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2002-10-28 15:27:10, 조회 : 403 |
Half a Century of the UN Commission of the Status of Women and a Decade of Korean Activities in Women's Affairs / by Whasoon Byun
/ KWDI Research Reports/Women's Studies Forum, Vol.14 /December 1998
Ⅰ. BACKGROUND, CONTENTS, AND METHODS OF RESEARCH
Since Korea participated as an observer in the 1986 session of the United
Nations Commission on the Status of Women, it has for a decade remarkably
developed its activities for women in international society. It was elected as a
member state of the UN on April 29, 1993, and started acting from the next
year as a member state. Korea participated actively at the governmental and
nongovernmental levels at the Fourth World Conference on Women. In 1996,
Kim Yong-Jung was elected as a member of the United Nations Committee to
Eliminate Discrimination Against Women. In 1997, Korea was reelected as a
member state.
It was after the Second World Conference for Women in Copenhagen,
Denmark, that the United Nations issue of promoting the status of women
started being dealt with as a national policy for women in Korea. After the
conference, governmental and NGO-related women suggested the establishment
of national machinery to develop women's policies, and the government
established the Korean Women's Development Institute in 1983 and the
National Committee to Review Women's Policies in the same year, both
directly under the Office of the Prime Minister. In 1984, the Convention to
Eliminate Discrimination Against Women was ratified, and as a part of such
activities, the Korean Women's Development Institute formulated the Basic
Plan for Women's Development and the Guidelines to Eliminate Gender
Discrimination, a plan which was adopted by the National Committee to
Review Women's Policies in 1985.
Such a series of events shows clearly the impact of the United Nations on
improving the status of women in Korea. Especially after the Fourth World
Conference on Women, the Committee to Pursue Globalization formulated the
Ten Tasks for Women's Social Participation (1995), opening the possibilities for
women's social participation.
Now, Korea is expected to consolidate its basis for activities as a member
state of the United Nations Commission on the Status of Women as a part of
the implementation of the policies to promote Globalization, and to fulfill an
active role as a center of the Asia Pacific region. In this paper, we will review
the 50 years' activities of the United Nations Commission on the Status of
Women, as well as Korean women's policies and women's movements, in order
to seek the direction of the Korean women's movement in connection with the
international women's movement.
This study dealt with the United Nations Commission on the Status of
Women, the International Women's Non-Governmental Organizations, the
UN-related activities of the Korean government and NGOs. The period covered
was the 52 years between 1945 and 1997 for the United Nations Commission
on the Status of Women, and between 1986 and 1997 for Korean activities.
The research method was mainly a literature review, involving organizing
and analyzing the materials published by governments and NGOs. As to
Korean women's policies, we reviewed how Korea responded to international
trends while developing a linkage with the Platform for Action of the World
Conference for Women.
The purposes of research are: firstly, to review the 50 years of the United
Nations Commission on the Status of Women(CSW); secondly, to analyze the
resolutions of the 50 years of the United Nations Commission on the Status of
Women according to the Platform for Action of the Beijing World Conference
on Women; thirdly, to review the women-related policies of the Korean
government during the 10 years of participating in the CSW; fourth, to review
the activities of Korean NGOs related to the international women's NGOs; and
fifthly, to suggest the future directions for the women's movement, seeking the
active role of Korean women in international society.
Reviewing the 50 years of the United Nations women's development, we
selected parts of The United Nations and the Advancement of Women,
1945-1996, and translated it, as it records the 50 years of the UN CSW in the
most systematic way.
Ⅱ. 50 YEARS OF WOMEN'S DEVELOPMENT CENTERING AROUND
THE UN CSW
The UN Commission on the Status of Women was established in 1947 and
has 50 years of history as of 1997. We can divide the activities of the
commission into four periods. The first period was between 1945 and 1962,
when it consolidated the legal and institutional basis for equality. During this
period, the CSW, assuming that the legal and institutional basis should be
established for gender equality, made efforts to legislate laws to promote
women's rights, and focused on the establishment and strengthening of the
CSW.
