During the early 1990s, Rights and Humanity’s President served on WHO’s Global Commission on Women’s Health, which was chaired by one of Rights and Humanity’s International Board Members. Other members of the Global Commission included HRH Princess Basma bint Talal of Jordan, Ms Gertrude Mongella, Secretary-General of the Fourth World Conference on Women in Beijing, first ladies from Africa and Eastern Europe and experts from around the world on women’s health. The Global Commission was chaired by Ms Pat Giles, a Former Australian Senator and a member of Rights and Humanity’s International Board.

In March 1993, WHO hosted an informal consultation between United Nations Agencies and WHO regional Focal Points on Women, Health and Development to plan the agenda for the Global Commission. Our President presented the keynote presentation entitled “The Case for Using a Human Rights Framework to Promote Women’s Health”.

Our President argued that human rights law obliges states to ensure gender equity in health. She articulated the pro-active use of human rights as a framework for promoting women’s health. Her arguments helped shape the work of the Global Commission on Women’s Health, and as its only human rights expert, Ms Häusermann continued to advise the Commission on women’s rights to equality and health and drafted several of its reports.

Impact
The Global Commission on Women’s Health, from its outset, adopted the human rights approach advocated by Rights and Humanity. Our President was asked to serve on its Sub-Commission on Violence Against Women, where she encouraged a joint health and human rights approach to overcoming violence.

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