This article first appeared in the St. Louis Beacon, Nov. 18, 2010 - WASHINGTON -- When Linda Tarr-Whelan was President Jimmy Carter's White House assistant for women's issues in 1980, she and her 12-year-old daughter were thrilled when he signed an international pact called the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (called CEDAW).
This year, that daughter celebrated her 42nd birthday, and Tarr-Whelan's 12-year-old granddaughter was assigned to write a school paper about why the U.S. Senate had never ratified the treaty, which affirms principles of human rights and equality for women -- even though 186 of 193 countries have done so.
"I want to have an answer for her," Tarr-Whelan said Thursday as she stood next to the Senate's deputy majority leader, U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., at a news conference in the Capitol to urge the Senate to finally take action and ratify the pact. "Our voice is needed. We need to stand up for women around the world and ratify this treaty as soon as we can."
Tarr-Whelan, a former ambassador to the U.N. Commission on the Status of Women, now serves on the advisory committee of CEDAW 2010, a task force of 115 organizations that is pushing for a Senate vote.
On Thursday, the Senate Judiciary Committee's Subcommittee on Human Rights and the Law held a hearing, chaired by Durbin, on CEDAW.
"Look at the company we are keeping by refusing to ratify this treaty," said Durbin, pointing to a chart that listed Iran, Somalia and Sudan among the seven countries that have not ratified it. He quoted a letter from former Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O'Connor, supporting CEDAW and complaining that "the Senate's failure to ratify CEDAW gives other countries a retort when U.S. officials raise issues about the treatment of women, and thus our non-ratification may hamper the effectiveness of the U.S. in achieving increased protection for women worldwide."
At the hearing, a prominent women's activist from Afghanistan, Wazhma Frogh, told senators that Afghan women -- victims of severe discrimination during the Taliban regime -- have used CEDAW "to integrate women's voices in Afghanistan's reconstruction process and to deliver real change for women every day."
Marcia D. Greenberger, co-president of the National Women's Law Center, said that 70 percent of the 1.3 billion people living in poverty today are women, and an estimated 5,000 women a year "are killed in the name of 'honor' for being a victim of rape, for instance, or for talking to a man who is not a relative."
While Durbin said that he would push for a Senate vote on the treaty, which President Barack Obama has endorsed, some Republican legislators and conservative interest groups express continued concern about the treaty, with some organizations citing fears that it would indirectly promote abortion in some countries.
Durbin said he would try to get Majority Leader Harry Reid of Nevada to schedule debate and a vote on the treaty, but he could not give assurances that a vote would occur during the current lame-duck session. With 67 votes needed to ratify the pact, convincing Senate Republicans to vote for it is necessary.
Durbin was the only senator present for most of Thursday's hearing.
Steven Groves, a fellow from the conservative Heritage Foundation, testified against the treaty. "Ratification of CDAW would neither advance U.S. national interests within the international community nor enhance the rights of women in the U.S.," he said.
Groves warned that the international CEDAW Committee might try to interfere with U.S. domestic matters or try to embarrass the United States.
Supporters of CEDAW say it has enabled women in many countries to push successfully for new laws and policies that have increased opportunities and security for women and their families. They cited Mexico, the Philippines and Bangladesh among the nations where the treaty has helped women make such progress. Among those testifying at the hearing was actress Geena Davis, who has been an advocate for womens rights around the world.
"The human rights of women all over the world are violated at an alarming rate," said Durbin, adding that violence against women in some countries "is at epidemic levels." He said the Senate should "ratify CEDAW so we can more effectively lead the fight for women's rights around the world."