The Gulf Centre for Human Rights (GCHR) followed the news of the High-Level Regional Meeting of the Arab Countries on progress in implementing the Beijing Declaration and Platform of Action 30 years after their adoption.
The meeting was jointly organised by the United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women (UN Women) and the UN Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia (ESCWA) in Muscat, Oman in December 2024. The meeting featured the launch of the Arab Report on the Periodic Review of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action across 18 Arab countries during the period of 2019-2024.
The report concluded that many countries have taken some legislative measures to reform and enact laws, adopted national plans to implement the Beijing Declaration Guidelines, and created indicators to track progress. However, certain issues remain to be addressed, especially in countries which were affected by civil unrest, political corruption, and wars, where women and girls bore a higher burden of poverty and disparity in social protection. Of particular interest to the work of GCHR in support of women human rights defenders (WHRDs) are the areas identified in the report as of critical concern, which includes women’s participation in public policies and institutions.
Many Arab countries have severely restricted the role of WHRDs in advocacy and promotion of women rights, while promoting symbolic reforms of laws and the appointment of some women in various leadership positions. However, political and civic rights for women have persistently deteriorated in many Arab countries over the last few years.
WHRDs who were at the forefront in support of gender equality in laws and practices were targeted by Arab states by aggressive measures, including torture, imprisonment, surveillance, travel bans, collective punishment of their families and supporters, and life sentences in prison, among other repressive measures. Such aggressive stances by the authorities have caused the silencing of meaningful societal voices on a variety of personal, social, legal, and political affairs affecting women. As a result, many WHRDs are languishing for years in prison for simply engaging in such public debates as documented by GCHR’s recent report on the “Spreading the Echo” campaign, coordinated by the WHRD International Coalition, of which GCHR is a member.
The World Economic Forum’s Gender Gap Report, that measures the annual progress in bridging the gender gap in 146 countries, has consistently shown that the Arab countries lag behind in indicators of women’s political participation and economic opportunities. These were the main two areas of active advocacy by WHRDs, who were not permitted to attend or included in civic spaces and commentaries, including in events and panels such as this High-Level Regional Meeting. In addition, the Arab report highlighted the need for states to implement measures to address the prevalent phenomena of violence against women.
While many states have enacted laws and measures, the ineffective quality and the implementation of these protective measures render them useless for many women survivors of violence. Symbolic reforms are difficult to challenge or examine without the organic voices of WHRDs from Arab countries, particularly those who have established a deep understanding of their own countries but were forcibly silenced. GCHR believes that no revisions of gender equality in polices, or practices can be conducted without the meaningful input of WHRDs.
Recommendations:
GCHR recommends the UN entities to:
- Include the perspectives of WHRDS as much as possible in conducting their revisions or recommendations on gender-related policies;
- Support the measures and advocacy efforts to create a safe space for WHRDs in the Arab countries, including their rights to form associations, access to information, and to be free from repressive state policies; and
- Engage with organisations and entities working with WHRDs to facilitate approaches to support their work in Arab countries.
