Role of International Law in Promoting Women’s Rights
A Speech by Dr. Erkki Tuomioja, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Finland

(Berlin; March 10th, 2014)

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Cultural Diplomacy News

Biography

Dr.  Erkki Sakari Tuomioja (born 1 July 1946) is the Finnish Minister for Foreign Affairs and a member of the Finnish Parliament.

Dr. Erkki Tuomioja, born July 1946, is regarded as one of the most well-read politicians in current political circles in Finland. He was born into a family of politicians, with his grandmother Hella Wuolijoki being a socialist activist and his father Sakari Tuomioja a reputable liberal Finnish politician and diplomat. Prior to his political career, Tuomioja obtained his Ph.D in political science and a B.Sc. in economics. He also has a lectureship in political history at the University of Helsinki.

Before becoming a Member of Parliament, Tuomioja was a journalist and also Deputy Mayor in Helsinki. He became a Member of the Finnish Social Democratic Party in 1970-79 and then again from 1991 till the present day. Between 1991 and 1996, he was also the Vice Chairman of the SDP parliamentary group and was then made Chairman in 1996 until 1999. After this, he held the position of Minister of Trade and Industry until 2000 under the government of Paavo Lipponen. Following this, he was made Minister for Foreign Affairs when Tarja Halonen was elected President of Finland till 2007.

As a student Erkki Tuomioja took part in the student movement on 25th November 1968. Together with fellow students they occupied the Old Student House – known as Vanha ylioppilastalo – the old Students Union at Helsinki University. Inspired by other student movements around Europe at that time; the May 1968 protests in France, the "68er-Bewegung" in Germany and also the period of the Spring of Prague in 1968, the students demanded democratic reforms to the university's administration, Marxist-Lenin study circles in departments, and demanded the alteration of the political alignment of the monthly student magazine Ylioppilaslehti. It was also known to be a revolt against the values of the older generations.

He was also involved in the anti-war group, Committee of 100 of Finland, and took part in the Erik Schüller case, in which a group of students publicly condemned mandatory conscription. Despite his involvement, he still had to carry out his military service and is a reservist sergeant.

Tuomioja was the Finnish Foreign Minister also in 2006 while Finland held the EU Presidency, during which he played a prominent role in EU foreign policy. It is known that he was one of the first to demand the cease–fire in the Israel–Lebanon conflict in 2006. Often making appearances at political conferences, he discloses that understanding globalisation is critical to understanding today's world and maintaining peace in foreign policy. In a speech at the University for Peace in Costa Rica November 2001, he explains that "Globalisation is not only unavoidable but a process, which, on the whole, opens up more positive prospects than new threats." Globalisation has undoubtedly resulted in a crucial interdependence between countries, which has in turn developed a new rise of wealth and prosperity. However, threats due to globalisation, such as environmental and social/cultural damage, unequal distribution of wealth globally, an increase of marginalisation and inequality among people—often resulting in international or regional conflict—are not to be underestimated. Cooperation between national governments, a common global governance, particularly in the United Nations and at the regional level of the EU are essentials in managing these threats.

The terrorist attacks of 11th September have greatly changed the way security is viewed. Not only must we concentrate on inter – state conflicts but also, conflicts within a certain state, terrorism, drugs, disease, international crime and human rights violations. On a more positive note, it is clear that as nations, there is more to unite us, than to divide us. Regional and global security can only be completely achieved through an increase of international cooperation. Non–military means of conflict prevention, crisis management and post–conflict rehabilitation are all vital tools to be implemented by the international community and it is clear that in this globalised world, crises cannot be dealt with unilaterally. Thus, he states that the role of the Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe has become even more indispensable. It is clear that Tuomioja has contributed a great deal of political thought to pressing issues in foreign affairs.

Not only is he a formidable politician, he is also the author of 18 books, including Europe and the Nordic Fringe published in 1991. He has also written a book about his grandmother and her sister – A Delicate Shade of Pink – which won the Non-Fiction Finlandia prize in 2006.