During the second period between 1963 and 1975, its focus was on
recognizing the role of women in development. If the CSW was successful in
establishing women's rights as legal norms during the first period, during the
second period consensus was reached that the actual securing of women's
equal rights was important, and the CSW dealt with women's efforts to
mainstream women in development. An important point here is that the CSW
proclaimed the International Women's Year and expanded a movement to
promote the status of women globally, to eliminate gender discrimination and
to arouse the international public concern for women's rights.
During the third period between 1976 and 1985, the United Nations
proclaimed the United Nations Decade for Women for Equality, Development,
and Peace. During the United Nations Decade for Women, it held international
conferences in Copenhagen (1980) and Nairobi (1985). The Convention to
Eliminate Discrimination Against Women was adopted in 1979 to be ratified by
many countries.
During the fourth period between 1986 and 1996, the CSW made continued
efforts for women's equality, development, and peace. Especially in the peace
issue area, it showed concerns for violence against women. As a special officer
to report on human rights was appointed by the Commission on Human
Rights, special concerns have been exerted on the issue of forced sexual
slavery by the Japanese military during the World War II, and the CSW
mobilized international public opinion centering around violence against women.
At the Fourth World Conference on Women, deep interest was expressed
concerning the discrimination against female children and their human rights.
1. The First Period: Consolidate a Legal and Institutional Basis for Equality,
1945-1962
At the founding conference of the United Nations held in London in 1946,
women's rights became for the first time since World War II one of the major
international issues. Mrs. Eleanor Roosevelt, who was American representative
to the United Nations, made a speech entitled “To All the Women of the
World,” where she said “This new opportunity for peace is a victory made
jointly by men and women through which they realized the common goal
toward freedom, breaking down the obstacles of race, ideology and gender.”
She argued that “women should carry out the central role in building peace
toward a democratic society.”
The ECOSOC, which is responsible for promoting human rights as one of
six major organizations of the UN, established the Commission on Human
Rights in February, 1946, and decided to establish an independent
sub-commission within the Commission on Human Rights to deal with the
status of women. The major task of this sub-commission was to make
recommendations regarding the status of women and to submit reports to the
Commission on Human Rights.
However, issues were raised concerning the fact that the sub-commission
belonged to the Commission on Human Rights, because this would prevent the
United Nations from performing roles in promoting the status of women. Mrs.
Bodil Begtrup of Denmark, who was the chairperson, at the second conference
held in April 1946, strongly argued that it would be difficult to expect progress
in women's development if the sub-commission belonged to the other
commission, and suggested that there should be a completely independent
commission equal to the Commission on Human Rights.
In June, 1946, ECOSOC decided on the establishment of the United Nations
Commission on the Status of Women. The CSW had its founding conference
in Lake Success, New York, between February 10-25. Its roles were: firstly, to
make and submit reports and recommendations to ECOSOC to promote
women's rights in politics, economics, society, and education, and secondly, to
make reports on urgent problems that require urgent concern in the field of
women's rights. The commission monitors the internationally recognized
measures for women's development defined as equality, development, and
peace, and reviews and evaluates development at the national, regional and
global levels.
The commission, through a declaration in 1947 that “freedom and equality
are essential for human development,” proclaimed that “women should share
with men freedom and equality.” The commission also declared that “women
can carry out the central role in establishing free, healthy, prosperous, and
moral society, and carry out responsibilities as free and responsible members.”
At the first session in 1947, the CSW requested ECOSOC that each
government cooperate with the annual survey on the legal status and
treatment of women. The responses provided abundant information on the
status of women all over the world. According to this report made in
December 1947, among the 74 nations which responded, 25 countries did not
recognize complete women's political rights including women's voting rights
and the right to maintain the status as public servants. In the countries where
access to educational opportunities is denied, such practices were mostly based
on custom and religion but not on laws. The report also gives clear evidence
that women's illiteracy is much more widespread than men's. And in 1949 and
1950, the result of surveying 60 countries of the world shows that there are
many conflicts among nations in relation to the nationality of married women.
