The first women’s organisations in Belarus were established at the end of the 19th century as offshoots of women’s societies in Russia. They differed from their Russian counterparts though, since they combined the fight for equal rights of women with the Belarusian national movement’s revival ideas.
With the declaration of the Belarusian Soviet Socialist Republic (BSSR) and establishment of Soviet rule, the situation of the Belarusian women’s movement changed dramatically. The declaration of equal rights for men and women was reflected in the state and party governing bodies. The policy of women’s emancipation assumed a distinct class character, subordinated to the interest and tasks of the state.
Although the Soviet authorities granted women a number of rights and privileges, the policy of emancipation was not in fact aimed at changing the patriarchal social consciousness, without which a complete social-ontological equality of rights is not possible. Resulting from these actions was latent discrimination against women and a “double strain.” The manner of presentation and the content of the “women’s issues” resulted from the tasks of a given stage of communism, and not from the interests of women themselves. Also, the feminisation of the low-paid branches of national economy followed, which as a matter of fact has not been overcome yet. The Soviet Women’s Committee was the only women’s organisation functioning in the USSR (including Belarus) with tens of millions of members. Yet, its activities were under the strict control of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union (CPSU).
Nowadays, two periods in the history of Belarusian women’s organisations development can be distinguished. The first is in the 1990s, when independent non-governmental women’s organisations were established on the rising tide of democratic movement in large districts and industrial towns. All women’s NGOs aimed at defending women’s rights and interests were trying to find their own areas of activity, such as solving problems related to women’s work and living conditions, environmental issues, development of Belarusian language and culture, revival of national traditions, protection of maternity and childhood. The “Hope” party was established in 1994 to increase the influence of women on politics.
The second half of the 1990s is characterised by the active response of state to the social-economic needs of women, compulsory organisation of social associations in all regions and involving women in adopting the state policy for equal status of men and women.
The social activity of women in Belarus is manifested mostly as a women’s movement, not as a feminist movement. It can be divided by the following criteria:
1. Status of the social associations;
2. Political position of the leader with regard to the state authority;
3. The sphere and character of activity.
Based on the first criterion, international, national, and local organisations can be distinguished in Belarus. The second category includes opposition, pro-government, and neutral organisations, while the third refers to institutions with social-economic, national-democratic, science-research, and professional focuses. Besides women’s issues, the organisations embark upon the wider issues of human rights, comprise counselling, education, and information forums, and carry on cultural and philanthropic activities. Their main scope of interest is in the problems related to women’s low social status, insufficient participation in decision making circles, unemployment and poverty among women, domestic violence, and the effect of the disaster in Chernobyl. The analysis of women’s NGOs policy documents suggests that most of them subscribe to the social democratic ideas and rules.
When faced with the need to survive in the reality of the authoritarian regime, economic crisis and environmental problems, values such as development of personality, independence, and emancipation are forced to the background and remain interesting only from a theoretical standpoint. They also cannot count on grasping the interest of people who expect the social movement to improve their practical situation. Therefore, a substantial number of women’s organisations focus not only on the problems related to equality of rights, but also strive to provide concrete social support through philanthropic activities targeted at the poorest citizens.
Even though independent women’s organisations have managed to gather some experience and skills, and gain recognition and authority in the women’s issues, it cannot be called a mass movement that would be able to influence the social development and political decision making.
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