[Congressional Record Volume 142, Number 33 (Tuesday, March 12, 1996)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E326-E327]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




        AMBASSADOR FERRARO RECOGNIZES INTERNATIONAL WOMEN'S DAY

                                 ______


                        HON. PATRICIA SCHROEDER

                              of colorado

                    in the house of representatives

                        Tuesday, March 12, 1996

  Mrs. SCHROEDER. Mr. Speaker, on March 8, 1996, Ambassador Geraldine 
Ferraro, head of the U.S. delegation to the United Nations Human Rights 
Commission, spoke eloquently about International Women's Day. 
Ambassador Ferraro recognized the many high-ranking women in our 
Government who perform outstanding service on behalf of human rights 
all over the world. She spoke at length about the many human rights 
violations that women still face, in spite of our best efforts. I would 
like to have her remarks included in the Record.

 Ambassador Geraldine Ferraro, Head of U.S. Delegation, United Nations 
Human Rights Commission, on the Occasion of International Women's Day, 
                             March 8, 1996

       Thank you so much, Tim, for that kind introduction. It is a 
     great honor for me to be here today on the occasion of 
     International Women's Day with so many friends and former 
     colleagues and to have the chance to speak with you about 
     women and human rights and the essential role they both play 
     in our efforts to fashion a new and better world for those 
     who follow us.
       Before I begin, however, I want you to know that you have 
     chosen some of my favorite people to honor today, Mr. 
     Secretary. I am pleased, but not surprised, because each of 
     them has been at the forefront of the struggle to protect the 
     rights of women, each of them fought for the rights of 
     children, the poor, the disabled and the disenfranchised at 
     home before coming to Washington. So moving into the arena of 
     international human rights has been a natural progression for 
     them.
       These are women who are not afraid to stand up for the 
     cases they believe in. Indeed, the desire to fight for such 
     beliefs was why they ran for public office in the first 
     place.
       But many run and only a few win. What we see here are women 
     who have helped make history, each in her own way, women who 
     overcame the obstacles others so often put in their path. 
     Together, they prove that it is not just possible for women 
     of principle to lead, but that the public will support them 
     when they do.
       This, them, is change. And change is what this 
     administration has achieved, both with regard to women and to 
     human rights. You know and I know that this has not been 
     easy. But change is taking place. There are more women at the 
     highest levels of our Government now than ever before, 
     demonstrating their competence, day in, day out, proving 
     their value to the country and to the world--no nonsense 
     women like Madeleine Albright. I don't know how many of you 
     saw her on television the other day, when the Cubans were 
     trying to explain how shooting down unarmed planes in 
     international waters was somehow an act of courage. Madeleine 
     let the world know exactly what she thought of their so-
     called machismo, and she called it, what it was in plain 
     English, as well as in Spanish. Yes, Madeleine has been a 
     most articulate spokesperson for this country no matter what 
     the issue.
       And, of course, there's Donna Shalala, Janet Reno and Hazel 
     O'Leary, handling complex Cabinet portfolios with skill and 
     determination. And here in the State Department: Robin Raphel 
     is doing an excellent job with India and Pakistan; Tony 
     Verstandig is making real contributions to the Middle East 
     Peace Process; Melinda Kimble, proved herself a leader at the 
     Beijing Women's Conference; and Nancy Ely-Raphel made a 
     vital contribution to the success of the Vienna conference 
     and more recently the Dayton accords. Both Lynn Davis and 
     Joan Spero are among the Secretary's most trusted 
     advisors, while Phyllis Oakley has been a pillar of 
     strength on refugee issues. And Pru Bushnell has shown 
     enormous leadership on African issues.
       There are many more of you who also deserve to be 
     recognized as well, women who stand in the trenches of 
     government and do battle every day for the things we believe 
     in. Because we don't have just a handful of exceptional women 
     in Government any more; we've got thousands of them. In every 
     office in every department and agency in this Government, 
     there are women making believers of those who doubted them 
     before. This is change.
       It's a measure of your achievement that this change is, I 
     believe, irreversible.
       That doesn't mean that I think the battle to ensure women's 
     rights is over in this country, that women have achieved 
     equality in the workplace and in their paychecks. That 
     doesn't mean that we have put an end to sexual harassment, 
     that we are free to walk our streets at night, or that the 
     fear of violence no longer haunts the daily lives of 
     millions. Nor does it mean that those who would turn us 
     against each other, pitting those who stay at home to raise 
     their children against those who go to work, have suddenly 
     seen the light. It doesn't mean that the glass ceiling is 
     shattered or that every deadbeat dad is paying for his 
     children now. It doesn't even mean that we, as a society, 
     understand what it takes to be a woman today, what it means 
     to walk a tightrope between family and the work place, at a 
     time when so much is changing and yet so little.
       No, but I'm optimistic because there is a course to 
     history. How many women worked here in the State Department a 
     generation ago--not just in secretarial positions--women have 
     always filled those spots--but as analysts, office directors, 
     desk officers? There was Eleanor Dulles, a specialist in 
     German affairs--whose brother just happened to be Secretary 
     of State--and who else? Not many. Look at your numbers now. 
     Who among you thinks we're ever going back?
       I'm optimistic about the future because I am convinced that 
     the doors of opportunity which we have opened will never 
     again be closed. The gains we have achieved will be

