Our Time Is Now: Our Rights, Our Future

“Every girl, no matter where she is born, should be able to express her views, live free of violence and discrimination, and have a fair chance to reach her full potential.”- Michelle Bachelet, Executive Director, UN Women. In 1995 at the World Conference on Women in Beijing countries unanimously adopted the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action which arguably is the most progressive blueprint ever for advancing the rights of not only women but girls. The Beijing Declaration is the first to specifically call out girls’ rights. However, despite the increased attention regarding issues of concern to girls a significant number of girls have not been empowered to realize their true potentials. The United Nations Children’s Fund, (UNICEF) states investments in girls’ rights remain limited and girls continue to confront a myriad of challenges to fulfilling their potential; made worse by concurrent crises of climate change, COVID-19 and humanitarian conflict. Girls around the world continue to face unprecedented challenges to their education, their physical and mental wellness, and the protections needed for a life without violence. Recently in Jamaica, a 12-year-old girl and her 15-year-old sister were raped, stabbed and chopped multiple times in a predawn attack at their home; both sisters are currently in hospital. In September, a female student was raped at the Oracabessa High School in St. Mary, Jamaica. The 10th grader was reportedly found unconscious inside a bathroom by other students. In India, an 11 year girl was gang raped by two senior boys in the bathroom at her school. This incident took place in Delhi, the capital of India. Where is the outrage? Globally, girls continue to face extraordinary challenges to their survival and safety while governments continue to pay lip service to the issues which are of concern to girls and women. UNICEF further states that girls with disabilities face additional barriers to accessing support and services. COVID-19 has worsened existing burdens on girls around the world and worn away important gains made over the last decade. On December 19, 2011, United Nations General Assembly declare October 11 as The International Day of the Girl Child, to recognize girls’ rights and the unique challenges girls face around the world. The theme this year is Our time is Now: Our Rights, Our Future. The International Day of the Girl Child focuses attention on the need to address the challenges girls face and to promote girls’ empowerment and the fulfilment of their human rights. Adolescent girls have the right to a safe, educated, and healthy life, not only during these critical formative years, but also as they mature into women. More clearly needs to be done by Governments worldwide in order to create an atmosphere of gender equality and female empowerment. The structural system of patriarchy is at the genesis of the difference in treatment females face globally. A few months ago the Finnish Prime Minister, Sanna Marin, faced a backlash after being seen partying in a leaked video. The Finnish Prime Minister later said. "I have a family life, I have a work life and I have free time to spend with my friends.” Undoubtedly, her male counterparts would not have been scrutinized and policed in such a manner. Society expects females to be submissive and be home bound, the opposite of what is expected from males. This network of male domination needs to be interrogated in order to remove the structural barriers which have been erected to restrict and limit the empowerment and progress of girls worldwide. Instead a discussion is required in which more support is given during the adolescent years, girls have the potential to change the world both as the empowered girls of today and as tomorrow’s workers, mothers, entrepreneurs, mentors, household heads, and political leaders. In many societies namely Afghanistan and Iran, government officials continue to place restriction on access to education for girls, as well as the policing of female bodies. In traditional Afghan society, girls are allowed to be seen in public and therefore to attend school, until they enter puberty, that is about the age of 12 or 6th grade. Beyond that age girls are considered nubile, that is sexually mature and able to bear children, and therefore should not be seen in public. Up to 10 million girls will be at risk of child marriage. The profound effects of the COVID-19 pandemic are putting girls at higher risk of early marriage due to a combination of economic shocks, school closures and interruptions in reproductive health services. In Pursuit of Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Females Achieving gender equality and women’s empowerment is integral to each of the United Nations 17 Sustainable Development Goals. It is only by ensuring the rights of women and girls across all the goals will we get to gender justice and inclusion, and sustaining our shared environment now and for future generations. There needs to be a global push to encourage more girls into careers within Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM). There are still biases towards females who show interest in these areas. Additionally, girls need to be encouraged in traditional male areas of coding, robotics and animation. The education system needs to be revisited especially the curriculum to ensure girls are being empowered in the instructional delivery as much as what is prescribed in the syllabus. Representation is critical in fostering a belief in oneself and as such representations of girls in textbooks are imperative in the movement of female empowerment. More, and targeted investments are needed for girls globally to realize their full abilities as we strive for a more inclusive, equitable and prosperous world, one in which half of humanity is an equal partner in solving the problems of climate change, political conflict, poverty, decent work and economic growth, disease prevention, responsible consumption and production and gender equality. There must be a redoubling of effort to keep girls safe while eradicating all barriers which prevent them from accessing an education. On this the International Day of the Girl, let us celebrate the collective voices and power of girls, championing their rights worldwide for a better future. In the words of Graca Machel, if you want to break the cycle of poverty, educate a girl. Wayne Campbell is an educator and social commentator with an interest in development policies as they affect culture and or gender issues. waykam@yahoo.com @WayneCamo © #InternationalDayOfTheGirlChild