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Plenary III : Partnerships and the role of cities
/ municipalities
Panelists:
Edson Sardano [E.S.]
Myriam Garcés [M.G.]
Elisabeth Arnold [E.A.]
Question/Comment No. 1
[?] : Mr. Sardano's presentation is very refreshing. Participation,
partnership, and dialogue between local authorities and women are all
essential. However civil employees often change... I would like to know
what mechanisms ensure the sustainability of dialogue between partners?
How do you encourage building collaborative links between partners that
will endure?
Reactions No. 1
[E.A.] : It is necessary to repeat the same message over and
over in order for it to get through. It takes time to change mentalities
and structures. It is also necessary to find local advocates and spokespeople,
therefore: (1) elect women, (2) press for equal access to
employment for both women and men in the political sphere, and (3)
locate funding for such initiatives.
[M.G.] : We must create autonomous organizations that will not be
politically manipulated. At this level, NGOs play a fundamental
role. If we incorporate women into existing mechanisms and create local
surveillance mechanisms to watch and ensure that politicians live up
to their commitments to women's issues, women will truly become citizens.
We must work to improve the quality of women's citizenship so that
women will become true citizens with all the inherent and equal rights
of citizens.
[E.S.] : In Brazil, much of the population is feminine, black, and poor.
Our elected officials, however, are wealthy white men. This discrepancy
can not be overlooked.
Question/Comment No. 2
[?] : Women must act to increase the participation
and representation of female citizens in decision-making. When women
represent and speak for the interests of their fellow female citizens,
women's diverse personal needs in the domestic sphere are translated and
represented at the public and political levels. Can we go further beyond
this and now start to talk about the possible changes that can be made
to unequal power relations between women and men? What has been done in
Ottawa (Canada)?
Reaction No. 2
[E.A.] : Consultations have rarely really taken women's
concerns into consideration. A goal of our research was to increase
the participation of diverse women - as representatives of a truly representative
female participation - beginning with discussions on the barriers that
women meet when they try to access and use municipal services. We quickly
realized that women need to be educated on the services that exist in
their community and what area of government they are under or replace.
Women have learned even more from each other on how to engage and discuss
their concerns with the city. This process is ongoing and continuous.
Question/Comment No.
3
[Martinique] : I believe that one solution would be to establish recognition
of women's rights as citizens. As citizens, women have the right to safety,
to use public space, transport, etc. Women make up half of the population
- their rights as citizens have to be acknowledged and advocated.
Reactions No. 3
[M.G.] : We must also ask ourselves what will motivate women to become
active. If it is safety, then we must act on this and organize our efforts,
create committees... in short, we must mobilize. This is most efficient
when women themselves have identified the key problems that they face.
If women wish that men be involved in safety efforts, then that is what
should be done. We must also strengthen the process of municipal decentralization.
In summary, we must take into account the creative ideas of women. For
example, a sort of community alarm system has been created where every
house has two security alarms. This way, women can also alert the community
if they are victims of violence.
[E.A.] : Yes. Women must be involved in the things and decisions that
affect us the most. This is the first step. The next step is to have
elected female officials, what will infuse change into organizational
culture - and that is much more difficult.
Question/Comment No.
4
[UN-Habitat] : I would like to congratulate Mr. Sardano for his charismatic
leadership. We know that safety is largely in the hands of the police.
Police culture can harbour chauvinist values that are shared by both male
and female police officers alike. This makes it clear that involving women
in safety efforts is not sufficient in itself. How can we train male and
female police in such a way as to encourage a revolution of mentality
within police institutions, cultures, and families?
Reactions No. 4
[E.S.] : You know that homosexual and black activists say that their
worst enemies are military police. Women say this as well. Personally,
I had to change my conception, my way of thinking. I went to live with
them in their communities. Living with others is the best way to begin
to change mentalities: social interaction, visiting, going to live within
a group in order to get to know them, their human and their personal
social status. Police training can sometimes dehumanize. These police
must be given a dose of reality.
[M.G.] : Security is too often a question of repression. Police are
repressive and chauvinist. We must address these gaps by training
community police, involving new recruits, and having this training done
by women.
Question/Comment No.
5
[San Salvador] : What recommendations for action can we make to involve
all municipal services in the application and delivery of egalitarian
policies? Municipal police can contribute to responding to women's demands
however civil police do not have a lot of public confidence... after the
war... the rapes... What can we do so that the needs of women and local
organizations will be considered at the municipal level?
Question/Comment No.
6
[South Africa] : In Durban, we completely revised our policies and consulted
the population in order to know what measures women wanted to see taken
locally. We identified programs for women that aimed to reduce their level
of poverty. These projects were piloted by women themselves.
Reactions No. 6
[E.A.] : The challenge remains to elect women who will
represent women's interests and for us to support them once they are
elected. Women themselves must change their mentalities. In order for
a policy to be accepted, politicians must be held accountable and obligated
to implement it. It is therefore not only necessary to ensure female
presence in discussions, but also to pose questions to politicians publicly
with the help of the media. Politicians should be required to respond
to these questions in public. Therefore: (1) help women, (2)
elect women, (3) elect women who share our same values and
concerns, (4) support women who are elected in order to keep
them in place, and (5) support not only female officials but
also those who are responsible for those mandates within municipal administrations
(civil workers).
[M.G.] : Presence at the municipal level is essential. Women must ensure
follow-up on budgetary decisions. This is the role of our women's committee.
However impunity and corruption are also part of the problem - this
is what causes laws to be ignored. We much be watchful for cases of
corruption.
[E.S.] : Society holds chauvinist values and the police are always a
little behind society... Changing this macho culture would encourage
change to police structure and institutional culture. For example, we
should not continue to emphasize only the victim, but rather focus more
on the aggressor.
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