to human problems are
age and disability. In addition, our decisions genetically based
will be influenced by our political 'Genomania', is a term coined by Ruth
persuasions. Hubbard, a biologist and Professor
Among those of us who are feminists, Emeritus from Harvard University, and
some may be members of the Feminist board member of the Council for Responsible
International Network of Resistance to Genetics,4 to refer to the way in which
Reproductive and Genetic Engineering biological determinism has entered into the
(FINRRAGE), a group which is opposed to public's consciousness through the media
all new reproductive technologies on the (Hubbard and Wald 1997). Biological
grounds that they are ultimately oppressive determinism refers to ways our lives are
and dangerous for women. Others may be increasingly pervaded by a flow of bio-
post-modern feminists, who reject grand medical knowledge showing a connection
theory to explain inequalities, but as a between biology and identity, and biology
result, may also shy away from a political and disease. We are witnessing the 'over-
position. Or we may be cyborg feminists, geneticisation' of people and life; genes
who are interested in the ways we can alone do not determine a person's health,
produce forms of resistance as part- ability or personality. In fact, the majority
machine/part-human. We may be libertarian of diseases, abilities, and personalities are
feminists, who are committed to individual influenced by multiple genetic and environ-
reproductive liberty and procreative mental factors. Ultimately, we are complex
freedom. Or we may take an egalitarian social and biological beings.
feminist perspective, dedicated to social
2 The human genome sequence and the
justice, and to understanding how social
human genome project are 'neutral'
position influences the ways in which
The human genome project, an inter-
technologies are used and inform us.
national effort to map and sequence human
While respecting these differences, I DNA, was officially launched in 1990.
argue that women need to consider a Interestingly, the questions of whose genome
united position, which opposes human is being matched, and whose sequences we
reproductive cloning. These new genetic are being compared to, are often over-
techniques are not in the best interests of all looked (Mahowald 2000) in this area of
women. Women, more than men, will bear research. The generic human genome
the burdens - physical, psychological, sequence, developed mainly from a
social, moral, economic, political, and legal composite of existing cell lines of healthy
- of these technologies, and any negative individuals of both sexes from different
consequences. ethnic groups, is referred to by scientists as
'neutral'. It is this 'neutral' human genome
sequence that women's genome is compared
Ten misconceptions to. Based on past lessons, we know that
My purpose in outlining ten miscon- research on male subjects cannot always be
ceptions about human reproductive cloning accurately applied to women. Thus, is there
is to debunk some existing myths. In so really such a thing as a 'neutral' human
116
genome sequence, which disregards sex human cloning, where genetic abnorm-
and other factors? Regardless of whether it alities result in grotesque foetuses unable to
is or not, clearly political, social, and survive outside the womb (www.DailyNews.
economic decisions stemming from this yahoo.com/h/n/m/20010126/cloning_dc_
project are not neutral. Women in the l.html). According to newspaper reports,
United States need to question the justifi- 'All sorts of things can go wrong', said
cation for spending over three billion George Seidel, a cloning researcher at
dollars on genetic research, given the Colorado State University. Cloned cattle
limited funding for research and inadequate and sheep are often born dangerously
coverage of basic rights of women large. A calf might normally weigh 100
including food, clothing and shelter. pounds, but a clone might weigh 160
pounds. This excessive size prevents the
3 Human reproductive cloning is calf from having room to grow and wiggle,
relatively risk-free, and whatever risks resulting in all sorts of limb deformities.
exist will be worked out in a short time 'Sometimes the kidneys aren't right -
In the media, pro-human reproductive they're just plain put together wrong - or
cloning scientists are building their case the heart is, or the lungs, or the immune
and hoping that a single success will erase system,' he added. 'It can be a unique
all ethical and safety concerns. It is
abnormality in each case. They can die
suggested that human reproductive cloning
within a few days after birth, or sometimes
is inevitable and just a matter of time,
they just can't make it after you cut the
despite bans in most of Europe and in
umbilical cord.' Nobody really knows why
several US states. Dr Zavos, one of the team
(The New York Times Magazine, 4 February
members who will attempt human
2001).
reproductive cloning, has said, 'We have
a great deal of knowledge. We can grade Even Dr Harry Griffith, assistant
embryos, we can do genetic screening, director of the Roslin Institute, Scotland,
and we can do quality control' (www. which successfully cloned Dolly, the sheep,
DailyNews.yahoo.com / h / n / m / 20010126 / has said on BBC News Online, 'It would be
cloning_ dc_l.html). Seemingly as an wholly irresponsible to try to clone a
afterthought, he is reported to have added: human being, given the present state of
'It's not the easiest thing. The stability of technology. The success rate with animal
the genetic information is what's important. cloning is about one to two per cent in the
We are cloning a human being now; we are published results, and I think lower than
not trying to create a Dolly. You don't want that on average. I don't know anyone
to create a monster (ibid).' In a recent working in this area who thinks the rates
television interview, he added, 'We don't will easily be improved. There are many
intend to step on dead bodies to get there. cases where the cloned animals die late in
But cloning babies is only a matter of time' pregnancy or soon after birth' (BBC,
(World News, ABC, Channel 7,13 February http: / / news / bbc.co.uk / hi / English / sci / tech
2001). /newsid_11440001 / 114694.stm). Others
We should be very concerned when have cited risks to women in carrying
potential risks of human reproductive clones. For example, several scientists
cloning are played down or ignored. To stated that the first 100 attempts to clone
create animal clones, scientists frequently will result in spontaneous abortions because
made hundreds of failed attempts to of genetic or physical abnormalities,
develop viable embryos. Many, including putting the health and lives of the surrogate
medical professionals and ethicists, have mothers at risk (Washington Post, 7 March,
posed the possibility of cruel failures in 2001).
New genetic technologies and their impact on women 117
Scientists and doctors who support production had no known health risks.
human reproductive cloning argue that any Since there is evidence about potential
woman undergoing these new techniques risks, this kind of misinformation is
will be told about all the risks in order to irresponsible and unethical.
make an informed decision. Dr Zavos has Women are rarely provided with what
said, 'Cloning has already been developed the US-based National Women's Health
in animals. The genie is out of the bottle. Network5 refers to as, 'evidence-based,
It's a matter of time when humans will independent information' to empower
apply it to themselves, and we think this is them to make fully informed decisions.
best initiated by us... with ethical guide- There are very few organisations which,
lines and quality standards' {The Nation, like the network, act as an independent
2 Jan, 2001). voice for women's health by not accepting
But can these same doctors, working at money from companies that sell pharma-
such high stakes for success and fame, and ceuticals, medical devices, dietary
Institutional Review Boards (IRBs), within supplements, alcohol, tobacco, or health
private hospitals and clinics motivated by insurance. We must ensure that women
profit, be entrusted to develop informed have access to evidence-based, independent
consent protocols that are in the best information to enable them to make their
interests of women? This, I argue, is a serious decision from a fully-informed perspective.
conflict of interest. We have examples from In addition to physical risks, women
the past of abuses, and the need for will face serious social, psychological,
additional mechanisms to protect women moral, and legal risks if they are involved
and women's health. Women who under- in reproductive human cloning. They
went in-vitro fertilisation (IVF) techniques, will be burdened with complex moral
often to overcome male infertility problems, decisions about their embryos and be
read and signed informed consent forms. held responsible for future generations.
