Recommendations to the 2009 Euro-Mediterranean Ministerial Conference to follow up on the implementation of the Istanbul Framework on "Strengthening the Role of Women in Society"

Based on the analysis below, the EMHRN recommends:

·        To revise the Istanbul Plan of Action (IPA) so that it becomes a political tool that clearly encourages the elimination of discrimination against women, as defined by CEDAW. This will also constitute an appropriate way to commemorate the 30^th anniversary of the Convention (1979).

·        To ensure that the follow-up mechanism is indeed a proper follow-up mechanism. This will require

• measurable indicators, and the possibility of assessing and analysing progress (what has been done to continue the effort, and what has not) to introduce proper amendments accordingly. This entails a transition from a “framework” to a “procedural plan of action.”
• an independent mechanism that is formally entrusted with the follow-up process and that meets the conditions of objectivity and credibility. This mechanism should provide an incentive to exert the necessary efforts to eliminate gender-based discrimination against women in a way that allows for dialogue between governmental actors and civil society representatives.
• a definition of responsibilities at the regional, national and European levels to follow up on the implementation process and require all parties involved to meet their obligations stipulated under the framework.
• reliance on the principle of accumulation by linking the IPA framework with the Action Plan under the Neighbourhood Policy, and by using the latter as a mechanism for follow-up and implementation.
• considering civil society organisations active partners in the follow-up , monitoring and evaluation of the implementation of Istanbul Plan of Action. These organisations play dynamic roles in advancing the human rights of women in many countries of the region.

A course correction is possible and necessary!

1 – On the eve of the Euro-Mediterranean Ministerial Conference 2006, which resulted in the Istanbul Framework, the Euro-Mediterranean Human Rights Network (EMHRN) issued a report entitled “Achieving Gender Equality in the Euro-Mediterranean Region: ‘Change is Possible and Necessary.’” This report[1] focused on three components: assessing the situation of women in the region, presenting arguments that change is indeed possible and necessary, and outlining EMHRN recommendations in relation to rights of women and the Ministerial Conference. The recommendations focused on:

• Framework: The Istanbul Plan of Action (IPA) should state in its preamble the partner countries’ commitment to gender equality based on the principles of gender mainstreaming as defined in international conventions, with consideration for the integrity and indivisibility of all civil, political, economic, social and cultural rights.
• Action: The IPA should explicitly state the commitment of partner countries to combat discrimination against women and the need to promote coordination among the Barcelona Process: Union for the Mediterranean and the European Neighbourhood Policy with regard to efforts to improve the status of women.
• Tools and Mechanisms: The plan should outline clearly defined goals and clear indicators and tools of action, including tangible means and follow-up mechanisms and periodic evaluation.

2 - The conference’s preparatory seminar, held in June 2006 in Rabat, issued recommendations similar to EMHRN’s, including mainstreaming of gender equality in all policies, programs and projects of the Euro-Mediterranean Partnership, and encouraged the Euro-Mediterranean Conference to adopt a resolution establishing a regional mechanism for follow-up and coordination.

3 – A disagreement between two different approaches in the Euro-Mediterranean region on the eve of the conference illustrated how high the political stakes were:

• The proponents of the pro-change approach expected the conference to yield positive outcomes with regard to the institutionalisation of gender equality and the advancement of women’s rights in the region. Several parties worked to incorporate the conference into the Five Year Work Programme adopted by the 2005 Barcelona Summit to mark the tenth anniversary of the Euro-Mediterranean Partnership.[2] This approach was supported by EMHRN, the participating organisations at the preparatory seminar in Rabat, and other organisations concerned with rights of women in the region.
• On the other hand, the pressures exerted by some Arab countries[3] during the partners’ preparatory meeting, held in October 2006 to discuss the draft plan, represented a change-resistant approach.  This approach rejected three basic pillars included in EMHRN’s recommendations:

-         overt reference to international standards on human rights and women, especially the Convention on the Elimination of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) (the framework),

-         a mechanism to follow up on the implementation of procedures included in the draft plan (institutional mechanism), and

-         a financial commitment (the necessary resources).

4 – On November 14-15, 2006, 35 countries participated in the Ministerial Conference and issued a framework for action which is commonly referred to as the “Istanbul Plan of Action.”  At the event, the partners announced their commitment to work in two directions:

• “To strengthen the role of women in the political, civil, social, economic, and cultural spheres as well as to fight discrimination.” The partners stressed that “equal participation of women and men in all spheres of life is a crucial element of democracy” and emphasised the need to “mainstream women’s full enjoyment of human rights,” including political, civil, social, economic and cultural rights.
• To achieve the above objectives within a five-year plan (2006-2010), while following up on/reviewing the implementation process by holding an annual meeting of the Euro–Mediterranean Committee at the level of experts and senior officials, and by instructing the Euro-Mediterranean Annual Conference of Foreign Ministers in 2009 to assess the progress made in the implementation of these measures.

