Classic HRC with many quotable quotes! These are not "soft" issues!
Remarks to the Lower Mekong Initiative Womens' Gender Equality and Empowerment Dialogue
Remarks
Hillary Rodham Clinton
Secretary of State
Sofitel Hotel
Siem Reap, Cambodia
July 13, 2012
SECRETARY CLINTON:
Thank you very much, Minister Phavi, for that introduction and also for
describing the results of what has been, by all reports, an excellent
meeting. And I thank all the heads of delegations who are here and all
of the attendees. I want to welcome all our partners from the Lower
Mekong nation and from the Friends of the Lower Mekong. And I want to
commend the Government of Cambodia for its leadership in the Lower
Mekong Initiative and for co-hosting this conference.
We launched
this organization three years ago to expand cooperation on issues that
affect the daily lives of people across the region. And I’m getting some
feedback. I’m hearing the Cambodian translation at the same time.
(Laughter.) I wish I spoke Cambodian, but I don’t. So I was having a
little trouble, but thank you for that.
We launched this
organization three years ago to expand cooperation on issues that affect
the daily lives of the people across the region, from protecting the
environment to managing water resources to improving infrastructure,
education, and public health. And now with the inclusion of the
government in Nay Pyi Taw we are poised to make even greater progress
together.
Yesterday in Phnom Penh, I announced that the United
States is easing sanctions to allow American businesses to invest there.
And today I am pleased to add that we are also launching a new
partnership with the nonprofit Abbott Fund to invest one million dollars
in the health and education for women and girls.
I am delighted
that the Lower Mekong Initiative is now also focusing on the rights and
opportunities of women. At the ministerial meeting in Phnom Penh this
morning, we adopted a joint statement by all of the countries
represented that will integrate gender equality and women’s empowerment
through the LMI agenda. I like what the Minister said about how we came
together to care to share and dare to dream, and I think that’s a very
good description of what you have been doing here.
As
Secretary of State, I make these issues about women and girls a priority
everywhere I go. Because when women have the chance to participate in
the economic and political lives of their communities, not only do their
lives improve, but the lives of their families do as well. Commerce
flourishes, instability declines, and you see a general uplifting of
societies and nations. And I have met women all over this region who are
living this truth every day – educators in Hanoi, entrepreneurs in
Bangkok, democracy activists in Yangon, garment workers here in Siem
Reap, women like all of you who are working hard for progress throughout
the Mekong region.
Unfortunately, as you know so well,
outdated legal and social barriers continue to limit women’s
participation in business and politics. According to the World Bank,
more than 100 countries have laws that restrict women’s economic
activity, whether it is opening a bank account on their own, signing a
contract, owning land, or pursuing the profession of their choice. And millions
of women here in Southeast Asia are trapped in the informal economy,
laboring in fields and factories for very low wages with very few
protections. And of course, some have it even worse – victims of forced
labor, forced prostitution, or other forms of modern day slavery.
Now, too often, discussions of these issues are on the margins of international debate.
We have separate parallel conversations about women’s rights, about
alleviating poverty, and then we have another conversation about
international economics. But I once asked an economist in
Africa, after spending the day traveling through an African country
seeing women working in the fields, women working in the markets, women
fetching fuel, women carrying water, women tending children – I asked,
“Don’t you think it’s time we count women contributions to the economy
in some way.” And he responded, “No, what they do is not part of the
economy.” And I said, “Well, if every woman working in the field, in the
markets, in the homes were to stop working for a week, I think every
economist would learn they are definitely part of the economy.” (Applause.)
All these issues are related, and we need to start thinking about them in an integrated way, because in the end, what is an economy for? An economy is a means to an end. It is not an end in itself.
An economy is to enable people to make more out of their own lives as
well as to make a living. And therefore, the best economic systems are
ones which give the most opportunity to the greatest number of people.
And what we have to do in the 21st century is to take a hard
look about what we can do, not just in Southeast Asia but around the
world, to make sure that economies are working for people and not just
people at the top, but people throughout society. Because, after all, most
people don’t live at the highest, elite level of any society. That’s a
very small group. And if the results of people’s hard work in any
society is not spread across all the people but instead goes up to the
top, you will not see the kind of progress that is possible.
So
as I traveled across Asia this week – from Japan to Mongolia, to
Vietnam, to Laos, and now Cambodia – I’ve been talking about the
mutually reinforcing role that economics and human rights play in not
only your lives, but in America’s engagement in the region – what is
sometimes called our pivot to Asia. Labor issues promoting workers
rights, improving labor conditions, supporting women’s economic
participation, protecting people from modern day slavery is all part
about how you build prosperous, peaceful societies.
And so today, I
want to focus on the rights of workers here in Southeast Asia and in
our modern global economy. It’s important that we understand fair labor
standards for men and women can spur economic growth and widen the
circle of prosperity. And governments, businesses, and workers all have a
responsibility to make that happen.
So let’s begin with rights.
The international community and international law recognize that workers
everywhere, regardless of income or status, are entitled to certain
universal rights, including the right to form and join a union and to
bargain collectively. Child labor, forced labor, discrimination based on
gender, race, ethnicity, religion, or other factors, should be
universally prohibited.
