Religious extremism impede gender equality in Maldives, UN experts warn
The UN experts called for the integration of a gender perspective in the national response.
By
Shahudha Mohamed
Maldives is at a tipping point as a fragile democracy in the face of rising religious fundamentalism that is holding back women and girls and impeding the achievement of gender equality, UN experts warned Thursday.
The UN Working Group on discrimination against women and girls told reporters at the end of a 12-day visit to the country that the biggest obstacle to protecting the rights of women and girls in the Maldives is religious extremism. Fundamentalist ideologies in the Maldives encourage reprisals against those standing up for equality, freedom and human rights, they said.
“Women human rights defenders are being targeted and face misogynistic and sexist attacks," the experts said.
“If the Maldives is to develop and prosper as a nation, it must harness the potential of women and girls rather than restrict them by societal perceptions and rules that relegate them to subordinate roles."
The Working Group’s recommendations included calling for speedy implementation and resourcing of laws, policies and institutions, combined with a counter narrative that empowers women and girls as equal citizens and bearers of human right.
“The government must do more to address the root causes and drivers of sex and gender-based discrimination, which include belief systems that deem women as inferior and practices that deny their autonomy and agency,” the experts said.
The UN Working Group highlighted:
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The Maldives has been once ruled by women and has historical female figures established in socially empowered positions; Religious conservatism imposes the subordination of women.
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Victims of domestic violence face numerous obstacles to acquire justice, treatment, and rehabilitation, and offenders are often not punished
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Women and girls are not involved in the design, nor the implementation of tourism and infrastructure projects.
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Equality, freedom and human rights advocates in the Maldives are threatened and targeted by the masses, orchestrated by fundamentalist ideology.
The experts welcomed new laws and recent institutional measures focusing on gender equality but said long-standing provisions are still discriminatory and punitive, denying women and girls full human rights and freedoms. Gender-based violence is widely prevalent and tolerated, they said. Survivors face many barriers in access to justice and remedies, and perpetrators enjoy impunity.
While the experts praised the Maldives for its outstanding leadership in the global arena to address the deadly threats posed by climate change, they called for the integration of a gender perspective in the national response.
The experts said that development projects for infrastructure and tourism have been crucial for the advancement and security of all Maldivians. However, when these are designed and implemented, women and girls are often left behind.
“Women and girls have a right to be free and to be heard and, above all, they are entitled to be equal partners in development and to contribute to the Maldives’ future through active participation in all spheres of life," they said.
The Working Group met national and local authorities, women and girls, civil society organisations, journalists, elected women leaders, UN entities and other international stakeholders, and visited schools, health and care facilities, prison, in Male, Kulhudufushi, Maafushi, Maduvaree, and Guraidhoo.
