Gender equality and extension of women rights in Russia
within millennium development goals

2. Millennium goals and Russian specific properties

The Millennium Declaration defines main evolution goals, but it is important to make these goals instrumental, concerned with specific actions, with possibility to measure movement of individual countries and world community in whole to achieve these goals. To do this Declaration developers defined specific tasks within each of eight goals aimed to achieve this goal, and indicators - quantitative parameters measuring solution of these tasks. The main task of the third goal is to eliminate by 2005 the inequality between sexes in the area of primary and secondary education, and to eliminate not later than in 2015 the inequality at all education levels. The following parameters are selected as indicators of goals in view achievement: proportion of boys and girls in primary, junior high and high school; proportion of literate young women and men at the age of 15-24 years; proportion of women employed at non-agricultural sector; proportion of women-members of parliament.

Defining in such a manner tasks and parameters the developers proceeded from the assumption that alignment of investments in human capital by gender groups creates basis for equal access to economic and social resources, influence on alignment of gender structures of employment and, as a consequence, provide equal political representation of men and women. They took into account situation characteristic for many world countries (including developed ones) where level of education, investments in human capital for women is less than for men. But this situation does not conform to Russian reality.

Russia, after a long socialist stage of development, is in fully different situation with regard to gender equality in social and economic area. At least five particularities distinguishing Russia from many countries can be selected.

1. Beginning from 60s Russia have been experiencing very high level of women's employment. The profile of women's labour activity in Russia during life cycle differs by the fact that high labour activity continues from young age to middle age, women combine full labour activity with family responsibility during all life cycle. In main working ages the participation rate in the labour force of women is comparable with men's level of labour activity¹. As compared with other countries we can say about over employment of women in Russia that was inherited from the previous period. Russia's women employment can be compared only with Scandinavian countries, other developed countries at present only approach such employment gender structure
2. Russia is an industrial country performing technological transition to post-industrial economy. The main part of women and men is employed not at agricultural sector, but at industrial sector and services sector. Moreover, there are more men than women among those employed at agricultural sector. This differs Russian situation from situation in many developing countries and creates the necessity of deeper analysis of gender segregation on labour market than only analysis of women distribution between agricultural and other sectors of economy.
3. There is equal access of men and women to education in Russia over a period of many decades. This resulted in the fact that education level of women is higher than education level of men.
4. During socialist development of Russia, based on existing at that time ideologic directives and system of values an approach was realized oriented to men's and women's rights equality. Beginning from 20-s this equality of rights was fixed in many basic legal documents. Thus, from formal legal point of view for a long time there is no inequality of men's and women's rights actually in all areas of economic, social and political life, there is no direct rights discrimination². Russia is among world-advanced countries by this parameter.
5. In the same time care of woman, protection her reproductive rights resulted in the fact that during socialist period in XX century many standards of positive discrimination were adopted, different social privileges very generous as to compare with other world countries were fixed.

During post-socialist, transitional period of development in Russia legislative and pragmatic actions were carried out directed to maintaining of formal equality of rights and to achievement of real equality of men's and women's rights. Corresponding principle was defined in the Constitution of 1993 (article 19, part 3): "men and women have equal rights and freedoms, and equal possibilities for their realization". As its development several other legal documents appeared in 90-s. Among them - President Decrees "About priorities of state policy with attitude of women" (1993), "About increase of women role in state authority federal agencies and state authority agencies of subjects of Russian Federation" (1996). And also two government regulations. The first: "About approving of National plan of actions on improving of women situation in Russian Federation and increase of their role in society by 2000. The second: "About approval of National Plan of actions on improvement of women situation in Russian Federation and increase of their society role for 2001-2005" where statements are specified oriented to improvement of women situation on labour market, to development of social service system, strengthening of family relations.

There were important actions like approval of Family Code, new Labour Code, for overcoming of positive discrimination consequences, ratification of Convention No. 156 ILO "About equal treatment and equal possibilities for working men and women: workers with family responsibility".

Taking into account all above mentioned particularities when comparing countries ratings of Human Development Index (HDI) and ratings of Gender-Related Development Index (GRDI), Russia takes higher positions by GRDI rating than HDI rating, by 10 points on average. Thus, parameters of gender equality against global situation are not bad taking into account country level of economic development.

When estimating human development three parameters groups are used - parameters of education, health and level of economic development. Main reasons of remaining gender inequality in Russia from the point of view of human development measuring - are differences in men's and women's economic possibilities. Education parameters do not influence gender inequality significantly, and by lifetime parameter, on the contrary, we can see significant gender inequality in favour of women. The main contribution to gender inequality when changing human development taking into account gender factor is made by men's and women's wage differences.

Thus, taking into account Russia's particularities, conclusions can be made that:

1. Latent, not direct gender discrimination problems are to a greater degree topical for Russia.
2. The task to align gender levels of investments to human capital is not actual, there is latent discrimination of women even taking into consideration that they have higher level of human capital. That is why tasks to achieve third millennium goals and provision of gender equality should be specified otherwise, as to compare with tasks specified for world community in whole.
3. Gender equality issues should be considered not only in terms of provision of real women's rights equality, but in terms of overcoming of gender disproportions aggravating position of men (e.g. health).
4. Main problems of gender equality achievement are concerned with women's economic situation, with provision not only equal rights of men and women, but equal return from economic activity for men and women.

In some sense the question for Russia is – measures suggested by world community to achieve gender equality were partly implemented by us at previous stages of development, but they did not eliminate gender inequality, it is preserved and reproduced. That is why new approaches are to be elaborated to define and measure gender inequality, policy of men's and women's possibilities equality.