Newsletter - Special edition - March 1999

World Demands

There were three levels of decision-making at the International Meeting: first, the amended demands, which will be put forward by the groups in participating countries; second, the actions discussed in the workshops (the text on the actions provides both common guidelines for the world actions and examples of national actions); and third, the establishment of the International Liaison Committee.

To Eliminate Poverty, We Demand:

1. That all States adopt a legal framework and strategies aimed at eliminating poverty.

States must implement national anti-poverty policies, programmes, action plans and projects including specific measures to eliminate women's poverty and to ensure their economic and social independence through the exercise of their right to:

- education;

- employment, with statutory protection for work in the home and in the informal sectors of the economy;

- pay equity and equality at the national and international levels;

- association and unionization;

- property and control of safe water;

- decent housing;

- health care and social protection;

- culture;

- life-long income security;

- natural and economic resources (credit, property, vocational training, technologies);

- full citizenship, including in particular recognition of civil identity and access to relevant documents (identity card).

- minimum social wage

States must guarantee, as a fundamental right, the production and distribution of food to ensure food security for their populations.

States must develop incentives to promote the sharing of family responsibilities (education and care of children and domestic tasks) and provide concrete support to families such as daycare adapted to parents' work schedules, community kitchens, programmes to assist children with their schoolwork, etc.

States must promote women's access to decision-making positions.

States must ratify and observe the labour standards of the International Labour Office (ILO). They must enforce observance of national labour standards in free trade zones.

States and international organizations should take measures to counter and prevent corruption.

All acts, pieces of legislation, regulations and positions taken by governments will be assessed in the light of indicators such as the human poverty index (HPI), introduced in the Human Development Report 1997; the human development index (HDI), put forth by the United Nations Development Programme; the gender-related development index (including an indicator on the representation of women in positions of power) discussed in the Human Development Report 1995, and Convention 169 of the International Labour Organization particularly as it concerns Indigenous and tribal peoples' rights.

2. The urgent implementation of measures such as:

- the Tobin tax, revenue from the tax would be paid into a special fund:

- earmarked for social development;

- managed democratically by the international community as a whole;

- according to criteria respecting fundamental human rights and democracy;

- with equal representation of women and men;

- to which women (who represent 70% of the 1.3 billion people living in extreme poverty) would have preferred access.

- investment of 0.7% of the rich countries' Gross National Product (GNP) in aid for developing countries;

- adequate financing and democratization of United Nations programmes that are essential to defend women's and children's fundamental rights, UNIFEM (UN women's programme), UNDP (United Nations Development Programme) and UNICEF (programme for children) for example;

- an end to structural adjustment programmes;

- an end to cutbacks in social budgets and public services;

- rejection of the proposed Multilateral Agreement on Investment (MAI).

3. Cancellation of the debt of all Third World countries, taking into account the principles of responsibility, transparency of information and accountability.

We demand the immediate cancellation of the debt of the 53 poorest countries on the planet, in support of the objectives of the Jubilee 2000 campaign.

In the longer term, we demand cancellation of the debt of all Third World countries and the setting up of a mechanism to monitor debt write-off, ensuring that this money is employed to eliminate poverty and further the well-being of people most affected by structural adjustment programmes, the majority of whom are women and girls.

4. The implementation of the 20/20 formula between donor countries and the recipients of international aid.

In this scheme, 20% of the sum contributed by the donor country must be allocated to social development and 20% of the receiving government's spending must be used for social programmes.

5. A non-monolithic world political organization, with authority over the economy and egalitarian and democratic representation of all countries on earth and equal representation of women and men.

This organization must have real decision-making power and authority to act in order to implement a world economic system that is fair, participatory and where solidarity plays a key role. The following measures must be instituted immediately: - A World Council for Economic and Financial Security, which would be in charge of redefining the rules for a new international financial system based on the fair and equitable distribution of the planet's wealth. It would also focus on increasing the well-being, based on social justice, of the world population, particularly women, who make up over half that population. Gender parity should be observed in the composition of the Council's membership. Membership should also be comprised of representatives of the civil society, for example NGO's, unions, etc.) and should reflect parity of representation between countries from the North and South.

- Any ratification of trade conventions and agreements should be subordinated to individual and collective fundamental human rights. Trade should be subordinated to human rights, not the other way around.

- The elimination of tax havens.

- The end of banking secrecy.

- Redistribution of wealth by the seven richest countries.

- A protocol to ensure application of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights.

6. That the embargoes and blockades -- principally affecting women and children -- imposed by the major powers on many countries, be lifted.

To Eliminate All Forms of Violence Against Women We Demand:

1. That governments claiming to be defenders of human rights condemn any authority - political, religious, economic or cultural - that controls women and girls, and denounce any regime that violates their fundamental rights.

2. That States recognize, in their statutes and actions, that all forms of violence against women are violations of fundamental human rights and cannot be justified by any custom, religion, cultural practice or political power. Therefore, all states must recognize a woman's right to determine her own destiny, and to exercise control over her body and reproductive functions.

