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Human Rights of the Argentinean Women: The State's Pending Obligations

COUNTER-REPORT

Convention for the Elimination of all the Forms of Discrimination Against Women
(CEDAW)

-AUGUST 2002-

HUMAN RIGHTS OF THE ARGENTINEAN WOMEN: THE STATE’S PENDING OBLIGATIONS

The United Nations Organization (UN) was created in the year 1945 as a reaction against the horrible crimes committed in the Second World War, and with the intent of remedying the rather small participation of the other countries of the world in the former Society of Nations. The goal of this international scenario is to debate the main problems affecting humanity and to be able to arrive, in this way, at the consensus necessary to solve them. Many multiple international instruments on human rights came up as a result of this constant work; these, joined in common under the denomination "Universal System of Human Rights", oblige the State parties to take the necessary steps in order to ensure their protection and make them totally effective.

Since the 70’s the women’s movement has had a long, fruitful and on occasions conflictive dialog with the UN. The organizations that sign the present report were never naïve and we noticed its shortcomings; however, we have recognized in that international organization some important mechanisms to make viable our claims, to boost our visions and to propose a new form of society, without neglecting the imperious need to democratize its functioning.

The amount of subjects undertaken by the UN regarding the protection of human rights is very broad and it tries to implement in defined areas the initial statement of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which indicates: "All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights, and, endowed as they are with reasoning and conscience, must behave fraternally among each other" (Article 1)

The Convention for the Elimination of all the Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) was adopted by the United Nations’ General Assembly on December 18, 1979, was enforced since September 3, 1981, and was ratified by the Argentinean Republic in May 1985, acquiring constitutional hierarchy as of the 1994 reform. The CEDAW –as all other treaties adopted by the Argentinean State- imposes the obligation of implementing public policies aimed at providing satisfactory levels of effectiveness to the rights contained in them. Furthermore, the CEDAW instituted a permanent Committee with faculties to control, follow-up and evaluate the compliance with the obligations assumed by the State parties in the treaty. This committee is composed of independent experts, selected on account of their background on human rights from among candidates proposed by the States. It issues general and specific recommendations based on the reports that the States must present every four years, and the information contained in the "counter-report", "shadow report" or "alternative report", which are elaborated by different actors of civil society. The objective of these "counter-reports" is to provide to the Committee the missing or erroneous information regarding the data presented by the State.

It is worthwhile highlighting that CEDAW’s committee –thanks to the women’s movement and feminism- has encouraged the presentation of the "shadow reports", since experience has indicated that the States, when the time comes to give account of their actions, tend to concentrate the information on their achievements, minimizing their faults and omissions. Hence, the information provided by the civil society, if and when it comes from trustworthy sources, is highly useful for the Committee’s task of controlling and following up on the effectiveness of the rights contained in the CEDAW.

Nevertheless, the procedure of presenting periodic reports before the Committee was evaluated as "inadequate and insufficient" to really get to know about the violation of women’s rights, and endowing them with some degree of protection. Due to this, since 1991 the elaboration of a Facultative Protocol, to include more expeditious and efficient procedures that allow more control and protection of the rights contained in the CEDAW, has begun to be debated. The mentioned Protocol was approved by the United Nations in 1999, and basically contains procedural matters –that do not introduce modifications to CEDAW- habilitating new mechanisms for its sense of justice, that is, to enforce the protection of women’s rights to non-discrimination in the different environments of social life. Bearing this purpose in mind, the Facultative Protocol establishes two additional protection procedures: the presentation of individual petitions by the victims and the official investigations on the part of the Committee.

In spite of the fact that the Facultative Protocol grants a broader protection to women’s rights and that it is in full ratification process by the different countries of the world, at the time of the elaboration of the present counter-report, the Argentinean State still has reticence to promote its ratification.

After years of dictatorships in Latin America and presently with democratically-elected governments that, however, invariably appear as non-representative of the popular will, the civil society as a group started learning how to exercise their rights and to claim for them by means of the institutional mechanisms. Specifically, during the last decades in our country and in the world, the women’s movement has begun appropriating their rights, exercising them and constructing new ones when they did not exist. Thus, even though sudden changes have not occurred, gradually certain achievements have been obtained, such as the gender perspective in the jurisprudence of our country, starting with the presentation of judicial actions in the cases in which there were victims of the violations of women’s essential rights.

On the other hand, in the international arena the women’s movement has been very active in the incorporation of the gender perspective in all the international, universal and regional protection mechanisms of human rights, and in the creation of specific instruments for the protection of women’s rights. It is in this way that the women’s groups all over the world utilize the international human rights protection mechanisms presenting "counter-reports" (such as this one), denouncing individual cases before the United Nations Committees, the special relators, or the Human Rights Inter-American Commission, emphasizing the environments where it is possible to judicially demand of our States the compliance with their obligations in matters of the defense and protection of the human rights.

Furthermore, we must indicate that the present "counter-report" has been elaborated within the framework of a broad and participative procedure, in which we, the NGOs that have intervened, have worked on the basis of consensus and cooperation to obtain an objective and impartial result. In this sense, we have tried to use a critical, broad and pluralist criteria that analyzes the degree of effectiveness in the protection of the rights contained in the CEDAW since 1997 –date of the last report of the Argentinean government to the Committee- to May 2002, with the purpose of contributing towards the Committee having more reality facts and being able to do a complete, efficient and truthful evaluation of the rights of women in the Argentine Republic, and can issue, as a consequence, the corresponding recommendations to improve it.

We want a new world society. A society that is not only more equitable by sex and without discrimination of any type, but also cooperative, solidary and respectful of the dignity of the human person. Today, the fight consists of ensuring the universal access to the basic goods and services, to work, culture, development, peace, a healthy environment and to ever-growing levels of decision autonomy. It is precisely with this intention that we undertook the elaboration of this "counter-report" and its publication in our country since we, women and men alike, are convinced that it is one of the mechanisms that allows us to spread around and improve the human rights and fundamental liberties of women in our country.

Buenos Aires, July 2002

I.- GENERAL INTRODUCTION ON THE POLITICAL AND SOCIO-ECONOMIC - SITUATION and ON THE DISCRIMINATION AGAINST WOMEN IN ARGENTINA

The non governmental organizations that subscribe the present report cannot avoid warning the Honorable Committee about the very serious institutional, economic and social situation that affects the Argentine Republic nowadays.