Role of International Law in Promoting Women’s rights

A Speech by Dr. Dr. Erkki Tuomioja, Finnish Minister of Foreign Affairs

(Helsinki,  March 10th 2014)

Ladies and gentlemen,

A warm welcome to today's conference entitled "Role of International Law in Promoting Women’s rights”. The topic of this conference combines two themes which are both close to me, human rights and women's rights.  Both themes are timely and high on the international agenda. 

The Commission of the Status of Women starts its 58th session today. In the next two weeks the State Parties together with the UN entities will focus on two important themes for women’s rights. Firstly, the Commission will discuss the “Challenges and achievements in the implementation of the Millennium Development Goals for Women and Girls".  And secondly, there will be a follow-up discussion on women’s and girls’ participation in education, science and technology and equal opportunities for work and decent work. Both themes are crucial in promoting women’s rights.

Finland’s 7th report to the CEDAW Committee (Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women) was examined last month. We received the Committee’s recommendations just few weeks ago. The recommendations show that, in spite of a comprehensive national and international legislation, there is still room for major improvements.  Finland's main challenges remain in reducing violence against women and in improving equal working conditions, including equal pay. This also shows the importance of implementing laws.

I will first focus on International legal framework for women’s rights.

The non-discrimination principle is established already in the Human Rights Declaration. After the Declaration the main international legal instrument stipulating women’s rights is the Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW). This year marks the 35th anniversary of the adoption of the Convention. The Convention aims at realizing women’s rights on equal basis in education, participation to working life, health care and women’s economic rights. A World Bank study shows that five years after a country adopts the Convention, its pace of reform almost doubles that of the previous fifteen years. This is a clear proof that adhering to the Convention pays off. The Convention established also a Committee to oversee that the State Parties fulfill their obligations in accordance with the Convention. The Committee has played an important role in promoting women’s rights as it has interpreted the Convention in a timely manner and has drafted important General Recommendations. .For example, the Committee made already in 1992 a General Recommendation on violence against women which has played a crucial role for example in awareness-raising.

It is also interesting to note, that there are several regional human rights instruments running parallel to the UN norm-making process.

The oldest regional instrument is the European Convention on Human Rights from 1950. The Convention contains a non-discrimination provision and the European Court of Human Rights has actively implemented and also promoted women’s rights in its jurisprudence in various walks of life both public and private. The Council of Europe adopted the first comprehensive European-wide Convention on combatting violence against women and domestic violence in 2011. The Convention can be considered progressive in its coverage. It is the first ever Convention stating clearly the so called due diligence principle for State Parties. In practice this means that the States are responsible also for acts and negligence performed by non-state actors. The Council of Europe has also agreed on Recommendations on LGBT rights, which is an important milestone for promoting rights of the minorities. Finland has contributed in various ways to the work of the Council of Europe.

Human rights, democracy and the rule of law are core values of the European Union. Embedded in its founding treaty, these values were reinforced when the EU adopted the Charter of Fundamental Rights in 2000. They were strengthened further when the Charter became legally binding with the entry into force of the Lisbon Treaty in 2009. The EU is also preparing its accession to the European Convention on Human Rights. This will further strengthen human rights in Europe by bringing the EU and its institutions under external scrutiny from a human rights perspective.

The Inter-American human rights system is based on the Convention on Human Rights from 1969. The Convention proscribes discrimination on the basis of sex and guarantees equality before the law. The additional Protocol to the Intra-American Convention, the so called San Salvador Protocol repeats the State obligation to act according to the Protocol and also recognizes that different groups may require additional protection.  Since 1994 a Special Rapporteur on women’s rights has analyzed Member States' laws and provisions on non-discrimination on grounds of sex and equality provisions of the Convention on Human Rights.