3. That States implement action plans, effective policies and programmes equipped with adequate financial and other means to end all forms of violence against women.

These action plans must include the following elements in particular: prevention; public education; punishment; "treatment" for attackers; research and statistics on all forms of violence against women; assistance and protection for victims; campaigns against pornography, procuring, and sexual assault, including child rape; non-sexist education; easier access to the criminal justice system; and training programmes for judges and police.

4. That the United Nations bring extraordinary pressure to bear on member states to ratify without reservation and implement the conventions and covenants relating to the rights of women and children, in particular, the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women, the Convention on the Rights of the Child, the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination, the International Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and their Families.

That States harmonize their national laws with these international human rights instruments as well as the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the Declaration on the Elimination of Violence against Women, the Cairo and Vienna Declarations, and the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action.

5. That, as soon as possible, protocols be adopted (and implementation mechanisms be established):

- to the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women;

- to the Convention on the Rights of the Child;

These protocols will enable individuals and groups to bring complaints against their governments. They are a means to apply international pressure on governments to force them to implement the rights set out in these covenants and conventions. Provision must be made for appropriate sanctions against non-compliant States.

6. That mechanisms be established to implement the 1949 Convention for the Suppression of the Traffic in Persons and of the Exploitation of the Prostitution of Others, taking into account recent relevant documents such as the two resolutions of the United Nations General Assembly (1996) concerning trafficking in women and girls and violence against migrant women.

7. That States recognize the jurisdiction of the International Criminal Court and conform in particular to the provisions defining rape and sexual abuse as war crimes and crimes against humanity.

8. That all States adopt and implement disarmament policies with respect to conventional, nuclear, and biological weapons. That all countries ratify the Convention Against Land Mines.

9. That the right to asylum for women victims of sexist discrimination and persecution and sexual violence be adopted as soon possible.

The next two demands were supported by the majority of women present at the meeting on the condition of a country-by-country adoption process. Some delegates were not in a position to be able to commit to publicly defending these demands in their country. They remain an integral part of the World March of Women in the year 2000. Over the next few months names of adopting countries will be added.

10. That, based on the principle of equality of all persons, the United Nations and States of the international community recognize formally that a person's sexual orientation should not bar them from the full exercise of the rights set out in the following international instruments: the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights and the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women.

11. That the right to asylum for victims of discrimination and persecution based on sexual orientation be adopted as soon as possible.

New Demands

Some of these new demands have already been integrated into the preceding text. The International Liaison Committee will be charged with seeing to the overall coherence and readability of the demands as a whole.

A. An end to the process of homogenization of culture and the commodification of women in media to suit the needs of the market.

B. That States make provisions to ensure women's equal participation in decision-making political bodies.

C. That States take all possible steps to end patriarchal values and sensitize the society towards democratization of the family structure.

D. That we reaffirm our commitment to peace and the protection of democratic and independent functioning of nation states.

That the U.N.:

E. End all forms of intervention, aggression and military occupation.

F. Assure the right of refugees to return to their homeland.

G. Pressure governments to respect human rights and resolve conflicts.

Special edition of the newsletter on the International Preparatory Meeting for the World March of Women in the Year 2000
Montreal, Quebec, Canada
October 16-18, 1998

We will act so that women's voices are heard

The women were numerous in stating their positions on the meaning that should be given to the action. Many different points of view were expressed in the workshops, reflecting the varying life circumstances of the delegates. It is quite a challenge to summarize faithfully the actions women envisaged at different levels.

The women who were present not only showed a keen sense of realism and practicality but they also gave rein to boundless imagination, whetting one's appetite to spring into action immediately. This is how they saw the actions to be taken as part of the World March.

Women who live with poverty and violence should take part in the action

One of the first and oft-repeated recommendations was to make sure to reach women wherever they live: in rural areas, villages or cities. It is absolutely necessary for all women who are affected by poverty and violence to participate in the action.

Work at the grass-roots level and local action are therefore essential. Many proposals were put forward concerning tools to promote popular awareness, education and mobilization.

Three levels of action (national, regional and international) are necessary

Actions in connection with the March must be staged at three levels. First, there will be women's mass support for the world demands, as shown by the signing of support cards. Then a world rally will take place in conjunction with regional rallies, depending on participating groups' availability and organizational possibilities. Finally each country will be witness to national and local actions concerning specific demands reflecting the struggles and concerns of the women's movement there in relation to poverty and violence against women.

National action is indispensable

The great majority of participants agreed on the need to bring the demands to their respective governments' attention.

For all kinds of reasons (war, politics, the local situation, repression, geography, living conditions, financial resources, etc.) it will not be possible to organize marches in every country. National actions will thus take different forms. Whenever possible, a march will be organized. Elsewhere action may take the form of fax campaigns, rallies outside embassies or newspaper articles, for example.