On March 10, 1948, the ECOSOC recognized the principle of equal pay for
equal work, and demanded that all the member states to implement it
regardless of nationality, race, language, and religion. As a follow up, in 1951,
in response to the recommendation by the CSW, the ILO adopted the
Convention on Equal Remuneration which provides the basis for the principle
of equal pay for equal work. UNESCO and the CSW pursued the joint project
for the program development through which people can receive basic education
regardless of gender, race, or ideologies. The Convention on the Political
Rights of Women adopted by the General Assembly in 1952 is the first
international law which has the aim of protecting and promoting women's
political rights worldwide.
Discrimination against women became more clear as the laws on
nationality, residence, marriage, and divorce were exposed. In 1955, the CSW
submitted the Convention on the Nationality of Married Women to the General
Assembly. Its focus was that “a woman has the right to maintain her own
nationality if she wants although it might differ from that of the husband.”
Furthermore, the CSW found that the slave trade of young girls between
11 and 13 years of age was still being carried out in some countries. In 1956,
the General Assembly adopted the Supplementary Convention on the Abolition
of Slavery, the Slave Trade, and Institutions and Practices Similar to Slavery.
Its goal was to eliminate malicious practices such as slavery and trade without
the consent of women themselves.
As a result, the Convention and Recommendation on Consent to Marriage,
Minimum Age for Marriage, and Registration of Marriages was formulated.
This convention was adopted in November 1962 and came into force in
December 1964. It clarifies that there should not be any marriages without the
complete and free consent of both spouses.
2. The Second Period: Recognition of Women's Role in Development,
1963-1975
The women's movement which originated mainly from the Western Europe
and the United States tended to ignore the problems of rural women in
developing countries. During this period, the efforts of the United Nations were
focused on the role of women in development, who are both beneficiaries and
at the same time a dynamic force behind change.
The CSW set the direction that it should provide technical assistance to
women in developing countries. At the same time, efforts were made to
consolidate women's legal equality based on the Declaration on the Elimination
of Discrimination against Women adopted in 1967.
The resolution adopted at the General Assembly in 1977 requested the
formulation of the Plan of Action for international cooperation to promote the
status of women. This resolution provided “the minimum goal to be
accomplished during the second United Nations Decade for Women.” It
included the gradual elimination of illiteracy, the universal acceptance of the
principle of equal pay for equal work, the protection of health and maternity
including accessible family planning information, and the increase in women's
participation in pubic and government activities.
The year 1972 saw the 25th anniversary of the founding of the CSW. In
that year, the commission urged the ECOSOC and the General Assembly to
declare 1975 as the International Women's Year. By declaring the International
Women's Year, the CSW intended to emphasize the fact that governments,
NGOs, and individuals are making efforts to promote gender equality, and that
the role of women is important in national and international development. The
General Assembly passed the resolution to hold an international conference to
commemorate the International Women's Year, and recommended to add
“peace” to “equality” and “development” as women's contribution to
enhance the efforts to consolidate world peace.
In December 1974, the General Assembly adopted the program for the
International Women's Year, and requested that various measures be taken for
the preparation of the conference to celebrate it to be held in Mexico City. As
a result, on March 8, 1975, the United Nations proclaimed “The International
Women's Day” for the first time and decided to hold an international
conference on women's issues.
The First World Conference for Women was held on June 19, 1975, in
Mexico. In the opening ceremony, the Secretary General of the United Nations
declared that the conference was the first international effort to realize gender
equality and to eliminate gender discrimination in education, opportunities, and
economic rights. The representatives of 133 countries participated in the
conference, among whom 113 were women heads of representatives to the
conference, and 73% of the 2000 representatives were women.
At the closing ceremony on July 2, 1975, the representatives adopted a
World Plan of Action. It is the Declaration of Mexico on the Equality of
Women and Their Contribution to Development and Peace, which is a
follow-up plan for women in Africa and the Asia-Pacific region, which
contains 35 separate resolutions and decisions.
The Mexico Conference urges the United Nations to formulate a convention
to eliminate gender discrimination through effective procedures to implement
the Plan of Action. One of them was to develop the 1967 Declaration on the
Elimination of Discrimination Against Women. In order to guarantee national
and international activities to promote the status of women, the Mexico
Conference urged the United Nations to declare the period 1976 to 1985 as the
United Nations Decade for Women and Development and recommended that the
second conference be held in 1980.
