CHARTER OF WOMEN'S SOLIDARITY

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Feelings of responsibility for Russia and anxiety for our children impels us as representatives of women's organizations to endorse the following Charter of Women's Solidarity. We believe that consolidation of women is critical to assure cessation of social and economic crisis and prevent social collisions in this country. Women's solidarity will give new impetus to processes of interest alignment, consultation and search for reasonable compromise within society to secure peaceful and prosperous life in Russia.

Enforcement of the principle of equal rights and freedoms, and equal opportunities for their realization for men and women stated in the Constitution of the RF (art.19.3) is basic to sustainable social development and public welfare. Unconditional compliance to the Convention on elimination of women's discrimination in any form and other international documents is prerequisite to improve social and economic status of Russian women. Therefore, we agree to cooperate in a constructive way and coordinate our efforts.

• making amendments and modifications to current legislation, drafting and enacting new regulations bringing Russian legislation in compliance with constitutional principle of equal rights, freedoms, and opportunities for men and women, including a particular Act on equal rights and opportunities;
• securing women's employment, enhancing their competitiveness in labor market;
• guaranteeing equal access to free high-quality education for men and women;
• assuring that women and children have access to medical care; creating environments facilitating deliberate reproduction and family planning; prevention of social-rooted diseases;
• prevention and eradication of violence, cruelty, humiliation of human dignity either in society or in family; improving women's working and habitual environments in rural areas, developing social infrastructure of localities;
• promoting values of family life as based on mutual respect and partnership;
• positive representation of modern women in mass media, discard patriarchal paradigm of women's role and place in society.

We advocate:
• interests and rights of children so they could grow healthy, inquisitive, happy;
• interests and rights of army recruits and soldiers at regular service, so we shall promote optional civic service institution and military reform implementation;
• every Russian citizen's right to live in harmony with the Nature, breath clean air, drink clean water, so we shall support environmental friendly technological developments;
• every Russian citizen's rights for individual and social security, and we shall promote legal and social protection of refugees and forced immigrants, efforts to eradicate crime and corruption;
• woman's right to receive labor compensation equal to that of man, and we shall act against any discrimination of women in labor- and employment-related issues;
• woman's right to live at acceptable standard of life, and we shall do our best to prevent feminization of poverty.

We are determined to:
• improve national-level legislation so it would assure enforcement of the principle of equal rights, freedoms, and equal opportunities and provide for women's representation at all levels of political decision-making in proportion adequate to their role in social life; in particular, women should be represented in RF Security Council;
• introduce practices of social contracting and partnership between women's public organizations and government bodies at all levels;
• design and implement regional and sector projects within the framework of the National Action Plan of Improving Status of Women in the Russian Federation. We make commitment to join our best efforts at turning ongoing Russian reforms into secure channel of true humanity and democracy.