Raising awareness and popular education: training and tools

Everyone agreed on the need for all actions to be part of an awareness and popular education campaign. Participants said they wanted to receive training on how to devise popular education tools tailored to their country, starting from the world demands. Activities related to the March's themes such as feminist theatre, contests in school, people's court, making quilts and banners and photo exhibitions could be held in many countries.

Support cards

The support cards are a very important tool to raise awareness. Their form, content, the languages in which they will be written and how they will be distributed have yet to be decided. What is wanted, though, is for each woman to express her support for the March by signing the card and at the same time write her own message.

Many delegates to the International Meeting suggested that the cards be addressed to their respective government and to international bodies (the UN, the World Bank, etc.).

Where to hold the March

Many discussions centred on what organization to target. An informal vote taken in a workshop showed sharply divided positions between the two main targets that were identified: the UN in New York and the World Bank in Washington. The UN received slightly more votes.

For some participants, the UN is the preferred target for the world actions because most of the March demands involve the UN and individual governments. They fear that groups working mainly on violence against women will feel less a part of the March if the demands are presented only to the World Bank. Another reason for preferring the UN is because it is an important forum where human rights are concerned.

Other delegates favoured the idea that the world actions be addressed to the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund because they believe these are the most powerful bodies on the international scene. In some countries, to speak of violence automatically means to speak of poverty because the struggle against both is so closely intertwined.

No consensus was reached in the plenary on the choice of the target of world demands due to lack of time. The International Liaison Committee will therefore study the matter. The mandate appears to be quite clear: the appropriate institutions must be targeted within a global approach that includes the March's two themes.

Funding

Funding was certainly a major concern for participants. Discussions led to concrete proposals for each organization to contribute according to its means. Still, an assistance fund was proposed as another way to express our solidarity.

The action scenarios will be adapted to existing realities, but some funding may be used to help stage national and world actions.

The crowning point will be October 17, 2000

The March activities will begin on March 8, 2000 (International Women's Day) and end on October 17 (International Day for the Eradication of Poverty) with the world rally.

At the world level, the action will be focused on a major event during which women will report on the demands and the support gathered in the previous months. Organizers must ensure exceptionally broad media coverage to have as much visibility as possible.

At the local, regional and national level, groups may draw up their own timetable of activities, taking into account the dates that are significant for the women's movement. Activities linked to the March will be organized on those dates to facilitate participation and ensure media coverage.

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Special edition of the newsletter on the International Preparatory Meeting for the World March of Women in the Year 2000
Montreal, Quebec, Canada
October 16-18, 1998

Composition of International Liaison Committee

- The International Liaison Committee will be involved the political decisions ensuing from the International Preparatory Meeting. Prior to every meeting, the Coordinating Committee of the March will consult them, via fax, Internet, etc., on all points concerning follow-up to the Preparatory Meeting;

- The Coordinating Committee of the World March of Women, comprised of women from Quebec, will continue to assume a leadership role and administrative responsibility for the March project;

- There will be one meeting only of the International Liaison Committee (probably in the autumn of 1999);

- The representatives' main responsibility will be to work in their respective regions;

- The International Liaison Committee will be responsible for obtaining the financial resources to enable members to consult and meet.

- The International Coordinating Committee in relation with the International Liaison Committee is responsible for the world gathering of October 17, 2000. The responsibility for organizing regional or national actions will vary according each country or continent involved.

Suggested selection criteria for representatives:

- active involvement in the women's movement and ability to foster alliances and actions with grassroots women's groups;

- be in a position to ensure the links and follow-up with participating groups in their region of the world;

- work actively to improve the conditions of women's lives, in particular, where the issues of poverty and violence against women are concerned.

Role of liaison committee

- To ensure follow-up of the International Preparatory Meeting;

- To coordinate worldwide actions;

- Follow development of worldwide demands;

- Ensure that information reaches participating groups in committee members' respective parts of the world;

- Act as a catalyst to spur action for the World March of Women in the Year 2000.

Please note that the Fédération des femmes du Québec continues to be the body legally responsible for the March.

• Africa - 8 representatives

  • East and Southern Africa - (3)

  • West Africa (3)

  • Central Africa - (2)

• North America - 2 representatives

• Latin America - 5 representatives

  • Mexico (1)

  • Central America (1)

  • South America (3)

• Asia - 7 representatives

  • South Asia (2)

  • South-East Asia (2)

  • Pacific (1)

  • East Asia (2)

• Caribbean - 3 representatives

• Europe - 4 representatives

• Indigenous Women - 1 representative

• Arab Countries- 4 representatives

• International Networks - 1 representative

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Special edition of the newsletter on the International Preparatory Meeting for the World March of Women in the Year 2000
Montreal, Quebec, Canada
October 16-18, 1998

They Were 200 Strong!

