As the United Nations approaches its 80th anniversary, the international community finds itself at a profound crossroads. The UN Charter, drafted in the wake of global devastation, was intended to serve as a permanent blueprint for peace, dignity, and equality. Yet, as we reflect on eight decades of diplomacy, the core promise of that document—universal human rights—remains a distant reality for millions of women and girls. Today, the conversation is shifting from abstract idealism to a hard-hitting truth: women’s and girls’ rights are not peripheral concerns or optional extras. They are human rights in their most essential form, as fundamental to daily existence as the air we breathe, and they must never be treated as conditional or subject to political negotiation.
Despite the progress made since the mid-20th century, the current global landscape reveals a troubling erosion of these “everyday essentials.” From the brutal realities of modern conflict zones to the insidious rise of digital harassment, the safety and dignity of women are under a sustained and multifaceted attack. We are witnessing a period where economic injustice, systemic discrimination, and a resurgence of regressive social norms are threatening to undo decades of hard-won gains. In many corners of the globe, the basic right to live free from fear is being compromised by a culture of impunity that allows sexual violence and femicide to persist without adequate legal consequences.
The crisis of accountability is perhaps the most significant hurdle in the modern era. In far too many jurisdictions, justice systems remain broken or biased. We see this in the persistence of “honor” crimes, where legal frameworks often provide reduced penalties for perpetrators, effectively signaling that the lives of women are worth less than the outdated concepts of family reputation. We see it in the prevalence of forced marriage and the systemic corruption that prevents survivors from seeking redress. When gender stereotypes are allowed to dictate the outcome of a trial, or when laws are structured to protect the status quo rather than the victim, the rule of law itself begins to crumble. Human rights frameworks were designed specifically to prevent this kind of systemic rot, but without a robust mechanism for accountability, these frameworks remain little more than ink on paper.
The timing of this renewed focus on justice is no coincidence. We are currently standing thirty years after the landmark Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action. In 1995, the world came together in an unprecedented show of solidarity to declare that “women’s rights are human rights.” That moment was supposed to be a definitive turning point, a vision for a future where gender equality was the norm rather than the exception. As we approach the three-decade mark of that declaration, the international community is forced to ask: have we delivered on that vision? While there have been milestones to celebrate, the task of fully realizing the Beijing goals remains unfinished business.
Central to this unfinished business is the concept of access to justice. It is the vital “middle man” that transforms a political commitment into a lived reality. A law that grants a woman the right to own property or escape an abusive marriage is useless if she cannot afford a lawyer, if the police refuse to take her report, or if the courts are ideologically opposed to her autonomy. To achieve true gender equality, justice must be localized and accessible. It must be present in the laws of the land, the conduct of the courtroom, and the safety of the household. It is the mechanism that converts a “promise” into a “guarantee.”
Looking ahead, the 70th session of the Commission on the Status of Women (CSW70), scheduled for 2026, is being positioned as a critical theater for this struggle. The focus of this upcoming session will be laser-targeted on the dual goals of ending discriminatory laws and strengthening access to justice on a global scale. This is not just about changing words in a statute book; it is about dismantling the legal structures that have historically kept women in a position of secondary citizenship. The momentum building toward CSW70 represents a rare opportunity for governments to move beyond rhetoric and commit to the structural reforms necessary to protect the vulnerable.
Amidst these global challenges, organizations like UN Women are working on the front lines to bridge the gap between international policy and local impact. Their work serves as a testament to what can be achieved when resources are directed toward legal empowerment. A prime example is the Gender Justice Platform, a collaborative initiative that has proven to be a lifeline for those navigating hostile legal environments. In the last year alone, this platform facilitated justice services for more than 125,000 individuals—women who might otherwise have been silenced by a system designed to ignore them.
The impact of these initiatives is visible in a wave of recent legal reforms across diverse political landscapes. In Mexico, the push for gender equality has reached the highest level of legal protection through constitutional guarantees, ensuring that these rights are shielded from the whims of changing administrations. In Albania, the passage of a comprehensive gender equality law has set a new standard for the region, while in nations as varied as Bahrain, Guyana, Honduras, Malaysia, and Mali, significant strides have been made to strengthen legal protections against domestic and systemic violence. These are not just legislative footnotes; they are the result of tireless advocacy and a recognition that a nation’s stability is inextricably linked to the status of its women.
However, the work is far from over. As the world celebrates Human Rights Day, the global community is reminded that the fight for dignity is a constant endeavor. Human rights are not a destination we reach and then abandon; they are the foundation upon which peace and development are built. When women are denied justice, the entire structure of society becomes unstable. Economic growth is stunted when half the population is barred from full participation, and peace remains elusive when the voices of women are excluded from the negotiating table.
The call to action on this Human Rights Day is clear: we must move with a renewed sense of purpose. We must challenge the narrative that women’s rights are a “luxury” to be addressed only after more “urgent” issues like security or the economy are settled. The truth is that there is no security without the safety of women, and there is no healthy economy without the fair treatment of female workers.
As we look toward the 80th anniversary of the United Nations and the 30th anniversary of the Beijing Declaration, the goal is to ensure that the next generation of girls does not have to fight the same battles for basic recognition. We must secure a world where dignity is the default, equality is the law, and justice is available to every woman, regardless of her geography or economic status. The path forward requires more than just signatures on a treaty; it requires the political will to enforce those treaties and the moral courage to stand up against the erosion of rights wherever it occurs. Human rights are our everyday essentials, and it is time we started treating them as such.