So defending these labor rights and
improving working conditions is a smart economic investment, but it’s
also a very important value. Now back in 1999, my husband was president
of the United States and the entire world was fiercely debating what we
should be doing to deal with what is called globalization. Well, my
husband gave speeches at both the World Trade Organization and the
International Labor Organization. And he delivered the same message to
each audience: To deny the importance of core labor issues in a global
economy is to deny the dignity of work. The belief that honest labor
fairly compensated gives meaning and structure to our lives.
Well,
that was true then; it was true when I was a little girl and I watched
my mother working in our home, and I watched my father working in his
small business; and it is true today. Standing up for workers’ rights and high labor standards is both right and moral, but it is also smart and strategic. Just look at the progress that has taken place here in Cambodia.
In
the late 1990s, this country was emerging out of years of war and
economic ruin. Nearly 80 percent of Cambodians made a very meager living
by subsistence farming. And the new government was looking for ways to
boost growth and connect to the global economy. In the United States, my
husband’s administration was convinced that trade incentives could be
used to strengthen workers’ rights around the world. The result was an
agreement – an agreement between the United States and Cambodia that
opened American markets to Cambodian textiles in return for tough new
monitoring programs in local garment factories. Now that agreement
wasn’t perfect – no agreement ever is – and there are certainly, as I
have heard, problems in garment factories across the country. But
compare where Cambodia was in 1999 and where it is today. Working
conditions have improved. Wages have risen. It has become easier to form
a union, and instead of scaring off investors, the fact of these
reforms actually attracted them.
Multinational clothing companies
saw a chance to clean up their supply chains and improve their
reputation. So they started buying more and more Cambodian products, and
exports soared. Where there was once just a handful of state-owned
textile and apparel factories employing only a few thousand people,
within 10 years there were hundreds of new factories providing jobs for
more than 350,000 Cambodians – mostly young women, who migrated from
poor rural communities to earn wages far above the average of what
otherwise would have been available to them.
Research conducted by
the International Labor Organization and other institutions tell us
that this is not an isolated example. Respecting workers’ rights leads
to positive, long-term economic outcomes, including higher levels of
foreign direct investment. And bringing workers, especially women, into
the formal economy has ripple effects: Inequality declines while
mobility increases, taxes are paid, countries and communities are
stronger and better able to meet the rising expectations of their
people.
Now the flip side of that is also true. Denying workers
their universal rights costs society dearly in lost productivity,
innovation, and growth, as well as undermining the rule of law and
creating instability. So we should pay attention to these findings.
I
do hope that decision makers around the world, including in my own
country, actually look at evidence, because evidence matters. Whether
you’re a scientist looking at research or a government official looking
at analysis, look at the evidence. Here in Southeast Asia, economies
have grown rapidly by attracting foreign investors looking for low-cost
labor and material and by exporting affordable goods to more developed
markets. But this export-driven model can only take a country and a
region so far.
In the wake of the global financial crisis and
worldwide recession, Asian countries can no longer count on endless
demands from Europe and the United States. And by the same token,
American manufacturers may be looking for new customers in new markets,
especially in Asia. That’s why developed nations, like the United
States, will need to build more at home and sell more abroad. And
developing countries, in Asia and elsewhere, will need to grow a larger
middle class that will fuel demand for both domestic and imported goods
and services. Henry Ford, back at the beginning of the 20th
century, when he started building cars in Detroit, Michigan back in the
United States, paid his workers the unheard salary of $5 a day. And all
of the other employers came to him and they complained that he was
paying his workers too much and that would raise the wages of all the
other workers in all the other businesses. And Henry Ford said, “If I
don’t pay my workers, who will buy the cars that I am making?”
So
if you begin to pay your workers more, they then buy more goods, which
actually helps more businesses. And that is the next phase of growth in
Asia, as well as the future of the global economy. We should not be in a
race to the bottom. We should be in a race to see how we raise income,
raise standards of living, and raise the sharing of prosperity. So for
this to happen, we will have to make sure that women have the
opportunity to move from the informal economy to the formal economy with
employment. We will have to make sure that migrant workers are
respected and protected, that people in modern-day slavery are free and
rehabilitated. In effect, how do we transform the workforce to create
more opportunities?
Well to begin with, governments will have to
modernize labor laws to respect workers’ rights and ensure that men and
women have fair, safe working conditions and can earn a living wage. And
governments will have to get serious about enforcement, cracking down
on unscrupulous recruiters, criminal traffickers, and abusive employers.
Now,
strengthening the rule of law will not just protect workers, it will
also attract investors and make it easier for everyone to do business.
And multinational corporations, like those in America, will have to
insist that every link in their supply chain meets international labor
standards. Now, of course, I know there’s a price tag that comes with
that. But it is an investment, and it’s an investment that will pay
dividends, because it can be very attractive to consumers in my country,
in Europe, and elsewhere to know that the goods they buy are being
produced in conditions that really help people improve their own lives.
And then, of course, workers will have to keep pushing for their own
rights, organizing and advocating.
