Institute of Development Studies

In search of transformative processes at the Commision on the Status of Women

11 March 2010 - Alyson Brody

The Commission on the Status of Women is a space for governments to review international progress on gender equality and women's rights. Every year, thousands of women's non governmental organisations hope to influence these policy processes through consultations over key messages and text. Yet how transformatory is the CSW in reality? And what have participants been doing to re-invigorate development and gender equality debates, thinking and processes?

A de-politicised Beijing Platform for Action?

One of the key aims of this year’s CSW was to review the Beijing Platform for Action (BPfA)15 years after its establishment at the Fourth World Conference on Women in Beijing. Ask anyone who was at Beijing and they will tell you it was a dynamic, exciting space defined by a vision of transformation for gender equality and women’s rights. Civil society representatives from all regions came together to develop the Platform for Action, which was endorsed by Member governments, and it has provided much of the impetus for the ‘gender mainstreaming’ lens that many organisations have attempted to apply to their work and policy processes, albeit with varying degrees of success.

So it is disappointing to find that fifteen years on the politics seem to have been taken out of the Beijing process. The initial buzz from the women attending the parallel forum has been replaced with frustration as it became clear that at this year’s CSW, consultation is even more limited than usual. Most notably, there are no plans to open up the official political declaration on the BPfA that was agreed some weeks before the CSW. There are fears that re-visiting the BPfA will lead to disagreements and possible conflict over language and content – resulting in a backwards step. For example, some increasingly right wing countries and NGOs could try to undermine key messages on contentious areas such as sexual and reproductive rights.

Yet, a growing coalition of regional platforms and NGOs have been arguing that not engaging with the BPfA – failing to ensure it responds to today’s global challenges – is in itself a backwards step. They are asking: Is this part of an informal strategy to keep NGOs even more on the margins of decision-making at the UN?

Culture as a driver of change

Despite these undercurrents of discontent the past week has still been a great opportunity for networking, and for inspiration in some of the side events. For me, the most resonant message was that, while it’s important to have strong, effectively implemented international and national frameworks, real change happens in communities and households. Just as rights can be contextualised and adapted to local needs and meanings, cultures are not immutable – they are constantly shifting, being shaped by and shaping those who live them. As Jessica Horn pointed out in a session on religious freedom and sexual orientation: “We create culture and we have the ability to change culture”. She went on to say that culture should not be used as an excuse for bad policy; rather its constant flux provides an opportunity for real progress.

Thinking beyond development ‘labels’

In another panel discussion that critically examined the MDGs, Andrea Cornwall argued that development thinking and discourses need to change, challenging the hetero-normative idea of the family on which they are so often predicated. She noted that, in order to address complex needs, development interventions must reflect the diversity of “what it is to be human”, recognising women who fall outside the stereotypes of ‘mother’ or ‘wife’ or who are so much more than the narrow labels communicate.

The transformative potential of the media

Other events explored the potential of the media, so often maligned for its negative influence, as a powerful vehicle for change. The role of informal platforms like Facebook and Twitter for reflecting the perspectives of 'ordinary people' was discussed. One conclusion was that these spaces will only benefit traditionally marginalised groups, including women, if they actively take them up and use them to amplify their voices and share their opinions. Of course, the fact that even informal spaces are so often dominated by men means that this process is not without its struggles.

Alyson Brody is BRIDGE Service Manager and Senior Gender Convenor at the Institute of Development Studies

Image credit: Mark Henley/ Panos

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