Calmy-Rey takes up the cudgels for women’s rights

Micheline Calmy-Rey has invited her overseas counterparts to Geneva Keystone

The Swiss foreign minister, Micheline Calmy-Rey, has invited her female counterparts to hold talks in Geneva on ways to combat violence against women.

In an interview with swissinfo, Calmy-Rey said the aim of the meeting – to be held on March 15 – was to put women’s rights higher on the global political agenda.

The gathering coincides with the start of the 60th annual session of the United Nations Human Rights Commission, which runs from March 15 to April 23.

Women’s rights are also the focus of International Women’s Day on March 8. Statistics released on Friday by Amnesty International estimate that up to a third of women worldwide had been subjected to some form of abuse.

swissinfo: What has been the response to your invitation?

Micheline Calmy-Rey: At present, a dozen or so of my female counterparts have accepted my invitation, which is around half of the world’s female foreign ministers. So, in my view, it’s already a successful initiative.

A country’s foreign policy exists to create networks and to develop links between people and from that point of view, I think it’s very important that female ministers have the opportunity to get to know each other, speak together and understand each other.

What’s more, as women, we are particularly concerned with defending human rights. And despite the fact that many countries have integrated women’s rights into their beliefs and constitutions, the promotion and respect of these rights is a long way from being at the level they should.

So it’s very important that female ministers get behind this kind of cause.

swissinfo: What do you hope the result of the meeting will be?

M. C-R.: This is an informal get-together so the main goal is to get to know each other and learn to work together. That said, we plan to make our voices heard within the Human Rights Commission and to raise public and governmental awareness of violence against women.

We hope that our efforts will allow us to take steps on an international and domestic level to fight this problem.

At the end of our meeting on March 15, we also hope to adopt a common declaration, which we’re currently working on.

swissinfo: Last year, you called for reforms within the Human Rights Commission. Where do things stand now?

M. C-R.: The reform proposals that I put forward have been well received and we’ve made some progress. Canada and Norway have also made similar suggestions. But it remains to be seen whether these ideas will really take shape within the upcoming session of the Commission.

swissinfo: In particular, you suggested that only countries which have ratified the relevant human rights treaties be allowed to take part in the Commission. Is there not a risk that the Commission could be transformed into a rich nations’ club?

M. C-R.: I did not make any official suggestions but I did ask some hard questions that seemed to resonate with other countries.

First of all, it must be said that rich countries violate human rights. So it’s not really a question of a divide between rich and guilty countries.

What’s more, the Commission must be open to all nations. At the same time, it’s not a bad thing to evaluate the progress of countries that would like to become members of the Commission.

It’s also important to note that the respect for human rights is one of the cornerstones of Switzerland’s foreign policy. It lies at the heart of our development work and our promotion of peace.

Without respect for human rights, there would be no sustainable development or peace. So, these aren’t empty proposals that we’re taking to the Commission.

swissinfo: You have also proposed that Switzerland establish its own, domestic human rights commission. Has there been any progress on that issue?

M. C-R.: It’s under discussion and still needs to be put before the government.

swissinfo: Does Switzerland’s foreign policy adequately integrate the defence of human rights?

M. C-R.: Foreign policy is often a matter of cohesion and coordination. If Switzerland wants to have an impact on an international level, we need to speak with one voice.

We are constantly working to integrate human rights into our diplomatic and development activities. And it’s not an easy chore.

swissinfo-interview: Anna Nelson and Frédéric Burnand

Key facts

Each year, an estimated two million girls are subjected to female genital mutilation, according to Amnesty International.
Around 700,000 women are raped in the United States every year.
It’s estimated that 40 women die each year in Switzerland as the result of domestic violence.