Annual Report 1999 - 2000 — UNPAC (Mb)

UN Platform for Action Committee (Manitoba)

The new Coordinating Group met for the first time on April 10th and Roberta Simpson was elected Chair. Vivian Schubert agreed to look after the membership list.

The first of three general membership meetings was held May 16th at the University of Winnipeg to discuss the focus of UNPAC’s work for the coming year and the structure of the organization. At this meeting it was agreed that the focus for the year would be Beijing Plus 5, and a Youth Conference. With regard to structure, it was felt that the focus for the year should determine the structure of ad hoc committees. During the course of the year, the Events Committee, the Community Support Committee and members of the Coordinating Group worked together as the Beijing Plus 5 Committee.

In June, members of the Coordinating Group met with Chrystyna Hnatiw, Status of Women Canada, to discuss UNPAC’s application for funding. As a result of this meeting, and because funding criteria did not allow for a conference, it was decided to include a youth component in UNPAC’s Beijing Plus 5 project. An application for funding was prepared and submitted by the Finance Committee. A grant was subsequently received from Status of Women Canada, for which we thank Status of Women and Chrystyna Hnatiw.

Our Annual Report includes a separate report on our Beijing Plus 5 project. Project work so far has included preparing three research reports, working with high school students, and holding workshops in four Manitoba centres. A final report with recommendations to the Manitoba Government is forthcoming.

UNPAC’s second general membership meeting, hosted by the Global Committee, was held October 1st at the University of Winnipeg. The topic was Immigration and You: Where UNPAC Local Meets UNPAC Global. Thirty people attended. The third general membership meeting, held January 21st 2000, featured a presentation by Muriel Smith on Understanding the United Nations Systems: How to be an Effective NGO. This subject was particularly timely because of NGO participation in the United Nations Commission on the Status of Women preparatory meetings being held in New York for Beijing Plus 5. Nancy Buchanan attended these meetings under the auspices of FAFIA (Feminist Alliance For International Action). Nancy, and Deborah Stienstra, also went to Ottawa to attend a Beijing Plus 5 national consultation with Status of Women. Lindsay Stevenson, a young woman involved in UNPAC’s youth projects and recommended by UNPAC, also attended the national consultation as a youth delegate.

In addition to the general membership meetings, the Coordinating Group met eight times.

While Beijing Plus 5 was the primary focus for our work this year, UNPAC also attended, contributed to, and/or supported:

It has been a very busy and rewarding year for UNPAC, and for myself as Chair. I want to take this opportunity to thank the members of the Coordinating Group for all their work. I particularly want to thank Nancy Buchanan for her personal support. A special thanks is due Mary Scott for all her work in maintaining our very informative website.

Recommendations of Coordinating Group

1. That UNPAC’s work in the coming year include a gender-based and integrated feminist analysis of Manitoba Government policies, and that someone be hired to coordinate this project.
2. That UNPAC continue to follow global issues related to The Platform for Action.

Roberta Simpson
Chair

UNPAC(MB) GLOBAL OUTREACH COMMITTEE REPORT

Co-chairs: Monica Singh
Gisèle Saurette Roch

Secretary: Muriel Smith

The Global Outreach Committee was very busy again this year. Eight to fifteen members met monthly and up-dated each other on the issues that their respective networks are dealing with. Some of these networks included Empowering Women of Burma, Veterans Against Nuclear Arms, Ten Days for Global Justice, Immigrant Women’s Association of Manitoba, United Nations Association of Canada ( Manitoba), Community Action on Poverty, Social Planning Council (Manitoba Poverty Report), World March of Women - Winnipeg/Manitoba, Council of Women of Winnipeg, Provincial Council of Women of Manitoba, University Women’s Club, Western Canada Poor People’s Conference Steering Committee, etc.

As early as the summer, our committee members were advocating for the refugee families that were seeking sanctuary in local churches. There were concerns expressed in our committee about the amount of media coverage surrounding issues of illegal immigration and people seeking refugee status, such that we delegated some of our members to formulate a resolution on the issue. The boatloads of illegal Chinese immigrants and the defectors during the Pan-American Games kept the issue alive in the media for the first quarter of our programming year. Consequently, Global Outreach Committee chose to present on this topic in the context of the membership meetings that UNPAC(MB) Coordinating Committee had agreed to do as part of the programming this year. Muriel, Monica and Gisèle were involved in the research and/or facilitation of this event.

