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Submission to the British Columbia Select Standing Committee on Finance and Government Services
Written by: Trish Archibald and Dodie Goldney, Kamloops Women's Resource Group Society
Prepared for the BC Coalition of Women's Centres
October 12, 2005


PDF format 
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Submit this to the Select Standing Committee as your Budget 2006 recommendations!
British Columbia’s International Obligations
 
As a Canadian province, British Columbia is mandated to uphold the same international laws our nation has agreed to uphold.  Canada, and individual provinces, including BC, are required to report periodically to the United Nations, regarding what measures have been taken to ensure compliance with International Human Rights Treaties, such as the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW). 
 
In January 2003, on the occasion of Canada’s Fifth Report to the United Nations Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination Against Women, a province-wide coalition of BC non-governmental women’s organizations prepared it’s own submission. 
 
The coalition, called the BC CEDAW Group, had learned that British Columbia’s presentation to the UN Committee described measures that were in effect between 1994 and 1998. Almost all of these measures had been changed or abolished since May 2001.  The BC CEDAW Group drew the UN Committee’s attention to the many cutbacks to programs and services that had taken place after 1998. 
 
A copy of the BC CEDAW Group’s submission is available here (link will open in a new window).
 
After hearing the testimony of these BC women’s groups, the UN Committee reported back that it was concerned about “…changes in British Columbia which have a disproportionately negative impact on women, in particular Aboriginal women.” 
 
The UN Committee listed a number of cutbacks that were of particular concern, including:
 
“…the cut in funds for legal aid and welfare assistance, including changes in eligibility rules; the cut in welfare assistance; the incorporation of the Ministry of Women’s Equality under the Ministry of Community, Aboriginal and Women’s Services; the abolition of the independent Human Rights Commission; the closing of a number of courthouses; and the proposed changes regarding the prosecution of domestic violence as well as the cut in support programmes for victims of domestic violence.”
 
The Committee went on further to “…(urge) the government of British Columbia to analyse it’s recent legal and measures as to their negative impact on women and to amend the measures, where necessary.” 
 
A copy of the UN Committee’s report is available here (link will open in a new window). 


BC Women: Losing Ground
 
As the UN Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination Against Women has noted, British Columbian women have lost much ground in recent years. 
 
Women have lost the Ministry of Women’s Equality, which was initially replaced with the Ministry of Community, Aboriginal, and Women’s Services and a junior Minister Responsible for Women’s Equality (later to become a junior Minister Responsible for Women’s and Seniors’ Services).  This ministry has now become the Ministry of Community Services, which contains a Department of Women’s and Senior’s Issues. 
 
Women and girls, though representing fifty-two per cent of the population in BC, have slowly but steadily been downgraded in importance, and nowhere is women’s equality to be found as part of the mandate.
 
Women in BC have also seen the abolition of the Provincial Mental Health Advocate, the Minister’s Advocacy Council on Women’s Health, and the BC Human Rights Commission. 
 
Additionally, all thirty-seven Women’s Centres in the province lost core funding on March 31, 2004, leaving many communities without the advocacy services of those Centres and leaving many Centres struggling, reducing services, and even closing in some cases. 
 
Legal Aid for family, poverty, and immigration law also fell under the knife, and Community Law Offices all over the province have been closed.  In particular, the complete eradication of poverty law funding also nearly obliterated advocacy for individuals who are denied access by governments to their rightful benefits as citizens, such as disability benefits, public pensions, and income assistance when in need. 
 
Both Legal Aid and Women’s Centres also provided advocacy to individuals facing denial of their rights by private businesses. 
 
Additionally, Employment Standards offices around the province have been closed, and the Director of Employment Standards is no longer required to investigate complaints.  Workers must now navigate the process alone, with the aid of English-only “self-help kits.” 
 
Additionally, women have lost ground when it comes to equality in the workplace.  For example, the Equity and Diversity Branch was axed and the pay equity provision in the Human Rights Code repealed.

 
The Advocacy Chill
 
“Advocacy” is generally defined as either enabling those who need help to find their own voice; or speaking up for people who cannot speak for themselves.  Advocacy also exists to help address the power imbalance between many citizens and their relationship with governments. 
 
Further, advocacy has served, and continues to serve, the necessary role in society of shining a spotlight on the deep-rooted problems facing society.  The gains of the civil rights movement are one example of why bringing these problems into the light has been so necessary.  So too are the gains of the women’s movement and the environmental movement. 
 
Cutbacks by the BC Government, as well as policy and legislative changes, have created an “advocacy chill” around the province, where those who either experience discrimination and violation of their rights themselves, or who work with those who experience them, have become afraid to speak out for fear of the consequences.  Individuals risk losing jobs; groups risk losing funding or opportunities. 
 