There were so many women, all of whom committed themselves in 1997 to start on the long road to the year 2000. First stop: the 1998 International Preparatory Meeting. Such a major event required the effort of many women who gave their time generously, on either a paid or volunteer basis. Before and during those three days in October, we saw these activist women's generosity filling the gaps that would have otherwise existed due to clearly insufficient human resources. What they did is what we might call, without fear of exaggerating, nothing short of a miracle.

They sat on the coordinating, liaison, action and content committees; they took charge of setting up and decorating the sites of the meeting, ensuring security, staging a unique show, organizing the meals. They looked after translation services, facilitators for workshops, secretarial services, media coordination, welcoming the international delegates and finding accommodations for them. They saw to transportation. They were permanent staff, workers on contract or volunteers. They were 200 strong! If they gave of themselves so wholeheartedly, it is no doubt because they believe in this fabulous project as much as they believe in the Fédération des femmes du Québec.

Suzanne Biron

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Special edition of the newsletter on the International Preparatory Meeting for the World March of Women in the Year 2000
Montreal, Quebec, Canada
October 16-18, 1998

Our part in a historical occasion

When the invitation arrived, several members of the Association des aides familiales du Québec (Quebec Association of Home Caregivers) responded enthusiastically. Each of us was eager to host a delegate speaking French, English or Spanish. We were inspired by the thought of making new contacts, and participating in a historic moment, the first stage of preparation for the great March against poverty and violence against women. We were anxious to talk about the poverty so much a part of our life in Quebec. We experience it here with women who work 60 hours a week or more for very little pay. These workers struggle to give the basics to their children; often originating from countries in the South, they succeed against all odds in sending a little money to their families.

We had the great pleasure of hosting delegates from Peru, Mexico, Cuba and two activists from Nicaragua.

Hurried moments of sharing

Naturally, everything happened at the last minute. Our guest from Peru was expected to arrive Wednesday night. No sign of her! Same thing Thursday. She arrived at last on Friday, safe and sound. Obviously it was now out of the question to plan special activities. We simply had to take advantage of every opportunity for exchange when it presented itself. Maybe this ability is the real richness of women!

We managed a few talks at breakfast in the morning and late in the evening after the meeting. We asked a few questions to get some sense of the conditions of each other's lives. One striking observation: the incredible responsibilities taken on by women everywhere. We spoke some about the circumstances of women domestic workers in private homes here in Quebec. Little is known about this here and there are a lot of myths that needed to be corrected. The violence of exploitation is borderless; we witness it every day. We were able to share a little about the lives of domestic workers, our demands, and our struggle to gain a place in the women's movement.

Links beyond borders

We met some courageous and determined women. We participated in an unforgettable moment that is going to help us to make links at each stage of preparation for the March. It was an opportunity to see ourselves as being part of a whole range of women's struggles. We are there, perhaps not too noticeable, but standing strong. This experience gave us that awareness.

To anyone who wants to share with us their dream of a world without poverty and violence: You can stay with us anytime!

Denise Caron

Association des aides familiales du Québec (AAFQ)

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Special edition of the newsletter on the International Preparatory Meeting for the World March of Women in the Year 2000
Montreal, Quebec, Canada
October 16-18, 1998

An experience in solidarity

Monday, October 12: ring, ring, the phone practically jumped off the hook. It was Mercédez asking us to go to Dorval Airport to meet Argentinean delegate Susana, who was arriving three days ahead of time. We quickly changed our plans and accepted to welcome her without the slightest hesitation, but going to Dorval was out of the question since there was no car at the house that day. In the end, she showed up with a volunteer, happy to accept a cup of good coffee and be allowed to smoke after fourteen hours of abstinence!

Susana spoke French quite well, and this made communication much easier, of course. A tried and true activist with an impressive amount of experience, she had attended many international meetings, among them Beijing.

She told us she was to meet a group "in a city close to Ottawa," and wanted information about a conference being held in Sherbrooke.

Fortunately, there were three of us with fairly flexible schedules. We showed her some of the sights in Montreal while one of us tried to get in touch with the contact persons in Hull and at the Sherbrooke conference. Many phone calls later, everything was finally arranged, thanks to the cell phone of one of the organizers and our resourcefulness. Susana was very appreciative of her meetings with women's groups in both Hull and Sherbrooke, even though she came back exhausted.

As none of us was present at the International Meeting, it was a privilege to hear Susana's day-to-day account of it. Solid bonds were established and that is where worldwide solidarity begins!

Gisèle Ampleman, Aline Côté, Nicole Jetté et Christiane Sibillotte

Des Soeurs Auxiliatrices (Helping Sisters) à Montréal

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Special edition of the newsletter on the International Preparatory Meeting for the World March of Women in the Year 2000
Montreal, Quebec, Canada
October 16-18, 1998

Sharing and learning with our guests

One of the most rewarding aspects of the International Meeting was acting as a host group to several international delegates during their stay in Montreal. Three teachers from my union federation hosted a total of four different delegates. Although hosting delegates in our homes, showing them the ins and outs of Montreal, getting them to and from meetings and activities, providing meals, etc. involved a lot of responsibility and was time-consuming, all three of us appreciated the experience and recommend it whole-heartedly.

