General

Source: IPS
Despite birthing 100 percent of the world's children, growing 70 percent of the world's food and performing 60 percent of the world's labour, women only receive a fraction - a mere 10 percent - of the world's income.
Speaking at United Nations headquarters on Tuesday to present her Vision and 100 Day Action Plan, Michelle Bachelet, executive director of the newly launched UN Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women (UN Women), stressed that the time for action in the realm of women's empowerment was way past due.

"It is not acceptable that 75 percent of women and girls experience violence or sexual abuse in their lifetimes, or that of the 192 members of the U.N., only 19 heads of state are women," Bachelet told reporters, stressing that the prevailing gaps of 41 percent disparity in economic participation and 82 percent in political empowerment were huge causes for concern.

The creation of UN Women was the result of years of negotiations, strategic planning and a fierce pursuit of funds. It was formally established in July 2010, collapsing and consolidating four formally distinct bodies: the UN Development Fund for Women (UNIFEM), the Division for the Advancement of Women (DAW), the Office of the Special Adviser on Gender Issues, and the UN International Research and Training Institute for the Advancement of Women (UN- INSTRAW).

In her detailed plan for the coming months, Bachelet emphasised UN Women's core priorities, which include seriously tackling violence against women, enhancing and improving women's voices, leadership and participation at national and international levels, prioritising women's role in the peace and security agenda, empowering women economically and making gender inequalities central in national and international budgetary planning.

Higher Expectations

Amidst all these high-level plans and discussions, a small group of women believe that more radical change is not only possible, but also essential to ending structural oppression and discrimination worldwide.

Vision News, a database that tracks best practices of Security Council Resolution 1325 (which was designed to address the disproportionate impact of war on women), recently reported that a coalition of women advocates, organisers and Nobel Prize winners had come together to demand a more comprehensive plan than that proposed by UN Women.

In a memorandum entitled "Happiness 2.1", these women are presenting conclusive scientific evidence proving that the future is heading either towards the destruction of the planet or a creation of a unique eco-social economy.

According to Ute Scheub, coordinator of '1000 Peacewomen Across the Globe' for Western Europe, "There will be a disastrous lose-lose situation if patriarchy plus climate crisis plus militarism plus financial capitalism continue in the same vein, but there will be a win-win situation if women and men set a joint course for disarmament and a Green New Deal."
Contradictions, Controversies and Crisis