Subject: [fem-women2000 328] WA:5 June 25 Years of Journeying - from Mexico to Beijing+5 (fwd)
From: lalamaziwa <lalamaziwa@jca.apc.org>
Date: Wed, 07 Jun 2000 09:01:21 -0400
Seq: 328



Forwarded by lalamaziwa <lalamaziwa@jca.apc.org>
---------------- Original message follows ----------------
 From: karen banks <karenb@gn.apc.org>
 To: Multiple recipients of list <b5ngonews@lists.sn.apc.org>
 Date: Tue, 6 Jun 2000 06:47:59 +0200
 Subject: [B5NGONEWS] WA:5 June 25 Years of Journeying - from Mexico to Beijing+5
--

25 Years of Journeying  from Mexio to Beijing +5
by Gabrielle le Roux & Sonja Boezak

On Saturday, 3 June at the NGO Working Session, Devaki Jain, feminist 
economist, writer and activist, reflected on the $BEX(Bomen$BCT(B conference 
journey$B(B(B $Bfrom(B $BMexico(B $Bto(B $BBeijing.(B $BAs(B $Bthbeginninof(B $Bthwome$BCT(B decade, 
the conference in Mexico was a time of innovation, invention and perhaps 
the beginning of the world-wide women$BCT(B movement.

And now, here in New York, we are evaluating the gains made since the 
Beijing Conference in 1995. It has been a long struggle since 1975, and the 
questions we ask are not much different from where we started: what will be 
the outcome for women? Will women be less poor, less violated? Or will this 
conference result in a bigger gap between rhetoric and action?

The realities are, however, that poverty has increased, so have the numbers 
of girl children dropping out of school; there is a rise in women$BCT(B 
unemployment and the acts of violence against women are more cruel.

What does this say about the enthusiasm with which women went to the 
conference in Mexico? Devaki Jain claims that between the conferences in 
Nairobi and Beijing $BEB(B different ethos emerged. To some extent it could be 
called the bureaucratisaton of the women$BCT(B movement.$B(B(B

$BThfact(B $Bthat(B $BNGOs(B $Barnoable(B $Bto(B $Bparticipatin(B $BUN(B $Bconferencefrom(B 
$Bwithinanarno(B $Blonger(B $Btrying(B $Bto(B $Blobbtheigovernment(B $Bdelegationin(B 
$Bforums(B $Boutsidthesconferences,(B $Bis(B $Bgain(B $Bthat(B $Bis(B $Bnoto(B $Bbe(B $Bdiscounted(B
$BWome$BCT(B NGOs now have access to their government delegations in open 
forums. But it seems that in the struggle to get into the house the message 
was somehow forgotten. The issues are still being discussed, but the roles 
of NGOs have, in many cases, gradually switched from activist to archivist.

Jain admits, however, that there have been marked achievements. Firstly, 
women$BCT(B stories are being recorded in a way that they had never been 
before. And secondly, there is an increase in the visibility of the plight 
(and sometimes, strengths) of women. But perhaps the most significant 
achievement has been the awareness that has been cultivated within 
governments and government systems. But still the challenge remains to have 
these achievements turn into more than $BAQ(Baper gains$B(B(B $Banrights(B
$BIt(B $Bis(B $Bnoenough(B $Bto(B $Bspeaaboupoverty,(B $Bviolence(B $Bagainswomen,(B $Beducation,(B 
$Banthotheareaof(B $Bconcerwithouconsiderinhothesrights(B $Bca(B
$Bbecome(B $Breality.(B $BPerhapit(B $Bis(B $Btime(B $Bto(B $Brevisiwhat(B $Bit(B $Bmeanto(B $Bbe(B $Ban(B 
$BactivistThat(B $Byes,(B $Bit(B $Bis(B $Bvitato(B $Braisthissues(B $Banspeaabouthem(B
$Bbuit(B $Bis(B $Bimperative(B $Bto(B $Bgo(B $Bto(B $Bthnext(B $Bleveanmove(B $Bto(B $Baction(B
$BJain(B $Bsuggests(B $Bthat(B $Bwe(B $Bperhapneed(B $BED(Bommittee of 10 wise women to gather 
information on women$BCT(B mass struggles$B(B(B $BafteBeijing+5.(B $BThis(B $Bcommitte(B
$Bcouldrafproposalfoaction(B $Bwhiccoulbecome(B $Bpowerful(B $Btool(B $Btoward(B 
$Bsocial(B $Bjustice.(B $BWome$BCT(B NGOs need to move away from the $BES(Beport card 
approach$B(B(B $Banform(B $Bsocial(B $Bmovementthat(B $Bsharexperiences,(B $Bworkable(B 
$Bstrategies(B $Banact.(B

