Charmetria Marshall June 1, 2011 Anthro 442 Wed 6:10pm The United Nations Population Fund Although women

globally do two-thirds of the worlds work, they only own two percent of the worlds property, and make ten percent of world income (USAID 2010). They are also still only seen as special interest group, despite making up to 51% of worlds population. There are some organizations though, that are now trying to change that by making womens health and equality, the worlds health and equality. One of these is the United Nations Population Fund, or UNFPA, which works, individually and cooperatively with other important non-government organizations to spread the messages and the resources that help women, men and children thrive health-wise, socially and mentally (UNFPA 2011). Their mission statement affirms their objective to, Reduce poverty and to ensure that every pregnancy is wanted, every birth is safe, every young person is free of HIV, and every girl and woman is treated with dignity and respect (UNFPA 2011). With this mission statement, they implement and participate in numerous programs for worldwide womens rights, from Russia to West Africa (UNFPA 2007). Although they have faced, and still face, massive opposition in the forms of certain governmental entities and associations, they have been operating since 1969, with clear cohesive intent towards their goals (Ertelt 2011). Hopefully, by presenting the history of this organization and providing a clear case study of their methods, and a short critique, it can be made clear just how this organization works to ensure the reproductive, mental and social health for women, and their communities worldwide. The UN Fund for Population Activities (UNFPA) was introduced as a trust fund on July 11, 1967, as a subsidiary of the United Nations General Assembly, with the objective of addressing population and development issues worldwide (UNFPA 2011). This made it a direct product of the United Nations (UN) and its policies in world oversight on human rights and was an attempt to keep track of and affect the globalization process happening rapidly at that time. In 1971, the UN decided that the UNFPA should have leadership role in promoting population programs and in 1980 became an officially acknowledged part of the General Assembly by becoming an executive of the Chief Executives Board for Coordination (CEB) (UNFPA 2011). After this, the official name was changed to the United Nations Population Fund, yet the abbreviations were kept the same (UNFPA 2011). Their stated mission was, and is, 1

Charmetria Marshall June 1, 2011 Anthro 442 Wed 6:10pm about three main points: reproductive health, gender equality and population and development strategies (UNFPA 2011). These three are linked, inextricably, where the focal point comes to the main decision about the number, spacing, and timing of children (UNFPA 2011). In this way, the UNFPA creates a platform of action to work from in reaching its goals of population health and equality. The UNFPA is wholly funded by voluntary government groups, private sector groups and individuals, deriving none of its funding from the actual UN regular budget (UNFPA 2011). It is governed by the UNFPA executive board and policy-guided by the UN Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) (UNFPA 2011). When it comes to oversight, the three branches of the Division for Oversight Services of the UNFPA include internal audit, evaluation and investigation (UNFPA 2011). By doing this, the UNFPA can refine the effectiveness of its system. In 2007, the UNFPA attempted to decentralize its organization, so that a more culturally-based approach to the issues can be addressed on a country-by-country basis (UNFPA 2011). In this way specific issues in certain countries can be addressed on a more local level, such as Obstetric Fistula in Nigeria, which disproportionately affects women in poverty, who tend to have minimal access to reproductive health-care (UNICEF 2004). In this way, an added regional flexibility is given to an actually very structured non-governmental entity. One case study, which highlights the intervention of the UNFPA, involves the Midwives of Mauritania in West Africa attempting to call attention to the epidemic of rape and silence that harms victims and communities (UNFPA 2007: 1). First the problem is outlined in the context of how victims themselves end up being jailed for fornication, while the perpetrators go free. The UNFPA report mentions how the effort to help rape victims and even get rape recognized as a social problem started with the grassroots efforts of four midwives, who wanted to help out victims (UNFPA 2007: 1). With the UNFPAs help, the first ever statistics of rape were compiled and analyzed, while the local religious leaders helped in appealing to the cultural aspect of this problem (UNFPA 2007:4). Initially, $6 million were allocated for the Fifth UNFPA Country Programme for Mauritania, which was geared towards combating domestic sexual violence against women, which included four prime objectives, one of which was the actual recognition of sexual abuse, while another was sensitizing people to the 2

Charmetria Marshall June 1, 2011 Anthro 442 Wed 6:10pm problems faced by the victims and decreasing their possible stigmatization after the fact. A way to legitimize this was through legal channels, used by partnering with another NGO organization that gave free legal counsel and representation to victims (UNFPA 2007:3). By creating a legal public platform to work from, the victims ordeal was seen in a new light, and her status was raised, as only the very wealthy can usually afford legal counsel (UNFPA 2007:4). By having someone one her side, willing to defend her rights, the victim gets a higher chance of winning her case and being able to reintegrated back into society. The results from this form of legalization show in the fact that in 2000, no rape incidents were officially reported, yet after the implementation the program, the percentage of that rose each year (UNFPA 2007:3). Before the program, rape victims were seen as seductresses and perpetrators and jailed for fornication, now, since 2003 no rape victim has been sent to jail and families are less likely to shun or blame the girl or woman victimized (UNFPA 2007: 4). Another method initiated was enlisting the help of the local Imams, or religious leaders, who were willing to present the idea of rape as an attack on the vulnerable of society, which helped with validating the local rehab and counseling centers that strove to help sexual victims (UNFPA 2007:4). The main point of the report was emphasizing the integration and understanding of the local culture into the programs to provide maximum benefit for the victims and their families (UNFPA 2007:7). From this case study alone, it seems as if the UNFPA does its best in whichever country it is in to be sensitive to the cultural atmosphere and work its way out from there. With their recent attempt decentralizing their programs and branches, it seems like they are very willing to do a personalized approach for several countries and groups. They seem to be less an entity that plants themselves on the ground, forcing change, then a global helpmate to the already established local NGOs and community outreach programs. In the case of the Mauritania, the approach to getting the issue of rape heard by using a legal method of validation, is a human rights strategy outlined by Merry as, a human rights advocacy approach led by lawyers and political elites This includes efforts to incorporate international standards into domestic law (Merry 2006:138). In this case by making rape, an internationally condemned form of violence inter something vernacularized for the people, in a way that still was within their cultural 3

