The Illusion of Progress: Evaluating U.N. Women’s Rights Instruments
Though the realm of international women’s rights has overcome significant challenges, scope is often restricted to gender discrimination violations that are de jure rather than de facto in nature. These advancements concerning the rights of women can, to an extent, be attributed to the proactiveness of the United Nations. This paper seeks to identify the instruments the U.N. has developed for the protection of the human rights of women and address their subsequent effectiveness. By examining developed instruments, cultural patterns, and historical examples, the U.N. has and continues to make a concerted effort toward ensuring de jure protections. Enforced by analysis of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women, discrepancies between what the U.N. classifies as human rights and the human rights of women become apparent. Still, the de facto discrimination against women in states with contrasting governmental structures and cultural mores is not customarily accounted for by the United Nations. Questions remain in regards to whether or not the U.N. can or should be responsible for remedying the global variance in de facto discrimination against women. It is suggested that the United Nations shift its focus toward strict instrument enforcement.