Archive for March 6th, 2015

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06/03/2015

Climate Change ‘Threatens Self-determination’ of Citizens in Island States

Human Wrongs Watch

In the United Nations Human Rights Council on 6 March 2015 , senior UN officials joined high-level delegates from Pacific Island States that are on the frontline of the global battle against sea-level rise to examine the potentially devastating impact of climate change on human rights.

Children in the village of Tebikenikora, on Kiribati’s main Tarawa atoll. Will they have to move one day as a result of climate change? UN Photo/Eskinder Debebe

The President of Kiribati and the Prime Minister of Tuvalu were joined by Deputy UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Flavia Pansieri, who opened the discussion, telling the Geneva-based Council that human-induced climate change is not only an assault on the world’s shared ecosystem but it also undercuts “the rights to health, to food, to water and sanitation, to adequate housing and – for the people of small island states and coastal communities – even the right to self-determination.”

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06/03/2015

'Uniting with Women to Fight Corruption'

Human Wrongs Watch

Source: Transparency International

Source: Transparency International

6 March 2015 — This International Women’s Day Transparency International is celebrating the strength and passion of female corruption fighters around the world, while highlighting the devastating effect corruption has on women’s lives. We asked some amazing women who fight corruption everyday for their top tips. Now it’s up to all of us to #MakeItHappen*

As the primary care-takers in families in many parts of the world, women have a higher chance of experiencing corruption in their daily lives, whether enrolling their children in school, seeking medical treatment for themselves or family, or interacting with public officials to access government-subsidised programmes.

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06/03/2015

Women Earn on Average 77 % Less Than Men

Human Wrongs Watch

Geneva, 6 March 2015 – Women earn on average 77 per cent of what men earn, the United Nations labour organization said today, noting that “without targeted action, pay equity between women and men will not be achieved before 2086, or at least 71 years from now.”

Women employees at a private company pack pharmaceuticals in Moldova. World Bank/Victor Neagu | Source: UN

“Are working women better off today than they were 20 years ago?” asked Director-General of the International Labour Organization (ILO) Guy Ryder in a press release ahead of Sunday’s International Women’s Day, marked annually on 8 March.*

“The answer is a qualified yes. Has this progress met our expectations? The answer is a decidedly no. We need to be innovative, to reframe the debate and to intensify the focus on ensuring the rights of women at work,” he declared.

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06/03/2015

'Collective failure of leadership on progress for women'

Human Wrongs Watch

New Your, 6 March 2015 — Progress for women in the past 20 years has been unacceptably slow, with areas of stagnation and regression. This is the conclusion of an authoritative global review of progress on gender equality, to mark the 20th anniversary of the 1995 Fourth World Conference on Women in Beijing, which UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon will present to Members States on Monday 9 March 2015.

Source: UN Women

Source: UN Women

The survey covers an unprecedented 167 countries, drawing on rich inputs from governments and civil society.

Prepared for the 59th Commission on the Status of Women, it shows that despite some progress, world leaders have not done nearly enough to act on commitments made in the visionary Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action.

“The Secretary-General’s report makes this very clear: The disappointing gap between the norms and implementation of the Beijing Platform for Action points to a collective failure of leadership on progress for women,” says Under-Secretary-General and UN Women Executive Director Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka. 

“The leaders entrusted with the power to realize the promises made in Beijing have failed women and girls.”

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06/03/2015

At Current Rate, It will Take Over 80 Years for Women to Achieve Parity in Employment

Human Wrongs Watch

New York, 6 March 2015 – Despite great strides in the advancement of gender parity, women still lag behind men across an array of critical areas, from political representation and wage inequality to education – a gender gap that the UN is once again tackling head-on as it kicks off its annual observance of International Women’s Day.

In India, women carry food. Photo: World Bank/Curt Carnemark

According to UN Women, in fact, approximately 50 per cent of women worldwide are in paid employment – an increase from 40 per cent more than 20 years ago. In the international sphere, meanwhile, the global community has widely acknowledged the need to increase women’s role in peace building in post-conflict countries.*

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06/03/2015

Int’l Women’s Day 2015: Women Farmers Key to Fighting Hunger

Rome, 6 March 2015 – Marking International Women’s Day 2015, leaders from the United Nations’ three Rome-based food agencies gathered to remind the world that women farmers play a central role in achieving food and nutrition security. 

Source: IFAD

Source: IFAD

At the Rome event, leaders from the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) and the World Food Programme (WFP) shared testimonials of their innovative interventions that have empowered rural women, and in doing so have contributed to food security and nutrition.*

They also highlighted that promoting gender equality and women’s empowerment can significantly strengthen efforts to reduce rural poverty.

This year’s event also marks the 20th anniversary of the landmark Fourth World Conference on Women in Beijing in 1995 (Beijing +20).

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06/03/2015

In Africa, 70% of Crop Production Depends on Women Yet They Still Own Only 2% of the Land

Human Wrongs Watch

In Africa, 70 per cent of crop production depends on women yet women still own only 2 per cent of the land, said Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka, Executive Director of UN Women, ahead of the 2015 International Women’s Day on 8 March. “Violence against women continues to blight lives in all countries of the world. And no country has achieved gender equality.”

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Photo: UN Women/Fernando Bocanegra

Photo: UN Women/Fernando Bocanegra

“Women left Beijing with high hopes, with a well-defined path towards equality, and firm commitments at the highest level. Their hope was that we would see this by 2005. Today, not one single country has achieved equality. It is more urgent than ever that we define – and stick to – a time frame.”

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