UN chief, António Guterres addresses gender equality at Commission on the Status of Women

United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres said that progress toward gender equality is “vanishing before our eyes while addressing the Commission on the Status of Women on Monday. It is noted that the speech by the United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres ahead of International Women’s Day on March 8. While talking about the status of women, he shared the high rates of maternal mortality, girls being forced into early marriage, and girls being kidnapped and assaulted for attending school. These all incidents have proved that the hope of achieving gender equality “is growing more distant.” In UN Chief's speech, there was no mention of Iran, which was expelled from the 45-member commission in December. The expel came after the protests following the death of Mahsa Amini in the custody of the country’s so-called “morality police.” 

 Guterres addresses gender equality

While talking to the key UN women’s rights group ahead of International Women’s Day, Guterres said gender equality is “300 years away”, as per the latest estimates from UN Women, which is a part of the United Nations dedicated to gender equality and the empowerment of women. “Women’s rights are being abused, threatened, and violated around the world,” said Guterres. While talking about gender equality, the UN chief highlighted a few countries in particular, including Afghanistan, where he said, “women and girls have been erased from public life.”

A group of young Afghan women gathered outside Kabul University to protest the ruling Taliban’s ban on female education, on Monday. As per the UN report, this may amount to “a crime against humanity.” According to the report presented to the Human Rights Council in Geneva on Monday, forced and child marriages have witnessed the rise, women being excluded from other public spaces like parks and gyms, and other restrictions that are focused on limiting women’s ability to work and travel independently in Afghanistan. Further, Guterres shared that the UN envoy, including the deputy secretary-general and the executive director of UN Women, visited Afghanistan where they conveyed to the Taliban regime that  “we will never give up fighting for” women and girls.