Newsletter

Pacific Partners Outlook: From “Witchery” to Empowerment: Women’s Policy in the Pacific

Volume III | Issue 3 | 28th February, 2013

February 28, 2013

Twenty-year-old Kepari Leniata, a young mother, was tortured, stripped naked, bound, and burned alive on a pile of trash on February 6 for practicing “witchcraft” in the Western Highlands province of Papua New Guinea. This grisly scene prompted international condemnation and highlighted a grim reality— acts of violence against women and gender inequality are all too prevalent in the Pacific.

With International Women’s Day taking place on March 8, it seems appropriate to contemplate the plight of women in the Pacific. While not all violence against women in the Pacific is as horrific as the recent incident in Papua New Guinea, the regional standard for women’s rights is low. A 2011 survey conducted by the Vanuatu Women’s Center reported that, during their lifetimes, 60 percent of the women surveyed had experienced physical and/or sexual violence and 68 percent had experienced emotional abuse from their husbands or partners. The prevalence of domestic violence encouraged by the belief that it is socially unacceptable to bring what are considered “private sphere” experiences into the open.

Pacific women also face impediments outside of the home. Although women in the Pacific are beginning to achieve similar levels of literacy and opportunities for education as men do, they do not have the same access to formal employment. Across the region in 2012, men occupied paid positions outside of the agricultural sector at a rate of two men to one woman. In Melanesia, men earn 20–50 percent more than women do because of access to better-paid positions.

The Week That Was

Gillard’s popularity sinks as ruling coalition loses members
New Zealand begins to make case for UN Security Council seat
Papua New Guinea announces military buildup

Looking Ahead

Discussion on gender equality in the Asia Pacific
Trans-Pacific Partnership negotiations to be held in Singapore
ANZAC Day commemoration

From “Witchery” to empowerment: Women’s policy in the Pacific

By Elke Larsen, Research Assistant, Pacific Partners Initiative, CSIS

Leadership positions are also unlikely to be held by women. The Pacific has one of the lowest rates of political participation of women in formal politics in the world, with only 3 to 5 percent of all parliamentary seats across the region held by women, compared to the developing country average of 18 percent.

When incidence of violence, economic opportunity, and formal political participation are taken into account, it is no wonder that the United Nations’ Gender Inequality Index in 2011 ranks Pacific nations such as Papua New Guinea 140 out of 146.

Women’s lack of empowerment in the Pacific is not only an issue of human rights violations; it is a lost economic opportunity. It will be difficult for Pacific Islands to reach their full potential when half their populations are not given the same access to work opportunities, education, and leadership positions. In addition, there is a high economic cost associated with abuse and violence against women in terms of medical treatments and diminished productivity. Gender inequality is estimated to cost the Asia-Pacific region $47 billion a year.

Governments and civil society have launched strategies to confront gender disparity in the Pacific. It is important for the Pacific Island governments to legislate against violence and discrimination. Most Pacific Islands ratified the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women and have legislated against issues including domestic violence.

At the 2012 Pacific Islands Forum, Pacific leaders pledged to place the status of women on the agenda. Despite these commitments, however, it is clear that gender concerns are not yet fully institutionalized. For example, in Papua New Guinea the claims of “witchcraft” that lead to so much violence are often justified by the 1971 Sorcery Act.

Instituting change will require a shift in culture to encourage citizens to report abuse and discrimination and prompt police to act. Indigenous civic organizations such as the Vanuatu Women’s Center and the Fiji Women’s Crisis Center, plus international movements like the White Ribbon Ambassadors program, seek to create a safety net for local women. The effectiveness of these programs can sometimes be limited in reach, however, because of the region’s geographic barriers such as the mountain ranges in Papua New Guinea.

In recent years, U.S. foreign policy has taken significant steps to encourage the empowerment of women. During President Barak Obama’s first term, there was a coordinated push across government agencies to incorporate women’s issues into the foreign policy agenda. The administration announced in 2009 the creation of the Office of Global Women’s Issues in the Department of State and appointed Melanne S. Verveer as ambassador-at-large. The National Security Council added staff that focus exclusively on gender. The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) added to its structure a senior gender adviser and a coordinator for gender equality and women’s empowerment. In 2012, USAID also incorporated goals of gender equality into its programs.