The members of the Global Outreach Committee followed closely the Beijing +5 discussions, and one meeting was devoted to summarizing the key issues emanating from the internet discussions of each of the critical areas. Many of our Committee members participated in the general membership meetings and also in the Beijing +5 consultations.

Global Outreach Committee members were co-hosts of the March 13th evening program at the Hiroshima Exhibit brought to Winnipeg by VANA and Project Peacemakers, Peace Alliances, Canadian -Japanese Citizens Association, and the United Nations Association of Canada (Manitoba). We collaborated with the latter and with MATCH. Stella LéJohn sang and played the drum. Robbie and Gisèle shared in the presentation.
We focused on issues related to the Critical Area of the Beijing Platform for Action:
"Women and Armed Conflict." Muriel collated much of the research for this collaborative venture.

Finally, there are several Global Outreach members involved in the planning of the World March of Women- Winnipeg/Manitoba. Members of the Global Outreach Committee recognize this project as a powerful vehicle to promote our expressed values of peace, equality, development. Considerable energy is being expended at various levels to ensure a successful March. We would like to thank the Coordinating Committee for their support of this project.

We wish to acknowledge Mary Scott’s dedicated service maintaining the web-site and editing the UNPAC(MB) Snippetts e-newsletter. We wish to express to Muriel Smith our deep appreciation for all of her work in monitoring global and national issues, for the timely, comprehensive minutes, as well as for her warm hospitality. It is truly appreciated.

The Global Outreach Committee has chosen Liz Sarin to be one of the Chairs for the next year and to represent the group at the Coordinating Committee meetings. We extend an invitation to anyone interested in global or national issues to join the Global Outreach Committee.

Communications

The Communications focus for this year has been the publication and distribution to members of the November issue of "Postings from UNPAC". The Coordinating Committee has served as the committee for Communications, providing ongoing information on membership meetings, political action, and Beijing +5 initiatives.

The UNPAC(MB) web site at http://www.freenet.mb.ca/unpac continues to be maintained by Mary Scott. This home page provides useful background on the Platform for Action, access to the most recent reports applicable to the Twelve Critical Areas, a continually updated list of events hosted by UNPAC and like-minded organizations, and connections to other sites. Mary’s work has created an attractive and vibrant home page.

Much planning and policy discussion need to be done to keep members connected with UNPAC and to provide coordination of efforts in people’s already busy lives. Ideas on the use of different media than print need to be explored to give more people access to the work and direction of UNPAC.

Respectfully submitted, Audrey Myers

Web Page and Electronic Communications

The web page for UNPAC has continued and developed since May of 1997. During the last 3 years there have been over 6,000 visits to the site (6,148 as of March 29th, 2000). The work this year has been to establish a Beijing +5 page, with original material from UNPAC, plus links to other Canadian and UN sites. The Manitoba Bulletin Board is maintained with a listing of upcoming local events of interest to women. The Manitoba Women’s Advisory Council provides us with weekly community updates for the Bulletin Board, which is a wonderful resource. Previous reports from UNPAC Conferences, seminars, workshops are still available and we now have an Archives section. Material of general interest for researchers on Canadian feminist materials is also available at the UNPAC site. The beautiful graphics are thanks to member Manju Lodha.

The site is hosted by MBNET, who continues to host the pooh server from the Blue Sky Freenet. In December, 1999, MBNET was purchased by escape communications corp. and MTS Advanced Inc. We expect that this change in ownership will not alter the no-cost hosting of UNPAC’s home page.

There has always been a lot of information on the internet of interest to UNPAC members, and the general community, on the Beijing Conference. The issues are important to all of us. But the quantity of information is enormous and it was because of the need to reduce it to a somewhat acceptable level that Snippetts was created. Snippetts provides some of the major items from different lists (PAR-L, womenspace, Beijing-l) plus input from our members and the IWTC newsletter. There are over 60 subscribers now to Snippetts and we have sent out approximately 111 as of the end of March.