Now, it took decades of
struggle for workers in America to form unions strong enough to protect
their rights and secure changes like the eight-hour day and the minimum
wage, but it helped to create the great American middle class. And we
are now adjusting our economy to the new challenges, but we certainly
were advantaged by all of the changes over the last one hundred years.
I
think the nations of Southeast Asia are at the beginning of your own
journey. I know that there are still many problems and a lot of poverty.
And I have been now in every country in the region, and I know there’s a
(inaudible). There are still too many people who are terribly poor, too
many children who don’t get the healthcare and the education they need,
too many government officials that are not really serving the people.
But there is good news as well.
And I want to commend the
Government of Cambodia for their draft new trade law that could be a
model for the region. It would extend rights and protection to domestic
workers. It would allow people to join unions. And if this law is passed
and enforced, it will set a very strong standard for the rest of the
region.
Similarly in Vietnam, where I was a few days ago, there is
still – there is also encouragement despite continuing problems. At the
start of the year, a new anti-trafficking law came into effect. After
reports of abuses on coffee plantations in Lam Dong Province, officials
called for greater inspections and stricter punishment for illegal labor
brokers. And Vietnam is working with the International Labor
Organization to improve conditions in garment factories.
And the
prospects for progress are even more dramatic in Burma, which for many
years was one of the most repressive and closed societies in the world. I
saw with great interest reports of the government in Nay Pyi Taw
rolling back the restrictive and exploitative labor rules. Workers are
beginning to organize, although they still face penalties for joining
unregistered unions. There will be a lot of challenges, but I hope that
we see continuing progress there.
Now, for our part, the United
States is putting in place protections to ensure that the increased
investment we would like to see advances the reform process. Because
after all, what we want to do is make workers rights, rising wages, fair
working conditions the norm everywhere. And we will be working with all
of the countries represented here.
We’ve also made workers rights
a centerpiece of a new far-reaching trade agreement called the
Trans-Pacific Partnership. We are working with Vietnam, Malaysia,
Australia, Canada, Mexico, and others in these negotiations.
We
are also throughout Southeast Asia supporting training and workshops on
international labor standards for union organizers, employers and
government officials. We’re sponsoring exchanges so labor academics can
learn from each other, and we’re helping police and prosecutors go after
trafficking and other abuses.
We’re working with ASEAN to deal
with the migrant worker problem. We have so many people across borders
looking for better opportunities and are often exploited and abused.
Now, after visa requirements among ASEAN countries becomes easier, then
we need a framework on the rights of migrant workers by 2015.
We’re
also working with labor ministries, and we’ve signed agreements with
Vietnam and China that provide exchanges and technical assistance on a
range of labor issues, from mine safety to social security.
America
is a Pacific nation, and our futures and our fortunes are bound up with
each other. So we want to work with all of you, and particularly on
behalf of women and workers, because we think that holds the key. The
World Bank has done some excellent research showing that if the barriers
to women’s participation in the formal economy were eliminated, growth
rates in every country would rise, and some would rise dramatically.
So
when I talk to government officials who I can tell are not really
interested in women, which I do from time to time – not women officials
but the other kind, as you know – (laughter) – and I make the case that
women’s rights should be protected and women’s opportunities should be
advanced, sometimes I see their eyes glaze over. (Laughter.) And they
say to themselves, I’m thinking as I look at them, well, she says that
all the time. She goes around in the world talking about women’s rights,
and that’s fine and I’ll listen to her, but I’m not really that
interested.
But when I say if you will change
your laws so women can open up bank accounts or women can have access to
credit, so women can start new businesses as easily as men, so that
women can have fair wages when they move into the formal economy, your
GDP will rise, all of a sudden I see them waking up. (Laughter.) Because
it’s true that I have spent many years of my life talking about how
important it is that women be given the same rights as men and the same
dignity so that they can fulfill their own God-given potential.
But
the argument I’m making today and I’m making around the world is that
you are losing out if you do not empower women as economic beings.
Because I’ll go back to the experience I had in Africa. Now, I don’t
think the economist I was talking to was prejudiced against women. I
just don’t think he thought of all the things women do without being
paid, that all of us do, have done, and continue to do to keep families
and communities and societies and economies going.
And so
therefore any country that wants to maximize their economic growth in a
sustainable, inclusive way will be leaving money on the table if they
don’t include women and do everything they can to show respect for what
women can do for themselves as well as their countries.
So
this is an exciting time to be a woman in Southeast Asia, because if we
work over the next years to realize the potential that this conference
demonstrated with all of the excellent recommendations that the
ministers have told us about, then we will see Asia grow even faster and
more successfully, and most importantly we will see more girls and boys
having the opportunity to fulfill their own God-given potential.
Because
after all, I think as a mother, what we want for each of our children
and what we should want for every child is that chance to be all he or
she can be. Because talent is universal, but opportunity is not. So for
every child who is not educated, we may be losing a scientist who would
solve multi drug-resistant malaria. We may be losing a great activist.
We may be losing a great academic. Who knows? But one way for sure to
maximize the chance of every society to do even better is to be sure we
give women the chance to compete and to demonstrate what they can
contribute to us all.
Thank you very much. (Applause.)
