Remarks by H.E. Urmilla Joella Sewnundun at the Ninth Session of the Regional Conference on Women in Latin America and the Caribbean

June 10 – 12, 2004,
Mexico City, Mexico

Thank you Madame Chairperson

It gives me great pleasure to present to you a brief illustration on the contribution of Suriname to the DAW- ECLAC – CSW Questionnaire 2004.

As a member of the Commission on the Status of Women (2004 – 2008), the Government of Suriname, has considered as its utmost duty, to contribute to before mentioned Questionnaire and by doing so, also to express its responsibility towards the commitments and promises made, at various international Conferences and Meetings.

Today I am pleased to inform that the Surinamese Government is undertaking extra efforts, to seriously improve the situation of women in the country. It is noteworthy that since 2003 the Government of Suriname financially and technically supports various NGO`s in carrying out gender related activities.

I am personally convinced that we are on the right path, in addressing the implementation of the Beijing Platform for Action and the outcome of the Twenty-Third Special Session of the General Assembly, at the same time also in expressing our responsibility, towards the implementation of the Millennium Development Goals.

Madame chairperson,

The National Bureau for Gender Policy, a division of my Ministry, started the process of data collection through a range of Gender Focal Points, established at the different Ministries and in cooperation with Non Governmental Organizations.

The documents studied and analyzed in this process, were amongst others:
· The Governmental Declaration 2000-2005;
· The Report on the fourth World conference of Women;
· The Integral Gender Action Plan of the Government 2000-2005, including actions undertaken by NGO’s;
· The Report on the Beijing +5 Conference;
· Reports concerning CEDAW

The majority of the statistical information has been collected through the General Bureau of Statistics (ABS).

Suriname has undertaken diverse actions based on the Beijing Platform for Action and the General Assembly Special Session (2000), all with rewarding results.

Two of the most important and recognized aspects were among others:

· Women and Poverty

Various programs and activities have been initiated so far, for instance:

1. The CDFS, Community Development Fund Suriname, a Governmental Foundation, which finances projects regarding communities and vulnerable groups;
2. The Micro Projects Programs, with a budget of SRD 9.630.000, which is aimed at combating poverty and social inequality, as well as improving dialogue between the Government and the Civil Society;
3. Child benefit regulation for interested Parties;
4. The Civil Servants Pension Act, which recognizes the right to old age Pension, Pension for e.g. Widows and Orphans
5. Pension for Peoples with disabilities.

There is no legal distinction between men and women regarding access to loans, mortgages, and other forms of financial credit. When the accessibility of women to cooperatives is considered, it appears, that more than half of the members of the two largest savings and credit cooperatives in Suriname are women

· Education and Training of Women;

In Suriname, there are no legal provisions, which prevent women from having access to education

According to a research of the General Bureau of Statistics in 1993-1997, the literacy rate for the total population was about 90,5%

On the issue of teen pregnancy: social guidance is given to teen mothers and junior secondary educated students at school, so that they can function much better in the education process and become productive citizens.

To reduce the overall drop out rate, the Ministry of Labor, Technology Development and Environment had organized vocational training for drop outs and job seekers.

The National Women’s Movement carried out the project: “Women in Non-Traditional Occupations” in collaboration with the Labor Mobilization Unit.

The Productive Work Unit, a Department of the Ministry of Labor, Technology Development and Environment is aimed at the promotion of micro and small entrepreneurship for men and women.

The Women’s Business Group has organized training courses for women regarding independent entrepreneurship and develops entrepreneurship skills.

Especially for women in rural areas, some NGO’s are providing training courses in cultivation and marketing techniques for women in the interior.

Regarding Child Day Care there is daycare for children of working parents up to the age of 6 in nursery schools, crèches and child- care centers.

Further details regarding the other general issues and the core areas of action can be found in the answers to the questionnaire submitted to the Secretariat.

Madame Chairperson,

Given the opportunity of participation on this forum I would also like to take this opportunity and pay close attention to the scourges of “Violence against Women” and “Trafficking in Persons”, because these two problems affect the advancement of women all over the hemisphere.

Regarding Violence against Women, my Ministry established a Commission on Gender Legislation which has the task to advise on, and present drafts for national legislation in conformity with the actions to be taken under the CEDAW Convention as well as the Inter American Convention on the Prevention, Punishment and Eradication of Violence against Women.

Domestic violence has long been ignored and sometimes overlooked. This predicament is still a critical problem in Suriname and many parts of the hemisphere. Women living in these horrendous circumstances are extremely vulnerable because of economic and financial dependency and quite often a shortage of adequate housing facilities.

The most recent and essential legislative and policymaking achievements in this respect are:

1. Amendment of the Penal Code which now considers domestic violence, marital rape, trafficking in persons, sexual harassment on the workplace as crimes which can be punished by severe jail sentences.
2. Introduction of an Act against Stalking.

Other aspects are in a stage of preparation.

The scourge of violence against women continues to be high on my Governments agenda and close and effective collaboration with the civil society sector has been set in place.

With respect to trafficking of human beings, the following could be mentioned.

Trafficking in human beings, particularly women, is among the subjects that requires immediate attention of the international community. Innocent young women hoping to find job often becomes victim of trafficking gangs. Combating trafficking in women has become a fundamental challenge of the Government of Suriname. A National Taskforce consisting of representatives of public and civil organizations have been formed to tackle this problem.

This Taskforce encompasses the following tasks and objectives:
- To identify and diagram the different aspects of trafficking in persons;
- To make specific recommendations with respects to a comprehensive plan in order to eliminate or reduce the identified gaps and shortcomings concerning the trafficking in women and children;
- To formulate strategies and policies to prevent trafficking and to protect the victims.

At this time there is close cooperation between the judicial and police authorities in Suriname and the OPDAT (Department of Justice’s Office of Overseas Prosecutorial Development, Assistance and Training), and the International Organization for Migration (IOM) in partnership with the Inter American Commission of Women (OAS-CIM).

There are also negotiations with French Guyana, Brazil and the Netherlands in progress to get support in creating substantial public awareness and the strengthening of border control.

Trafficking in human beings is a global matter and systematic research in favor of the availability of reliable data is necessary for comparative analysis and the design of countermeasures. There is therefore a need to strengthen the criminal justice response to trafficking through legislative reform, awareness-raising and training, as well as through national and international cooperation.

Madame Chairperson,

Although we have a long way to go in attaining the goals set in the Beijing Platform for Action and later action Plans, I am positive that we will achieve these goals in close collaboration with all relevant partners nationally and internationally and that we will also be able to undertake the necessary steps to realize the main objectives of these commitments.

Thank you, Madame Chairperson.

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