3. The Third Period: Fruits of the United Nations Decade for Women,
1976-1985
Five months after the Mexico Conference, the General Assembly declared
the period 1976-1985 as the United Nations Decade for Women for equality,
development, and peace. During the United Nations Decade for Women, there
were historical events and major legal and political achievements such as the
Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women,
the Copenhagen Conference in 1980, and the Nairobi Conference in 1985.
In 1975, the General Assembly requested that an expert group submit to
the Secretariat the proposal to establish the International Training Institute for
Women. The major function of this institute is to focus on women in
developing nations, with the purposes of enabling women to acquire new skills
and of developing women's information systems through such programs as
behavior-oriented surveys and leadership training. The Voluntary Fund for the
United Nations Decade for Women provides finances, which give direct and
practical help to women in developing countries.
On December 18, 1979, the General Assembly adopted the Convention on
the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women with the vote
of 130 for, 0 against, and 11 abstentions. This convention is the first
international legal instrument which defines discrimination against women. Here
gender discrimination means all segregation, exclusion, or limitation based on
gender which have the effects or the purposes of hindering or nullifying
women's awareness, enjoyment or exercise of the basic freedom of gender
equality regardless of marital status in political, economic, social, cultural, civil,
or other areas.
The Second World Conference for Women was held between July 14-30,
1980, in Copenhagen, Denmark, where 145 countries participated. The purpose
of this conference was to review the problems and fruits that appeared in the
implementation process of the Plan of Action of the Mexico Conference at the
mid-point of the United Nations Decade for Women and to newly revise the
plan. The documents that were adopted at this conference are: the
“Programme of Action for the Second Half of the United Nations Decade for
Women: Equality, Development, and Peace” and 48 resolutions.
The Committee to Eliminate Discrimination Against Women is based on the
Convention to Eliminate Discrimination Against Women. The General Assembly
adopted the resolution in 1979, and the committee started working on
September 3, 1981. According to Article 18 of the Convention to Eliminate
Discrimination Against Women, the state party is expected to write a report
within one year after ratification and also every four years depending upon the
stages they are in the implementation of the convention and the obstacles they
face.
The Third World Conference on Women was held in Nairobi, Kenya,
between July 15 and 26, 1985. The conference reviewed the achievements of
the United Nations Decade for Women and discussed equality, development,
and peace. During the two week conference, the 372-Article Nairobi
Forward-looking Strategies for the Advancement of Women was discussed for
the promotion of the status of women.
4. The Fourth Period: Looking Forward to Equality, Development, and Peace,
1986-1996
Since 1990, the United Nations has included in a series of world
conferences and summit meetings the measures to promote the status of
women in development which is one of the general goals of the United
Nations. This means that women's problems have emerged as an international
issue. The World Summit for Children in 1990, the United Nations Conference
on Environment and Development in 1992, the World Conference on Human
Rights in 1993, the International Conference on Population and Development in
1994, the World Summit for Social Development in 1995, the Fourth World
Conference on Women in 1995, and the United Nations Conference on Human
Settlements in 1996 dealt with the agenda for women. Especially since early
1980s, the United Nations has focused on the elimination of violence against
women. Expressing concerns with the status of women in the United Nations,
it has embarked on the formulation of a platform for action to realize gender
equality by the end of this century.
Women's equality begins with the promotion of the status of women within
the United Nations system. The United Nations was commissioned from the
Beijing Conference to promote the status of women within the Secretariat, and
has begun the work. At the first resolution in 1986, the General Assembly
requested the Secretariat, heads of expert organizations, and other United
Nations agencies to formulate the five-year plan to increase the proportion of
women in the professional and decision making posts within the United
Nations system. At the General Assembly in 1990, it decided on the quota of
women in professional occupations, and had to recruit at least 30% women in
each post of the Secretariat by the end of that year according to local
considerations. As a result, there were 35% women in 1995, and 25% in major
managerial posts. The General Assembly requested the Secretariat to develop a
guideline for action for women's development within the Secretariat and to
make a report on the obstacles to the promotion of the status of women
within the United Nations based on a comprehensive evaluation and analysis.
