Women of Asia: Achieving a
greater voice
Women's organizations around the globe
are increasingly influential in shaping the priorities and directions of their societies.
In many countries, they have helped catalyze and support transitions, drawing a record
number of women into public affairs as voters, activists, and leaders, while at the same
time forming their own alliances to generate reforms. Through these and other efforts,
women's organizations have fueled the global women's movement that has established women's
rights. Strengthening women's organizations and expanding women's roles in public and
political life represent an important part of the Foundation's broader efforts to foster
vibrant, tolerant and inclusive civil societies and build strong institutions of
representative governance.
The Asia Foundation has supported for many
years the efforts of women's groups in Asia to expand their roles. During the last decade,
the Foundation's Asia-Pacific Women in Politics program has helped to advance the role of
women and women's organizations in decision making. IN 1995, the Foundation expanded this
pioneering program to other regions to help link up women's organizations worldwide. Since
then, Global Women in Politics, GWIP, program has worked with a broad range of women's
groups and other civil society organizations, helping them learn and share models and
skills, and build coalitions to extend their influence.
Leadership development: The
Foundation focuses on improving opportunities for women to reach leadership positions and
strengthen their performance in office-including their role in representing women's views
and interests. In Vietnam, the Foundation supports two women's organizations which train
women to run for People's Councils and help upgrade the management and leadership skills
of women serving on People's Committees as well as the local branches of Women's Union,
Youth Union, and Farmer's Association. Women's representation on Women's Councils rose
significantly in the areas where their local organizations offered courses.
Law reform: Women's
organizations are playing an important role in establishing legal frameworks for women's
rights through constitutional and legal reform. Through a project designed to remedy the
lack of labor and land rights for Sri Lankan women, the Foundation supported production
and broadcast of a national television series to inform women of their legal rights. In
Bangladesh, the Foundation supports Dhaka-based organization, B'desh Legal Aid and
Services Trust, that files public interest law suits to challenge the unfair treatment of
women workers, both to set the legal precedent and to serve as a warning to employer
engaging in unfair practices.
Legal literacy and legal aid:
Legal rights education is an important end in itself. As well as critical element of
women's larger involvement in political and public life. The Foundation supports efforts
to educate women about their legal and constitutional rights and to protect those rights
through access to legal aid. The Foundation developed a legal right training curriculum
for illiterate women in Nepal. It has trained tens of thousands of women, most of whom did
not know at the start of the program that women had rights under the law.
Advancing women's basic security: Violence
against women is an urgent human rights issue that is regularly cited by women throughout
the region as one of the most serious problems they face in their daily lives. In Mongolia
and China, the Foundation has supported awareness-raising campaigns focused on this
problem. The Foundation brings together groups working to combat violence against women,
so they can share strategies and collaborate to maximize their effectiveness throughout
the region. In 2000, the Foundation brought together groups from Cambodia, Mongolia, the
Philippines and Indonesia to conduct evaluations of their programs to reduce domestic
violence, and to prepare strategic plans which were shared with colleagues in the region,
transferring lessons learned and fostering networking across Asia. Text courtesy: The Asia
Foundation, Kathmandu, and Office-chief editor.
Success through initiative
Developments on the unemployment front
are indeed encouraging. We succeeded in reversing the negative trend as early as 1999,
when unemployment figures dropped by 180,000. This development continued in 2000. The
additional drop of 210,000 in that year was the biggest since reunification. In the past
two years some one million new jobs have been created. Germany's economy is in better
shape than it has been for a long time, and we are also starting to move the logjam of
reforms. Both factors function naturally to mutually support each other. But it is
scarcely possible to quantify which factors are responsible for how many new jobs.
The JUMP program for young unemployed people
has been very successful: over 270,000 young people have participated in it. In addition
we have set up model projects for long-term unemployed people and for those with low
qualifications to integrate them into the labor market. For instance, the state takes over
a portion of the non-wage labor costs of long-term unemployed people, in order to
facilitate their entry into the labor market. Within the framework of the Alliance for
jobs, we have agreed on other measures, such as job rotation.
The labor market in the east continues to
experience difficulties and thus receives our undivided attention. At an average of 1.36
million for the year 2000, unemployment in the east is too high. But the rise in
unemployment has been halted. And in eastern Germany too, new jobs are once more being
created, especially in the processing and the service sectors.
