An unprecedented vote, not consensus, upheld rights, access to justice for women, girls at CSW 70
By Marivir R. Montebon
New York – The UN Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) concluded its 70th session with an outcome statement using a formal vote for the first time, instead of the traditional consensus, to uphold previously agreed conventions that protect the rights of women and girls worldwide.
The vote had effectively weighed against the US’s proposed eight amendments to the texts on gender identity, diversity, equality, and inclusion.
Thirty-seven member states voted in favor of the outcome statement and 1 against (the US), and 6 abstentions (including Nigeria, Egypt, and Saudi Arabia).
CSW70 chair Costa Rica Amb. H.E. Maritza Chan Valverde with UN Women executive director Sima Bahous at the CSW70 closing session. (UN Press photo)
This break away from consensus is an indicator of the growing tensions in the international community of nations. The CSW, with 45 elected member states, is largest world gathering of the UN under the auspices of the Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC).
Retired Philippine Amb. Mario de Leon Jr. said that the action of the Costan Rican chair was tactically smart, but may be strategically costly. “The decision demonstrated strong procedural leadership by safeguarding the negotiated text and ensuring an outcome aligned with the majority. However, the move also narrowed space for dissent by other members and risks eroding the concensus norm of the Commission on the Status of Women,” de Leon explained. De Leon is a senior advisor of Diplomacy and UN Representative for the global women’s group Women’s Federation for World Peace International.
At the highly charged meeting on March 19, 2026, marred by applause and boos, CSW chair Amb. Maritza Chan Valverde of Costa Rica, moved to break from consensus and asked member states to go on a vote.
While holding the line, Valverde allowed for a clear expression of the opposition and support to the document and expedited the decision-making process. She stressed that gender equality must not be reversed: “Every effort has been made to listen to delegations and to reflect the diversity of views expressed. We are convinced that the text represents the most balanced outcome achievable at this stage.”
Then a vote was called.
The CSW70 document was adopted with commitment to “ensuring and strengthening access to justice for all women and girls, including by promoting inclusive and equitable legal systems, eliminating discriminatory laws, policies and practices, and addressing structural barriers.”
It also reaffirmed the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action.
According to the UN press, United States representative opposed all references to sexual and reproductive health and rights. “The United States would not stand by and watch as “malicious forces use multilateral institutions to spread dangerous gender ideologies,” she insisted.
The US maintained, for example, that there are only two biological sexes — male and female. Several countries expressed their opposition to the US proposals. Sweden’s delegate said: “We don’t think it is reasonable to use the consensus tradition as a cover to turn back the clock 30 to 40 years and go below what had been agreed in the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action.”
Cuba’s representative accused Washington, D.C. of attempting to roll back years of progress on gender equality. Canada’s delegate, who spoke for several countries, argued that attempts to reopen issues already “exhaustively negotiated” undermine the Commission’s integrity, said the UN Press.
Valverde said at the end of session, “We’re leaving with something harder to carry – responsibility. Every woman who spoke to us today carried a single message: behind every statistic is a life, behind every negotiating position, is a woman or girl waiting to see if we mean what we say. The answer depends on political will.”
For DSW, a German nonprofit providing health support to teens in Africa, the CSW vote meant that “An overwhelming majority of member states worked constructively toward a robust outcome and rejected attempts to dilute existing standards. Against increasing geopolitical tensions, financial pressure on sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR) and gender equality, and the growing strength of anti-rights actors, this is more than a negotiating success, it is a measure of how the international community maintains a human-rights-based course under difficult conditions.”
Meanwhile, social development specialist Asel Dunganaeva, of the Rural Women’s Association from Kyrgyzstan, warned against tokenism, a lingering problem across the globe.
She said at the Canary News: “Across Asia, justice systems remain inaccessible, under-resourced, and attacked by patriarchy and inequality. These systems often exist in law but not in lived experience.
Justice demands redistribution of power and resources, demilitarization of economies, and decolonization of global governments. It requires dismantling systems of power that perpetuate inequality. Without transforming these structural conditions, access to justice cannot be realized.” #
