A Quintet of Crucial Incidents in the Challenge to the Rights of Women and Girls in the Past Year.

In the previous year, feminist advocacy groups were preparing for a new Trump administration. Scarcely anyone expected. The torrent and swiftness of presidential directives emanating from the White House were viewed as a intentional maneuver to induce a state of shock. This strategy had its intended impact – there was confusion, anger and exhaustion as organisations scrambled to fill the gap left by a major funding freeze. But that was just the beginning.

The Trump administration has been the primary force, bolstered by fervent lobbying efforts by ultra-conservative groups seizing the opportunity to forge international alliances with sympathetic regimes.

This opposition to progressive rights describes a worldwide alliance of policymakers, doctrinal establishments, and activist outfits as well as ultra-rich backers and donors that strive to weaken gains in a variety of areas. These include reproductive choice, queer and transgender freedoms, diverse family models, and honest sex ed.

They do this by lobbying governments, supporting court cases, discrediting international efforts to push for parity, disseminating propaganda, and supporting ideologically-matched groups.

We review five instances that shaped the welfare, autonomy, and survival of females globally.

The Dismantling of USAID

In March, shortly after a key American development organization is halted, causing global disruption, a leading figure in the administration states that nearly all of the institution's work will be scrapped. Career diplomats, past leaders and humanitarian and health experts criticize the move, predicting that people will die as a result. Human rights advocates say that the demise of the agency is greater than a budgetary issue, it is a savage attack on human rights and access to contraception and reproductive health services. Many organisations say the impact on girls and women will be severe by waning support, especially in regions of instability. As the year ends, reports confirm how hundreds of thousands of people have already died from disease, starvation, lack of access to maternal care and gender-based violence, with many more millions at risk. Another pair of leading funders announce their own austerity measures. A leader of an international advocacy group says a decision to slash billions in overseas assistance is an attempt to placate a powerful partner.

Faith-Based Activists Mobilize at UN Conference

In the same month, several conservative religious groups meet in an high-end hotel in NYC for a biannual gathering held alongside the annual UN Women gathering. It is an chance to exchange strategies on how to oppose what they term a UN overreach. They are in buoyant mood as they welcome new Washington directives on social issues and termination of pregnancy. Meanwhile, the head of the United Nations opens the women’s summit with a grave caution that “the toxin of gendered hierarchy” is returning, after a study indicates that anti-rights actors are systematically eroding historic agreements on core aspects of gender equality around the world.

African ‘Family Values’ Conferences

Over the summer, a sequence of gatherings in Africa focused on the conventional household and state autonomy raises concerns among human rights defenders. In the start of May, a president and first lady open a large assembly to push back on what they label external influences undermining local norms. A shortly thereafter, another regional summit on family values is held. Both events are attended by leading American and European conservative activists, including leaders of well-known groups. One speaker urges African NGOs to push back against “international liberal agenda” of international organizations. In the following month, a prominent church hosts a event focused on reinforcing families in West Africa, an event that reproductive rights advocates say has become a stage for criticizing gender equality. Activists observe that the level of external participation has expanded considerably.

Contraceptive Destruction Order

As medical centers in numerous African countries report they are depleting their stocks of family planning supplies, including post-rape care packages, the US announces in midsummer plans to incinerate a significant cache of reproductive health commodities held in a storage facility in Belgium. A major reproductive health federation states that their elimination will deprive millions of women and girls from access to birth control, and lead to hundreds of thousands of unintended pregnancies and unsafe abortions. The organization labels the plan an dogmatic choice “about forcing a conservative worldview globally” and “an intentional act of reproductive coercion”. A international emergency medical charity calls it “cruel and irresponsible”. NGOs offer to buy the contraceptives so they can fulfill their original purpose, but the US declines every proposal. The situation remains unresolved as the regional government refuse to permit perfectly good supplies to be incinerated.

Widening of the Anti-Abortion Policy

Bringing back the anti-abortion funding ban, which cuts American funding for groups that provide, advocate for or advise on abortion services overseas, is standard practice for certain US administrations. It was anticipated when the policy was restored in the first month of the year. The administration also signed onto a conservative consensus document. But in the autumn, the US announces it intends to broaden the scope of the policy to include national governments and international bodies in addition to NGOs, and to cover diversity programmes. Additional information regarding the expansion of the rule are likely forthcoming. A director of a major health partnership says broadening the policy will have “catastrophic impacts”. Pro-choice activists fear that new US aid packages being negotiated with countries in Africa will become dependent on agreeing to the expanded global gag.