The crisis that was deepened during the last years of the 90 exploded in December 2001, when as it is well known Argentina passed a series of events that marked their institutional and political history sensibly. In around only fifteen days the country had five presidents, consolidated its financial default, left the iron exchange policy that had been enforced since 1991 and then devaluated the peso. All this in the middle of a socio-economic crisis that still demands extreme measures.

In a context of deep economic constrains and social inequity, ignited demostrations of protest took place in all the territory. Against them, the State unfolded a strong repression that included the declaration of State of siege in all the Nation for a couple of days, and that concluded in thousands of imprisonments, hundreds of injured and dozens of deaths.

President Fernando de la Rua, in office from December 1999, had to resign at the worse moment of the crisis. After several presidential successions, the Legislative Assembly designated Eduardo DUHALDE as the Chairman of the Government. Eduardo Duhalde assumed the presidency of the Nation from January 2002, till December 2003, date on which he would call for elections. Nevertheless, the institutional weakness that affects the country has provoked discussions on the possibility of advancing the date of the elections.

The socio-economic context and the structural adjustment started at the beginning of the 90’, seriously affected the economic, social and cultural rights of all the population but, specially, of those more excluded, being the women, children, adolescents and young’s the most affected.

Deep normative and institutional reforms have attacked the substance and quality of these rights, depriving them of their essential content and of the legal and institutional mechanisms to demand their inforcement. For example, on July 2001 a law was passed, (Nº 24.453) called Fiscal Balance Law, well-known as Deficit Zero Law,According to this law civil servants and retired people salaries depend on tax collection, reducing their wages in a 13%. In spite of the multiple claims before the justice, the administration continues applying this reduction. This Law also strongly hits social programs of Social Development and Environment, Health and Labour Ministries.

The weakening of the social rights has been characterized by a concentration process of the wealth in a small portion of the society, by an increase of poverty and penury and by the increasing and consolidation of unemployment or under employment.

According to an official study of SIEMPRO (System of Information, Follow-up and Evaluation de Social Programmes), in Argentina there are 18,219,000 poor people, representing 51.4% of Argentinean population. From that total 7,777,000 are indigents. Also, 8,319,000 from total poor people in Argentina are children and adolescents.

Unfortunately, —and although official registers were made in May, 2002— until July 2002, the governemnt have no information disaggregated by sex, which would updated the data of nowadays women status in Argentina.

On the other hand, as it is informed in the following sections, citizens find it very difficult to access to public health services, justice and education and to the benefits of social security including retirement. Social benefits are focused only on certain groups and those who apply to be beneficiaries must qualify as addressees of an assistance based on their poverty status..

The weakening of social rights in Argentina, is the result of economic policies carried out by different governments in the last years; that, before the demands of the international organisms of credit, only focused and still devote to fulfill them, without carrying out a serious analysis of the structural damages that these provoke as regards the reinforcement of the social rights of the Argentine male and female citizens. In this context, the high index of corruption is of major importance in the public administration which, in many cases, has been operative to the external interests and the weakening of the social rights.

Generally women discrimination is similar to that informed in 1997, except few exceptions. The government did not disseminate the remarks and suggestions made by the Committee in 1997, which affected negatively on most of the reported violations which are still occurring or have become even more serious themselves. Specially, it is possible to indicate like paradigmatic examples of the mentioned worsening, the lack of hierarchic and institutional budgetary of the National Council of Women deepened as from January 2002 and that the Government on April 30, 2002 requested to retired the proposal to ratify the CEDAW Optional Protocol, that since the mid 2001 was in the Senate for its consideration, topic that will be dealt with in the following section.

Considering those mentioned as the most important situations, in this report we will centered in: sexual and reproductive rights, economic, social and cultural rights, women trafficking, migrating women and violence against women.

II. MEASURES ADOPTED BY THE ARGENTINE GOVERNMENT TO ELIMINATE DISCRIMINATION AGAINST WOMEN (ARTICLES 1 TO 3)

In this part we will refer in first place to the lack of measures adopted by the Government to eliminate discrimination against women, and secondly to the maintenance of contradictory laws to the Convention still existing.

1. Governmental Mechanisms. Public policies and discriminatory practices:

The Equality Plan elaborated in 1998 by the National Government was never debated with the civil society. Although it was not derogated, it has not been put into practice in spite of the fact that it was created more than four years ago.

There are 24 districts and 6 of them do not have any specific offices to protect the rights of women and the parity between men and women (Cordoba, Formosa, Jujuy, Corrientes, Tucumán and Santa Fe). As regards the municipalities, only a third of the 2000 has offices to protect the rights of women. It is possible to indicate that the specific governmental women offices at National, Provincial and Municipal, are still low hierarchized, with little or null budget and very trimmed in its range areas.

It is necessary to inform to the Committee that the National Council of Women has undergone an institutional and budgetary lack of hierarchy, since January 2002 it is considered a program that depends on the National Council of Public Policies, suffering, since 1998, several reductions in its budget and its autonomy of management worsened even more since 2002.

On the other hand, there are no mechanisms of articulation between the different state agencies. As an example, there do no exist, except for sporadic forms or for precise matters, a procedure or a formal strategy of articulation, coordination, liaison and/or connection between the National Council of Women or the Direction of Women of Chancellery and the women’s organizations.

There has not been elaboration of gender indicators on the part of the National Government, and although the ECLAC(Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean) has developed them, the National Government has not applied them yet.

Gender perspective was still not incorporated in the National Budget nor in the provincial ones.

2. Legislation:

Although Argentina subscribed the CEDAW Optional Protocol, in 2001 was sent to the Senate to be ratify by law, on April 30 of 2002 the Government sent a message to the Senate requesting not to ratify it. The NGOs that subscribe the present report understand such decision was adopted due to the strong pressure exerted by the Catholic Church and to the decision of President Duhalde and Chancellor Ruckauf, to object it for understanding that it affects the national sovereignty and that "there does not exist sufficient defense as opposed to interpretations of the Convention and recommendations oriented to the promotion of abortion legalization".

Regarding effective legislation, although the amendment recommended by the Committee to the Penal Code took place in 1999 in the chapter, which used to be called with the misconception Crimes against the Honesty —chapter that now receives the name of Crimes against Sexual Integrity— there still subsist a series of legal discriminatory rules. In particular, we refer to certain provisions of the Penal Code (articles 85 and 86), of the Civil Code (articles 1276, 1296 and 1302) and article 56 of the Law that rules the Personnel of the Federal Police (law 21.965).

III. VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN (ARTICLE5)

1. Rape and other sexual crimes

The recent reform to the Penal Code (law 25.087 of year 1999) replaced the title Crimes against the honesty by Crimes against sexual integrity, including three types of crimes: abuse, rape and encouragement to prostitution/traffic of women. It also increased the punishment and sexual access by any via, was considered aggravated crime. This modification gave an end to the doctrinary and jurisprudential debate around the legal framework of oral sex. The figure of statutory rape of a minor was also modified, replacing the reference to the victim as an `honest woman over twelve and under fifteen’, by the one of person (of both sexes) under sixteen years old’` All this denotes a favorable change, at legal level, in the conception of this problem.

However, other aspects of the law are controversial. The rule that established that the rapist was free of punishment if he married the victim was modified partially; the present text continues being dangerous for the victim. In fact: it replaced the notion of `crime´ by `conflict´, and under allegedly conditions of `total equality´ and " `free consent ‘ of the victim, it is made possible an agreement with the accused and the suspension of the punishment. The undersigned NGO´s consider this rule must be modified, since `total equality´ and `free consent ´ between the female raped and rapist, is a clearly sexist myth, that makes an attempt to hide the true destructive and hostile meaning of a rape. Therefore, it not only leaves the victim defenseless but it provides grounds for rape again and also attempts against her mental health. Another essential amendment is to include the figure of rape within marriage, since the Argentine penal law does not contemplate it. In addition, the legislation is incomplete on the subjects of harassment and sexual abuse. In such sense, harassment is not specifically classified as crime. The only figure contemplated is sexual abuse, and therefore there are assumptions nonanticipated by the penal law.

Due to all these defects, sexual violence against women continues being an action sometimes considered a crimegenerally unpunished, of which there are victims, mainly, young women, specially those who have an urgent necessity to maintain the work. Its true importance and existence is very difficult to establish, due to the lack of reliable records. According to a recent study, the amount of condemnatory sentences is ten times less than the claims filed. Besides, it is estimated that only 10% of the cases are made public, so there would be 60,000 cases of sexual crimes a year, that is 16 cases a day. As it is evident, we are in the presence of crimes that the Argentine State has never treated in an effective way. The procedure anticipated by the law, and its form of application actually, continues being as violating as the event itself, as it happens in most of the countries of the region. The complaint, the forensic medical examination and the taking of declaration continue starting off the mistrust for the honesty of the raped woman. Although some training courses to police officers have been made sporadically, and there exists a Department of Victim ‘s Assistance in the Federal Police and an Office of Integral Victim Assistance at the General Attorney of the Nation, the necessity to integrally protect the victims is neither reached and most of the cases are not assisted. These offices, are not known by the population in general. The accomplishment of dissemination campaigns and training courses for civil servants and magistrates are sporadic, without continuity, systematization and monitoring.

A serious problem for the judicial treatment of these crimes constitutes the same predicted legal procedure, since it requires evidence (testimonial or of any kind) that, due to the characteristic of the crime, cannot be always obtained. The other hindrance is the ideological formation of magistrates and judges, who very frequently tend to underestimate women claims, discouraging them.

2. Sexual harassment

As far as sexual harassment in the work, does not still have legislation for the private sector; and in the public administration, it is only ruled as grounds for punishment or suspension in three of the 24 districts of the country: the Province of Buenos Aires, the City of Buenos Aires and the Province of Santa Fe. In the 2001 the Tripartite Commission of Equality of Opportunities and treatment between Women and Men in Labor elaborated a law project presented in 2002 by a group of 15 female senators of all political parties. Nevertheless, the project hasn’t been considered so far.

3. Domestic violence

In its recommendations of year 2000 to the Argentine Government, the Committee of Human rights declared in paragraph 15: `... the Committee considers disquieting that, in spite of important progresses, the traditional attitudes towards women continue exerting a negative influence in their use of the rights enunciated in the Agreement. The Committee is especially concerned about the high incidence of cases of violence against women, including rape and domestic violence.

It is also of concern sexual harassment and other forms of discrimination in the public and private sectors. The Committee also observes that information on these subjects does not have a systematic record, women have little knowledge of their rights and of resources which they have and that the denunciations are not properly treated. The Committee recommends to undertake an Information campaign to promote the knowledge of women about their rights and resources they can count on. The Committee urges to gather information systematically and trustworthy data are filed on the incidence of the violence and the discrimination against women in all their forms and that these data are included in the next periodic report ´. These recommendations haven’t been carried out so far.

Out of the 24 districts, 3 still do not count with a Law on Domestic Violence (Salta, Formosa and Santa Cruz), the National Law of Protection against Domestic Violence defines it as the `injuries or physical or psychological mistreatment´ that undergoes a family member on the part of another one. The victim will be able to denounce these facts in oral or written form before the judge with jurisdiction on family matters and to ask for preventive measures. It contemplates factual ties and it includes measures of protection like the exclusion of the aggressor of the house, prohibition from access to the house, etc. Most of the provinces have passed similar laws, but there are four provinces that have not done it yet, generating emptiness in the necessary protection that the State must offer on the subject. In addition, the existing laws grant to the judges a little margin of action. For cases in which the aggressor does not accept the protective measures, it is only left the penal denunciation, that we know is of little effectiveness. Another serious problem for an effective defense is: the probatory difficulties, the necessity to refile lawsuits to maintain in the time the protective measures, and the judicial tendency to dictate ambiguous sentences, where the figure of the aggressor is diluted and the repair of damages does not exist.

Another problematic aspect is that most of the laws demand that, within the 48-72 hs. of having adopted the preventive measures, the judge summons the parties and the Public Ministry to a Hearing of compulsory Mediation. There, it is usually recommended to the parties and the familiar group to attend educative or therapeutic programs. In this way, the victim of domestic violence is forced to participate in the hearing together with her aggressor. Numerous studies and the doctrine on the matter indicate that the mediation only can be based on the voluntary participation and equality of conditions of the parties, and that it is clearly counter-productive for domestic violence, in which power is exerted in an unilateral way, mediation can become a new threat. Only the law of the province of Buenos Aires establishes the summon will be a day and hour different for each member of the couple.

