“As the world faces democratic decline, rising conflicts, economic pressures and shrinking civic space, there is an increasingly organized opposition to gender equality and a regression in women’s rights,” Sarah Hendriks, Director of UN Women’s Intergovernmental Division, told reporters at a press conference in New York.
The report, titled “Ensuring and Strengthening Access to Justice for All Women and Girls,” shows how laws are being reshaped to limit women's freedoms, silence their voices, and allow abuse with impunity.
It warns that women and girls are being failed by the very systems that aim to protect them, leaving them exposed to abuse, injustice and impunity, as the backlash against gender equality intensifies.
The report found five key areas that hinder justice outcomes for women and girls, who face greater barriers to justice than men in nearly 70% of the countries surveyed.
According to the UN, among other things, women's rights are being further threatened by the rise in global conflicts.
In 2024, 676 million women and girls lived within 50 km of a deadly conflict (the highest number since the 1990s). As a result, an 87% increase in reported conflict-related sexual violence violations has been reported.
"When justice fails women and girls, the harm goes beyond any single story, any single woman's life. Communities lose trust, public confidence erodes, and justice institutions lose legitimacy," Hendriks declared.
According to the UN, no country in the world has achieved full legal equality between women and men. /Telegraph/