In August 1992, after several years of study, a study group from various
sectors of the UN CSW completed the draft of a declaration on violence
against women for the first time. The Declaration to Eliminate Violence
Against Women was adopted at the General Assembly on December 20, 1993.
In March 1994, the campaign against violence entered a new stage with the
intervention by the United Nations. During this period, the Commission on
Human Rights welcomed the Declaration on Elimination of Violence Against
Women adopted by the General Assembly, and suggested that a Special
Rapporteur be appointed to collect the most comprehensive material and
recommend legislation suited for national, local, and international levels to
eliminate violence against women.
On November 1994, the Special Rapporteur submitted a basic report on
women's abuse to the Commission of Human Rights. The Rapporteur
suggested the legislation of selective agreement which contains provisions that
allow the victims of violence the individual rights to appeal when the measures
at the governmental level are not effective. “This will confirm that, in order
to guarantee the rights of the victims of violence, they will have the ultimate
rights to demand compensation under the international human rights legal
instruments.” The recommendation was adopted by the UN CSW in 1995.
In 1995, when the General Assembly passed the first resolution on girls, the
violence against children and especially girls was the special concern of the
General Assembly. It was a serious area of concern of the Beijing Conference
to bring to the light discrimination against girls and violation of their human
rights. The General Assembly requested member states to eliminate a series of
discriminatory factors including negative cultural attitudes and practices against
girls.
The Fourth World Conference on Women was held in Beijing in 1995
between September 4 and 15, which was the period to commemorate the 50th
anniversary of the United Nations. It decided that the global agenda for
women's development should continue into the 21st century and after. The
Beijing Declaration and the Platform for action adopted unanimously by 189
countries declared that nations guarantee de facto and de jure equality of men
and women. Political consensus was reached on the 12 areas of special concern
for the future 5 years of international implementation of the Platform for
Action. It was the largest international conference on women, including 47,000
persons participating in the governmental conference and 30,000 NGO
representatives participated in the NGO Forum in Huairous (located in the
suburbs 65 km away from Beijing).
The 189 governments that participated in the Beijing Conference adopted
the Beijing Declaration and 12 Platform for Action unanimously. The United
Nations has performed an important role in the international movement to
promote gender equality, and behind the United Nations were the NGOs that
actively exerted influence. Since the First World Conference on Women was
organized in Mexico City, the NGO Forum as a parallel event has been a
major part of all the United Nations conferences on women. Ten years later in
Nairobi, the number of NGO participants reached 15,000, and in Beijing 30,000
NGO representatives participated in the forum.
Ⅲ. ANALYSIS OF THE RESOLUTIONS OF THE UN CSW BASED ON
THE BEIJING PLATFORM FOR ACTION
A total of 298 resolutions are in the Resolutions of the United Nations
Commission on the Status of Women, which are the Draft Resolutions of the
CSW and Resolutions of the ECOSOC. The most proper standard for
classifying the resolutions is the 12 areas of special concern of the Platform
for Action adopted at the Fourth World Conference on Women. This is
because these are the areas that require special concern for women's
development, and each area is considered as a strategic target for promoting
the status of women in the world.
[Table 1] Distribution of UN CSW Resolutions by Periods and by 12
Areas of Concern
-------------------+----------+----------+-----------+----------+----------
Period| First | Second | Third | Fourth | Total
Areas | | | | |
-------------------+----------+----------+-----------+----------+----------
Poverty | | 1 | | 4 | 5
Education/Training | 6 | 4 | | 1 | 11
Health | | 2 | 3 | 6 | 11
Violence | | | 3 | 15 | 18
Peace/Unification | | | 3 | 22 | 25
Economy | 10 | 9 | 2 | 14 | 35
Politics | 9 | 2 | | 3 | 14
National Machinery | 3 | 3 | | 10 | 16
Human Rights | 6 | 7 | 10 | 19 | 42
Media | 2 | | 3 | 5 | 10
Environment | | | | 2 | 2
Girls/Family | 1 | 6 | 6 | 10 | 20
CSW | 6 | 12 | 21 | 50 | 89
-------------------+----------+----------+-----------+----------+----------
Total | 43 | 46 | 48 | 161 | 298
-------------------+----------+----------+-----------+----------+----------
According to Table 1, during the past 50 years, the number of resolutions
related to poverty is 5, education and training 11, health 11, violence 18, peace
and unification 25, economy 35, politics 14, national machinery 16, human
rights 42, mass media 10, environment 2, girls and family 20, and CSW 89.
