Beijing+10 Developments

UNIFEM events at CSW 2005
UNIFEM is involved in several events around the review of Beijing+10, during the Commission on the Status of Women in New York, from 28 February to 11 March 2005. A list of the events is available on the UNIFEM at CSW web corner.

NGO side events at CSW
A full calendar of NGO events taking place during the CSW can be found on WomenWatch.

B+10 Cyberdialogues
A series of seven real-time, online chats will take place during the Beijing+10 review to link gender advocates and the public to the discussions in progress at the UN. These cyberdialogues are being organized by South African NGO Gender Links, in partnership with UNIFEM, the Gender and Media Southern Africa (GEMSA) Network, the World Bank and Microsoft. More than 50 networking partners around the globe will facilitate daily discussions and provide Internet access to interested "chatters," including World Bank public information offices and UNIFEM regional offices.
        The cyberdialogues will provide daily news and features on key issues, as well as commentary by experts. They will also be linked to GEM News, a daily conference newspaper that will be produced by Gender Links and the Kenya-based African Woman and Child Feature Service (AWC) during the Beijing+10 review in New York.
        The cyberdialogues happen from 8 to 10 a.m. (New York time) on:

Wed, 2 Mar – "Women's rights, including reproductive health and education"
Thur, 3 Mar – "The economy and sustainable development"
Fri, 4 Mar – "Gender and governance, including women in peacebuilding"
Mon, 7 Mar – "Women and HIV/AIDS"
Tues, 8 Mar – "Gender-based violence"
Wed, 9 Mar – "Media and communication, including the gender digital divide"
Thur, 10 Mar – "Looking ahead"

        For information on how to get involved, download the announcement. To participate, log on at the time stated above, to www.cyberdialogues.org.

Report of the Secretary-General on the review and appraisal of the progress made in national level implementation of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action, and the outcome documents of the twenty-third special session of the General Assembly in 2000
The report is based on responses to a questionnaire and other information provided by Member States. Download the report (E/CN.6/2005/2) from WomenWatch in six languages.

Arab NGOs to publish B+10 Shadow Report
A bilingual Arabic-English report will be published soon covering the latest developments from an NGO perspective on the achievements of the Beijing Platform for Action and the key obstacles in implementing it. The B+10 shadow report, entitled "Ten Years After Beijing ... The Role and Contribution of Arab NGOs," will cover gender issues and women's legal rights, women's health and reproductive health, women's political participation and women's economic security. For further information, please contact Shirin Shukri, shirin@unifem.org.jo

A Call to Action in Thailand
UNIFEM, the National Women's Council in Thailand (NWCT) and the national network for the Elimination of Violence Against Women (EVAW), are calling for more cohesive action on Thailand's progress towards meeting commitments to the Beijing Platform for Action (BPFA). A seminar will be held on 9 March 2005 to assess Thailand's fulfillment of its commitment to gender mainstreaming within the framework of the BPFA. Seven hundred participants from 20 organizations and networks are expected to participate, including national- and local-level policymakers, government officials, and grassroots representatives. The seminar will also highlight men's perspectives on the progress of the Thai women's movement and include practical measures to enhance advocacy strategies for promoting gender equality. For more information, contact Lucita Lazo, lucita.lazo@unifem.un.or.th

NGO Links on Beijing+10

WEDO
Women's Empowerment, Gender Equality and the Millennium Development Goals

Center for Women's Global Leadership
Calls to Action: Global Week of Action — Beijing and Beyond (1-8 March 2005)

• Civil Society Sign-On Letter: "Calling Governments to Universally Reaffirm and Implement the Beijing Platform for Action" (NGO CSW International Planning Group)
• International Women Human Rights Defenders Campaign, "Defending Women Defending Rights"
• Global Call to Action Against Poverty

Online Discussions @ WomenWatch
Gender Equality and Women's Empowerment Ten Years After Beijing — Where Do We Stand?

PeaceWomen.org
NGO Parallel Side Events

Women's Human Rights Net
Emerging Issues from Beijing+10 NGO Review

Network of East-West Women
Beijing+10 Listserve

Association for Women's Rights in Development (AWID)
AWID Updates on Beijing+10

Equality Now
Words and Deeds: Holding Governments Accountable in the Beijing+10 Review Process

International Women's Tribune Centre
CSW Side Events
For further information on the IWTC events, please contact Mavic Cabrera-Balleza, IWTC Senior Programme Officer, at +1 212-687-8633 or e-mail, mavic@iwtc.org