It was an opportunity to meet new people, not in the casual way one does attending a meeting with someone, but in a much more intimate and satisfying way. Sharing a bathroom, planning the day's agenda, chatting over breakfast establishes a level of intimacy and interchange which is highly positive and stimulating. Of course there were also discussions into the wee hours of the night. As academics, it was interesting for us to discuss feminist issues with women who were not themselves intellectuals, but who came from other backgrounds such as political, union or cooperative/community work. All of them had many years of experience representing the women of their countries and fighting to improve their situation. Sharing our homes with these women allowed us to learn a little about their cultures (child rearing customs, for instance) and their lives, but also to see what their concerns were, how they had come to be feminists, and problems which exist in their countries and effect women. We were also able to share some of the advances we have made in our respective countries and the strategies we used to get there. The delegate at my house, for example, was happy with a collection of Quebec's March 8 pins from 1994 to 1998 and she shared with me stories about being on her country's delegation in Bejiing.

I know that the pleasure we felt at this experience was not uniquely on our side. The delegates told us how important it was for each of them to stay with other women, how much easier this made it to get a feeling for Montreal and for the issues that are important to Quebec women, and how much more pleasant the experience had been than the barren atmosphere of a hotel.

We are sure we have made lasting connections which we will maintain. These kinds of intimate, friendly contacts with women from around the world help us to forget our differences, to focus on the essentials. And that is one of the most important messages of solidarity that can come from such international meetings.

Janice Harvey

Fédération autonome du collégial

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Special edition of the newsletter on the International Preparatory Meeting for the World March of Women in the Year 2000
Montreal, Quebec, Canada
October 16-18, 1998

Solidarity with women all over the world

Throughout the International Meeting, delegates were invited to identify individuals or groups of women experiencing specific situations of discrimination, exclusion or torture in order to illustrate solidarity among women of the world. The following text is the result of this collective work and does not pretend to be an exhaustive list of instances of women’s oppression.

We, women in attendance at the International Preparatory Meeting for the World March of Women in the Year 2000, proclaim our solidarity with those women who are ridiculed, marginalized, deprived of every human dignity, and who are forced to live in inhuman conditions.

On the eve of the 50th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights we honour and affirm our solidarity with women, who in their respective countries, defend women's rights as human rights; with peace and democracy activists, and with writers in their struggle against censorship and for freedom of expression.

Today we honour:

- Aung San Suu Kyi, winner of the Nobel Peace Prize, who was democratically elected to head a government that was then overthrown by a military coup d'état and continues to struggle for democracy in Burma -- a symbol of hope and courage;

- Leyla Zana, Kurdish member of parliament, who was sentenced to 15 years in prison for speaking a sentence in Kurdish before the Turkish National Assembly;

- Souha Béchara, a forgotten prisoner and living symbol of the Israeli occupation of Southern Lebanon, who was released last September after 10 years' confinement in prison;

- Talisma Nasreen, still under threat of "fatwa," deprived of the right of freedom of expression and the right to security.

Through them we pay tribute to millions of women who work anonymously to defend and promote women's rights so that we can participate fully in improving our societies. We want to build societies based on equality with men, societies that take into account both what we have in common with men and our differences, that is, our specificity as women.

We salute the courage of aboriginal women the world over, who have experienced oppression for centuries as well as economic, political and social discrimination. We support our Indigenous sisters in Guatemala who demand that the government establish the Office in Defence of Indigenous Women, which is a commitment stemming from the Peace Accords. We also support our sisters from Mexico, particularly those from Chiapas who are facing the consequences of growing militarization.

We remember also the women victims of male violence. We stand together against:

- the assassination in Belgium of Sémira Adamu, murdered for demanding the right to asylum and freedom of movement -- a symbol of the struggle against expulsions;

- the imminent execution in Trinidad and Tobago of Pamela Ramjattan, sentenced to death after murdering her batterer because of the refusal on the part of police investigators and the courts to take into account the extreme violence to which she had been subjected;

- we affirm our solidarity with Tsitsi Tiripano, member of the Association of Gays and Lesbians of Zimbabwe and victim of discrimination as a result of her defence of the fundamental rights of homosexual people.

We stand in solidarity with the feminist activists who call for the recognition of the abuse of women that occurs in the context of armed conflicts and in occupied territories and who insist that sexual violence be legally condemned in all countries.

We express our solidarity with women living under occupation, in particular Palestinian, Lebanese, and Tibetan women.

We are outraged when we witness, yet again, the systematic rape of women being utilized as a war tactic, this time against women in Kosovo.

