CSW61 recognizes importance of SRHR for women’s economic rights, independence and empowerment

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An important win for women’s rights activists at the 61st session of the UN Commission on the Status of Women as the Commission recognized sexual and reproductive health and rights as human rights of women, “that include their right to have control over and decide freely and responsibly on all matters related to their sexuality, including sexual and reproductive health, free of coercion, discrimination and violence, as a contribution to the fulfilment of their economic rights, independence and empowerment”.

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The outcome of the 61st Commission on the Status of Women also recognizes governments’ responsibility to tackle violence and harassment of women on the work floor and need to protect their sexual and reproductive rights. 

With empowerment and the changing world of work as this year’s focus, the Commission also recognized that women continue to shoulder the bulk of unpaid care and domestic work, and established a blueprint for governments to reduce and redistribute this work through public services, labour and social protections, and affordable child and other care services. 

Despite the progressive outcome of the negotiations, the Commission remained reluctant to name specific groups of people who suffer from marginalization in all regions of the world because of their race, ethnicity, caste, class, disability, age, HIV status, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression or sex characteristics.