Although the lack of statistical official information prevents to affirm seriously if it has increased or diminished the violence against women, it is estimated that in Argentina episodes of violence exist, at different degrees, in 1 of each 5 couples. 42% of the female homicide victims (whose author is discovered) were assassinated by their couples. 37% of the women battered by their spouses have been more than 20 years suffering those abuses. According to information of the I.A.D.B., it is estimated that 25% of the Argentine women are victims of violence and that 50% will undergo some violent situations at some moment of their life. More affected group is from 25 to 34 years old.

Public policies fulfilled by the State have aimed fundamentally at the welfare aspect, offering psychological and legal advice in their dependencies or through sponsoring NGOs of women for the provision of these services. In spite of it, there are no sufficient programmes of prevention that addressees directly the victims ; particularly, specific institutional resources for cases of extreme life risk do not exist. On the other hand, these services have heterogeneous methodologies and approaches, that not always contemplate suitably the perspective of gender nor the specific necessities of those who apply to them. As regards Shelter Homes, it is advisable to have one every 10,000 inhabitants, but in Argentina they exist only in some districts, and not always have the necessary permanence throughout the time, due to budgetary or political problems. There is also lack of public policies and social resources for later social reintegration and rehabilitation (house, job, psycho-social follow-up, etc.) what favors long lasting and fortification of the violent circle and its generational transmission. It is not dealt in a sufficiently systematic way the training and sensitiveness of civil servants (police, penitentiary, military staff members) and magistrates of the judicial power. Although it is formally reported about their presence, it is of irregular implementation, their effectiveness is not monitored or it is not evaluated their putting into practice; there does not exist publicity on the matter, nor its results are of public access. On the other hand, the State does not cover other essential functions on the subject: it has not been managed to construct a good statistical system that registers quantitative and qualitative data for all the country of public access; the services are not followed up suitably; massive and systematic campaigns in the time have not lasted longer, nor has the subject been dealt with in every other areas of the State.

As it is seen, the recommendations of the Committee of Human rights of year 2000 mentioned above have not been taken into account sufficiently. The NGOs who subscribe the present report find it necessary for the State to give more importance and provoke a deep awareness and the horizontal link within different sectors of the State (health, education, etc.), the follow up and the statistical record. Is it propose the creation of a National Unified Registry of denounces of domestic violence, in order to facilitate the tracing of antecedents when denounces in different places, and a System of statistics on violence, designed on the base of specific common indicators.

IV. THE SITUATION OF PROSTITUTION AND TRAFFIC OF PEOPLE (ARTICLE 6)

The Argentine Republic maintains an abolitionist tradition as regards prostitution. The traffic of women is punished, but not the individual exercise This was the position maintained by Argentina in the Special Committee for the Elaboration of a Convention on the Transnational Organized Delinquency: execution and approval of the additional international legislative instrument to fight against Traffic of People, specially of Women and Children (Vienna from 2 to 6 of October of 2000) This protocol does not contradict, nor weakens the Convention of 2 December 1949. Women and children in prostitution are considered, in these cases, `victims of the traffic ´, and they will be guaranteed the highest protection of their fundamental rights and at the same time it is demanded repression for the dealers.

In the final observations made on 12 August 1997 by the Committee for the Elimination of the Discrimination against Women to the Argentine Republic, concern was expressed on the facts that in the reports of the Argentine Government, there was a lack of data and there was missing an analysis on the situation of women who were object of traffic and exploitation with prostitution aims. In this sense it was suggested to the Government the inclusion in its next report of legal and sociological data related to section 6 of the Convention.

Although no formal studies have been made by the Argentine government, based on the general impoverishment of the population and the report elaborated by UNICEF in 2001, that the situation of women in prostitution has gotten worse considerably. It is very troublesome the increase of prostitution, inclusive at very early ages.

Besides, from the national and local mechanisms there do not exist poliicies to suppress or to diminish the exploitation of women.

There are no official programmes regarding women in prostitution, either to support them, give shelter to them or to reinsert them in other activities. This task, on the contrary, is only made by some feminists and confessional groups. In this way, the Argentine State breaches article 4 of the Protocol of Vienna called "Assistance and protection to the victims of traffic of people" (signed by Argentina), that indicates that the States will be committed to adopt this protection "when it comes the time and in the extent that it is allowed by the internal right".

On the other hand, all women in situation of prostitution, including those who vindicate themselves as sexual workers have been object of repeated abuses, illegal pressures and haltings by the police Torevertthis situation there were presented different legal actions in all the country, being able to indicate by their importance —and among other presentations the one of the Association of Prostitute Women of Argentina (AMMAR), the National Institute against Discrimination (INADI), the Ombudsman Office and the Permanent Assembly for Human Rights, those appeared before the justice of La Plata City denouncing acts of permanent harassment and persecution by the Police against female sex workers in that city.

Prostitution as part of the organized crime at a world-wide level has in Argentina a heartrending example with the migrant women of Dominican Republic, those that can be considered by the serious situation in which they are, like true sexual slaves. These women are brought to Buenos Aires by a procurer, repeating always the same pattern of behavior: the women are deceived with the promise of a legal work; in the destination place their documents are snatched and are confined to live under the rules of rape, punishments and abuse of drugs. Several denounces in the Argentine courts exist on the matter. The case has acquired relevance, from different actions developed by some NGO and from the information spread by mass media. Recently a national newspaper, published that "the political ramifications of this drug trafficking ring had been discovered".

Another case that deserves the attention of the Committee is that of Paraguayan women in prostitution, most of them being minor. According to the research made by a journalistic TV programme `Telenoche Investiga´ they would work in brothels located in Escobar and Tigre, province of Buenos Aires. These premises worked with the approval of public officers and politicians. The judicial investigations in course caused the resignation of the Head of Police of the province of Buenos Aires, who had to step down of his post by the supposed liaison with this crime. The case still follows pending.

Another denunciation of great importance presented before Amnesty International refers about the violent death or the disappearance of at least 26 women in Mar del Plata, province of Buenos Aires, many of them exercised prostitution. Although in an initial stage, the judicial investigations had attributed these crimes to a serial assassin, the judge of the cause determined later that 13 of the deaths and disappearances would be connected to an organization of police officers dedicated to prostitution and the drug trafficking. We consider the statements from the Center of Support to the Battered Women (CAMM) troublesome, as they indicate that in the case of the assassinated prostitutes we have a clear example of discrimination due to their activity.