We are in solidarity with African women who demand the end of violence against women and children. They are the first victims of armed conflicts in Africa and are demanding to be included in the peace negotiation processes.

We stand with Black Mauritanian women, victims of the apartheid system instituted by the regime of Ahmed Ould Taya, president of the Islamic Republic of Mauritania.

We are in solidarity with Algerian women and celebrate their courage and determination in the struggle for peace and democracy.

We join in solidarity with the Rwandan activists who have struggled to have crimes against women recognized and defined as crimes against humanity by the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda.

We denounce the world community's inertia in the face of the horrific situation of Afghan women -- ultimate proof that the current human rights discourse has left us out.

We denounce the inclusion of the Shari'a Law in Pakistan's 15th Constitutional Amendment of October 9, 1998, that threatens to eradicate the small gains in rights and freedoms made by the women of Pakistan up to now.

We call upon the international community to pressure the Indian armed forces to stop committing crimes against the women of Kashmir.

We want to convey our solidarity with the women of Timor, victims of massacres committed by Indonesian invading forces.

We denounce the economic embargoes in Iraq, Libya, Sudan and Cuba -- embargoes that increase the feminization of poverty.

We support our Mexican sisters' fight against the federal government's corruption, which results in further impoverishment of the people and of Mexican women. We also support non-governmental organizations in the North struggling to destroy the impunity surrounding the murder of over 100 women in Ciudad Ju rez in the period of one year.

We back the initiative of Colombian women's organizations that stage the Vigil for Life and Peace on the 18th day of each month, in the quest for a peaceful solution to the armed conflict.

We stand with the activists who are fighting so that in their last remaining years, the Filippina, Korean, Chinese, Indonesian, Malaysian, Taiwanese, and Dutch "comfort women" are recognized and compensated for the suffering they endured as sex slaves for the Japanese Imperial Army during the Second World War. We support them in their quest for justice.

We support the efforts of women in the Philippines, Japan, Okinawa, and Korea who are demanding changes on U.S. military bases so that they cease being propitious environments for acts of violence against women.

With all the struggles we have before us, we want to mark some victories that give us the strength to continue:

- In September 1998, the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda, established by the United Nations in Arusha, Tanzania, handed down an historic judgement: for the first time in the history of humanity, rape has been included in an indictment for genocide. After a campaign led by Rwandan women and supported by a women's global campaign, rape is now held to be an act of genocide and torture, and a crime against humanity.

- In 1985, after a struggle that lasted 25 years, Native women in Canada finally won the right to equality. They no longer lose official recognition of their nationality after marriage with a non-Native man.

- Our Mexican sisters who work in the "maquiladoras" have made gains in their struggle to unionize and organize in the face of intolerable working conditions. Each victory is a testament to their courage and determination.

Today, we stand together and commit ourselves to continuing the struggle, each in her own country, to break the silence of all those women who have died in anonymity.

We cry out far and wide our determination to continue down the long road towards peace, justice and democracy.

We would like to thank the delegates from Algeria, Argentina, Brazil, Cameroon, Congo (Brazzaville), Mali, Namibia, Pakistan, Peru, Poland and Togo who granted us interviews during the weekend of the International Preparatory Meeting for the World March in the Year 2000.

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Special edition of the newsletter on the International Preparatory Meeting for the World March of Women in the Year 2000
Montreal, Quebec, Canada
October 16-18, 1998

Where we go from here

After a weekend brimming with ideas, emotion, and the desire for change, we are now faced with the next steps. Some participants went home with the firm intention of encouraging other groups in their country to commit to the World March of Women. In fact, since their return, we have received a pile of requests to sign up for the March. Others had already begun the work of establishing national coordinating bodies and returned home with new questions for the women in their country to discuss. Regardless of their position on arriving at the meeting, every participant went home with renewed belief in this global women's action and the desire to follow up on the first step of the project. For us, this is the most positive evaluation of the meeting we could have wished for.

Evaluation

The Coordinating Committee has begun the process of evaluating the preparatory meeting and so far the results are positive. The majority of the participants appreciated the event and left with a better comprehension of the March and its objectives as well as new enthusiasm for this world action. The participants made contacts with women from the Quebec women's movement. The exchange of ideas gave birth to projects for joint action and new bonds were forged between grass-roots groups. Women were able to discuss the World March project in spite of the time limitations. In February 1999, a more detailed evaluation, including organizational as well as political aspects, will be put up on our Web site.

Working together towards united action

The work we need to do over the next year falls into two categories: setting up coordinating bodies nationally and internationally, and developing strategies to make gains at the national and international levels.

At the national level, in the short term, each women's movement will determine what its coordinating structure should be. New groups will be invited to join the March, and the process of identifying national demands should result in the choice of an action geared to win the national objectives for change. The coordinating structure will take a leadership role for the World March of Women in the year 2000 in the country and should maintain contact with the representative of the International Liaison Committee for its sub-region. A video on the World March of Women is available in French, English, and Spanish for educational and promotional purposes. Each country should decide how many copies will be needed and get in touch with us to find out how to order them (the price includes shipping).

