Women’s Rights: A Historical Perspective and Current Challenges
The Conquest of Women’s Rights
Traditionally, the role of women throughout history has often been overlooked. Historically, women were often relegated to the care of the family home and lacked significant rights. In the eighteenth century, the ideas of the Enlightenment, especially the concepts of freedom and equality, began to shift the consciousness of women regarding their situation. Thus, in 1791, Olympe de Gouges wrote the Declaration of the Rights of Woman and Citizen, claiming rights such as freedom and property.
In the nineteenth century, the suffragist movement emerged in the USA and the UK, advocating for women’s rights, particularly the right to vote, which was not achieved until the twentieth century.
In the twentieth century, women, especially in the West, achieved various rights, many of which were the result of the feminist movement that emerged in the latter half of the century. Similarly, conventions and declarations were established, proclaiming non-discrimination against women and obligating states to take measures to prevent such actions. In 1979, the UN General Assembly adopted the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women.
The Third and Fourth World Conferences on Women, held in Nairobi (Kenya) in 1985 and Beijing (China) in 1995, respectively, analyzed the role of women in the world and adopted measures to achieve recognition of women’s social rights, equality, and development.
Rights of Women Today
Today, although most countries recognize the legal equality of women, effective equality has not yet been fully achieved:
- There is still discrimination in positions of responsibility in politics and companies. For example, the number of women executives in large companies is substantially lower; around 27% in the European Union, 7.5% in the US, and 3% in Spain.
- Wage discrimination persists, with women often receiving lower salaries for the same job.
- Reconciliation between work and family life remains a challenge. In the past 30 years, the number of women working outside the home has increased significantly, but women still primarily handle the care of the home, children, and family.
- Violence against women persists.
To achieve effective equality, positive action has been implemented, such as reserving a fixed quota of seats in politics and workplaces for women, aiming to achieve equality in the near future.
In many underdeveloped countries, achieving effective legal equality remains a challenge, as discrimination against women persists. For example, women may face difficulties accessing education, be forced into marriage, or experience high mortality rates during childbirth. Violence against women is also prevalent.
Human rights must be protected by each state within its territory through laws that should be enforced. However, sometimes the state itself does not respect these rights (e.g., not recognizing the rights of migrants or people imprisoned for their political or religious beliefs), and therefore does not pursue their violation.
For this reason, international tribunals have been created, charged with protecting human rights in countries where they are violated.