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International Women’s Day

United Nations Headquarters, New York
On 8 March 2005, the United Nations will host a panel — "Gender Equality Beyond 2005: Building a More Secure Future" — to commemorate International Women's Day. The panel will highlight linkages between the ten-year review and appraisal of the implementation of the Beijing Platform for Action, the upcoming plenary of the 60th Session of the General Assembly and the findings of the High-Level Panel on Threats, Challenges, and Change. Under-Secretary-General for Communications and Public Information Shashi Tharoor will moderate the panel, which will include the following speakers: Rachel Mayanja, Special Adviser on Gender Issues; Anna Kajumulo Tibaijuka, Executive Director of UN Habitat; Nafis Sadik, Special Envoy on HIV/AIDS in Asia; Jan Egeland, Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator; and Jessica Neuwirth, Equality Now.
        On 4 March, another commemorative event will take place at UN headquarters featuring performances from different regions to celebrate thirty years of UN efforts to promote gender equality and the advancement of women.
        For more information, visit the International Women's Day website (the 2005 pages will be ready and available next week).

Arab States
Together with the UN Country Team in Jordan, UNIFEM will celebrate International Women's Day on 22 March 2005 with an event to highlight the achievements of Arab women over the last decade. UNIFEM's Goodwill Ambassador, HRH Princess Basma bint Talal, has been invited as guest of honour. For more information, please send an e-mail to amman@unifem.org.jo

Southeast Asia
A regional advocacy campaign on women's human rights and gender-responsive governance will be launched on International Women's Day, 8 March, in Manila, the Philippines. The campaign, called "March-to-Ten," highlights the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) as a cornerstone human rights instrument and a useful tool to promote gender equality. The campaign will include a series of regional workshops on CEDAW, the Beijing Platform for Action, and the Millennium Development Goals to encourage national and regional action, partnership and accountability on such issues as poverty, reproductive health and local governance.
        In Bangkok, Thailand, on 8 March, UN organizations will hold a panel discussion and exhibition on post-tsunami recovery, and how women are rebuilding their lives and communities. Themes that will be explored include the role of women in post-disaster reconstruction, women's human rights in the context of disasters and using CEDAW to prevent discrimination and ensure gender sensitivity in the reconstruction period.
        For more information, contact Lucita Lazo, lucita.lazo@unifem.un.or.th

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UNIFEM Around the World

New Initiative for Women Parliamentarians Launched in Arab Region
UNIFEM, the League of Arab States and UNDP Lebanon launched a three-year Arab Women Parliamentarians Project at a symposium in February 2005 on "Enhancing the Role of Arab Women Parliamentarians." Parliamentarians from Morocco, Syria, Lebanon, the Occupied Palestinian Territories, Jordan, Egypt, Bahrain and Sudan participated in the symposium, which emphasized the principles of development and the contribution of both men and women in political life. The project will focus on building capacity and networks for women parliamentarians in the region. For further information, please contact Shirin Shukri, shirin@unifem.org.jo

Cambodia to Pass Anti-Domestic Violence Law
Prime Minister Hun Sen of Cambodia announced during a recent visit by UNIFEM Executive Director Noeleen Heyzer to Cambodia, that he would make passage of a law against domestic violence a top priority in the coming months. The Cambodian Ministry of Women's Affairs has committed to monitor action on the proposed law and will develop a plan for implementation once the law is passed. UNIFEM, in collaboration with UNDP and other members of the UN country team will provide technical assistance to the ministry. For more information, contact Lucita Lazo, lucita.lazo@unifem.un.or.th

Impact of the Tsunami Disaster on Women Migrant Workers
A joint UN and International Organization for Migration (IOM) team conducted an assessment mission in January of the impact of the Tsunami disaster on female migrant workers in the Phuket, Phanghga, Ranong and Krabi provinces of Thailand.
        According to national statistics in 2004, roughly half the population of registered migrant workers in Thailand are female, with primary ethnicities being Burmese, Laotian and Cambodian. Accurate figures are hard to come by because the number of undocumented workers is difficult to assess. Persons without legal status are typically subject to arrest and deportation by the Thai authorities, which has led to grave difficulties for Tsunami survivors who are illegal migrant workers — many are estimated to be in hiding due to the fear of deportation and discrimination. It is estimated that at least 10,000 migrant workers were affected directly or indirectly by the tsunami, the majority of whom are employed in fishery, construction, and tourism industries.
        In the immediate aftermath of the Tsunami, direct emergency relief aid was made available to migrant workers and their dependents. Since then however, it has become increasingly difficult for them to access further assistance, particularly in the case of illegal workers who fear arrest and deportation. The assessment team's recommendations include providing direct humanitarian assistance to migrant workers and their dependents either through local government offices or indirectly through NGO networks, keeping in mind the specific needs of women and children when planning assistance. The team is suggesting that there be a temporary suspension of arrests and deportations of unregistered migrants, and that women who have lost income-earning family members during the tsunami be given the opportunity to register with the Ministry of Labour if they wish to change their status from dependent to workers. Measures should be taken to ensure that wages owed for work done before and after the tsunami are paid, and both registered and unregistered workers should be given the opportunity to identify and claim the bodies of deceased family members through DNA testing. The families of registered migrants should be informed of the right to claim compensation and to file claims.
        For more information, contact Sasha Verbillis-Kolp, sasha@unifem-eseasia.org