InfantileProstitution and Traffic of Girls and Boys

In different places of the country, networks of children prostitution and sexual tourism with boys and girls and adolescents have been detected. The existence of great networks of prostitution and traffic have been denounced by diverse journals in which there is no distinction by nationality, social position, race, etc. of the girls who are recruited for sexual exploitation. Thus, investigations in the provinces of Santa Fe, Chubut and Chaco have been carried out without any concrete results.

Also, none of the state organisms which should be competent on the matter, such as the National Council of Women, the Ministry of Justice, the National Council of Childhood, Adolescence and Family, have developed active policies to eliminate children sexual exploitation. Thus, in a recent report of UNICEF on infantile prostitution in Argentina, it was stated that this exploitation form also exists not only in the streets but in hotels, cabarets, saunas, discos and other establishments with that purpose, reason why it is very difficult to approach this problem since it involves people and social groups of high economic and social level, which allows to maintain their identity reserved.

V. PARTICIPATION IN THE POLITICAL AND PUBLIC LIFE WITHOUT DISCRIMINATION (SECTION 7)

1. Government :

In the Dr Fernando de la Rúa administration (1999 - 2001) there were only two female ministers among 12 ministries. In the present government (President Duhalde) there are three female ministers among the same amount of ministries.

Over 24 districts, only in one (San Luis province) a woman assumed as governor, due to. the resignation of the governor, who took the Presidency of the Nation for one week last December 2001.

There do not exist in the provincial or national scope, public policies or rules that establish positive actions (article 4 of the present Convention) as regards gender for the field of the governments, with the exception of the Constitution of Buenos Aires City (1996), that settles proportions in community organizations, decentralized and control organisms, that are not always reached.

2. Judicial Power:

The representation of women in the highest courts continues being scarce. There are no women either in the Supreme Court of Justice of the Nation, or in the Superior Courts of the Provinces.

Legislation establishing positive actions in the scope of the Judicial Power, does not exist except in the Constitution of Buenos Aires City that established quotas by gender for the Superior Court of the City, the Communitarian Tribunals and the Magistrature Council, since 1996.

3. Parliament :

The National Quota Law, Nº 24.012, by means of which the participation of women in the House of Representatives was increased when establishing a minimum basis of 30% of women included in the lists of the political parties, it has just been applied for the renewal elections of the Senate in October of year 2001. Because, by ruling of the constitutional reform of 1994, the renewal had to be total, choosing three senators per province and due to the modification of the ruling of the law in 2001 by the Decree 1246/2000. Then, a 30% of women was incorporated in the Senate for the first time in our history.

After more than 10 years of passing the law, it is possible to affirm the floor became the ceiling, so that the 30% continues working like maximum limit., The women don’t perform major positions in the Congress, unless in exceptional case, neither become chief of parlamentarionsblocks nor chairwomen of important legislative commissions. They accede to a percentage of elective positions but not to real power.

With respect to the provincial legislation in the matter of quota, it exists in 22 provinces on the total of the 24 that make up the Nation.

4. Political parties:

Although in the previous point we emphasized the evolvement of the system of political participation of women that took place with the National Law of Quotas and the provincial laws, it is not yet guaranteed the real participation of women in the party decision- making. In general, the political parties did not adapt their bylaws to the new rule established in the article 37 and transitory clause second of the Amended Constitution of 1994, that forces them, by means of positive actions, to incorporate a minimum of 30% of women in their Boards and Committees. The National Congress has not either passed any law ruling this article, since the majority of the parties have not done it spontaneously.

The qualitative analysis of the internal system of the political parties evidences that it is still the party establishment the one that defines the names of women and men who participate in the elections. For that reason, and to guarantee the access of women to the decision-making this is, to obtain a total parity between men and women in the exercise of the power, political parties are due to become more democratic, through the incorporation of what has been established in the new article 37 of the National Constitution: the D'Hont System in their elections and transparent mechanisms for fundraising and financing of campaigns and parties activities.

In the non -governmental and private field:

It continues being reduced the participation of women in the business chambers, trade unions; professional associations and companies. In general there does not exist legislation that establishes positive actions on the matter, except for some professionals associations in the f Buenos Aires City that introduced them, whether for the City law or by the reform of its statutes imposed by judicial battles conducted by itswomen members, like the Buenos Aires Public Lawyers Association. Regarding participation in trade unions, the Quota law project prepared in the Ministry of Labor in 2001, was presented in the Senate by a group of female senators some months later..

6. University and scientific positions:

In Argentina there was never a full participation of women in university and scientific agencies, nor positive policies in order to promote it. Thus, the National Council of Scientific and Technical Investigations (CONICET) never had a woman as Chairwoman; the University of Buenos Aires (UBA) either did not have a female dean. The women are represented neither in the Presidency nor in the Board of the CONICET, whereas their participation in the Evaluation board and the Advisory Commissions is scarce. To give more evidence on this, at the CONICET 72% of the women occupy the two lower levels of the career, (attending and assistant), against 51% of the men in the same categories. Only 0.4% of the women occupied the high positions, while the 4.5% of the men hold them .

VI. LABOR RIGHTS WITHOUT DISCRIMINATION (ARTICLE 11)

Beyond the very serious situation which men and women suffer in Argentina, due to a constant increasing rate of unemployment (according to non official records, more than the 20% of the PEA is unemployed, which represents 3 million people, it is precise to inform the Committee that in the work field in Argentina is one of the scopes where the greater discrimination against women occurs. This is due to the existence of `...different opportunities by sex; the existence of unequal conditions and possibilities of employment for a group of equally productive officers... . On the matter, there are multiple forms of discrimination against women in the labor scope, being able to indicate by its relevance and without trying to exclude others the following violations to the rights protected by the CEDAW:

1. The violation of the right to equal remuneration (article 11.1.d)

In the income, it is observed an important inequality between men and women; the average income of women represents 60% of the one of the men on equal educational conditions. This disproportion in the labor remunerations is increased with the age and the qualification. Those that suffer greater disproportion are: women over 40, and those who work in activities by their own (like services sector, commerce or industry) and those that have superior levels of education.

