1. I
Statement by the Leader of the Australian
Friday, 20 June 1975.
President, The Australian Delegation wishes
opportunity of congratulating imDortant
World
like othec
the Mexican which
be General
WaldheiLm, There are some amongst us here today
believe, pessimistically, that this conference
In
NO DATE
M42 24 June 1975
WORLD CONFERENCE OF INTER NATIONAL
Statement by the TLeader of the Australian
Delegation, Ms Elizabeth Rei at Mexico City on
Mr President,. to take this
opportunity of congratulating you on your unanimous
election to the important role of President of
the first V. orld Conference of International
Women's Year. We are convinced that your
perspicacity and insight, your unfailing tact
and infectious good humour, will all help to
ensure that our discussions are to the point,
business-like and fruitful.
I would also like to extend the Australian
Delegation's congratulations to the other members
of the bureau and express to the: Mexican
Government our thanks for their generous
gesture in hosting this conference, we
hope will bS one of historical significance.
We listened with great interest to the
addresses in the first plenary session of this
conference yesterday morning. That delivered
by the Secretary-General of the United Nations,
Dr. Waldhein, was indeed thought-provoking.
The comprehensive address which followed, given
by His Excellency the President of Mexico,
contained a number of concepts which attracted
the attention of my delegation: Perhaps the
most interesting was the President's exposition
of the-marginality of women in society.
There are some amnongst us here today who
will achieve very little, others who are
concerned that this conference will be
unnecessarily politicised, yet others who query
our ability to produce a concise and sensitive
world plan of action. Australia is not amongst
the pessimists. recent years we have worked
hard to bring about change in our own country
and have learnt much from our successes as well
/ 2
as from our fai2u. res.. We are morei than li,-ppy to
share ou~ r exeancs and1 to benefit from the
exp--eri ence of others buit we do not want this
con: rve.. ncs to degenerate into a needless and
ti1It-, 5ti rig se-ries of corroarison of
a ch ie(--v e i i t'-s-, Vi do not deny-the value of
learning fro, i each other's effort%-s and
strategies but tliere is simply not the tirte
to listen to le--ngthy enumerations of national
progr,--mTa thi-s iz3 an interational confc-rence,
our takhere is to focus on fundamental issues
a. nd ior importantly, to develop strategies
which will provide a framewto rk f1or t%-h e
achiovement of7 our universal] ly known goals.
If this ' 2o-Ference is to be' serious in
m aiit-aining +. hat there is oetigwrong aith
the position. of women in soitthen we have
two art'xedia-te and imortant tak. Firstly
we have to analyse the si-tua-tion, and see why
it is wrong and secondly we MUst work out
strategies fcr changing that situation. The
clearest analysis Which has been developed and
one which cuts ac.-coss cultural and social
differences within and between countries is
that whnich describes thE! inferior position
of wonten as arising from sexism.*
We must cease being afraid to use these
words. Sexism is the artificial ascription
of roles, belhaviour and even personalities
to pec-, le on -the basis of their sex alone.
This do) es not simply create difference-S
but inequ a 1 t -Le. s. We none ie -fin u and
it is imoo33s'ble to imagine liv1ig in, a
non-sexist society.
The fact that women as a group are
supposed to have and indeed are forced to
have, in nmanv subtle and not so subtle ways,
a different kind of personalityi a different
pattern of behaviour as aaroup. has
consequences for their -position in society.
It is evident to all of us that we live
in societies w~ hich are ruled by men in other
words, our socie-ites are patriarchal. This
must also mean that our " womanly ' virtues"
are not those virtues which are rewarded by
society, that our enforced differences are
not as hallowed or valued as they are said
to be. But ofc course it is such a subtle
process a colonization by mute consentthat
although we-have in the past accepted
these patriarchal values it is still
difficult for us to see the way out.
/ 3
3
To attempt to work out strategies for
changing this situation must therefore, be
our primary task at this conference. It will
be slow and sometimes painful to come to te. rns
with the reality of our problem, which reqc. es
as much a revolution in the heads of people
as it does the rmodification of the structures
which reinforce these destructive values.
The themes of this conference are
equality, peace and development. The Australian
Delegation does not believe, however, that
these are separate issues to be dealt with
in isolation from each other.
For many years, the emphasis in
developed countries has been on political
rights, but it has been the experience of the
women in the industrialised countries that
economic rights are as important if not more
so than political ones. We consider that
a demand for a new international economic
order is far from a peripheral issue to the
debates at this conference.
What concerns us is that in the
discussion of the need for a new international
economic order and of the charter of economic
rights and duties of states, little attention
has been given to the role women are to play
in formulatiny and implementing this demand nor
to the fact that women as well as men must
benefit from this revolution. There must be
a recognition that economic and social justice
for women must go hand in hand with overall
economic progress.