5 - The outcomes of the Istanbul Conference reflect some degree of agreement between the two approaches mentioned above. In return for omitting any explicit reference to equality in the document’s title and using, instead, the vague term of “strengthening the role of women in society,” references to international conventions on the rights of women were included in the body text. This trade off caused the document to lose its political power and required symbolism. Despite the significance of referring to such conventions in the document’s body, at the level of initial endorsement,[4] the document’s content was already weak, particularly with regard to civil rights,[5] and lacked activation and implementation tools.

6 – Determined to adopt a positive stance towards the Istanbul Plan of Action, the EMHRN stressed during the conference that there were shortcomings[6] in the implementation conditions, despite the fact that the Ministerial Meeting took into account many of the EMHRN’s recommendations.

The shortcomings include:

Follow-up mechanism: “there is no clear mandate and responsibility for implementation. The absence of a clear mandate and lack of reporting mechanisms result in a serious concern that the plan will not be monitored and implemented.”

Lack of clear assignment of responsibility for implementation: “whether at the national level of individual partner countries, at the EU level or at the regional level, this issue threatens to impede proper implementation, as neither party can achieve a sense of ownership and accountability.”

Very late evaluation: “The Euro-Mediterranean Ministerial Conference planned for 2009 to assess future progress: this event will be held later than it should be, as only one year will remain out of the Five Year Plan to address possible shortcomings in implementation.”

7 - The Network believes that the document issued by the conference can be relied upon and completed in line with recommendations relating primarily to the conditions for the transition from “intentions” to actual implementation. The recommendations include, in particular:

• Preparing a procedural plan of action that is “clear, explicit and goal specific” in the short, medium and long terms. This plan should incorporate indicators to measure progress towards achieving the goals and means of implementation, including financial resources.
• Forming a follow-up committee to pursue and monitor the implementation of the IPA and to conduct periodic and systematic evaluations with representation of members of relevant civil society organisations.
• Developing mechanisms to ensure coherence and coordination between the Istanbul Plan of Action and the Euro-Mediterranean Partnership and the European Neighbourhood Policy, with regard to gender mainstreaming and the advancement of the rights of women.
• Engaging non-governmental organisations in the Euro-Mediterranean Ministerial Conference to be held in 2009 to assess the progress made since the adoption of the Istanbul Plan of Action, and organizing consultations with them. In addition, establishing observatories in all countries that comprise civil society representatives who will monitor the implementation of the Istanbul Plan of Action and prepare an annual report on their findings.
• Encouraging the European Parliament and the Euro-Mediterranean Parliamentary Assembly to be more involved in following up on the implementation of the plan. Holding regular conferences of Euro-Mediterranean foreign ministers to follow up on the implementation of the Istanbul Plan of Action and prioritise gender issues at the national level and at the various levels of the European Union.

8 - The recommendations remain in effect at three levels:

• The first level involves the existence of the Istanbul Plan of Action itself. Two years have passed since the IPA was adopted, but many concerned parties have no knowledge of it. This included non-governmental organisations even in countries where governments are open to civil society actors. Non-governmental organisations have a double role to play in following up on the implementation process, as they can contribute directly to activating the IPA through advocacy and/or services-related activities in their respective fields, and they can hold governments accountable for their commitments.
• The second level relates to the two principal elements essential for following up on the implementation: First, putting procedures in place to identify clear objectives and develop[7] measurable indicators. Second, regarding the mechanism needed to ensure that there is a follow-up process, the past two years have confirmed the validity of EMHRN’s concerns in relation to the points mentioned above. This is confirmed by the recently issued European Commission Report on the implementation[8] of the outcome of the Istanbul Conference 2006-2007.
• The third level involves the separation of the “Istanbul Framework” from the rest of the Euro-Mediterranean Partnership mechanisms, whether in connection with partnership agreements or neighbourhood policies. This separation weakens the impact of the IPA. Partnership agreements concluded with several countries in the region do not include the gender standards issue and do not mention the impact they have on women.

9 - The document adopted in November 2006 is entitled “Conclusions of the Ministerial Conference on Strengthening the Role of Women in Society” and adopts a “framework” rather than a “plan of action” in the conventional sense, in that measures outlined as commitments are increasingly becoming general recommendations. The lack of action at this point and the failure to transform the “framework” into a “procedural plan of action” with a defined timetable have rendered the follow-up and evaluation of governments’ fulfilment of their commitments a difficult, if not impossible, task. Further proof of this is provided by the difficulties mentioned in the implementation review,[9] and indicated above, regarding the disparity of governments’ responses in terms of accuracy and clarity of goals. It should be noted that the report and the questionnaire were very general, and so were governments’ responses.[10] In the cases of several countries, accomplishments with regard to the implementation of the IPA were very unclear, as some countries included actions dating back to the 1990s.

