What is the issue?
'Women’s rights' is a broad term used to describe a very serious global problem. Millions of women throughout the world are deprived of, or suffer attacks against their fundamental human rights for no reason other than that they are women. These rights include access to food, shelter, health care, education and employment. Women in both developing and developed nations face forms of discrimination, violence, sexual abuse, torture and political oppression. All of these actions stem from a mentality that women are somehow inferior.
What is happening around the world?
Women's rights are abused in many countries around the world and this abuse can take lots of different forms.
In war-torn countries such as Sierra Leone, Sudan, the Democratic Republic of Congo, and Afghanistan, women are frequently at risk of being raped or sexually abused by soldiers. In 2007, around 4, 500 cases of rape were reported in South Kivu, Congo. Even though sexual violence was outlawed in 2006, action is rarely taken against security forces, and violence against women is coming to be seen as a normal behaviour in society.
Domestic violence against women is a major issue in Pakistan, South Africa, Peru, Russia and Uzbekistan. Governments either refuse to intervene to protect women, or punish their attackers in a haphazard way that also makes women feel culpable for the violence. According to Amnesty International, 1 in 3 women were beaten or sexually abused world wide in 2006.
Women from the Ukraine, Moldova, Nigeria, the Dominican Republic, Burma, and Thailand are at constant risk of being trafficked. This means they are bought and sold like objects and forced to work as prostitutes, often in foreign countries. Local governments have insufficient laws to protect women’s rights and punish traffickers. According to the United Nations, around 700 000 to 4 million women and children are trafficked around the world every year.
Violations of women’s rights can also be more subtle. Many countries have discriminatory employment laws or discriminatory practices of law enforcement. For example, women in Morocco, Jordan, Kuwait, and Saudi Arabia face government-sponsored discrimination that makes them unequal before the law and restricts their participation in public life.
What is happening closer to home?
While the issues above might seem too far away and awful to be affecting women in Australia, we still have our own issues to worry about.
- Australia has a high rate of sexual assault, in comparison to other developed countries. 57% of Australian women have experienced at least one incident of physical or sexual assault in their life time, according to the 2002-2003 International Violence Against Women survey.
- Australia’s legal process for reporting sexual abuse is tough and intimidating. This is one reason why only 10% of Australian women press charges and why the professionals supporting them have criticised the legal system.
- The gender pay gap in the full-time labour market is widening. According to the Bureau of Statistics, the average gap between full-time men and women in the private and public sectors is 16% or $9218 a year.
Why is it happening?
Human rights abuses against women and girls take place due to many varied and complex reasons. However, the following is a list of six reasons why certain abuses have and will continue to occur:
- Culture: Certain cultural practices can have an enormous impact on women’s rights. Some cultures require women to adhere to strict dress codes and/or social practices. Women are often forbidden to go out unaccompanied, and in countries such as Saudi Arabia it is illegal for a woman to have a driver’s licence. If these codes are broken, women can be physically or publicly punished.
- Religion:The impact of religion is similar to that of culture as discussed above. The restrictions on women are often the most powerful in countries where the legal system is linked with the religious institution.
- Politics: The political climate of a country or region can affect the state of women’s rights. Political upheaval often means that law enforcement becomes more relaxed and haphazard. Women are left unprotected and vulnerable.
- War: Conflict situations can bring about an atmosphere of violence and lawlessness which often has a harmful impact on women.
- Oppression: Women throughout the ages have suffered many forms of oppression, which can lead to abuses of their rights. For example, women in certain areas of the world have not had access to good education which denies them the chance to seek proper employment and build an independent future. Oppressive policies also deny women the opportunity to learn what rights they do have.
- Discrimination: Women’s rights can be abused when they are discriminated against based on their race, religious beliefs or sexual orientation.
What’s some of the good stuff?
- Generally Australian women are healthy and well educated, with rights enforced by the law. In 2008, the federal government finally announced that Australia would be introducing a program of paid maternity leave.
- Rwanda has the highest proportion of female politicians anywhere in the world. Women occupy 39 of the 80 seats in national parliament. This is largely because there is a 30% quota for women embedded in the Kenyan constitution.
- Counties where employers must pay maternity leave benefits include Iraq, Afghanistan and Zimbabwe. Russia and Laos are two countries where the government provides maternity leave for three to six months.
- Taking into account political representation, wages, health and family-friendly policies, Sweden, Finland and Norway are the three countries which come closest to a Utopia for women.
This page was updated by kate elise
How do I know this?
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http://hrw.org/women/
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worldrevolution, Sex Trafficking: Facts and Figures,
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