World Movement of Mothers

World

Movement of

Mothers

News

Mothers in the world

Profiles of Mothers

WHO ARE WE?

GENERAL CONSULTATIVE STATUS

THE HISTORY OF THE MOVEMENT

THE CHARTER OF THE MOTHER

Who are we?

For more than fifty years the World Movement of Mothers has been fighting for the recognition of the vital social and economic role of Mothers and the Family .

The World Movement of Mothers is the only NGO (non-governmental organisation) to defend the interests of mothers at international institutions, such as the United Nations.

The World Movement of Mothers is a voluntary, apolitical and non-denominational organisation, addressing issues concerning mothers, their children and their family.

The World Movement of Mothers brings together mothers of the whole world.

World-wide mothers constitute the most homogeneous and most significant social group because, despite obvious differences, whether it be their beliefs, the colour of their skin, their culture, their religion, their economic or social situation, mothers are united in the same priority - they want to ensure (and are prepared to fight for!) the well-being of their children in a peaceful, happy and prosperous world where all children can play and learn, growing to be well-balanced and productive adults - our best hope for the future.

The World Movement of Mothers works to make that aim a reality.

The Movement aims :

To group together associations working to promote and protect the interests of Mothers, their children and their family, in order to support their work and help them to carry out their projects, to enable them to share their experience and vision, to inform them of international policies, changes in legislation and actions undertaken in favour of mothers, children and families in various countries around the world.
To represent Mothers and member associations in international institutions in order to raise awareness of their needs and concerns among policy-makers
To support every Mother and help her fulfill all the responsibilities of motherhood
To help all Mothers ensure the formal and informal education of their children
To encourage Mothers to teach their children the concept of the Culture of Peace
To promote policies which support Mothers who wish to train and work in professional or public life and to promote Women's rights, particularly those of women active in the home

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GENERAL CONSULTATIVE STATUS

The MMM and its member associations work at grassroot level and create links between civil society and governments. The United Nations need the help of such like NGOs to implement their programme.

The Economic and Social Council of the United Nations (ECOSOC) is one of the six organs of the United Nations. The main concerns of ECOSOC are sustainable development; social development; status of women; population and development and human rights.

ECOSOC promotes three main activities:

1. Creating higher standards of living, employment, economic and social progress

2. Solving problems related to health, economic, social, educational and cultural issues

3. Establishing universal respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms .

In 1949, MMM was granted Special Consultative Status which acknowledges a special competence in few of the fields of activity covered by the ECOSOC.

This enabled MMM :

                    To send representatives to the UN,

                    Attend meetings of ECOSOC and its subsidiaries,

                    Speak at ECOSOC meetings and circulate written statements.

In 2004, MMM was granted General Consultative Status which is reserved for large international NGOs concerned with most of the activities of ECOSOC and its subsidiary bodies. They are closely involved with the economic and social life of the peoples and areas they represent.” These tend to be fairly large, established international NGOs with a broad geographical reach.
In addition to our previous privileges , we now have the right to place items on the agendas of ECOSOC and its subsidiaries

We are 135 with General Consultative Status out of the 2350 NGOs
registered at the UN

History of the movement

The World Movement of Mothers was founded as a result of the international action of the French organisation the 'Union Feminine Civique et Social', the Women's Civic and Social Union (UFCS).

In the 1930s, for the first time in large numbers, women were in the workplace. The goal of the UFCS was to make the general public aware of the problems raised by the dual burden of work inside and outside the home.

The UFCS wanted to make possible a free choice for mothers between paid work and her responsibilities in the home. To this end, its action in France aimed to develop family allowances and to ensure an allowance for the stay-at-home mother.

1933: the UFCS first International Congress " A mother's dilemma - reconciling paid work and unpaid work in the home"

1937: the UFCS second Congress "A mother in the home ensures human progress".

