At the Human Rights Council, Volker Türk Calls on States to Overhaul Discriminatory Laws and Practices Enabling Economic Violence against Women

Council Concludes Interactive Dialogue with Working Group on Discrimination against Women and Girls

The Human Rights Council this morning held the first panel of its annual full-day discussion on the human rights of women, focusing on economic violence as a form of gender-based violence against women and girls. It also concluded its interactive dialogue with the Working Group on discrimination against women and girls.

Volker Türk, United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, opening the panel discussion, said almost one in three women had been subjected to some form of violence at least once in their life, be that physical, sexual, psychological or economic. Economic violence against women and girls was one of the forms of gender-based violence that even today often went unseen and unregulated. Some 3.9 billion women worldwide faced legal barriers affecting their economic participation. Women earned just 77 cents for every dollar paid to men. To put a stop to economic violence, there needed to be a complete overhaul of discriminatory laws and practices, and the implementation of policy measures which empowered women’s economic, social and cultural rights. Today’s discussion was a pivotal moment to reflect on how to take tangible action to put a stop to violence against women.

Esther Waweru, Senior Legal Advisor at Equality Now and panellist, said that globally, 1.4 billion women lived in countries that did not recognise economic violence in their legal system or provide legal protection to victims of this form of violence. To redress the silent pandemic of hidden economic violence, States needed to enact comprehensive laws that criminalised sexual and gender-based violence and intimate partner violence, including economic violence; repeal and revoke marital power clauses designating husbands as the head of the households; ensure equitable sharing of the joint property deriving from marriage; and ensure equal labour rights.

Genoveva Tisheva, Vice-Chair of the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women and panellist, said economic violence impacted women’s economic independence, economic security, and potential for self-employment, and affected women’s choices and access to their rights to health, justice and political participation. States were recommended to adopt appropriate legislation adhering to international and regional standards on gender equality and preventing gender-based violence, including economic violence. It was also important to implement and ratify the Istanbul Convention.

Agata Szypulska, Seconded National Expert in Gender-Based Violence at the European Institute for Gender Equality and panellist, said that in 2021, only nine European Union Member States explicitly criminalised forms of economic violence in their laws on domestic violence. It was crucial to fund new research initiatives on economic violence to fully capture this phenomenon, its new emerging forms, and how it impacted women in vulnerable situations. Apart from developing common definitions for economic violence, everyone also needed to learn more about its prevalence, and carefully listen to victims’ experiences.

Anne-Sophie Parent, Chair of Older Women’s Network and panellist, said that the risk of economic hardship was increasing among older women due to a lack of adequate compensation for the disadvantage they had faced as a result of bearing and raising children or caring for dependent relatives. Adequate public funding needed to be allocated to support accessible and affordable child and long-term care services. The rapid digitalisation of retail payments and services put older women with low financial literacy and poor digital skills at a high risk of domestic violence. States could help by offering alternative non-digital financial services, financial literacy programmes and digital skills training that were adapted to the needs of older women.

In the ensuing discussion, some speakers, among other things, said policies, laws and social norms that limited women’s economic rights were a form of violence against women that limited the development of societies. Economic violence created obstacles for women to access inheritance, property, financial and employment rights, and undermined their autonomy. This practice also made women more susceptible to other forms of violence. Some speakers presented legislation, policies, strategies and action plans to punish all forms of violence and discrimination against women, including economic violence; provide women victims with support; accede to relevant international treaties; empower women to participate in economic life; and eliminate discrimination against women in employment.

Speaking were Albania, European Union, Estonia on behalf of a group of countries, Slovenia on behalf of a group of countries, Pakistan on behalf of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, Kyrgyzstan on behalf of a group of countries, Gambia on behalf of the Group of African States, Vanuatu on behalf of a group of countries, Türkiye on behalf of a group of countries, Antigua and Barbados on behalf of a group of countries, Kazakhstan on behalf of a group of countries, Bolivia , Israel, United Nations Women, Iran, United States, France, Montenegro, Sierra Leone, Belgium, Georgia, Nigeria, Iraq, Switzerland, Canada, Kuwait, Italy and Morocco.