Various communications that have come to unpac@freenet.mb.ca have been directed to members of the Coordinating Group and items brought to the attention of Robby Simpson, Chair, Coordinating Group, or Giselle Roch, Co Chair of the Global Outreach Committee.

I have appreciated the input from all of our members who use our cyberspace resource and have learned a great deal from the experience, plus met many wonderful cybersisters.

Mary Scott
http://www.freenet.mb.ca/unpac
unpac@freenet.mb.ca

Beijing Plus 5 Project Events Committee 1999-2000

The Beijing Plus 5 research project, which was identified as this year’s primary focus, was a significant undertaking, and members of the Coordinating Group, and the Community Support and Events Committees were involved in organizing this project.

• Beijing Plus 5 Project Highlights detailed reviews of Manitoba policy conducted in the areas of women and health, women and poverty, and violence against women
• development and distribution of a pre-election brochure
• information sessions on the Platform for Action and Beijing Plus 5 held at 3 Winnipeg high schools
• twelve young people participated in four half-day workshops on women and health, women and poverty, and violence against women
• Beijing Plus 5 Toolkits developed and distributed to women’s organizations throughout Manitoba
• Interim Reports on the findings of the policy review in the areas of women and health, women and poverty, and violence against women were delivered to appropriate provincial government ministers and their staff, as well as to Status of Women Canada, and many women’s organizations
• General Membership Meeting on "Understanding the UN"
• As the result of participation in National NGO Beijing Plus Five Consultations in February, UNPAC’s Interim Reports were distributed to many women’s equality seeking NGOs in Canada.
• Nancy Buchanan was sponsored by the Canadian Feminist Alliance for International Action (FAFIA) to attend the Preparatory Committee meetings for the Special Session of the General Assembly entitled "Gender Equality, Development and Peace for the Twenty-first Century" from March 4-11 in New York
• Beijing Plus 5 Workshops held in Carman, Thompson, Brandon and Winnipeg and were attended by approximately 100 women representing women’s organizations throughout Manitoba. Dianne McGifford, Provincial Minister Responsible for the Status of Women, addressed the Workshop participants in Winnipeg. Qualitative data for the Final Report was gathered at these Workshops through focus group discussions.
• Final Report, based on policy reviews and qualitative data collected at Workshops, will be distributed to government, women’s organizations, Status of Women, Beijing Plus 5 Secretariat, and Canadian Feminist Alliance for International Action (FAFIA) in June

In the fall, Jennifer Howard was hired to conduct reviews of Manitoba policy in the areas of women and health, and women and poverty, to identify where progress has occurred, and where it has not, since the Canadian government signed the Platform for Action in 1995. Kelly Gorkoff was contracted to do the policy review on violence against women. Jennifer Howard and Janet Smith were also hired to develop information tool kits on Beijing Plus 5, and to coordinate and facilitate a series of Beijing Plus 5 Workshops.

Initial findings from the policy reviews were used in a pre- Provincial election brochure that UNPAC developed and distributed to women’s organizations and circulated at election forums in October. The brochure raised questions that could be put to candidates concerning the progress of implementing the PFA in Manitoba.

During the fall, UNPAC developed plans to include a Youth Component to the Beijing Plus 5 Project. Bohdanna Kinasevych and Rozelle Srichandra or Forum Youth Consulting were contracted to go to a limited number of Winnipeg high schools to promote awareness about the PFA and Beijing Plus 5. They held information sessions at Churchill High School, Kelvin High School. Approximately 12 young people (11 young women and 1 young man) continued to develop their knowledge about women and health, women and poverty, and violence against women, within the context of the Platform for Action, at three half-day youth workshops, which were facilitated by Bohdanna and Rozelle. A fourth workshop was held in which the participants developed recommendations to bring forward at the larger Winnipeg workshop for women’s organizations. These recommendations will form part of UNPAC’s Final Report.

Jennifer Howard developed Beijing Plus Five Information Toolkits which were distributed to women’s organizations in February/March. The Toolkits contained information on the important role of Beijing Plus 5, highlights of the policy reviews in each of the three focus areas (health, poverty, and violence), suggestions for lobbying government, and contact lists for provincial and federal ministers.

