Instituto de Genero, Derecho y Desarrollo

Over 15,000 women, including members of INSGENAR, analyzed, discussed and motioned proposals at some 44 workshops which were designed to cover all aspects of women's struggles such as work, violence, sexuality, contraceptives, abortion, unemployment, human rights, etc. The Meeting took place in Rosario, Argentina, August 16th - 18th, 2003.

The 18th National Gathering of Women in Argentina resulted in Great Success

Argentina, September 2003

Women members of INSGENAR participated actively in various workshops within the frame of the National Gathering, either as Coodinators and Reporters or as ordinary attendants, to discuss the different subjects related to Human Rights, Sexual and Reproductive Rights and Strategies for safe and legal abortion.

Over 15,000 women analyzed, discussed and motioned their proposals at the 44 workshops which were organized to cover all aspects of women's struggles. On Sunday afternoon they manifested marching in great numbers through Rosario's streets, wearing symbolic green scarfs to show their adhesion to women's rights and for the right to decide by themselves over abortion and in favour of removing its legal punishment. Also, Mendoza Province was the chosen location to be the headquarters site on the next National Gathering, in 2004.

We agree with the conclusions arrived by the Human Rights Workshop: "This Workshop, coordinated by Nora Cortiñas, makes an integrated Human Rights' approach by working them on, along with political and civil rights as well as with economical, social and cultural rights.

1. Women Inmigrants' Rights: It was motioned to send written petitions addressed to President Néstor Kirchner and to the INADI asking for a revision of the Inmigrants Law, in order to up-date it in full accordance to the International Treates ratified by Argentina and related to Inmigrants' Human Rights.
2. Responsibles for the Genocide: This Workshop suggests that everyone responsible for genocide be judged in Argentina only on the basis of effective justice, otherwise they would rather be judged outside the country, by an International Court of Justice. We support Human Rights Organizations on this matter. We demand that the Laws of Reprieve and Impunity to be declared unconstitutional by the Argentine High Court of Justice. Our position is against reprieving lese-humanity crimes. We demand the Argentine Government to make effective the UN international recommendation as of October 2000, according to which it is advised to empeach the access to Government Positions (or holding positions as Public Officers), to anyone found responsible for the infringement of Human Rights.
3. The application of any economic-type model, being its consequence the unequal distribution of wealth, is the main cause of infringement of DESC, affecting mostly the women population, as a majority. We demand the Argentine Government to implement effective policies to guarantee the full vigour of those rights.
4. Based on the grounds that no social protest should be legally punished or criminalized, we ask an Amnesty Law for Social Fighters to be passed.
5. We ask the Executive Power to return to the Senate the Facultative Protocol of the Committee for the Elimination of all forms of Discrimination Against Women, for its urgent approval.
6. We demand a rapid judicial resolution about crimes still unpunished, such as the Santiago del Estero case, Kosteky and Santillán; Alejandra Zarza and Sergio Avalos in Neuquén, and many others, that make evidence of complicity between the judicial power with the political power and the repressive forces. There should be no privileges for any member of the Police forces who were found responsible for any crime. We denounce, 17 cases of death occurred monthly, occasioned by, the so- called "gatillo fácil". (quick triggering).
7. We denounce great difficulties and hindrances to reach the judicial instances, in all cases of violence against wome; usually these cases remain unpunished. Also, we note that in the majority of judgements there are strong discriminatory prejudices about the gendre condition. We ask for the freedom of Romina Tejerina, in Jujuy and for the investigation of a discriminatory case in Flor de Tandil (Pcia. de Buenos Aires). We denounce the inspections made by frontier military forces (gendarmery) in some Provinces located along the country boundaries. We sympathize with the wives and children of Cuban citizens in prison in the USA, supporting their right of visiting them and we claim for justice in order to convert this illegal situation.
8. We formally oppose to ALCA, to the settlement of military bases in our national territory, to the nuclear waste disposal and to the legal inmunity for USA citizens within the boundaries of our country.
9. We propose that the terms of Neuquen's Provincial Law Nr. 24.031, allowing the fallopian tubes ligature and vasectomy surgeries, to be a de-criminalized practise all over the country, and we motion in favour of its adoption by all the rest of the Argentine Provinces. We also claim for the de-criminalization of abortion, thus asssuring full vigour to the sexual and reproductive rights.
10. We ask to take all necessary steps in order to guarantee that anyone performing activities in the educational field be trained and examined in Human Rights principles.
11. We suggest that in future Gatherings, the Organizing Committee should be democratically integrated, having representatives from all the Organizations attending to this Gathering.

COMMENTS: This Workshop was held with the participation of 97 women who agreed with the above conclusions. Except 5: opposing on the abortion issue; 4 against the fallopian tubes ligature, and 3 against the optional Protocol.

STRATEGIES:

1. This Workshop will open an e-mail through which all its participant- members will be able to communicate so as to carry out the above mentioned motions. The address is: ddhhencuentromujeres@argentina.com
2. On Sept.28, 2003, we plan to make a protest at national level which will take place simultaneously in all Argentina provinces, with the purpose of handing in a copy of this Workshop's Conclusions to the National, Provincial and Town Authorities in order to claim for their immediate compliance.