Ræða í tilefni alþjóðlegs baráttudags kvenna
Við upphaf umræðu í mannréttindaráði Sameinuðu þjóðanna 8. mars 2019 flutti fulltrúi fastanefndar Mexíkó ávarp í tilefni Alþjóðlegs baráttudags kvenna og gerði hann það fyrir hönd 55 ríkja, þ.m.t. Íslands.
Human Rights Council – 40th session. March 8th, 2019
General Debate Agenda Item 3, promotion and protection of all human rights, civil, political, economic, social and cultural rights, including the right to development
Mexico and Finland, on behalf of 55 States
Thank you Mr. President,
I have the honor to deliver this statement on behalf of Finland, Mexico and 53 States at the occasion of International Women’s Day.
Ensuring accountability for human rights violations perpetrated against women and girls is central to fulfilling human rights obligations.
Accountability is based on participation, transparency, empowerment, and non-discrimination. It involves ensuring administrative, social, political and legal monitoring, review and oversight, and collection of , disaggregated data.
International human rights bodies have recognized that accountability requires prompt investigation into violations and punishment of perpetrators as well as legal, policy and attitude shifts in order to prevent future violations. This includes the removal of legal barriers and discriminatory measures, and the implementation of policies and legislation that respect women and girls’ right to bodily autonomy, guarantee universal access to education and protect their sexual and reproductive health and rights through access to information, care and services, including access to safe abortion and comprehensive sexuality education.
Remedies must fulfill the rights of victims and must include adequate, effective, and prompt reparation, through restitution, compensation and satisfaction. Mechanisms for reparation should be based on the meaningful participation of women and girls, in order to ensure that they are gender and age-sensitive and respond to the needs of victims and their families.
Women and girls in humanitarian settings are particularly vulnerable to human rights violations such as sexual and gender-based violence, human trafficking, forced pregnancy and forced abortion. Women and girls with disabilities in particular face significant barriers in accessing basic rights and services.
Several factors prevent women and girls from reporting human rights violations and seeking justice and compensation. This includes: disintegrating judicial systems in humanitarian settings; discrimination based on gender, age, refugee and migratory status; gender stereotypes and patriarchal attitudes, fear of reprisals and lack of access to sexual and reproductive health care and services.
We urge this Council to remedy the accountability deficit in human rights violations of women and girls, including in humanitarian settings. . We invite the Council to include conflict, gender and age analysis in its work in humanitarian settings, including in the mandates of commissions of inquiry and fact-finding missions.