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The electronic version of this document has been prepared at the Fourth
World Conference on Women by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP)
in collaboration with the United Nations Fourth World Conference on Women
Secretariat.
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AS WRITTEN


STATEMENT DELIVERED BY
Ms CRISTINA ALBERDI
MINISTER FOR SOCIAL AFFAIRS OF SPAIN
ON BEHALF OF THE EUROPEAN UNION

FOURTH WORLD CONFERENCE ON WOMEN
Beijing, 5 September 1995


Madam Chairperson,
Secretary General,
distinguished delegates
and representatives of international and non-governmental organisations, 


I have the honour to address this Conference on behalf of the European 
Union, and should like to begin by conveying our most sincere gratitude 
to all those who have made it possible to hold this Fourth World 
Conference on Women, and in particular to its Secretary-General, Ms 
Gertrude Mongella, and to the People's Republic of China, our host 
country, for the efforts made in the organization of this Conference. 

The Conference has given rise to high expectation and we trust that-~t 
it will establish a new landmark in women's struggle for equality the 
world over. , 

We stand at a crucial moment of historical significance for women: it 
has been internationally acknowledged that equality between women and 
men is essential to the advancement of society and both a matter of 
justice and a condition for development. To quote the 1995 United 
Nations Development Programme report on Human Development: "Investing in 
women's capabilities and empowering them to exercise their choices is 
not only valuable in itself but is also the surest way to contribute to 
economic growth and overall development." 

The European Union, on the occasion of the 50th anniversary of the 
United Nations, wishes to pay a deserved tribute to the first 
international organization to have wholeheartedly come out in support of 
the advancement of women. 

In its constitutional Charter, the United Nations expressed its faith in 
the equal rights of men and women, these being essential to the 
advancement of all people. 

Since 1975, which was declared International Women's Year, the United 
Nations has been performing a central role in advancing women's status 
throughout the world. 

Mexico, Copenhagen and Nairobi were meetings of enormous importance, 
marking as they did much-needed advances in the cause of women and 
weaving a fabric of solidarity among all women in the world who, despite 
differences in situation and circumstances, share common problems, views 
and solutions. Nevertheless, the national reports show that we will not 
reach the objectives set in Nairobi for the year 2000 if we do not 
accelerate the implementation of the Forward-Looking Strategies. 

The International Conference on Environment and Development held in Rio 
de Janeiro stressed the role of women in development, as well as in the 
management of the environment in the context of sustainable development. 
The World Conference on Human Rights in Vienna explicitly reaffirmed 
that the human rights of women and of the girl-child are an inalienable, 
integral and indivisible part of human rights. 

The International Conference on Population and Development in Cairo 
strongly underlined that the promotion of women's autonomy and rights is 
a key element in social development and recognised that the future of 
humanity will depend on women's new place in society. Furthermore, the 
recent World Summit on Social Development in Copenhagen agreed on the 
need to achieve equality between women and men, encouraging women's 
participation and leadership in political, civil, economic and social 
life as well as in the process of development. 

It is essential for us to reiterate yet again the need for the entire 
international community to give strong support to the existing 
agreements and achievements of previous major United Nations Summits and 
Conferences, which should be regarded as a continuum providing a global, 
integrated and co-ordinated framework for the various dimensions of 
development, both as regards the framing of measures for action as well 
as in monitoring and evaluating their level of enforcement. The European 
Union considers that all these agreements and achievements should 
constitute a point of departure from which we must move forward, with no 
going back.

To that end, we encourage all States which have not already done so to 
accede to, ratify and implement the international instruments for the 
promotion and protection of human rights, in particular the Convention 
on the Elimination of all Forms of Discrimination against Women. In 
doing so, States should, as far as possible, avoid resorting to 
reservations, but should otherwise take into account that any 
reservation they lodge should be formulated as precisely and narrowly as 
possible, so as to ensure that none is incompatible with the object and 
purpose of the relevant treaty. They also should keep any reservation 
under regular review with a view to withdrawing it. 

In addition, they should take steps to support the drafting of an 
optional protocol to the Convention, and to establish a right of 
petition and an inquiry procedure that can enter into force as soon as 
possible and at the latest before the year 2000. 

Madam Chairperson,

This Conference is our next challenge, and we should be able to find 
solutions to the various problems women are facing in all parts of the 
world, especially in the developing countries . 

The feminization of poverty and unemployment, the imbalance of power 
between women and men in all fields of society, violence against women 
and discriminatory laws and practices highlight the need for a constant 
striving for equality, development and peace, for the enhancement of 
human rights and democracy and for solutions to guarantee people-centred 
sustainable development. 

