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The Presence of Misogyny and the Importance of a Feminist Approach in International Law: The Story of Globalization and Feminism (By-Raina Teotia)
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Article Details
The Presence
of Misogyny and the Importance of a Feminist
Approach in International Law: The Story of Globalization and Feminism
Authored
By-Raina Teotia
LL.M. Candidate At Jindal Global
Law School, Sonipat
Abstract
Since
the dawn of time, misogyny has been a constant part of society. Even the
smallest entity in society, our own
house, has been a victim of misogyny. Earlier, women were even not allowed to speak in important matters and
even if they did speak up then their opinions were always ignored. Even after becoming
a major part of society,
they were still viewed as second- class citizens. This gave rise to the
movement of feminism. Respect for women and their perspectives in society
was advocated by the feminist
movements. In a nutshell, they asked that women
have the same rights as men. This paper will explore the journey of feminists
against the misogynistic world of international law. The first
section of this paper will discuss the role of misogyny and its prominent presence in
international law The second section of this paper will discuss the journey of feminism in paving its way in the
field of international law. It will also be about
the current state of
women's rights under international law.
Keywords: Misogyny, Feminism, International Law, Gender
Equality
Introduction
Despite significant disparities in the social structure, political, and
legal situations of nations all across the world,
they still share fundamental patriarchal views and women are still viewed as second-class citizens despite the fact
that they are an important part of society. Such behaviour of the society gave rise to the feminist movements. Feminist movements campaigned for respect for women and their ideas in the society. In
short, they demanded equal rights for women and men.
In feminism, there are no one
schools of thought.1 Feminists may be distinct
in their approaches, but they all strive for the
same end goal: gender equality. For example, liberal feminists believe that rather than uprooting the entire system,
it is necessary to modify it from within in order to reach their ultimate objective
of gender equality
but radical feminists, on the other
hand, think that the
entire system must be uprooted
in order to reach
the same goal.
Even feminists who are united by their commitment to international law
will vary on key political and
theoretical perceptions.2 Feminist viewpoints have influenced the
evolution of international law since the early twentieth
century, when women's
international peace organisations advocated for the evolution
of international law and institutions in the hopes of finding a peaceful solution to international conflicts.3
International law was viewed as a promising
area for feminist
participation as a method of improving women's
lives and ensuring
permanent peace all around the globe.4
For those who want to use international law to achieve feminist goals, it
presents a unique set of
opportunities and risks.5 Feminist theory offers opportunities for
reform by taking into consideration the needs and demands of women and highlighting the gaps in the fundamentally unbalanced character of international law.6
Influence of Misogyny on the Female
Prospective of International Law
Legal institutions, domestic as well as international, are no exceptions
to the misogynistic behaviour of
society. According to a feminist interpretation of international law, we live
in a world where males from all around the world have utilised
the misogynistic system to construct economic and nationalist goals that
favour the male elites while innate human, social, and economic needs remain unfulfilled.7 The international
legal order is structured in such a way that it expresses a masculine
worldview and secures its dominance.8
Most feminists are of the opinion that the acts and omissions of the acts
by the state is gendered.9 According to J. Ann Tickner, international laws have been gendered since the
establishment of the modern state.10
She contends that international relations misconstrue what is essentially male with what is human
and states that men's experiences and ideas are mostly responsible for forming the basis for international relations.11 There is no denying the fact that
J. Ann Tickner was correct in her observations because a committee comprised entirely of men cannot be expected to comprehend and act
on women’s concerns and issues such as violence against women, sexual and reproductive rights and health, human
trafficking, etc. It's also worth noting
that the laws that are drafted and implemented may have a diverse impact on both men and women.
Representation of women has always been a topic of concern for feminists.
Despite the fact that the effect of
global laws and standards on women varies greatly, they are excluded from all the elite positions and important decision-making processes by international legal institutions.12
In national and international decision-making processes, women seem to be either not represented at all or
underrepresented.13
Even if women are somehow able to enter
these international institutions and represent themselves, their voices
are never heard or taken into account.
Women's experiences are ignored and dismissed as trivial, and they are nevertheless
required to adhere to the treaties and regulations enacted by exclusively male committees. As stated by Hilary
Charlesworth, Christine Chinkin and Shelley Wright in Feminist Approaches to International Law, “International legal structures and principles masquerade as "human"-universally applicable sets of
standards. They are more accurately described as international men's law.”14
Since there is a lack of representation of women in international legal
institutions it leads to their voices
not being heard and there being no redressal of their grievances. Hence, it can
be concluded that both organizational and normative structures of international law are interconnected, and both are equally flawed.
Position Of Women In International Law- Then Vs Now
Initially, it had become evident that the law was generally immune to
feminist concerns, with women's issues being ignored
by specialised organisations and tools, and women still being
recognised as protected subjects of the law rather than full-fledged
legal subjects.15 However, the feminists' cries were finally heard, and certain modifications in international law were made gradually.
