GENDER EQUALITY

Gender equality is, first and foremost, a human right, and refers to the equal "rights, responsibilities and opportunities" of all genders [1]. This includes equal access to education, employment, pay, healthcare, leadership roles and representation in decision-making. Equality does not imply sameness, but rather that the rights of women, men, transgender, intersex and gender diverse people do not depend on the gender with which they were born or identify [2]. It also implies that "the interests, needs and priorities of all genders are taken into consideration, recognising the diversity of different groups" [3].

Gender inequality constitutes discrimination prohibited under human rights law [4]. States are required to eliminate both direct and indirect forms of discrimination, in particular against women. Despite these legal obligations, gender inequality remains deeply rooted in most, if not all, societies. It plays a major role in the occurrence of gender-based violence, as well as in inadequate responses to it, including through the persistence of harmful gender norms and stereotypes that perpetuate inequality, impunity and exclusion.

International human rights law distinguishes between formal and substantive equality. Formal equality, or de jure equality, requires that laws, policies and practices be applied equally, regardless of gender [5]. Substantive equality, or de facto equality, goes further by recognising that identical treatment is insufficient where structural disadvantage and historical discrimination persist. It therefore requires measures that address the root causes of inequality in order to achieve equal outcomes in practice. This distinction has been progressively developed through the jurisprudence of the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW Committee), in particular in General Recommendations No. 25 (2004) and No. 28 (2010), and has been reaffirmed by the UN Human Rights Council Working Group on Discrimination against Women and Girls [6].

GENDER JUSTICE

Gender justice is both a process and an outcome that depends on creating gender equality by ending discrimination and oppression on the basis of gender, as well as providing redress for existing inequalities [7]. It has several dimensions, including recognition of equal rights and access to justice for women, girls and individuals with diverse gender identities or expressions; redistribution of power to ensure "equal access to, and control over, resources, services and opportunities"; and equal representation and participation in "social, political and economic decision-making processes at all levels" [8]. In the context of sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV), gender justice requires that the gendered causes, patterns and impacts of violence are recognised, addressed and remedied, including through accountability for perpetrators, and reparations for survivors/victims. It also requires dismantling the discriminatory norms and structures that enable SGBV to occur, remain unaddressed or inadequately addressed, and to persist.

There can be no gender justice without equal rights under the law, including "the entire machinery of law making, law interpretation, law application and law enforcement" [9]. Achieving it depends not only on legal reform and the removal of discriminatory laws and policies, but also on efforts to "counter harmful social norms and practices, institutionalised discrimination, lack of access to resources, services and opportunities, and gender roles and stereotypes arising from patriarchal power relations" [10]. Gender justice "requires addressing the underlying structural barriers that perpetuate gender discrimination and inequality" [11].

Gender Justice Platform

Launched by UNDP and UN Women in 2022, the Gender Justice Platform is a framework for strategic cooperation to close the gender justice gap and promote access to justice. It brings together governments, civil society, academic and UN entities to support a vision of the rule of law and system-building that works for women and girls and to increase public accountability of justice systems. The platform also supports the meaningful participation of survivors/victims in "shaping justice and security institutions, processes and outcomes" [12].

The terms gender equality and gender justice are often used together, reflecting their close interdependence. While gender equality describes the equal rights, responsibilities and opportunities to which all people are entitled, gender justice encompasses both the processes through which those rights are realised, including legal reform and institutional accountability, and the outcomes of redress and remedy for those who have been harmed by existing inequalities.