EQUALITY OF HUMAN rights—regardless of sex or any other distinction—is a central principle recognized in all international human rights agreements. The primary international human rights agreement, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, expressed this principle with the words: "Everyone is entitled to all the rights and freedoms set forth in this Declaration, without distinction of any kind, such as race, colour, sex, language, religion, political or other opinion, national or social origin, property, birth, or other status."

In recent decades, several international human rights agreements have reiterated this principle of equality in human rights—in particular stressing the equal rights of women and men. One such agreement is the Vienna Declaration and Programme of Action, adopted by 171 UN member countries at the 1993 World Conference on Human Rights. The Vienna Declaration states:

The human...