政治現代化芻議──從歷史視野論述如何落實「法治國」理想

【朱高正】

政治現代化與歷史傳統有密不可分的關係。

從一八四○年鴉片戰爭以來，所有關心中國前途的知識分子，莫不苦心積慮在為國家前途找出路。起先是洋務運動，希望藉著引進工業，落實船堅砲利來提高中國的綜合國力。但甲午一戰，北洋艦隊慘遭殲滅，因此又轉向變法維新。然而當時守舊勢力仍然盤據要津，必得等到一九○五年，日本再度擊垮了沙俄，引起俄國朝野的震驚。咸認日本之所以能夠在短短十年之內分別擊敗中、俄兩大國，最主要的原因，就是因為推行明治維新。日本就是在明治憲法頒布之後，才漸漸成為現代化國家。當俄國激起制憲運動以後，中國也受到了波及，所以就在一九○五年，廢除了已經施行整整一千三百年的科舉制度，開辦新學堂，開始進入一個嶄新的歷史階段。

但是自民國肇建以來，從制憲、議會政治到政黨政治，一直都沒辦法上軌道。我們今天談政治現代化，到底應該從哪一個角度切入，攸關爾後憲政發展的成敗。筆者想從歷史發展的觀點，先說明今日歐美民主國家所採行自由、民主、立憲主義的「法治國」（Rechtsstaat）的政治體制的由來，再幫大家重構中國傳統政治的圖像，以為落實政治現代化稍盡棉薄之力。

歐洲政治發展的歷史轉折

歐洲自公元四七六年西羅馬帝國垮台之後，就進入所謂的「黑暗時代」，也就是神權（教會）統治的時代。直到公元一四五三年英法百年戰爭之後，才開始出現世俗政權，亦即教會的力量漸漸退出現實的政治舞台。隨著政教分離，世俗化的政治開始出現。這時候有兩個代表人物，一位是義大利的馬基維利（Machiavelli），另外一位是法國的布丹（Jean Bodin），他們兩位都主張應該用現實的角度、實證的方法來解析政治現象。在此之前，都是訴諸上帝的權威來經營管理國家。但馬基維利主張沒有上帝和教會，也能夠將國家的政治秩序帶上軌道。與此同時，民族國家（nation state）出現，「主權論」、「君權神授」與「絕對王權」等主張紛紛出籠，史稱專制主義（Absolutism）時代。

一七八九年爆發法國大革命，象徵新興的工商資產階級正式踏進歷史舞台。當時有一位憲法學先驅西耶（Abbe Sieyes）印行了一本膾炙人口的政治宣傳小冊《什麼是第三等級？》他說就是「國家」。原來當時法國有三級議會：第一等級由教會代表組成，第二等級由貴族大地主階級推選產生，第三等級則由有納稅能力的平民透過行會、職業公會推選出來，各個等級均約由六百位議員組成。其中第一與第二等級代表著傳統的守舊勢力，不知道工業時代的來臨，不知道國際貿易的重要性，所以他們所制定的種種政策和法令都跟新興的工商資產階級的利益格格不入。因此，第三等級主張徹底改造現存體制，廢除三級議會，改採所謂的「國民議會」（Assemblee Nationale）。國民議會應該由有納稅能力的成年男子，經公平選舉所產生的代議士組成。所以，我們可以把一七八九年當作是啟蒙運動的高峰。孟德斯鳩和盧梭等人劃時代的政治思想，隱然主宰著整個法國大革命的走向。

一八四八年二月，馬克思和恩格斯共同起草的《共產黨宣言》發表，而同年六月第一次無產階級革命也在法國爆發。因此，一八四八年象徵著另一個新的歷史階段的來臨。自工業革命以還，無產階級因受不了資產階級漫無節制的剝削，終於團結起來維護他們自己的權益。一七八九年法國大革命的主要訴求是自由主義，主張「干涉愈少的政府就是愈好的政府」，讓大家去充分競爭，讓有能力的人能夠出頭。但是自由競爭的結果，演變成強者任意剝削弱者，強國任意欺凌弱國，造成了嚴重的貧富不均。而一八四八年社會主義革命則要求徹底地改變整個生產秩序，以保障無產階級的工作權與生存權。這個「無產階級」也稱為「第四等級」。

向「社會民主體制」發展

事實上，這種四個等級的分類，完全符合印歐民族的傳統，像印度的種姓制度將人區分為：第一級婆羅門，就是僧侶階級；第二級是剎帝利，就是貴族階級；第三級吠舍就是工商階級；最低一級首陀羅，就是無產階級。從整個歐洲的歷史發展來看，中世紀是以僧侶階級為主導的神權政治（Theocracy）；到十五、六世紀漸次轉入以貴族階級為主導的絕對王權；然後又轉進以工商資產階級為主導的代議民主政治（Representative Democracy）；最後再進入無產階級所要求的直接民主，反對資產階級民主的社會主義（Socialism）。

二次大戰以後，一九四九年德意志聯邦共和國基本法第二十條明定其國體為「民主與社會的聯邦國家」（ein demokratischer und sozialer Bundesstaat）。其所要求的民主政治不只是形式上的民主，更要求實質上能兼顧社會正義的、有效照顧弱勢族群的民主體制，自此，又進入了另一個嶄新的歷史階段。

西方政治會有這種發展，絕非偶然。在神權統治時代（即從公元六世紀到十五世紀將近一千年的「黑暗時代」），知識是掌握在教會和修道院手中。誰掌握知識，誰就具有管理、經營社會的能力。當時日耳曼蠻人，雖然擁有優勢的武力，卻無法「在馬上」治理天下，亦即戶口登記與記帳，都要讀書識字的人來處理，徵兵、徵糧亦然。所以在中世紀，封建王侯若敢違抗教皇的命令，教皇就會發出通諭，禁止神職人員為該王侯服務，那麼那一個王侯很快就會垮台，這就是神權統治的實際狀況。

從神權統治進入絕對王權的一個典型就是莎士比亞筆下的「亨利五世」。絕對王權是建立在馬基維利的理論上，他在《君王論》中認為，事實上君王可以不必靠教皇的支持、加冕或授予權杖，照常可以有效地統治國家。

由神權政治轉入王權政治，還有一個轉折，那就是君權神授的思想。以前是教皇直接來管，現在是上帝把權柄賦予國王代祂來管理國家。因此，君權神授還是跟神有一點關係，到後來將教會的力量排除之後，才真正進入絕對王權的時代。那時強調的是「君王主權」，也就是說一切的榮躍、一切的尊嚴、一切的權利，都來自於國王。國王的權力是不可加以任何限制的，國王是永不犯錯的，國王的話是不能更改的，國王的權威是至高無上的。國王就是國家，國家就是國王。在這種情形下，就產生國王濫權的流弊，貴族和國王之間爭鬥不已。例如英國的大憲章（Magna Charta），就是貴族為了要抵制國王漫無限制的增稅、徵兵，而逼國王簽下一份文獻，明定國王未事先得到貴族的同意，就不得擅自增稅、徵兵。而一六七九年的人身保護令與一六八八年的權利令狀對國王的權力做更進一步的限制，這就意味著漸漸由「君王主權」轉向「國民主權」。

