Moving from Formal to Substantive Equality
SESSION 1 – ACHIEVEMENTS IN GUARANTEEING EQUALITY:
Moderator
Marcela Guerra Castillo (Mexico)
Guest Speaker
Teresa Incháustegui Romero
(former parliamentarian, Mexico)
Panellists
Imani Duncan-Price (Jamaica)
Margarita Escobar
(El Salvador)
Suzanne Fortin-Duplessis (Canada)
Constanza Moreira (Uruguay)
Progress towards Gender Equality: CEDAW and the Legislative Agenda in the Americas
Dr. Incháustegui used the Convention to Eliminate All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW)1 as the central point of reference in her presentation, as it is widely considered the key treaty for advancing women’s human rights in the Americas and worldwide. CEDAW propelled the introduction of principles of equality between the sexes into constitutions, and it has been instrumental in the harmonization of legislation along these lines.
The effectiveness of international agreements guaranteeing gender equality was a common thread of conversation throughout the Gathering. CEDAW in particular has been highly influential in shaping the agendas of the most influential international and regional conferences, as well as their monitoring and review.2 Dr. Incháustegui stressed the importance of regional forums, such as those organized by the United Nations Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC). These are important spaces for the exchange of best practices and the consensus building, leading to practical lines of action such as legislating on workplace equality and social protections for domestic workers.
Over the past few decades, academics and other specialists have also shed critical light on women’s equality in practice. For instance, Dr. Incháustegui noted,
Law is a very formalized discipline that would appear to
not distinguish between men and women, yet gender analysis
has shown that indeed we are not at the same juridical standing.
Statisticians using a gender lens, meanwhile, have made important strides in “measuring the invisible,” such as the economic value of women’s unpaid work. This has resulted in more gender-sensitive public policy.
Regionally, legislative advances have been notable in the area of holistic approaches to preventing, punishing, and eradicating violence against women. There are now more appropriate responses, including national action
"
"
The first session of the Gathering assessed the nature of the gains made in gender equality. The guest speaker Dr. Incháustegui provided an overview of the recent history of women’s rights in the region.