2. Lack of legislation that suitably rules domestic work (article 11.1.e)

Although in the report presented to the Committee in 1997 the State mentions a law project that would regulate the labor relations and the pensions plan of the female domestic employees, this law was never passed. At the moment decree 326 and its ruling decree 7979 continue effective, both of year 1956, with a labor regulation different from that of the rest of male and female workers, that prolongs the day work and limits enjoyment of holidays, retirement, etc. Such a job is highly weakened and most of those who carry it out are in informal market and "in illegal conditions", they practically lack resources for their defense. Thus, the Argentine State pays no attention to a situation that prolongs in time the violation of the rights of women who work in domestic service to enjoy all the rights of labor legislation. The serious point of the situation resides exactly in the deeper the economic and social crisis is, the more are the women who are dedicated to this work to household in many cases all the family.

3. Reduction of family allocations (article 11.1.f)

On account of budgetary cuts demanded by the international financial organisms, as we informed at the beginning of the present report, the National Government has reduced the wages of male and female civil servants in 13% (2001). Family allocations of the private sector were also paid through a public entity called ANSES, were also reduced, since they are calculated proportionally f to the wage In case of female employees, allocations for pregnancy, childbirth and puerperium have been reduced in considerable form.

It is necessary to emphasize that women, who are in charge of their children, must make more administrative procedures than men to receive family allocations, and in addition, if they are the economic support of the family, they do not receive any family allocation for their husband or partner..

4. Non remunerated work

The Argentine Government continues unfulfilling the demands which have been recommended in the final observations made by this Honorable Committee on August 1997 as regards assigning value to non- remunerated work and including it in the National Accounts in the form of subsidiary account. The non- remunerated work is the one that consumes the greater amount of productive time of women performing the tasks of a housewife, a mother, taking care of the elderly and ill members even in their own family companies. Researches made point out that women work outside the home an average of 7 hours, and then work in their house (care of children, cleaning, etc.) almost 4 hours, reason why in a day they perform a continuous labor task of approximately 12 hours, being remunerated only by 7 . Nevertheless, there were no official systematic investigations, or of a national or provincial nature on this subject, or about the value of the work in the home and the care of boys and girls.

5. The Plan Male and Female Heads of Home for unemployed people

In the middle of a national economic recession during the past 4 years, and the lack of work sources -and of plans of government to stimulate their creation- recently the Argentine government has devised a social programme "Plan for Male and Female Heads of home". This plan is allegedly to have as an objective the effectiveness of the family right to social inclusion ´ and it is aimed to unemployed males and females in charge of minors. The resources allotted to this programme are distributed by the Government through each one of the provinces and the different municipalities, being the local Consultative Councils in charge of the monitoring..

The allocation is of 150 $ per month, equivalent approximately to less than the fourth part of the stated amount for basic goods and services (CBT) calculated in 625.94 $ or to half of the minimum nourishing amount (266,36 $) for a standard family of 4 members, two of them being minors at a short age.

Another difficult subject to tackle is that it is not guaranteed the access in equal conditions of all persons who fulfill the qualifications for it. The National State has informed to the Committee that such a programme would benefit 2 million people. Nevertheless, it is important to emphasize that by the limitation of the financial resources, it is granted only to a smaller percentage than the predicted one. It would be advisable for the Committee to notice that homes with female heads are 30% of the total and that 70 % of them are poor. Nevertheless, the State has not established in the implementation of this programme any mechanism that contemplates this circumstance. Respect to the participation of women in the decision-making in this plan, the State informed on the subscription of an agreement of interinstitutionally integrated cooperation between the National Council of Women and the Ministry of Labor, Employment and Social Security. Nevertheless, we must inform that in this agreement the specific participation of women NGOs is not contemplated in the Consultative Councils. So it is not ensured the participation of civil society members who can contribute criteria, elements and specific information on the condition of women in the country, which are essential to make possible an equitable distribution of that social subsidies. It is not either possible to check up the organization and coverage of this plan.

Other issues of concern

Finally, and as it happens anywhere in the world, in the labour market, women continue segregated to certain branches and occupational categories, related to their roll of mother and care taker, and to positions of smaller hierarchy, prestige and remuneration. This, although the total university enrolment has become more femenine (though by a small margin). The women become qualified but they do not manage to reflect their qualification in the access to better jobs. The traditional "crystal ceiling" is perpetuated due to the lack of action of the State to revert it; and it is easy to anticipate that, in the days of high unemployment rates, it will be increased.

Also, fatherhood license are not regulated to allow equal sharing by men and women as well as the childbearing or their newly born or ill children.

On the other hand, 34% of the children of up to 5 years of working mothers go to nurseries ; and only a minority of them has a service provided or financed by their employees, trade unions and social organizations. In the rest of the cases, the working women must pay the nursery or get cooperation from a relative in the care of the children. With the present coverage, ç`the cost´ of the infantile care is 0.24% of the wage of the total staff. To cover all registered employees would represent 0,70%. In addition, the resources could come from sources that did not increase the cost of work.

VII.THE Right to health without discrimination (Article 12)

1. General Overview :

The access of the Argentine population in general to health services, being public, of the social security or private, is limited severely due to the present economic crisis and to the devaluation of the national currency. The increasing unemployment that has been occurring since 1994, meant, for great masses of population, the loss of the -health care coverage, and at the same time it worsened the services available. The public health services cannot meet the needs of the increasing demand, originated in the middle class groups that can no longer afford the cost of private medical insurances. In addition, by the crisis of the state, they lack supplies of any type. Social security services are on the brink of bankruptcy. Health Care compulsory coverage list of benefits that must be provided by social security and private health insurances—, was modified and trimmed. Private health care services increases its costs.

In this critical, context women are specially affected, either in the health care of their own health, or the one of their ill children or relatives, who they frequently care. Within the social security, it is of great concern PAMI the national social security for the retired people, that covers elderly people in which women predominate Due to a persistent bad administration throughout 25 years derived in the interruption of services and medicines supply. This is the other aspect of the emergency in the social security, in which the great majority of retired people perceive a salary equivalent to 50 to 70 U$S.

Also it is worrisome that some important social security institutions such as the Institute of Medical Care (IOMA), discriminate women beneficiaries not allowing them to include their husbands or partners, although males and females beneficiaries contribute equally, men enjoy that benefit exclusively. In addition this social security institution does not allow to incorporate homosexual male and female couples.

