Former UN Chief leads International Women’s Day commemoration with UN Women in Seoul

Authors: Jaeeun Lee and Ahjung Lee

All participants at the International Women’s Day 2025 commemoration event in Seoul on 12 March, organized by UN Women’s Knowledge and Partnerships Centre in the Republic of Korea (ROK). Photo: UN Women/Jaeyeon Jeong

Seoul, Republic of Korea — On 12 March, the UN Women Knowledge and Partnerships Centre in the Republic of Korea (the Centre) brought together nearly 250 participants from government, the diplomatic community, private sector, academia and civil society for its third annual International Women’s Day commemoration in Seoul.

The event was attended by both Korean and international supporters of UN Women, including more than 30 ambassadors. Inspiring speeches by prominent gender equality advocates called for inclusive and rights-based policies that address the needs of all women and girls who face intersecting forms of discrimination, including those with disabilities, caregivers and women in conflict-affected areas. The commemoration also underscored the need to engage men and boys to change harmful gender norms and address new forms of violence, such as technology-facilitated gender-based violence (TF GBV).

(From left) Ban Ki-moon, the eighth United Nations Secretary-General, and Kim Kinam, Assistant Minister for the Planning and Coordination Office at the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family of the Republic of Korea, both speaking at the International Women’s Day 2025 commemoration. Photo: UN Women/Jaeyeon Jeong

As keynote speaker, Ban Ki-moon, who spearheaded the establishment of UN Women, as the eighth Secretary-General of the United Nations, underscored the critical need for prioritizing gender equality as a global imperative. “Empowering women and girls is not only the right thing to do: it is the smartest path towards a more sustainable, peaceful and prosperous future for all humanity.” He stressed that “when women and girls suffer and their potential remains untapped, it holds back our collective progress.”

Participants in the sessions at the International Women’s Day 2025 commemoration event in Seoul. Photo: UN Women/Hwang Chang kyu

In his congratulatory remarks, Kim Kinam, Assistant Minister for the Planning and Coordination Office at the ROK Ministry of Gender Equality and Family, reaffirmed the Government’s commitment to fostering a society where “everyone can enjoy a safe and balanced daily life through collective efforts.”

The main session featured four distinguished speakers, each presenting their insights on how to advance women’s rights and gender equality in the face of today’s pressing challenges.

Speakers at event (from left) Alison Davidian, UN Women Afghanistan Special Representative; Yewon Kim, human rights attorney and founder of the Disability Rights Advocate Center; Humberto Carolo, Executive Director of White Ribbon Canada; and Soong-nang Jang, Dean of the Red Cross College of Nursing at Chung-Ang University. Photo: UN Women/Jaeyeon Jeong

Alison Davidian, UN Women Afghanistan Special Representative, highlighted the plight of Afghan women and girls, stressing the imperative of defending human rights globally amid mounting backlash. She argued that Afghanistan is not just a cautionary tale, but a call to action. “Because it’s extreme, we think it could never happen to our communities and our countries. Then one day, we wake up to a shift in power or a change in leadership, and the rights we take for granted are stripped away,” she explained.

Yewon Kim, Founder and Head Attorney at the Disability Rights Advocate Center and the first attorney with visual impairment in ROK, highlighted the intersecting discrimination faced by women with disabilities. She shared a deeply personal story about losing sight in one eye at birth due to a medical decision made by her grandmother simply because she was a girl. Kim emphasized that discrimination is not just a relic of the past, citing startling examples of human rights violations against women and girls with disabilities.

Participants at the International Women’s Day 2025 commemoration event in Seoul on 12 March. Photo: UN Women/Hwang Chang kyu

Humberto Carolo, Executive Director of White Ribbon Canada, highlighted the imperative of engaging men and boys in combating gender-based violence, emphasizing the urgent need to challenge harmful gender norms at both individual and societal levels. He particularly called for concerted efforts to tackle the rise of online hate culture, which is grooming boys towards violence and misogyny through the ‘manosphere’.

Soong-nang Jang, Dean of Chung-Ang University’s Red Cross College of Nursing, presented a compelling case for a fundamental shift in care policies for the elderly. She shared her research findings, which show how Korea’s caregiving system disproportionately burdens women, both within families and in formal care professions. She called for addressing the entrenched gender inequality in care work by shifting the policy perspective from care recipients to caregivers.

Lastly, Vu Phuong Ly, Officer-in-Charge of the Centre, closed the event by stressing: “Gender equality is not just the right path. It is the only path to a just, prosperous, and sustainable future for all.”

Overall, the IWD commemoration in ROK reaffirmed the importance of unwavering, sustained efforts for gender equality despite ongoing pushbacks and challenges. As attorney Kim explained: “In Korea, people talk about ‘throwing an egg against the rock’ as a symbol of futility. But these days, rocks tend to hate being stained with eggs because they draw public attention and questions. So, let’s keep throwing eggs until rocks make a different choice.”

Participants at the International Women’s Day 2025 commemoration event in Seoul on 12 March. Photo: UN Women/Hwang Chang kyu