Women's rights advocates warn UN to confront backlash against progress
Voice of America
Jaha Dukureh, U.N. Women Goodwill Ambassador for Africa speaks at the U.N. Commemoration event of the International Women's Day at the U.N. General Assembly Hall, March 7, 2025 in New York.
Female activists raised their voices at the United Nations on Friday as they marked International Women's Day amid a global trend of backsliding on hard-won rights.
FILE - An observer looks at a voting machine that is to be used in future elections, in Yangon, Malaysia, on Sept. 5, 2023. Myanmar's junta chief said the warring country would hold an election in December 2025 or January 2026, the first since the military staged a coup in 2021.
FILE - A farmer carryies paddy from a field, on the outskirts of Ahmedabad, India, on Nov. 19, 2021. Analysts expect agricultural products to be a sticking point in negotiations between the U.S. and India over lowing trade barriers in 2025.
Crowds attend a demonstration marking International Women's Day in Istanbul, Turkey, on March 8, 2025. Demonstrators chant slogans during a protest marking International Women's Day in Istanbul, Turkey, on March 8, 2025.
A tree uprooted by high winds lies in the rubble of a structure in Elanora, Australia, as Cyclone Alfred passed near the Gold Coast on March 8, 2025. A man walks through the central business area of Brisbane, Australia, on March 8, 2025, as Cyclone Alfred crossed the southeast Queensland coast.
FILE - Protesters, predominantly Houthi supporters, demonstrate in solidarity with the Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, in Sanaa, Yemen, on Feb. 14, 2025.
South Korea's impeached President Yoon Suk Yeol reacts outside the Seoul detention center after his release, in Uiwang, South Korea, March 8, 2025.
FILE - A Kashmiri man waits for his pet cat to receive treatment inside a Kashmir veterinary hospital in Srinagar, Indian-controlled Kashmir, Feb. 6, 2025.
In this photo provided by the Ukrainian Emergency Service, firefighters put out the flames following a Russian rocket attack in Dobropillya, Donetsk region, Ukraine, March 8, 2025.
Reinforcement Syrian security forces deploy in Latakia, Syria, March 7, 2025. Reinforcement Syrian security forces deploy in the outskirts of Latakia, Syria, March 7, 2025.
Protesters clash with police during an Athens, Greece, rally about a deadly 2023 train crash, March 7, 2025. Protesters throw fliers as Greece's Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis speaks on the final day of a censure motion debate against the conservative government in Parliament over a deadly rail disaster, in Athens, Greece, March 7, 2025.
FILE - South Sudan President Salva Kiir, left, and First Vice President Riek Machar, right, shake hands after meetings in Juba, South Sudan, Oct. 20, 2019. Kiir appealed for calm after a U.N. helicopter was attacked and a crew member killed during a Friday rescue mission.
FILE - Activists carry a banner in support of same-sex marriage as supporters wave rainbow flags in Tokyo on March 14, 2024. The Nagoya High Court ruled on March 7, 2025, that not allowing same-sex couples the legal right to marry violates a constitutional guarantee of equality.
Thembisa Mdoda-Nxumalo, who plays on the role of Winnie, left, with Ayanda Sibisi perform during a rehearsal of the play "The Cry of Winnie Mandela" at Market Theatre in Johannesburg, South Africa, Feb. 26, 2025. Kgomotso "MoMo" Matsunyane, a director of the play "The Cry of Winnie Mandela" speaks during an interview with The Associated Press at Market Theatre in Johannesburg, South Africa, Feb. 26, 2025.