The first of the Beijing Plus 5 Workshops was held in Carman on March 16, and was attended by 15 women from that area. Subsequent Workshops were held in Thompson on March 18 (15 women attended) and in Brandon on April 1 (18 women attended). Focus group discussions were held on each of three issues (women and health, women and poverty, violence against women) to obtain feedback from the participants which will be included in UNPAC’s Final Report.

The Winnipeg Beijing Plus 5 Workshop was held on April 8 at the University of Winnipeg, and was attended by approximately 60 individuals, most of whom were representing women’s organizations. A panel, consisting of Kelly Gorkoff (Women and Violence), Janet Smith (Women and Poverty), Kathy Mallett (Women and Justice), and Jillian Hill-Carroll (a youth representative, Young Women and Health) provided thoughtful analyses of how policy in the three focus areas impacts on Manitoba women. Dianne McGifford, Provincial Minister Responsible for the Status of Women, addressed the participants and supported the work of UNPAC in monitoring government to implement the promises of the PFA. As in the rural and northern Workshops, focus group discussions were held on each of three issues (women and health, women and poverty, violence against women) to obtain feedback from the participants which will be included in UNPAC’s Final Report to be completed in June 2000.

The Events Committee was responsible for UNPAC’s General Membership meeting of January 21 on “Understanding the UN” which was attended by 20 UNPAC members. The event contributed to members' understanding of the Beijing Plus 5 process at the level of the United Nations.

Report on Participation at the Preparatory Committee Meetings for the Special Session of the General Assembly entitled

“Gender Equality, Development and Peace for the Twenty-first Century”,

New York, March 4-11, 2000

by Nancy Buchanan
UNPAC (MB)

This report is divided into two parts. The first section outlines the activities that I participated in while attending the Preparatory Committee Meetings. The second section provides details on the areas that I worked on, as well as my observations, impressions and suggestions.

OUTLINE OF ACTIVITIES

Sunday, March 5
NGO Training Session
Attending this session was a very good preparation for the days to follow. It provided practical examples of the things participants should pay attention to (for example, the morning Briefing sessions), and some of the important issues to be aware of (for example, the issue of Gender Mainstreaming). The session also gave a detailed explanation of the organization of the UN, the Commission on the Status of Women, and the Division for the Advancement of Women.

A valuable part of the session was an explanation about the important role of the Outcomes Document and the role of NGOs in working with the Outcomes Document.

Speakers at the session also identified the issues where they felt consensus would be difficult to attain. These included:

specifics about affirmative action measures
accountability issues
what resources will be available for implementation of the PFA in the future
health and sexual reproduction rights
how to respond to the impact of globalization on women
gender mainstreaming

I attended a group discussion on lobbying facilitated by Mary Purcell. She provided several practical tips, which I followed over the next week. These tips included: spend a couple of days finding the caucus where I wanted to focus my energy; attend the morning briefing session; attend the government briefings; and attend the Linkages meeting (where caucuses briefly shared information) each day.

Monday, March 6 Morning Briefing Session

Human Rights Caucus

This caucus proved to be a good introduction as it emphasized the importance of using Human Rights language in working with the Outcomes document and lobbying governments. We discussed that the Outcomes Document was not as strong as the PFA. We also discussed the need for specific targets to be included in the Outcomes Document (this was identified as an mportant need by most caucuses).

Building Effective Alliances for the Implementation of the Platform for Action

sponsored by Abantu

Two panellists discussed models for women’s empowerment that had been developed and implemented in Kenya. A third panellist, Margaret Vogt, Special Assistant to the Assistant Secretary of the UN spoke on her experience in developing alliances in relation to peacekeeping and conflict, and of the need for women to be at the table in resolving conflict. She said that women need to learn to address political issues at a very early age.

Women Working in the 21st Century

Women from Australia, Cambodia, Africa, Egypt, U.S., Turkey, Indonesia, India, China, and Canada attended this session, which, I believe, was the first meeting of this caucus. From our diverse experiences, we discussed the question, What is happening to women as workers in the global economy? This discussion will be a particularly memorable one for me as women from throughout the globe explained their need for good child care policy, maternity and maternal leave benefits, affirmative action policy, policy (beyond Collective Agreements) to promote gender equality in the workplace, and training for women in non-traditional areas.