However, some women later learned that If human reproductive cloning is allowed,
information about possible risks had been social relationships between people will
withheld from them. Specifically, some become very complex and we will need
women were not informed about a study additional guidelines about how to act
which linked multiple failed attempts at towards one another. A cloned child may
IVF to an increased risk of ovarian cancer question his/her relationship with his/her
(Turkiel 1998). When I asked several adult caregivers, and will want to know,
doctors why this information was not 'Are you my mother, sister, or twin?'6 What
reported to infertile couples, they said the will happen if a woman refuses to use new
results were not statistically significant. genetic tests and her baby is not considered
But why were women not allowed to read 'normal' by some external standard or
the study to determine that themselves? committee? Furthermore, who sets the
Last year, I was interviewed on two radio standards and decides what is 'normal'?
stations, including KPFA in Berkeley, Many involved in the disability rights
California and National Public Radio movement are rightfully concerned about
(NPR) about the social and ethical issues of these and other issues, including how
IVF with egg donation. Also on one of the embryo decision-making occurs at the pre-
radio programmes was a woman who had implantation stage.7
donated her eggs on three separate
What will happen if and when a woman
occasions. Her doctors, whom she trusted,
makes a different decision from that of her
repeatedly told the woman that the
doctor? What will happen if a woman and
hormones she was given to stimulate egg
her partner (male or female) cannot agree
118
on similar qualities for their baby? Will them from being able to bear children
these women face criminal charges or (Roberts 2001).
wrongful birth suits? In a social context
where women have been criminally charged 5 New genetic technologies, including
for failing to agree to a Caesarean or gene therapy and human reproductive
charged with taking drugs that endanger cloning will save a dying child, replace
their newborn as has happened in some a dead child and reduce human suffering
US states (Handwerker 1994), these women I think we would all agree that we would
might well face criminal charges or want to save a dying child, or reduce
wrongful birth lawsuits. Such a scenario is human suffering. The question is whether
not paranoia, but rather raises some serious new genetic technologies can really save a
concerns about both the short- and long- dying child and cure diseases. In Western
term consequences of new human genetic societies where average life expectancy is
manipulations, including human high, people are terrified of the idea that
reproductive cloning. they will die eventually, and particularly
by the idea that this may be before a ripe
4 The commercialisation old age. Some strive to find solutions.
of reproduction is not a problem, and For example, scientists and doctors held
will not adversely impact women out hopes for experimental gene therapy,
According to a recent newspaper report in but overall it has been largely unsuccessful,
the US, Mark Eibert, a cloning advocate and sometimes quite dangerous. In 1999
and attorney, said he received requests the untimely death of a young man,
daily from people asking whether they can 18 years of age, who underwent gene
participate in clinical trials of reproductive therapy in the US raised many concerns
cloning. Of those, he estimates that 90 per about the process. His father, who had
cent are infertile, one per cent gay or originally agreed to this treatment,
lesbian, and the rest are worried about questioned its experimental nature after
genetic diseases (UPI Science News, his son died. In 2002 gene therapy trials in
28 January 2001). This raises the question of both the US and France have been halted
who the first subjects of these new experi- after a child undergoing treatment developed
ments will be. What selection criteria will a leukaemia-like disease (Lemonick 2003).
doctors use to decide? Will they be wealthy These and other examples have forced a
women, mainly Caucasian, who can afford critical re-examination of the health risks of
to pay the estimated $50,000 fee? Or poor gene therapy.
women, especially women of colour (this is Marcy Darnovsky, a staff member of
a term used in the US to refer to any the Center for Genetics and Society located
woman who is not white, or who identifies in Oakland, California, has told the story of
with any ethnic group other than how a female bio-ethicist, testifying as an
Caucasian), who are too often subjects of expert witness at a California Advisory
human trials? Within the United States and Committee on Human Cloning, argued that
abroad, I can imagine a scenario in which one reason reproductive cloning should be
both would be possible. Despite recent allowed is to replace the loss of a child.
evidence that in the US, black women What an insult to human dignity - as
suffer 1.5 times more from infertility though a child who dies can so easily be
problems than white women, it is dis- replaced! Among some grieving parents
proportionately white women who use there is a misperception that a cloned child
expensive technologies to bear children, will be the exact replica of a child that died.
while black women disproportionately An irony of human cloning, if it happens, is
undergo surgical procedures that prevent that it may finally disprove biological
New genetic technologies and their impact on women 119
infertile couples, women are divided about treatment, which may or may not result
whether or not to support human repro- in a live birth. Anyone who has faced
ductive cloning. In the rare case of an infertility problems and later had a child,
infertile couple in which neither person through birth or adoption, will tell you that
produces gametes (or a reproductive cell the infertility experience is still a part of
that can unite with another similar one to her/his identity. Secondly, there is no
form the cell that develops into a new indication to believe that new technologies
individual), human reproductive cloning such as human reproductive cloning will
would allow for a genetic connection that have any better 'success' rates ('success'
no other reproductive technology could being measured by the live birth of a
offer. Nevertheless, many feel this is healthy child) than IVF, GIFT (Gamete
dangerous threshold to cross to help a few Intra-Fallopian Transfer ) or GIUT (Gamete
(Hayes 1999). Intrauterine Transfer). Thirdly, while I
Generally speaking, lesbians have relied whole-heartedly support low-risk research
on alternative technologies, and embraced efforts to help infertile women, men, and
many new reproductive technologies as a couples, I also endorse preventive efforts.
form of resistance to heterosexual nuclear The majority of causes of infertility are
families and as an opportunity for mother- preventable including occupational health
hood. Human reproductive cloning offers hazards, environmental toxins, drug-induced
lesbian couples, in a society that is obsessed infertility like DES,8 sexually transmitted
with biological connections and often uses diseases, accidents, and rare cases of
this as a marker in legal custody battles, complications following childbirth or
the rare opportunity to be genetically abortion.
linked to both women. Egg donation
cannot accomplish this. (With egg donation, 8 Human genetic technologies will lead
a lesbian couple may choose one woman to new ways to rid society
to supply the egg and the other woman of all unwanted and unplanned
to carry the pregnancy to term and/or pregnancies
breastfeed). To date, sperm banks, especially Martine Rothblatt has written a book
those serving mainly lesbians, have not proposing 'inocuseed', a technique for
taken a formal position for or against these banking all men's semen as a way to end
new technologies. teenage pregnancies (Rothblatt 1997). In
Professionals who support reproductive her vision, each male will undergo a
cloning would like people to believe that if vasectomy at puberty and their sperm will
anyone is against human reproductive be stored in a bank and reproduction will
cloning, then we are against infertile be controlled with no unwanted preg-
couples. An anti-reproductive cloning nancies. Certainly, this idea which relies on
position is not unsympathetic to the pain new technologies seems an extreme
of infertility, or to women and men measure to prevent unwanted pregnancies.
experiencing infertility in their lives. What has happened to the promotion of
Infertility is a painful life experience, but condoms or other contraceptive methods to
even within the infertility community, prevent unwanted pregnancies?
members are divided about their support
or lack of support for human reproductive 9 Women who are anti-human
cloning. In considering infertility, there are reproductive cloning are anti-procreative
several important points to be made. liberty and anti-science and in a
Firstly, new reproductive technologies democratic society, that is unacceptable
never 'cure' infertility but rather, they only In a recent book, Genes, Women and Equality,
offer temporary solutions to infertility or Mary Briody Mahowald, a philosopher, has
New genetic technologies and their impact on women 121
juncture when this legal right is being moral, legal, political, and economic
threatened. If human reproductive cloning burdens of these genetic manipulations.
occurs, we may be performing more late- Finally and most importantly, human
term abortions than we have had to do in reproductive cloning and germ line
the past. Brigitte Boisselier, a French alteration, whatever their risks, are
chemist who is the 'scientific director' of unprecedented and irreversible.
Clonaid, the Raelians cloning venture, has The discussion in this article about what
said, 'We want a healthy baby.' All of the is happening to women in the US has far-
50 young females eagerly volunteering to reaching implications for women in a
serve as egg donors and surrogate mothers global context, where women still face all
were prepared to undergo abortions if kinds of social, political, and economic
defects were revealed by ultrasound or injustices. I seriously doubt that human
amniocentesis. If one pregnancy failed, reproductive cloning would tip the scale
another surrogate would automatically towards balancing these inequities,
step into line; there would be no need to including poverty, violence, stigmatisation,
wait another month, as you would if you unemployment and unequal wages and
were dependent on the cycles of one exploitation, for women in a global context.
woman (The New York Times Magazine,
4 February 2001). While scientists claim Lisa Handwerker, Ph.D., M.P.H., is a medical
that pre-implantation diagnosis can detect anthropologist, international health consultant
poor quality embryos and grade embryos and recently, a conflict mediator. For over 20
while still in petri dishes, we know this is years, she has worked on women's health issues
not always possible. Furthermore, not all as a teacher, activist, researcher, writer, and
'mutations/defects' are genetic, and thus policy maker. Postal address: UC Berkeley,
identifiable at an early stage. In fact, Institute for the Study of Social Change, do
evidence from research conducted on 2333 Prospect Street, Berkeley, CA 94704
sheep suggests that high rates of foetal USA.
