The United Nations Human Rights Campaign Against Violence Towards Women

The United Nations is useful to humankind in that it puts checks on every country on Earth's actions against its citizens. One of its organs: the Security Council, maintains international peace and security, ensuring that minimal wars occur. Another organ, the Economic and Social Council, has subcommittees under it such as the Committee on Human Rights and the Committee on the Status of Women. The U.N. has a 24 hour fax "hot line" at Geneva, Switzerland to report human rights violations. Also the newest of the International Court of Justice provides all humanity justice against rulers, soldiers, etc. who commit war crimes or crimes against humanity (such as genocide). All of these functions of the U.N. are vital to our world's treatment of its people. If you would like to see what the world would be like without it, you only have to ask a Holocaust victim or anyone who lived with the fear that World War II placed over Earth before the United Nations was founded.

The U.N. has made one of its biggest human rights campaigns against the violence towards women because as the 1996 Beijing Conference stated, it is at the very foundation of human rights for all. Woman make up a little over 50% of the world's population and are responsible for the care and upbringing of children, disabled, etc. Violence against women cuts across cultural and religious boundaries and affects women in all socio-economic and educational classes. Even if an educated woman is a citizen of "first world" country, she may be subject to rape, molestation, incest, pornography, etc. If a woman is poor, living in a country like China, India, Somalia or Ethiopia, she may face son preference, genital mutilation, the dangers of being a migrant worker, early marriage, or dowry-related violence. Violence doesn't care if you're American, Japanese, Korean, European, or African; many women suffer everyday and the U.N. is the one body that can cut across borders to prevent it.

The forms of violence women face vary according to culture, origin, war-status of country, and age. In some African cultures, it is a tradition for a woman to be genitally mutilated (or "circumcised") when she reaches the age of puberty. This is to ensure that she remains "intact" for her future husband. If she does not remain pure until then, no man will pay a dowry for her and she will be banished from her community, perhaps even killed. To ensure a handsome dowry, poor families sometimes force their daughters into early marriage (12 years of age) to an older man. When this couple procreates they wish for a son, if a girl is produced, sometimes it will be aborted or killed upon birth. Boys are more valued in cultures of hard work and in which they can carry on the family name. In China, this is also the case because of population limits, couples in urban areas are only allowed to have one child.

In all countries and cultures, women face rape, molestation, incest, discrimination and verbal/physical abuse. In poor countries, women may have to migrate to other areas for work. Many acts of violence are often perpetrated against them such as rape by employers, theft of passport papers so they are forced to be "slaves", and forced pornography, or prostitution. When a country is at war, its women and girls are often raped by soldiers pillaging their towns or forced into pregnancy by soldiers who are leaving their country to fight the enemy and want to procreate to ensure a growing population. Even if a woman tries to flee her country at a time of war, rape occurs at refugee check points. They are made into "comfort women" by passing soldiers or are abused and not allowed to leave the country. This was specifically true in Korea by the Japanese in World War II.

Solutions to violence against women must involve the United Nations and work with their Commission on Human Rights and Commission on the Status of Women. The Security Council may be used to enforce such solutions in countries all over the world. The International Court of Justice must try and punish those who condone, participate in, or allow crimes against women occur. Possible solutions are providing more relief globally to cultures who produce migrant workers so that these women are not forced into vulnerable surroundings to make a living. In relation to genital mutilation and other traditional cultural forms of violence, the U.N. should not allow such practices to be mandatory and should treat them as crimes against humanity. In situations of war, the U.N. should provide women workers at refugee checkpoints to prevent rape and abuse by male soldiers. In cases of pornography and child prostitution by one country's women enforced by the men of another country, the U. N. should put into place restrictions against such activities, holding both countries liable for its citizens actions (punishing the men involved).

With commissions already in place and cooperation from country's leaders and relief aid from more economically advanced countries, violence against women can be prevented. It is the first step in human rights for all and the U.N. is the only body that can pull everyone together to accomplish the noble goal.