University of Montana ScholarWorks at University of Montana Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers Graduate School 2001 Half the sky: An examination of obstacles to human rights for women Patricia Anne. Hixson The University of Montana Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarworks.umt.edu/etd Let us know how access to this document benefits ou.y Recommended Citation Hixson, Patricia Anne., "Half the sky: An examination of obstacles to human rights for women" (2001). Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers. 5228. https://scholarworks.umt.edu/etd/5228 This Thesis is brought to you for free and open access by the Graduate School at ScholarWorks at University of Montana. It has been accepted for inclusion in Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers by an authorized administrator of ScholarWorks at University of Montana. For more information, please contact [email protected]. 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M$Thests\Martsfield Library Permission ...Half the Sky An Examination of Obstacles to Human Rights for Women by Patricia Anne Hixson B.A. The University of Montana, Missoula presented in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts The University of Montana September, 2001 Dean, Graduate School \z-^-ov Date UMI Number: EP40692 All rights reserved INFORMATION TO ALL USERS The quality of this reproduction is dependent upon the quality of the copy submitted. In the unlikely event that the author did not send a complete manuscript and there are missing pages^ these will be noted. Also, if material had to be removed, a note will indicate the deletion. UMI' DtasfrtiSter* FabfisMmg UMI EP40692 Published by ProQuest LLC (2014). Copyright in the Dissertation held by the Author. Microform Edition © ProQuest LLC. All rights reserved. This work is protected against unauthorized copying under Title 17, United States Code ProQuest LLC. 789 East Eisenhower Parkway P.O. Box 1346 Ann Arbor, Ml 48106-1346 Hixson, Patricia A., September, 2000 History Half the Sky: An Examination of Obstacles to Human Rights for Women Director: Paul Gordon Lauren This paper attempts to inform a broader understanding of human rights by examining the distinctive human rights needs of women worldwide, investigating the international community's response to the issue of human rights for women, and by exploring obstacles to that fulfillment. While women do not constitute a homogenous group, the aim of this paper is to reflect the ways in which expressions of gender discrimination are systematically interrelated, especially around issues of violence, health, access to national wealth and political institutions, and development. The attempt here is to apply comparative data to the status of women in each unique region in an effort to examine womenOs access to the fullness of Universal Rights prescribed by the United Nations in a world system where men hold the reins of power. Data suggests that the rights of women in every society are compromised, either by law, custom, religion, or by all three in ways that men's rights are not. While some progress has been made to improve the lives of women in many countries, the progress has been uneven; in many parts of the world women have suffered reversals. This paper will survey pivotal events and issues that have governed efforts and obstacles to human rights for women. To do this, a historical background of women's struggle for rights will highlight the critical human rights questions. Questions include: the particular human rights needs of women; existing international agreements guaranteeing the rights of women; the collision of rights and national sovereignty; issues of cultural relativism; rights commonality across regions; the importance of rights to development; and enforcement. To answer these questions, data will be examined from leading non-governmental organizations (NGOs), the United Nations, and reports from the United States Department of State. Remedies focus primarily on efforts by the United Nations (UN) on behalf of women, because it is from here that the greatest measurable gains have been made with respect to international standard setting in human rights generally, and for women specifically. Further, the vast majority of states are signatories to the Charter of the United Nations and are thus bound by the minimum standards it sets. Half the Sky: An Examination of Obstacles to Human Rights for Women Table of Contents Introduction........ Page 1—5 Chapter 1............ .Page 6—55 Chapter 2............ .Page 56—94 Chapter 3............ .Page 95-132 Works Cited........ Page 133-139 'ntroduction Women hold up half the sky, according to an ancient Chinese saying, (to which Mao Tse Tung added that the women's half weighed more.)1 But it is only in the last half of the twentieth century that the concept of awoman's world has achieved status sufficient to warrant a qualitative examination and discourse, if not a global acknowledgment and recognition. Despite the fact that women constitute half of the world population, they continue to be denied their full measure of human rights. This violates international law, but more importantly, it deprives humanity of distinct and badly needed human resources and values. The purpose of this paper is to inform a broader understanding of human rights by examining the distinctive human rights needs of women worldwide, the international communityOs response to the issue of human rights for women, and to explore obstacles to that fulfillment. Two recognitions must be made at the outset. One is an appreciation of the fact that "women" are not a homogenous group. There is no monolithic "woman's point-of- view." Women come from cities and tribes, democracies and caliphates, and developed and developing societies all over the world. It would be a colossal arrogance to suggest that a single author might report what is in the hearts of all women, or that one observer could appropriate all women's visions of what human rights means to the them, as well as to their daughters. The attempt here is only to conceptualize a global female world and to apply comparative data to the status of women in each unique region in an effort to 'Jessie Bernard, The Female World From a Global Perspective (Indianapolis: Indiana University Press, 1987), p. 3. 1 examine womenOs access to the fullness of universal rights prescribed by the United Nations. The second recognition is actually an admission. As often occurs when researching topics relating to human rights, achieving a completely dispassionate, objective viewpoint on the subject is not possible. Great strides have been made in achieving a measure of human rights for women, and in improving their lives. For example, life expectancy averages for women worldwide have risen from forty-five years in 1955 to seventy-nine years in 1995. In the past several decades, many women have enjoyed improvements in literacy and employment opportunities. Yet progress has been uneven. In many parts of the world women have suffered reversals. There are places in the world where a woman's life expectancy is less than fifty years, and where only a small minority is able to read or write. What is more, women constitute a clear majority of the world's poor, accounting for over seventy percent of those living in poverty.2 The United Nations proclaims through the Universal Declaration of Human Rights that "All human beings are bom free and equal in dignity and rights."3 Yet the rights of women in every society are compromised, either by law, by custom, or both, in ways that men’s rights are not. Arguably, a "trickle-down" theory of human rights has not served women altogether well. This paper will attempt to address key questions of justice and inequality as they relate to women, and to examine the continuing struggle for empowerment among those who remain marginalized in a world system where men hold the reins of power. The topic is admittedly huge; this paper can only survey the critical events and issues that have zNaomi Nefl and Ann D. Levine, Where Women Stand: An International Report on the Status of Women in 140 Countries. 1997-1998 fNew York: Random House, 1998), pp. 1-3. 3 Universal Declaration of Human Rights, Article 1. 2 governed efforts and obstacles to human rights for women. To do this, it is first important to provide a historical background of women's struggle for rights and to highlight the critical questions taking place in discussions of human rights for women today. For example, and fundamentally, why do women need special human rights status? Do not existing international agreements guarantee the rights of women? Further, with an ever-expanding corpus of human rights legislation, what if the rights of women collide with a society's right to preserve cultural or religious practices? Even more fundamentally, who or what institution is qualified to define what constitutes the fullness of a woman's human rights? Is there any commonality among the world's women that would aid in formulating human rights norms, while at the same time, allowing for cultural multiplicity? What are the consequences, regionally and globally, if the status of women continues to be diminished? And finally, once signed, is there machinery in place to enforce compliance with human rights conventions? In order to help answer these questions it will be useful to examine data from leading non-governmental organizations (NGOs), the United Nations, and reports from the United States Department of State.