Advocating for women's health and human rights through political accountability

Human rights principles can be the basis of strategies to achieve social justice and public health goals. These principles include accountability, participation and inclusion, non-discrimination, and the legal obligation of states to citizens. Because the human rights fundamentally changes the relationship between governments and their citizens, a rights-based approach to health permits citizens to be claimants of rights rather than victims, clients, or recipients of charity. Human rights advocates can demand accountability by imposing legal obligations on states and offering rights claimants access to accountability mechanisms.

Human rights brings to the field of public health a method for holding rights granters (eg., a federal government) accountable to rights holders (eg. their citizens) through formal and informal mechanisms. Advocates for women's health and human rights have used such mechanisms as the documentation of violations, raising public awareness through media dissemination, advocacy with officials, community engagement, and litigation.

The Millennium Development Goals, like any set of metrics, can be used to form a basis for accountability. Advocates for women's health and human rights issues have used the measurements which track countries' progress towards the MDGs to demand more transparency, investment and female participation. This scrutiny is a crucial part of the political process, necessary to the achievement of the MDGs and other health and human rights goals. Goal 3 of the MDGs - Promote gender equality and empower women – will require educational, employment, and political advancement that can only be achieved through effective advocacy.