International Women’s Day Parliamentary reception

The British Group of the Inter-Parliamentary Union (BGIPU) and the All-Party Parliamentary Human Rights Group (PHRG) hosted an International Women’s Day 2025 Drop-in Breakfast Reception on 4 March to celebrate the achievements of human rights organisations promoting women’s rights and of Women Human Rights Defenders (WHRDs), and to raise greater awareness of related challenges.

The following organisations participated:

• ABColombia

• ALQST (re. Saudi HRs)

• Amnesty International UK (AI UK)

• Campaign for Human Rights in the Philippines UK (CHRP)

• Peace Brigades International UK (PBI UK)

• Prisoners of Conscience charity (PoC)

• Stars of Myanmar Friendship Group (Stars)

• Survival International (re. Indigenous Rights) (Survival)

• Survivors Speak Out (re. Torture Survivors living in the UK) (SSO)

Accompanied by WHRDs from:

Afghanistan, Belarus, DRC, India, Kenya, Myanmar, Philippines, Saudi Arabia.

Thank you to the many MPs and Peers who came to meet Human Rights Organisations and WHRDs at the reception.

Some Key Messages

Much to celebrate but still a long way to ensuring all women and girls enjoy their rights, are treated equally, and empowered to decide on how they live their lives.

Violations Against Women and Girls

High prevalence of sexual violence in 120+ conflicts globally, with women and girls most at risk: in 2023, the UN reported that wartime sexual violence increased by 50% in 2023 compared with the previous year; women and girls accounted or 95% of verified cases.  (SSO)

In Myanmar, driven by poverty and lack of education, desperate parents are coerced into selling their children with the aid of brokers. Rapes and sexual harassment incidents are also escalating in conflict areas. (Stars)

In Colombia, women suffer violence as a continuum. Historical and structural oppressions are embedded in society, the economy, justice systems and Government institutions. Indigenous women, Black women and the LGBTQI+ community are impacted disproportionately. (ABColombia)

In Kenya, GBV and discrimination affect the lives of many women and girls, often combined with poverty and other forms of inequality. Between 2016 and 2024, 500+ women have been victims of femicide - 14 murders occurred in January 2024 alone. This spike prompted demonstrations and calls for systematic change to reduce GBV. (PBI UK)

In Saudi Arabia, the 2022 Personal Status (or Family) Law continues to entrench many pernicious features of the traditional male guardianship system, which treats women as minors. ALQST’s 2024 survey of Saudi nationals in exile revealed that a high proportion of the participants cited domestic violence as a factor having driven them to seek safety abroad. (ALQST)

When the State fails to hold perpetrators accountable, impunity not only intensifies the powerlessness of the targets of violence, but also sends a message to society that male violence against women is both acceptable and inevitable. (ABColombia)

Renewed emphasis on “family” or “traditional values” from the anti-rights movement around the world fuels efforts to redefine and weaken hard-won progress in national and international human rights law, based on intolerant views, propaganda and conspiracy theories. (AI UK)

WHRDs

While all HRDs face personal attacks and repression, WHRDs face particular risks, often targeted both because of their work, and their identity, such as misogynistic attacks and GBV, including rape. (AI UK)

WHRDs face severe threats in many countries, particularly in ultra-conservative theocracies such as Afghanistan and Iran. (PoC)

Honduran WHRD Andrea Paz says: “As a woman defender, you not only have to struggle against whatever you are up against in your struggle as a defender, whether that be mining companies or state institutions, but you also have to face up to your family, to the men in your family, to your partner, to the men in your communities.” (PBI UK)’

In Saudi Arabia, prominent WHRDs including Nassima al-Sadah, Samar Badawi and Loujain al-Hathloul continue to face heavy restrictions since being released from prison, notably arbitrary travel bans.  Manahel al-Otaibi has also

had an 11-year sentence imposed, while her sister Fouz al-Otaibi faces charges in absentia, for, inter alia, expression of feminist views online. (ALQST)

In Myanmar, 5,000+ women political prisoners face brutal treatment, including solitary confinement; beatings; denial of medical care; and, forced malnutrition. (Stars)

In the Philippines, WHRD Frenchie Mae Cumpio, executive director of a media outlet reporting on issues affecting the poor and marginalised in Eastern Visayas, was arrested in February 2020, and charged with illegal possession of weapons and terrorism. AI reports the planting of weapons by police in HRDs’ homes has become routine. Not until November 2024 did her first hearing take place, and she remains in prison. (CHRP)

Rape and sexual violence against Indigenous women in conservation areas are systematically deployed to intimidate, humiliate and punish women standing up for their rights. (Survival)

Recommendations for UK Government

• Act decisively to build alliances with like-minded states to oppose the trend towards regression. (AI UK)

• Strengthen diplomatic protection & emergency support, by UK embassies proactively engaging with and supporting WHRDs in at-risk countries. (PBI UK) 

• Support and resource women-led movements, with the integration of gender-specific risk assessments/protections in UK aid, trade agreements, and HRs policies, and direct, flexible, and long-term funding. (PBI UK) (PoC)

• Consider special or expedited visa pathways and respite schemes for WHRDs facing persecution in countries with systematic oppression. (PoC) (CHRP)

• Prevent complicity in the abuses against Indigenous Women by rejecting funding of projects that adhere to the model of fortress conservation. (Survival) 

• Continue to lead, support and effectively resource the vital work of Preventing Sexual Violence in Conflict Initiative (PSVI), including by supporting survivor-centred action. (SSO)

• Re. Colombia: Provide clarity in the UK National Action Plan 1325 about UK support to Colombia, given this critical moment in the Colombian Peace and Transitional Justice process. (ABColombia)

• Re. Myanmar: Support Female Political Prisoners; help protect Burmese refugees in neighbouring countries; act against human trafficking. (Stars)

• Re. the Philippines: Support and help protect WHRDs faced with red-tagging and fabricated charges. (CHRP)