The catalyst for this push was former secretary of state Hillary Clinton. Her tireless advocacy for women’s issues was evident from when she was first lady until her farewell address as secretary of state. Clinton focused particularly on the economic and security argument to help change attitudes toward gender inequality.

One of Clinton’s greatest contributions to U.S. Pacific policy was to place women’s empowerment on the agenda and apply pressure on the Pacific Island governments to follow suit. At the 2012 Pacific Islands Forum, in collaboration with Australia and New Zealand, Clinton announced the “Rarotonga Partnership for the Advancement of Pacific Island Women,” which focuses on economic empowerment and creating public and private leadership roles for women. The idea of the program is to make space for women to participate in decision-making.

Despite this excellent start, U.S. efforts to better the lives of Pacific women are still in their infancy. Two main avenues should be expanded. First, the United States should support targeted women’s programs. For example, U.S. partners such as Australia have had great success in effecting change by supporting indigenous women’s shelters and outreach centers. The most cost-effective option, however, would be to tenaciously fold women’s empowerment goals into new U.S. initiatives. This could be as simple a matter as requiring a quota of women to participate in a program.

With the departure of Clinton, it is important for the United States not to lose its focus on this pressing issue. Instead, it should continue to keep women’s empowerment as a priority in its Pacific policy. Through innovative policy initiatives, there is opportunity for the United States to work with its friends in the region to create real change in the future of Pacific women.

The Week That Was

Australia

Gillard’s popularity sinks as ruling coalition loses members. Christine Milne, leader of the Australian Greens, terminated her party’s alliance with Prime Minister Julia Gillard’s Labor Party on February 19, ending the tenuous coalition that has led Australia since 2010. The break is the latest blow to Labor, coming just weeks after the resignations of Attorney General Nicola Roxon and Senate leader Chris Evans. A February 18 Melbourne Age poll showed public support for Gillard had plummeted, sparking speculation that former prime minister Kevin Rudd may challenge Gillard for leadership of the party.

Mining tax fails to generate anticipated revenue. Treasurer Wayne Swan announced on February 8 that the government’s mining tax raised just $126 million in its first six months, indicating revenues will fall well short of the $2 billion the government hopes to raise in fiscal year 2013. Swan blamed the shortfall on global economic instability, volatile commodity prices, and the strong Australian dollar. The tax on iron ore and coal has been controversial since it was introduced on July 1, 2012. The opposition coalition led by Tony Abbott opposes the tax, while the Greens cited the Labor Party’s mismanagement of the tax as one reason for the February 19 breakup of their alliance with Labor.

Gillard announces $1 billion jobs package in pitch to blue-collar workers. Prime Minister Julia Gillard announced a $1 billion program to support Australia’s domestic manufacturing despite the high Australian dollar. The program, A Plan for Australian Jobs, requires large companies to give local firms first bid for contracts on projects worth more than $500 million. It will also create by 2014 10 new Industry Innovation Precincts where businesses, research institutions, and technology experts can work and innovate together. The ruling Labor Party seeks to appeal to blue-collar voters ahead of national elections, set for September. Industrial unions welcomed the plan, while the opposition coalition criticized the new regulations.

Parliament passes historic act recognizing indigenous Australians. Prime Minister Julia Gillard and opposition leader Tony Abbott joined together on February 13 as the Australian House of Representatives passed legislation for the first time officially recognizing Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders as the first inhabitants of Australia. The vote came on the five-year anniversary of former prime minister Kevin Rudd’s historic apology to the “Stolen Generations”—indigenous children who were removed from their families during the first half of the twentieth century. The parliamentary vote paves the way for a constitutional referendum on the issue, which Gillard indicated will take place in 2014.

