Soroptimist International has signed a joint statement calling for human rights to be placed at the core of the post-2015 development agenda, which will succeed the Millennium Development Goals.

The statement, by several leading human rights and development organisations, says that: “a post-2015 framework anchored in human rights moves from a model of charity to one of justice, based on the inherent dignity of people as human rights-holders, domestic governments as primary duty-bearers, and all development actors sharing common but differentiated responsibilities. Accordingly, the post-2015 framework should be designed as a tool to empower and enable people—individually and collectively—to monitor and hold their governments, other governments, businesses, international institutions and other development actors to account”

It goes on to outline nine areas that the development framework that succeeds the Millennium Development Goals, which set out targets to reduce poverty by 2015, should address and include.

Point number six focuses specifically on women’s rights. This specifies a need to address gender-based violence, guarantee sexual and reproductive rights and enable women to have control over land, property and productive resources. Additionally, a need to include women in positions of leadership and decision-making, particularly concerning civil, political and economical issues has been emphasised. The importance placed on human rights concerning women adheres to aims that Soroptimist International strives towards worldwide. It is for this reason that Soroptimist International have signed onto this joint statement and publish the assertions outlined.

Other points touch upon the elimination of discrimination in all its forms and diminishing inequalities that currently exist in modern society. In hand with this, there are also targets for disadvantaged, discriminated and unequal groups to become effective agents of their own development. This will be achieved via drawing upon elements of human rights that prevent such occurrences of discriminatory behaviour.

More Information

Read the full letter, which was drafted by the Securing Human Rights for All work session of the Advancing the Post-2015 Sustainable Development Agenda global civil society conference in Bonn, Germany (March 2013), here: http://www.worldwewant2015.org/es/node/346687.

Find out more about the post-2015 agenda at http://www.worldwewant2015.org/post2015-about. 

In July 2012, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon announced the 27 members of a High-level Panel to advise on the global development framework beyond 2015; the Panel recently published their report , available here: http://www.post2015hlp.org/the-report/