Foreign Relations of the United States, 1969–1976, Volume E–14, Part 1, Documents on the United Nations, 1973–1976

170. Telegram 383 From the Mission to the United Nations to the Department of State, February 4, 1974, 1954Z.¹ ²

February 4, 1974, 1954Z

TELEGRAM
Department of State
USUN 383

R 041954Z FEB 74

FM USMISSION USUN NEW YORK
TO SECSTATE WASHDC 2588
INFO HEW WASHDC
USIA WASHDC

USUN 383

STATE ALSO PASS DEPT OF LABOR

E.O. 11652: N/A
TAGS: SGEN

SUBJ: UN COMMISSION ON THE STATUS OF WOMEN 25TH SESSION - ROUNDUP

1. SUMMARY: SESSION CHARACTERIZED BY EMERGENCE OF THE US IN NEW HUMAN RIGHTS LEADERSHIP ROLE ON ISSUE OF EQUAL RIGHTS FOR WOMEN. SOVIET OPPOSITION TO US-LDC SPONSORED RESOLUTION ASKING UN TO CALL WOMEN’S CONFERENCE DURING INTERNATIONAL WOMEN’S YEAR (IWY) REVEALED CLEAR SOVIET BIAS AGAINST EQUALITY FOR WOMEN. TIMELY RELEASE OF PRESIDENTIAL IWY PROCLAMATION DURING SESSION FURTHER UNDERLINED US DEDICATION TO EQUAL RIGHTS PRINCIPLES. CREATED ADDED SUPPORT FOR US IWY RES AND EFFECTIVELY STALLED SOVIET DRIVE DESIGNED TO FOCUS WORLD WIDE ATTENTION ON SINGLE COMMUNIST WOMEN’S YEAR CONFERENCE SCHEDULED FOR MOSCOW IN 1975. US INITIATIVES IN INTEGRATION OF WOMEN IN UN PROGRAMS FOR DEVELOPMENT, FAMILY PLANNING, OBSERVANCE OF IWY WIDELY SUPPORTED. END SUMMARY.

2. COMMISSION CONCLUDED HIGHLY PRODUCTIVE, FORWARD LOOKING PROGRAM FOR SESSION THAT ENDED LATE FEBRUARY 1. WORK CHARACTERIZED BY ACTION PROGRAMS TO ACCELERATE INTEGRATION OF WOMEN IN UN EMPLOYMENT AND DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMS IN ALL ELEMENTS OF THE UN SYSTEM, AND OTHER AREAS THAT WILL ADVANCE THEIR STATUS.

3. HIGHLIGHTS INCLUDED FAVORABLE IMPACT US INITIATIVES FOR OBSERVANCE OF IWY, POPULATION AND DEVELOPMENT PROVIDING NEW US LEADERSHIP ROLE IN HUMAN RIGHTS AREA AND DECISIVE PROPAGANDA ADVANTAGE OVER SOVIETS. CLEARLY ESTABLISHED US LEADERSHIP IN EQUAL RIGHTS STRUGGLE OF WOMEN BY REVEALING STRONG SOVIET BIAS THIS SUBJECT. RESULT WAS A REALIGNMENT OF OLD COMMISSION VOTING PATTERNS WITH SUPPORT FROM LDCS AND PRC FOR THE US AGAINST SOCIALISTS.

4. LDCS SUPPORT ON QUESTION OF EQUAL RIGHTS CAME DURING SERIES OF HARD FOUGHT BATTLES WITH SOVIETS OVER ISSUE OF CHANGING UN PRIORITIES TO PERMIT UN FUNDING OF IWY CONFERENCE. SOVIET OPPOSITION AND INTERVENTIONS BY MALE MEMBERS OF DELEGATION REVEALED STRONG BIAS AGAINST EQUALITY FOR WOMEN. NINE LDC’S FROM ALL DEVELOPING REGIONS JOINED US IN CO-SPONSORING CONFERENCE RES THAT WON DECISIVELY 21(US, LDCS, PRC)-3(USSR, BYELORUSSIA SSR, HUNGARY)-6. SUBSTITUTION OF MALE MEMBER OF SOVIET DELEGATION IN CHAIR DURING A FUTILE FILIBUSTER EFFORT CREATED WIDESPREAD ANTAGONISM AMONG DELEGATES. GENEROUS AND WARM-HEARTED POSITION SUBSEQUENTLY ADOPTED BY USSR DELEGATE WHO HAD BEEN TEMPORARILY REPLACED BY MALE COLLEAGUE REVERSED TREND SOMEWHAT BEFORE SESSION ENDED BUT DID NOT MATERIALLY AFFECT WIDE PROPAGANDA ADVANTAGE GAINED BY THE US MOVE AND THE SOVIET BLUNDER.