anomalies were discovered in late term lisahand@juno.com
pregnancy or soon after birth. Potentially,
if human reproductive cloning is allowed
this could have devastating consequences Notes
for women. 1 A version of this paper was first
presented as a talk on 3 February 2001 at
a meeting in San Francisco, California
Conclusion US, on 'human genetic manipulation
Both the short- and long-term conse- and its implications for women and
quences of these new human genetic women's organisations' co-sponsored by
manipulations, especially human repro- The Exploratory Initiative on the New
ductive cloning, must be seriously Human Genetic Technologies and
considered for diverse women. Some have the Boston Women's Health Book
argued that these new technologies offer Collective (BWHBC). This talk was later
potential for resistance and building new turned into an article and posted at
family forms. Others have argued these www.ourbodiesourselves.org. A shortened
technologies can help infertile couples with version of this paper was presented at
no gametes. While this may be the case for the AWID conference on 4 October 2002.
a few, I am concerned that many more A version of this article will also appear
women will be harmed than helped. in Medical Anthropology Quarterly, special
Overall, women - not men - will bear the edition in honour of Professor Joan
major physical, psychological, social, Ablon, my mentor from the joint
New genetic technologies and their impact on women 123
ocal sex industries have gone global: Ruchira Gupta (from India), Esohe Agheteste
L expanding rapidly, and filled with (from Nigeria and Italy), Aida Santos (from
girls and women from the global the Philippines) and Colette DeTroy (from
South and newly independent states of Belgium) came together to explore the
eastern Europe. Traffickers and pimps no challenges that globalisation poses to end
longer need rely on the traditional routes the trafficking of women and girls and the
into sex work, as women and girls can now opportunities it opens for activists to fight
be sold on the Internet. Globalisation has, it. Below is an edited version of that
in short, encouraged new routes and new conversation.
methods to exploit women and children for
profit. Ethiopian women are trafficked for Pamela:
domestic work to Lebanon; Nepali girls are What do you think the relationship is
trafficked to the brothels of Mumbai; and between trafficking and globalisation?
Russian women to the red light district of Colette:
Amsterdam. Globalisation is mostly concerned with the
But globalisation has also allowed globalisation of trade, of goods and
unprecedented collaboration between services. All over the world, women,
feminist activists in source countries, sexuality, and sexual services are considered
transit countries and countries of destination. as good trade for people who have money.
In order to explore the links between So a big trade in human beings - mostly in
trafficking and globalisation, I facilitated a women - has developed.
discussion following the Association for
Women in Development (AWID) Forum Aida:
between four leading activists involved in Globalisation has a specific impact on
the struggle against trafficking in women. developing countries, like the Philippines.
126
One of the key features of globalisation is are going to be exploited in these ways.
the use of technology. In the Philippines Because they might be in Delhi, and they
and other Asian countries, the use of can't comprehend that they would end up
technological advances has been an avenue in New York through the Internet as virtual
for a serious rise in trafficking of women goods. So that is one part of globalisation
and children. For example, a lot of the which has been very advantageous to
negotiations for 'mail order brides', [now traffickers.
also called Internet brides] are happening The other is that globalisation has
through Internet technology. So, while changed the definition of choice itself. So,
there may be some good features of for people in the First World, or from richer
globalisation (a debatable point of course) countries, globalisation just means checking
in terms of our experiences it does not serve into a hotel room anywhere. For people
our women and children well. from the Third World, or poor countries,
globalisation could very well mean that
Esohe: there are certain rules imposed by the
I see globalisation in a much broader way, World Trade Organisation (WTO), or the
as including not only the economic aspects, World Bank which say that the public
but also the cultural and the political sector unit has to be closed down, because
aspects. With regard to most African it's not making a profit. Many people in a
countries, it's been in terms of acquisition household lose their jobs, and the girl in the
of cultural, economic and political models, family has to travel further to look for
which have not been able to be transformed work. And, because it is not efficient or
into something useful for the African productive to be in the place where she is,
people. And so you find a distorted trans- she becomes vulnerable to traffickers.
formation of these models in these
countries. And this has led to a distorted Colette:
view of the Western world. In addition, globalisation has resulted in
And then, on the other side, in the free exchanges of goods and services, but
Western world, commodities, services and there are strong obstacles to persons and
also people from other countries are seen as therefore no easy entry to Western countries.
something that the Western world has to The borders are simply closed, particularly
acquire. And so the trafficking of women to Western Europe. This provides a good
and children, and young persons, is seen way for traffickers to make money. They
within this context. can 'help' people to enter a country, where
there is no opening for people to enter.
Ruchira:
The tools of globalisation are beneficial to Aida:
traffickers. For instance, technology is One aspect that is very problematic is the
helping them use the Internet to market discourse within globalisation about a
girls all across the world, through all kinds 'level playing field'. A lot of our migrants
of Internet sites which auction girls. It has who eventually will be trafficked think that
made it easier for traffickers to operate their there is a possibility of a better life in the
trafficking networks, keep in touch with future. And so migration has been an avenue
each other, and find out the sites where for bettering their lives. And then there is the
girls can be sold cheaply, and it is easy for consumer's attitude of 'I have to have this.'
buyers and clients to log on to Internet I look at globalisation and trafficking in
portals to find out where to go. At the same terms of the abuse of the right to mobility;
time, it has made it more difficult for girls of the right to travel; of the right to better
in the Third World to understand that they one's life; of the right to development.
Trafficking and women's human rights in a globalised world 127
Ruchira: Ruchira:
I want to add something to what Aida is One of the positive aspects I have found
saying, on the issue of sex tourism. Because personally as an activist is that I can some-
everything becomes marketable, and times bypass the pressure of my own
everything becomes a commodity in the government, and link up with an activist in
new world of globalisation, men can travel Europe, or in America, and get them to put
thousands of miles just to buy girls from pressure on the Indian government, to do
poorer countries. And countries are actually more work on trafficking, or to create better
promoting some of their cities as sex laws to improve the lives of women.
tourism sites.
Pamela:
Esohe: I want to go back to something Ruchira
There is a general tendency to black-mark said earlier about how globalisation has
globalisation in itself, as something negative. changed the nature of choice. Do you think
I personally don't think of globalisation, the idea of free choice, particularly in terms
itself, as something negative. It's rather an of women who are trafficked into the sex
abuse of globalisation. Right now, we have industry, has been detrimental to the
anti-trafficking movement?
huge movements of goods and services,
these highly facilitated communication Aida:
systems that are spreading all over the I have just finished a five-country research
world - but there are no checks and controls. project with the Coalition against Trafficking
And I believe this is where the problem in Women (CATW). I asked my respondents
starts. all over the Philippines about whether they
As Aida just said, I think it's right, and chose to migrate. Many of them did know
proper that people should try to develop, that there was a large potential for being
to try to attain to a better life for them- trafficked into prostitution. They said, 'I chose
selves. And I'm afraid that if we give this to migrate despite the risk of being
negative idea of globalisation this will trafficked.'
block that possibility. And that is over- And then I look at their vulnerabilities -
looking what causes the negative aspects of the vulnerabilities of being poor, with low
globalisation, and just looking at the education, being enticed by the possibilities
damage that its abuse is causing. of greener pastures - being enticed by the
possibilities beyond their little villages.
Pamela: Some of them said, 'Nobody put a gun to
One example of the women's movement my head', but when I examine their actual
using globalisation toward a good end was lives, I saw that there were severe vulner-
the passage of the Transnational Crime abilities that they face as women - poor
Protocol on Trafficking in Women. Despite women - in a Third World country. What
the efforts of powerful governments and was the real choice of these women, even if
NGOs who advocated for a very narrow they knew they could be trafficked?
definition of trafficking, which would not I don't think that women choose to be
protect women or facilitate traffickers being exploited. I think that they would choose to
punished, the international women's rights migrate despite the potential harm, because
movement was very successful in organising there are no other possibilities for them.
for a broad and protective definition. This In my country particularly, the women did
is just one example. not have a real choice. When you speak of
choice as if it were about free will, in the
way we know free will, in the context of
128
Another five years down the road, They talk about economic opportunities for
when her earning capacity comes down, a better life, of being able to help their
she is disease-ridden, she has two or three families.
children, and then you talk to her about So, again, when I look at the data and
choice, and she says, 'I want to get out of the actual interviews with the women, I see
here, I want to acquire some skills so that I a problem with this discourse of choice.
can earn a living some other way. I want to It seems to me the choice is a false notion,
keep my daughter from getting into when you have an environment where
prostitution.' So again the choice changes. there is a real lack of many things.