Australia, New Zealand reach agreement on asylum seekers. Prime Ministers Julia Gillard and John Key agreed during a February 9 meeting that New Zealand will settle 150 refugees processed by Australia each year. Those taken in by New Zealand under the arrangement, set to begin in 2014, will count toward its annual 750-refugee quota. Asylum seekers could be transferred from Australia’s offshore detention centers in Nauru and Papua New Guinea’s Manus Island. The deal was announced just days after the UN High Commissioner for Refugees released a report saying the Manus Island detention center violates human rights. There are currently 274 detainees at the Manus facility.

New Zealand

Some New Zealand military personnel to remain in Afghanistan. New Zealand’s cabinet announced February 18 that 27 troops will stay in Afghanistan after the April withdrawal of the New Zealand Provincial Reconstruction Team. The personnel remaining will work with international forces to identify security targets, planning, and logistics. New Zealand lost 10 soldiers in the decade-long war. The opposition Labour Party criticized the decision, calling it a new mission that betrays the government’s promise to withdraw the nearly 200 troops in Afghanistan.

New Zealand begins to make case for Security Council seat. New Zealand’s ambassador to the United Nations, Jim McLay, told an audience on February 13 that his country would have a strong, independent voice if elected to the UN Security Council (UNSC). He pointed to New Zealand’s anti-nuclear credentials and recent UN vote supporting Palestinian statehood as evidence that New Zealand would act on principles alone. The United Nations will vote in October 2014 to fill one of the five non-permanent seats on the UNSC. New Zealand is campaigning for the two-year position, which starts in January 2015, but faces competition from Spain and Turkey. It last served on the UNSC from 1993 to 1994.

Government seeks public input on earthquake-proofing plan. New Zealand’s government announced during the week of February 20 that it is soliciting submissions from citizens to provide input for a $1.7 billion proposal to make buildings throughout the country more resistant to quakes over the next 15 years. A devastating earthquake struck the city of Christchurch in September 2010, and another quake killed 185 people in February 2011. The government received recommendations to survey earthquake-prone buildings and infrastructure from a commission of inquiry into the quakes.

New Zealand to follow Australia in implementing cigarette plain packaging. Associate Health Minister Tariana Turia announced February 20 that New Zealand’s parliament will introduce legislation to require plain packaging for cigarettes before the end of 2014. The law will require manufacturers to remove all colors, logos, and brand trademarks from cigarette packages and to insert health warnings and other information such as toxic ingredients. Australia became the first country to implement plain packaging in December 2012. Tobacco companies argue that plain packaging regulations violate their rights to trademark protection under the World Trade Organization. New Zealand is awaiting the outcome of legal challenges in Australia before moving forward.

Major telecommunications companies to build trans-Tasman submarine cable. The companies Telecom, Vodafone, and Telstra announced on February 19 that they will cooperate to construct a $60 million fiber-optic cable across the Tasman Sea, connecting Auckland and Sydney. The cable, which the companies hope to complete in 2014, will have a capacity of 30 terabits per second, approximately 300 times New Zealand’s current Internet data demand. While opponents of the cable fear it will strengthen cable monopolies, its supporters argue it will allow New Zealand to increase connectivity, especially to Asia. New Zealand currently has only one international data transfer cable, connecting it to Australia and the United States.

Pacific Islands

American Samoa hosts forum for future Pacific Island leaders. Young leaders from 15 Pacific Island nations gathered in Pago Pago, American Samoa, from February 4 to 7 for the Pacific Future Leaders Summit, hosted by the U.S. embassies in New Zealand and Samoa, the East-West Center, and other regional organizations. Delegates discussed regional issues including women’s empowerment, democracy and governance, climate change, seabed mining, and noncommunicable diseases. The summit was designed to prepare future regional leaders and begin discussions that will carry over into the Pacific Islands Forum in August.

Solomon Islands hit by earthquake and tsunami. A magnitude 8.0 earthquake struck off the coast of Temotu, the easternmost province of the Solomon Islands, on February 6, triggering a tsunami that raced across the archipelago. The twin disasters killed a dozen people and destroyed nearly 100 homes across the nation’s more than 200 islands. Rescuers and humanitarian workers faced challenges in reaching remote villages. The Solomon Islands sit on a tectonically active section of the boundary between the Australian and Pacific plates, making earthquakes common. A severe quake struck the country in 2007, killing 52 people.

