Today women are a central force in this movement. Women's participation and representation has increased, they have taken up positions of leadership and significant strides have been made to achieve parity in women's representation in decision-making bodies. In its Latin American section, for example, parity was established in 1997. Women's specific concerns have also gained greater visibility on the movement's agenda. When Via Campesina developed its political position on food sovereignty in the late 1990s, for example, women argued that because women are primarily responsible for the well-being of their families, food sovereignty must include a drastic reduction in the use of health-endangering agrochemicals.