Also speaking was the Commission des droits de l'homme du Cameroun, as well as the following non-governmental organizations: Advocates for Human Rights, Girls Not Brides: The Global Partnership to End Child Marriage, AKAHATÁ Equipo de Trabajo en Sexualidad y Géneros Asociación Civil, Save the Children International, International Bar Association, Americans for Democracy and Human Rights in Bahrain, Promotion du Développement Economique et Social – PDES, and Réseau Unité pour le Développement de Mauritanie.

The Council also concluded its interactive dialogue with the Working Group on discrimination against women and girls, the first half of which started in the previous meeting and can be found here.

In closing remarks, Dorothy Estrada-Tanck, Chair of the Working Group on discrimination against women and girls, said discrimination against women and girls needed to be eliminated in all spheres of life. States needed to consider recognising gender apartheid as a grave human rights violation and an affront on humanity. They needed to incorporate a gender perspective when regulating business activities, promote and pursue international cooperation to strengthen women and girls’ rights, protect the rights of women journalists, ratify all international human rights instruments, and promote sexual and reproductive health rights. The world needed to work to break the glass ceiling and the class ceiling and ensure the rights of all, with women and girls at the centre, Ms. Estrada-Tanck concluded.

Continuing the dialogue, many speakers thanked the Working Group and its experts for their efforts to eliminate all forms of discrimination against women and girls around the world. Some speakers noted that gender-based violence remained high, with many disputes settled through customary practices. Women's participation in the labour force was mostly in informal sectors. These barriers underscored the need for continued, concerted efforts. Many speakers emphasised that enhancing gender equality and the empowerment of women and girls were key priorities, presenting legal, institutional and policy measures towards these aims. Many States said that they aimed to foster an inclusive environment where women and girls could live free from discrimination and violence, contributing fully to the country’s development.

Speaking in the dialogue on discrimination against women and girls were Albania, Senegal, Panama, Brazil, Timor-Leste, Cameroon, Cuba, Jordan, Honduras, Switzerland, United Nations Population Fund, Zimbabwe, Romania, Venezuela, Togo, South Africa, Oman, Burkina Faso, Thailand, Marshall Islands, Austria, Malawi, Azerbaijan, Botswana, Rwanda, Antigua and Barbuda, India, Republic of Moldova, Ukraine, Belize, United Kingdom, Lebanon, Gambia and Tunisia.

Also speaking was the Commission nationale indépendante des droits de l'homme (Burundi), as well as the following non-governmental organizations: Centre for Reproductive Rights, Inc., Rutgers, International Volunteerism Organization for Women, Education and Development - VIDES, Plan International, Humanists International, Conselho Indigenista Missionário CIMI, International Lesbian and Gay Association, Equality Now, International Planned Parenthood Federation, and Action Canada for Population and Development.

The webcast of the Human Rights Council meetings can be found here. All meeting summaries can be found here. Documents and reports related to the Human Rights Council’s fifty-sixth regular session can be found here.

The Council will reconvene at 3 p.m. this afternoon, when it will hold the second part of the annual full-day discussion on the human rights of women, with a panel on the theme of human rights economy and women’s human rights. It will then start an interactive dialogue with the Special Rapporteur on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association.

Annual Full-Day Discussion on the Human Rights of Women: Economic Violence as a Form of Gender-Based Violence against Women and Girls

Opening Statement

VOLKER TÜRK, United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, said the world owed the women’s rights movement some of the most extraordinary progress in human rights, and it was important to honour and celebrate this progress. Yet being here today, to discuss the persistent scourge of gender-based violence in one of its insidious forms, showed that progress was both hard won, and fragile. At its simplest, violence against women and girls was an egregious expression of power domination and patriarchy. It was a blunt roadblock to gender equality and the ultimate benefits that this could bring everyone, including greater development and peace.

Gender-based violence persisted because of pervasive cultures of toxic masculinity and misogyny. It was widespread, fuelled by centuries-old mindsets and practices that were still dangerously prevalent almost everywhere. Any form of gender-based violence was a form of overt control over women and girls. Today, regardless of income or background, all women and girls lived with the threat of gender-based violence. Almost one in three women had been subjected to some form of it at least once in their life, be that physical, sexual, psychological or economic. If one in three men globally were subject to such devastating and pervasive harm, an emergency summit would be convened.

Economic violence against women and girls was one of the forms of gender-based violence that even today often went unseen and unregulated. It could be just as harmful as physical violence, trapping women and girls in cycles of denigration and inequality. Economic control, economic sabotage and economic exploitation were the three forms of economic violence. These included restricting a woman’s access to money and assets; tracking her spending; ensuring she could not open a bank account, or make financial decisions; preventing her from seeking employment, or going to school; and taking her wages or pension.