I think that a number of factors are involved
here. New jobs are created not only in the new economy but also whenever traditional
industries recognize the trends of the future. It is important to realize that in future
there will be a greater need for well-trained personnel. Life-long learning will play an
increasingly important role.
With some 70% of all the workers in the
service sector, Germany lies mid-way in the international table. We learn a lot from other
countries. For instance our Alliance for jobs is modeled on a similar project in Holland.
Of course, each country has a different mentality and thus carries out policies
differently, but we look beyond our borders and learn from others' experiences. The
Scandinavian countries also provide us with examples that we can learn from. For instance
the Danish model of job rotation is has proved very successful. Job rotation involves some
body who is looking for work taking over the job of an employee who is temporarily
undergoing professional training. The former is thus given an opportunity to get some
practical experience, thus increasing his or her chances of obtaining a permanent job.
Former training will be a permanent aspect of
the Alliances' work for some time to come. The future of the labor market will also play
an important role, as indicated by the setting up of a "Work through innovation"
study group at the last meeting of the Alliance. Through this action the Alliance partners
emphasized the importance of modern information and communication technology for creating
new, innovative jobs both in the Internet Company and in traditional economic sectors.
The text is based on an interview conducted
by Martin Orth with the Federal Minister of Labor Mr. Walter Riester for the Deutschland,
number E4 2/2001 April/May issue. Text courtesy: Embassy of Germany in Kathmandu.
France, the ideal place for
sports holidays
-Sylvie THOMAS, France
With its great variety of sites, France
offers excellent opportunities for sports holidays for beginners and experienced athletes
alike, and for people on their own or with their families. It is a great occasion for
having outdoor fun while discovering a region in an original way.
It is now fashionable to spend one's holidays
in the country and every place is keen to have visitors enjoy the resources of its sites.
Local authorities and holiday organizations rival in imagination to propose original
practically tailor-made activities. The days of mass tourism are over and priority is
given to quality with low numbers and professional staff. Sports is also an original way
to discover a region. Walking is an excellent means of taking in the landscape and customs
on rambles which lead you to make a tour of Savoy, the big mountain passes in the Pyrenees
or the lakes and volcanoes of Auvergne.
ON foot, on horse back, by bike or by boat:
Mountains lend themselves to climbing and parachuting, the sea to sailing and surfing and
the center of the country to canoeing and pot-holing, but rambling, horse-riding, cycling
and mountain biking can be done every where. The Ardeche region is great for canoeing and
kayaking and the Cevennes are ideal for touring with a donkey. And there is nothing to
stop you from combining several sports. Hot-air ballooning is making a big comeback and
for those looking for thrills, there is now a sport in Brittany, fly-surfing which
consists of a surfboard and a kite allowing you to fly over the waves. The tourist office
in Benedot organizes weekends or weeks of introduction to this sport at an exceptional
site at the point of Mousterlin, but it really should be reserved for very keen sports
enthusiasts.
However, not every one is keen on extreme
sports and many people will prefer to do a spot of fishing for trout, pike, perch or carp
on the bank of a shady lake or river. For food lovers, organizations such as ANCEF, which
groups' together fifteen holiday places in rural mountain areas, is an expert at combining
rambling or cycling holidays with gastronomy.
Sport and families, a great combination: Some
people will always prefer big adventure holidays to easy rambles but holiday organizations
have notice that tourists increasingly like to combine sport and family activities. So,
nowadays, holiday camps, which traditionally provide comfort and leisure, increasingly
offer sports activities. For instance, this year, Vacanciel is organizing sports weeks
offering a choice between rambling, cycling and motor biking holidays. This kind of
package enables holiday makers to combine a passion for sport with a family holiday, and
free kiddies' clubs look after your youngest children while mummy and daddy go cycling.
Getting in on the bandwagon of this trend,
organizations specialized in sport are opening up to families. UCPA, the specialist for
group holidays, offers its famous water-sports courses, but these pleasures are no longer
reserves for young single couple. Youth hostels have also changed in use as they too now
accept families and offer various activities depending on the region, such as holidays
based on diving, sea kayaking, rafting, hang-gliding and golf. With such a choice, you are
bound to find the holiday or your dreams. |
