{"id":18424,"date":"2021-03-13T09:51:00","date_gmt":"2021-03-13T07:51:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.karpathiaki.gr\/?p=18424"},"modified":"2021-03-13T13:54:15","modified_gmt":"2021-03-13T11:54:15","slug":"pazartzi-omilia","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.karpathiaki.gr\/?p=18424","title":{"rendered":"\u0399\u0394\u03a1\u03a5\u039c\u0391 \u039c\u0391\u03a1\u0399\u0391\u039d\u039d\u0391 \u0392. \u0392\u0391\u03a1\u0394\u0399\u039d\u039f\u0393\u0399\u0391\u039d\u039d\u0397: \u039f\u03bc\u03b9\u03bb\u03af\u03b1 \u03c4\u03b7\u03c2 \u039a\u03b1\u03b8\u03b7\u03b3\u03ae\u03c4\u03c1\u03b9\u03b1\u03c2 \u03a6\u03c9\u03c4\u03b5\u03b9\u03bd\u03ae\u03c2 \u03a0\u03b1\u03b6\u03b1\u03c1\u03c4\u03b6\u03ae \u03c3\u03c4\u03b7 \u03b4\u03b9\u03b5\u03b8\u03bd\u03ae \u03b4\u03b9\u03b1\u03b4\u03b9\u03ba\u03c4\u03c5\u03b1\u03ba\u03ae \u03b5\u03ba\u03b4\u03ae\u03bb\u03c9\u03c3\u03b7 “\u039f\u0399 \u0393\u03a5\u039d\u0391\u0399\u039a\u0395\u03a3 \u03a3\u03a4\u0397\u039d \u0395\u03a0\u039f\u03a7\u0397 \u03a4\u0397\u03a3 \u03a0\u0391\u039d\u0394\u0397\u039c\u0399\u0391\u03a3”"},"content":{"rendered":"

In my brief intervention this evening, I have been asked to speak on the work of the UN Human rights bodies in protecting human rights, and womens\u2019 rights in particular, and the impact of the current pandemic on the protection of these rights.<\/strong><\/p>\n

In 1948, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights adopted by the UN<\/strong>, listed equality and non discrimination as two of its fundamental principles. This brief but very important text, which laid the foundation of the universal protection of human rights, has expanded human rights guarantees, not only within the UN<\/strong> system, but also on a regional level.<\/p>\n

2020 marked the anniversary of the Beijing Declaration and Platform of Action, the most comprehensive roadmap for women\u2019s and girls\u2019 rights. This Platform has led to a significant mobilization of women\u2019s movements around the world to implement the rights set therein, but also to advocate for the Sustainable Development Goals, the STGs, the 5th of which is to promote gender equality.<\/p>\n

In this context, this year\u2019s overall theme for International Women\u2019s Day is: Women in Leadership: Achieving an equal future in a COVID-19<\/strong> World, and under this theme, the UN wants to celebrates the efforts by women and girls around the world in shaping a more equal future and recovery in the post-pandemic phase, but also to serve as an occasion to highlight the gaps that remain.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

1. The UN institutional framework: progress and achievements<\/strong><\/p>\n

The international law of human rights offers considerable guarantees to women through binding treaties supplemented by international soft law and supported by specialist institutions both within the United Nations, and on a regional sphere.<\/p>\n

On a universal level, the United Nations Twin Covenants of 1966, the ICCPR<\/strong> and the CESCR<\/strong>, have since been supplemented by a number of specialized international human rights instruments, the most relevant on this day being the International Convention on the Elimination of Discrimination Against Women, which, marked its 40th anniversary in 2020.<\/p>\n

Through the supervisory mechanisms put in place within the UN<\/strong> system, the situation of human rights in States across the world is monitored, but also (something which might be less known to the general public), individuals have the possibility submit their complaints of violations of their human rights to these treaty body mechanisms. So there is a [robust] institutional framework in place. In particular, the the UN<\/strong> Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW), which marked its 4oth anniversary last year, is the UN\u2019s basic achievement for the advancement of women\u2019s human rights. There has been progress over the last decades: More girls are going to school, fewer girls are forced into early marriage, and laws are being reformed to advance gender equality.<\/p>\n

Despite these gains, many challenges remain: discriminatory laws and social norms remain pervasive, exacerbating gender inequality in many spheres of life, other practices, such trafficking of women, slavery, etc., continue to exist.<\/p>\n

These challenges undermine attempts at implementation and sustained commitment. Inadequate financial resourcing for instance of the UN<\/strong> human rights bodies remains frustrating, while, during the pandemic, much of the work of human rights mechanisms is being conducted virtually, with \u2018side-\u2018effects, which are not always beneficial for the effective promotion of human rights.<\/p>\n

2. Challenges in the era of the pandemic<\/strong><\/p>\n

Undoubtedly, on a standard-setting level, there have been important achievements for the promotion of human rights of all individuals, including women.<\/p>\n

But the most important lesson is that we cannot take anything for granted, that what appear to be gains and successes are tenuous and can be lost. According to figures released yesterday by UN Women, women remain underrepresented in public life and decision-making, as revealed in a recent report by the UN Secretary General. Women are Heads of State or Government in 22 countries, and only 24.9% of national parliamentarians are women.<\/p>\n

The challenges faced have been exacerbated as a result of the unprecedented sanitary crisis. The COVID-19<\/strong> pandemic is having a devastating impact throughout the world in all spheres of life. It engages the full spectrum of human rights.<\/p>\n

As we are seeing, the responses of many States in addressing the pandemic have a common denominator of restricting human rights and freedoms, civil and political: lockdowns, curfews, prohibitions of large gatherings, closures of businesses and public places, closures of schools.<\/p>\n

The same could be said of social, economic and cultural rights, where the impact of COVID-19<\/strong> are apparent, let me give just some examples:<\/p>\n