When practical, constructive and
realistic proposals emerge from the on-going
debates on the new international economic order,
women must not only not be forgotten, but
their present oppression and subjugation
must be recognised and steps taken to correct
them. Measures must be discovered which
help women to help themselves towards
participation in and.. benefit from the development
process. Women's involvement in establishing the
new international economic order must be more
than mere vague exhortations, insincere
rhetoric and token gestures. The specific
problems and experiences of women, including
the poorest and least articulate, must be
understood. If this is to be done with
honesty it means asking and involving women
themselves. Sensitivity must be shown
towards those wromen the vast majority of
/ 4
4
uwomen t _ rotighou'.. til worl. d v; 1iooe voices are
not beL! g heard by Che d: ecision makers.
i. iv-rportiant that th,,=. se pr-obltems not
be seenI trc-. clh thne eyes of deove3oped countries
alone. At the s. siV. timFn! . each of us are
sesiive to the ilc~. th-wae are be;-t-qualifited
to soeak about ou: r own experionces and to the
need to~ fas that the z!' onmic development.
which h Fs occurreci i~ n our country has not
broughIbt whit lxzcalifid aidvantages for
A ust r a 14ani wc'inen.
-The trarisf-errr g of t westecrn economic
growth-moc: i-_ to orrcc. nti csn longer
seems dealrable. Its hzaomn'I effects on the
live--womeni are only n w being recognisedl.
:*: ocerr econorntic gro"-rIh too often requires
the introduct-ion of ma-ss tehiology, capital
intensive techniques arid organisation and,
genaerally, Lhe away from women of
their t_-radi t inia2. and eco,-omiucally productive
place In the society, rel>_, ating them to a
marginal 1: nd deoend-n t exis3t ence. ' Vocmen
therebv los-e th~ at economic independence they
tradizionall1v had,.
:--caoit-ai intenai'V* e development,
7ent-and unde rmp I oym( ent, hits women
har r 3: he Economic Coiwmui. Lsion for Latin
Amer_-c-as ecl ar3at-ion, amor: ist others, point-s
out and-z the prevai. g cconitions of
lax-:-r~~ s legislatrwie attempts to
guar:=-a e'. al opportuniti 4-s f1or women have
' om-zzs c nsec'uences at best: consequenc? 3
whi: h~ n~ rcethe part played by tr-adiltion,
custc Cliltures, convention and law4s in
consp::: n o deetdeve,& Lopm:, ent. The
t_ : romn ' hsfrcain,~ and Latin
Amer~ cz--n region?! I confer ences all stress this.
Th ose wiomertwn reject the western
pattern of dav -2oor-, D'erit increasingly
large-instit. uItins, distanot workrlaces,
inflex2. ble hour5, a dehumani. Fed environ~ ment
which suppresses the sociasl, spiritual and
culturIA. lives of i. ts workexrs must work
towartds pat-terns of development w4hich do. not
demand productivity and efficiency at any costL.
Efficiency in its comizon and harsh
meaning i. o inimi. cal to divirsity, innovation,
creativity and 4iiurovisat -icn %-hich are
pre-requ~ sites oz' true economic growth and
develcoment.
Development must no-, -is has happened
i n 5-70 ope-d Countries, malle thz personal a
fft~ ale Province and tDan dejprive women of the
ec , TOnnI2.. and p.. lnitical power necessary to
destroy. the di-' chotomy he ',% ween the * personal
and the political0 the home-and the workplace,
the breadwinner and the horrtemaker.
in our view a new -world economic order
must lead to new and culturally appropriate
concepts of de:-velopment boased upon an
interrelationshiip betweea ; ci-and economic
f actor-S.
Having sa. id this, however0 we believe
that improvem-ents in tChe lives of women
canno-t and must not await the outcome of
deliber---ations on the new economic order.
it seems clear to us that womaen tharoughout
the world -wai. 3t action now and that this can
be achie-ved within Dresent resource limitations
and boundaries by a resetting of priorities
as well as a realisatiorn of the importance of
women in themselves as well * as to development.
Women share wit'-h man the responsibility
for establishing a jiust international order
wit-~ urwhich true peace cannot be achieved.
We not f--o:-cet tb--L womnen who have fought,
t-e nd ti-ne again, for such an order and
th,-ho are fighting still. nlut such is
the r-= cedv that even wMhen women and men f ight
a3 brother and sister to free themse~
e~ and their psople ' too often the new
soc~~ v ene~ zits women no more than the old.
Th efr brothers in the struggle carry within
the;-i~ j rthe roots of treason: the myths and
P "~ dces which kleep womien in their place.
-However we mnight struggle for a new order,
the res ponsibility which we as women bear will
be ex-ercised in a different way, for we bring
to the negotiating tabhle different experiences.
WM~ en like the peoples of the third world,
know the effects of opprassion: oppression is
the bitter bread of our daily lives. This
insatjht, born of excper. ience, m . ust not continue
to be considered ir relevant to the attainment
of Doeace: It is this ' isight alone, gained
through the anguish of violence and oppression,
which justifie3 the li,-ki-ng of -women with peace.
