I grew up in Chile during a military dictatorship, and it was women who organized the neighborhood spaces of resistance through “common pots” where people would cook together to fight hunger while also forming political spaces. That said, we have to be optimistic about the power of people’s voices. In 2024, when people in US states got measuresto protect women’s abortion rights on election ballots, most were successful. In Mexico, states have been progressively decriminalizing abortion both through the courts and legislature, and last year its largest state, the State of Mexico, followed suit. Mexico also passed a constitutional amendment to guarantee equal payment and gender parity in federal and state government positions. Call on all parties to meet their obligations to prevent violence against women and girls during emergencies, and protect access to essential services that meet the needs of survivors.
And I hope that human rights activists and other opponents of authoritarianism understand that the fight for women’s rights is the fight for democracy. The Trump administration could greatly impact the rights of women in the workplace. Under President Barack Obama, companies were ordered to provide salary data on gender and race pay gaps, but Trump tried to roll back this policy. Worksite immigration enforcement actions that took place under the previous Trump administration had tremendous impacts on the rights of undocumented women and their families and caused many to fear speaking out against workplace abuses. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) could create more obstacles or bureaucracy to access abortion pills, like mifepristone, or even contraception. Anti-abortion groups have been trying to restrict access to mifepristone, a safe and effective drug used for medication abortion, through the courts.
The International Criminal Court’s prosecutor requested the court issue arrest warrants against two Taliban leaders for the crime against humanity of gender persecution. Other countries are pressing Afghanistan to cease its violations of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW). Afghan women are leading a campaign to create gender apartheid as a crime against humanity, and several countries are supporting this call. Women and girls have been disproportionately affected by the healthcare crisis. The Taliban’s ban on women’s employment and restrictions on their movement outside the home have compounded the crisis by creating additional discriminatory obstacles to delivering and receiving assistance on an equal basis.
Alarmingly, malnutrition among pregnant women, breastfeeding mothers, and adolescent girls has surged by 25% since 2020 in the 12 countries hardest hit by the global food and nutrition crisis, affecting 6.9 million women and girls. In 2020, during the first Trump term, the US led and co-signed the Geneva Consensus Declaration. While the declaration’s full name includes the phrase “promoting women’s health and strengthening the family,” its real intention was to ban abortion and promote a stereotypical, traditional idea of women. Biden withdrew US support to the declaration, which has mostly been backed by governments with terrible women’s and human rights records. There is finally an understanding that women are mostly in charge of caring for children and supporting older people or for people who need support to carry out daily activities.
Economic and Humanitarian Crises
The Taliban continued to arbitrarily arrest media workers in 2024, usually detaining them for several days. On May 4, they arrested a journalist in Parwan province on allegations of sharing information with the Afghan diaspora media. On February 17, Mansoor Nekmal, the editor in chief of Khaama Press, was detained in relation to a report on the enforcement of the hijab decree in Kabul. On February 10, Saifullah Karimi, a Pajhwok News Agency journalist, was detained after requesting an interview with a Taliban official about the protests by restaurant and hotel owners over tax increases. On January 18, Jawad Rasouli and Abdul Haq Hamidi from Gardesh-e Etilat News Center were arrested and then released; on January 17, Ehsan Akbari was arrested in Kabul and released on January 25.
Ensure gender-based violence prevention and response measures are integrated and funded as an essential standard in humanitarian responses. Understanding and addressing the specific health risks and needs adolescents face today is key to improving their future health, as well as for broader social and economic stability. On May 18, ISKP issued a statement threatening NGOs, media, and foreign aid agencies. Those arriving in Afghanistan faced severe economic hardship, and a lack of housing and access to schools. On September 26, Jawed Kohistani, a well-known political analyst was detained by Taliban’s General Directorate of Intelligence (GDI) in Kabul and was released on October 15. LGBT people in Afghanistan faced persecution and serious ill treatment that could amount to torture because of their sexual orientation or gender identity.
- Elsewhere in Latin America, Chile has a new comprehensive law against gender-based violence.
