“No meaningful progress towards equality and prosperity in the rights of women can be realized in Poland”, said Reem Alsalem, the UN Special Rapporteur on violence against women and girls, on 9th of March 2023 at the end of a 10-day visit to the country. The UN expert noted: “Women continue to face severe restrictions in their right to equality”.
Based on her visit to Poland and the information she received and situation she observed, Alsalem referred to the fact that women and girls continue to face serious limitations in their right to equality in law and in practice, and in their right to freedom of belief, expression, association, family, privacy, and sexual and reproductive health.
She also noted that legislation and policies were in general insufficiently gender and diversity sensitive. The Special Rapporteur said it was clear that most laws, policies and practices restricting women’s rights were at odds with the desires of the majority of Polish citizens.
“It is troubling that in some cases orchestrated attacks have been either initiated, supported or tolerated by a number of public officials, political and religious actors and accompanied by inflammatory rhetoric, disinformation and misinformation campaigns that affect women’s equal enjoyment of human rights, including their right to equal participation in society,” she said.
Recognizing the recent challenging context in Poland particularly with the arrival of Ukrainian refugees, the Special Rapporteur said that now that lives had been saved and the most immediate needs of refugees met, it is important to put in place more nuanced mechanisms for reception, assistance, and protection of the most vulnerable groups, including women and girls.
She expressed particular concern about the discriminatory treatment and violence that a majority of non-Ukrainian asylum seeker and refugee women, girls and their families were subjected to.
“You cannot continue to have these outright contradictions in the asylum and protection system to women and girls fleeing essentially for the same reasons such as escaping persecution, violence, including sexual violence, and conflict,” Alsalem said.
She recalled that Poland was bound by obligations under international law, including the protection against pushbacks and the right to safe and humane reception and access to effective asylum procedures.
The Special Rapporteur will present a full report on her visit to the Human Rights Council in June 2024.