The basic rights of all human beings are established by the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) and its two subsequent treaties, the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) and the International Covenant on Economic, Social, and Cultural Rights (ICESCR). All of the articles in these documents apply equally to men and women. However, women enjoy far from equal treatment: they are more likely to be poor, to suffer from domestic violence, to be victims of trafficking, and to lack access to positions of political or economic power. In order to address continuing discrimination, several documents attempt to clarify the rights of women, including the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW), the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action, and the Declaration on the Elimination of Violence against Women (DEVAW). Taken together, these documents affirm the rights of women to non-discrimination,¹⁴ to sexual and reproductive autonomy,¹⁵ to equal access to resources,¹⁶ to freedom from violence,¹⁷ to fully engage in economic development,¹⁸ and to full participation in every realm of society.

ALL WOMEN HAVE A RIGHT TO:

SAFETY AND SECURITY: The right to life, liberty, and security of person.¹ The right to be free from violence within the family² and to protection from exploitation and abuse.³

EQUAL PROTECTION AND DUE PROCESS: The right to be treated equally under the law and be protected by the law without discrimination.⁴

NON-DISCRIMINATION: The right to live free from personal and institutional discrimination based on one’s sex.⁵

WORK: The right to work, including equal pay for equal work, equal employment opportunities⁶ and paid maternity or other benefits that ensure women do not lose employment, seniority, or benefits due to pregnancy.⁷

EDUCATION: Equal access to and equal opportunity in all forms and aspects of education regardless of sex.⁸

HEALTH: The right to the highest attainable level of physical and mental health and equal access to health services, including family planning and reproductive health.⁹

HOUSING: Access to affordable, secure, and stable housing,¹⁰ with special emphasis on meeting the needs of women living in poverty and female heads of household.¹¹

POLITICAL PARTICIPATION: The right to vote, to stand for election, to be involved in formulating government policy and to actively participate in political life.¹²