This shows that the resolutions of the CSW are focused very much on its
own projects. Among the 12 themes of the Beijing Platform for Action,
continued attention was paid throughout the four periods to the issues of
human rights, girls and family, economy, national machinery, and politics.
During the first period between 1945-1962, a total of 43 resolutions were
adopted, and the major areas of concern were economy (10), politics (9),
education and training (6), and human rights (6). Besides the resolutions on
CSW (6), national machinery (3), media (2), and girls and family (1) were also
adopted. Since it was the period where the efforts were made mainly to
consolidate the legal and institutional basis of women's rights and concerns,
interest was concentrated on economy, politics, and education and training
areas. It is to be noted that the concerns with the media were connected to
the adoption of resolutions.
During the second period between 1963-1975, the major goal was to draw
attention to the role of women in development. Among the total of 46
resolutions, major interest was expressed on economy (9), human rights (7),
girls and family (6), and CSW projects (12). Resolutions were also adopted on
education and training (4), national machinery (3), politics (2), health (2), and
poverty (1). During the first period, economy and human rights issues were
dealt with as major issues, while relatively lower interest was paid to political
issues. It is a positive phenomenon that health and poverty issues are drawing
attention.
During the third period between 1976-1985, the United Nations Decade for
Women was planned and evaluated. Among the total of 48 resolutions, the
highest concerns were shown on CSW (21) and human rights (10), and 3
resolutions were adopted on each of health, violence, peace and unification, the
media, and girls and family. During this period, the economy issues which
occupied a major place during the first and the second periods were reduced to
two, and no resolution was adopted on politics and national machinery. This
can be interpreted as a result of the tasks of CSW becoming the major issue
of controversy in the process of implementing the projects of the United
Nations Decade for Women after “The International Year of Women” in
1975. However, positive evaluation can be made of the fact that concerns with
human rights still continue, and new concerns are expressed on health,
violence, and peace and unification.
During the fourth period between 1986-1996, active efforts were made to
move toward equality, development, and peace. During the short 10 years, 161
resolutions were submitted, showing the busy activities of the CSW. It is
emphasized that the efforts of the UN CSW (5) to promote the status of
women should precede women's efforts toward equality. There were also
activities toward peace, and to be noted are the efforts for peace and
unification (22), human rights (19), and elimination of violence (15). There
were also efforts to promote the empowerment of women in economy (14),
national machinery (10), and girls and family (10). Besides, the resolutions on
health (6), media (5), poverty (4), politics (3), and environment (2) are drawing
international attention. To be noted during this period is the fact that the
issues of economy and human rights have emerged as core concerns which
have been the major areas of concern since the first period; secondly that
there were a remarkable number of resolutions on peace and unification and
the elimination of violence; thirdly that the concerns on girls and family have
increased; fourthly that there is a continued interest in poverty, health, and the
mass media; and fifthly, the environment issue has newly emerged.
Ⅳ. CSW AND THE WOMEN’S POLICIES OF THE KOREAN
GOVERNMENT
The representatives of the Korean government have participated in four of
the World Conferences on Women and all the sessions beginning from the 31st
session up to the current one of the 41st UN CSW meetings.
Analyzing the characteristics of Korean women's policies according to the
periods of United Nations activities for women's development, it was during
the third period (1976-85) that Korean women's policies started providing the
basis for promoting the status of Korean women according to the results of
the United Nations Decade for Women. The Korean Women's Development
Institute was founded in 1983, the National Committee to Review Women's
Policies was established in 1983, and the basic materials were collected
through basic surveys and research, core policy tasks were selected, concrete
development measures and alternatives were suggested, and model
implementation of the various kinds of development directions was provided. In
fact, Korea implemented the improvement of the national machineries, ratified
the United Nations Convention to Eliminate Discrimination Against Women
(1984), and formulated the Basic Plan for Women's Development (1985).
