The deaths of nine women in Gauteng's East Rand over the past three months are a devastating reminder of what is at stake for women in South Africa, at a moment when women's rights are under growing pressure around the world.

This week, as world leaders gather in New York for the 81st session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA), they do so against a backdrop of deepening conflict, fragmentation and polarisation.

Ekurhuleni and New York might seem worlds apart but they are connected by questions that have become increasingly difficult to ignore: who holds power, whose rights are protected and what happens when the norms that uphold women's equality begin to weaken?

The reality for women is stark.

According to the UN Women's 2026 Gender Snapshot, we are looking at a staggering 171 years before the gender equality gap is closed.

Right now, men dominate the institutions, parliaments and households that dictate what women can and cannot do, what they can and cannot say and who they can become.

What's more, the norms that once, albeit imperfectly, kept this imbalance in check are rapidly being dismantled — and it's not happening by accident.

Instead, there's a deliberate and coordinated global effort to push back against women's rights, undermining the progress that's been made.

There's a connection between the challenges women face and the breakdown of global cooperation that's often overlooked.

When the world fails to work together, women's rights are often first up for being something that can be negotiated away. The struggle for women's rights does not exist separately from the violence women experience in their everyday lives.

Violence against women is not a problem confined to one country or one institution. It is a global human rights and public health crisis.

A World Health Organisation report estimates that nearly one in three women globally have experienced physical and/or sexual violence during their lifetime.

South Africa carries a particularly heavy burden.

South Africa has one of the highest recorded rates of intimate partner femicide globally.

Recent research estimates the rate at 5.5 per 100 000 women, almost five times the global average.

These figures should not simply become another set of statistics in reports and speeches. They should compel us to ask what our institutions are doing with the information we have. Where is the accountability?

What goes on in big meetings with heads of state making speeches has an impact on rights and on women's lives. The decisions made about money, priorities and what gets attention can affect what services are available, what laws are enforced and what gets ignored. The conversations can influence what's seen as normal, acceptable and okay behaviour, laws or policies and when there's a global backlash against women's rights that has become more than "normal", it can change how people think and behave towards women in their own communities.

That's why the talks happening this week at UNGA in New York are more than just formal discussions — they can have real, tangible consequences for women's safety and status in places like Ekurhuleni, even if it takes time to see the effects and to link what's happening globally with what is happening locally.

We're living in a world that's more divided than it's been in decades.

In 2025, there were 65 armed conflicts between states, the highest number since 1946.

The truth is that conflict doesn't affect everyone equally. Women and girls are hit the hardest, with many forced to flee their homes, facing sexual violence and struggling to make a living and keep themselves and their families safe. Given the state of the world, it is not just an ideal for countries and institutions to work together — it is essential.

At UNGA81, global leaders need to come together to fight for what's right, to stand up for women and to work towards peace.

No one country or organisation can single-handedly turn back the clock on 171 years of history, stop the organised efforts to undermine women's rights or put an end to the conflicts that are happening all over the world right now. It's going to take all of us.

The same idea works in South Africa. We need to put into action the plans developed to prevent violence against women and to end the killings of women.

This needs to be led by the government and involve everyone in society. We need to work closely together — the police, law enforcement and the justice system, as well as healthcare, social services, traditional and faith leaders, the media and people at large to prevent violence. A woman who is experiencing violence often doesn't just have one problem — she has many problems at the same time and she needs help from many different systems all at once.

It is worth stating plainly that our societies, our attitudes and our behaviours do not sit apart from questions of rights, equality and power. They exist within that ecosystem and are shaped by it continuously, whether this is widely recognised. The norms that determine whether a woman is believed, protected or blamed are connected to, rather than separate from, the conversations taking place in multilateral forums this week.

Women in Ekurhuleni, and everywhere else, should not have to wait for outcomes, plans and further deliberations to have certainty that they can live their lives free of violence.

It is time for real change. When leaders get together to talk about rebuilding trust, we need to see actual results — fewer fights, institutions that work, and women who are safe, equal and treated with respect.

The distance between New York and Ekurhuleni is geographical. The responsibility that connects them is not.

This article is reprinted with permission from Mail & Guardian

About the author

Aleta Miller is UN Women's Representative in the South Africa Country Office.