古典自由主義的遺產

一七八九年法國大革命，法王路易十六世被送上斷頭台之後，出現了一段期間的恐怖政治，就是從羅伯斯比爾直到拿破崙上台為止。拿破崙後來運用了三次公民投票：先從三個執政官裡面，變成「第一執政」；再晉升為「終身執政」；最後再登基為世襲的法國皇帝。歷史上玩弄民意、運用公民投票最成功的首推拿破崙。而拿破崙戰爭之所以會變成一個國際戰爭，最主要是歐洲那些傳統封建政權很擔心法國大革命風潮會夾雜著民族主義、自由主義思想，擴散到他們的帝國，所以大家聯合起來壓制法國。

歐洲自法國大革命就進入民權時代。事實上民權的意義很分歧，因為那時候資本主義已經相當發達，新興的工商資產階級要求自由，而其最要者莫過於自由貿易、自由契約與財產權絕對神聖，這三項就構成了十八世紀自由主義思想的核心：因為財產權絕對神聖，才能夠避免國王恣意地徵收；自由契約，才能讓農奴從封建采邑裡解放出來，而為新興城鎮提供大量的廉價勞動力；自由貿易，則要求國家應該盡可能地在進出口時不要課稅，稅課得愈重，對貿易發展的影響就愈大。馬克思之所以批評自由主義，理由就在這裡，他批評代議民主政治是維護資產階級剝削無產階級的政治體制，這種指控在那個時代並不是完全沒有道理。

然而，古典自由主義的政治理想因蘊涵尊重人權與權力分立制衡等重要理念，而構成現代政治機制的核心。

首先是尊重人權。在歐洲，從十七世紀初葉，亞圖吉烏斯（Johannes Althusius）開始就為人權思想建構了整套的理論。其實，人權思想可以追溯到羅馬時代的斯多噶學派，尤其是西塞羅。他認為每個人都有不可剝奪、不可讓與、與生俱來的權利。而人權思想卻與絕對王權誓不兩立。因為國王既然可以為所欲為，豈願承認「不可讓與的權利」的存在？為了保障人權，就產生了立憲主義的思想。法國大革命後，於一七九一年制定第一共和憲法，其主要目的就是，欲藉成文憲法明定國家權力的界限與國家組成的基本原理，俾有效保障人民的基本權利。

其次是權力分立與制衡。為了確保人權，孟德斯鳩發展出權力分立與制衡的理論。孟氏主張國家基本上有三種權力：制定法律的權力（立法權）、執行法律的權力（行政權）、裁決法律的權力，亦即適用法律發生爭議時，享有做最後裁決的權力（司法權）。康德更進一步，用三段論法把這三種權力組合起來：即立法權相當「大前提」，行政權是「小前提」，司法權則是「結論」。大前提通常指一般法則；小前提則指具體狀況。比如說，「凡人都會死」是大前提，「蘇格拉底是人」是小前提，得出結論「蘇格拉底也會死」。

孟德斯鳩最大的貢獻就在於他首先提出三權分立與制衡的見解。其實，權力會使人腐化，要防止權力腐化只能靠權力來制衡權力。因此，國家既然有三種基本權力，就應予以分開。假若有任何兩種權力，掌握在同一群人或同一個人的手裡，那老百姓的自由與權利就會完全沒有保障。假定立法權與行政權掌握在同一個人手裡，只要當權者想要幹什麼，他先立一個「法」，然後依「法」執行，就永遠「合法」。或者行政權與司法權掌握在同一個人手裡，任憑當權者胡作非為，最後送到法院去裁判，掌權者當然會判自己勝訴。因此，孟氏要求這三個權力一定要分開。

國家存立的目標，事實上就像先秦思想家荀子所講的「定分止爭」，也就是讓每一個人擁有他應該有的，以防止爭端。如果用亞里斯多德的話來講，就是iustitia distributiva，即「分配正義」。國家的責任就在維護公共正義，公權力的行使，均應受此目的的規制。

自由主義的弊端

然而自由主義的缺點，在於只能保障形式的平等，而無法實現實質的平等。比如說，「法律之前，人人平等」，但是富人就是有辦法請到好律師，窮人三餐都難以為繼，哪還有時間準備開庭，遑論花錢去找律師。社會主義是針對自由主義的流弊而起的。亦即資本主義強調自由，讓強者能夠淋漓盡致地去發揮他的長才。社會主義則強調平等，要求保障每個人應有的、起碼的尊嚴，尤其是保障弱勢族群的生存權和工作權，甚至要保障這些弱勢族群的子女，也應該享有接受同等教育品質的機會，父母的不幸不應延續到下一代，不能讓階級絕對化、永恆化。否則，社會將發生嚴重的決裂，社會主義就是在這樣的理論前提下發展出來的。因此，社會主義主張公有制、按勞分配與計畫經濟，希望藉此來根除富人剝削窮人的弊端。

但是社會主義隱含著一個理論上的盲點，它低估了「人是自私的」。比方在生產的時候，大家都希望少做一點，卻又要求平均分配。所以貫徹社會主義的主張，常會導致生產力銳減，只顧及平等，社會卻無法繁榮，經濟也無法發展。

二次世界大戰以後，德國被分成由蘇聯及美、英、法三強所占領的兩個部分。在這種情形下，西德仍想盡辦法思考，如何把德國統一起來，如何能在西方的自由主義（或資本主義）和東歐的社會主義中間走出一條新的道路。早在一九三○年代新自由主義國民經濟學派就提出「社會市場經濟制度」（Soziale Marktwirtschaft），來調和自由市場經濟制度跟計畫經濟制度，這就是所謂「第三條道路」。由於這條道路在西德的卓越成就，使得其他西歐國家也先後採用了這種「社會民主」（Social Democracy），亦即能有效貫徹社會正義的民主體制。

俾斯麥的社會立法是民生主義的範本

國父孫中山先生於一八九六年到一八九七年在倫敦停留期間，有機會在大英博物館中國圖書室研究半年，從而接觸到俾斯麥的社會立法政策（Sozialgesetzgebung）。當時的德國非常值得我們參考，因為德國是西歐列強裡，工業化起步最遲、卻發展最快的國家。因此，社會階層間的對立、摩擦也最為嚴重，所以主張社會改革最激烈的共產主義就誕生在德國。但有趣的是，一八八三年馬克思去世，就在這一年──服膺保守主義的帝國首相──俾斯麥開始推行最為先進、也備受稱頌的社會立法。社會立法迄今已有百餘年的歷史，孫逸仙剛好學到一八八三年到一八九○年的經驗。德國的社會立法自一八九○年以後又有長足的進步，只可惜我們對歐洲比較不熟悉，而未予以應有的重視罷了。孫逸仙在民生主義的主要主張，幾乎全部學自俾斯麥的社會立法政策，包括員工分紅入股、大型企業國營、累進稅制及土地政策。

在回顧歐洲過去一千多年來的歷史及政治發展之後，筆者想就現代自由、民主、立憲主義的法治國做進一步的介紹。法治國包含七大要素：即基本人權、國民主權、權力分立與制衡、議會政治、依法行政、司法獨立審判及多黨公平競爭的政治體系。本文只擬就議會與政黨兩項略陳管見。