Economic violence was facilitated by archaic gender norms that considered men the financial decision makers. While economic violence most commonly occurred in the home, it could also be enabled and perpetrated by the State through discriminatory legal frameworks which restricted women’s access to credit, employment, social protection, or property and land rights.

The world was failing to deliver on the promise of gender equality. Some 3.9 billion women worldwide faced legal barriers affecting their economic participation. Women earnt just 77 cents for every dollar paid to men. Ninety-two countries lacked provisions mandating equal pay for work of equal value. The wealth gap between women and men globally stood at a staggering 100 trillion USD. To put a stop to economic violence, and to proactively ensure economic equity, there needed to be a complete overhaul of discriminatory laws and practices. Gender equality needed to be positively fostered through laws governing all areas of life and there needed to be policy measures to ensure these laws were applied. These needed to be policy measures which empowered women’s economic, social and cultural rights, including through access to decent work, equal pay, quality education, sexual and reproductive health and rights, and shared financial resources. And above all, choice and opportunity to define one’s own life.

Where economic violence occurred, there needed to be stronger efforts to ensure survivors could seek justice and remedy. There needed to be better complaint mechanisms, economic and social support systems, more widely available psychological assistance, and for perpetrators to be brought to justice. Violence against women and girls, in all its forms, was abhorrent and inexcusable. Today’s discussion was a pivotal moment to reflect on how to take tangible action to put a stop to it.

Statements by Panellists

ESTHER WAWERU, Senior Legal Advisor at Equality Now, said there could be no equality in society without equality in the family. Inequality in the family was a root cause of economic violence, coupled with other factors emanating from retrogressive patriarchal gender norms. Globally, 1.4 billion women lived in countries that did not recognise economic violence in their legal system or provide legal protection to victims of this form of violence. Economic violence referred to any act, behaviour or omission that limited the attainment of full economic, social and cultural rights for women on the basis of gender stereotypes and sexist laws. Ms. Waweru said she was particularly inspired by the inclusion of economic violence in article two of the Maputo Protocol, which was ratified by 45 of 55 African Union States. The lack of legal protection and the existence of sexist discriminatory laws, policies and practices could give rise to economic violence and make women and girls even more vulnerable to exploitation.

While the situation appeared bleak, States could draw inspiration from some good practices in laws protecting the rights of women around the world. To redress the silent pandemic of hidden economic violence, States needed to enact comprehensive laws that criminalised sexual and gender-based violence and explicitly criminalised intimate partner violence, including economic violence; repeal and revoke marital power clauses designating husbands as the head of the households and ensure equal rights for men and women to acquire, administer, and manage their own property before, during, and after marriage; ensure equitable sharing of the joint property deriving from marriage; and ensure equal labour rights, including equal pay for equal work and non-restriction of certain categories of work of women.

GENOVEVA TISHEVA, Vice-Chair of the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women, said the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women was the main source of universal standards concerning women’s rights, including women’s right to equality, identity, autonomy, economic independence, and empowerment, including through clear obligations for States parties to adopt temporary special measures, and combat gender stereotyping; 189 countries had ratified the Convention so far. Out of 55 cases of violations, almost 30 were related to gender-based violence. What emerged from the practice under the Convention was the increased importance of the application of the principle of intersectionality, and the protection of women and girls in specific situations of vulnerability.

Economic violence was gender-based violence against women which represented violence, coercive control, and coercive limitation of personal life and of human rights of women, in the economic sphere. Economic violence impacted women’s economic independence and economic security, and their potential for self-employment. It affected women’s choices, access to their rights, to health but also limited their access to justice and political participation. Domestic violence, as identified by the Committee, encompassed intimate partner violence in marriage and between former spouses, in intimate partnerships, between cohabitants and former cohabitants, those in civil partnerships and in de facto relations, irrespective of the fact they were living together or had lived together. States were recommended to adopt appropriate legislation and ensure adherence to international and regional standards on gender equality and against gender-based violence, including a proper definition and including economic violence. It was also important to implement and ratify the Istanbul Convention.

