The UN Special Rapporteur on violence against women, its causes and consequences, told the 62nd Session of the Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) that progress in eradicating violence against women around the world is “visible but slow.” She said she was encouraged by the global spread of powerful movements that are trying to change the status quo of violence and inequality for women, like the #MeToo campaign against sexual harassment, and the Ni Una menos (“No one more”) movement to end femicide or gender-related killings. States should support and strengthen these movements to achieve “change that will put a lasting end to tolerance of the violence against women.” However, she warned about a “regressive” backlash against women and girls, as conservative counter-movements attempt to undermine women’s rights and block legal reforms that would enhance gender equality and protect women from violence.
The Special Rapporteur also provided the CSW delegates will a review of her work on areas of particular concern at this year’s CSW, including empowerment of rural women and the intersection of women’s rights and the media, including new technologies. Her full statement, delivered in New York on March 12, 2018, is available on the website of the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights.
Compiled from: Statement by Ms. Dubravka Šimonović, Special Rapporteur on violence against women, its causes and consequences, UN Human Rights, Special Procedures, 62nd Session of the Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) (March 12, 2018).