DAWN Panel at the World Conference on Racism NGO Forum
UNMARKING BODIES
The NGO Forum was held in conjunction with the World Conference Against Racism, Racial Discrimination, Xenophobia and Related Intolerance, held in Durban 31 August - 7 September 2001

Bene Madunagu, DAWN Regional Coordinator for Anglophone Africa, and Celita Eccher, DAWN Regional Coordinator for Latin America, chaired the DAWN panel, Unmarking Bodies, on 29 August. Panellists highlighted the impact of concealed human agency in critical structures and sought to revive the possibilities of women's agency as a factor for 'making a difference'. They addressed questions on the extent to which women's agency creates disjunctions in relation to particular racialised gender systems in the context of the ongoing dynamic tensions caused by globalisation.

Cecilia Millan of Latin America outlined the 'Marked Body' theory tracing the evaluation of women's bodies from colonial times to open the panel. She drew linkages between the impact of gender identity, control of women's bodies by men, sexual rights and the impact of HIV/AIDS on women.

Cesnabmihilo Dorothy Aken'Ova of Africa gave an analysis of women's sexuality and the HIV/AIDS pandemic in Africa. She illustrated how socialisation processes based on cultural sex stereotypes impact on women's sexuality and rights to choice resulting in low status, and how HIV/AIDS was a result of the removal of women's control over their bodies and sexuality. Globalisation has on one hand further denied women access to female condoms, anti-retroviral drugs and HIV/AIDS management, while on the other given them room to make more contributions within the family and community. Women's empowerment needs to provide them with skills to negotiate relationships and safer sex.

Keturah Babb of the Caribbean traced the history of activism in the women's movement in her region, where women's bodies have been marked by racism and oppression. Caribbean women exercise their agency individually in spite of, and perhaps because of, adversity. While they are reputed to be strong, capable of hard work and vigorous in confronting oppression in the home and wider society, they suffer the inequalities of gender power relations like other women worldwide.

Raijeli Drodrolagi Nicole of the Pacific analysed indigenous politics, examining the case of the Fiji Islands to demonstrate that there cannot be indigenous rights without democracy. She questioned the slogans of 'normality' and 'stability' as used by exploitative businessmen, politicians and chiefs whose interests do not coincide with the aspirations of the people. She traced how women's lives are marked and exploited in these situations.

Darini Rajasingham of South Asia presented the conflict situation in Sri Lanka, analysing a state in which women have been in leadership positions but women's bodies become the battleground for rapists during conflict. Women find new spaces for empowerment, but at high costs. Even then the militarisation of society promotes a backlash when women attempt to exercise new roles to claim access to better livelihoods.

DAWN's position on linkages, particularly HIV/AIDS in the context of sexuality and gender, was seen by participants at the panel as different from the positions of others who were treating HIV/AIDS in the context of health only. DAWN was asked to help in strengthening the NGO document from the Forum, working particularly on sections 93, 94 and 95 dealing with HIV/AIDS.