AGATA SZYPULSKA, Seconded National Expert in Gender-Based Violence at the European Institute for Gender Equality, said economic violence could fall under different categories: economic control, which involved preventing, limiting or controlling a victim’s finances and related decision-making; economic exploitation, which was using economic resources of a victim to the abuser’s advantage; or economic sabotage, which involved preventing a victim from pursuing, obtaining, or maintaining employment or education. However, there were other acts that were yet to be identified and categorised, depending on the cultural, social or institutional contexts. In 2021, only nine European Union Member States explicitly criminalised forms of economic violence in their laws on domestic violence. Conceptions of economic violence in different States were also not uniform, often too narrow or too broad.

To know more about the economic violence, there was an urgent need to fill the research and knowledge gaps. It was crucial to fund new research initiatives on economic violence to fully capture this phenomenon, its new emerging forms, and how it impacted groups in vulnerable situations, such as women of different ethnic background, age, disability or immigration status. Apart from developing common definitions for economic violence, everyone also needed to learn more about its prevalence, and carefully listen to victims’ experiences. Regular population-based surveys could provide rich answers. Facilitating mutual learning between Member States and exchanging good practices could help to address economic violence more efficiently. The Institute remained committed to combatting violence in all its forms.

ANNE-SOPHIE PARENT, Chair of Older Women’s Network, said she would cover two examples of economic violence against older women on which States could take action, including the increased risk of economic harm and deprivation in old age due to pension reforms, and the risk of financial domestic violence faced by older women with low financial literacy and poor digital skills. In most countries important pension reforms had been adopted to introduce gender equality in systems which were initially designed for one bread-earner household (in most cases the man). This often meant aligning women and men’s retirement age, sometimes over short periods. To achieve gender equality in pension, gender equity measures were needed, or older women could end-up facing more deprivation.

The risk of economic hardship was increasing among older women due to a lack of adequate compensation for the disadvantage they had faced as a result of bearing and raising children or caring for dependent relatives. Since significant cuts were introduced in parallel in social protection provisions, this form of institutional economic violence would not decrease in the future unless adequate public funding was allocated to support accessible and affordable child and long-term care services.

Although the risk of financial elder abuse was not new, the rapid digitalisation of retail payments and services, combined with a decrease in acceptance of cash in shops and public services, put older women with low financial literacy and poor digital skills at a high risk of domestic violence. Designating a trusted person to manage their assets was often the recommendation from the bank, although with a bit of help they would be able to improve their financial literacy and learn how to manage their account digitally. States could help prevent domestic financial abuse through policies that made it mandatory for banks to offer alternative non-digital financial services that were available and affordable to all who needed them. Public authorities could also ensure that financial literacy programmes and digital skills training were adapted to the need of older women.

Discussion

In the ensuing dialogue, some speakers, among other things, said violence against women knew no borders. It was the most common violation of women’s and girls’ rights. Women and girls faced multiple forms of sexual and gender-based violence. This critical issue required urgent attention. It was rooted in patriarchal and cultural oppression.

Many speakers addressed economic violence against women and girls. One in 10 women lived in extreme poverty and many millions faced legal restrictions that prevented them from accessing the same jobs as men. Around 12 per cent of women in the European Union had experienced economic violence. Economic violence was rooted in gender inequality. It created obstacles for women to access inheritance, property, and financial and employment rights, and undermined their autonomy. This practice also made women more susceptible to other forms of violence. Economic violence limited women’s access to education and healthcare. The COVID-19 pandemic had highlighted the precariousness of women’s economic situation. Policies, laws and social norms that limited women’s economic rights were a form of violence against women. Economic violence against women limited the development of societies.

Some speakers said that child marriage was a driver of economic violence against girls. Married girls were confined to households and could not access education or healthcare. Ending child marriage also involved addressing harmful practices related to girls’ marriageability, including female genital mutilation.

Many States lacked legislation to address economic violence, speakers noted. All States needed to work towards ending economic violence against women. They needed to ensure women’s access to economic resources; eliminate institutional discrimination of women and girls and harmful legal restraints that limited women’s agency; promote women’s access to employment; and protect women’s access to reproductive rights. Addressing cultural norms that underpinned economic violence was key to ending it. States needed to make work a viable option for women and girls as an alternative to marriage and adopt laws and policies tackling female genital mutilation. Women needed to be put at the heart of efforts to develop policies encouraging economic empowerment. Promoting women’s economic empowerment helped to decrease all forms of violence against women and led to progress across all the Sustainable Development Goals.

