THE BEIJING DECLARATION AND PLATFORM FOR ACTION
4 September 2020 marked the 25th anniversary of the Fourth World Conference on Women in Beijing. This was the most recent UN Women Conference and was a culmination of the work in previous conferences, namely in Mexico (1975), Copenhagen (1980), and Nairobi (1985). Beijing marked a significant turn for global gender equality with 189 states unanimously adopting the Beijing Declaration and the Platform For Action. The Declaration notes that all states are determined to advance the goals of equality, development, and peace for all women everywhere in the interest of all humanity. The accompanying Beijing Platform for Action creates a defining framework for change focused on 12 critical areas of concern. These areas include: women and the environment; women in power and decision-making; the girl child; women and the economy; women and poverty; violence against women; human rights of women; education and training of women; institutional mechanisms for the advancement of women; women and health; women and the media; and women and armed conflict.
The Declaration is subject to a review and appraisal every five years—the 25-year review and appraisal took place March 2020. This review covered current progress and challenges towards the implementation of the Platform for Action and its contribution towards the full realisation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. The Agenda first unveiled in 2015 is a plan for transformative action for peace and prosperity for the people, planet, and the future. It encompasses 17 interlinked Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and 169 targets. Offering a universal approach to development, the Declaration recognises that inequalities in development exist within developed and developing nations. It resolves amongst other things to eradicate poverty, protect human rights, promote gender equality, empower women and girls, and ensure the lasting protection of the planet and its natural resources.
SILVER JUBILEE: ACHIEVEMENTS AND CHALLENGES
UN Women released a report reviewing women’s rights globally since the Beijing Conference in 1995 detailing key points from the official appraisal in March 2020.
In the quarter-century since the Beijing Conference there have been major improvements towards global gender equality. Compared to generations ago, a young woman in 2020 is less likely to live in poverty, be a young mother, and she also has greater access to education. This is all thanks to shifts in laws, policies, and social norms—approximately 274 legal and regulatory reforms in support of gender equality were passed over the last decade across 131 countries. Through gender quotas, women have a voice in politics and thus create representation for other women. Just this year alone, amongst many other achievements: Sudan criminalised female genital mutilation (FGM), New Zealand passed a bill to ensure equal pay, and the number of female CEOs for Fortune 500 companies is at the record high of 37.
However, there remain numerous challenges as detailed within the UN Women report. UN Women assert that economic independence of women is crucial to ensure gender equality. Yet, an increase in access to education has not created equal labour market opportunities for women. Wins in the formal labour sector are yet to be extended to informal labour where over 740 million women work. Women spend three times as many hours as men in unpaid work and domestic care which can then limit access to paid work.
Violence against women is still rampant with 111 countries not explicitly criminalising marital rape and 19, such as Saudi Arabia and the Democratic Republic of the Congo, where women are required by law to obey their husbands. Victims of violence are often highly shamed and stigmatised resulting in less than 40% reporting crimes or seeking any sort of help.
Globally, women now account for 25% of all parliamentary seats: an 11% increase from 1995 but still underrepresented in government. Where able to secure a place, female politicians are more likely to face violence and harassment. Even where almost 80% of countries have national plans for gender equality, only a third of these are funded.
The global community as a whole “talked the talk” during the Beijing Conference but has failed to “walk the walk,” as decisions are not being backed up by resources or accountability. Only 5% of development resources goes to gender equality leaving a funding gap, whereas global annual military expenditure, for example, is at USD 1.8 trillion.
WOMEN’S RIGHTS GLOBALLY
The promotion and protection of the human rights of women, through the full implementation of all human rights instruments, especially the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW)(1979) is one of the Beijing Declaration’s strategic objectives. Still, the challenges and failures to fully realise the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action are aggravated within CEDAW.
CEDAW is the main body of legislation governing human rights for women and is based on the conviction that discrimination against women violates the key principles of equal rights and respect for human dignity. It is legally binding, providing means of redress for victims, whereas the 1995 Beijing Declaration is simply a declaration and is not binding. Although ratified by 186 state parties, CEDAW is subject to numerous reservations that often seem to go against the heart and fundamental values of the treaty. Most worrying are reservations to core provisions of article 2, which impose obligations to review and change constitutions, laws, and policies as well as article 16 on equality within the family. Other widely reserved provisions include: article 5 on the abolition of discriminatory customs and traditions and of gender stereotyping; article 7’s provision for women’s participation in public life; article 9 on nationality; and article 15’s legal capacity, including choice of domicile.
The reservation situation surrounding CEDAW exemplifies the current situation where rights for roughly half the world’s population are often overlooked in favour of “traditional values”.
MOVING FORWARD TOWARDS GENDER EQUALITY
The UN Women report puts forward four catalysts for change to ensure implementation of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action. First, it calls for supporting women’s movements and leadership. Secondly, it highlights the importance of harnessing technology for gender equality, closing the gender digital divide, and removing biases in technology. The third catalyst is ensuring that no one is left behind in achieving gender equality for all women. This heavily focuses on intersectionality and understanding that even with advances to gender equality, many women still face discrimination based on ethnicity, religion, and class, among other classifications. Finally, commitments need to be matched by resources. More resources need to be dedicated towards achieving gender equality.
There is a push to do more, especially to achieve the 2030 SDGs. However, the fight for gender equality encompasses so much more. While there can be declaratory actions, there also needs to be a greater push on the legal front, ensuring full commitments to CEDAW.
Osi is a final year student of International law and Globalisation (LLB) at the University of Birmingham with a year at the National University of Singapore. She previously served as a Co-chair for her university's Free Legal Advice Group. She is an aspiring diplomat interested in women's rights, international trade, and international environment law.