During the fourth period (1986-1996), the basis for gender equality was
prepared through the formulation of the long-term plan for women's policies
and the legislation and revision of women-related laws. The Women's Section
was included in the National Long-Term Development Plan Toward the Year
2000 (1986), the Mother and Child Health Act was revised (1986), the
Women's Section was included in the 6th 5-year Social Development Plan
(1987), Guidelines to Eliminate Gender Discrimination were provided (1987), and
the Basic Plan for Women's Development (1987) was established. More
systematic women's policies than ever before were formulated. Especially in
1987, in the constitutional revision, an article on gender equality in marriage
and family life was inserted in concrete form, and in 1987 the legal basis for
gender equality was prepared in various fields of society through the
legislation of the Equal Employment Opportunity Act. Also, it is remarkable
that the basis for eliminating the limitations on women's educational
opportunities was prepared by taking step by step measures to eliminate the
limitations on girl students entering colleges and universities.
The characteristics of this period are the integration of a women's
development plan in the Sixth Social and Economic Development Plan,
participation in various policy planning and decision-making processes, and
legislation and institutionalization. It is to be noted that Korea became a
member state of the UN. The Ministry of Political Affairs II was established
(1988) to prepare for the basis for making policies on women's issues. The
Ministry of Political Affairs II carries out the role of formulating and
coordinating women's policies, and relevant agencies are in charge of
implementation and of women's welfare policies. The government newly
established the agencies in charge of women's welfare in the Bureau of
Family Welfare in each city and province.
As legislation and revision, the Family Law was revised in 1990, the
Fatherless Family Welfare Act was legislated (1989), and the Child Care Act
was legislated (1991). This shows that policies have been formulated for
gender equality in the family and for the promotion of the quality of life
through promoting women's welfare.
In addition, as legislation and revision, the Act on the Punishment of the
Crime of Sexual Violence and the Protection of the Victims was legislated
(1993), the Act to Assist the Livelihood of the Women Forced into Sexual
Slavery by the Japanese Military was legislated (1993), the Act to Prevent
Prostitution, etc, was legislated (1994), the Equal Employment Opportunity Act
was revised (1995), and the Basic Act for Women's Development (1995) was
legislated. Also, the Act to Prevent Sexual Violence was revised (1997), and
the Act to Prevent Family Violence (1997) was legislated. Such legislation and
revision of laws can be seen as a part of the activities to provide the basis
for equality, social participation, and promotion of welfare.
Since the basis for gender equality, social participation and welfare
promotion has been prepared, the social system and practices should follow in
the future. In concrete, the basic plan for women's policies should be
formulated and implemented according to the Basic Act for Women's
Development, and those areas where the women-related laws are separated
from social changes should be revised. Efforts should be made to strengthen
the function of the Ministry of Political Affairs II so that women's policies can
be implemented. Also, in the legislation and revision of laws, those parts which
are obstacles to gender equality should be revised, the legal basis should be
prepared for the punishment of sexual harrassment at work, and women's
perspective should be taken into consideration in the legal design for
unification.
Ⅴ. WOMEN'S INTERNATIONAL NGO CONFERENCES AND KOREA'S
ACTIVITIES
The UN CSW has held international conferences of NGOs parallel with the
governmental conferences since the First World Conference on Women. The
purposes of NGO conferences are: firstly to impact the government
representatives in the formulation of the Platform for Action, and secondly to
provide a forum to develop global sisterhood and friendship through the festive
events of seminars, workshops, and events on women's issues. In fact, the
NGOs carry out very active lobbying activities on government representatives
and have significant impact on the adoption of agenda. Governments also carry
out lobbying activities in cooperation with NGOs for those issues that are
difficult to be raised by government representatives. Korea has participated in
the series of such conferences since the First World Conference on Women.
When the First World Conference on Women was held, the NGO Forum
Tribune was held at the same time as the main governmental conference.
