UN Women – Women's History Network

End All Violence Against Women!

WHN / October 12, 2014

In some conflict situations, it may be more dangerous to be a girl or a woman than a soldier. Violence against women has become a real epidemic that must be stopped.

Yet we know how violence against women can be eliminated. In 1995, close to 20 years ago, 189 governments came together in Beijing. They adopted a Platform for Action that spelled out key strategies for governments, civil society, the private sector, international partners and all stakeholders to end violence against women, empower women, and achieve gender equality. In 2013, the UN Commission on the Status of Women further defined what needs to be done. This includes effective prevention strategies that address the root causes of gender inequality and the lower status of women in all spheres of life. Whether it is in the economy or in the political sphere, women continue to be disadvantaged and marginalized. Instead, we need families, communities and nations where women and men are equally valued and where women can participate fully.

Politics, Source, Women's History

Gender-Biased Sex Selection – Manifesting Patriarchal Power

WHN / August 3, 2014

The report also provides a brief overview of the sociological and ethnographical areas of study, including the role of civil society and the state, and changing familial patterns. Unequal inheritance rights, dowry, unequal socio-religious status, unpaid work, unequal pay, lack of economic opportunities for women, focus on male lineage, a culture of honour [sic] that places a greater burden of safety and protection on the parents of girls all contribute to building a society that favours sons and men, and neglects daughters and women.

General, Politics, Women's History

Afghanistan: Violence Against Women on the Rise

WHN / October 27, 2013

Back in 2009, the Afghan government approved an Elimination of Violence against Women (EVAW) Law that criminalises child marriage, forced marriage, the selling and buying of women under the pretext of marriage, giving females away to settle disputes, forced self-immolation and various other acts of violence against women. However, Ingibjorg Gisladottir, director of UN Women in Afghanistan, expressed concern that only a small percentage of cases under the law involved violence against women. Most such cases were neither registered nor investigated.

Event, Politics, Source

CSW 57 – UN Women on Draft Agreed Conclusions

WHN / March 22, 2013

By adopting this document, governments have made clear that discrimination and violence against women and girls has no place in the 21st century. They have reaffirmed their commitment and responsibility to undertake concrete action to end violence against women and girls and promote and protect women?s human rights and fundamental freedoms.