International Women’s Day emerged from the struggles of working-class women advocating for fair wages, better working conditions, and voting rights. Yet today, corporate power and abuse have expanded, with a few corporations and ultra-wealthy men wielding unchecked influence that impacts the lives of billions without accountability.
- Human Rights do not happen in a void. Currently, a total of 3.3 billion people live in countries that spend more on interest payments than on education, health or climate investment. How can we expect that the standards that we negotiate and push for in this Council are implemented without even the possibility of adequate resourcing, which is forced by the international financial architecture?
- While progress has been made, significant gaps remain in ensuring equitable access to youth-friendly sexual and reproductive health (SRH) information and services. Many adolescents and young people, especially in rural and hard-to-reach areas, continue to face barriers such as inadequate health infrastructure, shortages of trained healthcare providers, and financial constraints that prevent them from accessing essential services.
- Despite policy advancements in Albania, significant gaps remain in the protection and support of workers, particularly women in rural areas. Labour rights violations persist, especially for women who face systemic barriers to employment and economic security. Whilst the government adopted the National Strategy for Employment and Skills (2023–2030), rural women remain disproportionately excluded from the workforce. Limited access to childcare, a lack of vocational training, and deep-rooted gender norms restrict their participation, leaving them vulnerable to poverty and economic dependence.
- We call on the international community to support the DRC's efforts to build institutional capacity, raise community awareness and ensure access to affordable and quality reproductive health services. These measures will help to reduce maternal mortality, promote gender equality and respect women's rights.
- The liquidity crisis has led to cuts in Special Procedures’ activities and limited engagement opportunities for rights holders. States cannot continue defunding the Special Procedures system, which they have created, thereby preventing them from fulfilling their essential mandates. States must pay their dues in full and on time. We ask the Coordination Committee and the Secretariat to regularly update and consult with civil society on the impact of the liquidity crisis and other challenges and developments affecting Special Procedures and OHCHR, and to make that information public and easily accessible.
- We welcome the Independent Expert’s report. As it remarks, Global South countries are most affected by a climate crisis they did not cause and by an inequitable global financial system. They are struggling with increasing debt levels, forced to borrow more money, often just to repay existing debts, with IMF- and World Bank-imposed austerity measures, including cuts to public spending and privatization of essential services affecting disproportionately women, children, elderly, racialized and marginalized communities.
- More action is needed to address the intersectional challenges of women with disabilities living in rural areas, including young and indigenous women and other structurally excluded communities. Investment in developing the leadership of such women is key. We call for urgent implementation measures to combat violence based on gender and disability, including femicides. Even when legal frameworks exist, implementation, access to justice and to crisis centers are extremely limited for women with disabilities.
- We commend and appreciate the efforts of the Special Rapporteur in highlighting the rights of women and girls with disabilities by aligning the Beijing+30 review with commitments made in UNCRPD and SDG. We also thank her for spotlighting the leadership of women with disabilities in the regional B+30 processes.
- Housing is more than shelter. It is a fundamental determinant of health, safety, and well-being. Migrants, particularly those with irregular status, face systemic barriers to securing safe housing, leaving them vulnerable to exploitation, ill health, displacement, gender-based violence, and human rights violations. In Canada, many migrant workers, especially in agricultural and caregiving sectors, and international students endure overcrowded and unsafe conditions with little recourse when facing exploitation, violence, or eviction.
- We should not need the numbers to know that we are pushing millions of people into a health crisis. In the 80s and 90s, millions of people died from AIDS-related illnesses that were treatable and from HIV transmission that was preventable. Callous and calculating states, along with unregulated pharma companies, made it clear that those most affected were disposable – while those who could pay were a source of profit.
- The Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action have long been heralded as a pivotal moment in the recognition of women’s rights. While feminists fought fearlessly for a declaration many also noted its shortcomings. Those concerns remain relevant today.
- We need a new sustainable development model that prioritises equal and equitable access to all resources for all, and which values people over profits. On the occasion of International Safe Abortion Day, we call for an intersectional feminist model to development that centres the voices of women, girls and gender-diverse persons in determining indicators to measure global development.
- This council must act now to prevent itself from collapsing under the weight of its own compromise and complicity. We call on all states to end colonial domination and oppression, discrimination and persecution - we ask the states, if you can't hold genocidal regimes to account, how can we expect anyone else to adhere to accountability mechanisms.
- We regret that there were no recommendations explicitly made on the rights of sex workers. Whilst current legislation does not criminalize sex work, the 2008 Law on the Suppression of Human Trafficking and Sexual Exploitation prohibits activities associated with sex work, leading many to believe that sex work itself is illegal.
- This Panel is unique in its design as a self-assessing mechanism for the Council to evaluate its progress in integrating a gender perspective in all its mechanisms. However, we found that it has lost its internal focus and moved away from its mandated goal.
We urge the government to prioritise the development of a national plan for the inclusion of comprehensive sexuality education in school curricula as a mandatory subject. Access to comprehensive sexuality education will empower them to make informed decisions about their bodies, sexual and reproductive health, sexuality, and relationships. Comprehensive sexuality education is crucial for promoting gender equality, reducing violence, and enhancing the well-being of students across North Macedonia.
The principle of universality must be applied to challenge which families are considered to be worthy of state protection and therefore which family members are entitled to human rights, according to the state. At this very moment, we are witnessing families being decimated in service of a racist, colonial state and its expansionist aspirations. Are these family members not entitled to human rights?
- Sex workers are habitually denied opportunities to participate in international human rights platforms, such as the HRC. Many of us are refused visas and lack funding to travel and participate in UN processes. Human rights are universal. You cannot promote the human rights of some people while excluding others.
- The study is crucial in a context of willful denial by many Global North states of the right to development, its collective dimensions, and its aim of ending economic colonialism and dependency - the same states that directly benefit from our unequal international economic order.