$BPostulatingovernment(B $Bas(B $Bthmain(B $Bplayer(B $BanthEX(Bomen$BCT(B movement as the 
reporter of progress; a monitor$B(B(B $Bmeanthat(B $Bneithetakeresponsibility(B 
$Bfochange(B $BantransformationNGOsas(B $Bciviactors(B $Bhave(B $Bas(B $Bmuch(B 
$Bresponsibility(B $Bas(B $Bgovernment(B $Bto(B $Bensure(B $Bthwell-being(B $Bof(B $Bthcommunitie(B
$Bthey(B $Bserve.(B $BDemocracmeanspeaking(B $Babouchangeas(B $Bwell(B $Bas(B $Bacting(B $Bas(B 
$Bagents(B $Bfochange(B
$BPerhapthis(B $Bweek(B $Bis(B $Ban(B $Bopportunitfous(B $Bto(B $Bevaluate(B $Banreinvigorate(B
$Banacas(B $BNGOs(B $Bangovernments,(B $Bnomerely(B $Bdocumentinanmonitoring(B 
$BeventsThquestion(B $Bis(B $BwhetheNGOs(B $Bangovernmentalikwill(B $Btake(B $Bup(B $Bth(B
$Bchallenganbreathrougthbarriers(B $Bof(B $Bbureaucracy.(B $BAnthchalleng(B
$Bis(B $Bto(B $Bleave,(B $Bnoonly(B $Bwith(B $Byemore(B $Bconference(B $Bpapersbuwith(B $Bthsame(B 
$Bexuberance(B $Banhope(B $Bas(B $Bat(B $Bthbeginninof(B $Bthdecade(B $Bof(B $Bwomen,(B 
$Bstrategizing(B $Bfoaction(B
$BSo(B $Bwhat(B $Bhathwome$BCT(B movement learned from the past 25 years? $BE5(Bhe 
conference journeys $B(B(B $Bhave(B $Bshowus(B $Bhoto(B $Busthinternationaplatform(B 
$Bthboys(B $Bclub(B  $Bto(B $Brecovethspirit(B $Banspirituality(B $Bof(B $Bthesrebelsto(B 
$Bgenerate(B $Bmore(B $Bfocusepoliticaresistance(B $Bwhicclaims(B $Brevaluatioof(B 
$Bwomen,(B(B $Bsays(B $BJain(B
$BAs(B $BSoutAfrica$BCT(B called for a long time during the struggle against 
apartheid: Aluta continua! The struggle continues$B(B(B


$B====================================================================(B                   $BGreenNet(B $BLimited/GreenNet(B $BEducationaTrus(B       $BBradleClose,(B $B74-7WhitLion(B $BStreetLondonN1(B $B9PF,(B $BEnglan(B                           $Be-mailsupport@gn.apc.org(B
                   $Btel:(B $B+44/171-713-1941(B  $Bfax:(B $B+44/171-837-5551(B
     $B====================================================================(B




 $B________________________________________________________________________(B $Bfem-Women2000@jca.apc.orfoWome2000UN(B $BSpeciaSessioon(B $BBeijing+(B $BSearcheablArchivhttp://www.jca.apc.org/fem/news/women2000/index.shtm(B $Bvisifem-neHomePage(B $Bfoothemailinlisthttp://www.jca.apc.org/fem(B

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