Thailand: Time to step up efforts to be role model for gender equality in Asia, UN experts say

BANGKOK – Thailand stands at a pivotal moment in its journey toward becoming a regional role model for gender equality, UN experts said today.

Concluding a 12-day visit to the country, the Working Group on discrimination against women and girls, issued a statement commending Thailand’s legislative and institutional progress on women’s and girls’ rights, particularly in the spheres of education, healthcare, and employment.

However, the Working Group expressed serious concerns over significant gaps in policy implementation, hindering the realisation of substantive equality.

“The national women’s machinery should be further funded and staffed in order to effectively promote gender equality,” the experts said.

The experts expressed particular concern about the lack of effective implementation of gender-sensitive budgeting, a constitutional commitment critical to ensuring sufficient resources to meet the diverse needs of women and girls.

“Policies are not being adapted to address specific needs of local communities. Resource disparities limit access to rights and essential services for women and girls, especially in border regions and Southern Border Provinces,” the Working Group added.

The experts also expressed concern that gender-based violence remains widespread, with limited access to justice.

“While the establishment of One Stop Crisis Centres and their multidisciplinary methodology is a positive development, the safety of survivors is often jeopardised by chronic underfunding of such centres, the stigma against survivors, and reliance on mediation with the perpetrator,” the experts said.

They were concerned that technology-facilitated gender-based violence was on the rise, with girls, women politicians, and women human rights defenders becoming frequent targets of online sexual harassment, doxing, and cyberbullying. Overcrowding and lack of unrestricted independent monitoring and oversight of correctional facilities also raises serious concerns that human rights violations inside may take place and go unreported, they said.

The Working Group was also concerned about compounded discrimination faced by women and girls from marginalised groups, including refugees and migrants, ethnic and religious minorities, Indigenous Peoples, stateless persons, persons with disabilities, older persons , LBTIQ+ people, victims of human trafficking, deprived of liberty, drug users, sex workers, and those living with HIV/AIDS.

“These intersecting challenges often lead to unequal access to justice, education, healthcare, and employment, perpetuating cycles of vulnerability and exploitation,” they said.

They urged the Government to take bold steps to translate existing legal commitments into meaningful action.

“Thailand should prioritise practical implementation of gender-sensitive budgeting to bridge resource gaps, achieve gender parity in law enforcement, remove discriminatory barriers such as the entry ban for girls in pre-cadet academies, and increase women’s political participation at all levels, including in the peace processes,” they said.

"By ensuring that no woman or girl is left behind, Thailand should translate its constitutional promises into reality, positioning itself as a trailblazer for gender equality in the region."

“To achieve this goal, it is necessary to foster strong partnership with Thailand’s vibrant civil society organisations and women and girls human rights defenders, whose contributions must be actively supported and safeguarded against any form of harassment, intimidation, or threats,” they said.

The Working Group will present its final report on the visit to the UN Human Rights Council in June 2025.