When the second conference was held in Copenhagen, Denmark, in 1980, the
NGO Forum was held at the same time on the theme of "Women's
Participation in Education, Employment, and Health.” In 1985, the Third World
Conference on Women was held in Nairobi, Kenya, where they adopted the
"Nairobi Forward Looking Strategies Toward 2000.” At the same time the
Third NGO Forum was held on the theme of “Equality, Development, and
Peace.” In succession to such large international conferences, in 1992 the
United Nations Environment Development Conference was held in Rio De
Janeiro, Brazil, where Agenda 21 was adopted.
In 1993, the International Conference on Human Rights was held in Vienna,
Austria, and a United Nations Special Report on Violence Against Women was
presented. In November the same year, in Manila, Philippines, the Asia-Pacific
NGO Symposium and a regional preparatory meeting in preparation for the
World Conference on Women was held in which about 600 people participated.
Finally the Fourth World Conference on Women was held in Beijing, China,
in 1995, and the NGO Forum was held between August 30 and September 8 in
Huairous, which is in the suburbs of Beijing. At the Beijing Conference, a
Platform of Action was adopted which reflected the consensus of 180 nations
and the opinions of the NGOs. In this NGO forum, 30,000 people participated,
recording the largest of such conferences. Since Korea became a member state
of the UN CSW, private organizations started participating in UN CSW, and at
the Beijing NGO Forum they formed the Korean NGO Committee and many
representatives and members of women's organizations participated.
The NGO Forum is held parallel with the World Conference on Women
sponsored by the United Nations, centering around the organizations in
consultative status with ECOSOC and the organizations which participated in
the regional preparatory meetings or regional conferences. This forum is the
place where all the concerned women of the world gather together to share
opinions on equality, development, and peace through seminars, discussions,
and exhibitions. For this forum, an NGO Planning Committee is formed, and
regional preparatory meetings are held dividing the world into the five regions
of Africa, Asia-Pacific, West Asia, Latin America and Caribbean, Europe and
North America. At the Asia-Pacific region, an NGO conference was held in
Manila in November 1993. As a result of the conference, the East Asian
Women's Forum was formed centering around Korea, China, and Japan.
The active preparation for the '95 World Women's NGO Forum began from
March 1995. Group workshops were held where the theme presentations and
discussions were made on the issues to be discussed at the forum. Two
preparatory symposiums for the forum were held. The first was held in March
1995 under the title “Preparatory Symposium for the Management of Group
Workshops,” and the second was held in August 1995 with the theme
"Review and Adoption of NGO Reports, Korean Women's Platform for Action
and Declaration.” An expert workshop was held in May 1995, and the draft of
NGO report, Korean women's Platform for Action, set up of the Working
Committee to formulate the Declaration, and a workshop of group presiders
were presented at the Second Preparatory Symposium (August, 1995).
Ⅵ. UN CSW AND KOREA'S TASKS
Firstly, domestic interests should be raised with the international network in
the areas that should be dealt with in the future from the findings of the
review of the major areas of concern of the Platform for Action. So far,
Korean women's policies have prepared the laws and institutions as the basis
for gender equality, social participation and welfare promotion, and in the
future the quality of the social institutions should be promoted and there
should be changes in customs and practices. In concrete, in the same context
as the tasks of each area of the Platform for Action, a basic plan for women's
policies based on the Basic Act for Women's Development should be
formulated and implemented.
Secondly, assistance should be provided so that Korean women can
participate actively in the United Nations by opening the opportunities for
Korean women to work in the Bureau to Promote the Status of Women. While
the Korean activities in the CSW are evaluated to be very active, Korea is not
performing a core role. One of the reasons is that there is no Korean woman
on the staff of the Bureau to Promote the Status of Women. Employment of
the staff of the United Nations is not possible without the active political
support of the government, and therefore governmental assistance is essential.
Thirdly, priority should be given to an agency solely in charge of
strengthening networks in the Asia-Pacific region and of promoting
international exchanges. This is because Korea is not performing its role very
well although it should carry out a leading role as the center of the
Asia-Pacific region. Women experts with language and international sense
should be recruited with active governmental assistance.
Fourthly, international networks should be strengthened among Korean
NGOs and UN NGOs. It was after the Four |
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