OHCHR: High Commissioner Türk calls for concrete and transformative action to end gender-based violence

During the UN Human Rights Council's annual meeting in Geneva, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Volker Türk, highlighted the critical task of adopting a zero-tolerance approach regarding gender-based violence. Although he acknowledges the several steps taken to achieve gender equality, he emphasizes that the barriers of the patriarchal system continue to perpetuate gender-based violence. He mentioned the attacks suffered by female human rights defenders, women in public office and political decision-making positions, and women journalists. 

Highlighting the deliberate purpose of these attacks, Mr.Türk presented some statistics from a recent study led by UN Women in 39 countries. Most specifically, the study ascertained that 81.8 percent of women parliamentarians had undergone psychological violence, whereas 44.4 percent chronicled being menaced with death, beatings, rape, and kidnapping. Furthermore, 25.5 percent had suffered some type of physical violence. Another study conducted by UNESCO also found that online violence affected 73 percent of women journalists through, among other examples, the dissemination of fake news.

In view of the above, Mr. Türk pleaded for the strengthening of national legal frameworks to secure gender equality and defend women from violence, as well as the adoption of guidelines with zero tolerance for gender-based violence and efficient reporting apparatuses. In order to tackle this deep-rooted systemic discrimination, Mr. Türk emphasized the need for quotas for women in public and political life, and sustained awareness-raising campaigns and other forms of assistance can help women who aim to dedicate themselves to political life. Reem Alsamen, Special Rapporteur on Violence Against Women and Girls, also advocated this point, highlighting the immediate need to stop the violence against women and girls in the private, public, and political spheres of life.

Another main point of his intervention was the appeal to question archaic notions, most specifically the ones that promote the confinement of domestic and care work to women and girls. According to Mr. Türk, in order to achieve women’s equality of participation in public affairs, it is essential to enhance education, and two possible actions could be increasing the participation of women in traditionally male-dominated fields; including women as role models, and emphasizing their contributions in the course of history in the education systems and curricula. Finally, he maintained that since women are half of humanity, gender equality should be a collective pursuit, benefiting all societies. Mr.Türk pleaded with the UN Human Rights Council and the Member States to engage in concrete and transformative action to tackle gender-based violence against women and girls in all spheres of life.