African Charter on Human Rights from 1981 contains a non-discrimination provision covering sex. The African system has also a Special Rapporteur on the Rights of Women, who has been working together with the UN and the Intra-American Special Rapporteurs on violence against women. The African Union has adopted the African Charter on Human and Peoples Rights on Women in Africa in 2003, provisions of which are inspired by CEDAW and which includes both civil and political and economic, social and cultural rights. In addition to this and unlike CEDAW, the African Protocol includes multiple provisions addressing violence against women and girl child in both public and private spheres

The Arab Charter on Human Rights from 2004 reaffirms a commitment to the existing international bill of rights and to the UN Charter while also “having regard to the Cairo Declaration on Human Rights in Islam”.  The Charter includes many positive provisions, not least the standard non-discrimination provision found in international human rights instruments which include the prohibition of discrimination on grounds of sex. Moreover, it also provides that all persons are equal before law and entitled to be protected without discrimination. However, this Charter has also many shortcomings.

This overview shows that there is a comprehensive coverage of legal tools to protect and promote women’s rights both on international and national levels.  It is also important to note that many actors, including the Human Rights Council, the UN Treaty Bodies and Human Rights Courts, have influenced substantially the interpretation and implementation of legal norms as well as the international discussion on women’s rights.

However, during the past few years, efforts to promote and protect human rights have faced a number of challenges, old and new. The international climate in the area of human rights has become more difficult. It is of utmost importance to maintain the integrity of human rights law in a situation where its universal nature is increasingly questioned on the grounds of cultural relativism.

Especially in the field of women's rights there is a danger of a backlash, while we have also seen some positive developments. Efforts to promote sexual and reproductive health rights continue to meet strong resistance in the international fora. It should be recognized that women who can freely decide on their sexuality and reproductive health have better possibilities to educate themselves, take part in work life and the society as a whole. Finland is committed to continue its work in promoting and protecting gender issues, both nationally and internationally.

In Finland we take gender equality seriously. Gender equality is a significant societal goal in this country. It must be taken into account in all aspects of public decision-making and activities. If asked to give only one reason for Finland’s status as the least failed state in the world I would answer that it is gender equality and the empowerment of women. But being least failed does not rule out the need to do better. One of the areas that needs special attention also in my country is violence against women which continues to be a severe problem. Women's rights cannot be fully ensured, if violence against women is not eliminated. The Ministry for Foreign Affairs published its first Human Rights Strategy last summer. In the strategy, women’s rights continue being one of the most important themes. Also in our development cooperation, which is based on human rights, the promotion of women’s rights is high on the agenda.  

The role of women and girls in armed conflicts was recognized already in the Beijing Declaration and Plan of action, nearly twenty years ago. Five years after Beijing, the UN Security Council approved the landmark resolution 1325 on Women, Peace and Security. Since then the Security Council has passed five more resolutions to complement 1325 addressing different aspects of the issue of women, peace and security. Finland supports and promotes the comprehensive and balanced implementation of the resolution and other related resolutions. Finland has adopted her second National Action Plan for the years 2012 to 2016 to implement Security Council resolution 1325. The Government Programme 2011 states that “Finland emphasizes the participation of women in crises management and peace building.  It strives to promote the status of women and girls in armed conflicts, in accordance with UN Security Council Resolution 1325”.

Gender is also a cross-cutting issue for Finland in mediation. Finland promotes female candidates to international posts in crisis management. We have been particularly successful in recruiting women in civilian crisis management. I would also like to underline that promoting women’s effective participation in peace processes and mediation is extremely important. Many high-level mediators have pointed out that they have never encountered a woman at a high-level mediation table. Research indicates that including women in a negotiating group makes the group smarter, smarter groups make better decisions, and better decisions pave the way for a more sustainable future. Women's participation is also very important in preventing the recurrence of the conflict and it makes peace more lasting and durable.

Finally, I would like to mention a new study commissioned by the Ministry for Foreign Affairs. The study deals with gender equality in global value chains and examines what kind of role development cooperation supporting trade has in the promotion of gender equality and women's employment in developing countries. The study collects best practices and analyses different approaches and instruments that could advance equality and women's employment in developing countries, by means of trade policy and especially development cooperation supporting trade. The study is intended to support the consideration of gender equality issues in the making of Finland's trade policy, especially in development cooperation supporting trade. For that purpose, the study report will propose and recommend concrete measures to back up the planning of projects and programmes.

I wish you a very successful conference and fruitful discussions on how to best promote women’s rights.  And once more, a warm welcome to Finland.

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