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LATIN AMERICA: Justice for Women in Mens’ Courts?

Marcela Valente

BUENOS AIRES, Apr 20 2007 (IPS) - Men still dominate the justice system in Latin America, especially the highest-level positions, says a new study presented at an international seminar in the Argentine capital.

“The first thing to be noticed is that women are outnumbered by men in these jobs throughout the region, and that the gender gap grows as one climbs up the ladder in the judicial branch,” Luz Piedad Caicedo, of the non-governmental organisation Humanas Colombia and the regional Justice and Gender Network, told IPS.

Women lawyers, judges, legal officials and academics from Canada, France, Germany, the United States and six Latin American countries met in Buenos Aires at the International Seminar on Women in the Legal Professions.

The study presented at Wednesday’s meeting, “Assessment of the Situation of Women within the Justice System,” investigated legal conceptions and cultural perceptions in six Latin American countries: Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador and Peru. It was carried out by different women’s organisations in each country.

The study’s conclusions are in contradiction with the steadily rising number of women studying law at university, where in many countries they are now the majority. They also contrast with what is happening in France, where more and more women are becoming judges, according to expert Anne Boigeol of the National Centre for Scientific Research (CNRS).

The study was based on a survey of equal numbers of men and women working in prosecutor’s offices and courts at different levels, from legal assistants in law firms to Supreme Court magistrates in all six countries. The results showed “common problems, and also particular characteristics in each country,” Caicedo said during the presentation.


In all the countries studied, the majority of judges and prosecutors are men.

In Bolivia, men make up 61 percent of these legal professions, in Argentina, 64 percent, in Peru 65 percent and in Ecuador 83 percent, whereas in Colombia the proportion of men is 52 percent, and in Chile 56 percent.

The highest proportion of women is found in the area of family law, which in society’s eyes is an area for women to deal with, and which also has the lowest professional prestige.

But more women have access to courts where affirmative action regulations are in place, as in the city of Buenos Aires.

Regarding perceptions of promotion mechanisms, 68 percent of all interviewees said they were “adequate” or “very adequate”. But when the results were classified by gender, it was found that 77 percent of men and only 59 percent of women chose these answers.

Broken down by country, the results showed an even greater divide in perceptions. For instance, 93 percent of male respondents in Bolivia said promotion mechanisms were adequate or very adequate, but only 42 percent of female respondents agreed.

When asked why they thought that men found it easier to reach positions as judges, men and women interviewees responded differently.

Sexism in the judicial culture was one of the most selected responses. But in Chile, 46 percent of women said they thought that sexism influenced men’s appointment to those positions, while only 24 percent of men agreed.

And in Ecuador, 28 percent of women responded that sexism was a key element in the promotion of men to positions of power, while only nine percent of men gave this reason.

The survey suggests that gender stereotypes also influence access to prestigious positions. The researchers asked what qualities in men were responsible for their attaining these jobs. Male respondents emphasised their training and experience. Women, on the other hand, said men had political contacts, and thought they were more level-headed.

With respect to women’s qualities, male interviewees said women were appointed to legal jobs because they were more methodical, and because of their commitment, constancy, and ability to empathise and negotiate. In Ecuador and Peru, a high percentage of both men and women also said that women were more honest.

Asked about the unequal access of women to the highest judicial posts, men answered that women “were not interested” or “did not train or study” for the best jobs, while women said that “the legal mechanisms” discriminated against them, as well as social and family reasons, which the study did not investigate further.

The study did not analyse whether having more women employed in the justice system would improve respect for the rights of women overall. Caicedo told IPS that equal participation by women in the justice system was a right in itself, but did not necessarily ensure changes in the way the law was applied.

“In many cases, the men and women interviewed hold similar prejudices,” she said. She also pointed out that the international instruments ensuring respect for human rights and protection for women are not better known among women than among men. “Ignorance at that area is widespread,” she said.

The expert said that in spite of the fact that many countries have adopted and ratified United Nations and inter-American system conventions, judges who have the ultimate responsibility for administering justice take “an overly parochial view,” without referring to the international instruments, which in some cases could lead to more progressive verdicts.

 
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