And of course, in the last five years should
she survive, she is completely disease- Esohe:
ridden, she is thrown out of the brothel, I was just thinking about ways that
she is on the sidewalk, and she is just globalisation itself could be used to change
dying. And she has no pension scheme, some of these aspects. For instance, with
no home to return to, no extended family regard to trafficking, what is being done on
structure, nothing to protect her daughters an international level, using pressure on an
or sons from prostitution. international level to change internal policies
on women, to give more respect to the
At that point, of course, she regrets that rights of women - I think this is also an
she was ever sold into prostitution, or aspect of globalisation.
trafficked into prostitution. So in a life span
And there are various other aspects,
of 20 years, for about five years a girl may especially economic aspects. You see cases
say that she chooses to be in prostitution. where money is being given to corrupt
And that's true, but her choice is in a very leaders in developing countries, when they
limited context, where she sees no other know that money is not being spent to
way out. So choice does vary, from different develop the countries. And they keep doing
parts of the world, in different times of it. This is something that, for instance,
life, and also just different economic happened for more than 30 years with the
circumstances. European Union which gave money to
develop the ACP (Africa, Caribbean and
Aida: Pacific) countries. The European Union
In the Philippines, there is a continuing kept pouring in money, even knowing that
erosion of what I would call national most of this money didn't go to those
consciousness, a sense of national identity. projects it was supposed to go to. And so,
For example, one form of trafficking is 30 years later, you still find that the
trafficking of women to become brides. countries are even more behind than before.
When I talked to a number of mail order We need a change of attitude on a political
brides, they said it is better to marry a level. Because as long as their interests are
foreigner. To marry a Filipino is down- being protected, as long as profits are being
grading their potential opportunities. A lot obtained with the rules on the market being
of the women, not just involved in manipulated whenever it's convenient,
prostitution locally, but women who have then the situation is going to remain like
graduated from universities and colleges, that.
have articulated this. And so there is a
sense of a loss of pride in being a Filipina. Collette:
The Philippines is a centre for mail I think Esohe's is a very good example. If
order brides. Thousands of women marry the European Union had given the same
foreigners, and in the research that I did, not money to women, there would be quite
one of my respondents talked about love. different development. Women know that
130
it's more important to develop basic needs Why do we accept this? Why is this not
and to have money for education or health being challenged systematically?
than to develop monoculture and industry.
Given the way that women could work Esohe:
to make a globalisation which has different There is this myth that men will be men.
values and is not just about the market And so they have their needs, which must
economy, it is important to support the be satisfied and so on, and so forth. This is
women's movement. I agree with Esohe a myth that has to be destroyed. It all
that it's a struggle between those who have comes down to what men see as culturally
power and those who don't have power. and socially acceptable. I don't believe that
And even if all women are not poor, men cannot do without paid sexual services
women still don't have power, although any more than I believe it's 'the women
they are the majority. So we need to unite who choose'. These are ideas that have
been bastardised to increase trafficking and
and to exchange and to develop capacity to
the commercialisation of women's bodies.
limit globalisation or exert pressure for
These aspects have to be addressed.
globalisation which is based on different
things. Collette:
Pamela: Yes, I think we have to deconstruct the myth,
but also this analysis. The presentation of
I want to move in a different direction and
prostitution as linked to sexuality, is so
ask you all to talk about the demand for
wrong. Male sexuality is also associated
sexual services that comes from men in rich
with power. It's the same with rape. It
countries, or among richer men, in poor
doesn't have anything to do with sexuality,
countries and the link to globalisation. or desire. It's just power. Prostitution and
Aida: rape show that men control women. A man
We need to look at the issue of the middle- can pay for sex and use her as an object.
man. For a long time, we have always I think it's really important to deconstruct
this myth, in this framework of power
looked at the women and the children, and
relationships between a man, who could
sometimes the men, in prostitution. We've
purchase his wife or another woman or a
got to turn the table around and ask the
child. Equality between women and men
question, why is there so much demand for
cannot include the possession of a body.
sexual services? I think governments must
begin to look at the way that they are not Pamela:
only promoting patriarchal values, and Sweden has been groundbreaking in this
patriarchal socialisation processes, but how regard. Colette, can you talk about the
the commodification of sex and sexuality Swedish law?
has been part and parcel of the negative
side of globalisation. Collette:
We need to go back to a universality of For the first time in the world, in Sweden,
rights. No one should be selling her body legislation has been enacted under which it
just to be able to eat a meal a day. It's is forbidden to buy sexual services. It is
beyond human dignity. One of the issues punishable. It's only the man, the buyer,
that can be tackled internationally, in terms who is responsible. Prostitution is seen as
of reinventing globalisation from a feminist violence against women, violence against a
perspective, is addressing the issue of male human being. It is part of broad legislation
demand and asking the hard questions. We on violence.
all know that international peacekeeping The legislation has been in effect for two
forces have been involved in buying sex. years. The pro-prostitution lobby says it
Trafficking and women's human rights in a globalised world 131
doesn't work. That's the main argument. confronted with the statement that prosti-
They never say that the legislation against tution is the oldest profession in the world.
torture does not work since there is still
torture in the world. They just say that the Pamela:
Swedish legislation doesn't work. This is I like to say it's the oldest oppression.
actually not true, but it's also important in
itself as a symbol - 1 believe that legislation Esohe:
has a very strong symbolic power. Euro- The myth of prostitution being the oldest
pean women are trying to lobby for this profession in the world has to be decons-
kind of legislation in different countries. tructed. It comes to my mind, for example,
that murder has always existed and is
It is important that we address the myth heavily punished. I don't think there's any
that Esohe spoke about earlier. The myth of country in the world that accepts it as part
men's sexuality - that they need to go to of the social order. And it continues to
prostitutes - we need to challenge that in happen, but nobody resigns him or herself
the context of the legal framework of to it and says 'you know, human beings
human rights. In this sense, we are not will always be human beings, and so there
helped by the pro-prostitution lobby, who is nothing we can do about that.'
speak about choice. Men want to hear
about the choice of prostitutes. They don't Aida:
want to hear that the woman doesn't have We must begin to pose the question about
a choice, and does not want to be there, and the harms of prostitution. For it to be seen
is in a vulnerable position. They don't want as a choice, when there is inherent violence
to know that.
in it and inherent human rights violations
in it, is something that we must resist.
Ruchira:
Sexuality is, of course, rooted in concepts Pamela:
of power and violence. And men are Does anyone have final comments about re-
constantly trying to reinforce their sexual inventing globalisation in the context of
beings by reinforcing their sense of power, trafficking?
or by being violent. And this is something
that they're conditioned to believe in, from Aida:
the time that they're boys, as individuals, We need to seriously address - at the
as members of a family, as members of a practical as well as strategic level - the
community, and as part of the state. And issue of reinventing globalisation, vis-a-vis
so, they sometimes don't even know any sexual exploitation, migration, and mobility.
other way of expressing their sexuality. We need to push governments to look
And they connect all these three things in seriously at the strategic impact of
their head: power, violence, sex. trafficking and sexual exploitation in terms
So, while women are taught that there is of its cost: the loss of productivity of
an appropriate time and place to have sex, nations and individuals.
men are not. And it's almost accepted at
every level of society, that men have to Esohe:
have sex when and how they want to. So if I very much support the last statement, and
they don't have a woman around, and they I would also like to add that there is a
don't have the social skills to actually build practical need to create strategies and
a relationship with a woman, they go programmes based on this analysis. And
looking for prostitutes. then there's also the issue of beginning to
Again and again, when I try to do my work on deconstructing myths that tend to
work on trafficking and prostitution, I am create space for continued exploitation of
132
women, and the destruction of women's Pamela Shifman is Project Officer at UNICEF
rights. on sexual exploitation and abuse in humani-
tarian crises. Address: 364 8th street, Brooklyn
Collette: NY 11215, USA. pshifrnan@yahoo.com
We will continue this struggle between the
more vulnerable and the more powerful.
We have to unite and see the powerful Note
complementarities between us, and the 1 United Nations figure, quoted in
power of our being together. And we have Arlacchi (2000)
to lobby and to exert pressure on the
institutions, and the places of power.
