“Unimpeded access to quality sexual and reproductive health care is essential for women’s rights and gender equality’’, said today the Council of Europe Commissioner for Human Rights, Dunja Mijatović, on International Women’s Day.
“In my recent report on sexual and reproductive health and rights, I called on member states to comply with international human rights standards in the field and ensure an enabling environment in which women and girls can freely exercise these rights.
Despite recent progress in Europe – such as increased access to contraception and abortion care, improved quality of obstetric care and advancement in the provision of comprehensive sexuality education in schools – women and girls are still confronted with a number of challenges, barriers and deficits in access to affordable contraceptive services, quality abortion care, and dignified and respectful obstetric and gynaecological healthcare. In some member states, these challenges are being compounded by new regressive developments. Urgent action is particularly needed to ensure that all women and girls, including women and girls with disabilities, Roma women and girls, older women, and refugees, asylum seeking and migrant women, can fully enjoy their sexual and reproductive health and rights free from discrimination.
On this International Women’s Day, I also wish to pay a tribute to women’s rights defenders, for their tireless efforts in promoting sexual and reproductive health and rights in Europe. Women’s rights defenders, through their admirable work and courage, are actively contributing to building societies free from prejudices and discrimination against women and girls and their entitlement to sexual and reproductive health and rights. Threats and harassment against women’s rights defenders must be prevented, investigated and sanctioned, while their efforts to promote and protect sexual and reproductive rights should be encouraged and supported.
For the full realisation of women’s and girls’ sexual and reproductive health and rights, my recommendations to member states include:
Guaranteeing the provision of comprehensive sexuality education;
Ensuring availability and accessibility of affordable contraceptive services and evidence-based information on contraception;
Eliminating remaining barriers and restrictions to guarantee access to quality abortion care, including evidence-based information on abortion;
Ensuring dignified and respectful gynaecological and obstetric care, free from discrimination and violence;
Establishing effective measures to tackle intersecting forms of discrimination that limit the equal enjoyment of sexual and reproductive health and rights;
Preventing regression in the protection of sexual and reproductive health and rights and providing enabling conditions for the work of human rights defenders acting to advance sexual and reproductive health and rights.”
- Read the Commissioner’s report ‘Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights: Progress and Challenges’