Message OF JOHN PAUL II
On the Upcoming Women's Conference
May 26, 1995
The Holy Father met Mrs. Gertrude Mongella,
Secretary General of the UN Fourth World
Conference on Women, to be held next September
in Beijing, China. At the end of their meeting
the Pope gave Mrs. Mongella the following
English-language message.
To Mrs. Gertrude Mongella, Secretary General
of the Fourth World Conference on Women of the
United Nations,
1. It is with genuine pleasure that I welcome
you to the Vatican, at a time when you and your
collaborators are engaged in preparing the
United Nations Fourth World Conference on Women,
to be held in Beijing in September. There, the
attention of the world community will be focused
on important, urgent questions regarding the
dignity, the role and the rights of women. Your
visit enables me to express deep appreciation
for your efforts to make the Conference, on the
theme of "Action for Equality, Development and
Peace", the occasion for a serene and objective
reflection on these vital goals, and the role of
women in achieving them.
The Conference has raised high expectations in
large sectors of public opinion. Conscious of
what is at stake for the well-being of millions
of women around the world, the Holy See, as you
are aware, has taken an active part in the
preparatory and regional meetings leading up to
the Conference. In this process the Holy See has
discussed both local and global issues of
particular concern to women not only with other
Delegations and organizations, but especially
with women themselves. The Holy See's Delegation
which has itself consisted mostly of women, has
heard with keen interest and appreciation the
hopes and fears, the concerns and demands of
women all over the world.
Solutions must be based on inherent dignity
of women
2. Solutions to the issues and problems raised
at the Conference, if they are to be honest and
permanent, cannot but be based on the
recognition of the inherent inalienable dignity
of women, and the importance of women's presence
and participation in all aspects of social life.
The Conference's success will depend on whether
or not it will offer a true vision of women's
dignity and aspirations, a vision capable of
inspiring and sustaining objective and realistic
responses to the suffering, struggle and
frustration that continue to be a part of all
too many women's lives.
In fact, the recognition of the dignity of every
human being is the foundation and support of the
concept of universal human rights. For
believers, that dignity and the rights that stem
from it are solidly grounded in the truth of the
human being's creation in the image and likeness
of God. The United Nations Charter refers to
this dignity in the same instance as it
acknowledges the equal rights of men and women
(cf. Preamble, par. 2), a concept prominent in
almost every international human rights
instrument. If the potential and aspirations of
many of the world's women are not realized, this
is due in great part to the fact that their
human rights, as acknowledged by these
instruments, are not upheld. In this sense, the
Conference can sound a needed warning, and call
governments and organizations to work
effectively to ensure the legal guarantee of
women's dignity and rights.
3. As most women themselves point out, equality
of dignity does not mean "sameness with men".
This would only impoverish women and all of
society, by deforming or losing the unique
richness and the inherent value of femininity.
In the Church's outlook, women and men have been
called by the Creator to live in profound
communion with one another with reciprocal
knowledge and giving of self, acting together
for the common good with the complementary
characteristics of that which is feminine and
masculine.
A unique role in humanizing society
At the same time we must not forget that at the
personal level one's dignity is experienced not
as a result of the affirmation of rights on the
juridical and international planes, but as the
natural consequence of the concrete material,
emotional and spiritual care received in the
heart of one's family. No response to women's
issues can ignore women's role in the family or
take lightly the fact that every new life is
totally entrusted to the protection and care of
the woman carrying it in her womb (cf.
Encyclical Letter Evangelium vitae, n. 58). In
order to respect this natural order of things,
it is necessary to counter the misconception
that the role of motherhood is oppressive to
women, and that a commitment to her family,
particularly to her children, prevents a woman
from reaching personal fulfillment, and women as
a whole from having an influence in society. It
is a disservice not only to children, but also
to women and society itself, when a woman is
made to feel guilty for wanting to remain in the
home and nurture and care for her children. A
mother's presence in the family, so critical to
the stability and growth of that basic unity of
society, should instead be recognized, applauded
and supported in every possible way. By the same
token society needs to call husbands and fathers
to their family responsibilities, and ought to
strive for a situation in which they will not be
forced by economic circumstances to move away
from the home in search of work.
4. Moreover, in today's world, when so many
children are facing crises that threaten not
only their long-term development, but also their
very life, it is imperative that the security
afforded by responsible parents—mother and
father—within the context of the family be
reestablished and reaffirmed. Children need the
positive environment of a stable family life
that will ensure their development to human
maturity-girls on an equal basis with boys. The
Church historically has demonstrated in action,
as well as in word, the importance of educating
the girl-child and providing her with health
care, particularly where she may not otherwise
have had these benefits. In keeping with the
Church's mission and in support of the goals of
the Women's Conference, Catholic institutions
and organizations around the world will be
encouraged to continue their care and special
attention to the girl-child.
5. In this year's World Day of Peace Message, on
the theme of "Women: Teachers of Peace", I wrote
that the world urgently needs "to heed the
yearning for peace which they [women] express in
words and deeds and, at times of greatest
tragedy, by the silent eloquence of their grief"
(1995 World Day of Peace Message, n. 4). It
should in fact be clear that "when women are
able fully to share their gifts with the whole
community, the very way in which society
understands and organizes itself is improved"
(n. 9). This is a recognition of the unique role
which women have in humanizing society and
directing it towards the positive goals of
solidarity and peace.
