GENDER BENDERS
by Jean Guilfoyle
More than mere "cultural differences" will divide the participants at
the Fourth World Women's Conference (FWWC) to be held in Beijing,
September 1995. The FWWC, run by a UN Commission, promises to be a
battle of unparalleled proportions. U.S. feminists, led by former
Congresswoman Bella Abzug and her troops, who have led the
high-pressure Women's Caucus at the UN, have been told by Bella that
this may be their last chance to achieve their agenda. A tinge of
desperation marks their attempts to regain goals which they have
already lost at the national level.
Bella's problem is that, internationally, feminists come in varieties
other than her own. Many are trying to overcome very real,
life-threatening discriminations within their societies. Many are
calling for a redefinition of "choice." Many have objected strongly
to the use of Third World women for contraceptive testing by First
World groups such as the U.S.-funded Population Council, the World
Health Organization, and others-an issue which draws only muted
muttering from the US-led feminists. Bella and her cronies are also
strangely silent on the abusive population policies which victimize
women in the country of the UN's choice-China.
No surprise there. The industrialized nations are all toadying to
Beijing. With their "eyes on the prize" of China's rich energy
resources of coal, oil and natural gas, as well as the cheap labor
provided by China's large population, US business and political
interests "pursue cooperation." Clinton has again granted China the
"Most Favored Nation" trade status. He looks the other way as the
Chinese again crackdown on political dissidents. It is more than
ironic that against a background of recent major media reports
concerning the torture of Chinese women by family planning
practitioners, the UN plans to advance an agenda in Beijing for
women's "equality, development and peace."
Early skirmishes
As with the Cairo meeting, tensions again dominated the debate at the
final preparatory session for the FWWC in New York City. A rancorous
dispute on the definition of "gender" broke out at the third
preparatory session. The proposed definition of gender as "culturally
and socially constructed" was not accepted. Previous UN documents
mention gender but none to the extent of the Beijing document, which
uses the word 300 times.
Honduran delegate, Marta Casco, with the support of Latin American
and African delegates, bracketed the word all through the document-an
action which made it disputed language. But in an unprecedented move,
the plenary session chairwoman removed the brackets and assigned the
debate to a closed session. Led by Benin, several nations rose in
opposition to this maneuver, which they saw as endangering the
sovereignty of their countries.
A "Contact Group," chaired by Namibia, a delegation known for its
radical views, was set up to resolve differences on the definition
before the meeting in Beijing. A "consensus" was to be established at
the contact group sessions which <must> be accepted by delegates to
the Beijing conference. At this time representatives from the
industrialized nations, such as the United States, have refused to
accept gender defined as "men and women." These are the same
delegations which bracketed the word "mother" and the word "human"
(in human rights) as terms which needed further discussion. Within
the working sessions, mention of "abstinence" or "chastity" led to
laughing and open sneers among the delegates.
The latest word from within the contact group (6 June 1995) is that
three options were offered relating to "gender" definition:
* generally accepted usage,
* prior accepted usage, and
* social construction of gender roles. When the Guatemalan delegate,
Mercedes Wilson, repeatedly insisted on associating gender with the
biological difference between men and women, the other delegations
finally agreed to drop "social construction of gender roles" rather
than continue the debate. In a sense, this was a victory, and yet the
result is just a stand-off. The talk of gender in the document
remains formally <disassociated> from the language of "men and
women."
Why this matters
Bear in mind that UN resolutions, whether or not they have the
binding nature of treaties, affirm international "goals and
standards," which can be applied within member countries at national
and local levels. It is quite possible that such goals and standards
could emerge in judicial decisions and government regulations at the
community level. Within our schools, which frequently engage in
psychological and aptitude testing, vague criteria relating to
"gender identity" could have destructive effects on children.
Yes, Mr. and Mrs. Clark, we know your child is registered in school
as a boy, but we find that this child exhibits unusual compassion and
concern, and fewer aggressive tendencies than the other boys. These
tendencies, you see, fall further along the "gender identity scale"
toward feminine characteristics. Now, for your child's well-being, we
have introduced him to Mr. Gerard, a gay teacher in the social
studies department. Mr. Gerard will introduce your child to the life
style which is most suitable for him according to his psychological
"gender identity" testing.