事實上，民主政治的真諦就是議會政治（Parliamentarism），然而我們到現在連議會政治都還沒學好。民進黨政府好像也不太在意，老是認為引進公民投票制度比建立一套健全的議會制度還重要。他們以為公民投票可以深化民主。其實，公民投票充其量只能補強議會政治之不足，並不能取代議會政治。

議會政治的本質是要解決一個兩難問題。盧梭在《民約論》開宗明義就寫道：「人生而自由，然而卻處處都在枷鎖之中。」這句話蘊涵這個兩難問題：人應該是自由的，每個人天生都想要自由，不願讓別人束縛；但現實上卻又處處受到限制，人一出生就受到各種風俗習慣、倫理道德、甚至法律的約束，幾乎毫無自由可言。

但是人由於有理性，就會要求自由。亦惟其如此，人才有尊嚴。有尊嚴的人凡事只服從自己的意志，是自己行為的立法者，也是自己行為的最後決定者。反之，凡事都要聽別人的，由別人替他決定，這種人是奴隸，而不是有尊嚴的人。一個能夠當自己行為立法者的人，才是自己的主人，才是有尊嚴的人。所以，人的尊嚴就表現在他是自由的，他的自由就表現在他只服從自己──或至少是他自己與別人共同──立下來的行為律則，這是人之所以為人尊貴的地方。但是在現實世界，人不能離群索居，人只有在社會之中，才能充分發展自己的人格。而生活在社會之中，就有種種生活規範要遵守，而不能為所欲為。

議會政治就是要調和「人在理想上要求能夠獨立自主」與「人在現實中要接受風俗習慣、倫理道德以及法律的規範」。議會政治可貴之處就在：經由定期的選舉，我們推選出代議士，到國會去替我們訂定法律。就服從法律這個角度來看，我們是被統治者（the ruled）；但是從法律是由我們自己所推選出來的代議士，間接去替我們制定的，服從法律其實就是間接服從自己的意志，在此我們顯然是自己的統治者（the ruler）。因此，一方面要求自由，一方面又不得不服從法律的兩難，就得到解決。所以說議會政治是民主政治的本質。

台灣變調的議會政治與異化政黨政治

事實上，台灣的議會政治上不了正軌，跟議會的權力太過有限分不開關係。鄉鎮市民代表會一年的會期（含定期會與臨時會）不超過兩個月，根本無法有效監督鄉鎮市公所的施政。這就難怪代表們一天到晚都往公所跑，俾承攬些許工程，或包娼包賭，而不務正業，難以養廉。縣市議會的情形也好不到哪裡。下級政府的預算大多要仰賴上級的補助，而上級政府的補助又不是法定補助，就使得上級政府有很多機會可以介入或干涉下級政府的財務、人事，甚至政策。今天的議會政治搞得亂七八糟，跟這種強幹弱枝的財政收支劃分有非常密切的關係。在地方財政短絀的情形下，議會還能審什麼預算？預算只是禮貌上讓議會看一下而已，反正地方行政首長有沒有辦法向上級政府爭取到預算補助，跟議會有沒有通過預算案不太有關係，這就使得議會充斥無力感。議會無力就代表選民無力，立法院無力就代表納稅人無力。尤其過去四年陳水扁少數政府一再不尊重立法院的在野多數，議會政治沒上軌道，可說是台灣民主政治最大的隱憂。

其次談到政黨，台灣也有政黨，但其內涵卻與政黨政治的原意大相逕庭。政黨本來是在一個多元化社會中，擔負協力建構國民總意志的重任，讓各個立場、利益相矛盾、相衝突的社會階層，有均等的機會影響決策的形成。因此，政黨扮演著反映民意、整合民意的角色。然而今天國親兩黨與民進黨除了在統獨問題上有區別外，在社會經濟問題上根本看不出他們在政治理念或策略路線有何不同。政黨間的互動完全是基於現實政治利益的考量，這種未上軌道的政黨政治會導致亡國滅種。

中國歷史上也有黨，君不見「尚黑」為黨嗎？東漢末年，聚集在京都洛陽的太學生有三萬多人，提倡清議，相互標榜，肆意褒貶時政，導致兩次黨錮之禍，使得原本存在於外戚與宦官間的政爭更為變本加厲，漢朝就這樣亡掉了！唐朝中葉以後的牛黨和李黨之爭，李德裕是唐朝士族階級的代言人，牛僧孺則代表布衣苦讀出身的進士階級，也就是靠考試出身的。在培養治國人才方面，這兩種出身各有利弊。從漢朝以降，豪門巨室，常常一個家族裡出了數以十計的三公九卿，在大家族裡常常可以聽到前朝的典故，這都是在培養政治人才。但是自隋朝以來，由於科舉制度的普遍推行，只要詩詞歌賦、策論考得好，就可以登進士，未來的仕途也因而飛黃騰達。牛僧孺就代表苦讀出身的平民階級，李德裕則代表沒落中的名門巨室。至於北宋也有新舊黨爭，起因是針對王安石所推行的新政有不同的評價，後來則演成情緒、甚至地域之爭。簡言之，新黨代表新興的南方力量；舊黨像洛、蜀、朔三派代表守舊的北方力量。而民國初年的政黨，其黨綱莫不大同小異，可以「富國強兵，抵禦外侮」八個字總括。政黨之間鬥來鬥去只為爭權奪利，與民意的歸趨毫無關係。我國政黨政治不上軌道，可謂其來有自，到現在仍是有政黨之名，而無政黨之實。

政治現代化，大概就是指引進議會政治、政黨政治等法治國重要機制而言。這些機制的產生，事實上，在西方都有它特定的歷史與社會條件，它們都發生在工業革命之後，由於社會多元化而產生。我們不應囫圇吞棗，妄自菲薄，自怨自艾，而應同情地了解，未經工業革命洗禮的中國，過去在政治制度上有些什麼建樹。傳統政治在今天沒有得到適度的尊重，這是歷史的悲哀。〔待續〕

fr.: http://paper.udn.com/udnpaper/PII0002/57922/web/#02

Advancement of women

United Nations, General Assembly, 58th session, Third Committee, item 110 of the agenda Statement by the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), New York, 15 October 2003. Official Statement


Mr. Chairman,

The plight of women in today's armed conflicts continues to preoccupy the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC). Despite the specific and general protection women are entitled to under international humanitarian law, and the other bodies of law applicable in wartime, women continue to be regularly subjected to physical violations, forced displacement, random acts of violence, intimidation and other atrocities. Beyond these acts that affect them directly, their well being further suffers due to the effects of conflict on their loved ones. Women are often the ones left behind to pick up the pieces of their broken lives when their husbands, sons, fathers, die or go missing. Indeed, the impact of war on women is inextricably tied to the impact of war on men. Often, during and following war, women must embrace new roles, take on new responsibilities, and become the head of household, whilst coping with their grief and uncertainty as to the fate of their loved ones.

To quote a woman living in Bosnia and Herzegovina: "We used to say that the worst thing that could happen was to bury your child. Today, we say that the worst thing is not to know what has happened to your child".