- As Taliban abuses escalate, the international community has too often responded with silence, or even harmful steps to normalize these abuses, such as Russia’s recent decision to become the sole country recognizing the Taliban.
- Women’s participation in local communities is the basis for making changes at national and international levels, too.
- What type of education will children in schools get about human rights?
- We are working with local organizations in Africa and Latin America to see how we can move forward on this issue.
- Ensure gender-based violence prevention and response measures are integrated and funded as an essential standard in humanitarian responses.
Violence against women remains a global crisis, severely impacting their health and well-being. One in three women worldwide experiences physical or sexual violence, and the health-care sector itself is not immune. Nearly a quarter of all workplace violence occurs in health and care settings, with women disproportionately affected. Additionally, social determinants such as income, education, and nutrition further widen the health gap for women and girls.
Six actions to improve adolescent health
Bans on secondary and university education for girls and women have also meant a shortage of women healthcare workers. Yes, things look bad higher up the political ladder from the perspective of women’s participation. In the United States, less than 30 percent of the members of congress are women. Women’s participation in local communities is the basis for making changes at national and international levels, too. After Roe vs. Wade fell in the United States, women began organizing on a state-by-state basis to protect their rights. In many parts of the world, including the United States, grassroots movements and city-specific organizations are likely to have more female women and wine drinking limits participation.
Afghanistan: ICC Issues Arrest Warrants for Senior Taliban Leaders
But it also highlights the subtle ways women and girls resist in day-to-day life, bargaining with patriarchy, and claiming some agency and ownership. As the world marks the 30th anniversary of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action on Women – a landmark blueprint for gender equality – progress remains frustratingly slow. If we are to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals, we must place women at the centre of global health transformation.
Afghanistan
Gender equality has long been framed as a threat to traditional families. Trump has indicated that he would like to eliminate the Department of Education, which issues guidance on how anti-discrimination laws apply to groups of students, including girls, LGBT students, and racial minorities. While it would take an act of Congress to eliminate the Education Department, Trump could take action that would increase the likelihood that children receive biased or no education about gender equality.
- Women and girls have been disproportionately affected by the healthcare crisis.
- You have Poland, where the new government that came to power in December 2023 stopped the previous administration’s trend of creating obstacles to abortion access.
- After the Supreme Court ruling in 2022 that overturned Roe v. Wade, ending the constitutional abortion protection, many states quickly restricted or banned abortion.
- There are countries that lifted restrictions on women’s rights and have moved—albeit slowly—towards gender equality.
- In the last months these groups have intensified attacks against civilians, including horrific acts of sexual violence against women and girls.
- In 2024, when people in US states got measuresto protect women’s abortion rights on election ballots, most were successful.
On January 6, ISKP claimed responsibility for an attack on a passenger bus in the in Dasht-e Barchi area, a predominantly Hazara neighborhood in Kabul, that killed at least 5 and wounded 20 people.
“No matter what tactics or power authorities use, we will still find ways to go out. On September 2, ISKP carried out a suicide attack outside the Taliban’s prosecution office, killing at least 21 people, most of them civilians. The killings took place in a remote border district between Daikundi, which has a predominantly Hazara population, and Ghor provinces. ISKP claimed responsibility for an April 29 attack in which a gunman opened fire on worshippers inside the Shia Sahib-u-Zaman mosque in Guzara district, Herat province, killing six people.
In most cases, Taliban authorities did not provide any information about the basis for these arrests or if those in custody would face trial. Detainees also lacked access to lawyers; in most cases even their family members were not allowed to visit them. Also, during his first term, Trump cut US funding for the United Nations Population Fund, which supports family planning worldwide. In Latin America, we have seen amazing progress on reproductive rights thanks to a coordinated cross-country movement called the green wave.
In Afghanistan, the Taliban has doubled down on their attack against women and girls. They’ve gone so far as to even order windows be blocked if women could be seen from the outside. The Taliban has segregated women and girls at a level without precedent in modern history.
We should also look at how changes to freedom of expression and censorship will affect women and LGBT people. At least 16 states already have provisions restricting LGBT content in schools. What type of education will children in schools get about human rights?