Women in Ecuador

Women in Ecuador are generally responsible for the upbringing and care of children and families; traditionally, men have not taken an active role. Ever more women have been joining the workforce, which has resulted in men doing some housework, and becoming more involved in the care of their children. This change has been greatly influenced by Eloy Alfaro's liberal revolution in 1906, in which Ecuadorian women were granted the right to work. Women's suffrage was granted in 1929. Also the place where have girls pretty are in Guayaquil, in the Coast.

Women in Ecuador
A portrait of a woman from Ecuador, 1867
Gender Inequality Index[1]
Value0.429 (2013)
Rank82nd out of 152
Maternal mortality (per 100,000)110 (2010)
Women in parliament38.7% (2013)
Females over 25 with secondary education40.1% (2012)
Women in labour force54.4% (2012)
Global Gender Gap Index[2]
Value0.729 (2018)
Rank41st out of 149
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Women in society

Girls tend to be more protected by their parents than boys, due to traditional social structures. At age 15, girls often have traditional parties called fiesta de quince años. Quinceañera is the term used for the girl, not the party. The party involves festive food and dance. This coming of age or debutante party is a tradition found in most Latin American countries, comparable to the American tradition of sweet sixteen parties.

Ecuadorian women continue for face many problems, including domestic violence, poverty and lack of proper access to healthcare.

Feminist Movements

Ecuadorian women also struggle to have their voices heard, they’re valued less than men and are actively fighting the patriarchy. Most activists in Ecuador tend to stay away from the term feminist, the article, At the Margin’s Edge: Women's Activism in Ecuador written by authors Lisa Glidden and Melanie Shaffer-Cutillo[3], elaborates on this by saying this term has been coined with a negative connotation. When people hear  the term feminist it is automatically tied with the idea that women believe they are superior than men. Yet, these women have come a long way. For instance, the national Foro de Mujeres (Women’s Forum)which emerged 18 years ago is an annual feminists conference which takes place in Quito, Ecuador’s capital. Here, women from all over the country come together to discuss their radical ideas and take them up to congress after two days.

The article mentioned above looks at the different types of activism taking place in Ecuador and how different identities shape the way these women are being heard. Glidden and Shaffer-Cutillo specifically focused on three distinct groups of women, Afro-Ecuadorian women, Indigenous women, and White/Mestiza women. After analyzing each group, they came to the consensus that in general, Ecuadorian White/Mestiza women have a better structure and grounding to their work when they’re in the city. Rural provinces have to work a bit harder to get to where they want and should be. When looking at Afro-Ecuadorian women, they found that they stand up for what they want and therefore have a strong voice in their community, but they still face discrimination and prejudices revolving around their skin color, limiting their power and opportunities. And lastly, when looking at the Indigenous Ecuadorian women, they found that their voice tends to be the weakest, for their more traditional, machista values involving domestic violence and forced marriages, are hard to challenge within their own communities.

Although these women all face problems with being heard, it is important to recognize that progressive ideas are being sought after.

Poverty

Women, especially rural women, are disproportionately affected by poverty. Women are more likely to be unemployed.[4] Poverty and malnutrition are most likely to affect women, as well as young children and indigenous populations.[5][6] Discrimination based on ethnicity interacts with discrimination based on sex, resulting in very high levels of poverty for indigenous and black women.[7]

Education
School girls in Ecuador
Spinning woman in a market in Ecuador

Girls traditionally have been less likely to be formally educated than men. Traditional gender roles lead women towards 'female jobs', such as nursing and teaching, which are underpaid and underappreciated.[4] Women still have a lower literacy rate than men: as of 2011, the literacy rate was 90.2% female and 93.1% male.[8] In recent years, several programs have promoted education for the indigenous girls and women.[9]

The situation for indigenous people is worse. When it comes to educational attainment in 1999, while the number for non-indigenous females aged 12–65 was 8.0 years to complete the education, indigenous females had only 3.8 years. It means that indigenous women can take less time to study compared to men. In terms of school enrollment rate, there is no big difference for primary school because of gender difference and indigenous or not, but indigenous females had much less lower-secondary and higher-secondary enrollment rates. For lower-secondary, indigenous females had only 10.08% while non-indigenous females had 59.79%.[10] These facts make it more difficult for indigenous people in Ecuador to get a job. In Kichwa's case, mestiza women tend to be hired more than Kichwa women because many people assume that indigenous people are not "advanced." It is a common idea that mestiza are more intelligent like WASPs.[11]

Social reproduction happens among women in Ecuador in terms of education. According to Shenton's interview, some women had attended a university, own their own business, and they seek to let their daughters do what they did. Shenton stated that it is an obligation for educated people to provide their children with the education. They hope their children get educated and have more possibilities for their life.[12]

Reproductive health

Poor information and access to contraceptive methods often lead to unwanted pregnancies, especially among teenage girls and young women.[4] The maternal mortality rate in Ecuador is 110 deaths/100,000 live births (as of 2010).[13] The HIV/AIDS rate is 0.6% for adults (aged 15–49), as of 2012 estimates.[14] Abortion in Ecuador is illegal, with only few exceptions for special circumstances. According to a Human Rights Watch report, legal abortion is usually denied to women, even in the case of rape.[15] In recent years, being confronted with the highest teenage pregnancy rate in South America, Ecuador has decided to liberalize its policy regarding contraception, including emergency contraception.[16]