Reference
Esohe Aghatise is the Executive Director of Arlacchi, P. (2000) 'Against all the
Associazione Iroko Onlus, based in Turin, Italy. godfathers: the revolt of the decent
She is a lawyer and ethno-cultural mediator by people' in 'The World Against Crime',
profession and has been an activist working Special Issue of Giornale di Sicilia, 7
against the international trafficking of women
and children for prostitution for the past ten
years. Address: Via Ceva, 40 10144 Turin,
ITALY, esoheaghatise@libero.it
T
he contributions and gains made by
the women's movement1 over the develop the dialogue among young women
past 20 or 30 years have assisted in and older women in the women's move-
creating a very different world. Currently, ment took the form of an inter-generational
there are many new challenges for the panel. The structure of the engagement was
movement. One is the issue of ensuring that an open and honest exchange among
commitments to women's rights are turned participants about the tensions that seem to
into reality for every woman, and another the participants to exist between the
comes from the new global political generations of women in the movement.
situation, which threatens to unleash a new We then moved on to discuss the
World War. But there is another key challenges and strategies for inter-
challenge, which comes from inside the generational activism. When we came to
movement itself. This challenge - which is distil this article from the discussions we
felt in other social movements too - is how had had, we decided to focus it around
to deal with inter-generational tensions three main questions raised most often by
within the movement. Young women, either the panel. These questions are, first, 'Is the
already in the movement or considering women's movement "missing in action"?',
entering it, are asking questions about the second, 'What are some of the tensions
movement, including where it is headed. between different generations of women in
We think this creates several distinct the movement?', and third, 'What strategies
tensions and experiences that have not been can we use for inter-generational organising?'
sufficiently discussed and addressed. The article aims to reflect on all these
questions and put forward some suggestions
for action.
136
try to find some signs of the movement intense work, While it did not result in -
advancing, but only look for signs that it is and was not intended to result in - any
advancing in the way that we want it to. If 'universal truths', it did enable us to
they are not there, we conclude that the challenge ourselves and each other to
movement is not advancing at all. We have create global evaluations and strategies.
not necessarily looked more widely and These need to be based on acknowledge-
asked others how they see the progress of ment of the diversity and complexity of the
the movement, in awareness that we are all movement, and its current challenges.
inventing and reinventing ways to live as
feminists.
What are some of the inter-
The discussion at the AWID workshop
focused on questions such as: 'How can I
generational tensions?
use feminism?'; 'What are the final or Generalising about older and younger
principal goals of feminism?'; and 'Who is women
feminist?' During the discussion we Acknowledging that age is one aspect of
realised firstly that there are still strong diversity is useful for the women's move-
prejudices against feminism, what it is and ment; thinking of women of all ages as the
what it has been doing. These prejudices same hinders our ability to move forward,
are often related to specific intentions to in a number of ways. In this section, we are
disqualify feminism and create confusion going to describe several of the main
around it. Secondly, inside the movement tensions that young and old women talked
there are notions about people's loyalties, about during an inter-generational meeting.
and the essential identity of a feminist. Of course, not all women of a particular
Discussions need to be had about these generation think the same way, but as the
notions. At present, they make access to the panel discussion aimed to be a space in
movement more difficult. This affects the which all participants could focus on the
nature and potential of activism, by tensions which divide us in order to ensure
limiting different, creative approaches to we could move forward, we will deal with
achieve our goals. It is important to keep in these issues in a general way.
mind that the feminist approach is about
One of the first contributions from
respecting non-lineal processes, which are
women in their forties and older was how
not restricted in terms of time or space. It is
uncomfortable they feel with the labelling
also important to remember that we are all
of 'older' and 'younger' women. Many felt
syncretic women - that is, we are mixing
that old is considered less fashionable, as in
traditional and modern ways of being
beauty and fashion. These concerns were
women, and living out innovative ways of
actually echoed by younger women who
being. We are moving all the time,
said that in meetings with older feminists
sometimes in a more contradictory way
they have doubts about how to refer to
than at other times. As a global women's
them. Although talking about younger
movement, our challenge in trying to move
persons generally does not present a
is to recognise that we are moving to the
problem, the term 'older' appears to be
same beat, even if it is not at the same pace.
offensive, and most of the time is met by a
Evidence of this is the AWID Forum range of comments, including: 'But I'm still
itself. It attracted more than one thousand young!' or, 'But I'm still young at heart!'
women from all over the world, who We agreed at the panel that it is therefore
wished to meet each other and share their important to keep in mind, that all of
actions, thoughts and concrete experiences these words represent vital cycles, and are
with other women. This sharing was very not used to denigrate or devalue anyone.
138
We all need to be aware that there are earlier generation are a reality, if no one
stereotypes or prejudices which are based talks to us about the struggle and history of
on an idea of youth and older age as achieving those rights, we take them for
dichotomous, so some qualities are granted and assume that they were always
attributed to one and excluded from the there. It is true that to approach feminism is
other. Generalising about people according still a matter of a personal desire, a decision
to their age can have the effect of causing to research, to read, to search. But women's
discomfort, without gaining anything. For history and feminism are not yet included
example, older people are generally in school curricula. Instead, as mentioned
considered more experienced, knowing earlier, the term 'feminism' is often accom-
and wise, in relation to their longer life panied by ignorance, confusion and
experience. However, this generalisation prejudice. Some young women stumble
has resulted in some inter-generational across feminism in their own search on
tensions in the movement, since it leads to their personal journey of making sense of
assumptions that young women don't have the world we live in. Others are introduced
the experience and ability to make to feminism by their own mothers, or
decisions or be leaders. through a teacher at school, a conference at
So, at present the existing tensions university or a course of study they
around age have some positive and undertake. But although university-level
negative aspects for each of the gener- courses on women, feminism and gender at
ations. In future, we need to keep the university level are very important advances,
positive aspects, while rejecting what is these are not enough, and they are constantly
negative. Firstly, we need to acknowledge under threat.
that words give meaning which in turn Should young women adopt the label of
leads to action. They are not politically 'feminist'? We feel it is important to adopt
neutral. It would be good to find a word the identity of 'feminists', in recognition of
which could be used instead of 'older', to our history, and the fact that the struggle
avoid the negative connotations of that ahead is a political one. But our diversity as
word. If we only talk of 'older' and a movement should allow us to look for
'younger' feminists, we forget that there are people with similar views for the purposes
not just two generations. Individual of building alliances, instead of resorting to
women may not consider themselves as the usual tendency of questioning the
fitting into either of these categories. identity of a 'feminist' and thus creating
Past struggles are unappreciated points of difference and a means to cause
Another big issue, which includes many divisions. Our discussion about these
variables, is the feeling that the struggles issues at AWID related the question to the
and achievements of older women are ignorance and prejudices we have talked
not appreciated by young women. Some about. It does us harm to close our doors to
veterans of the movement feel that younger collaborations with people who perhaps do
women do not know much about the not use our words or references, but are
history and creation of feminism. As 'proof close enough to us in terms of feminist
of this they say younger women are less ideals.
willing to call themselves feminists, and Finally, it is important for young and
that there is no sharing of feminist values. older women to acknowledge that 'education'
Creating a bridge between our own in feminism is also necessary for older
lives and past feminist action is a challenge women. Sometimes the impression is given
for many young women. As we were born that all the women in the older generation
into an era in which the gains made by the were supportive and part of the feminist
The women's movement in the era of globalisation 139
movement, and that the gap appears only Perceptions about the way young women
in later generations. But there are older should work
women who are only now discovering or There seems to be a perception that young
reconsidering feminism. Some of them are women's contribution should continue
doing this because of young women close what has already been started, but only in a
to them, who have integrated feminist prescribed way. But in fact young feminists
activism into their daily lives. Others are are taking what has already been done or
doing it because they are working in initiated, and continuing feminist action,
institutions which require them to integrate even if it is not in the way that some older
a gender perspective or analysis into their women would like. We are doing it in the
work. way we understand it, with our possibilities
and resources, and often we are doing it
The movement is a 'reserved club' with older women. For example, in many
One participant at the workshop recounted countries now it is not so easy to organise
that she felt that the movement was like a mass marches of thousands of people, but
reserved club to which she could not get in those places where it is possible and
access, even though she was keen to necessary, the young women are there, at
become part of it. The sensation of feeling the forefront. We are writing our songs,
like an intruder, and hearing criticisms playing our guitars, painting our murals,
about other people who are 'not feminist and we are creating in very different ways
enough', has prompted us and others like of expression the same feminist horizons:
us to run away many times. We feel that some times out in the streets, at the
we might not measure up to the movement. congress, other times writing and studying,
One challenge for all of us is to and at other times living and testing our
formulate and spread feminism in a freedom, travelling, or simply through the
positive way. In order to do this, it is way we live our lives to the full.
