Everywhere, Every day, Women Face Discrimination

By Kanya D'Almeida Reprint | | Print |

UNITED NATIONS, Oct 14 2013 (IPS) - Their stories are often lost beneath the pile of headlines on war, politics or economic collapse, but a few determined crusaders are refusing to let the issue of women’s rights get pushed under the rug.

Speaking at a press conference at the United Nations Headquarters last week, Nicole Ameline, head of the United Nations Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) stressed that “vigilance” was needed to ensure implementation of the 1979 Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women.

Despite the backing of over 187 State parties, the convention has seen – at best – uneven success around the globe.

For instance, of the nearly 61 million children deprived of access to education worldwide, 60 percent are girls, according to the United States chapter of the Global Campaign for Education (GCE).

When it comes to completing primary school, the gender gap between boys and girls in developing nations is a staggering 10 percentage points, with 100 million girls who enroll in primary school dropping out before completing their studies.

The outlook is particularly bleak in sub-Saharan Africa, Southeast Asia and the Middle East, with countries like “Afghanistan, Burkina Faso, Chad, Mali, Niger and Yemen” reporting that girl children rarely spend more than a year in the classroom, according to the GCE.

This lack of education powers a vicious cycle, in which women are systematically excluded from political participation. Earlier this year, UN Women reported that “just 20.9 percent of national parliamentarians were female as of Jul. 1, 2013, a slow increase from 11.6 per cent in 1995”.

“Globally, there are 37 states in which women account for less than 10 percent of parliamentarians in single or lower houses,” the agency noted.

The most recent data provided by the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development’s (OECD) Social Institutions and Gender Index (SIGI) shows that various forms of discrimination at the social, economic and legal levels continue to plague women in most developing countries.

Of the 121 countries studied last year, SIGI found that “86 have discriminatory inheritance practices or laws”, with women holding just 15 percent of all land titles.

Although the number of countries to enact legislation aimed specifically at fighting domestic violence rose from 21 in 2009 to 53 in 2012, violence against women continues to be widespread, with a full 50 percent of women in the countries surveyed believing that domestic violence is “justified in certain situations.”

Despite the global child marriage rate dropping from 21 percent in 2009 to 17 percent in 2012, the World Health Organisation (WHO) reports that well over 16 million teenage girls give birth annually, the vast majority of them in low- and middle-income countries.

With one in five women lacking access to even the most basic family planning services, experts say it is small wonder that roughly three million girls between the ages of 15 and 19 submit themselves to unsafe abortions each year.

According to the WHO, “complications from pregnancy and childbirth are a leading cause of death among girls aged 15-19 years” in low- and middle-income countries.

Addressing journalists last Friday, Ameline suggested that strengthening “the links between rights and development” could go a long way towards implementing the 1979 Convention and ending the high levels of discrimination that women around the globe confront on a daily – if not hourly – basis.

“CEDAW is not only a protector of women’s rights, it is a tool for development,” she said.  “We are the bridge between rights and development.”