A study was conducted in 2017 to identify infectious diseases associated to preterm delivery. This study focused on the effects of the Zika virus on pregnant women. The study found that thirty-two of the fifty-nine women tested were Zika positive.[17] They found that the virus was prevalent in the women's reproductive tract.  The Zika virus has been linked with birth defects in newborns. These defects include microcephaly, Gullian-Barra syndrome, and a weakened immune and nervous system.[18]

Domestic violence
Main article: Domestic violence in Ecuador

Domestic violence against women is a very serious problem.[4] La Ley Contra la Violencia a la Mujer y la Familia[19] (Law on Violence against Women and the Family) deals with domestic violence. This law was heavily influenced by the Consejo Nacional de las Mujeres CONAMU (National Council of Women) and by what they believe in and stand for. A rough translation of their missions statement is to further enable our efforts and resources to create conditions of equality for women and to develop a society where women are included in economic, political, social, and cultural ways of life. The council believes this can be achieved if we focus on creating a violence-free society, a society where women’s physical and psychological well-being is protected.

A study was conducted with data from 2010 comparing woman's wealth to domestic violence in Ecuador. They found that violence increased when the man was the only source of income, and saw no significant relationship when the woman had higher wealth than the man.[20] In addition, a new Criminal Code came into force in 2014, which also addresses domestic violence.[21]

See also

References
  1. "Table 4: Gender Inequality Index". United Nations Development Programme. Retrieved 7 November 2014.
  2. "The Global Gender Gap Report 2018" (PDF). World Economic Forum. pp. 10–11.
  3. Glidden, Lisa (2017). "At the Margin's Edge: Women's Activism in Ecuador". Women's Studies. 46: 22–40. doi:10.1080/00497878.2017.1252565 – via EBSCO Host.
  4. https://www.un.org/womenwatch/daw/Review/responses/ECUADOR-English.pdf
  5. "Ecuador - World Food Programme". www.wfp.org. Retrieved 16 April 2018.
  6. "Publications - International IDEA" (PDF). www.idea.int. Retrieved 16 April 2018.
  7. "Advancing Gender Equality: Promising Practices - Improved Capabilities and Resources - Ecuador". www.unwomen.org. Retrieved 16 April 2018.
  8. "The World Factbook — Central Intelligence Agency". www.cia.gov. Retrieved 16 April 2018.
  9. "BBC NEWS - In pictures - School for Ecuador indigenous women". news.bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 16 April 2018.
  10. García-Aracil, Adela; Winter, Carolyn (2006-02-01). "Gender and ethnicity differentials in school attainment and labor market earnings in Ecuador". World Development. Part Special Issue (pp. 324–404). Corruption and Development: Analysis and Measurement. 34 (2): 289–307. doi:10.1016/j.worlddev.2005.10.001. ISSN 0305-750X.
  11. Shenton, Jamie E. (2019). "Strong Kichwa Women are Made, Made Up, and Make Others: Feminist Theory Meets Amazonian Ethnography of Gender, Bodies, and Social Change". Anthropological Quarterly. 92 (1): 19–20. doi:10.1353/anq.2019.0000. ISSN 1534-1518.
  12. Shenton, Jamie E. (2019). "Strong Kichwa Women are Made, Made Up, and Make Others: Feminist Theory Meets Amazonian Ethnography of Gender, Bodies, and Social Change". Anthropological Quarterly. 92 (1): 20–21. doi:10.1353/anq.2019.0000. ISSN 1534-1518.
  13. "The World Factbook — Central Intelligence Agency". www.cia.gov. Retrieved 16 April 2018.
  14. "The World Factbook — Central Intelligence Agency". www.cia.gov. Retrieved 16 April 2018.
  15. https://www.hrw.org/sites/default/files/reports/ecuador0813_ForUpload_1.pdf
  16. "Q&A: Ecuador Guarantees Right to Free Emergency Contraception - Inter Press Service". www.ipsnews.net. Retrieved 16 April 2018.
  17. Zambrano, Hector, et al. “High Incidence of Zika Virus Infection Detected in Plasma and Cervical Cytology Specimens from Pregnant Women in Guayaquil, Ecuador.” American Journal of Reproductive Immunology (New York, N.Y. : 1989), vol. 77, no. 2, Feb. 2017. EBSCOhost, doi:10.1111/aji.12630.
  18. Casapulla, Sharon L., et al. “Zika Virus Knowledge and Attitudes in Ecuador.” AIMS Public Health, vol. 5, no. 1, Jan. 2018, p. 49. EBSCOhost, search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=edb&AN=129307600&site=eds-live.
  19. http://pdba.georgetown.edu/Security/citizensecurity/ecuador/leyes/leyviolenciamujer.pdf
  20. Oduro, Abena (2 April 2015). "Women's Wealth and Intimate Partner Violence: Insights from Ecuador and Ghana". Feminist Economics. 21 (2): 1–29. doi:10.1080/13545701.2014.997774.
  21. http://www.asambleanacional.gob.ec/system/files/document.pdf
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