For the past four years ICRC has been implementing the pledge it made in 1999 at the XXVIIth International Conference of the Red Cross and Red Crescent regarding the plight of women in situations of armed conflict. It will report on what has been achieved over the past four years at the XXVIIIth International Conference. The ICRC remains fully committed to its aims, and work in this area will continue. Much has been achieved during this time in ICRC's operations as well as at headquarters. The ICRC remains committed to maintaining its knowledge and understanding of the situation of women in armed conflicts while continuing to implement the many recommendations that came out of the ICRC study Women facing War, first published in English in 2001, on the protection and assistance needs of women.

Currently, a Guidance Document is being developed and will be published early 2004. The aim of this document is to provide an operational tool for ensuring that humanitarian programmes and services adequately address women's needs. It will be organised thematically reflecting a basic finding of the Women facing War study, namely that women's experience of armed conflict is multi-faceted, including detention, isolation, loss of relatives, physical and economic insecurity, various kinds of deprivation and an increased risk of sexual violence, injury and even death. Both the study and the guidance document itself endeavour to show that while women may be placed at risk by the outbreak of hostilities, they are not necessarily and inevitably victims. Around the world, women's experience of armed conflict also encompasses social, public or political activities and service in armed forces.

Mr. Chairman,

The ICRC takes this opportunity to reiterate the fact that sexual violence, in any form, is unacceptable and prohibited by international humanitarian law as a method of warfare, a form of torture or a means of 'ethnic cleansing'. It is unacceptable as a means of dishonouring the opponent or as an act of aggression against a nation or a community. Sexual violence must not be considered an unavoidable 'by-product' of war.

While men and boys also suffer from sexual violence, it is predominantly women and girls who are at a much greater risk of being subjected to this form of abuse. As a victim of sexual violence once put it: "This man, he had a gun. And he had the power. I just wanted my life to be spared".

Sexual violence is preventable. This must be recognised and realised. And while prevention must improve, the response to victims of sexual violence must also increase. Prevention and assistance must go hand in hand.

The ICRC is determined to better assess the impact of armed conflict on the people it strives to protect and assist. Being close to the victims, listening to what they have to say and appreciating their plight are important elements in this process. While the ICRC will continue its endeavours to improve its own action to respond to the needs of women affected by armed conflicts, greater efforts must be made for the overall improvement of the situation of women in these contexts by all those in a position to do so. Efforts to promote the knowledge of and compliance with the obligations laid out in international law among as wide an audience as possible remains an important means to do so. Improving the plight of women in wartime is achievable – it must be achieved.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

fr.: International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC)
(http://www.icrc.org/Web/eng/siteeng0.nsf/
iwpList74/D88AFC97277E7F6BC1256DC50031251F)

Women and war

Protection for women is enshrined in international humanitarian law, which is binding on both States and armed opposition groups. This body of law, which includes the four Geneva Conventions of 1949 and their two Additional Protocols of 1977, provides protection for women as civilians and as captured or wounded combatants.

Women combatants are also protected by the limitations imposed by humanitarian law on permissible means and methods of warfare.

Women need to be able to live without fear of unlawful killings, torture or mutilation, sexual violence, and any form of cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment. They need protection from abduction, forced disappearance, arbitrary detention, trafficking, slavery, persecution and harassment. They also need to be protected against the dangers arising from the conduct of hostilities, in particular from indiscriminate attacks, from acts of violence aimed at spreading terror among the civilian population, and from the destruction of objects indispensable to their survival. Furthermore, women need to be kept safe from chemical, bacteriological and other prohibited weapons.

Armed conflicts draw large numbers of combatants and weapons into areas populated by civilians, which raises the level of tension and all too often brings the conflict into the homes of civilians. Women frequently have to submit to limitations on their mobility or risk abuse and injury; this restricts their access to markets and their ability to farm and tend animals, search for firewood, exchange news and seek family support.

Women need to be able to live free from intimidation and abuse by parties to an armed conflict or internal disturbance.

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" It is essential that there should be authorized organizations to monitor the situation… I wish that such a thing could be present all the time to stop any criminal actions. "

Female ex-combatant, Lebanon, People on War consultation, ICRC, 1999

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Sexual violence is a particularly brutal crime to which women are all too frequently subjected in wartime. It is a means of warfare when used to torture, injure, extract information, degrade, intimidate and punis
h for actual or alleged deeds attributed to women or members of their family.

Sexual violence, particularly rape, has been used to bring about “ethnic cleansing” of an area, by spreading fear and compelling people to leave.

Rape and other forms of sexual violence committed in wartime are prohibited under international humanitarian law, which is principally enshrined in the 1949 Geneva Conventions and their Additional Protocols of 1977, and are war crimes under the Statute of the International Criminal Court. Sexual violence in times of armed conflict is not inevitable and must be prevented.

Parties to an armed conflict must ensure that rape and other forms of sexual violence are not committed at any time. Arms bearers must receive clear instructions and training with specific references to the prohibition of sexual violence against women and men, adults and children.

Those who have survived sexual violence need to be protected from further attacks and receive appropriate treatment for the physical and psychological consequences. The treatment must be given confidentially and in a manner that is sensitive to the local culture.

Respect for and protection of women in wartime can and must become a reality.

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" It is more horrible than killing… A bullet in the head is easier than being raped. "

Families of the missing, Bosnia-Herzegovina, People on War consultation, ICRC, 1998

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International humanitarian law protects captured, detained or interned women in situations of armed conflict.

The relevant provisions are laid down in the four Geneva Conventions of 1949 and their two Additional Protocols of 1977 and concern the treatment of persons deprived of their freedom, including the specific conditions of detention and treatment to be granted to women.

In international armed conflicts, the Third Geneva Convention relative to the Treatment of Prisoners of War provides that such prisoners must be treated humanely at all times. Besides this general protection, to which women are entitled without distinction, women are also afforded special protection based on the principle laid down in Article 14 that: "Women shall be treated with all the regard due to their sex [...]". This principle is followed through in a number of provisions which expressly refer to the conditions of detention for women in prisoner of war camps, such as the obligation to provide separate dormitories for women and men and separate sanitary facilities.

Women civilians who are not nationals of the State in which they find themselves may be interned in an international armed conflict if the security of the State renders this measure absolutely necessary (Art. 42 of the Fourth Geneva Convention). In such situations, there are special provisions regulating their conditions of internment.

In non-international armed conflicts, women who have taken an active part in the hostilities and are captured are entitled to the fundamental guarantees afforded by Articles 4, 5 and 6 of Additional Protocol II relating to the Protection of Victims of Non- International Armed Conflicts. Women are entitled to the same protection as men, but they also have a right to special treatment: unless they are housed as a family, they must be held in separate quarters under the immediate supervision of women.

Civilian women interned by a party to the armed conflict are also protected by the same provisions, and afforded special conditions of internment and protection in relation to penal prosecutions.

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" I used to be a prisoner... I was taken from my house at 12p.m. At 2.30 I was going through the first investigation. My family did not know where I was... The only way I could communicate with my family was the Red Cross. "

Palestinian female teacher, Israel, the occupied territories and the autonomous territories, People on War consultation, ICRC, 1999

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Armed conflict often impels women to leave their homes and possessions, either because a deliberate strategy of forced displacement of civilians has been adopted by one of the parties to the conflict, or because they have been caught up in the fighting and fear attack.