important that the advances that we make
as younger women, in our own lives, as As young women, our desire is not to
well as the benefits of earlier feminist take anyone's place. 'Older' women occupy
action, are seen as part of the history of the some important spaces in the movement,
feminist movement. If this were the case, and we have no intention of shutting them
we would recover a sense of politics in our off. We should focus on the challenge of
actions and lives. It is also important to how to draw more women of all ages into
acknowledge that there are different ways the movement and to generate relations
of being feminist. The act of criticising this based in sisterhood, rather than on parent
different way of being or doing is a and child relationships. Sisterhood means
destructive one, which is contradictory to the encounter of different and equal
the objective of creating a movement of women characterised by friendship, who
diverse energies and visions. Focusing on meet to accomplish objectives and in
the issues and challenges that we face as recognition of feminist principles. It also
young women does not mean that we do means listening to others, and being
not care about the achievements of the last listened to, and taking criticism with
generation. Instead of criticising, everyone respect, without remarking on the age
in the women's movement should be differences, or the generation gap. Older
engaging with everyone else, building our women often behave as controlling mothers,
individual and collective capacity to seeing us as daughters, in need of guidance.
achieve change. Sisterhood would mean older women
introducing us to meetings and conferences
where we can meet the women who made
140
it possible for us to be where we are today, lives. But the destructive aspect of it, the
see how they live, learn our own history in guilt and sacrifice, at work and in our lives
flesh and blood, related to us. We want to more generally, is a tremendous challenge.
read their books, watch them act, and Young women are trying to pick up this
support their proposals which inspire us. challenge and do something about it. We
But, we are also writing, and we also have want to find alternative ways of engaging
opinions on all of the goals of feminism, so that does not cause so much sacrifice and
we can also offer learning and inspiration unnecessary pain. We know that if we are
to them. Because we are also adult women, tired and burnt-out, we will be unable to
and we are part of this movement. continue doing the work we do, and will
deprive the movement of valuable members
Young women's skills are under-used and contributions. Secondly, the freedom and
Returning to the issue of competition, one humanity that we are striving for should
participant at AWID stated that: 'We do not also bring us some autonomy and pleasure.
want to just be photocopies of the move-
ment.' It is not that younger women want
to decide everything, or that we want to be What strategies can we use
'the bosses', but some of us do feel that for inter-generational
our capacities are not used to their best organising?
advantage by the movement.
Our sense of being on the margins is In the end, to be true to the political ideals
made more difficult to understand, since of the movement, and in the spirit of
we often hear affirmations from older moving forward, it is imperative that we
women that young women are the hope meet the internal challenges to become a
and new life of feminism. In fact, we think movement relevant to women of all ages
we are in the same boat as the older women. and generations. The AWID workshop
As young women we are not only inter- gave some of us a chance to analyse this
ested in the future. We are going to continue issue a little more, and identify what needs
with the feminist movement, and we are to be done. The challenge we face is to start
finding and experimenting with new ways talking, sharing and so forth with each
of being in it right now, all together. But it other, for the achievement of an inclusive
sometimes seems difficult to recognise this movement.
when we are dealing with inter-generational Having recognised the challenge to
facilitate diversity and inclusiveness in the
issues.
women's movement, some of the recom-
The high cost of activism mendations which came out of the AWID
Another issue young feminists have panel are:
pointed out is the cost of activism in the • to recognise the diverse ways of being a
movement, which has taken a toll on
feminist and engaging with feminism
women who have preceded us, and is now
taking a toll on us. Many of us experience • to intensify our efforts to form and
illness, depression, poverty, anger and spread feminism, including its vision
conflict. Many of us are struggling with and strategies, to ensure all generations
addictions, not just to substances but also gain from it
to obsessive work regimes which do not • to acknowledge the fact that the
allow us time to reflect, or breathing space. women's movement contains women
Being a feminist means we have many from different generations, contexts and
fascinating, complex experiences, trying to schools of thought. This diversity is
create a new culture, and re-create our own fascinating in itself
The women's movement in the era of globalisation 141
• at the same time, to bear in mind that Andrea Medina Rosas is a lawyer. She is
younger women are not the 'only hope' Director of the Centre for Research and
of the women's movement in future, Attention to Women (CIAM) in Guadalajara,
and that the agenda is not already Mexico. andreagdl@infosel. net. mx
formed. In fact it is open to reflection
and evaluation to ensure relevance and Shamillah Wilson is the Young Women and
responsiveness to the needs of all Leadership Programme Manager for the
women Association for Women's Rights in Develop-
• to confront openly, and challenge, ment. Address: 221 Lawrence Road, Crawford,
notions of 'competition' between Athlone, Western Cape 7764, South Africa.
generations of feminists, and the spectre swilson@awid.org
of the controlling parental figure
• to create opportunities for open and Notes
honest dialogue about the tensions that
1 In this article, we use the terms women's
still cause divisions in the movement
and feminist movement interchangeably.
• to promote the development of an When we refer to the movement, we are
agenda that can include the movement talking about the organisation of efforts
in all its diversity, and create an ideal (advocacy, mobilising, resistance and so
of feminism which is non-essentialist on) toward achieving gender equality
(that is, which recognises many ways and social justice.
of being a feminist)
• to promote ways of being an activist
which minimise sacrifice or damage to Reference
ourselves in our work and personal Marcela, L (1989) 'Enemistad y sororidad:
lives hacia una nueva cultura feminista',
• to share and continue the good inter- Memoria 25, Centro de Estudios del
generational experiences and actions Movimiento Obrero y socialista, Mexico
which already exist in the women's
movement
• to recognize the role of pioneers at the
beginning of the women's movement,
but build alliances between the
generations to ensure we achieve our
goals in future
• to promote links with other movements.
In a movement that has accomplished so
much for women globally, it is an appro-
priate time to reflect on where we are and
where we are headed, and think about
some of the barriers holding us back from
achieving our goals.
142
Institutions, organisations
and gender equality in an
era of globalisation
Aruna Rao and David Kelleher
Development organisations can play a significant role in supporting women in the communities
where they work to challenge unequal gender relations. The authors of this article argue that the
majority of development organisations fail to do so because they pay insufficient attention to the
importance of social institutions in perpetuating inequality. Two prominent approaches to gender
mainstreaming emphasise organisational infrastructure and culture. Ideas in these approaches are
necessary, but insufficient, to enable organisations to play a part in transforming the social
institutions that perpetuate gender inequality. Gender at Work is a new global capacity-building and
knowledge network aiming to promote institutional change through encouraging development
organisations to analyse gender relations in the societies in which they work, and in the institutions
they need to challenge. It reviews past efforts of development organisations to mainstream gender
into their work, and develops programmes and processes to challenge institutional norms which
work against women's interests.