2. Sexual and Reproductive health:

The Argentinean Government did not disseminate recommendations made by the Committee of Human rights in 2000, reason why the same ones continue to have total effectiveness: `It is of great concern to the Committee that the criminalization of the abortion dissuades doctors even to apply this procedure without judicial warrant when the law allows it for example, when a clear risk for the life or the health of the mother exists or when the pregnancy is a result from a rape of a woman mentally disable. `The Committee also expresses its concern about the discriminatory aspects of the laws and public policies, that force poor women and those who live in the countryside to practice illegal and unsafe abortion ´. The Committee recommended that the State takes measures to apply at national level legislation similar to the one passed in the City of Buenos Aires in July 2000, "thanks to which advising will occur on family planning and contraceptives will be provided with the purpose of giving the women true alternatives". "The Committee recommends in addition that there should be a periodic revision of laws and public policies related to family planning. Women must be able to make use of family planning methods and to the sterilization procedure and, in cases in which abortion can be practised legally, all obstacles will be avoided to do so. Legislation must be modified to authorize abortion in all cases of pregnancy due to rape ".

Historically, the Argentinean women have seen very affected their right to decide free and responsibly whether to have children or not, how many, when and how to have them, and in spite of the CEDAW and other instruments of human rights the situation has not been modified. The State, with a persistent pro-natalist and sensible tradition to the pressures of conservatory sectors inside and outside of the Catholic Church, did not manage to establish enough inclusive and persistent public policies to guarantee sexual and reproductive rights. This has not been modified since 1997, date of the last report to the CEDAW Committee.

A national law of sexual and reproductive health was not still passed, due to the resistance of traditional sectors that exert great pressure on parliamentarians and politicians. Two projects were passed in the House of Representatives. In Senate one lost parliamentary state in December of 1997, and the other still waits for its consideration.

As regards the provincial or municipal laws and/or decrees, they exist in less than half of the provinces of the country: City of Buenos Aires (2000) Cordoba (1996), Chaco (1996), Chubut (1999), La Pampa (1991), Mendoza (1996), Misiones (1998), Neuquen (1997), Rio Negro (1996), Jujuy (1999), Santa Fe (2001), Tierra del Fuego (2001), La Rioja (2000) (with a parcial veto). In the Province of Buenos Aires, where almost a third of the population of the country resides, there is no law, although there was a limited program, that at present has been interrupted. Although they are heterogeneous, all provincial laws create programs or services of advise, attention and provision of contraceptive methods and care of reproductive health. In general they do not establish interactions with the educational system, nor with the social security. The municipalities of Rosario, Mendoza, Cordoba and some few of Greater Buenos Aires counties have on programmes of this type. Most of them exclude the Intrauterine Device –IUD- from contraceptive methods which are provided on a free basis as it is considered abortive.

It’s alarming the recent jurisprudence of the National Supreme Court (March 2002), prohibiting the manufacture and sale of one of the pills of emergency contraception (this point is extended in the chapter of equality before the law, section 15 of the CEDAW). Due to the resistance of certain sectors, emergency contraception usually not provided in public health services, only in the City of Rosario (Prov. of Santa Fe) is offered.

The mere existence of laws does not guarantee the effective enjoyment of the rights. In spite of the mentioned legislation, it can be stated that the provision of suitable attention: nonsexist, based on good treatment and informed consent to men and women, in conditions of equity by sex, age and socioeconomic level, are not guaranteed in Argentina. The availability of services varies according to the situation of each province or municipality. On the other hand, the increasing social inequity still aggravates even more this flaw. If more than 50% of the population is nowadays under the line of poverty, we can conclude that most of Argentine women live in a situation of serious unprotection of their health, specially sexual and reproductive one. This situation affects more seriously youngest and poor women with low education, and the rural population. Another aspect that aggravates the unprotection of sexual and reproductive rights is the persistence of cultural patterns that, in Argentina, still maintain sexuality like a taboo subject, in particular for women of popular sectors.

According to data of the National Institute of Statistics and Census of 1997, the percentage of sexually active women between 15 to 49 years of age of the main cities that used contraceptive methods varied between 53.2 and 64.6%. Among those with Unsatisfied Basic Needs (poor), this rate was reduced to 43.5% to 54.1%. This indicates a low level of use of contraceptives methods among poor women, that the economic crisis and the absence of programs of reproductive health have worsened.

3. Subjects of special concern:

a) Voluntary sterilization:

The tie of tubes and/or vasectomy, specifically are prohibited in most of the provincial and local laws of reproductive health. Also, the Penal Code considers it a crime, classifying it like very serious injury. The Medical Doctors regulation law follows the same line, except in case of women life danger . It is possible to emphasize recent advance in the Province of Rio Negro, where medical doctor regulation law allows surgical contraception such as tie of Fallopian tubes and vasectomy at request of the patient in every and all public or private health care institutions.

The decisions on the own body are of private nature and the State should not have to interfere in them, whenever health agents act responsibly providing information and assuring informed consent. According to what has been stated beforehand, it is necessary to derogate all type of legislation that prevents voluntary sterilization as to allow it does not mean to establish it in an obligatory way.

b) Abortion:

This is another subject of concern in Argentina by its high incidence. Abortion continues being illegal in Argentina: one is classified in the Penal Code like a crime against the life of people. Although in 1997 the Committee recommended to revise the legislation referred to abortion, there is no action in this sense. On the contrary, in 1998, by presidential decree, the "Day of the Child To be born" (25 of March of every year) was created. The Plan of Action of ICPD+5 had not advance in the application of paragraph 63 iii (,1999), in which " the governments are urged to train the personnel and to adapt the health care services to take care of abortion complications in countries where abortion was not legalized."

Today more than ever, by the deepening of the crisis, women use abortion by lack of public policies that guarantee the access to contraception. As it was presented in previous information, and according to official data, it is estimated that in Argentina, there are around 400,000 annual abortions (Report CNM 2000). According to the INDEC 37% of the pregnancies end up in abortion. Complications of abortion are the first cause of hospitalization in gynecological services. As it is an illegal practice there are not reliable statistics so research had many obstacles.

Nonpunishable abortion is not made suitably in every day life. Doctors do not always make the legally allowed abortions in time and form, and in many cases they ask legal authorization, when such a procedure is unnecessary. The penal act is confusing and restrictive, and has been interpreted in a more contradictory way still by the courts in all levels. Recently, some judges have imposed administrative or economic punishments to doctors who acted accordingly. Others, on the contrary, tried to process women. The State would have to disseminate the existence of nonpunishable abortion and the necessity to act consequently, with the required speed and responsibility.