Charmetria Marshall June 1, 2011 Anthro 442 Wed 6:10pm system. Also by doing this, it seems change applied this way stays as something more concrete than just ideas and promises. This also offers a sense security for any potential victim in the future, knowing that her assault is seen as something perpetrated on her, in legal capacity, and that she has a right to sue (UNFPA 2007: 4). This also shows the complex ways that violence against women can manifest, be it form poverty, or a lack of education. By then equipping the victims with tools to get better jobs, or even start their own businesses, they can minimize the stigma from their attack (UNFPA 2007:7-8). With the case of the Mauritania, there was the knowledge within the UNFPA that cultures are dynamic and malleable, when needed, and that deeply-embedded ideas are not natural, but learned. The UNFPA seems to ultimately be about changing the way women think of themselves in their society and also the way society views them as citizens. One of the components of the program was in job training and a reenrollment in school for the victims, as a way to make them more self-actualized, and less likely to have low-esteem (UNFPA 2007:8). This shows that the process of addressing the issue of rape here has no set ending or conclusion, and that the need to properly interpret societal norms and rituals never really ends, because, as Marks and Clapham emphasizes, Where human rights are concerned, universality is not presupposition. It is also and more centrally, a project(Marks and Clapham 2005:393). In the case of the UNFPA, there are three main objectives that cross-stitch over each other to create an equal, healthy, and successful future for women, men and children. By sensitively addressing the key issues that keep women marginalized and abused on a local level, the UNFPA seems to be doing the utmost with its resources, to effect change, especially with the ability to be flexible and innovative in its methods, due to its recently purposeful decentralization (UNFPA 2011). The UNFPA acknowledges readily that while they do all they can, women are still at a grave disadvantage worldwide. They are the majority of all sexual and domestic violence victims, and the most likely to end up poverty-stricken. The UNFPA attempts on a global, and a more local scale, to affect policy and social change via their status as a subsidiary of the UN General Assembly, and a transnational entity (UNFPA 2011). With these credentials, they are able to assist grassroots efforts in certain countries and 4

Charmetria Marshall June 1, 2011 Anthro 442 Wed 6:10pm influence legal officials. From their case study, its apparent that they do all they can to work from a platform of cultural understanding before committing their resource. They partner with other groups to specialize in mental, psychical and legal care for victims of rape, and make change on a community level. For the UNFPA, thought, this is just one case in thousands that use this approach in working for gender equality, which as the UNFPA states, contributes to the overall economic and social benefit of the global community (UNFPA 2011). This is a never ending process, as cultures and technology change, yet as the newly appointed head of UN Women Michelle Bachelet states, Gender equality is not a luxury, it is an imperative, a need to have sustainable development (Yinanc 2011).

Charmetria Marshall June 1, 2011 Anthro 442 Wed 6:10pm

References Cited
Ertelt, S. (2011, May 26). House Republicans File Bill to Cut Pro-Abortion UNFPA Funding. Retrieved May 27, 2011, from Life News: http://www.lifenews.com/2011/05/26/house-republicans-file-bill-to-cut-proabortion-unfpa-funding/ Marks, S., & Clapham, A. (2005). International Humans Rights Lexicon. Oxford: Oxford University Press. Merry, S. E. (2006). Human Rights & Gender Violence: Translating International Law into Local Justice. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, Ltd. UNFPA. (2007). Programming to Address Violence Against Women. Retrieved May 27, 2011, from United Nations Population Fund: http://www.unfpa.org/webdav/site/global/shared/documents/publications/2007/va w_10cases.pdf UNFPA. (2011). About UNFPA. Retrieved May 27, 2011, from United Nations Population Fund: http://www.unfpa.org/public/home/about UNFPA. (2011). Frequently Asked Questions. Retrieved May 27, 2011, from United Nations Population Fund: http://www.unfpa.org/public/home/about/faqs#goal UNFPA. (2011). Oversight Services. Retrieved May 27, 2011, from United Nations Population Fund: http://www.unfpa.org/public/home/about/oversight UNFPA. (2011). Population Issues. Retrieved May 29, 2011, from United Nations Population Fund: http://www.unfpa.org/issues/ UNFPA. (2011). UNFPA in the UN System. Retrieved May 27, 2011, from United Nations Population Fund: http://www.unfpa.org/public/home/about/pid/4629

Charmetria Marshall June 1, 2011 Anthro 442 Wed 6:10pm UNFPA. (2011). United Nations Population Fund. Retrieved May 26, 2011, from http://www.unfpa.org/public/ UNICEF. (2004, August 25). Gender Equality-The Big Picture. Retrieved May 27, 2011, from UNICEF: http://www.unicef.org/gender/index_bigpicture.html USAID. (2010, November 22). Agriculture-Overview. Retrieved May 27, 2011, from USAID: http://www.usaid.gov/our_work/agriculture/ Yinanc, B. (2011, May 14). Top UN official: 'Gender equality is not a luxury'. Retrieved May 27, 2011, from Daily News & Economic Review: http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/n.php?n=top-un-official-gender-equality-is-nota-luxury-for-poor-cointries-2011-05-12