Breastfeeding: It's Your Right! 

What if my right to breastfeed is hindered? 

Every country that is party to an international agreement must report to the United Nations periodically about what it has done to ensure that everyone enjoys the specific rights included. These reports are sent to the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights and discussed by Committees responsible for overseeing the implementation of these agreements in public sessions with government representatives. If the government does not respect and protect mothers' right to breastfeed, it is in breach of its obligations according to these agreements.  

There are a number of actions that can be taken by national organisations: 

• Put pressure on the government to honour its obligations.
• send information to the UN Committees about the breastfeeding situation in their country.*
• Contact your national NGO coalition on the CRC.
• Encourage member NGOs to add breastfeeding as a right to their advocacy agendas.
• Lobby governments in drafting legislation that will enable women to breastfeed after returning to work.
• Get trade unions and workers organisations to bring the issue of breastfeeding women being discriminated against in the work place to the International Labour Organization. 
• Monitor the implementation of the Code and inform governments that violations of the code are also violations of mothers and children's right to breastfeed.

The protection, respect, facilitation, and fulfillment of these rights require universal recognition of the importance of breastfeeding as a social function, supported by public funds. Every woman should be able to count on full support from those around her to enable her to initiate and sustain breastfeeding. It is the responsibility of the entire community to see that the best possible nutrition and health is available to all of its members, beginning with its youngest. Women feel supported when the community welcomes them to breastfeed in public, provides help to overcome difficulties, offers facilities to breastfeed at the work place; when health care facilities are "baby friendly"; and when health professionals take an ethical stand against the promotion of breastmilk substitutes and use their influence to support women to breastfeed.  

(* The UN Committees most relevant for this information would be: The UN Committee on the Rights of the Child; The UN Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights; and the UN Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination Against Women. For further information about the Committees and procedures for sending information to them, please contact Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (see 'Resources' for contact info)) 

Legislation on Marketing 

In some cases, legislation may be needed: 

The International Code of Marketing of Breast-milk Substitutes and subsequent related Resolutions were adopted by the World Health Assembly to protect breastfeeding. To be effective, they must be made to work in each country through legislation. The International Code PROHIBITS: 

• Free samples to mothers
• Advertising to the public
• Promotion in health care facilities
• Gifts or samples to health workers
• Words and pictures that idealise bottle feeding
• Advice to mothers by company sales staff

Maternity Protection 

"Maternity protection is a precondition of genuine equality of opportunity and treatment for men and women."  ILO Maternity Protection at Work, pg. 51, 1997 

Working women need paid maternity leave during the six-month period of exclusive breastfeeding. This period is recommended by the World Health Assembly and UNICEF. After returning to work, they need paid breaks and access to facilities for either breastfeeding the baby or expressing milk. 

However in practice, women employed in various work environments face many different obstacles to breastfeeding. For instance, maternity leave may only be available to formally employed women on annual or permanent contracts while agri-cultural workers, domestics and women working in the informal sector in many countries are not covered by existing laws. 

Special needs of working mothers 

Even where women in theory are provided with maternity leave, they may not be able to take it if the pay during their leave is too low of if they worry that they will lose their job or seniority by taking their leave. Similarly, workplace with child care facilities may not be utilised by mothers with young babies if they do not have safe and comfortable means of transportation to and from work. 

These needs are seldom addressed because the overall low social status and lack of organisation of women in many countries leads to lower priority to their needs. 

The ILO Maternity Protection Convention 103 provides for 12 weeks of maternity leave and breastfeeding/nursing breaks on paid time during each work day. Convention 103 is currently being revised and the new one will probably be available for governments to adopt before WBW 2000.  

WABA's Role & the Innocenti Declaration 

WABA was founded in part to strengthen action on the four operational targets of the Innocenti Declaration, adopted at a WHO/UNICEF meeting of high level policy makers from many countries in 1990 and approved by the World Health Assembly  
in 1991.  

The Innocenti Declaration calls on all governments to: 

• appoint a national breastfeeding coordinator and a multisectoral national breastfeeding committee, 
• to ensure that every facility providing maternity services fully practises the Ten Steps to Successful Breastfeeding set out in a joint WHO/UNICEF statement (the basis for the Baby Friendly Hospital Initiative), 
• implements the International Code and other related resolutions of the World Health Assembly, 
• and enacts legislation protecting the breastfeeding rights of working women.