Women need to be able to remain in their homes and communities. In many countries affected by armed conflict, the civilian population is highly dependent on the land as a source of livelihood, so displacement can have life-threatening implications. If they have to flee, women need protection and assistance to reach an area of safety. They may also need appropriate material support during their period of displacement and immediately after their return to their home regions.

Displaced women often rely on support from host communities or international organizations for their daily survival needs. Even so, women typically show courage and ingenuity every day in shouldering their family responsibilities in the absence of their menfolk. In so doing they risk being raped or suffering injury from anti-personnel mines and unexploded ordnance when collecting water, firewood or traditional foods and herbs for medicine, which are often found long distances from where they have sought shelter.

Displaced women can be particularly vulnerable when they are heads of households, widows, elderly or mothers with small children. Unaccompanied girls are especially at risk. Displaced women are frequently obliged to share accommodation or washing facilities with men not of their family, which may not only violate cultural and privacy norms but may also increase their exposure to attack or abuse.

International humanitarian law — principally enshrined in the 1949 Geneva Conventions and their Additional Protocols of 1977 — prohibits parties to an armed conflict from arbitrarily displacing civilian populations. If they nevertheless do so, humanitarian law protects persons displaced within their own country as members of the civilian population. Humanitarian law also offers protection when displacement occurs across a national border, but only if the host State is also experiencing an armed conflict. Refugees are also protected by refugee and human rights law.

Women need to be specifically involved in assistance and protection programmes set up for their benefit, in order to ensure that they are assisted appropriately and to minimize the risk of abuse or exploitation.

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" I closed the door, locked it, put the key in my pocket and left thinking I would come back tomorrow. "

Displaced woman, Georgia, People on War consultation, ICRC, 1999

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The separation of families is a particularly traumatic aspect of many armed conflicts. Family members need to know the whereabouts of their relatives and to be able to re-establish contact with them; family reunification should take place as quickly as possible.

However, the search for information on the fate of missing relatives may often go on for years, and may continue long after the end of an armed conflict, often without result. Women are particularly affected by the loss of their menfolk as they struggle to survive in the face of an uncertain future.

Women are often the main initiators of requests for news of family members. This is primarily because more men are killed, captured or disappear in relation to an armed conflict, and so it is the male relative being looked for — often by a female relative: the wife, mother, daughter or sister.

All too frequently, the parties to an armed conflict do little to try to determine the fate of missing persons. In addition, women face many constraints when searching for information on missing relatives, since not only financial, cultural, traditional and social barriers but also safety concerns often restrict their access to the authorities, political representatives and the military. As a result, many women form or join groups to exert pressure on the authorities for news of their relatives and to ensure that they are not forgotten.

Not knowing the fate of relatives and not being able to mourn and bury loved ones are terrible burdens for the survivors of an armed conflict. The effects on their ability to cope (inheritance and social security problems) and the chances of reconciliation between communities are enormous. International humanitarian law expressly recognizes the right of families to know the fate of their relatives.

"…the activities of the …Parties to the conflict [with regard to missing and dead persons] …shall be prompted mainly by the right of families to know the fate of their relatives." (Article 32, Additional Protocol I.)

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" ...I don’t know how to explain it, but when your daughter comes and asks you: "Mom, show me a picture of my dad and me", and you tell her: "There is no such thing, there never was such a thing". "

Palestinian female teacher, Israel, the occupied territories and the autonomous territories, People on War consultation, ICRC, 1999

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Women who are members of the civilian population need to have access to food of sufficient nutritional quality to maintain their health and well-being. In situations of armed conflict, the civilian population — women, men and children — may not have the means to ensure their own survival.

Food often becomes scarce in situations of armed conflict, when farms and rural infrastructure are damaged, agricultural production is reduced, and food-processing, storage and distribution systems are destroyed. Incomes may go down at the same time that prices go up. Economic and social networks unravel.

When men take up arms, flee, become disabled or go missing, are detained, or die, the impact on women can be dramatic. They face the heavy burden of taking over the role of head of household and providing for their own needs and those of their family. Certain tasks traditionally carried out by men, such as harvesting, fishing and hunting, can be particularly difficult for women because of social and cultural barriers and lack of skills, and/or the dangers inherent in the hostilities, which restrict mobility and increase the risk of attack or injury.

Women need to have access to the means to prepare food for themselves and their families. Women and girls are particularly vulnerable to attack and injury when collecting and searching for firewood, as this may take them into hazardous areas a long distance from their homes and expose them to the danger of anti-personnel mines and unexploded ordnance or the risk of attack and sexual violence.

In situations of armed conflict, women made particularly vulnerable by the hostilities need to receive both food and material assistance. Furthermore, women need to be involved in the planning, implementation and evaluation of assistance programmes set up on their behalf to ensure that the assistance provided meets their needs, priorities and cultural requirements, and that it actually reaches the intended beneficiaries.

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" I was not a combatant with a rifle — but a combatant for a piece of bread. "

Mother, Bosnia-Herzegovina, People on War consultation, ICRC, 1998

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Armed conflicts seriously affect the health of the entire population — women, men and children. The dangerous environment prevailing in areas affected by an armed conflict or internal disturbance often creates problems for civilians attempting to reach health services and receive appropriate medical care and medicines.

Local medical services and infrastructures may be severely disrupted, looted and even partly or completely destroyed.

Wounded women, be they combatants or civilians, need to have access to appropriate surgical care and rehabilitation. Furthermore, women and girls are often physically more vulnerable to illness than men owing to their reproductive role. Provision of reproductive health care for women is vital during an armed conflict in order to save lives and prevent and reduce
illnesses and disabilities due to complications during pregnancy and labour, and after giving birth.

In wartime, it is often difficult for women to obtain access to specialist medical services, such as reproductive health care, at a time when traditional systems of medical support are also often reduced. The incidence of sexual violence in armed conflicts - a violation of international humanitarian law - also increases the demand for specific kinds of medical care. Such care needs to be provided promptly, sensitively and confidentially, and must be appropriate to the cultural context and needs of women.

In addition to caring for themselves, women have an important role in promoting and maintaining the health of their family and community. They have learned, or can be taught, to prevent illnesses or to tend sick family members. Women need to be supported and assisted in maintaining their own health and that of their family.

International humanitarian law contains extensive provisions aimed at ensuring the protection of and respect for sick and wounded persons - be they civilians or combatants - as well as medical personnel and facilities.

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" The health sector should always be protected. There is no logic in attacking any institution that afterwards may be helpful. "

Nurse, Colombia, People on War consultation, ICRC, 1999

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International humanitarian law protects women when: they are combatants, by laying down limitations on permissible means and methods of warfare; they are captured, sick, wounded or shipwrecked combatants; they are members of the civilian population not taking an active part in the hostilities.

This protection is enshrined in the four Geneva Conventions of 1949 and their two Additional Protocols of 1977 and in a number of other instruments. Women are afforded both general protection — on the same basis as men — and special protection reflecting their particular needs as women.

Women who are not, or no longer, taking part in hostilities are protected against the effects of the fighting and also against abusive treatment by the parties to hostilities. Women are entitled to humane treatment, respect for their life and physical integrity, and to live free from torture, ill-treatment, acts of violence and harassment. In addition to this general protection, women are afforded special protection. For example, they are specially protected against attack, in particular against rape, enforced prostitution or any form of indecent assault. (Fourth Geneva Convention relative to the Protection of Civilian Persons in Time of War, Art. 27(2), Additional Protocol I, Arts 75 and 76.)

