NNext year will be the 30th anniversary Beijing Declaration, a groundbreaking blueprint for advancing women’s rights. This marked the mainstreaming of feminist concerns, with 189 states signing the document at a conference in China and then-U.S. first lady Hillary Clinton declaring that “women’s rights are human rights.” .
But as the United Nations celebrates its achievements, the commission to promote and evaluate progress in gender equality will be led by Saudi Arabia. The country, known for its abysmal record on women’s rights, was this week elected unopposed to head the Commission on the Status of Women (CSW). Even the country’s personal status law, which the country brandishes as a sign of progress, actually provides for discrimination, such as guardianship of women by men, and provides impunity for perpetrators of “honor crimes.” Women’s rights defenders have been jailed and face multiple charges. torture.
This moment reflects a broader global setback in gender equality.China is regressed women’s rightshe said to the women. “Protect family values” and cracked down on feminist activists. In the United States, which supported decisive action at the Beijing conference, the overturning of Roe v. Wade stripped women of their constitutional right to abortion nearly half a century later.
In Afghanistan, the Taliban have just announced that they will resume publicly stoning women to death.Access was already restricted for women and girls. Education, employment and public spaces. Gambian politicians are trying to overturn a ban on female genital mutilation. South Korea’s “anti-feminist” president promised: abolish the Ministry of Gender Equality After winning the 2022 elections, backlash To the #MeToo movement.
women and girls are The global hunger crisis will hit harderhas also increased sexual violence, exploitation and child marriage. They are disproportionately affected by the climate crisis. According to UN Women, at the current rate of progress it will take nearly three centuries Just to fill the legal protection gap and abolish discriminatory laws. Never mind achieving actual equality. Not all women leaders promote women’s rights. However, poor representation at the United Nations and within countries is not an isolated problem. It also contributes to other inequalities.
The rise of misogynistic and authoritarian leaders has pushed women backwards. But UN Women makes clear that the slow pace of change is due to a broader problem of “lackluster” progress on equality. Too many governments seem to have forgotten the message from the Beijing Conference: that women’s needs are a fundamental element of human rights, not an optional add-on. Reproductive and sexual rights and freedom of movement are often life-or-death issues.
The dissonance of having Saudi Arabia chair the CSW is clear. But if other member states such as Japan, Spain and the Netherlands truly prioritized women’s rights, they should not have stood by.Western countries reportedly I’m worried about setting a precedent. For challenging candidates. That’s not enough. woman And men around the world continue to fight for the girls and women of today and tomorrow, often at great personal risk. It may be difficult to convey the hope felt in 1995, but these campaigners must be supported.
