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UN Launches Womenâs Rights Organization

   Larry Freund | New York  25 January 2011

   The head of a new United Nations organization promoting womenâs rights
   said  Tuesday  that  a  major  goal  of the agency is to empower women
   throughout the world.
   The  new  organization  likes to call itself U.N. Women, shorthand for
   United  Nations  Entity  for  Gender  Equality  and the Empowerment of
   Women.   U.N. Women was established by the U.N. General Assembly last
   year, combining four U.N. agencies and offices.
   At  the  first  meeting of the agencyâs executive board, the executive
   director of U.N. Women, Michelle Bachelet, outlined the organization's
   basic themes. They include giving women a high profile public forum as
   well   as   ending  violence  against  women  and  enhancing  economic
   empowerment for women.
   At  that  same  meeting,  the  United  States ambassador to the United
   Nations, Susan Rice, welcomed the new organization. "With the creation
   of  U.N.  Women,  for  the  first  time in the U.N.âs 65-year history,
   member  states  voted  to  put womenâs challenges and opportunities at
   their  rightful  place  at  the  forefront of the UNâs mission.  This
   commitment  is  not  simply  about equality and fairness.  Empowering
   women is a precondition for development, prosperity and security," she
   said.
   Bachelet, the former president of Chile, said at the same meeting that
   the  strength,  industry  and wisdom of women are humankindâs greatest
   untapped resources.
   Later,  at  a  news  conference,  she  avoided  answering a reporterâs
   question   about   the   possibility   of   a   woman   becoming  U.N.
   secretary-general.   But  she  said she is going to work very hard at
   building  the case that there should be more women in leadership roles
   in organizations throughout the world.
   "We  have  some  progress  in some areas like in Latin America, now we
   have  the  first woman president of Brazil and thatâs very important.Â
   Brazil  is a very powerful country.  We have also [a woman president]
   in  Argentina and in Costa Rica and the prime minister in Trinidad and
   Tobago.   So  I  would  say from a political point of view, women are
   getting into higher positions, but still very few, 19 in 192 countries
   as head of governments and head of states," she said.
   Bachelet  said  that  greater  empowerment  of  women  would  lead  to
   increased gender equality.

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