The special protection for women extends to their conditions of detention or internment, for example by stipulating that they must have separate sleeping quarters and sanitary facilities from male detainees or internees. Their specific needs as pregnant women or nursing mothers whilst in detention or as members of the civilian population are also recognized and protected by international humanitarian law.

The ad hoc International Criminal Tribunals for the former Yugoslavia and Rwanda are important developments in the realization of more effective mechanisms for enforcing international humanitarian law. For example, the fact that rape and other forms of sexual violence in armed conflict have been prosecuted as war crimes is a major step forward in the fight against impunity. Furthermore, under the Statute of the International Criminal Court, rape, sexual slavery, enforced prostitution, forced pregnancy, enforced sterilization and any other form of sexual violence constitute grave breaches of the Geneva Conventions, and are war crimes when committed in international or non-international armed conflict. Article 8 (2) (b) (xxii) and 8 (2) (e) (vi) of the ICC Statute.

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" The enemy should be attacked but civilians should be protected even if they are together with the enemy. "

Militia member, Somalia, People on War consultation, ICRC, 1999

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fr.: International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC)
(http://www.icrc.org/Web/Eng/siteeng0.nsf/html/57JRFV?OpenDocument)

A Women’s Human Rights Perspective on War and Conflict

By Sunila Abeyesekera
Director of Inform, the Sri Lankan human rights organisation

Developing a perspective on war and peace within the framework of women's human rights is perhaps one of the most critical challenges facing women's movements around the world as we enter the year 2003. The intense war-mongering and Islamophobia, as well as the imminent danger of a war against the people of Iraq that marked the last few months of 2002 have been somewhat tempered in the new year by the voices of peace and moderation that have rallied against war in their hundreds of thousands in all parts of the world. However, even if there is no immediate outbreak of a declared war in any part of the world, the social, political and ideological impact of the war-mongering that we have witnessed through the past months will continue to shape our collective future.

The specific consequences of war and conflict for women have been explored in great detail in a number of books and studies from women scholars and activists from around the world. In this piece therefore I only reiterate some key issues.

The active involvement of women as members of militant and armed fighting forces has led to the erosion of certain essentialist stereotypes of women as peace-loving, gentle and unable to engage in violence. It has also laid to rest the myth that women, as those who bring forth life, have a special interest in the maintenance of life. At the same time, wars and conflicts have led to a host of negative consequences for unarmed women civilians and dependent family members, children, the old and the infirm. Figures worldwide point to the fact that the majority of refugees and internally displaced persons are female. The erosion of democratic space that often accompanies conflict and war also propel women into a more active role in political and social life. In moments when men and male-dominated traditional political and social formations, such as political parties and trade unions, are reluctant or unable to come forward in defense of human rights and democratic principles, groups of women have had the courage to stand up to the armed might of both state and non-state actors. War and conflict also push women into decision-making positions in their families and communities, in particular in the role of head of household.

Most conflicts and wars emerge out of processes of identity formation in which competing identity groups and communities resort to violence to affirm their equal status in society. Given this dynamic, conflict and war situations result in the heightening of all forms of conservatism and extremism including religious fundamentalism, ultra-nationalism and ethnic and linguistic chauvinism. The hardening of identity-based roles ascribed to men and women within the community that happen as a part of this process often has disastrous consequences for women. It restricts their mobility and freedom, imposes dress codes, confines them to the domestic sphere, brings them under the rigid control of male members of the family and the community and, most critically, places them in the role of 'bearers of the community's honour' and traditions. Thus, the rape and violation of the women of the 'enemy' community becomes a critical military strategy in all identity-based wars and conflict.

Conflict and war therefore create conditions in which the role and position of women in society is transformed. One of the dilemmas in post-conflict and transitional societies is that the collective voice and strength discovered by women through this process in times of conflict and war can sometimes be undermined in moments of conflict transformation and peace-building. 'Restoring normalcy' in some situations can mean a return to patriarchal norms and control of women's rights and freedoms. The 'patriarchs' may win out in such a scenario and promote the return of women to their homes, families and domestic roles.

The work of women activists around the world on various aspects of violence against women in the family and in the community, as well as in society at large has shown the continuum of violence in patriarchal and hierarchical societies, linking violence in the home with violence in society. This focus has highlighted the ways in which the use of violence as a dispute-resolving mechanism -- in both the private and public arenas -- breeds intolerance and prejudice at every level in society. The analysis of violence against women as a flagrant violation of their human rights and of their right to dignity and equality has encompassed consideration of the impact of poverty, and of processes of economic and social development, from the perspective of human rights. In addition, women activists have linked issues of peace with issues of militarization. This involves not only looking at the 'normalization' of war and of military life styles and ideals in society in terms of its impact on women, but also questioning the economic aspects of war and links to the growing military-industrial complex worldwide in terms of its impact on all marginalized communities.

The need to incorporate women's perspectives and to take seriously women's concerns in all processes of peace-building and conflict transformation has been reiterated not only by scholars and peace activists but by the UN Security Council through its Resolution 1325. Once again, it is critical to acknowledge the specific role that women can and must play in resolving conflicts consultatively and with respect for human rights and freedoms. However, it also crucial that we do not reinforce arguments based on biological essentialism in the process; it is not because we are mothers or wives or daughters alone that we take a stand against all forms of conflict and violence and strive for the negotiated settlement of conflicts and wars. As those who experience discrimination and oppression as a part of our daily lives, we have evolved an understanding of the politics of prejudice and violence not only as victims and survivors but as citizens and political actors. We have learned not to fear conflict but to understand it as a part of daily human existence; what we have learned is abhor is the use of violence as a means of resolving conflict. We have learned the importance of seeking and understanding the root causes of conflict. As we have negotiated with the perpetrators of violence in our daily lives, we have learned the art of negotiation and compromise, of considering the other's point of view, of working with humility and in the spirit of reconciliation rather than of confrontation.

Most important, we have learned the cardinal importance of non-punitive justice, of ways and means of providing redress for those who have suffered injustice and of imposing penalties on those who have committed acts of injustice without becoming locked in a self-perpetuating cycle of 'crime and punishment'. We have gained all these skills and understanding at great cost to our lives. If the opportunity to utilize these skills in the larger interests of the global community is not easily given to us, we must also evolve our own strategies for seizing opportunities wherever we may find them, in order to promote the ideals of social justice, equality and respect for human rights which are the cornerstones of our existence as full human beings.

fr.: Women's Human Right Net (http://www.whrnet.org/docs/perspective-abeyesekera-0302.html)