Meeting with Canadian NGOs
Meeting with Canadian Government

Poverty Eradication Caucus

Participants were from Nigeria, India, Australia, Bangaledesh, Northern Ireland, Kenya, U.S., Philippines, and Kenya
General discussion concerning women’s poverty occurred during this session.

Linkages Caucus

Major announcement and concern was that "Right to Life" supporters were disrupting sessions and lobbying governments.

Tuesday, March 7 Briefing Session
Of particular interest was Sally Andrew’s (Director, Beijing Plus 5 Secretariat, Status of Women Canada) presentation on JUSCANZ priorities. These included:
the human rights of women and girls
that women’s human rights are indivisible
that gender mainstreaming include specific actions for women
the need to work in partnership with men
the celebration of diversity
the importance of recognizing women’s needs throughout the life cycle
the positive and negative impact of globalization on women
the need to overcome gender stereotypes

violence against women a priority
sexual orientation a priority
necessity of political will to implement PFA

Targets and Indicators

This was a very interesting and useful session, particularly as NGOs at the Prep Comm meetings were recognizing that in order for the PFA to be strengthened, specific targets needed to be identified. Diane Elson of UNIFEM had worked on developing targets and indicators in the areas of Education, Poverty, and Women and Decision Making, and advocates the need for a data base on women. Her complete report will be launched at the Special Session in June. (Had to leave session early to attend meeting with Canadian government.)

Meeting with Canadian NGOs
Meeting with Canadian Government

Linkages Caucus

Reports from the different caucus groups.

Wednesday, March 8

International Women’s Day

Attended Town Hall Meeting at the United Nations for International Women’s Day. Kofi Annan, Secretary-General of the UN, Mary Robinson, United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, Angela King, Division for the Advancement of Women, and Anwarul Karim Chowdhury, President of the Security Council addressed the large crowd.

Kofi Annan said that the PFA paves the way for culture and peace and identified women’s access to land, and women’s social and political rights, as key issues for women’s equality: The Secretary General emphasized the importance of increasing women’s role in promoting peace and rebuilding after armed conflict. Mary Robinson spoke about the need for a rights based approach to globalization, and about the on-going need to address violence against women. In addition, she emphasized that states must ratify the CEDAW Optional Protocol.

Meeting with Canadian NGOs
Discussed the need to focus on action and indicators and the importance of an integrated feminist analysis.

Meeting with Canadian Government
Provided NGOs with an update.

Poverty Eradication Caucus
We began work on identifying specific actions and target dates.

Linkages Caucus
Updates from caucuses.

Thursday, March 9
At the request of Suki Beavers and Liz Philpose of FAFIA, I participated in a small working group to identify Canadian NGO priorities to provide to the Canadian government. The group felt that, rather than focussing on specific areas such as education or economy, we needed to identify overarching themes. We discussed the importance of resourcing the actions, identifying interlocking oppressions and the need for integrated feminist analyses, signing CEDAW Optional Protocol, and the need for specific time lines. These issues were included a report prepared by Liz Philpose.

An unanticipated outcome from this meeting was that Canadian NGOs initiated a JUSCANZ caucus, and set a meeting for this caucus to be held the next day.

Women and Mental Health

Panellists discussed that insufficient attention is given to women’s mental health and well-being which has impacts for women, children, and communities. Suggestions included revising policy and legislation to improve women’s material well-being; increase women’s decision-making power; and strengthen social networks. A panellist from Africa discussed the increased burden of AIDS related care placed on women and the girlchild. A panellist fromIndia discussed how mentalhealth is linked to social position, and discussed female infanticide.

Canadian NGO Meeting

Discussed the four priority areas that had come out of small group meeting that morning.
ensuring full resourcing for implementation of actions at all levels of government, for women’s equality seeking groups, and for women at all levels of decision making
ensuring that an integrated feminist analysis is a priority
examining the negative effects on women of economic globalization
all states to sign and honor all UN treat obligations

Friday, March 10 Briefing Session

JUSCANZ Caucus

NGO representatives from Norway, U.S., Japan, Canada, and Australia attended the first meeting of this caucus (approximately 40 women). Although it came late in the PrepComm process, it set a precedent and JUSCANZ Caucuses will be able to build on this initiative at future meetings. Each of the delegates identified and shared their priority issues which included education, globalization, the girlchild, religious extremism, poverty, trafficking, violence against women, and the Optional Protocol.

