European And International
- focus on Engender’s priority areas: poverty, violence against women and access to decision making in an international context
- improve links between international/European issues and Engender’s work, including past and present transnational work
- involve other organisations working on similar areas
Members contribute to the: - Women’s National Commission’s Violence Against Women Working Group,
and their
Women’s National Commission’s International Network
- United Kingdom Joint Committee of Women (UKJCW)
- European Women's Lobby
- Gradus transnatio
nal partnership
The United Kingdom Joint Committee of Women links the four nations of the UK and informs the European Women's Lobby. From October 2006, Engender has been the UK representative on the EWL.
LATEST NEWS
Feb 2010 UN and EU gender news - see here
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Engender Report To UN Commission on the Status of Women 2010 (CSW54)
The 'Beijing+15' report which Engender has been putting together for the UN Commission on the Status of Women meetings (CSW54) has now been finalised and sent to New York. Here it is! With thanks to everyone who contributed, either at meetings or by sending in comments and additions to the draft report we circulated earlier this year. Read our report here
We're very pleased that Engender will be at the ngo forum/CSW54 meetings on 27/28 Feb and 1-12 March. This is the first time we've been able to go 'in person', although we've had consultative status with the UN for more than a decade. And this year's meeting, reviewing progress on gender equality over the past 15 years and looking at where the gaps are and how we go forward from here, will be a particularly important session. We'll be reporting back in due course.
If you want to follow the action from the sessions, see
www.ngocswny.org
twitter.com/Beijing15
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Beijing-15/204161055761
www.ngocsw.org
UN Committee call on UK to 'conduct a comprehensive review of equalities policies'
Engender submitted a shadow report to the UN Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights which met in Geneva in May. Our Convener, Marsha Scott and new Board member Emma Ritch attended the hearings. We were pleased with the committees concluding observations which made reference to the gender pay gap, poor pension provision for women and the low rape conviction rate as areas that the UK needs to improve upon.
Read our summary of the concluding observations regarding gender here...
We wrote to the European election candidates from the Labour party, Conservative party and Liberal Democratsto ask what they felt the EU contributed to the lives of women and how our under representation in the Euoropean Parliament could be addressed. Read our letter and see the replies recieved so far:
The Liberal Democrats reply
Please sign up to the EWL 50/50 campaign for equal representation in all EU decision making bodies. click on the link to the petition directly http://www.womenlobby.org/site/form_3.asp or find out more about the campaign at http://www.5050democracy.eu/
Engender Report to UN
Our shadow report to the UN Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) was discussed at the meeting of the Committee on Economic, Cultural and Social Rights when they met in Geneva during May. Our Convenor Marsha Scott and Emma Ritch (Scottish Women's Budget Group and new Engender board member) were at the committee hearings and report that the UK govt delegation were questioned thouroughly on the progress they are making in terms of their committments to gender equality. Read Engenders Shadow report here
MEP's Split over widening anti-discrimination laws - April 09
Engender report to ECOSOC: looking for your input
Deadline: 20 March 2009
The UN Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) is the overarching mechanism for addressing women’s inequality at international level. One of its committees, the Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, is meeting in May 2009 and will review progress made by the UK on its obligations for implementing the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, Articles 1-15. This Covenant addresses inequality. It involves a slightly different from the CEDAW/CSW process outlined above, but it’s another opportunity to influence the UN process and let our own UK government know what our priorities are.
Engender intends to submit a Shadow report to the ECOSOC Committee in April 2009. The report will express our concerns in key areas and suggest questions that would be appropriate for the ECOSOC Committee to ask the UK government. For a list of the Articles and questions relating to the UK, click here or contact Carol at Engender (below). The Convention itself can be read at http://www2.ohchr.org/english/bodies/cescr/
We do not need to respond to all the Convention Articles; Articles 3 and 9 will be high priorities for Close the Gap and Engender (and we assume a few other organisations!).
We would like to know what you and/or your organisation would like to see submitted under any or all of these issues. Please feed back to us with comments on the Convention or by contacting our Policy Lead, Carol Flack for more info: carol.flack@engender.org.uk
The EWL have launched a campaign for equal representation in all European decision making bodies. Find out more about the 50/50 campaign and sign the petition at http://www.5050democracy.eu/
The UKJCW have written to Scottish MEPs expressing concern that plans to enlarge protection from all forms of discrimination exclude sex discrimination. Read the letter here and the replies from David Martin MEP, Struan Stevenson MEP and Ian Hudghton MEP.
Peace with Sexual Violence is still War! - article from Pambazuka News about the situation for women and girls in Liberia
Read about Board member, Susan Moffats trip to India and see photos from the Bhopal protest and Chingari Award
Support Rape Crisis centres in Kenya
Asylum is not gender neutral: Protecting women seeking asylum is a practical advocacy guide produced by the European Womens Lobby Refugee Women's Resource Project at Asylum Aid, UK.
Join us!
We need more organisations to join and to benefit from our voting rights in the influential European Women’s Lobby
You can also join our e-group where we discuss and consult on European and International Issues.
