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The electronic version of this document has been prepared at the Fourth
World Conference on Women by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP)
in collaboration with the United Nations Fourth World Conference on Women
Secretariat.
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AS WRITTEN


THE STATE OF ERITREA
STATEMENT BY MADAME ASKALU MENKERIOS
MEMBER OF THE NATIONAL COUNCIL
EXECUTIVE MEMBER OF THE PEOPLE'S FRONT FOR DEMOCRACY AND JUSTICE (PFDJ)
PRESIDENT OF THE NATIONAL UNION OF ERITREAN WOMEN (NUEW)
HEAD OF THE ERITREAN DELEGATION

TO THE FOURTH UNITED NATIONS WORLD CONFERENCE ON WOMEN
BEIJING, PEOPLE'S REPUBLIC OF CHINA 4 - 15 SEPTEMBER 1995


Madame President,
Honourable Delegates
Ladies and Gentlemen,

On behalf of the Eritrean delegation I wish to express my great
appreciation to the UN Secretariat for organizing this august and very
important conference on women. At the same time I would like to extend my
heartfelt thanks to the Government and people of the Peoples Republic of
China for their kind hospitality in hosting such a conference of great
global significance.

As you all know Eritrea became an independent sovereign state only in
1993. It did not participate in the Nairobi Conference. And as such could
not be expected to have taken initiatives on the basis of the Forward
Looking Strategies adopted in 1985.

Nevertheless, the Eritrean struggle for independence had engendered the
spirit, principles and programs of social emancipation manifested in the
Nairobi declaration, in addition to those of the National Liberation
Struggle.

I am pleased here to inform you that my Government has ratified The
convention on the right of the child and already signed the instrument of
accession on the elimination of all forms of discrimination against
women. This vividly shows the Government’s determination and commitment
to adhere to and implement all instruments which promote women's rights
as equal citizens and their advancement thereof.

Now, I wish to underline from the outset our gratification at this
conference since its proceedings will contribute immensely to set the
tone of and spur national efforts at enhancing the equality and
empowerment of women. This is particularly true in countries like ours
where conservative traditional values, underdevelopment and the lack of
education all combine to bolster the status quo of a patriarchal society.

On the other hand, it is apparent that international conventions and
platitudes alone will not bring about dramatic changes in the status of
women unless they are accompanied by wider efforts for sustainable
development. It is doubtful whether sheer legislation or political action
alone will change entrenched societal values overnight. Positive shifts
in attitudes will indeed require sustained education, political work and
meaningful improvement in the life-styles of the society as a whole;
tasks which cannot be seen in isolation from the overall drive towards
real development and economic growth.

We find these general observations very much valid and relevant in the
case of Eritrea. The dynamics and exigencies of thirty years of war of
liberation had of course been catalytic in changing age-old values that
relegated women to second-class citizenship depriving them of such basic
natural rights as the right to vote, ownership of land, and a host of
other fundamental freedoms. Women made up about 35% of the liberation
army taking active part in all aspects of the liberation war - from
active combat role to all the supportive functions in the base and rear
areas. In the event, their military prowess and heroism in combat
combined with the endeavours of the liberation front to ascertain the
equality of the sexes had a drastic effect in overhauling traditional
attitudes and values.

The Government of Eritrea and the National Union of Eritrean Women are
today working to consolidate and expand the achievements of the
liberation years. In terms of gender issues, the Government's proclaimed
policy aims at:

-intensifying the efforts undertaken (in the liberation years) to
sensitize and enhance the awareness of the society on the decisive role
of women for the socio-economic, political and cultural transformation of
the country;

-upholding the equal rights of women and changing all inherited (residual
laws that detract from this stance;

-ensuring the participation of women in education, economic activities
and employment;

-introducing appropriate labour-saving technologies to reduce the
drudgery of women's work in the household and in other activities (water,
fuel wood, child care centers etc..)

-improving and expanding mother-child health care services.

In addition to these policy statements and commitments, the Government
has revised the inherited civil and penal codes to abolish child and
arranged marriages, to prohibit bride price and dowry, to raise the legal
age for marriage to 18 years and to ensure equal rights of women to
initiate divorce proceedings. The new land proclamation adopted by the
Eritrean National Assembly in September 1994 ensures that every citizen -
man or woman - has the right of access to land for housing and farming
upon the attainment of the age of eighteen.

The new Labour Law which is being drafted with the participation of the
National Union of Eritrea Women will further ensure:

-equal employment opportunities for women and men;

-equal pay for equal work;

-protection of pregnant women from working night shifts, overtime and
unsafe conditions;

-guarantee of sixty days paid maternity leave, in addition to two weeks
annual leave and sick leave;

-the prohibition of child labour.

Madame President
Honourable Delegates
Ladies and Gentlemen

As you may be aware, the young state of Eritrea is currently in the
process of drafting a new Constitution. It is a measure of the emphasis
that the Government attaches to the empowerment and equality of women
that 22 out of the 50 members of this independent Commission are women.
The representation of women in the Transitional National Assembly and the
provincial assemblies is likewise being encouraged and guaranteed both
through equal voting rights, and when the need arises, through
affirmative action by assigning fixed quotas to women beyond and above
the seats they might achieve in open contests.

But while these are positive achievements that cannot be underrated by
any standard, there are yet serious impediments and obstacles that women
in Eritrea must overcome to ensure real equality and which will require
years of hard work and struggle. As mentioned earlier, legislation alone
will not do the work. Indeed, large segments of the rural and urban
society still resort to customary laws and traditions in regard to
marriage and divorce. Dangerous traditional practices such as
circumcision continue to prevail in many areas. The percentage of women
attending secondary and tertiary education remains pitifully low. Hence
the transformation task awaiting for the National Union of Eritrean
women, the Government and society as a whole remains formidable.

Thank you.