172. Letter From the Assistant Secretary of State for Congressional Relations (Holton) to Senator Percy, Washington, undated.1 2
DEPARTMENT OF STATE
WASHINGTON, D.C. 20520
Honorable Charles H. Percy
United States Senate
Washington, D.C. 20310
Dear Senator Percy:
In accordance with the request contained in your letter of October 15, I am pleased to enclose a paper detailing participation by women on United States delegations to significant meetings during the last months.
We have made a concerted effort to increase the number of women on delegations and I am happy to report that appreciable progress has been made. During Fiscal Year 1974, 155 women served on 110 delegations. This compares with 134 who served on 91 delegations in FY 1973 and we are determined to carry these efforts forward. The progress is cumulative. More women are now working and gaining experience in positions dealing with foreign affairs and this should increase the number of women who can make significant contributions at international meetings.
In addition to those conferences that require the Department’s accreditation of delegations, meetings are attended routinely at site by our Permanent Representatives to international organizations. Ambassador Barbara White in New York, Mrs. Betty Dillon, U.S. Representative to the ICAO Council at Montreal, and Mrs. Rita Johnston, U.S. Representative to the Inter-American Commission for women in Washington, are involved on a regular basis with the work of the organizations to which they are accredited and in the special meetings held at their posts.
We do not have any information at hand on the number of women included on delegations of other countries, but we shall endeavor to obtain it. We shall, of course keep you informed. A paper giving the information you requested on U.S. delegations is attached.
I hope that the above information and the attached data will prove useful to you.
Cordially,
Linwood Holton
Assistant Secretary for Congressional Relations
Enclosure:
As stated.
1. General
It is the policy of the Department of State to accredit delegations to international meetings composed of the minimum number of persons required to achieve U.S. objectives. Delegation numbers are selected by the Office of International Conferences in consultation with those Government offices and agencies having a primary interest in the meeting. Selections are, of course, made on the basis of qualifications and not on the basis of race, religion or sex. However, if two candidates are equally qualified and one belongs to a minority or special group, preference may be given to that person if necessary to balance the delegation.
Although women are now found in greater number in positions dealing with foreign affairs, they often tend to compete for positions dealing with items of special interest to women thus limiting the availability of experienced and qualified women for appointment to delegations.
Notwithstanding this limitation, an increasing number of well-qualified women are serving in senior positions or as advisers on delegations to meetings, and it is expected that this trend will accelerate during the coming years.
A list of significant international conferences and meetings held during the last twelve months in which women participated as members of U.S. delegations follows:
2. International Conferences/Meetings in which women participated.
(Congressional Advisors and Congressional Staff Advisers are not included in these statistics).
1. United Nations
General Assembly, New York, September 18-December 18, 1973
Delegation consisted of five Representatives, five Alternate
Representatives, nine Special Advisers and fifty-eight Advisers.
Margaret Young served as an Alternate Representative; Jean Picker and
Barbara White as Special Advisers; and five other women as Advisers.
Percentage of women on delegation: 11.9%.
General Assembly, New York, September 17-December 1974
Delegation
consisted of five Representatives, five Alternate Representatives and
thirty-nine Advisers. Ambassador White served as an Alternative
Representative and two other women as Advisers: Percentage of Women on
delegation: 6.1%.
Law of the Sea Conference, Caracas, June 25-August 29, 1974
96
persons attended of whom three were women. Percentage of women: 3%.
World Population Conference, Bucharest, August 19-30, 1974
Delegation consisted of five Representatives, five Alternate
Representatives, one Senior Adviser and thirteen Advisers. Patricia Hutar served as a
Representative, Harriett S. Crowley as an Alternate and four other women
as advisers. Percentage of Women: 25%.
Trusteeship Council, New York, June 3-28, 1974
Delegation consisted
of one Representative, one Alternate Representative, four Special
Advisers, one Senior Adviser and sixteen Advisers. Ambassador Barbara
White served as the Representative and two other women served as
Adviser. Percentage of Women: 13%.
Seminar on National Machinery to Accelerate the Integration of Women in
Development and to Eliminate Discrimination on the Grounds of Sex,
Ottawa, September 4-17, 1974
Delegation consisted of two persons:
Kathryn O. Wallace served as the Representative and Catherine S. East as
Alternate Representative. Percentage of women: 100%.
Commission on the Status of Women (UNECOSOC), New York, January
14-February 1, 1974
Delegation consisted of one Representative,
two Alternate Representative and nine Advisers. Patricia Hutar served as
Representative, Lois Evans and Shirley
Hendsch served as Alternate Representatives and seven
other women as Advisers. Percentage of women: 83.33%.
Working Group on a New Draft Instrument or Instruments of International
Law to Eliminate Discrimination Against Women (UNECOSOC), New York,
January 7-11, 1974
Delegation consisted of six delegates. Patricia
Hutar headed the delegation, assisted by Mary O. Eastwood, Shirley B.
Hendsch and Kathryn O. Wallace and two men. Percentage of women:
66.66%.
56th Session of ECOSOC, New York,
April 22-May 17, 1974
Delegation consisted of one Representative,
three Alternate Representatives and ten Advisers. Patricia Hutar served
as an Alternate Representative and three other women as Advisers.
Percentage of women: 28.5%.
2. UNESCO
General Conference, Paris, October 17-November 22, 1974
Delegation
consisted of five delegates, three Alternate Delegates, three Senior
Advisers and twelve Advisers. Rosemary Ginn served as a Delegate,
Virginia Trotter as a Senior Adviser and three other women as Advisers.
Percentage of women: 21.7%
Intergovernmental Copyright Committee, Paris, December 5-16, 1973
Delegation consisted of one Representative, one Alternate and three
Advisers, Barbara Ringer served as the Alternate Representative.
Percentage of women: 20%.
Conference of Ministers of Education of European Member States,
Bucharest, November 26-December -4, 1973
Delegation consisted of
four observers. Virginia B. Smith served as the head observer.
Percentage of women: 25%.
3. Inter-American
Assembly of the Inter-American Commission of Women, Washington, September
16-23, 1974
Delegation consisted of six persons. Rita Johnston
served as the Representative, Shirley Hendsch as the Alternate
Representative and four other women as Advisers. Percentage of women:
100%.
4. Others
OECD Consumer Policy Committee, Paris,
December 18-20, 1973
Delegation consisted of two persons. Virginia
H. Knauer served as the Representative assisted by Barbara H. Franklin.
Percentage of women: 100%.
Diplomatic Conference to Negotiate a Convention Relating to Distribution
of Program-Carrying Signals, Brussels, May 6-21, 1974
Delegation
consisted of a Representative, an Alternate Representative and ten
Advisers. Barbara Ringer served as the Alternate Representative and two
other women as Advisers. Percentage of women: 25%.
FAO Conference, Rome, November 10-29,
1973
Delegation consisted of Secretary Butz, one Delegate, three Alternate Delegates, two
associate delegates and sixteen Advisers of whom three were women.
Percentage of women: 13%.
- Source: Department of State, IO/OIC/A Files: Lot 00 D 469. No classification marking. Printed from an unsigned copy. A handwritten note indicates that the letter was signed on November 5. Percy’s letter is in the National Archives, RG 59, Central Foreign Policy Files, P740116–1991.↩
- Holton responded to Percy’s request for information about the participation of women on U.S. delegations to major international meetings.↩