5. THE READING OF PRESIDENT NIXON’S IWY PROCLAMATION, THE FIRST BY ANY CHIEF OF STATE, IN CONCLUDING DAYS OF SESSION AND PRIOR TO VOTE, ADDED MOMENTUM TO FAVORABLE VOTE AND US LEADERSHIP AND SERVED AS PUT-DOWN FOR SOVIET POSITION AGAINST EQUALITY. REQUESTS POURED IN FROM ALL DELEGATIONS FOR COPIES OF PROCLAMATION FOR USE BY GOVERNMENTS IN PREPARATION OF SIMILAR INSTRUMENTS FURTHER STRENGTHENING PROPAGANDA IMPACT OF US INITIATIVE.

6. DESPITE SOVIET OPPOSITION TO RAPPORTEUR STUDY ON STATUS OF WOMEN AND FAMILY PLANNING, RESOLUTION FOR ITEM ADOPTED 24(US)-0-8(USSR) CALLING FOR RIGHT OF INDIVIDUALS TO DECIDE FREELY AND RESPONSIBLY ON THE NUMBER OF SPACING OF THEIR CHILDREN, ESTABLISHMENT OF NATIONAL POPULATION COMMISSIONS, INTRODUCTION OF POPULATION EDUCATION AND EQUAL REPRESENTATION OF MEN AND WOMEN ON DELEGATIONS TO 1974 WORLD POPULATION CONFERENCE.

7. RESOLUTIONS ON DEVELOPMENT ASKED ECOSOC TO INCLUDE IN ALL SESSIONS OF COMMITTEES ON REVIEW AND APPRAISAL AND DEVELOPMENT AND PLANNING, INFORMATION THAT WILL GIVE DUE ATTENTION TO THE INTEGRATION OF WOMEN BOTH IN PROGRAM REVIEW AND IN SUBSEQUENT RECOMMENDATIONS OF THOSE BODIES. AUTHORIZED CHAIRWOMAN OF THE COMMISSION TO REPRESENT COMMISSION ON THE STATUS OF WOMEN IN THE PREPARATION OF REVIEW AND APPRAISAL RECOMMENDATIONS.

8. EGYPTIAN-USSR EFFORTS TO MAINTAIN ITEM OF PROTECTION OF WOMEN AND CHILDREN IN EMERGENCY AND ARMED CONFLICTS SUCCEEDED WITH ACCEPTANCE OF DRAFT RES CALLING FOR PREPARATION OF FORMAL DECLARATION ON SUBJECT BASED ON WIDF (COMMUNIST NGO) PROPOSAL. US-UK APPEAL THAT SUBJECT BEST TREATED BY PROPER JURIDICAL BODY IN THE LIGHT OF FEBRUARY ICRC MEETINGS IN GENEVA INEFFECTIVE.

9. WIDESPREAD INTEREST IN NEW AGENDA ITEM ON INFLUENCE OF MASS COMMUNICATIONS MEDIA ON ROLE OF WOMEN AND US VIEWS THIS SUBJECT. RES URGED GOVERNMENTS AND MASS MEDIA TO WORK TOWARDS ELIMINATION OF SEX ROLE STEREOTYPING, FURTHER STUDY AND RESEARCH.

10. US REP TO STATUS OF WOMEN COMMISSION SHOULD BE PRESENT AT NEXT ECOSOC TO PRESERVE US INITIATIVES AND WORK FOR APPROVAL OF COMMISSION PROGRAM BY COUNCIL.
SCALI

1. Source: National Archives, RG 59, Central Foreign Policy Files. Limited Official Use. Repeated to HEW and USIA. The Department of State was to pass the telegram to the Department of Labor. Nixon’s Presidential Proclamation 4262, January 30, 1974, is published in Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents, Vol. 10, No. 5, p. 112.
2. The telegram recounted the principal occurrences at the 25th session of the U.N. Commission on the Status of Women, which met in New York from January 14 to February 1.