The Second World War suspended this work which resumed again at the end of hostilities, bringing together representatives of the whole world:

1947: Congress at UNESCO: While decrying the horrors of war and expressing their desire to create a peaceful future for their children, the delegates underlined that while the men were mobilised, it was women, particularly mothers, who had kept alive not only their family, but also their nation, but that they had had no say in the decision to go to war: it was their unanimous decision to create the World Movement of Mothers based on the Charter of the Mother so that the dialogue focussing on these issues could continue and to give mothers a voice nationally and internationally.

1949: The United Nations Organisation conferred on the World Movement of Mothers, as an international NGO, Consultative Status to ECOSOC (Economic and Social Council), thus granting the right of representation and consultation within its agencies : UNICEF, UNESCO, WHO (World Health Organisation), ILO (International Labour Organisation) and FAO (Food and Agriculture Organisation).

This status makes it possible for the World Movement of Mothers to send representatives to meetings relevant to mothers, their children and their family in these agencies and thus influence the negotiations of these organizations particularly in the drafting of certain documents, such as International Conventions, or to be actively involved in international events, such as the International Year of the Family.

1994: the MMM received the prize of the International Year of the Family.

Our delegates regularly represent the World Movement of Mothers at international congresses and conferences in order to bring to the discussions the viewpoint of mothers concerning social problems and issues, and to keep members abreast of current thinking.

The World Movement of Mothers has carried out worldwide surveys and investigations on various controversial topics, which have lead to international Congresses, such as: Are our children prepared for parenthood? Is the role of mother and father interchangeable?

The 1998 survey on unpaid work in the home received an impassioned response(!) and lead to:

1999: Celebration of the fiftieth anniversary of the World Movement of Mothers at UNESCO - survey and conference on the topic: "the family and the social dynamics of a mother's unpaid work "

2000 and onwards: The World Movement of Mothers is working particularly to help mothers throughout the world to use their influence to bring peaceful solutions to troubled situations whether it is on a personal level, within the family, in the community or ont he national and international scene.

2004: WMM was granted a new ConsultativeStatus with the Economic and Social Council with General Consultative Statute

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The Charter of the Mother

is the basis for all the work of the World Movement of Mothers.

It was written in 1947 with the approval of the main religions : Muslim, Catholic, Protestant and Jewish.

The charter of the mother

The mother is the principle artisan of history. She profoundly influences family, economic, social and civil life.

Together with the father, she is responsible for procreation and, with him, she exercises the decisive role of education within the family. The mother's influence on the family radiates within the city and beyond in both national and international affairs. Her particular gifts as a woman are a constitutive contribution on a cultural, economical, social and civic level. She therefore determines the moral and spiritual values of an entire civilisation.

These realities are profoundly inscribed in the human being and define the mother's mission within the family as being just as fundamentally irreplaceable as that of the family in society.

With this perspective in mind, the norms of action of the WORLD MOVEMENT OF MOTHERS are as follows:

       Equal to man with regards to her personhood, a woman must be free to choose her state of life and to decide upon her marriage. She must be given the opportunity to develop wholesomely, with a total respect of her personality, within her conjugal relationship as well as within motherhood.

       The organisation of family and social life has to take into account the primary equality between man and woman as well as the specific differences which correspond to the complementary nature of their vocation.

       The union of spouses within marriage and the fertility of their conjugal life are subject to their conscience alone and may not be imposed nor impeded by either legislation, political institutions or economic planning.

       A mother finds within a legitimate and stable family the framework most conducive to her own personal happiness as well as that of her husband and children. The mother is also the custodian of the cultural heritage of her family in a spirit of fraternal solidarity between people.

        It is usually within the family and primarily through the mother that the children are educated to use their freedom and are initiated to the responsibilities in view of their personal life, their own family and society. Private and public organisations have to prolong, complete and not replace the education given by the family.

        It is in view of the commitment she holds towards her husband and her children that a mother    must be able to freely choose any form of activity, professional or other, without the constraint of economic and social conditions.

Consequently, it is indispensable that the role and mission of mothers in the world are promoted through effective public opinion shaping and protected through adequate laws and institutions.

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