Peace settlements. as well as peace
negotiations, have consistently disregarded the
needs and wishes of w,; omen who are as affected
as men by policies for the reconstruction of
societLios and thCCe~. Jean c. f peoples whose
live3 hava bi srupt-., d by ~ s
The 2hsis of rain. r~ a-: ia ( iscriiflation,
cocnraisia e-o. na~~, aiU en. d zionaj; t on
is similar to tho, tais of th violcnce against
womt-en w. hich we call I~; ir. i--tn busEid on the
nleed, -hiLch ifli7 2. b alurt need, for
power overcta~ r humn beings_. Pa t r i ) rch y
is yet azrotl i1o0r1m: 1,: 1 * wC ja3OPJ. C 11.
uwozen add chA.! v10c s ' to the_-rro-1. ing c3 . nnd
for oace. and C these voi! ceIs are ' heard, thenl
the victory w~ J eLbht of rs tiathat
Wny formi of a. o crf~ or domination
i: 3 an immoral. way oflfe
iany ~ i. a~ oil t -need Lo a-ttaiin and
to con~ sider t'he Prev:_% 1-' nC', OK JJZcewihin
so c: et iS The ar~ c'~ t ntre~ mn oval Of
such *: iolen. cae is setiltow: ard s the recognition
and removal ofvi.~ c int. i,_ rnationally.
in this context, * violenca against women
cannot iagn ored. Such -vio) ence iic). ucie3
rape, Jxnola tion: forct---d sterislation, indecenat
assauIt, infibulation, unwvartted pregniancy,
Cxi~ reto~. ' nnaeces. oary sijrgerv and wife
beat:. g and shackl~ ing as well. 1 as er. lviolence.
p-r z~ eo: skstra.-icers. \ Vio'lenrce agiainst
o zten c-n-fltC. d by me n known to
izr: ns. ofti~ fatrhers and hus~ oinds,
Dter--dise re_, p-2ctable and accaptable
ri-ri5 yf Physical assault on
wc~ n~ e:ñ c. ~ the lou.; stat. us of women in
soc-e:.-z. e -eriial to th-em o the right to
r e c and dignity. This low~ status is
ref-. cac noz cnly in the ; DtnrIFtration of
suco-of: v~ c~ rc but by the frequent
sancz7-ning, condoinirng, even admiration of
suen ts
! The con-rinued oppressi~ on of iomen implies
th.-rMia t enalce o-f o.: rov r woman by nien
through their imposition of sexis~ t valuea.
The -n-Forcerent of such val'.. es by labelling and
trea~ ing a3 c~ v n any woman. in any way
does niot act out acrcepted role,;, and the lack
of recogni% ion of -the. worth, cont-ributi ons
and talents of %. jives and wohreis w.. e-ntal
violence. Th-subjugation of women within
and outside the home, th~ e ack of recognition
of women's work., the extrer. E-anuses of
psiychiatrists who resort to -: h1ock treatment
and brain surgery to " rI3ie'womlen who
are unhappy in their so called " p roper role", ae'
7
7
as violent as any physical assault on
women. Violence by women to children, to
the. mselves and to others, is a reaction and
a cry for help against such mental and social
crimes. Until such time as violence against
women is recognised and understood, and
ceases, peace will remain unattainable.
Equality is a limited and possible
harmful goal. Associated with the struggle
for equality have been some needed and just
reforms: equal pay, equal access to formal
education and vocational training, equality
under the law and equal rights to vote and
to run for public office. T'he importance of
these reforms is as necessary pre-requisites
both for the full participation we are seeking
in the economic, social and political life of
our countries and for the dignity and
independence which are our rights as human
beings. But we can no longer delude ourselves with
the hope that formal equality, once achieved,
will eradicate sexist oppression it could
well merely legitimise it. For there is a real
danger, a very real danger, that satisfaction
with the achievement of formal equality will
encourage the belief that all problems are
thereby solved. However even if formal
equai--v were to be achieved, all else still
rezma_-s to be done.
cur deliberations in these coming
weeks-. te temptation to resort to pious
plaziz-des and hollow but resounding rhetoric
will overwhelming. For the breadth of the
task ='-ead of us, the difficulty in realising
its prac-ical ramifications, the unperturbable
ignorance of so many people, the power of the
structures we must combat, all militate against
us. Even if we, each of us here, were dedicated,
sensitive and understanding, we could only hope
to touch the outermost limits of the experience
of most women. This realisation commits us to
enabling women to determine the shape of their
own lives, not because it-is our favourite
political theory but because it is the only way
the decisions made will be the right ones.
We women will-no longer be excluded from
the sphere of decisions,-though we should
reject the concommitant domination and power,
for we have experienced the consequences. / 8
8
We women will no longer be relegated,
either here or in our own countries, to a
secondary oplice when " hard" politics are
being discussed as distinct from " soft"
women's issues. ; e reject this distinction:
it is the distinction between the personal
and the political. It is a part of our
oppression. We women will no longer be manipulated
for political ends, either in the international
or in the national forum, for this deprives us
of our dignity.
We women will no longer tolerate
paternalism, benign or otherwise, for
it deprives us of our self-hood.
This is our conference."
4