A
lthough much has been accomplished
by now in the name of gender (largely informal) institutions that constrain
equality, it is still true that in no women's political participation and
region of the world are women and men influence in local decision-making.
equal in legal, social or economic rights To clarify, the terms 'institution' and
(World Bank, 2001). We believe that this is 'organisation' are often used synony-
because the bulk of development and mously, but we find it useful to distinguish
human rights work toward gender in- between the two. We understand institutions
equality ignores the role of the institutions as the rules for achieving social or economic
(formal and informal) that maintain women's ends (Kabeer, 1996). They determine who
unequal position. There is a growing gets what, who does what, and who
consensus among feminists across the decides. The rules that maintain women's
world that to make a significant impact on position in societies may be stated or
gender inequity, we must change institutions. implicit. These rules would include values
In India, for example, over one million that maintain the gendered division of
women have been elected to local level labour; prohibitions on women owning
governing bodies, as a result of a 1993 land; and restrictions on women's mobility.
amendment to the Indian Constitution Perhaps the most fundamental is the
requiring that one-third of the elected seats devaluing of reproductive work.
to local governing bodies be reserved for Of course, changing institutions is far
women. This motion gives women a from easy and our global understanding of
legitimate space to participate, and possibly it is far from sophisticated. At the same
a voice, but this does not guarantee their time, there are changes in a promising
Institutions, organisations and gender equality in an era of globalisation 143
direction. Women leaders around the and institutional rules, and discuss the
world, whether they work on economic elements of a new approach. But first, let's
policy, legislation, education, organi- look briefly inside organisations themselves.
sational change or grassroots health care
are initiating ideas and practices that have
the potential to change institutions, but Gender-biased
these innovations are not getting into the organisations
mainstream. Organisations are sites - like families,
One clear understanding that has markets and the state - where institutional
emerged is that institutions change (in large rules are played out. As mentioned above,
part) as a result of the actions of organi- these rules specify how resources are
sations. Whenever an organisation intervenes allocated, and how tasks, responsibilities
in the life of a community, it has the and values are assigned. In other words,
ongoing choice whether to challenge or institutional rules determine who gets
support existing community gender-related what, who does what, and who decides.
norms. For example, BRAC (Bangladesh Although institutions vary within and
Rural Advancement Committee) is one of across cultures, and are constantly evolving
the world's largest indigenous rural and changing, they are embedded in
development organisations, working with relational hierarchies of gender, class, caste,
over two million poor rural and urban and other critical fault lines, which define
women in Bangladesh. When members of identities and distribute power - both
BRAC village organisations began to raise symbolically and materially.
the issue of arbitrary divorces or unjust These institutional rules operate in
actions regarding inheritances, BRAC chose organisations. They are often below the
to start a para-legal programme which surface, but are nevertheless interwoven
advised village women on their rights, into the hierarchies, work practices and
thereby supporting them in challenging the beliefs of organisations. And they constrain
authority of men in the village to act the ability of these organisations to
outside the law. This action, and others like challenge gender-biased institutional
it, requires challenging the power of those norms within the organisation and in
who benefit from the status quo. Most communities.
organisations have neither the inclination There is good theoretical as well as
nor the capacity to challenge institutional empirical work on the gender-biased
norms. This is why organisational change nature of organisations and how these
work is so critical to the enterprise of constrain their functioning.1 In our work,
achieving gender equality through we focus on understanding the 'deep
development interventions. structure' of organisations, and how to
To promote organisational change that uncover it (Rao, Stuart and Kelleher, 1999).
will enable the organisation to challenge By 'deep structure' we mean the collection
gender inequality, change agents must of values, history, culture and practices that
understand and link organisational change, form the unquestioned, 'reasonable' way of
institutional change and gender equality. work in organisations.
A good deal of effort has gone into The most important of these is
changing organisations themselves, in exclusionary power, and how it is used to
order to enhance their ability to challenge keep women's interests and perspectives
and change gender-biased rules in a variety out. Very few organisations have mechanisms
of institutional arenas. In this paper, we or ways of balancing or restraining the
look at approaches to changing organisations power of those at the top. Very few enforce
144
Institutional change for • Organisational ways of • Gender analysis of the • This approach
gender equality working to facilitate institutions relevant to grounds the change
change in social the organisation's effort in the work and
institutions beyond programme, maintains the focus
the organisation itself developing where it should be
(families, programmes and • Difficult to sustain
communities, markets processes to without strong
and the state). challenge these external pressure
institutional norms, and high commitment
changing reward from within the
structures, building organisation.
organisational
capacity
unequal gender power relations. Finally, in first step. In a range of organisations, it has
some cases, gender mainstreaming has got opened up a space for gender inequality to
lost in traditional organisational develop- be discussed and addressed, ensured
ment concerns, with inadequate analysis of resourcing, and granted greater legitimacy
the issues, context and power dynamics - to gender equity concerns. In a few
both internal and external - that are instances, change agents have been able to
perpetuating women's disempowerment. parlay these resources into systemic
On the positive side, many change change. But in most cases, it is clearly not
agents see putting the infrastructure in enough to challenge institutional norms.
place to support gender work as a necessary
146
Notes References
1 See, for example, the work of Naila Goetz, A.M., J. Gaventa, et al. (2001),
Kabeer, Anne Marie Goetz, and Joan 'Bringing citizen voice and client focus
Acker. into service delivery', IDS Working Paper
2 For a more complete description of 138, Brighton: IDS
principles, concepts, strategy, and tools, Kabeer, N. (1994) Reversed Realities: Gender
see Rao, Stuart and Kelleher, 1999. Hierarchies in Development Thought,
3 This disconnection is obvious in other London: Verso
fields as well - citizen voice initiatives Rao A., R. Stuart and D. Kelleher (1999)
around the world, for example, are often Gender at Work, West Hartford, Conn.,
considered quite separately from efforts USA: Kumarian Press
to deal with public-sector efficiency World Bank, Engendering Development,
problems. See, for example, Goetz, 2001. Through Gender Equity in Rights,
4 This analysis draws on work done with Resources and Voice, Washington: World
Srilatha Batliwala in 2002 on women's Bank, 2001
leadership for social change.
150
and its impacts on indigenous women, with An Alternative View of Gender and
examples from the Philippines, Mexico, and Globalisation (2002), ILRIG Globalisation
Colombia. It examines issues such as the Series No.6, International Labour Resource
feminisation of labour in industry and and Information Group, PO Box 1213,
services, the liberalisation of agriculture, Woodstock 7925, South Africa.
the social, health, environmental, and http://aidc.org.za/ilrig
economic impacts on indigenous women, This introductory booklet raises important
and dilemmas in tackling the globalisation questions about how globalisation
agenda. processes are gendered and in particular,
how they affect women in Africa and
Gender, Globalization, and Democratization women workers in South Africa. It provides
(2001), R.M. Kelly, J.H. Bayes, M.E. an introduction to the key concepts of
Hawkesworth, B.Young (eds.), Rowman gender and globalisation, and then examines
and Littlefield Publishers Inc., 4720 Boston the relationship between gender and
Way, Lanham, Maryland 20706, USA. globalisation in three areas - the changing
www.rowmanlittlefield.com role of the state, feminisation of manu-
Taking an historical approach, this book facturing industries, and the gendered
shows how the impact of globalisation on implications of the World Trade Organi-
women throughout the world has been as sation's Trade-Related Intellectual Property
negative and undemocratic as it has been Rights (TRIPS) regulations. It concludes by
positive and liberating. Drawing on the exploring the gendered challenges to
perspectives of contributors from around globalisation.
the world, this book discusses the prospects
for democratisation and gender equality, Feminist Futures: Re-imagining Women,
and studies the successes and failures of Culture and Development (2003), Kum-Kum
mobilising efforts to achieve change. Bhavnani, John Foran and Priya Kurian
(eds.), Zed Books Ltd., 7 Cynthia Street,
Gender and Global Restructuring: Sightings, London Nl 9JF / Room 400, 175 Fifth
Sites, and Resistances (2000), M.H. Marchand Avenue, New York, NY 10010, USA.
and A.S. Runyan, Routledge, 11 New Fetter www.zedbooks.demon.co.uk
Lane, London EC4P 4EE. Feminist Futures challenges established
www.routledge.com approaches to development, and argues for
This book provides a theoretical analysis of a new paradigm, Women, Culture, and
globalisation and its relationship to gender. Development (WCD), that places women
Feminist experts from a range of disciplines and gender at the centre. New theoretical,
show the complexities and contradictions of feminist perspectives are brought to chapters
ongoing global transformations (or global covering sexuality and the gendered body,
restructuring). They criticise the gender- the environment, science, and technology,
blindness of neo-liberal and critical and the cultural politics of representation.
accounts of globalisation, and offer feminist
approaches which stress women's agency. Gender Justice, Development, and Rights
The book reveals how states, markets, civil (2002), Maxine Molyneux and Shahra
society, households, and gender identities Razavi (eds.), United Nations Research
are simultaneously being restructured in Institute for Social Development/Oxford
different ways in various regional and University Press, Great Clarendon Street,
national contexts. It also shows how Oxford OX2 6DP, UK. www.oup.co.uk
women's resistances connect the global and This book reflects on the global shift
the local, the public and the private. towards greater emphasis on rights and
152
democracy. It discusses why many of the World Survey on the Role of Women in
positive changes in women's rights and Development - Globalization, Gender and
political representation have not been Work, (1999), UN Division for the Advance-
matched by increases in social justice. ment of Women, Department of Economic
Through theoretical reflections and regional and Social Affairs, New York.
