[Congressional Record Volume 149, Number 39 (Tuesday, March 11, 2003)]
[Senate]
[Pages S3499-S3500]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                         ADDITIONAL STATEMENTS

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                       INTERNATIONAL WOMEN'S DAY

 Mr. FEINGOLD. Mr. President, I rise to take note of 
International Women's Day, which people around the world commemorated 
last Saturday. For nearly a century, women's groups worldwide have 
paused on March 8 to celebrate the achievements and contributions of 
women in all fields of human endeavor throughout our history. It is a 
special occasion to remember the progress women have made and to 
reflect upon the injustices and hardships they still face.
  When I arrive here a decade ago, there were only six women in the 
Senate, and four of them had just come in with me in the Class of `92. 
Today there are 14. Of the 18 women who have ever been elected to a 
full term in the Senate, 13 are here now. There are now 62 women in the 
House of Representatives--the most ever. And Nancy Pelosi recently 
became the first woman ever chosen to lead a majority party in the 
Congress. Around the world, at latest count, almost 500 million people 
live in countries with female elected heads of government.
  These are encouraging signs that we are making progress toward 
achieving full equality for women in the political realm. But even 
after the great advances of the past decade, women, who are more than 
half the electorate, account for only 14 percent of each House of the 
U.S. Congress. This is just one example of how, in so many areas, we 
still have a long way to go.
  Women have made tremendous strides in the last century. In the United 
States today, more women than ever are attending college and earning 
post-graduate degrees. More women are entering the workforce and 
starting their own companies. But although equal pay for equal work has 
been the law of the land since 1963, on average, women still earn 
substantially less than men. Wage discrimination persists, costing 
families thousands of dollars each year. I am proud to support 
legislative efforts to correct this discrepancy.
  While many women are going to work, many have to sacrifice time spent 
with their children in order to afford child care, education, and 
health care for their kids. Too often, women and children fall through 
the cracks of

[[Page S3500]]

our system. Violence against women is still all too prevalent in our 
country. Domestic violence is the leading cause of injury among women 
of child-bearing age. One out of every six American women has been a 
victim of a rape or an attempted rape. Many rapes go unreported. Only 
recently have States begun to recognize crimes such as stalking or 
marital rape.

  Outside the United States, the situation for women is often far 
starker. Last year, the world came to understand the brutal treatment 
of Afghan women under the reign of the Taliban. Unfortunately, the 
Taliban regime was just an extreme example of the kinds of repression 
and denial of basic freedoms that women face in much of the developing 
world. Women in many places are denied such basic rights as owning 
property. They are more likely to live in poverty, suffer from 
malnutrition, and lack access to education. Despite the expansion of 
women's health care research and practices in the last two decades, 
women still have unequal access to these services.
  Such policies are not only unjust, they are unwise. Numerous studies 
have shown that one of the best investments a developing society can 
make is educating its girls. In societies where women are literate, 
infant mortality is lower and children are healthier and better fed. 
``Women are critical players in ensuring household food security and 
nutrition,'' according to the International Fund for Agricultural 
Development. ``Increasing the economic resilience of the poor is 
largely about enabling women to realize their socio-economic potential 
more fully and improve the quality of their lives. To do so, women need 
access to assets, services, knowledge and technologies, and must be 
active in decision-making processes.'' This is important to keep in 
mind as we grapple this year with food crises in Africa and elsewhere.
  As we contemplate going to war with Iraq, we should bear in mind that 
women often suffer more than men from armed conflict. Women and girls 
are among those most affected by the violence, economic instability, 
and displacement associated with warfare, and they frequently are 
threatened by rape and sexual exploitation, whether at home, in flight, 
or in refugee camps. Rape and sexual assault have often been used as 
weapons of war. The U.N. Security Council passed a resolution on Women, 
Peace and Security in 2000. Yet the deliberate killing, rape, 
mutilation, forced displacement, abduction, trafficking, and torture of 
women and girls continue unabated in contemporary armed conflicts, 
according to UNIFEM.
  Although it is usually men who go off to war, women often bear much 
of the burden. It is therefore crucial that women be active and 
respected participants in peace-building and reconstruction.
  In peacetime as well, women are often victims of domestic violence 
and illegal trafficking for slavery and prostitution. In some 
countries, women fall victim to ``honor killings,'' a deplorable 
practice whereby women are murdered by male relatives for actions that 
are perceived to bring dishonor to the family.

  The Senate will likely soon be considering landmark legislation to 
deal with the global problem of HIV/AIDS, which I hope to be able to 
support. Here again, women must be at the center of our deliberations. 
Statistics compiled by UNAIDS show that both the spread and impact of 
HIV and AIDS disproportionately affect women and adolescent girls who 
are socially, culturally, biologically, and economically more 
vulnerable. In 1997, 41 percent of HIV-infected adults worldwide were 
women. In the latest report, they accounted for half. In North Africa 
and the Middle East, 54 percent of HIV-positive adults are women; in 
the Caribbean, 52 percent are. U.N. experts believe that women's 
empowerment is one of the only AIDS vaccines available today in most of 
the world, and that gender equality should be a guiding principle in 
the fight against HIV/AIDS.
  I have had the opportunity to travel to numerous countries in Africa 
and see firsthand the devastating toll that HIV/AIDS and other 
infectious diseases are taking on the people of that continent. Young 
women are especially at risk. The United Nations reports that in Africa 
girls aged 15 to 19 are infected with HIV at a rate of 15 to 23 
percent, whereas infection rates among boys of the same age group are 3 
to 4 percent.
  Mr. President, the protection of women's rights is vital to the 
success of promoting fundamental human rights. The Senate can work 
towards protecting women's rights and improve the status of women 
domestically and internationally by acting upon the United Nations 
Convention on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women, or 
CEDAW. CEDAW is the most comprehensive treaty on women's human rights, 
addressing almost all forms or discrimination in areas such as 
education, employment, marriage and family, health care, politics, and 
law. It has been over two decades since the United States signed this 
treaty, and it still awaits consideration before the Senate. Once 
again, I urge the Committee on Foreign Relations to take up this treaty 
and finally allow the Senate the opportunity to offer its advice and 
consent.
  In conclusion, as we honor women everywhere and celebrate their 
accomplishments and contributions to history, we must recognize that 
there is still more to be done in the struggle for gender equity. 
Discrimination and violence against women still exist here at home and 
abroad. The United States and the rest of the international community 
must reaffirm their commitment to promote gender equality and human 
rights around the world.

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