No, Mr. and Mrs. Clark, it is not possible to object to the school's
decision. Here in America, all students have a right to "reproductive
health," with or without parental agreement, according to Supreme
Court decisions and statutory law!
If this scenario seems preposterous, it may be helpful to recall that
one purpose of hormonal contraceptive drugs is to guarantee
"androgyny" by restricting our ability to reproduce in the way
natural to our biological identity. Dr. Allan C. Carlson, a noted
social scientist with the Rockford institute, describes androgyny as
"the blending of masculine and feminine traits into a reputedly new
human type." He points to contemporary views which see androgynes as
blending the "best of masculinity and femininity." If such concepts
were to become the accepted standard, it would only be logical to
offer children the chance to become "the best."
Genetic manipulation in this interest could also become the wave of
the future. It was recently discovered that by transplanting a single
gene into male fruit flies, researchers were able to induce
homosexual behavior. Environmental influences were also noted to play
into the situation. When a group of heterosexual male flies were
mixed with a group of genetically altered male flies, the
heterosexuals began to behave in similar ways ("Gene transplant in
flies...," <Washington Post>, 5 June 1995). These are dangerous times
to be granting to government legal rights to toy with our children's
"gender identity."
Other issues
Two additional initiatives were begun at the third preparatory
session, one led by Australia, calling for a "Conference of
Commitments" (which remains in brackets) and another calling for a
high-level post in the office of the Secretary to focus on "vender
matters."
Other major topics addressed in the Draft Document include: The
feminization of poverty; unequal access to education; inequalities in
access to health and related services (related to sexuality and
reproduction); violence against women; advancing peace and reducing
the impact of armed conflict on women; inequality in access to
economic structures and policies; inequality between men and women in
private (family) and public decision-making; and the "human rights"
of women.
In spite of the fact that attempts to include abortion as a human
right were defeated and attempts to redefine the family apparently
failed at the Cairo ICPD, the ICPD has been declared a "win" by the
secularists because the final document included concepts of
reproductive rights, reproductive health and "unsafe" abortion.
Legalized abortion can still be smuggled into the concepts of human
rights, violence against women, equality and, of course, reproductive
health.
Sprachspiel
Language redefinition is the name of the game at UN conferences. At
the ICPD, "political language," with its masking of controversial
issues, its artful omissions of disputed facts, and its aggressive
drive toward "consensus," first came into view for many participants.
We can expect more of the same in Beijing. A clear indication is the
news that closed sessions of delegates will meet <prior to> the
formal Beijing conference in order to remove brackets. Previously,
bracketed language has been resolved only through delegates'
discussions at the final conference.
In the same vein, a matter which has received less attention than it
deserves is the proposed talk of a world "civil community." This talk
was accepted in Copenhagen and will carry over to Beijing. The civil
community is composed of the UN and its member states in partnership
with non-governmental organizations (NGOs). National governments have
long used NGOs as a shield to carry out government-funded programs in
ways which avoided government accountability and controversy. Search
as you may among the characteristics of the UN civil government, you
will find no sign of the "people" of the world, nor of representative
government. World bureaucrats would choose NGOs to carry out
"policy," and the people would have no role but to provides the
funds. We have already seen this happen with the IPPF and US funded
groups such as the Johns Hopkins University Population Communication
Services, etc.
In his poem, <August 1968>, W. H. Auden, familiar with the
confrontational pressures for change in the academic world of the
1960s, reminds us that language can also be used to resist demands
pressed upon us. He wrote:
The Ogre does what ogres can, Deeds quite impossible for man, But one
prize is beyond his reach, The Ogre cannot master speech....
Warned by experiences at previous UN conferences, the people of the
world are now better prepared to continue the winning strategy of
holding before world leaders the <clear> language of the historically
rich traditions that are religiously and morally based. Such
traditions have what it takes to resist secular revolutions.
Taken from the June/July 1995 issue of "HLI Reports." To subscribe
contact: HLI Reports 7845 Airpark Road, Suite E Gaithersburg, MD
20879
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