UN Expert Warns: Gender Ideology Threatens Women and Girls’ Rights

Geneva, Switzerland A United Nations human rights expert has issued a strong warning about the growing threat to women and girls posed by the erosion of sex-based language in global policy. Reem Alsalem, the UN Special Rapporteur on violence against women and girls, told the Human Rights Council in June that gender ideology is weakening legal protections, silencing dissent, and distorting the realities of sex-based violence.

In her presentation at the 59th session of the UN Human Rights Council, Alsalem cautioned that replacing clear definitions of “woman” and “girl” with gender-neutral or identity-based language is undermining decades of progress in women’s rights.

“You cannot protect what you cannot define,” she told delegates. “Erasing the material reality of biological sex from legal and policy frameworks has had devastating consequences.”

Undermining Protections Through Language

Alsalem’s report (A/HRC/59/47) highlights a “definitional crisis” caused by the conflation of sex, gender, and gender identity. According to her findings, this shift has led to flawed data collection, confused policy implementation, and weakened services for survivors of gender-based violence especially women, girls, and lesbians.

She pointed to real-world consequences, including:

• Rising rates of domestic abuse-related suicides
• Reproductive coercion
• Femicide as a form of genocide
• Online sexual exploitation of women and girls

Alsalem stressed that such forms of violence are often mischaracterized or overlooked when the biological realities of women are ignored.

“The erosion of sex specific protections affects not only women but also girls experiencing gender dysphoria, who are often rushed into medical treatments without long-term evidence of benefit,” she added.

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Backlash and Silencing

The Special Rapporteur also spoke of the personal backlash she has endured for standing by biological definitions of sex.

“I never imagined I’d have to write a report just to assert that ‘women’ and ‘girls’ refer to biological realities,” she said.

However, Since publishing her preliminary findings, Alsalem revealed she has been publicly labelled “transphobic,” “regressive,” and even “fascist.” She noted that similar attacks have been directed at scientists, biologists, doctors, politicians, and human rights defenders who advocate for sex-based rights and safeguards for children.

“International law protects women and girls as females. Denying this reality is not progressive it’s harmful,” she said.

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A Call to Return to Legal Clarity

Despite acknowledging the complexity of gender discussions, Alsalem called on governments to return to legal clarity by:

• Using consistent definitions of sex and gender in national legislation
• Requiring sex-disaggregated data collection across sectors
• Ensuring services for gender-based violence survivors are sex-specific and trauma-informed
• Providing evidence-based care for children with gender dysphoria
• Developing an international legal definition of “consent” in sexual violence cases

“This is not about denying anyone’s identity,” she said. It’s about ensuring that the legal rights and safety of women and girls are not erased in the process.

Alsalem’s report has received praise from international human rights groups, including Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF) International, which commended her for standing firm in defence of women and girls.

“This report sends a vital message,” said Giorgio Mazzoli, ADF’s Director of UN Advocacy. “The loss of legal clarity around sex has deeply harmed the rights and dignity of women and girls.”

However, Alsalem acknowledged resistance from within the UN system and from some member states and NGOs who reportedly tried to discredit her work or discouraged engagement with her report.

“The outrage this report provoked only proves its necessity,” she said. “Biological sex is real, and the law must reflect that reality to function.”

As debates over gender identity continue to influence policy worldwide, Alsalem’s intervention marks a pivotal moment in the international human rights conversation. Her report underscores a growing divide within global institutions between gender-identity-based approaches and traditional sex-based legal frameworks.

“Far too much time has been spent by women defending their existence,” she concluded. “That time should have been spent advancing equality. Enough is enough.”

 

 

 

CONTENT CREDIT: OHIDAH OLUWAFERANMI

IMAGE CREDIT: CHRISTIANDAILY.COM