By Joke Kujenya
ESCALATING CONCERNS over anti rights and anti-gender backlash have prompted gender equality and global health advocates to urge health ministers attending the 79th World Health Assembly (WHA) to protect progress made on #HealthForAll and advance gender equality.
JKNewsMedia.com reports that the 79th World Health Assembly of the World Health Organization (WHO) will hold from May 18 to May 23, 2026, at the United Nations in Geneva.
The assembly is the supreme decision-making body of the WHO and is composed of health ministers from 194 countries.
“It is a human rights imperative to counter anti rights and anti gender pushbacks while we accelerate progress towards achieving gender equality and human right to health,” said Shobha Shukla, Coordinator and Host of SHE & Rights.
“Both, gender equality including SDG 5 targets and right to health including SDG 3 targets are inseparable, inalienable and indivisible.
“While all countries promise to deliver on WHA79 agenda and #HealthForAll, would they also act upon to bridge the gaps in progress on gender equality? Governments cannot deliver on health for all while abetting anti rights and anti gender regressive agenda,” she said.
Shukla said the WHA79 agenda contains only a few references to gender equality related items, including the “Strategy for integrating gender analysis and actions into the work of WHO.”
“This is clearly not enough to ensure we deliver on Universal Healthcare Coverage by 2030,” she added.
Human rights defender Matcha Phorn in called for gender equality and the right to health to remain central to development policies, investments and projects.
Matcha, Executive Director of Sangsan Anakot Yawachon, spoke during the inaugural SHE & Rights Live session at Women Deliver Conference 2026.
She also called for recognition of indigenous peoples and their rights, implementation of free, prior and informed consent in development projects and accountability for human rights violations and environmental harms linked to projects and business activities.
Matcha further demanded an inclusive and non-discriminatory healthcare system with full access to gender affirming care and sexual and reproductive health and rights services.
“We must move beyond symbolism when it comes to legal and policy reforms so that all people in all their diversities can have full access to public health services and social protection in a rights-based manner,” she said.
Gender Justice and Global Health Advocate, Dr Harjyot Khosa, said the current right-wing uproar should not shift attention away from sexual and reproductive health, rights and justice.
“We also need to decolonise development finance, have radical inclusivity and pivot intersectionality,” Khosa said.
Healthy ageing also featured prominently at WHA-2026 discussions through a report on the Decade of Healthy Ageing 2020 to 2030.
A SHE & Rights session at Women Deliver Conference 2026 focused on the legally binding UN treaty being drafted for the human rights of older persons.
“Longevity is one of humanity’s greatest achievements. Yet the promise of longer life is too often accompanied by persistent gaps in the protection of human rights,” Shukla said.
“Instead of celebrating older age most people fear it and ageism fuels this fear.”
She said harmful stereotypes against older persons affect women more than men and appear across homes, workplaces, healthcare facilities and media spaces.
Nada Al Nashif said older persons in all their diversity must be actively engaged in the treaty drafting process.
“An inclusive and transparent process will strengthen both the legitimacy and the quality of the outcome,” she said.
Dr Mabel Bianco, founder of Foundation for Studies and Research on Women, said social protection for older persons in Argentina remains fragile and often lacks adequate healthcare resources.
Dr Pam Rajput, Emeritus Professor at Panjab University, India, said harmful stereotypes continue to affect older women.
“Unless we normalise economic rights along with gender, social and cultural rights of older persons especially women, we would not be able to address ageism,” she said.
Director of Vulnerable Groups Health Services at Indonesia’s Ministry of Health, Dr Imran Pambudi, said millions of girls and women globally remain uncertain about their safety and protection.
“Globally, 1 in 3 women experience physical or sexual violence in her lifetime,” he said.
Pambudi disclosed that violence against women in Indonesia increased by 14% in 2024, with about 330,000 women affected and one third of the cases involving sexual violence.
“It is important to recognise that around 90% of rape cases are not reported,” he said.
He also said Indonesia has provided free health screening for more than seven million older persons since February 2025.
Senior journalist, Rita Widiadana, said older women in Indonesia are often portrayed as vulnerable caregivers rather than empowered individuals.
“It is high time for us to recognise their social and economic contributions,” she said.
Margaret Young, Founder of Age Knowble and former Chair of the Global Alliance for the Rights of Older People, said development justice must include older persons.
“Development justice also needs to be life course justice,” she said.
Debanjana Choudhuri, an independent gender justice activist, described safe abortion as healthcare and a human right.
“Every person regardless of where they were born, what they earn, who they love, and how they identify, deserves the right to make decisions about their own body,” she said.
Choudhuri said criminalising abortion does not stop abortion but makes it dangerous.
Philippine Safe Abortion Advocacy Network Coordinator Pauline Fernandez said abortion laws in the Philippines remain among the world’s most restrictive.
“The revised penal code considers abortion to be a criminal offense punishable for care providers who perform abortions and persons in need of abortion care who undergo it,” she said.
Fernandez stated that data shows more than one million women undergo abortions annually in the Philippines and up to three women die daily from abortion related complications.
She also said the Decriminalise Abortion Now Network has grown from 10 organisations to 130 organisations and individuals with more than 30,000 petition signatories.
Kalpana Acharya, Editor in Chief of Health TV Online, said safe abortion is legal in Nepal but remains inaccessible to many.
She recounted the death of a 29 year old health worker who sought abortion services in an unregistered clinic because of stigma.
Transgender rights advocates also raised concerns over anti gender backlash and threats to existing protections.
“Visibility is not the same as enjoying human rights,” said Hua Boonyapisomparn, International Trans Fund Programme Officer for South, East, Southeast Asia and the Pacific.
Hua said Thailand approved THB145m, equivalent to US$4.3m, for free gender affirming hormone and counselling therapy for more than 200,000 transgender people.
“Gender affirming hormone is not cosmetics or beauty product but necessary for our health,” Hua said.
JKNewsMedia.com reports that the Indian transgender rights advocate Simran Shaikh Bharuch criticised amendments to India’s transgender law introduced earlier in 2026.
“Government pushed for the amendments so that all benefits as per the law go only to a subset of all communities which are included under the transgender umbrella,” Bharuch said.
Founder of Tonga Leitis Association, Joey Joleen Mataele, said Tonga lacks legal protection against discrimination based on gender identity.
“Many transgender individuals in Tonga struggle daily with stigma,” Mataele said.
The SHE & Rights Media Awards Ceremony 2026 also took place during Women Deliver Conference 2026. The awards received 351 applications from 29 countries.
African awardees included Okello Jesus Ojara, Nelson Mandela and Ambroisine Memede Azododassi, while Firda Amalia Putri, Engly Tuy and Kalpana Acharya emerged as winners in the Asia Pacific region.
The sessions were hosted by CeHDI and CNS alongside partners including International Planned Parenthood Federation, Asian Pacific Resource and Research Centre for Women and Women Deliver Conference.
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