Women’s rights: the two-minute version

It has taken centuries for women to get to this point.

Many of us live in societies in which we have more rights than ever: the right to vote, the right to work, the right to an education, the right to participate in politics, the right to determine our reproductive and sexual health.

These rights didn’t appear out of nowhere. We owe it to the women and men championing the fight for gender equality worldwide.

To celebrate the amazing successes of the women’s rights movement, we take a look at how it all began, how women have achieved equality around the world, and what still needs to happen.

Let’s talk about gender equality

Men and women deserve equal treatment in political, economic and social activity — that’s a fact.

Everyone is entitled to the rights and freedoms outlined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (1948), yet the reality for most women worldwide is unfair, gender-based discrimination in education, property and employment.

Promoting gender equality is crucial to economic prosperity. It is in the 
best interests of nations to adopt equal rights into legislation and ensure half 
the population is not underrepresented.

Colonel Jamila Bayaz, the first Afghan policewoman appointed to lead the Kabul district, inspects her base. Afghanistan has about 160,000 police, of whom 1,500 are women © EPA/S. SABAWOON

A brief history of the women’s rights movement

The true origin of the women’s rights movement is often debated. What’s clear is the undeniable courage of the influential women and men standing up for equal rights throughout history.

The suffragette movement is a landmark in the fight for equality in Australia. It started around the late 19th century with New Zealand granting women the right to vote in 1893. Progress was slow in other areas around the world; well into the 20th century, women were still campaigning for their voting rights. Australian suffragettes won the vote in 1902, when the Commonwealth decided the election results should reflect the views of all people.

In the 19th century, women began to speak out against laws determining their property and wages being controlled by husbands. No longer were women submissive about their place in a marriage, rejecting the vow promising to “obey” their husband.

Women voiced their concerns on a lack of reproductive rights and sexual health as denying women the right to a life free from discrimination and violence. Worldwide, women were, and in some cases still are, prevented from exercising their reproductive and sexual freedom, including the right to a legal and safe abortion, the right to birth control and the right to sexual education.

Unknown suffragette © Flickr / ecolabs

How far have we come?

If it wasn’t for the plight of women’s rights activists, many more women across the globe could be living difficult lives, with no education, job, or property.

The women’s rights movement empowered women to take on leadership roles in the community, government and business. More and more women are pursuing careers in formerly male dominated industries and gaining promotion into senior positions. However, in virtually all sectors, women are still underrepresented and this remains an obstacle to achieving gender equality.

Violence against women is a major form of human rights abuse, yet to be stamped out for good and women and girls in certain countries are still forced in early marriages, pregnancy and face gender-based violence and discrimination, excluding them from opportunities and an economic future.

However, it is most certainly not all doom and gloom.

The right to education for women and girls around the world is slowly happening and the empowerment of women through education and economic rights has proven to be a force for ending poverty.

However, although women’s rights activists such as Malala Yousafzai serve as strong and inspirational role models, it is up to ordinary women and men everywhere to take a stand for gender equality and progress towards a united society.

Education advocate Malala Yousafzai © EPA/ANDREW GOMBERT

How Amnesty has promoted women’s rights

Amnesty International has campaigned tirelessly both in Australia and globally to ensure women and girls in Afghanistan are protected, enjoy their full set of human rights, and are empowered and supported in leading changes in their lives.

Between 2013 and 2014, 95,000 Amnesty International supporters in Australia signed our petition calling on the incoming President of Afghanistan to protect and strengthen the rights of women and girls.

Despite still being one of the worst countries in the world to be female, Afghan women are determined to keep fighting for their human rights and to ensure they are central to peace and reconciliation talks and have meaningful political representation.

Amnesty International’s Stop Violence Against Women achieved incredible outcomes for gender equality globally.

In 2010, the Australian Government committed to releasing a National Plan of Action to reduce violence against women and their children.

Success was not limited to Australia — as a result of pressure from Amnesty International and its supporters, the United States increased funding for its Violence Against Women Act (VAWA), Iceland put in place legislation to ban female genital mutilation, and the Mongolian Parliament unanimously passed a law against domestic violence.

Afghan women’s rights activists demonstrate against a controversial law for Afghanistan which regulates the personal affairs of minority Shia community in April 2009. The law has since been revised © Pajhwok Afghan News

Women have equal rights now and fight is over, right?

Not quite. Discrimination and violence against women is still a prevalent concern in society, and gender-based issues are yet to be tackled completely.

Although progress has been made, every day thousands of women and girls are abused and murdered by their families, raped in armed conflicts and attacked for defending their rights.

We still need your help to change the lives of women and girls around the world.

A Italian woman places a red shoe, the symbol of Walk a Mile in Her Shoes campaign, on Saint Annunziata Square in Florence, Italy, in March 2014. The event forms part of the wider ‘Walk a Mile in Her Shoes’ global campaign that aims to promote gender equality by encouraging men to overcome psychological barriers, and combat sexual violence by breaking gender stereotypes © EPA/MAURIZIO DEGL’ INNOCENTI

How you can help

20-year-old child bride Razieh Ebrahimi was sentenced to death in Iran for the murder of her husband.

Razieh, who was married to her husband at the age of 14, reportedly admitted to shooting her husband while he was asleep in 2010. The mother of one said she did so after years of being abused, physically and psychologically. At 17 years old, she was still a child at the time of the crime.

Since 2009, Iran has executed at least 11 child offenders, making it the country with the world’s highest number of child executions.

You can help Razieh by taking action today. Send an email to Ayatollah Sayed Ali Khamenei demanding Iran immediately halt the execution of Razieh Ebrahimi.