Women’s Rights in the Modern World: Restrictions, Wage Gaps, and the Fight for Equality

Women’s Rights in the Modern World: Restrictions, Wage Gaps, and the Fight for Equality

Women perform 3.5 times more unpaid work than men. Last month, women in Turkmenistan were banned from dyeing their hair and driving without a male companion. In Afghanistan, women have been prohibited from playing sports since last year. In Saudi Arabia, women cannot undergo surgery without a man’s permission. Even in Europe, Poland has banned abortions. In the United States, this right is no longer constitutional, and more than half of the states may ban abortions. Let’s delve deeper into how women’s rights are upheld worldwide.

The Brutality of Modernity: Restrictions on Education, Work, and Freedom

Recently, the president of Turkmenistan imposed strict restrictions on women’s rights and freedoms. Although many laws in the country are enforced without public announcement due to internet restrictions, this issue has caused a resonance.

Fines for false eyelashes, dismissals for Botox, and other discriminatory policies have been ongoing since the 1990s. However, Turkmenistan is not the only country where women’s rights are limited.

Saudi Arabia

In Saudi Arabia, women were only allowed to participate in the Olympic Games in 2008. However, a woman still cannot travel there on her own. Every woman must have a guardian who makes important decisions on her behalf, such as getting married, obtaining an education, going to work, or even undergoing surgery.

Yemen

In Yemen, a girl cannot go out without a man. Education is also a challenge: there are 50% fewer girls than boys in primary schools, and not all girls complete even basic education.

Afghanistan

Last year, Afghan authorities banned women from playing sports due to the possibility of their bodies or faces being uncovered. In August of the same year, local female journalists and human rights activists were murdered, and there were mass floggings of women.

On the streets of cities, advertisements featuring women began to be painted over. Additionally, in some regions of the country, playing music and broadcasting female presenters were banned.

Female Genital Mutilation

Women still undergo the horrific practice of female genital mutilation in countries across the Middle East and Africa. In 2012, the United Nations General Assembly adopted a resolution to end female genital mutilation. However, not all states adhere to the signed document. Moreover, this operation is legally prohibited in 24 countries, but the law is still violated.

Such operations are also carried out in Russia. According to the Legal Initiative organization, more than 1,240 girls become victims of genital mutilation annually in the North Caucasus.

Wage Gap

According to a global UN study, women earn 77 cents for every dollar men earn for the same work. Undoubtedly, the situation has improved significantly over the past few years, thanks largely to women themselves. 150 years ago, men’s pay for equal work was twice that of women. At that time, Englishwoman Emma Paterson created the Women’s Protection and Provident League, and throughout the 20th century, women constantly organized strikes until the issue gained attention.

According to the Global Gender Gap Index, Belarus ranks 33rd in the world and 6th in Western Europe. This means that the gender pay gap in our country is small. Interestingly, the gender pay gap is more common in state-owned enterprises than in private businesses.

Unpaid Domestic Work

Women make up about 50% of the world’s population, but their contribution to GDP is only 37%. This is largely because domestic work and childcare are not included in GDP calculations.

Experts from the International Labor Organization (ILO) have calculated that women spend 201 working days annually on unpaid domestic work (including caring for relatives and loved ones), while men spend only 63 working days. This means that women spend four hours and 25 minutes daily on household chores, while men spend only one hour and 23 minutes. Thus, women are 3.5 times more burdened with domestic work than men.

The problem arose in the late 1970s and continues to this day. Even in gender-balanced countries like Canada, the United States, and the United Kingdom, the issue remains open. According to the Office for National Statistics, even in the United Kingdom, women perform 60% more unpaid work than men.

In 2020, the University of Edinburgh recorded that the situation worsened with the onset of the pandemic. Many people worked from home, so the “second shift” at home became even more noticeable. As a result, scientists noted increased levels of stress and burnout among women.

Parental Leave

The situation with parental leave also leaves much to be desired. In many countries, childcare is considered a woman’s responsibility. However, there are gradually positive shifts, especially in European countries.

In the 1970s, Sweden decided to make parental leave gender-neutral, followed by Iceland, Denmark, Norway, and Finland. Some countries have introduced special “father quotas”—days of paid leave that the father cannot transfer to the mother. A Norwegian study from the 1990s indicates that father quotas and leave contribute to the employment of women who have given birth.

In Belarus, by law, the father can take parental leave, but very few take advantage of this opportunity.

Abortion Laws

In 2020, Poland tightened its abortion laws, and now women cannot terminate a pregnancy even due to fetal defects. There have been cases where this ban has led to the death of women. In the United States, there is a possibility that the Supreme Court will revoke women’s absolute right to abortion. Then the issue of abortion will be left to regional authorities—lawmakers in different states. Many seriously (and not without reason) fear that some states will ban abortions.

Although the Supreme Court recognized the right to abortion in the United States in 1973, with the formulation that the ban on abortion is unconstitutional because it violates women’s right to privacy. The historic decision was signed by Judge Harry Blackmun; all other judges were also men.

Equal Rights

Equal rights for genders are enshrined in many documents, such as the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the UN Charter, the European Convention on Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms of the Council of Europe, the European Social Charter, the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the EU, and many others.

However, not all countries consider it necessary to sign or comply with them. Some sign and do not ratify (i.e., give legal force), and if necessary, simply withdraw from the signed conventions. A striking example is the Istanbul Convention, which provides measures against violence against women and domestic violence.

Russia and Belarus did not join the convention. Hungary signed but did not ratify it, as they believe that recognizing gender violence “threatens Hungarian culture, laws, traditions, and national values.” And Poland simply withdrew from it in 2020.

Perhaps if women made decisions at the government level, these issues would be resolved differently. However, according to the UN, slightly more than 20% of women are in ministries, departments, and governments worldwide. This is the best indicator in the history of mankind.