At the international level, we need to activate the International Liaison Committee and determine how it will work in concert with the Coordinating Committee. Basic financial resources must be found to assist the work of these representatives and enable communication among us. We have to come up with a way of working together that is at once flexible, transparent, and respectful of global diversity and the spirit of the World March of Women.

The International Liaison Committee will also work on casting our world demands into more accessible language so that they can be integrated into a popular education campaign. An educational document will be produced sometime over this year that will highlight the diversity of women's experience regarding poverty and violence against women as well as the alternatives proposed by women's movements by way of the World March of Women in the Year 2000. We will let you know as soon as it is available.

We are marching towards

For many, the March is a project that can bring new vigour and new dimensions to the women's movement globally. For others, it is a vehicle to highlight the contributions made by women's movements in their respective countries and to renew the analysis based on women's experience and our vision of a just and egalitarian world. Some have already thought of demands and possible actions to take in their countries. Others are working out the problem of how to carry out a collective action in their countries.

The World March of Women in the Year 2000 will take various forms because it is rooted in the specific reality of the women's movement of each country. These diverse movements will dream up all kinds of actions that will fall within the spirit of the World March. Our desire is to act in concert within a common framework. There will be global actions such as the support cards and a simultaneous march on October 17, 2000, but there will also be a whole range of other actions. Please send us any ideas for actions being discussed in your country as well as general information on how the work is going. This information will then be made available to everyone through the newsletter and our Web site.

The scope of the task of making our dream of collective global action a reality may seem huge. We need to repeat to ourselves that the energy generated by an action of this scale and the bonds that are being created among women of the world will also nourish future actions and allow us to make waves again and again during the upcoming millennium.

Diane Matte

Coordinator of the World March of Women in the Year 2000

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Special edition of the newsletter on the International Preparatory Meeting for the World March of Women in the Year 2000
Montreal, Quebec, Canada
October 16-18, 1998

On the spot interviews

Our volunteer reporter was on the spot all weekend, with her tape recorder at the ready to collect the delegates' impressions. Through what a few of these women from all over the world had to say, you will get a sense of the International Meeting and its mood.

Saturday morning

What are your expectations for this meeting ?

"I am very optimistic that this group is going to come up with good proposals. You see, we have no colour at all, no race, everybody is happy and really out to achieve something for women."

"This meeting will be different from other international meetings where they use heavily loaded jargon and they don't look at the essence, at the meaning and the misery of people (…) I'm expecting that this meeting will be for the people as it comes from within the experience of people (…) I suppose that the working classes and the suffering classes are represented here so I think it will be different from the other meetings."

"There are about 140 women from 65 different countries here and it impresses me to see the enthusiasm and the sense of solidarity that their togetherness is bringing. I hope that we will be able to take the same enthusiasm back home to unite women in our own countries so that we can take the messages across the borders of Canada into the world, to raise a certain awareness about the position of women and on violence and poverty and the suffering that they have to go through so that we can maybe just create a bit of understanding for each other, men, women all over the world, for the position of women in the time we are living in."

Do you think the women will come to an agreement ?

"The issues about violence against women is a global thing and we have countries that are poorer than other countries. I think the whole world is going into a phase where there is less money for everybody. In our backgrounds and culture, the issues like violence against women are a global phenomenon, so I think all women here can identify with those general and global issues."

"You know it's difficult because yesterday we were discussing the document and it's difficult to prepare a final document here. We have to go back and we have to talk with our membership or our people at home and I think it's also important to discuss these things with the women. For example if I'm working with women workers and I'm talking about them I should talk with them first, then what we can do is, we can translate the document, that will come out after the consensus so we can go back (…) and then we can talk to our own people that will decide about that and then we will send our contribution (...)"

"We will come out with at least some concrete proposals to make the March successful in the year 2000. We want proposals that at least our government can take into account."

Saturday afternoon

Do you think the issues the March will be concerned with were clarified today?

"Yes.... Time just flew by, so we have obviously been swept up by our enthusiasm since yesterday. We maintain the same enthusiasm and hope, and let me tell you that in our group we reached a consensus on everything, which means we share the same hopes and the same convictions. We also have to take the same actions worldwide because we agreed that the World March is first and foremost local and national. There are national demands, there are local demands, but some demands are shared by all women.... We're going to show our strength by marching and our shoes are ready."

"For sure, because first at the plenary all the women presented their country's situation; in relation to the demands, some interests were raised. When we went to the workshops, it was the same thing. We went into greater depth, we looked at how the demands had to be adjusted for each continent, each country.... Agreement is taking shape among all women from the South, North, East and West."

Saturday evening

What are your thoughts about today's discussions?

