From DEBRA@oln.comlink.apc.orgTue Sep 12 08:18:12 1995
Date: Sat, 09 Sep 1995 08:20:00 +0100
From: Debra Guzman <DEBRA@oln.comlink.apc.org>
Reply to: beijing-conf@tristram.edc.org
To: beijing95-l@netcom.com, beijing-conf@tristram.edc.org
Subject: WCW: Vatican supports Beijing Conference

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## Original in: /HRNET/WOMEN
## author     : theearthtime@igc.apc.org
## date       : 05.09.95

------------------------------------------------------------------------
Vatican supports Beijing Conference
By Jack Freeman
Earth Times News Service

BEIJING--The Vatican presented a kinder, gentler image of
itself to the international community Tuesday at the Fourth
World Conference on Women, as the head of its delegation, an
American woman, delivered a statement clearly designed to
accentuate the positive.

Mary Ann Glendon, a Harvard University professor, focused on
the many points in the draft Platform for Action that are
endorsed by the Holy See, couching its dissents in
constrained language and suggestions for additions to the
document or shifts in emphasis, rather than excisions.

For example, it avoids a direct confrontation on the
emotional issue of reproductive health and reproductive
rights, which caused such bitter wrangling at the
International Conference on Population and Development in
Cairo last September.

Instead, after calling for expanded health care for women,
Glendon said: "The Holy See has expressed its concern," she
said, "regarding a tendency to focus privileged attention
and resources on the consideration of health problems
related to sexuality, whereas a comprehensive approach to
the health of all women would have to place greater emphasis
on such questions as poor nutrition, unsafe water and those
diseases that afflict millions of women each year, taking a
vast toll on mothers and children."

She added that her delegation believes that the Conference
documents "are not bold enough in acknowledging the threat
to women's health arising from widespread attitudes of
sexual permissiveness."

She reminded the Plenary that Pope John Paul II, in his
recent "Letter to Women," has "acknowledged the deficiencies
of past position, including those of the Catholic Church,
and has welcomed this initiative of the United Nations as an
important contribution to a global improvement in the
situation of women in today's world."

And she chided the Conference in the mildest possible terms
on its treatment of mothers:

"The fear of reinforcing certain stereotypes concerning the
roles of women," she said, "should not prevent this
Conference from clearly addressing the special challenges
and the real-life needs and values of those millions of
women who dedicate themselves to motherhood and family
responsibilities, either on a full-time basis or who
reconcile them with other activities of a social and
economic nature."

She continued: "Our societies offer far too little tangible
recognition or concrete assistance to those women who are
struggling to do a decent job of raising children in
economically trying circumstances. For our Conference not to
face these issues would be to render true equality for the
majority of the world's women even more elusive."