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Other News

Gender Training Opportunities With the International Labour Organization
The International Training Center of the International Labour Organization (ILO) is offering the following upcoming training seminars:

Seminar: International Labour Standards: Equality in Employment and Workers With Family Responsibilities
Location and Date: Turin and Geneva, 14-24 March 2005
Course languages: English and French
For further information, contact normesturin@itcilo.org

Seminar: Mainstreaming Gender Equality: Concepts and Instruments
Location and Date: Turin, 11-22 April 2005
Course languages: English
Interested candidates can download the application form from the ITC/ILO web site. For further information, contact gender@itcilo.org

The International Training Center's Gender Coordination Unit also offers online courses on gender mainstreaming, poverty and employment. For further information, see the Gender eQuality website.

The Mary Fran Myers Award
The Gender and Disaster Network (GDIN) and the Natural Hazards Center invite nominations of individuals working in the hazards field. Established in 2002, the Mary Fran Myers Award recognizes people whose program-related activities, advocacy efforts, or research has had a lasting, positive impact in reducing hazards vulnerability for women and girls. The award committee is especially interested in soliciting nominations from countries outside the U.S. Nominations are due 1 June 2005. For more information or to download an application, visit the Mary Fran Myers Award web page. For questions, contact morrowb@fiu.edu or call +1 303-385-5953.

Conference on Poverty Inequality and Insecurity
From 23 to 25 June 2005, the Network Women in Development Europe (WIDE) will hold its annual conference focusing on the challenges confronting the women's movement in the twenty-first century. The conference will emphasize the crosscutting issues of inequality, poverty, and insecurity and explore feminist responses to new and old aspects of these issues. Sub-themes will include international trade relations, peace and security, and sexual and reproductive rights. The conference will take place at Regents College Conference Centre in London. For further information, visit the WIDE web site.

World Social Forum
More than 120,000 activists from around the world gathered in Porto Alegre, Brazil, for the 2005 World Social Forum (WSF), which took place 26-31 January 2005. Founded in 2001, WSF embraces an anti-capitalist, social-rights alternative to the World Economic Forum. This year's Forum offered a number of gender-related events that emphasized diverse themes, including feminist dialogues on "trade and development" and "militarism, fundamentalism, and globalization." Several women's groups also organized activities around global poverty, the gender and ICT policy agenda, funding for women's human rights work, the Millennium Development Goals, gender justice in the International Criminal Court, and women migrants and sex workers. For more information, visit the WSF website or the International Women's Tribune Center website.

Gender Mainstreaming in Development and Trade Policy and Practice
A new publication of the Network Women in Development Europe (WIDE), entitled "Gender Mainstreaming in Development and Trade Policy and Practice: Learning From Austria, Belgium, and the UK," examines gender mainstreaming commitments at the national level within the European Union. Although there are signs of advancement in the countries' commitment to gender equality, the studies indicate that further steps are necessary. To order a copy, send an e-mail message to paule@wide-network.org. The cost is 4 EUR plus shipping and handling.

International Conference on Gender Mainstreaming and the MDGs
This conference, to be held from 28 to 30 March 2005 in Islamabad, Pakistan, is jointly organized by the Ministry of Women's Development, Government of Pakistan, and the All Pakistan Women's Association (APWA), in collaboration with several UN Agency partners and donors, including UNDP, UNICEF, UNFPA and UNESCO.
        The conference will review progress made so far in implementing the MDGs globally, with a specific focus on the Asia-Pacific region, and a highlight on the situation of women in the region.
Prime Minister of Pakistan, Mr. Shaukat Aziz, will inaugurate the event and President Pervez Musharraf, is expected to address the Closing Ceremony. More than 300 participants from the region are expected to attend.
        The conference website has detailed information about the conference programme, participant information and more. The registration deadline is 1 March 2005, so be sure to register soon. The Conference Secretariat will fund full travel and accommodations for speakers whose abstracts/papers are selected. The deadline for submission of abstracts to the Conference Secretariat is 25 February 2005. For more information, please contact rabya.conpak05@dslplus.net.pk

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