[[Page E327]]

     built on--not only in the State Department, but in Congress 
     and in the State legislatures, on Wall Street and in Silicone 
     Valley, in the boardrooms, the newsrooms and the classrooms 
     of our great universities, in the science labs and in space 
     and wherever the next chapters of our history are being 
     written.
       It will be tough. Every step of the way will be contested. 
     Power is always contested.
       But I'm optimistic for another reason. In 1984, when I was 
     running for Vice President, the campaign had me shy away from 
     emphasizing women's issues. I didn't have to prove to anyone 
     where I stood on equity for women. I had to convince ``the 
     guys'' that I had the courage and the intelligence to run the 
     country. But it didn't make sense. How can a woman not 
     address the needs of women? And so in late October, right 
     before the election, I gave my one and only women's speech, 
     It addressed every issue we care about and have fought for 
     over the last dozen years. I was concerned that somehow the 
     message would be lost if we didn't bring in the other half of 
     the population, and so I said: ``I am not only speaking to 
     women here tonight. Every man is diminished when his daughter 
     is denied a fair chance; every son is a victim when his 
     mother is denied fair pay.''
       Those are the same points we make when we discuss women's 
     rights as human rights as the First Lady did so eloquently in 
     Beijing. Allowing women full participation in society 
     benefits not just them, but society as a whole.
       Many of you participated in one way or another to the 
     effort which made the Beijing Women's Conference such a 
     success. I was privileged to be part of the delegation. It 
     was one of the most fascinating and exhilarating events I've 
     ever attended. The platform for action we adopted commits the 
     nations of the world to halting violence against women, 
     protecting their rights to free speech, health and education, 
     and establishing a higher standard of respect for women's 
     rights than ever before in history.
       This, in itself, is quite an achievement. But I don't think 
     that we will have done our job until the standard we set is 
     met--and not just in America, but everywhere. And that will 
     take a lot of work on the part of all of us who care about 
     women and human rights. For we all know how easy it is for 
     some nations to agree to international standards one moment 
     then forget them entirely the next. So will it be with the 
     Beijing platform if you and I relax or focus too narrowly on 
     ourselves.
       It is the special fate of America to be the particular 
     champion of human liberty. It is not always an easy burden to 
     live with. Whether we like it or not, the hopes of millions 
     and millions of people across the world rest on our 
     shoulders. And we know why: When the rest of the world has 
     proven itself incapable of unwilling to lead, the United 
     States has accepted the challenge.
       It took two generations of sacrifice to win the cold war 
     and bring the blessings of liberty and freedom to a hundred 
     million people. And now, in Bosnia, in Haiti and in the 
     Middle East, the eyes of the victims are turned to Washington 
     again. There are jobs which only we can do. Not that we can 
     do them all, or that we can always do them by ourselves. But 
     the fact is, we are different; we are a catalyst. When we 
     act, others follow.
       So it is with human rights. The United States has been 
     leading for over two hundred years. That's as it should be. 
     Leadership in human rights is a burden we embrace in this 
     building, in this administration, and in hundreds of private 
     institutions and organizations throughout the country.
       That's why I'm looking forward to heading back to Geneva 
     next week for the meeting of the U.N. Human Rights 
     Commission. There will be a lot on our plate there--China, 
     Bosnia, Cuba and the Middle East. But despite all that, you 
     can be sure that no delegation is going to be more active in 
     the defense of women's rights than we will.
       Human rights are universal, but they're also American 
     through and through. They're as old as the Declaration of 
     Independence, as new as this week's human rights reports. 
     Despite our lapses, our institutions and policies are 
     grounded in a genuine belief that the rights and freedoms we 
     cherish belong to everyone. And that gives us a strength most 
     other nations lack.
       That is why I think that ultimately our views on human 
     rights will prevail throughout the world. One day the 
     standard we first set in our own institutions and then helped 
     establish in the international arena will become the one by 
     which all countries judge themselves.
       Our job, then, is to take that voice and amplify it, to use 
     the power of our institutions and the strength of our people, 