No country could win the battle alone. Together, States could give hope to victims of violence. All needed to create a world where all women could thrive without fear of discrimination and marginalisation.

Some speakers presented national legislation, policies, strategies and action plans to punish all forms of violence and discrimination against women, including economic violence; provide women victims with support, including access to free legal assistance and financial support payments; accession to relevant international treaties, including the Istanbul Protocol and Maputo Protocol; strategies to empower women to participate in economic life and eliminate discrimination against women in employment; promote women’s representation in political bodies; and support women-owned businesses and women’s access to financial loans. States expressed their commitment to promoting and protecting the rights of women and girls. One speaker said that unilateral coercive measures contributed to violating women’s economic rights, calling for an end to the imposition of such measures.

Some speakers asked about steps that stakeholders could take to end gender-based economic violence; legal reforms that should be prioritised to address economic violence; policies for encouraging women and girls’ economic empowerment; how States could engage with banks to tackle economic violence in households; best practices in providing advice for women victims of economic violence; measures to fight online economic violence; and measures for integrating economic violence prevention measures into existing gender-based violence prevention measures.

Concluding Remarks

ESTHER WAWERU, Senior Legal Advisor at Equality Now, said she was happy with the statements made in regard to best practices, which could contribute to combatting the issue of economic violence. Discriminatory laws continued to fuel economic violence against women. In a world where women faced economic violence because of a lack of protective legal regimes, this threatened their economic freedom and self-sufficiency. Countries continued to have restraints on women’s reproductive rights and were not able to work in all areas. It was important that these legal restrictions were removed and that all governments, as a matter of urgency, recognised economic violence as a form of gender-based violence. They needed to take all measures to ensure its prevention and ensure there was a gender perspective in monetary and fiscal policies adopted. Existing laws and normative frameworks could be adopted at the country level. It was still worrying that a staggering 1.4 billion women were at a risk of experiencing economic violence due to discriminatory laws. All governments should reform these laws and ensure that economic violence was recognised and criminalised within these laws.

GENOVEVA TISHEVA, Vice-Chair of the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women, welcomed pledges made by States and examples of good practices presented. The statements made showed the importance of national laws and policies and common actions to combat violence against women and specifically economic violence. All States needed to address gender stereotypes. National action plans for fighting gender-based violence and gender stereotypes were also very important, as were concrete provisions on economic violence. States needed to facilitate access to justice for women and create opportunities for entrepreneurship for rural women. All States needed to abolish provisions allowing for polygamy and child marriage. Counselling needed to be provided to victims of domestic violence to show them the way out of violence and means of accessing economic empowerment. This would help to save women’s lives and protect their autonomy.

AGATA SZYPULSKA, Seconded National Expert in Gender-Based Violence at the European Institute for Gender Equality, said she was pleased to hear the strong commitment to eliminate economic violence against women and girls. It was clear that there had been a lot of engagement on eliminating violence against women and girls. Some examples included developing specific support measures for victims, adopting new legislation, empowerment measures, and adopting and implementing national plans and awareness campaigns; all these measures were very important as a holistic approach to end economic violence. She stressed the importance of data collection and shaping policies based on robust and reliable evidence. On average, the partners of seven per cent of women forbade them to work and controlled the family finances. There were huge differences across countries, from five per cent in some European Union States to up to 18 percent in others. The Institute would be able to share more data on economic violence later this year.

Interactive Dialogue with the Working Group on Discrimination against Women and Girls

The interactive dialogue with the Working Group on discrimination against women and girls started in the previous meeting and a summary can be found here.

Discussion

In the continuing discussion, many speakers thanked the Working Group and its members for their work and efforts to eliminate all forms of discrimination against women and girls around the world. Speakers said they appreciated the advice of the Working Group on how to make further progress towards achieving gender equality, as well as the thematic spheres on which the mandate would focus. Their consistent efforts demonstrated passion towards addressing the elimination of discrimination against all women and girls in all societies. Speakers heeded the Group’s call to address multidimensional barriers to gender equality, including confronting political violence and intersectional discrimination.