case studies, contributors address issues www.un-instraw.org
such as neo-liberal economic and social This UN World Survey reflects on recent
policies, democracy, and multiculturalism labour market trends within the context of
from a gender perspective. globalisation, and also on how the world of
work is being transformed from a gender
Women, Globalization and Fragmentation inpoint of view. It discusses the globalisation
the Developing World (1999), Haleh Afshar of trade, capital, and finance, and the
and Stephanie Barrientos (eds.), Macmillan effects on employment and displacement
Press Ltd., Houndmills, Basingstoke, from a gender perspective. It also analyses
Hampshire RG 21 6XS, UK. the re-organisation of work and 'flexi-
www.palgrave.com bilisation' of labour, changing patterns of
This book explores the gendered rural women's work, and gender dimensions
implications of globalisation at the grass- in the public policy environment. The
roots level in the South. It discusses the report concludes with recommendations
conflicting interactions between the global and suggestions for developing a gender-
and local political economies, cultures, and aware policy framework throughout
faiths. Drawing on case studies from Asia, economic policy design and implement-
Africa, and Latin America, it demonstrates ation.
the contradictory and fragmented impact
of globalisation at the local level, and its
impact on the lives of women in the
developing world. Trade Liberalisation, Poverty, and Livelihoods:
Understanding the Linkages (2002), Nazneen
Trade Myths and Gender Reality - Trade Kanji and Stephanie Barrientos, Institute of
Liberalisation and Women's Lives (1999), Development Studies (IDS), Working Paper
Angela Hale (ed.) Global Publications 159, University of Sussex, Brighton, UK.
Foundation, Box 1221, 75142 Uppsala, www.ids.ac.uk
Sweden, www.globalpublications.org This paper (which is also available in print)
This booklet examines the gendered reviews and assesses key analytical
impacts of trade liberalisation, drawing on approaches that are used to understand the
case studies from Asia, Africa and Latin linkages between trade, poverty, and
America. The reports demonstrate that livelihoods, and their relevance in the
poverty associated with trade liberalisation context of sub-Saharan Africa. The paper
is threatening the livelihoods of some discusses two theoretical approaches to
women and involving others in new and poverty analysis within the context of sub-
highly exploitative forms of employment. Saharan Africa, and examines different
Providing an overview of conceptual and perspectives which assist researchers to
policy links between trade and gender, this integrate social, economic, market and non-
publication also gives recommendations to market forces into an analysis of trade and
integrate a gender perspective into the poverty.
trade liberalisation process.
Resources 153
concerning globalisation are explored, with Local Action/Global Change, Learning about
suggestions for future research. the human rights of women and girls (1999),
Mallika Dutt, Julie Mertus, and Nancy
Flowers, UNIFEM and Center for Women's
Global Leadership. Available from Women,
Women Challenging Globalization: A gender Ink., 777 United Nations Plaza, New York
perspective on the United Nations International
NY 10017, USA. www.womenink.org
Conference on Financing for Development,
This accessible training manual provides
March 18-22, 2002, Monterrey, Mexico,
tools for women and men to critically
(2002) Joan Ross Frankson (ed.), UNIFEM
examine the framework of human rights.
and Women's Environment & Develop-
It includes information about the human
ment Organization (WEDO), 355 Lexington
rights of women in the areas of violence,
Avenue, 3rd Floor, New York, NY 10017-
health, reproduction and sexuality,
6603, USA. Available to download:
education, the global economy, the
www.wedo.org/ffd/ffdreport.htm
workplace, and family life in relation to
Based on the 2002 UN International international women's human rights
Conference on 'Financing for Develop- agreements. Suggested training activities
ment', Mexico, this accessible report include discussion, role-play, storytelling,
discusses the conference from a gender expression through art and music, to relate
perspective. Contributors discuss issues, human rights principles to women's
process and outcomes of the 'Financing for personal experience.
Development' conference. They analyse the
roles and situation of women in the global
economy and suggest advocacy action at
country and global levels. Feminist Economics journal, Carfax Publishing,
Taylor and Francis Ltd., Rankine Road,
Financing for Development Gender Policy Basingstoke, Hants. RG24 8PR, UK.
Briefing Kit (2002), United Nations www.tandf.co.uk/journals
Development Programme and Women's Feminist Economics is a leading academic
Environment & Development Organization journal that attempts to develop an inter-
(WEDO), 355 Lexington Avenue, 3rd Floor, disciplinary approach to feminist perspectives
New York, NY 10017-6603, USA. on economics and the economy. Articles
wedo@wedo.org cover analysis of macro-economic policy,
www.wedo / org/ ffd / kit.htm micro-finance, gender budgets and
This toolkit is a practical guide to gender globalisation from a gender perspective.
and financing for development. It covers
issues such as gender analyses of macro- Agenda, PO Box 61163, Bishopsgate, 4008,
economic policies, gender and economic South Africa. Tel: (+27 31) 304 7001; Fax:
decision-making, gender budgets and (+27 31) 304 7018; editor@agenda.org.za;
further resources. subs@agenda.org.za; www.agenda.org.za
Agenda is a quarterly feminist journal
published by a women's media project in
South Africa since 1987. Selected articles
are available online. Of particular relevance
is issue 48, 'Globalisation: Challenging
Dominant Discourses', June 2001.
Resources 155
Lola Press, Greifswaler Str.4, 10405, Berlin, (Women's Learning Partnership), CIVICUS
Germany; San Jose 1436-11.200, Montevideo, (World Alliance for Citizen Participation),
Uruguay; PO Box 1057, Lenasia 1820, and UNIFEM (United Nations Fund for
Johannesburg, South Africa. Women). The organisation works with
www.lolapress.org development and human rights practi-
Lola Press is a bilingual (English/ Spanish) tioners, researchers, and policy makers. It
international feminist magazine published aims to develop new theory and practice on
three times a year (two printed issues and how organisations can change gender-
an electronic issue). November 2002 issue biased institutional rules, values, and
contains several articles based on the 'Re- practices. It also aims to change the
inventing Globalization' AWID 2002 political, accountability, cultural and
Forum, Mexico. knowledge systems of organisations to
challenge social norms and gender
inequality. The website contains an up-to-
Organisations date collection of resources on Institutional
Association for Women's Rights in Change for Gender Equality.
Development (AWID) 96 Spadina Ave., Suite
401, Toronto, Ont., Canada M5V 2J6. Development Alternatives with Women for a
Tel: (416) 594 3773; Fax: (416) 594 0330; New Era (DAWN) DAWN Secretariat, PO
awid@awid.org; www.awid.org Box 13124, Suva, Fiji Tel/Fax: (679) 314770;
The Association of Women's Rights in admin@dawn.org.fj; www.dawn.org.fj
Development (AWID) is an international DAWN is a network of Southern feminists
membership organisation connecting, and activists working for economic and
informing, and mobilising people and gender justice and political transformation
organisations committed to achieving at the global level. One of DAWN's key
gender equality, sustainable development, research and advocacy themes is the
and women's human rights. AWID's 9th 'Political Economy of Globalisation'. The
International Conference, 'Re-inventing website provides a range of publications
Globalisation', held in October 2002 and resources on trade, globalisation, and
focused on the key question: 'How can we gender.
re-invent globalisation to further the rights
of all women?' Papers explored the Women's Environment & Development
economic, political, social, ecological and Organization (WEDO), 355 Lexington
cultural implications of globalisation and Avenue, 3rd Floor, New York, NY 10017-
proposed alternatives promoting gender 6603, USA.
equality. AWID also launched the wedo@wedo.org; www.wedo.org
'Globalize This! Women's Rights in
WEDO is an international advocacy net-
Development Campaign'.
work that seeks to advocate for women's
equality in decision-making in governance
Gender at Work, Aruna Rao, Convenor, and in policy-making institutions, forums
3/23, Shanti Niketan, New Delhi, India. and processes, at all levels, to achieve
Tel: (91-11) 2410-8322; economic and social justice. Key pro-
www.genderatwork.org; arao@kvam.net. gramme areas include 'gender and
Gender at Work is a new knowledge and governance', and 'economic and social
capacity building network focused on justice', and WEDO participates in the UN
gender and institutional change. It was 'Financing for Development' initiative.
created in June 2001 by AWID (Association
for Women's Rights in Development), WLP
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