N.O.W. wants unity on contraception

Press, Volume CXV, Issue 33786, 7 March 1975, Page 5

N.O.W. wants unity on contraception

i (N.Z. Press Association) i> I AUCKLAND, t ! March 6. i; Women who do not I support the aims of the National Organisation for Women over contraception should not be,, members, says the presi-L dent, Ms Cherry \ Raymond. i In her annual/report, she q said: "There is room oft course for a variety of ideas Ir and opinions within the or- c ganisation. But it would be absurd to open our member- 5 ship to women who appear " to be openly antipathetic to the causes most important!' to us.” r Members were requiredq formally to support the policy of working for more I freely available advice and!' information on contraception r for women and girls of any ; 11 age who needed it, she said. They should also approve it the policy of pressing that alt full t range of contraceptive! i services be Government-sub-1 r sidised, and that many moreih family planning clinics be is set up. j Ms Raymond said she con-jf sidered a sour note had been e struck last year “when it|f was found we had some { members who apparently did ;, not support the stated aims,? of N.O.W. . . . and w’ho did * not seem entirely sympa-L thetic to the feminist cause.” c She added that International Women's Year ® should be a great stimulus 1 for progress in the area of t women’s rights. e “We have already' planned ' three seminars for tne year,” r she said, "and we intend, as t always, to press for the z changes in laws and social I i I

I attitudes that are needed to; ■give women equality.” Ms Raymond will serve 1 ■ another year as president. Low status of housewife Though the Government had included housewives in the Accident Compensation Act, it had ignored them in ■ its superannuation scheme, said Mrs Joan Rotherham, publicity officer for the National Organisation of Wo- ■ men, in Christchurch, yesterday. “It is true that the low status of the housewife is directly attributable to a social attitude that childrearing is unskilled work.”she said. "Nevertheless, legislation has done little to improve that attitude by refusing to acknowledge the eco- f nomic contribution of the housewife. “The Government continues to giy» lip-service to the value of the family unit and the importance of the role of the mother. Yet a housewife cannot obtain a sickness benefit, although her illness usually means that home help will have to be employed to care for her family. A woman’s contribu- i tion in child-rearing is considered insignificant in assessing her share of the matrimonial property on the breakdown of a marriage. “Nearly all women spend some of their time rearing families. It is small comfort to us if we are to obtain equal pay and opportunity while we are gainfully employed. if we continue to be treated as second-class citizens while we are not earn-; ing,” said Mrs Rotherham.