Papua New Guinea announces military buildup. Defense Minister Fabian Pok said February 13 that Papua New Guinea plans to increase the size of its defense force from 1,900 to 10,000 personnel and has already approved the purchase of new weapons, aircraft, and patrol vessels. The government said that its land border with Indonesia presents a security challenge for Papua New Guinea, requiring greater military capacity. Critics of the buildup questioned whether the government has the budget to carry out the expansion.

Fourteen Fijian political parties fail to meet registration deadline. Only 3 Fijian political parties met a February 19 deadline set by the government to re-register, with 14 forced to disband. Fiji’s military regime set steep requirements for the parties, including a membership threshold of 5,000—a 40-fold increase over the previous requirement. The now-defunct parties were forced to forfeit all their assets to the government. The harsh requirements for parties were the latest in a string of highly criticized moves by the military government of Commodore Frank Bainimarama, which claims it will usher in democracy.

Impeached Marianas governor resigns. Benigno Fitial resigned as governor of the Commonwealth of Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI) on February 20 following his impeachment by the CNMI House of Representatives. The House charged Fitial with 12 of 18 felonies, including corruption, neglect of duty, and releasing a federal prisoner so she could give him a massage. Lieutenant Governor Eloy Inos was sworn in as governor following the resignation. By resigning, ostensibly for health reasons, Fitial managed to avoid a Senate trial removing him from office, the outcome of which seemed a foregone conclusion.

U.S.-Pacific Islands tuna treaty negotiations continue in Auckland. Officials from the United States and the Pacific Islands met in Auckland February 4–9 for the latest round of re-negotiations on the South Pacific Tuna Treaty. Several issues remain unresolved, including the number of U.S. vessels covered by the treaty and what percentage of those vessels’ crews must be Pacific Islanders. The treaty allows U.S. tuna vessels to operate in 16 exclusive economic zones across the region in return for an aid package. The current treaty expires in June 2013.

Looking Ahead

Discussion on gender equality in the Asia Pacific. George Washington University’s Partnerships for International Strategies in Asia will host a discussion March 1 on challenges to gender equality in the Asia Pacific and how the Asian Development Bank (ADB) is supporting advancement of gender equality in the region. ADB senior adviser Shireen Lateef will present the bank’s strategies in addressing gender gaps and discuss specific examples of projects promoting women’s empowerment. The event will take place from 12:00 p.m. to 2:00 p.m. in Room 602 of the Lindner Commons at George Washington University, 1957 E St., NW. Please click here to RSVP.

Trans-Pacific Partnership negotiations to be held in Singapore. The 16th round of the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) trade negotiations will be held March 4–13 in Singapore. The last TPP negotiating round was held in Auckland in early December, with Mexico and Canada joining for the first time. The upcoming round could prove crucial for the success of the negotiations because the United States is expected to table a revised proposal on the contentious subject of pharmaceutical patents.

ANZAC Day. April 25 is Australian and New Zealand Army Corps (ANZAC) Day, commemorating the sacrifices of Australian and New Zealand soldiers, sailors, airmen, and airwomen to their countries’ peace and security. The embassies of Australia and New Zealand customarily host a dawn service in Washington. More details will be announced closer to the date.

U.S.-New Zealand Partnership Forum. The New Zealand Embassy in Washington will host more than 250 guests for the fifth U.S.-New Zealand Partnership Forum from May 19 to 21, 2013. The embassy plans to bring a large number of New Zealand officials, business leaders, and students to the event. The event will be held at the Grand Hyatt Hotel. More details will be announced closer to the event. For information, please contact Bill Maroni of the U.S.-New Zealand Council at (301) 802-3375.

For more details on our programs and to follow CSIS with real-time updates, sign on for CSIS Pacific Partners Initiative on Facebook and follow us on Twitter @ PacPartnersDC, and at our blog, cogitASIA at http://cogitASIA.com. Thank you for your interest in U.S. policy in the Pacific and CSIS Pacific Partners. Join the conversation!