by Isis International with the reports from the Asia Pacific Women’s Watch

After lengthy and tense negotiations, the 53rd session of the Commission on the Status of Women came to an end last 13 March 2009 in New York, United States, leaving most feminists satisfied. With the theme, “The equal sharing of responsibilities between women and men, including care-giving in the context of HIV/AIDS,” CSW affirmed the need to put in place responses that will recognise and encourage the equal roles between women and men in caring for people with HIV-AIDS beginning at the community level.

The Agreed Conclusions noted the important international agreements such as the International Labour Organisation’s Convention 156 which calls for a reconciliation between work and family responsibilities. As they recognise the care-giving work in households, which are mostly assumed by women and girls, the document asked that such usually unpaid contribution be measured. It stressed that results from such metrics can better inform future policies and programmes on HIV-AIDS and care-givers especially women and girls.

The Agreed Conclusions also picked up the points raised on the socio-cultural dimensions behind the inadequate health services for people with HIV-AIDS and the skewed division of labour in care-giving. The Asia Pacific Caucus, for instance, noted that much of government measures on HIV-AIDS have been focused on otherwise high-risk patients such as men who have sex with men (MSM), prostituted men and women and drug dependents.

It stated that: “The rising impact of HIV/AIDS has severely impacted on women and girls as HIV/AIDS now bears a young woman's face. The recent report of the AIDS Commission in Asia states that there are an estimated 75 million men who buy sex from about 10 million women. This has made women extremely vulnerable to HIV, and spousal or partner transmission is now rapidly increasing across Asia.”

Citing data from Thailand and Burma where 80 to 90 per cent of HIV-infected women are in monogamous relationships, the Caucus added, “Spousal transmission is fueled by traditional patriarchal societal attitudes that put women at a disadvantage in the household, thereby disabling them from negotiating in sexual relationships.” The Asia Pacific Caucus also stresses the need for community controlled and culturally appropriate responses to the unequal sharing of responsibility between women and men.

One of the Agreed Conclusions tasked governments to, “take efforts to devise comprehensive social and cultural strategies, including policies and programmes that acknowledge the societal and individual value of adequate car for all and provide both women and men full and equal human development opportunities.” The document also called for policies and programmes which target the participation of men and boys as caregivers. It also affirmed the need to address gender stereotypes especially among media organisations.

The Agreed Conclusions affirmed the need to develop and strengthen policies and programmes on sexual and reproductive health for women and girls as well sex education that is “based on full and accurate information in a manner consistent with the evolving capacities of girls and boys.”

Delegates from Italy, Latin America, Japan, Senegal and Armenia were elected for the 54th CSW session which will focus on the implementation of the Beijing Platform for Action (BPfA) on its 15th anniversary.

The full text of the Agreed Conclusions is available below. It may also be downloaded from http://www.un.org/womenwatch/daw/csw/csw53/AC%20adopted%2013%20March%20advance%20unedited%20version.pdf
The full text of the Asia Pacific Caucus statement is likewise available below. It may also be downloaded from http://apww.isiswomen.org/pages/archives/index.html