Whether advocating on behalf of an individual or advocating for systemic change, public interest advocates are essential to the functioning of a healthy, democratic society.  Without public interest advocacy, many citizens do not have access to the policy decisions that affect their lives most intimately.  Unless measures are in place to ensure citizens who are disadvantaged and without representation can be heard by governments, then governments do not hear them. 


Fiscal Responsibility to the Women and Girls of BC
 
Whether or not governments welcome the voices of dissent, governments in a fair and democratic society are obligated to hear them. 
 
A responsible, democratic government will build in checks and balances to ensure that all its legislation is effective and of benefit to its citizens.  Checks and balances are found in a number of forms.
 
Governments must acknowledge first and foremost that it has a responsibility to all citizens in British Columbia, and not just those with the highest incomes and easy access to the political table. 
 
A healthy government always wants to ensure that all of their decisions are affecting their citizens in the way that they are meant to.  If a government is being honest and forthright, it will have its legislation, policies, and services evaluated by the various user groups on an ongoing basis.
 
When a government refuses to hear from public interest advocates, and dismisses legitimate policy criticism as “political opposition,” it betrays a fundamental principle of democratic governance.  Governments do not exist in a vacuum.  Governments exist to serve their citizens.  A good government will do all that is necessary to ensure all citizens have equal access, equal voice, and equal participation.
 
Governments must remain cognizant of the difficulty public interest advocates face when searching for funding.  Those who need advocacy organizations are usually not able to fund them; if the disenfranchised citizens of our province had access to those financial resources, they would not be disenfranchised.  Additionally, many advocacy groups do not have access to charitable tax status; their inability to give tax receipts often discourages individuals and businesses from donating to these organizations. 
 
A government that behaves ethically, responsibly, and with integrity will not fear being held up for criticism and accountability to its citizens, and will have no fear of funding advocacy organizations.  Rather, a good government welcomes the opportunity to increase the fairness and justice available to its citizens, and will provide the resources necessary to ensure a fair and just society flourishes.


What Women and Girls in British Columbia Need
 
After more than four years of cutbacks to programs and services, as well as policy and legislative changes, it is time for the Government of British Columbia to not only acknowledge the impact these cuts and changes have had on women and their families, but to address the inequities that have been perpetuated in our province. 
 
Martin Luther King Jr. said that, “Freedom is never voluntarily given by the oppressor; it must be demanded by the oppressed.”
 
It is therefore that we, women and taxpayers of British Columbia, demand, and not request or recommend, that future British Columbia budgets will include the following: 

~ that the Government of British Columbia abide by the recommendations of the United Nations Committee on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination, and in future respect all International Human Rights Treaties to which Canada, and therefore British Columbia, are legal signatories;

~ that the Government of British Columbia will increase its outreach to public interest advocacy groups, and provide the resources necessary to ensure that a diversity of voices are heard at all future budget and policy consultations;

~ that the Government of British Columbia respect and acknowledge the hard work of public interest advocates and advocacy organizations, and the role they have played in shaping a more inclusive British Columbia, by providing adequate and appropriate resources, including financial support, to advocates and advocacy organizations in British Columbia; 

~ that the Government of British Columbia restore and enhance funding to the Legal Services Society of BC for the purpose of providing family law, poverty law, and immigration law assistance to those in need;

~ that the Government of British Columbia restore and enhance funding to Women’s Centres across BC, so that Women’s Centres can continue to advocate for and on behalf of women and girls as citizens of this province;

~ that the Government of British Columbia restore the BC Human Rights Commission, the Provincial Mental Health Advocate, and the Minister’s Advocacy Council on Women’s Health, or create their equivalents; and,

~ that the Government of British Columbia restore the BC Ministry of Women's Equality, or create a new and equitable body, expressly for the purpose of working towards women's equality in BC.


Appendix A - PDF Document
United Nations International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women
(Link will open in a new window.) 

Appendix B - PDF Document
British Columbia Moves Backwards on Women's Equality: Submission of the B.C. CEDAW Group to the United Nations Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination Against Women on the occasion of the Committee's review of Canada's 5th Report
(Link will open in a new window.) 

Appendix C - PDF Document
Draft Report of the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women:  Consideration of reports of States parties, Canada, Fifth periodic report
(Link will open in a new window.) 

Appendix D - PDF Document
Losing Ground:  The Effects of Government Cutbacks on Women in British Columbia, 2001 – 2005
(Link will open in a new window.)       

Read or print the submission in PDF format
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Submit this to the Select Standing Committee as your Budget 2006 recommendations!

If you have questions/comments for BCCWC, please e-mail us at bcwomen@telus.net  For other contact information, please go to our Information Page

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