Among the 35,000 plus women gathered in Beijing and Huairou in September 1995, ten were from The Feminist Majority. Here are on-site accounts that Feminist Majority Delegation members posted on The Feminist Majority Foundation Online throughout the conference. |
September 3, 1995 - Colleen Dermody
Security Eases Up on Fourth Day of the NGO Forum Huairou, China - The NGO Forum Facilitating Committee issued a much awaited press statement about the outcome of negotiations with Chinese officials regarding surveillance, harassment and intimidation of NGO participants at 6pm today.
According to the press release, the Forum is generally going well and participants have generally had success in engaging in planned and spontaneous demonstrations and events. The China Organizing Committee (COC) officials claimed that they had loosened security in the past 24 hours and Forum officials agreed to take future individual reports of problems and incidents directly to the COC on behalf of NGO participants on a case-by-case basis.
According to a New Zealand NGO representative the initially tight security included Chinese authorities checking lipstick containers, cameras, and even writing pens as participants checked into their Huairou residences. By day four security had eroded to no more than pass checks at some entrances to facilities.
In workshop panel and plenary news, the Feminist Majority Foundation conducted two workshops today, one on gender balance in the workplace and the second on RU 486.
Schedule of Plenaries
Statistics on the Status of Women
Copyright 1995, The Feminist Majority Foundation and New Media Publishing Inc.