Canadian NGO Meeting

Discussion concerning the Draft Priorities Statement.

Canadian Government Meeting

Update.

WHAT I LEARNED/WHAT WAS USEFUL/SUGGESTIONS FOR IMPROVEMENT

The primary area on which I worked was the feminization of poverty, and I was an active participant (active listener and active in words) in the Poverty Eradication Caucus. It was remarkable to participate in a process where women from throughout the globe, who face different realities, negotiate consensus. Although initially progress in this caucus was slow, we did accomplish much during the week - especially when you remember that we met as a group for only an hour each day! Discussion during the first couple of days was general, however, I now understand that this is part of the process where delegates have an opportunity to find out where other delegates are coming from, and whether or not they feel they can make a difference through contributing to this group. We discussed the issues, and drafted line by line language for the Outcomes document, with special attention to the language in Section IV of the document, "Actions and initiatives to overcome obstacles to achieve the full and accelerated implementation of the Beijing Platform for Action". Each delegate was responsible for lobbying for this language with their government (and other governments, if possible). When the Assembly began to negotiate Section IV, the timelines for our work and its intensity increased. The work that had been done on specific language had to be boiled down to a few "catchy" phrases that would grab the attention of government representatives. As the role of lobbying became more important, we discussed and implemented strategies for lobbying.

The Poverty Eradication Caucus made an important contribution to the Prep Comm Meetings when the Chair of the caucus developed badges for all delegates that said "I Support the PFA". The badges were intended to distinguish PFA supporters from the Right to Life supporters who were attending and disrupting caucus meetings. The badges also had the effect of reminding us that we were activists even though we were working within a context that was formal and bureaucratic.

Recently, a Poverty Eradication ListServ has been established by the Co-Chair of the group which will enable the participants at this caucus, and others interested in this issue, to continue to dialogue.

As a first-time participant, just about everything was a learning experience! While in New York, I improved my skills in drafting language, and learned much about lobbying - something that I had not previously done in a direct way. I learned about the process of consensus-building and gained a deeper appreciation for diverse experiences of women. I was also reminded of the universal nature of women’s oppression. Over the week, I learned to focus my attention and energy on a particular issue, and to limit the handouts I picked up! Suggestions for improvement: I would have liked to have more networking opportunities with other FAFIA participants. For example, an evening where FAFIA members discussed their perspectives on the progress and barriers. More networking would have helped me to have a sense of the ‘bigger picture’ and to learn from more experienced delegates. I do realize, however, that it was very difficult to schedule a time when FAFIA members could all meet.

I found that it was difficult to leave the Prep Comm meetings when there was still another week of meetings. After investing myself emotionally in developing language and lobbying governments, it was difficult to leave and not see the final results of the work (although I know that the work is still continuing as we speak.) The most important lesson that was reinforced for me by participating in these meetings was the universal nature of women’s oppression, and the individual and collective strength of women to address gender inequality.

I wish to express my appreciation to Suki Beavers and Liz Philpose of FAFIA for their help and support in navigating a challenging system.

Many people were responsible for the success of this year’s activities and I wish to express my appreciation for their knowledge and support.

Nancy Buchanan

Coordinating Group Members, 1999 - 2000

Coordinating Group Members

Chair:	Roberta Simpson
Past Chair:	Esme Stewart
Secretary:	Rosemary Friesen (resigned) replaced by Susan Hancharyk
Treasurer:	Susan Hancharyk
Community Support:	Roberta Simpson
Events:	Nancy Buchanan
Manitoba Outreach:	Liz Sarin, Cindy Hanson (resigned) replaced by Beth Sanders
Global Outreach:	Gisèle Saurette Roch, Monica Singh
Communications:	Audrey Myers
Members-at-Large:	Muriel Smith Deborah Stienstra Allison Graham Myers Vivian Schubert