Poverty Facts and Statistics

● Half the world -- nearly three billion people -- live on less than two dollars a day.
● The GDP (Gross Domestic Product) of the poorest 48 nations (i.e. a quarter of the world's countries) is less than the wealth of the world's three richest people combined.
● Nearly a billion people entered the 21st century unable to read a book or sign their names.
● Less than one per cent of what the world spent every year on weapons was needed to put every child into school by the year 2000 and yet it didn't happen.
● 51 percent of the world's 100 hundred wealthiest bodies are corporations.
● The wealthiest nation on Earth has the widest gap between rich and poor of any industrialized nation.
● The poorer the country, the more likely it is that debt repayments are being extracted directly from people who neither contracted the loans nor received any of the money.
● 20% of the population in the developed nations, consume 86% of the worlds goods.
● The top fifth of the world's people in the richest countries enjoy 82% of the expanding export trade and 68% of foreign direct investment -- the bottom fifth, barely more than 1%.
● In 1960, the 20% of the world's people in the richest countries had 30 times the income of the poorest 20% -- in 1997, 74 times as much.
● An analysis of long-term trends shows the distance between the richest and poorest countries was about:
3 to 1 in 1820
11 to 1 in 1913
35 to 1 in 1950
44 to 1 in 1973
72 to 1 in 1992
● “The lives of 1.7 million children will be needlessly lost this year [2000] because world governments have failed to reduce poverty levels”
● The developing world now spends $13 on debt repayment for every $1 it receives in grants.
● A few hundred millionaires now own as much wealth as the world's poorest 2.5 billion people.
● “The 48 poorest countries account for less than 0.4 per cent of global exports.”
● “The combined wealth of the world's 200 richest people hit $1 trillion in 1999; the combined incomes of the 582 million people living in the 43 least developed countries is $146 billion.”
● “Of all human rights failures today, those in economic and social areas affect by far the larger number and are the most widespread across the world's nations and large numbers of people.”
● “Approximately 790 million people in the developing world are still chronically undernourished, almost two-thirds of whom reside in Asia and the Pacific.”
● “7 Million children die each year as a result of the debt crisis. 8525038 children have died since the start of the year 2000 [as of March 24, 2001].”
● For economic growth and almost all of the other indicators, the last 20 years [of the current form of globalization, from 1980 - 2000] have shown a very clear decline in progress as compared with the previous two decades [1960 - 1980]. For each indicator, countries were divided into five roughly equal groups, according to what level the countries had achieved by the start of the period (1960 or 1980). Among the findings:
Growth: The fall in economic growth rates was most pronounced and across the board for all groups or countries.
Life Expectancy: Progress in life expectancy was also reduced for 4 out of the 5 groups of countries, with the exception of the highest group (life expectancy 69-76 years).
Infant and Child Mortality: Progress in reducing infant mortality was also considerably slower during the period of globalization (1980-1998) than over the previous two decades.
Education and literacy: Progress in education also slowed during the period of globalization. 20
● “Today, across the world, 1.3 billion people live on less than one dollar a day; 3 billion live on under two dollars a day; 1.3 billion have no access to clean water; 3 billion have no access to sanitation; 2 billion have no access to electricity.”
● The richest 50 million people in Europe and North America have the same income as 2.7 billion poor people. “The slice of the cake taken by 1% is the same size as that handed to the poorest 57%.”
● The world's 497 billionaires in 2001 registered a combined wealth of $1.54 trillion, well over the combined gross national products of all the nations of sub-Saharan Africa ($929.3 billion) or those of the oil-rich regions of the Middle East and North Africa ($1.34 trillion). It is also greater than the combined incomes of the poorest half of humanity.
● A mere 12 percent of the world's population uses 85 percent of its water, and these 12 percent do not live in the Third World.

fr.: causes of poverty by Anup Shah〔http://www.globalissues.org/TradeRelated/Facts.asp〕

Understanding Poverty

What is poverty?

Poverty is hunger. Poverty is lack of shelter. Poverty is being sick and not being able to see a doctor. Poverty is not being able to go to school and not knowing how to read. Poverty is not having a job, is fear for the future, living one day at a time. Poverty is losing a child to illness brought about by unclean water. Poverty is powerlessness, lack of representation and freedom.
Poverty has many faces, changing from place to place and across time, and has been described in many ways (for a collection of readings, see the Literature of Poverty). Most often, poverty is a situation people want to escape. So poverty is a call to action -- for the poor and the wealthy alike -- a call to change the world so that many more may have enough to eat, adequate shelter, access to education and health, protection from violence, and a voice in what happens in their communities.

Dimensions of Poverty

To know what helps to alleviate poverty, what works and what does not, what changes over time, poverty has to be defined, measured, and studied -- and even lived. As poverty has many dimensions, it has to be looked at through a variety of indicators -- levels of income and consumption, social indicators, and now increasingly indicators of vulnerability to risks and of socio/political access.

So far, much more work has been done using consumption or income-based measures of poverty. But some work has been done on non-income dimensions of poverty, most notably in the Human Development Report prepared annually by the United Nations Development Programme, and new work is underway in preparation for the World Development Report on Poverty and Development. See New Directions in Measuring Poverty below.

Measuring poverty at the country level

The most commonly used way to measure poverty is based on incomes or consumption levels. A person is considered poor if his or her consumption or income level falls below some minimum level necessary to meet basic needs. This minimum level is usually called the "poverty line". What is necessary to satisfy basic needs varies across time and societies. Therefore, poverty lines vary in time and place, and each country uses lines which are appropriate to its level of development, societal norms and values.

Information on consumption and income is obtained through sample surveys, during which households are asked to answer detailed questions on their spending habits and sources of income. Such surveys are conducted more or less regularly in most countries. These sample survey data collection methods are increasingly being complemented by participatory methods, where people are asked what their basic needs are and what poverty means for them. Interestingly, new research shows a high degree of concordance between poverty lines based on objective and subjective assessments of needs.

Measuring poverty at the global level

When estimating poverty world-wide, the same reference poverty line has to be used, and expressed in a common unit across countries. Therefore, for the purpose of global aggregation and comparison, the World Bank uses reference lines set at $1 and $2 per day in 1993 Purchasing Power Parity (PPP) terms (where PPPs measure the relative purchasing power of currencies across countries). It has been estimated that in 1999 1.2 billion people world-wide had consumption levels below $1 a day -- 23 percent of the population of the developing world and 2.8 billion lived on less than $2 a day. These figures are lower than earlier estimates, indicating that some progress has taken place, but they still remain too high in terms of human suffering, and much more remains to be done. And it should be emphasized that for analysis of poverty in a particular country, the World Bank always uses poverty line(s) based on norms for that society.

Because of the time involved in collecting and processing the household survey data upon which these figures are based, and because of the complexities of the estimation exercise, these figures appear with a lag.

New directions in poverty measurement

While much progress has been made in measuring and analyzing income poverty, efforts are needed to measure and study the many other dimensions of poverty. Work on non-income dimensions of poverty -- defining indicators where needed, gathering data, assessing trends -- is presented in the World Development Report (WDR) 2000/01: Attacking Poverty, which was published in September 2000. This work includes assembling comparable and high-quality social indicators for education, health, access to services and infrastructure. It also includes developing new indicators to track other dimensions -- for example risk, vulnerability, social exclusion, access to social capital -- as well as ways to compare a multi-dimensional conception of poverty, when it may not make sense to aggregate the various dimensions into one index.

In addition to expanding the range of indicators of poverty, work is needed to integrate data coming from sample surveys with information obtained through more participatory techniques, which usually offer rich insights into why programs work or do not. Participatory approaches illustrate the nature of risk and vulnerability, how cultural factors and ethnicity interact and affect poverty, how social exclusion sets limits to people participation in development, and how barriers to such participation can be removed. Again, work on integrating analyses of poverty based on sample surveys and on participatory techniques is presented in the WDR. To learn more about this work, see the WDR 2000/01: Attacking Poverty.