"My feeling is that the document is a bit closed, that is, I think we're discussing it point by point, but it will be hard to change completely. I know that today, on the basis of what we discussed in each one of the workshops, a Writing Committee will have that task -- a very difficult job. I don't know if all of us will be satisfied. I think the goals of the March are clear, they are clearer than before.... The methodology of how the March will be implemented is still not very clear -- at least not to me. I don't know if it will congregate in one single place or if, as we suggested, there will be regional marches some of which might meet up together somewhere else.... I think that so far the project is just a dream, it is something that will be wonderful, the idea of marching, but I don't believe that everyone knows how to go about it in concrete terms."

Sunday morning

What are your thoughts after the first day?

"Yesterday we heard from women from all over the world and it was interesting to hear about their problems and their points of view. It was especially interesting for me to hear the economic problems which are important for the Third World (…) Some problems were new for me, for example, the possibility of cancelling the debt for the countries of the Third World. It seems to me very important to make real changes and the possibility to find other economic solutions to improve women's situation in the Third World. We should support them to increase influence and make a difference."

"I feel good about all of us being in a movement, building something together... we feel we're involved in this together, growing together, and the discussions are sometimes heated but we also reach consensus and that makes us feel stronger."

Do you think that the women seem to be able to accept to join around some common demands?

"Yes, I think that especially from economic points of view there are big differences, and political ones as well (…) but I think that we should find the common solutions to the common problems which all women will support."

Do you think the issues are clearer after a day of discussion?

"Yes, first of all it's calmer; it was the first time Françoise David took the floor and said that the main issue here was to rally together in order to take action. That made me feel a bit calmer. There was also a woman from Bolivia who felt she had to appeal to our generosity to find the common ground that will allow us to stage actions together. I believe that is the basis.... I think we must build our forces and we do that by organizing at the grass-roots level, mass movements, so it's good to do things like this everywhere in the world."

"Yes, for sure the issues seem clearer to us than on the first day, but I think we also realized this will take a lot of effort and a lot of imagination -- a lot of resources too to meet those goals. So I feel the meetings we are having are very fruitful at this time. I also think there will be solutions and proposals that will surely lead us to achieve the goal of the year 2000."

And now do you think the project looks more concrete?

"Of course, I think our being here together is a good thing and we have managed to understand one another.... and it is necessary for us to have a clearer idea of what we are going to do. I think the rest is important and we have a lot of work to do in the next two years, but I think we will leave here feeling stronger, am I right?"

Did you observe points on which the women agreed, meeting points, during yesterday's discussions?

"Well, on the subject of poverty, in our group there were people who thought these were very long-term demands that would be difficult to achieve. So it's hard to get people involved in the fight to cancel the debt or to have the Tobin tax implemented.... And another thing: we must change the order of things. Today it's the economy that runs everything, but politics must be put ahead of it. There is consensus on this point, but we don't really know how this will come about."

How do you see the outcome of the discussions this morning on the demands and the actions to take?

"I would say the outcome is clearly positive.... We saw the women's determination to come up with actions to do away with all these ills in the world."

"I am favourably impressed. For me, it is a unique experience... to see so many women from all over the world gathered together to discuss their problems. To me that was fantastic. This is not my first experience, but this time I felt the women were so galvanized that I said to myself, ‘That's it, we're ready to go.' Still, I hope that in the coming two years we can get really organized in different countries to move forward. We have talked enough, it's time to start taking concrete steps."

" It's important to look at what we can do to advance together, to solve these problems to some extent because no one is going to do it for us. We're the ones, we women, who must mobilize. I met my sisters from all continents and we talked during the sessions and outside the sessions about what we can do and what we want to do. It's fabulous and I am sure we will succeed."

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Special edition of the newsletter on the International Preparatory Meeting for the World March of Women in the Year 2000
Montreal, Quebec, Canada
October 16-18, 1998

Collaborations

Editorial Committee:

Vivian Barbot Lymburner
Suzanne Biron
Nancy Burrows
Marie-Anne Poussart
Sylvie Perras

Women who collaborated on this special edition of the newsletter:

Gisèle Ampleman
Denise Boucher
Denise Caron
Françoise David
Maureen Dennie
Janice Harvey
Diane Matte
Ginette Richard

Design: Rouleau-Paquin Design Communications

Printer: Payette & Simms Inc.

Photographers :

Denise Dextraze
Caroline Hayeur
Julie Lanctôt

Translation into English:
Elise Boyer and Nicole Kennedy

10000 copies of this special edition of the newsletter were printed.
Published by the World March of Women in the year 2000
110, rue Ste-Thérèse, bureau 307, Montréal,
Québec, Canada H2Y 1E6.
Ce bulletin est disponible en français. Este boletin está disponible en español.

If your group wishes to participate in the March, please send us a sign-up coupon.
To obtain one, or for any other information please contact us.
Telephone (1) 514-395-1196 Fax (1) 514-395-1224
E-mail address: marche2000@ffq.qc.ca.
Web site: www.ffq.qc.ca