From DEBRA@oln.comlink.apc.orgMon Sep 11 09:47:31 1995 Date: Sat, 09 Sep 1995 08:30:00 +0100 From: Debra Guzman Reply to: beijing-conf@tristram.edc.org To: beijing95-l@netcom.com, beijing-conf@tristram.edc.org Subject: WCW: Vatican stakes its position at Beijing [The following text is in the "ISO-8859-1" character set] [Your display is set for the "US-ASCII" character set] [Some characters may be displayed incorrectly] ## Original in: /HRNET/WOMEN ## author : theearthtime@igc.apc.org ## date : 07.09.95 --------------------------------------------------------------------- Vatican stakes its position at Beijing By Salone Mehta Earth Times News Service BEIJING--The content of the Platform for Action is "unrepresentative and unbalanced, as it does not live up to its title of Equality, Development and Peace," said Mary Ann Glendon, head of the delegation of the Holy See to the Fourth World Conference on Women at a press conference yesterday morning. "We have a perspective on equality--we think the Document does not live up to the Universal Declaration on Human Rights," she said, adding that the Holy See delegation would work vigorously during the Conference to present its point of view. The position of the Vatican on the question of an alliance with Islamic countries was clarified, with the strong stand on there being no remote chance of such a possibility, "due to the substantial difference between the two on the issue of women. The alliance is press-made and not priest- made. It exists in the media and not in reality," according to Janne Haaland Matlary, Senior Researcher, Arena. The Vatican has been upholding the right to equality between men and women at home, as well as at the workplace. However, within the Church itself, the position of priesthood is closed to women. Defending itself, the Vatican said there is no universal human right to be a priest for a woman or a man. "Female talents" are otherwise used in the Church. "This a time for such vitality for women. Women are filling roles in the Ministry," Matlary said. The position of priests has been totally misunderstood. Why should priesthood be coveted? Priesthood is not a "position of power." Priests are "servants of servants, leading a life of self-sacrifice," Glendon said. The Vatican reaffirmed its commitment to poor countries, in its desire to bring them into the productivity circle, and to forgive all debt.