ABSTRACT

The transformation of human rights from a feminist perspective is crucial to addressing global challenges to human rights in the twenty-first century. The lack of understanding of women's rights as human rights is reflected in the fact that few governments are committed, in domestic or foreign policy, to women's equality as a basic human right. The United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights, adopted in 1948, defines human rights broadly and symbolizes a world vision of respect for the humanity of all people. Every state has the responsibility to intervene in the abuse of women's rights within its borders and to end its collusion with the forces that perpetrate such violations in other countries. Gender-based violence is not the only form of human rights abuse that women suffer, but it is one in which the gendered aspect of such abuse is often the most clear.