The United Nations (UN) International Day of Women Judges (IDWJ) is annually observed across the globe on 10 March to raise awareness about gender equality within the legal profession. IDWJ highlights the importance of women’s representation and contributions in the judiciary around the world.
- 10 March 2024 marks the observance of the 3rd IDWJ.
IDWJ 2024 is being observed with the campaign “Women in Justice, Women for Justice,” to promote the full and equal participation of women at all levels of the judiciary.
Background:
i.On 28 April 2021, the UN General Assembly (UNGA) adopted the resolution A/RES/75/274, drafted by the State of Qatar, and proclaimed the 10 March of every year as the International Day of Women Judges.
ii.The resolution noted with appreciation the work of the UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC)’s Global Judicial Integrity Network ‘to incorporate women’s representation issues into judicial systems’.
iii.The 1st ever International Day of Women Judges was observed on 10th March 2022.
Global Judicial Integrity Network:
i.The Global Judicial Integrity Network of the UNODC is a unique global movement of judges and judicial experts launched in April 2018 in Vienna, Austria.
ii.It aims to assist judiciaries across the globe in fostering judicial integrity and preventing corruption in the justice sector, in line with Article 11 of the UN Convention against Corruption.
iii.Since its inception, it has addressed gender-related issues, such as sextortion, sexual harassment, sexual discrimination, gender bias, etc, that affect judicial integrity.
Women in Justice, Women for Justice Campaign:
i.This initiative was launched by the Minister of Justice of Austria, Ms. Alma Zadić, and the Executive Director of UNODC, Ghada Fathi Waly.
ii.It was launched on the occasion of the 1st-ever IDWJ in 2022 to promote gender balance and gender responsiveness across the justice spectrum, via a high-level event in Vienna.
iii.The 3rd annual “Women in Justice/for Justice” high-level event to celebrate IDWJ Judges was opened by Alma Zadić, and Ghada Fathi Waly, on 11th March 2024.
About United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC):
Executive Director– Ghada Fathi Waly
Headquarters– New York, USA
It was established in 1997 as a result of the merging of the UN Centre for International Crime Prevention and the UN International Drug Control Programme.