1975 was declared to be the International Women's Year and it had a
far-reaching global impact, and was followed by the United Nations
Decade for Women.16 The Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of
Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) was adopted by the United Nations in 1979, and it includes
the principles of women's rights
and gender equality
in the norms of international
law.17 The mere fact that
this Convention was required, however, revealed
that women and men do not have equal access to widely recognised human rights.18 If they were, there would not have been a need for such a convention for the abolition of gender discrimination.19
However, from the mid-1980s, this progress became more stagnant, and
despite the adoption of some
excellent initiatives, the results were not seen in reality. Article 8 of the
UN Charter, for example,
stipulates that “The United Nations
shall place no restrictions on the eligibility of men and women to
participate in any capacity and under conditions of equality in its principal and subsidiary organs.”20 But
because it was voluntary rather than mandatory, women were still unable to represent themselves once
it was enacted. The change that women hoped for as a result of this enactment never materialised, and it remained
a dream.
At the 1993 World Conference on Human Rights in Vienna, a watershed
moment occurred when women's rights
were ultimately clearly recognised as human rights.21 Furthermore,
the Beijing Platform for Action,
issued at the Fourth World Conference on Women in 1995, identified ‘the elimination of all forms of violence against
women’ as an important goal to be achieved, which was a tremendous stride forward.22 Despite the lack of a Convention on the
elimination of all forms of violence against
women, the UN finally at least recognises
violence against women as a
security, human rights, and war crimes issue.23 The UN Security
Council has since then issued a
variety of resolutions on sexual violence, that demand criminal
punishment for sexual violence at both the domestic and international
levels.24 Human rights legislation has also offered as a platform for enforcing domestic restrictions on violence against
women, thanks to the abolition of the public/private divide that plagued
feminism's early interaction with international law.25 A landmark resolution by
the UN Security Council was the resolution 1325 on women and peace and security. The resolution
addressed the disproportionate and distinctive effect of armed conflict on women and girls. It emphasises the significance of women 's equal and active participation in all attempts for the promotion and maintenance of peace and security, including humanitarian response, conflict resolution, peacebuilding,
peace negotiations, peacekeeping, and post-conflict reconstruction.26
The normative structure of international law is still progressing more
rapidly as compared to the organizational structure. The representation of women in 76
years of International Court of Justice
is just 3.7 percent.27 Presently, only three out of fifteen
judges of the International Court
of Justice are women, along with the court's president, Joan E.
Donoghue.28 It's long overdue for
UN member nations that elect judges to be appointed in the International Court
of Justice to rectify this gender
imbalance.29 Women's underrepresentation on the UN's main judicial body, even in the twenty-first century, jeopardises the UN's overall
legitimacy and casts doubt on the UN's major legal judgements.30
Regardless of the fact that feminists have won substantial victories in the field of international law, the process
is advancing at a snail's pace. The UN should devote more attention to this
issue and attempt to resolve it as quickly as possible, as well as set a precedent for women's representation and redress of their grievances on both an international and domestic level.
Conclusion
Feminism is dedicated
to the fight for gender equality
and to the goal of women being recognised as more than just second-class
citizens. The feminist viewpoint has significant implications, not only because political
and military organisations are patriarchal and hierarchical, and have
always excluded women from participation, but also because
the political and financial assets of international politics can only be managed
by society collectively.31
Feminist approaches to international law have always been comprehensive, leading
to dynamic interactions with the law and its people,
in addition to spirited internal critique and self- reflection.32 Feminist thinking
currently includes a moral perspective and manifests itself
as an anti-militaristic, holistic, and life-affirming concept.33
Globalization has increased
the awareness of feminist ideology and have reconstituted a new social, political and economic framework of international
law. Feminist encounters with international law have spawned
a wide and diverse literature that spans every area of the field,
marked by both optimism and desperation, by inventive campaigning and developing critique.34 While
there has been improvement in specialist
international law regimes,
there has been very little change in the structure,
substance, and basis of international law.35 Feminism is still to be
fully integrated into the
general concept of international law.
In 1985, it was predicted that “at the present rate of change it will
take almost four more decades (until
2021) to reach equality (i.e.: 50% of professional jobs held by women)”.36 However, as we can see, this forecast was
well off the mark. Although there has been some development since the 1980s, there is still a long way to go.
The underlying question here seems to be: Is the institution of misogyny and patriarchy so important that it's worth jeopardising the interests of half the world's population
31 Eleonora Mirabela
Tufan, ‘Feminism in International Relations’ (2011) 2011 Annals Constantin Brancusi
U Targu Jiu, Letters & Soc Sci Series 131.
32 Dianne Otto (n 3).
33 Anthony Emina Kemi, ‘Misogyny
in Western Philosophy and the Importance
of Globalization of Feminism’ (2020)
12 Cogito: Multidisciplinary Res J 43.
34 Dianne Otto (n 3).
35 Christine Chinkin
in Global Justice
Center, ‘No Systemic
Change Without Legal Change: Feminist
Engagements with International Law’ (21 May 2021) <www.youtube.com/watch?v=9XtyS67fHJk> accessed 22 November 2021.
36 Hilary Charlesworth, Christine Chinkin and Shelley Wright
(n 1).
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8
Article Information
The Presence of Misogyny and the Importance of a Feminist Approach in International Law: The Story of Globalization and Feminism (By-Raina Teotia)
Author Name: Raina Teotia
Title: The Presence of Misogyny and the Importance of a Feminist Approach in International Law: The Story of Globalization and Feminism
Email Id: teotia.raina@gmail.com
- Journal IJLRA
- ISSN 2582-6433
- Published 2022/06/28
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