As the fight for gender equality faces backlash, pressure is mounting for the next leader of the United Nations to be the first woman in its more than 80-year history. The contradiction is not lost on UN Women, the agency leading a fierce fight to defend the rights of women and girls — and for women to be at the top of international organizations, governments, business, technology and in the growing debate over artificial intelligence, according to the AP. According to the UN agency’s recent “Gender Equality Overview”, at the current rate of progress, it will take 171 years to achieve gender equality, a UN goal initially set for 2015, then postponed to 2030.
Other findings are equally grim: nearly one in three women worldwide have been victims of sexual violence and nearly one in five girls are married before the age of 18. And, after years of upward movement, women’s political leadership is also losing momentum, with 6 out of 7 countries still led by men. Sarah Hendriks, a senior UN Women official, said the just-concluded annual gathering of world leaders in the UN General Assembly Hall “very much reflected a world dominated by men, both in terms of representation and content.”
“It’s not just about symbolism,” Hendriks said. “It’s about whether the UN truly reflects the equality it asks the world to respect. … We cannot ask governments to dismantle barriers to women’s leadership while accepting those barriers in their own institutions. We cannot tell corporations to break glass ceilings while the UN leaves our own ceilings intact.” Among those who spoke was East Timorese President José Ramos-Horta, co-winner of the 1996 Nobel Peace Prize. He said that after more than 80 years, “we should have enough wisdom and elect a woman with unquestionable integrity.”
Liberian President Joseph Boakai told the gathering that “when women lead, peace agreements last longer, economies grow faster and government becomes more accountable.” There are currently seven candidates to replace Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, whose second five-year term ends on December 31. The list is made up of four women and three men. By tradition, the position of secretary general rotates according to region; it is Latin America’s turn, even if it has two African contenders. Although the General Assembly has the final say, decision-making rests with the five veto-wielding members of the Security Council: the United States, Russia, China, Britain and France. They remained silent about their choices. More here.
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