A
minority of the world‘s population appears to be misogynistic
and continues to oppose efforts to achieve gender equality
and empower women and girls. The misogynistic minority cannot
be permitted to undermine gender equality policies supported
by large majorities of the public worldwide.
National
surveys across different regions of the world find large majorities
of the public supporting gender equality and saying it is
very important for women in their country to have the same
rights as men.
The
majorities supporting gender equality vary from highs of 90
percent or more in countries such as Canada, Sweden and the
United Kingdom to lows of approximately 55 percent in Kenya,
Russia and South Korea.
Among
the misogynistic minority too many consider women as inferior
to men, treat them as their personal property, deny them control
over their lives and bodies, restrict their political, social
and economic rights, and too often ridicule, intimidate and
physically abuse them.
The
misogynists also generally dismiss the fundamental principles
of the equality of men and women enshrined in international
documents, treaties, declarations and instruments, such as
the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Misogynists also
tend to oppose the gender equality laws and policies that
are incorporated in many regional treaties and national instruments.
The
current struggle for gender equality follows a lengthy history
of oppression of women through men’s use of authority,
law, physical force and violence. In many societies around
the world, women and girls have been unjustly held back from
achieving full equality and enjoying their basic human rights.
In
nearly all societies in the past women were under the control
of their fathers and husbands and held back from making personal
decisions and achieving equality with men.
In
general, women had few options or choices for supporting themselves
outside of marriage and were wed or forced to marry typically
at relatively young ages with the primary aims being to provide
sexual relations, bear children and maintain or work in a
family household.
It
was only until around the beginning of the 20th century did
countries begin passing legislation ensuring women the right
to vote and stand for election. The first country to permit
women to vote was New Zealand in 1893. About a decade later,
it was followed by Australia, Finland, Denmark and Iceland.
A
couple of decades later, women were granted the right to vote
in the United States and the United Kingdom. Approximately
a century later, the most recent countries allowing women
to participate in elections are Bhutan, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia
and the United Arab Emirates.
By
around the middle of the 20th century, more than half of all
countries had granted women the right to vote, although some
initially had restrictions for women of certain backgrounds
based on age, education, marital status or race. Today none
of the world’s nearly 200 countries bar women from voting
because of their sex.
Various
organizations have compiled rankings and indexes indicating
the standing of countries on gender equality and the rights
and well-being of women. Among the countries with some of
the highest ratings on gender equality and the basic rights
of women are Denmark, Finland, Iceland, New Zealand, Norway,
the Netherlands, Switzerland and Sweden.
In
contrast, some of the countries with the lowest ratings on
women’s rights and equality also typically suffer from
civil conflict, which undermines efforts aimed at gender equality
and the well-being of women. Among those countries are Afghanistan,
Chad, Democratic Republic of Congo, Somalia, South Sudan,
Sudan, Syria and Yemen.
Particularly
noteworthy is the dire situation of gender equality in Afghanistan.
It is the only country in the world with bans on female education
and employment.
Sociocultural
factors, traditional practices and beliefs in Afghanistan
have contributed to the country’s dire situation of
gender equality in both education and employment. Girls are
banned from attending secondary school and women’s employment
is all but prohibited with the exceptions being in the areas
of health and education.
In
addition to differences among countries, significant differences
in gender equality and the status of women can also vary within
countries. In the United States, for example, some of the
states that have attained the highest levels on women’s
well-being, health and safety are Connecticut, Maine and Massachusetts,
while at the other end of the ranking are Alabama, Arkansas
and Louisiana.
Although
women make up 50 percent of the world’s population of
8 billion, their representation among governments and participation
in politics is considerably less. At all levels of decision-making
and policy formulation, especially in the areas of defense
and the economy, women are underrepresented.
The
education of girls and women is widely recognized to be one
of the world’s best investments, providing a basic foundation
for a lifetime of learning and advancing and empowering girls
and women. Worldwide the rates of school enrollment at the
primary, secondary and tertiary levels are getting closer
to equal for girls and boys.
About
two-thirds of all countries have reached gender parity in
primary school enrollment. However, the completion rates in
many developing countries are lower for girls than boys. In
addition, globally an estimated 129 million girls, 32 million
at the primary level and 97 million at the secondary level,
are not in school.
At
the tertiary educational level, women’s enrolment has
increased considerably with female students outnumbering male
students. However, female students are heavily enrolled in
the arts, social science and humanities rather than undertaking
science, technology, engineering and math degrees.
With
respect to participation in the formal labor force, a considerable
gender gap exists with the rates for men and women being approximately
75 and 50 percent, respectively. However, most of the work
done by women outside the formal labor force globally is unpaid.
The
level of female participation in the labor force varies considerably
across regions. While in most regions more than half of all
women aged 15-64 years participate in the labor market, only
a quarter or less do so in the regions of South Asia and the
Middle East and North Africa.
Women
are also more likely to spend double the amount of time than
men caregiving, tackling domestic chores and doing housework.
Among children aged 5 to 14 years, girls also spend considerably
more time than boys on unpaid household chores.
Another
major development that has influenced gender equality considerably
was the introduction of women’s modern methods of contraception
beginning in the 1960s. Those methods, especially oral contraceptive
pills, intrauterine devices and implants, permitted women
to choose the number, timing and spacing of their births.
That
ability in turn reduced the fear of unintended pregnancy,
reduced the incidence of abortion and provided women with
the control over their reproductive lives similar to those
of men. Women’s control over their reproduction also
permitted them to pursue higher education, careers, employment,
recreation, travel, decide on life styles and participate
more fully in society.
Notable
progress on the equality of women and men has been made during
the recent past. However, the world is not on track to realize
Goal 5 of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals
to achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls
by 2030.
At
the current rate of progress, it is estimated that it will
take hundreds of decades to achieve gender equality, in particular
closing gaps in legal protection and removing discriminatory
laws. Reducing that lengthy time frame will require making
investments in policies and programs aimed at accelerating
the progress.
In
addition to those investments, the basic rights of women need
to be protected and enforced. Practices that oppress women
need to be removed and the personal decisions and life choices
of women recognized and promoted.
Also,
importantly, the attitudes, objections and behavior of the
world’s misogynist minority cannot be permitted to undermine
gender equality policies called for and supported by large
majorities of the public worldwide.
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