Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action (1995)

BEIJING DECLARATION AND PLATFORM FOR ACTION (1995) was adopted by consensus in 1995, at the Fourth World Conference on Women. The conference and the resulting documents were framed around an agenda for promoting women’s social, economic, and political empowerment. The Beijing Declaration embodies an international obligation to the advancement of women, with a particular emphasis on ensuring that a gender perspective is reflected in state policies and programmes. Adjunct to the Declaration is the Platform for Action, which outlines a series of measures for action in the hopes of improving the status of women at the state and international level. The Platform ends with a call for states to reconvene every five years, in order to assess the degree of progress made towards affirming and reinforcing women’s rights. This review process has been carried out faithfully, with states meeting in 2000 (Beijing +5) as well as in 2005 (Beijing +10).

The Fourth World Conference on Women was noteworthy because it drew considerable attention to the severity of the issue of violence against women. The resulting documents stressed the seriousness of violence against women, while simultaneously acknowledging that the true scope of the problem was still unclear. Indeed, the Platform for Action admitted that a lack of gender-disaggregated data made it difficult to ascertain the extent to which women are the victims of violence. By requesting states to develop improved data and statistics, the Platform for Action in effect gave a voice to the abused women whose suffering was going unnoticed. The collection of more comprehensive data on violence against women, including domestic violence, is central to revealing the actual situation of women in society. Thus, the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action contributed extensively to the effort to unearth inequalities and improve the condition of women across the globe.

Article 3, 8, 9, 14, 15, 23, 24, 25, 31, 33 ensure basic human rights of women. Article 12, 17 guarantee women’s empowerment. Article 29 reaffirms eliminating violence against women. Article 112, 113, 114, 115, 116, 117, 118, 119, 120, 121, 122, 123 defines violence against women. Article 41 declares critical areas of concern. Article 18, 19, 20, 21, 38 reify international cooperation. Article 124, 125, 126, 128, 129 make sure government and other stakeholders take the responsibility and action.

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