HRC 34: AWID Statement on protecting cultural rights on a basis of equality
Human Rights Council, 34th Session - Statement by the Association for Women’s Rights in Development (AWID)
Human Rights Council, 34th Session - Statement by the Association for Women’s Rights in Development (AWID)
The advance of actors pushing fundamentalist agendas within international policy spaces is cause for concern this Human Rights Day. Feminists and other social justice activists must act now to reaffirm and safeguard our human rights.
At the 31stSession of the Council, the report that was mandated by the protection of family resolution in the 29th Session was tabled. The report was the outcome of a controversial resolution in the 29th Session of the Council which was sponsored by a cross-regional group of states including Egypt, Cote d’Ivoire, El Salvador, Mauritania, Morocco, Russian Federation, Tunisia, Uganda, Qatar, Belarus, China and Bangladesh.
Dealing with the escalation of violence against women across the world requires a wider adoption of a feminist approach to working at the nexus of development, religious fundamentalisms and women’s rights.
Five years following the forced resignation of dictator Zine el-Abidine Ben Ali, on 14 January 2011, Tunisians continue to face countless violations of their rights and freedoms. At a time of repression of human rights activists, and increasing violence based on sexual orientation and gender identity, a number of civil society organizations decided to mobilize as an informal group for individual freedoms.
AWID, as part of the Women’s Political Participation Committee in Afghanistan, condemns the cowardly and inhumane attack that targeted the progressive Tolo TV and Kaboora Production network.
The outcome of the 21st Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change held in Paris from November 30th to December 11th 2015, has reinforced the reasons why women must be at the heart of decisions and mobilization to advance climate justice. This week AWID looks at some of the challenges and opportunities of integrating women into these processes.
As part of the Global Women’s Climate Justice Day of Action this 29 September 2015, AWID spoke to Hindou Oumarou Ibrahim, Coordinating Committee Member of The Women’s Global Call for Climate Justice, to learn more about the global campaign and mobilizing for women’s rights, including Indigenous women’s rights to climate justice, with a view to the upcoming 21st Conference of Parties of the United Nations Framework on Climate Change (COP21).
On September 22nd, during the 30th session of the Human Rights Council, we co-hosted a side event with the Sexual Rights Initiative (SRI) to discuss protection gaps around sexual rights. The five panelists discussed the nature and causes of existing protection gaps in sexual rights, and gave recommendations to further protections for all individuals in the field of sexuality.
The 29th session of the UN Human Rights Council in June 2015 saw the introduction of the second ever Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) report on ‘Discrimination & Violence against Individuals Based on their Sexual Orientation & Gender Identity’. AWID spoke with Cynthia Rothschild, feminist, human rights and sexual rights activist, about the significance of the report and outcomes of the June 2015 Human Rights Council session.