The action plan is three and a half pages long, and is currently in English only.  Four Good Shepherd Sisters were among the participants to the conference and contributed significantly to the document with the inclusion of two important concepts – that of gender equality and spirituality.  It is unthinkable for us that education for global citizenship would not include both education for gender equality and spirituality.

The UN Women website has some facts and figures

and read 10 things you should know about women and the world’s humanitarian crisis of May 23, 2016   All of our ministries throughout the world are addressing gender based violence in one form or another.  South Korea is no exception with services to women and children who experience domestic violence, services to pregnant girls and  young women, shelter accommodation for individuals experiencing crisis and shelter for trafficked women.

While we in our ministries are continually challenged with the violence experienced by women and girls in their everyday lives it is imperative that curricula for education for global citizenship address all such gender based violence.  5.1 End all forms of discrimination against women and girls. 5.2 Eliminate all forms of violence against all women and girls in the public and private spheres, including trafficking and sexual and other types of exploitation and 5.3 Eliminate all harmful practices, such as child early and forced marriage and female genital mutilation.

We, in our ministries throughout the world know the cumulative disadvantage that girls and young women face that makes they easy pray to traffickers for sexual and other types of exploitation.  We know how they are oppressed, discriminated against,  controlled by patriarchical forces, robbed of their dignity, and experience day in day out countless violation of their human rights.

President Michael D Higgins (Ireland)  at the World Humanitarian Summit, Istanbul, Turkey, May 23 and 24, 2016. spoke to Gender Equality Listen to YouTube   President Higgins said that gender inequality remains the most persistent and prevalent form of human rights violation in today’s world.   “We must recognise…that no distorted version of culture, or mythical structures should be used to justify the most egregious violations of women’s rights in so many regions as happens at the present time”

The document is in three parts … affirmations, commitments and urging member states and united nations to act.  The challenge how to implement in diverse cultural situations.