It is far from the Holy See's intentions to try
to limit the influence and activity of women in
society. On the contrary, without detracting
from their role in relation to the family, the
Church recognizes that women's contribution to
the welfare and progress of society is
incalculable, and the Church looks to women to
do even more to save society from the deadly
virus of degradation and violence which is today
witnessing a dramatic increase.
There should be no doubt that on the basis of
their equal dignity with men "women have a full
right to become actively involved in all areas
of public life, and this right must be. affirmed
and guaranteed, also where necessary, through
appropriate legislation" (1995 World Day of
Peace Message, n. 9). In truth, in some
societies, women have made great strides in this
direction, being involved in a more decisive
way, not without overcoming many obstacles in
cultural, social, economic and political life
(cf. ibid., n. 4). This is a positive and
hopeful development which the Beijing Conference
can help to consolidate, in particular by
calling on all countries to overcome situations
which prevent women from being acknowledged,
respected and appreciated in their dignity and
competence. Profound changes are needed in the
attitudes and organization of society in order
to facilitate the participation of women in
public life, while at the same time providing
for the special obligations of women and of men
with regard to their families. In some cases
changes have also to be made to render it
possible for women to have access to property
and to the management of their assets. Nor
should the special difficulties and problems
faced by single women living alone or those who
head families be neglected.
Women bear hardest burden of abortion
6. In fact, development and progress imply
access to resources and opportunities, equitable
access not only between the least developed,
developing and richer countries, and between
social and economic classes, but also between
women and men (cf. Second Vatican Ecumenical
Council, Constitution on the Church in the
Modern World Gaudium et spes, n. 9). Greater
efforts are needed to eliminate discrimination
against women in areas that include education,
health care and employment. Where certain groups
or classes are systematically excluded from
these goods, and where communities or countries
lack basic social infrastructures and economic
opportunities, women and children are the first
to experience marginalization. And yet, where
poverty abounds, or in the face of the
devastation of conflict and war, or the tragedy
of migration, forced or otherwise, it is very
often women who maintain the vestiges of human
dignity, defend the family, and preserve
cultural and religious values. History is
written almost exclusively as the narrative of
men's achievements, when in fact its better part
is most often molded by women's determined and
persevering action for good. Elsewhere I have
written about man's debt to woman in the realm
of life and the defense of life (cf. Apostolic
Letter Mulieris dignitatem, n. 18). How much
still needs to be said and written about man's
enormous debt to woman in every other realm of
social and cultural progress! The Church and
human society have been, and continue to be,
measurelessly enriched by the unique presence
and gifts of women, especially those who have
consecrated themselves to the Lord and in him
have given themselves in service to others. vice
to others.
7. The Beijing Conference will undoubtedly draw
attention to the terrible exploitation of women
and girls which exists in every part of the
world. Public opinion is only beginning to take
stock of the inhuman conditions in which women
and children are often forced to work especially
in less developed areas of the globe, with
little or no recompense, no labor rights, no
security. And what about the sexual exploitation
of women and children? The trivialization of
sexuality especially in the media, and the
acceptance in some societies of a sexuality
without moral restraint and without
accountability, are deleterious above all to
women, increasing the challenges that they face
in sustaining their personal dignity and their
service to life. In a society which follows this
path, the temptation to use abortion as a
so-called "solution" to the unwanted results of
sexual promiscuity and irresponsibility is very
strong. And here again it is the woman who bears
the heaviest burden: often left alone, or
pressured into terminating the life of her child
before it is born she must then bear the burden
of her conscience which forever reminds her that
she has taken the life of her child (cf.
Mulieris dignitatem, n. 14).
A radical solidarity with women requires that
the underlying causes which make a child
unwanted be addressed. There will never be
justice, including equality, development and
peace, for women or for men, unless there is an
unfailing determination to respect, protect,
love and serve life—every human life, at every
stage and in every situation (cf. Evangelium
vitae, nn. 5 and 87). It is well known that this
is a primary concern of the Holy See, and it
will be reflected in the positions taken by the
Holy See Delegation at the Beijing Conference.
8. The challenge facing most societies is that
of upholding, indeed strengthening, woman's role
in the family while at the same time making it
possible for her to use all her talents and
exercise all her rights in building up society.
However women's greater presence in the work
force, in public life, and generally in the
decision-making processes guiding society, on an
equal basis with men, will continue to be
problematic as long as the costs continue to
burden the private sector. In this area the
State has a duty of subsidiarity, to be
exercised through suitable legislative and
social security initiatives. In the perspective
of uncontrolled free-market policies there is
little hope that women will be able to overcome
the obstacles on their path.
Many challenges face the Beijing Conference. We
must hope that the Conference will set a course
that avoids the reefs of exaggerated
individualism, with its accompanying moral
relativism, or- on the opposite side-the reefs
of social and cultural conditioning which does
not permit women to become aware of their own
dignity, with drastic consequences for the
proper balance of society and with continuing
pain and despair on the part of so many women.
9. Madame Secretary General, it is my hope and
prayer that the participants in the Conference
will appreciate the importance of what is to be
decided there, and its implications for millions
of women throughout the world. A great
sensitivity is required in order to avoid the
risk of prescribing action which will be far
removed from the real-life needs and aspirations
of women, which the Conference is supposed to
serve and promote. With almighty God's help may
you and all involved work with enlightened mind
and upright heart so that the goals of equality,
development and peace may be more fully
realized.
From the Vatican, 26 May 1995.
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