To that end, the European Union believes that the Vienna Declaration and 
Programme of Action provide the international community with a solid 
basis for making important progress in protecting and promoting the 
equal status and human rights of women and for the elimination of gender 
discrimination. 

Education is a major factor in ensuring equality and together with 
health constitutes an essential means of achieving the empowerment of 
women. Investment in women's and girls' education and health is a highly 
important aim and is critical for the achievement of human sustainable 
development. 

The European Union wishes to express its firm belief in the importance 
of promoting sexual and reproductive health for women and men and would 
very much welcome an agreement on a reference to sexual rights in the 
Platform for Action. The European Union reaffirms its commitment to 
ensure the full enjoyment by women] and the girl child of all human 
rights and fundamental freedoms, including their sexual and reproductive 
rights, and to take effective action against violations of these rights 
and freedoms . 

We strongly condemn the use of sexual abuse and violence against women 
in all its forms, in public and private life and especially when used as 
an instrument of war in armed conflict. We call for prevention and 
punishment of these practices, as well as for suitable policies to 
support and give aid to the victims. The principles of international 
humanitarian law, where applicable, and human rights, including the 
Declaration on the Elimination of Violence against Women, should serve 
as a clear reference point in such cases. 

As far as poverty is concerned, we draw attention to the growing number 
of women who face poverty, particularly as heads of families with 
elderly and minor dependants, in developing and developed countries 
alike, and to the restrictions on their rights to property, land, credit 
and other productive resources. Special consideration should also be 
given to the situation of women in rural areas, women with disabilities 
and migrant and refugee women, who are at an economic disadvantage and 
who have fewer health and educational opportunities. 

Women must be assured equal access to economic opportunities and 
resources and equal treatment in employment and entrepreneurship. 

The European Union stresses the importance of women's active role and 
growing leadership and participation in all areas of life. In order to 
continue to encourage and consolidate this active role, women all over 
the world must be able to secure autonomy and economic empowerment.


contract and a new kind of mutual understanding at public and private 
level between women and men, including by consolidating women's 
integration in economic and public life and encouraging the assumption 
by men of an equal share of domestic and family responsibilities. A 
partnership between women and men based on equal rights, 
responsibilities and power, in both the public and private spheres is 
fundamental in this regard . 

With respect to participation in decision-making, the political 
potential of women must be enhanced: the achievement of equality in 
political decision-making is essential for strengthening democracy, and 
will enable us to bolster the legitimacy of decisions and move us 
towards a more just, democratic and participatory society. 

Governments must make a strong commitment to implementing specific 
policies designed to achieve equality between women and men as well as 
to mainstreaming the gender perspective in all social, economic, 
political and cultural fields. 

it is essential that the United Nations advocate and take concrete 
action to promote the status of women and that a gender perspective be 
fully integrated into all areas of competence of the United Nations 
machinery, including within the Secretariat. 

The European Union has long been committed to equality. However, this 
Conference provides the impetus to re-state and strengthen that 
commitment. A new action Programme on equal opportunities should be 
adopted after this Conference, the results of which will feed into and 
enrich our discussions on its content. We have recently launched an 
initiative to ensure the integration of a gender perspective in all 
policies and programmes for development co-operation and we will pursue 
and develop this objective. 

Madam Chairperson,

On behalf of the European Union I should like to stress that, in order 
to guarantee the credibility and effectiveness of the measures that we 
approve under the Platform for Action, institutional and financial 
issues must receive special attention. 

Only by devoting sufficient budgetary resources and giving institutional 
machinery the power to implement and monitor gender equality policies 
will we be able to reach our stated objectives. As the largest donor of 
official development aid in the world, the European Union feels that 
gender-sensitive development co-operation is a key strategy, which must 
be pursued with the utmost resolve. We are committed to solidarity with 
and support to women throughout the world, particularly women struggling 
under poverty or the consequences of armed conflict, and women who face 
obstacles to the full enjoyment of their human rights . 

The European Union likewise wishes to acknowledge the fundamental role 
that the women's movement and non-governmental organisations play in the 
design and implementation of equality policies. The importance of their 
contribution could be clearly perceived during the preparatory work for 
this Conference and in the Non-Governmental Organisations Forum. 

The long process which has led to this Conference has proved to be 
effective for women, but our work is not yet finished. In not a single 
country in the world are women offered the same opportunities as men and 
in some countries discrimination is still enshrined in legislation. 

There are many objectives outstanding in the context of the empowerment 
of women, which are the keys to equality and development. The European 
Union, from a position of solidarity with all the world's women, is 
wholly committed to this task, because we are convinced that the future 
of humanity will depend largely on women attaining leadership and a new 
role in society. 

This is the only way we can create a fairer and more participatory 
society for men and women alike. 

Thank you, Madam Chairperson.