2024-03-09 13:16:55
In a statement on the occasion of March 8 – International Women’s Day, UN Secretary-General António Guterres warned that there is a danger of “going backwards” in terms of women’s rights in both developed and developing countries, reported AFP, quoted from BTA.
“Around the world there is a threat of a rollback on women’s rights and, in some cases, the loss of progress made in both developing and developed countries,” the head of the world body warned in a speech to mark the International Day for women’s rights at the organization’s headquarters in New York.
“With the speed with which we are going to change things, we are 300 years away from full equality for women before the law,” Guterres stressed to a special session of UN member states. He criticized Taliban-ruled Afghanistan, “where women and girls are cut off from most of the education system, from the labor market outside their homes and from most of the public space.”
The UN chief also condemned the impact of armed conflicts and wars on women, citing “witnesses of rape and trafficking (of women) in Sudan, sexual violence and torture during Hamas terrorist attacks in Israel, and reports of sexual violence against Palestinian women prisoners”.
He also condemned “the collapse of maternity homes in Gaza, where women and children are the majority of the tens of thousands killed and wounded.”
Guterres also warned that “by 2030, more than 340 million women and girls will live in extreme poverty, 18 million more than men and boys.”