Türk called for action to enable the ‘equal and meaningful’ participation of women in public life

“The patriarch must be a thing of the past. Our future depends on women and girls being at the table everywhere when we make decisions,” said Volker Türk, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights.

Only 1 in 4 parliamentarians are women

“It was last year that for the first time in history Women are represented in every working parliament in the world. However today, only one of the four parliaments are women”, he continued.

The UN Office for Human Rights (OHCHR) is highlighting women’s participation in public and political life in June as part of its monthly highlights, marking the 75th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

The High Commissioner urged states, legislators, journalists, civil society, the private sector and all active citizens to take actionEstablishing a series of steps that need to be taken begins with addressing the root causes of gender-based discrimination.

He said there should be greater emphasis on education and promotion and called for greater recognition of the amount of unpaid care work which falls disproportionately on women.

It calls for attention to give share, reserved seats and training opportunities to expand for women working in legislative bodies and other important institutions, as well as the private sector.

Zero tolerance of coercion

UN treaty bodies need to make the push for gender equality, and zero tolerance against bullying and violence related to women in politics, including online, need to become the norm.

And female designers need to have greater visibility, Mr. Turk said.

“At the current rate of change it will take 155 years for women to close the gender gap. This struggle is especially hard for historically marginalized women whose representation is behind. “

“Something said, this is a wake up call“, said the UN rights chief.

“Parity cannot stand. Equal participation and meaning of women in practice it’s not just about women’s right to be heardit is about the ability of our communities to face the most pressing challenges facing our world today.”