Living standards have improved...

Living standards have risen dramatically over the last decades. Per capita private consumption growth in developing countries has averaged about 1.4 percent a year between 1980 and 1990 and 2.4 percent between 1990 and 1999. So millions have left behind the yoke of poverty and despair. But population in the developing world has grown rapidly -- from 2.9 billion people in 1970 to 5.1 billion in 1999 -- and many have been born into poverty.

The proportion of the developing world's population living in extreme economic poverty -- defined as living on less than $1 per day (in 1993 dollars, adjusted to account for differences in purchasing power across countries) -- has fallen from 29 percent in 1990 to 23 percent in 1999.

Substantial improvements in social indicators have accompanied growth in average incomes. Infant mortality rates have fallen from 107 per 1,000 live births in 1970 to 59 in 1999. On average, life expectancy has risen by four months each year since 1970 (see also trends in life expectancy). Growth in food production has substantially outpaced that of population. Governments report rapid progress in primary school enrollment (see also trends in education). Adult literacy has also risen, from 53 percent in 1970 to 74 percent in 1998. And gender disparities have narrowed, with the female-male difference in net enrollment rates decreasing from 11 percent in 1980 to 5 percent in 1997. The developing world today is healthier, wealthier, better fed, and better educated.

...but wide regional disparities persist.

While there has been great progress in alleviating poverty, it has been far from even, and the global picture masks large regional differences.

Poverty is rising rapidly in Europe and Central Asia, and continuing to rise in Sub-Saharan Africa. In Asia, where most of the world's poor live, the proportion in poverty has declined dramatically over the past two decades, but the recent crisis has slowed progress. And 490 million people still remain in poverty in South Asia.

There are sharp regional differences also in a number of social indicators.

Most developing regions have seen infant and child mortality rates decline sharply. But South Asia’s infant mortality rates today are about the same as East Asia’s in the early 1970s, reflecting both poor progress in South Asia and favorable initial social conditions in East Asia. Sub-Saharan Africa’s infant mortality rates are well above those in East Asia some 30 years ago, and child mortality is rising because of the AIDS epidemic. On average, 151 of every 1,000 African children die before the age of 5, and 92 in 1,000 before the age of 1. Nine African countries have under-five mortality rates in excess of 200 (Angola, Burkina Faso, Guinea-Bissau, Malawi, Mali, Mozambique, Niger, Rwanda, and Sierra Leone). (For more information, see trends in infant and child mortality).

Gross primary school enrollment rates have risen in all regions. But Sub-Saharan Africa’s rates, having risen from 51 percent of the eligible population in 1970 to 80 percent by 1980, fell back to 78 in 1994, reflecting larger problems. Again, averages disguise wide country disparities. Nine countries in Africa have fewer than half their children enrolled in primary school (among them, Burkina Faso, Ethiopia, Mali, and Niger). (Click here for trends in education).

The extent of gender disparities in education, as measured by the male-female gap in the percentage of 6-14 year-olds in school, varies enormously across countries. Female disadvantage in education is large in Western and Central Africa, North Africa and South Asia. In several Latin American countries, instead, there is a female advantage (see also trends in education of girls).

Millennium Development Goals (MDGs)

The uneven progress of development is worrying. The flows of trade and capital that integrate the global economy may bring benefits to millions, but poverty and suffering persist. In an integrated world, disease, environmental degradation, civil strife, and criminal activity are also global concerns.

Responding to concerns about global poverty, international development agencies have begun to reexamine the way they do business. They are looking at impacts more than inputs by establishing performance targets, and they are enhancing their accountability and transparency by measuring progress towards these goals.

The Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) summarize the development goals agreed on at international conferences and world summits during the 1990s. At the September 2000 Millennium Summit, world leaders distilled key development goals and targets in the Millennium Declaration. Based on the declaration, the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), the United Nations, and the World Bank have devised a comprehensive set of eight goals, 18 numerical targets and over 40 quantifiable indicators to assess progress. The eight goals are:

Eradicate extreme poverty and hunger
Achieve universal primary education
Promote gender equality and empower women
Reduce child mortality
Improve maternal health
Combat HIV/AIDS, malaria, and other diseases
Ensure environmental sustainability
Develop a global partnership for development.
While each goal is important in its own right, they should be viewed together as they are mutually reinforcing. Achieving them will require building capacity for effective, democratic, and accountable governance, protection of human rights, and respect for the rule of law. The World Bank will systematically monitor progress in achieving these goals in the countries it assists (see the Millennium Development Goals website for more detail on the MDGs).

Achieving the goals

The poverty goal calls for reducing by half the proportion of people living on less than a dollar a day by 2015. A reduction from 29 to 14.5 percent would reduce the number of poor people from 1.2 billion in 1990 to 890 million in 2015.

Is this achievable? Income poverty is a function of growth -- if the incomes of all grow at the rate of growth of the economy, then fewer people will have incomes below the poverty line every year -- and of the extent to which the incomes of the poor grow as an economy expands. Thus, the answer depends on prospects for growth and for the distribution of income.

If countries were to continue to grow as they did over the period 1990-95, and all benefited equally, then the global poverty targets will be met. Some countries did not grow fast enough, but the countries with the highest number of poor people -- India and China -- did; if this continues, the goals will be met.

But past trends may not be a good predictor of growth -- and the global economy is slowing down as a result of the East Asian crisis. Predictions made in January 1998 indicated that most regions were expected to reach the goals. The exception is Sub-Saharan Africa, where growth is expected to fall short.

Income distribution also matters. Increasing inequality in income distribution will reduce the numbers who benefit from the same average rate of growth. While the distribution of income tends to be stable over time, there is some evidence that inequality was deteriorating in East Asia before the crisis, and inequality remains very high in Sub-Saharan Africa (particularly in South Africa) and Latin America. (For more information, see Trends in inequality.)

Achieving the social goals will not be easy. If infant mortality rates were to remain at 1990 levels, the number of infant deaths would total some 8.8 million in 2015. Reaching the target of reducing infant mortality by two-thirds would require bringing this number down to about 3 million (more on trends in infant mortality). Similarly, attaining the primary school enrollment goal would require enrolling some 200 million more children in primary school than there are today, and increase of 41 percent over current levels (more on trends in primary enrollments). For a detailed analysis of whether the goals are attainable, see L. Demery and M. Walton (1998), Are Poverty Reduction and Other 21st Century Social Goals Attainable?

Reaching these targets will not be easy. But sufficient political will, improvements in female education, health programs, and income growth for all could bring infant mortality and education targets within reach. Otherwise, the costs would be enormous.

fr.: Poverty Net 〔http://www.worldbank.org/poverty/mission/up1.htm〕

我們關心 ...

因貧窮而引起的兒童飢餓與教育問題
因政治與文化所造成的婦女不平等待遇
因貪婪與自私形成的生態失衡
因意識型態與自大無知所引發的族群衝突

我們持續關懷 ...
希望「人類」有機會從野蠻物種走向文明

這是成立本版的初衷