     people like you to hold the nations of the world--our own 
     included--accountable to the standards we have set for 
     ourselves so many times--whether in the Bill of Rights, the 
     U.N. Charter or the Universal Declaration of Human Rights--or 
     more recently in the Vienna declaration, the Beijing platform 
     and our 1996 human rights reports.
       Of course, some governments won't be disseminating our 
     reports this week. They'll be doing their best to silence 
     them. They may succeed in the short term. They may jam the 
     Voice of America. They may censor their newspapers, lock 
     their dissidents in distant jails. They may oppose us at the 
     United Nations and at the Human Rights Commission. They may 
     bluster and rage and obfuscate. But time is no longer on 
     their side. Eventually, with modern telecommunications the 
     truth will find its way to even the most remote outpost of 
     injustice. They are going to find it impossible to kill ideas 
     which just won't die, ideas like freedom, justice and 
     equality.
       We only have to look at Bosnia or Baghdad, to Cuba or 
     Chechnya or the desperate refugee camps in Sudan, Tanzania 
     and Zaire to see how far we have to go. For if women's rights 
     are human rights and human rights are universal--and all the 
     nations of the world have agreed they are--there must come a 
     time when the respect for these rights becomes universal, 
     too. There must come a time when words become deeds, not just 
     in America, but in every hut and every home in every land.
       Yes, I think that time will come. It may not be in my 
     lifetime, but it will come. There will be a time when the 
     women of the world won't need to petition the powerful for 
     protection, when ``poor'' and ``defenseless'' won't be names 
     we give to half a billion women. There'll be a time when 
     girls are not left to starve upon a hillside because they 
     were not born boys; when their genitals are not mutilated to 
     please some cruel, outdated custom; when they are not 
     violated in the name of ethnic cleansing; when girls are not 
     sold into prostitution out of financial desperation; when 
     they are not burned because their dowries are too small or 
     their husbands died before them.
       There will be a time when women will not be either the 
     victims or the cause of overpopulation; when they will not 
     bear eight children in the hope that three may live; when 
     they are not forced into early marriage; when they will not 
     lack the education they need to become productive citizens.
       There will be a time when refugee women will not sell 
     themselves for food; when they will not be raped by marauding 
     soldiers; when they will not be terrorized because they come 
     from the wrong group or the wrong city or because they chose 
     the wrong time to gather firewood to cook the family meal.
       Yes, there will be a time for all of that. There'll be a 
     time when the women of America can walk the streets of our 
     cities and not know fear. There'll be a time when the life of 
     a ghetto girl will mean as much as one in the wealthy 
     suburbs; when comparable work will mean comparable pay; and 
     when we can look out across any meeting room in any county of 
     this country and see as many women there as men.
       But that is some time off. Until then, violence against 
     women will remain a thread that knits the world's rich and 
     poor together. No nation is immune. This is not a problem of 
     the developed or developing world. It is not African or Asian 
     or American alone. It is universal. It is our problem; it is 
     every nation's problem, and so it will remain until women 
     take their rightful place alongside men, in all strata and at 
     all levels of society. For violence is a reflection of 
     second-class status.
       And so as I look around me here and see so many examples of 
     what this country can produce when it nurtures its girls as 
     well as boys, I can't help but feel pride that we women have 
     begun to force history to march forward. But time has caught 
     us in mid-step. Our work, the work of everybody here today--
     men and women--is but half-done.
       And yet I cannot think of a more exciting time to be alive. 
     There is so much to do and so many talented people like you 
     to do it. Women, not just here in America, but everywhere, 
     are on the move, brushing aside the obstacles, defending our 
     interests, our families and our values. Women's rights are 
     human rights.
       It's been a long time in coming, but I can feel the sweep 
     of history now. It's in this room and in this country. And it 
     won't stop here. One day the pulse of freedom and human 
     dignity will beat in every woman's heart, not just in 
     America, and not just on International Women's Day, but in 
     every village and in every nation of the world every day of 
     the year. It may not happen soon, but I know that with all of 
     us working together, its time is sure to come.