Penalization of abortion and the lack of an appropriate implementation of the legal exceptions, specially in the case of therapeutic abortion, are clear violations of Section 12 of the Convention as it has been understood by the aforementioned general Recommendation 24 from the Committee of CEDAW in the item 14, last paragraph, which points out: "the access of women to an adequate medical health care finds also other obstacles, like rules that penalize some medical surgeries that affect women exclusively and punish those women who undergo them".

Rates of "maternal death" continue high in Argentina (event women NGO´s have been denouncing for more than 20 years) in relation to other health indicators of the country, and also in relation with other countries of the region. At national level, for the year 2000, last data available in the National Ministry of Health, it is 39 per 100,000 children born alive; it stays similar to the registered one in 1997. There are still serious differences according to age, the socioeconomic and education level. The more vulnerable age group is the one 40 to 44 years (139 of 100,000 born alive), followed closely by minors of 15 years old (122 each 100,000 born alive ones). In the year 2000, for the first time, maternal deaths in minors of 15 years old were registered. As far as socioeconomic level, for example, in the province of Jujuy is of 102 per 100,000, in the province of Chaco of 132 per 100,000 and in the province of Formosa of 177 per100,000 .

The recommendation of the Committee with respect to "increase the efforts to reduce Maternal Mortality and Morbidity" was not taken by the State during this period. By the contrary it would get worse, in particular among poorest women and less educated. When causes of maternal deaths are analyzed, it is observed that 29% were due to abortion, 15% to sepsis and other complications of puerperium, 15% to other direct obstetrical causes, 14% to hypertension and edema (toxemia), 10% to indirect obstetrical causes, 9% to hemorrhages and 8% to previous placenta, loosening or hemorrhages prechildbirth. It is evident that 90% of these deaths are avoidable and that, as indicated by specific studies, the percentage due to abortion would increase if there were data adjustments including information of clinical records.

Another indicator of abortion as maternal deaths cause is the proportion of hospital admissions due to abortion complications in public hospitals. Although data updated at national level do not exist, previous studies indicate an increase of abortion complications between 1980 and 1990. In 90s one of each 4 women admitted to a public hospital were due to abortion. Experts and special studies estimate an under registration of approximately 50% due to mistake in causal death certificate, and that women who abort hide the fact. Another aspect that indicates deficiencies in the health care of pregnancy and childbirth is the high index of toxemias, avoidable cause with a suitable prenatal control, even made by paramedic personnel. Since 70% of maternal morbimortality causes are avoidable, and that the country spends a lot of money on health care of abortion complications, it is clear barriers for their solution are not scientific but political.

In Argentina pregnancy in adolescenc continues growing. 15.5% of children born alive are from mothers under 20 years old. The proportion varies in different regions of the country and studies indicate that adolescent pregnancy affect mainly girls/teenagers less educated. Also it is strongly related to socioeconomic level. The proportion of mothers under 15 years old has increased in the last 5 years: it raised from 0.4% of the total of born alive, to 0.5%. Indicative studies show that in the case of "child mothers" (9 to 13 years of age) they have had children with men who are older than them in at least 10 years (in 80 % of the cases), which relates them with sexual abuse, rapes or including incest.

Persistence of high rates of adolescent pregnancies indicates health care and education institution did not offered knowledge and resources to avoid it. Cultural patterns that considers female teenagers as the only one responsible of child bearing. It is necessary to include men in childbearing and the raising. To sum up, in Argentina, the limitations persist and increased so adolescents can not obtain information and sexual education and free provision of contraceptive methods.

Sexual education, although included formally in official curricular contents, is not implemented in most schools. Teachers fear to be sanctioned by superiors, and also to possible adverse reactions from religious- oriented families.

According to data of the Ministry of Health, at the 31 December 2001 AIDS patients are 21.251, of which 22.6% (4057) were women. The ratio males/females is 2.8 men by each woman. This indicates an accelerated growth of AIDS among women, since in 1990, when this ratio was 6.9:1. In men and women heterosexual transmission continued growing ; in women it reaches to 64.2%. The transmission by use of intravenous drugs –IDU- is very high; although it predominates in men (43.4%) in women is 29%. Mother to child transmission corresponds to 6.7% of all patients, it is a high value in relation to other countries of the region, and indicates the high level of HIV infection among women in fertile age in Argentina. If age is considered, women become ill at earlier ages than men. AIDS constitutes the first cause of death in women between 15 and 44 years of age in City of Buenos Aires and the second in Province of Buenos Aires. In all the country it is the third cause of death in women.

It ‘s necessary to signal the difficults to develop prevention actions of HIV by the national Government and the provincial ones. In 1997, when project LUSIDA jointly developed with the World Bank began, accomplishment of a mass media prevention campaign was included. This one only could be executed in 2001, because up to the change of government in 2000, it was impossible to promote condom use, requirement stated in the World Bank agreement. The mass media prevention campaign developed from May to December 2001 incorporated specific messages for women prevention as well as in the hot line established since August 2000.

Although National AIDS law establishes the obligation of the National Ministry of Health to provide free treatment to AIDS patients, conflicts are periodically registered in the continuity of this provision. In 2002 with the economic crisis and the increase of prices there is an important shortage of supplies that affects many drugs, interrupting the treatments to many of almost the 16,000 people under treatment for AIDS in the Ministry of Health. On the other hand, a study made in 2001 indicated that AIDS mortality between 1998 —when it began to provide the triple therapy and 2000—, did not diminish mortality in women, but it really worked on men and children. This indicates the necessity to adopt special measures for women health care to guarantee their continuity and focus on approaches about their specific problems.

STD´s, strongly related to poverty and lack of instruction, are interrelated with cultural patterns that maintain women discrimination. On one side, this appears to be recognized in the discourse but on the other side, their special needs of care are not taken into account. Women have a high vulnerability to STD in heterosexual relations, determined by social, cultural and biologicalfactors.. Women disempowerment in relation to men prevents them from requiring the use of condom. All these factors collaborate to increase so women vulnerability to HIV / AIDS. In popular sectors, the myth stays that women are, by themselves, cause of the infection. In health care services consultation for women is usually discouraged. The health system covers the antiretroviral medication on a free basis, but periodically probl