The report outlined a seemingly coordinated pushback against gender equality and women’s empowerment that was prevalent in all regions of the world and present during many multilateral negotiations. Gender-based violence remained high, with many disputes settled through customary practices. Women's participation in the labour force was mostly in informal sectors. Despite increased budget allocations for gender policies, effective implementation, especially in rural areas, remained limited. Furthermore, States often misused religion and culture to justify reservations and other violations of international and constitutional rights to equality and non-discrimination and to resist civil society’s demands for reform. These barriers underscored the need for continued, concerted efforts. Backlashes must not unravel the hard-earned rights of women and girls.

These developments had caused regression in terms of gains made on pertinent issues such as sexual and reproductive health and rights, and comprehensive sexuality education. Combatting these issues required more than closing legal gaps, one speaker said. It demanded continued implementation efforts to translate promises into tangible progress for women and girls on the ground. Speakers called for enhanced international cooperation to address and prevent pushbacks on women’s and girls’ rights. This included formulating new and strengthening existing gender responsive laws and policies addressing the root causes of discrimination, especially for marginalised groups of girls and young women. Many reiterated their commitment to working together to address the backlash against gender equality and reiterated commitment towards the principle of substantive equality.

A number of speakers emphasised that enhancing gender equality, the empowerment of women and girls, and ensuring decent work were key priorities of their States. Some of the national activities undertaken in this regard included reforms to establish a solid legal and institutional framework for achieving women empowerment and gender equality; national strategies for gender equality; hosting regional gender equality conferences; submitting reports and engaging in dialogue with the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women; guaranteeing gender equality within the Constitution; implementing legislation against domestic and gender-based violence; gender mainstreaming in policies; the creation of a national observatory focusing on violence against women; and adopting national gender policies, among others. Many States emphasised that they aimed to foster an inclusive environment where women and girls could live free from discrimination and violence, contributing fully to the country’s development.

Speakers asked the Working Group for recommendations on how to find a way out of what felt like an accelerating trend towards more inequality. What more could be done to ensure full protection, and inclusion and participation of women in society, while facing technical and financial resource constraints? How could the report of the Working Group shape the Summit of the Future? What were the views of the Working Group experts on possible productive synergies between their work and other mandates, including the Special Rapporteur on violence against women and girls?

Concluding Remarks

DOROTHY ESTRADA-TANCK, Chair of the Working Group on discrimination against women and girls, thanked all speakers for their interventions and questions, and for supporting the Working Group’s report and mandate.

Digital technologies were increasingly transforming lives. They were facilitating online violence and harassment, but were also helping women to access employment and education. States needed to ensure universal access to technologies, provide gendered training on technologies, and implement monitoring systems for digital spaces and artificial intelligence. The Working Group would explore this issue in a future thematic report.

The Working Group had issued last year a guidance document on the role of men and boys in achieving gender equality. Women’s and girls’ movements and women’s rights organizations played a key role, but men and boys also needed to be accountable for constructing gender equality. Male privilege needed to be dismantled. The guidance document provided concrete examples of how organizations were working with men and boys to promote gender equality.

Discrimination against women and girls needed to be eliminated in all spheres of life. States needed to consider recognising gender apartheid as a grave human rights violation and an affront to humanity. Gender apartheid was happening and was not limited to race. There was a global context of a backlash against gender equality. The discussion on what gender apartheid meant needed to continue.

States needed to leverage feminist policies with an intersectional lens, incorporate a gender perspective when regulating business activities, promote and pursue international cooperation to strengthen women’s and girls’ rights, ensure an independent media, protect the rights of women journalists, ratify the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women and withdraw reservations to it, and ratify all other international human rights instruments. States also needed to promote sexual and reproductive health rights, which were grounded in other civil and political rights and promoted the rights to non-discrimination and equality.

The Working Group’s mandate covered all women and girls, in all their diversity. Discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity promoted division. Such discrimination, including against transgender women and girls, needed to end.

The Working Group had called for an immediate and permanent ceasefire in Gaza, the provision of sexual and reproductive health care for affected women, safe spaces for women who were victims of gender-based violence, the release of all hostages, prosecution of all crimes committed against women, and for women and girls to be placed at the centre of all reconstruction efforts.

The Working Group was in favour of gender parity within the United Nations, including within political decision-making bodies.

Harmful cultural practices were not acceptable under international human rights law. The Working Group was calling for cooperation to build substantial gender equality. People who were not part of the solution were part of the problem. The world needed to work to break the glass ceiling and the class ceiling and ensure the rights of all, with women and girls at the centre.

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