10 - In the absence of a follow-up and evaluation mechanism, the adopted “mechanism to examine”[11] the implementation of the Istanbul commitments focused on the “accomplished activities.” We therefore find a long list of “achievements” (which basically include any actions taken in the field, without any assessment or analysis), and the report concludes by asserting that “this implementation review - based upon information provided by the partner countries themselves – indicates that women’s rights and gender equality have entered the developmental mainstream of Euro-Mediterranean societies.”[12] In spite of some reservations expressed in the introduction of the report, there is no further elaboration of this conclusion.

11 - Contrary to this conclusion, the data available to the EMHRN indicate significant shortcomings in the institutionalisation of gender equality in several Euro-Mediterranean countries, especially in the South and East Mediterranean. These shortcomings include:

• Countries continue to maintain their reservations to the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW).
• Current public policies and legislation in the countries under discussion still reflect discrimination against women.
• There is evidence of discrimination and violence committed against women on a daily basis and a lack of legal criminalisation of violence committed against women in most of the countries.
• Violence against migrant women is greatly underreported, and a tendency to disassociate the policy areas of violence against women and migration exists in most countries of the region.

Although progress has been made in some areas in these countries, the lack of a systematic, comprehensive and strategic vision greatly limits this progress, rendering it circumstantial, delicate and vulnerable to setbacks, particularly in the context of political and cultural environments that are increasingly penetrated by conservative currents.

The EMHRN therefore believes that it is important to highlight achievements that are accompanied by proof that change is possible once a voluntarily policy is put into effect to address the structural impediments to achieving equality in the region. The recognition of the gaps between reality and the goal of equality and the analysis of the associated impediments are in themselves important steps towards activating the Istanbul recommendations. However, the Network believes that this option has frequently been superseded by complacency.

12 – Two years after the Istanbul Conference, the status quo clearly reflects the impact of the trend that attempted to limit the aspirations of the meeting. Follow-up on and monitoring of the implementation of the IPA in the absence of a mechanism with a defined mandate and responsibility, and with the ability to put procedures in place for the implementation of the IPA, has effectively blocked implementation on the ground. Instead of holding countries responsible by using a rigorous tool to gauge the extent to which they fulfil their obligations, a number of countries were granted the opportunity to review what they thought was appropriate and to engage in a kind of rivalry about their “achievements,” while at the same time avoiding areas which require political will to achieve changes on the ground.

13 – We conclude that the agenda of the 2009 Conference cannot afford to once again ignore the subject of follow-up mechanisms as an integral whole. The general philosophy of following up, in this particular context, necessitates a readiness to achieve a real impact on the situation of women, and requires the following tools:

• Measurable indicators, and the possibility of assessing and analysing progress (what has been done to continue the effort, and what has not) to introduce proper amendments accordingly. This entails a transition from a “framework” to a “procedural plan of action.”  
• An independent mechanism that is formally entrusted with the follow-up process and that meets the conditions of objectivity and credibility. This mechanism should provide an incentive to exert the necessary efforts to eliminate gender-based discrimination against women in a way that allows for dialogue between governmental actors and civil society representatives.
• A definition of responsibilities at the regional, national and European levels to follow up on the implementation process and require all parties involved to meet their obligations stipulated under the framework.

• Reliance on the principle of accumulation by linking the IPA framework with the Action Plan under the Neighbourhood Policy, and by using the latter as a mechanism for follow-up and implementation.

• Considering civil society organisations active partners in the implementation of the follow-up process. These organisations play dynamic roles in advancing the human rights of women in many countries of the region.

Even though the bulk of the expectations for the 2009 Conference are focused on the implementation of the Istanbul Framework and on meeting its conditions, these expectations should not overlook the need to revise the document so that it becomes a political tool that clearly encourages the elimination of discrimination against women, as defined by CEDAW, and which will provide an appropriate way to commemorate the 30^th anniversary of this Convention (1979).

In the meantime, and in anticipation of the 2009 Conference, this reference and the gender component must especially be borne in mind when drafting the agendas of the Euro-Mediterranean “sectoral” ministerial conferences, such as the Conference of Labour Ministers in Marrakesh on November 8-9, 2008, and the Conference of Health Ministers in Egypt on November 17, 2008. These conferences should scrutinise relevant obligations within the Istanbul Framework, engage civil society organisations, and consider and concentrate on how to implement the recommendations.

September 22, 2008