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Successful Turnout in Seoul for the 2nd “Dynamic Cities Need Women" Forum The 2nd International Forum on “Dynamic Cities Need Women: Visions and Challenges for a Women-Friendly City”, organized by the Metropolis International Women’s Network, was held in Seoul, South Korea, from 21 to 24 October 2009. The Forum included the participation of 12 antennae of the Women’s Network, 70 speakers including 11 female mayors and 1 male mayor; over 1,000 attendees from 40 cities in 35 different countries, and international organizations, experts from around the world, students and civil groups. A great many participants also attended the training sessions and roundtable discussions that took place in the run-up to the Forum on 20 and 21 October. The opening ceremony was chaired by the South Korean Minister for Gender Equality, Hee Young Paik; the Mayor of Seoul, Se-Hoon Oh; and the UN Deputy SecretaryGeneral, Asha-Rose Migiro. Also in attendance were Francine Senécal, the co-president of the Forum and president of the Metropolis International Women’s Network and Kyung Sook Lee, the co-president of the Forum in South Korea and director of the Seoul Foundation of Women and Family, who remarked on and thanked the high turnout of countries from around the world. Francine Senécal thanked Metropolis president Jean-Paul Huchon for the work he has done toward promoting women’s issues and the Seoul Foundation of Women and Family for making the Forum possible. She pointed out the need to make a culturally aware society in which women play an important role in society’s development as the bridge for the fight for peace. Seoul Mayor Se-Hoon Oh emphasized that “if cities are women-friendly, they will also be men-friendly and friendly for all humanity”. “Women are still considered passive beneficiaries of policies,” he said, which is why “we have to work for a real participation of women in political decisions”. The South Korean Minister for Gender Equality spoke of the importance of achieving a society that offers full opportunities to men and women and pointed out that women are the symbol of the society of the future. The keynote speaker was the UN Deputy Secretary-General AshaRose Migiro, who discussed women’s greater vulnerability in relation to men at times of crisis with regard to issues such as housing, transport, protection, safety and so on. She also mentioned the importance of the fair and equitable participation of women in political decisions. Ms. Migiro recalled that the 2005 UN Summit declared that “progress for women is progress for all” and said it was necessary to continue to work in this area because women and families need gender equality policies. The Beijing Platform for Action and the UN Habitat Agenda recently approved specific goals in favor of cities that are more equitable with women. A more active Barcelona Antenna at the 2nd Forum The Barcelona Antenna, through its representative Carme Figueras, a member of the Parliament of Catalonia, played a very active role in the 2nd Forum. Ms. Figueras was responsible for coordinating the Network of Social Protection with a Gender Perspective committee and mentioned a number of hair-raising figures which show that, despite the progress made in recent decades, differences between men and women persist to a greater or lesser extent in all societies. In the EU, women earn an average of 17.4% less than men. 99% of land ownership is in male hands, compared to 1% of land owned by women. Women hold only 10% of the money in circulation in the world and represent around 70% of people living on under a $US1 a day. Women account for 70% of the illiterate. New and diverse family structures have failed to make substantial changes to public policies. The inclusion of women in the workforce has not freed them from their old domestic roles and has not been matched by an equal distribution of work, family and personal time. Furthermore, the effects of the economic downturn are having a greater impact on women and the crisis is adding new factors of vulnerability. The solutions lie inexorably in tackling the structural causes of the feminization of poverty and at the same time looking at specific groups at an increased risk of exclusion, such as young women, elderly women, the handicapped, prostitutes, prisoners, carers of dependents, migrants, women from ethnic minorities and the like. Tackling structural causes involves overcoming the sex division of labor and working hours in general should be adapted to the life cycles of women and men. The revaluation and recognition of reproductive tasks and a transformation of the male way of understanding daily life must be tackled. All of this is needed to ensure true equal opportunity in the workplace and education, equal economic capacity, equal safety and equal social protection for women and men. Numerous specialists from organizations such as the UN Secretary-General’s Office, the UN Division for the Promotion of Women, UN-Habitat and the Huairou Committee acknowledged the values and difficulties women face in many cities in this century and expressed their support for the initiative to create women-friendly cities. They also agreed to take part in future projects of the Metropolis International Women’s Network. The Forum concluded with the approval of the Declaration of Seoul signed in a protocol event by the president of the Metropolis International Women’s Network and the copresident of the 2nd International Women’s Forum, as well as representatives of the different antennae of the Women’s Network. The Declaration has already been adopted by the Metropolitan Region of Chile, which is composed of 52 municipalities, and is expected to be shortly adopted by the 36 municipalities of the Barcelona Metropolitan Region as well. It is anticipated that the greatest possible number of local governments will assume the Declaration and incorporate its principles into their municipal policies, with the goals of working toward a new form of government that includes gender equality and building more women-friendly cities.