The 1 of March is Zero Discrimination Day. On this day this year, UNAIDS is challenging the discrimination faced by women and girls in all their diversity and raising awareness and mobilizing action to promote equality and empowerment for women and girls.
Unfortunately, discrimination against women and girls and gender inequality still exist everywhere, continuing to be significant barriers to women and girls, which have a major impact on the AIDS response.
What can we all do today?
All together we should draw attention of society to the challenges posed by discrimination against women and girls, including women living with HIV, transgender women and sex workers.
We should build political will and support for action to eliminate discrimination against women and girls in the form of legal and economic barriers. We should advocate for legislation on the age of consent for health care, legislation that protects women from violence, for decriminalization of work in the sex industry, we should work against discrimination against women and girls in education, health facilities and the workplace, etc.
Sexual and reproductive health and rights for women and girls should be guaranteed. Health-care settings must not discriminate and should be welcoming to women and ensure that all women are treated with respect and dignity and have privacy. All girls and women should be provided health care without stigma or barrier.
Working in Eastern Europe and Central Asia for almost 20 years, AFEW International is taking actions as well. We are supporting women networks, we are working with youth, we are promoting sexuality education for adolescence, we are ensuring that women with HIV, sex workers, representatives of the LGBTI community have access to confidential HIV testing and access to good medical care.
Ending discrimination and changing laws is our common responsibility, it is what we all can do. Everyone can contribute to ending discrimination and can try to make a difference. We all can break the wall of stigma and make this world better!
More info here.
