HRC62 - EU General Comment - The elimination of all forms of discrimination against women and girls in care and support systems
UN Human Rights Council
62th session – Item 3
L.16 – General Comment
The elimination of all forms of discrimination against women and girls in care and support systems
EU General Comment
Mr President,
I have the honour to speak on behalf of the EU Member States that are members of the Human Rights Council. This General Comment has been agreed by the European Union as a whole.
We thank Mexico, Iceland and Spain for their commitment to advancing the rights of all women and girls and express our strong support for draft resolution L.16 on the elimination of all forms of discrimination against women and girls in care and support systems.
This resolution reminds us that multiple and intersecting forms discrimination against women and girls remains a human rights violation that breaches the principle of equality.
The European Union welcomes the resolution’s emphasis on care and support systems as a prerequisite for gender equality. Women and girls continue to shoulder a disproportionate share of unpaid care and domestic work, limiting their educational opportunities, labour market participation, economic independence and full, equal and meaningful participation in decision-making over the entire life-course.
As reflected in the EU Action Plan on Human Rights and Democracy and the European Commission’s Gender Action Plan III, investing in the care economy is essential to dismantle structural barriers to gender equality such as patriarchal social norms, gender stereotypes and unequal power relations. It is crucial to promote equal sharing of responsibilities, improve work-life balance, and equal pay for work of equal value and adequate social protection.
Finally, we commend the innovative approach taken by the core group in bringing together two closely connected agendas and merging the resolutions on the elimination of all forms of discrimination against women and girls and the resolution on the provision of care. This contributes to the Council’s rationalisation efforts while strengthening the coherence and impact of its normative work.
We therefore encourage all delegations to join consensus and reject any attempt to undermine the hard-won human rights of women and girls.
I thank you.