International Women's Day 2010: Launch of the Dossier of Claims
By FIDH on Monday 8 March 2010, 15:14 - Permalink
“We demand respect for women's rights in Africa”
8 March 2010 - On the occasion of International Women's Day and the first anniversary of the Campaign “Africa for Women's Rights: Ratify and Respect!”, over one hundred organisations publish their “Dossier of Claims”, addressed to the governments of the continent.
For the past year, the Campaign partner organisations, present in more than 40 countries, have been mobilising to call upon their governments to end the serious discrimination that continues to target women in Africa.
The Campaign, « Africa for women's rights », launched on 8 March 2009, is already resonating across the continent and some progress has been achieved, including the adoption of a law to increase the representation of women in political life in Burkina Faso, the prohibition on female genital mutilation in Uganda and the nomination of a Special Representative of the United Nations Secretary General on sexual violence in armed conflict.
“But we cannot forget that women continue to suffer daily violations of their fundamental rights,” stated Souhayr Belhassen, FIDH President. “Inequality before the law in relation to familial authority or access to inheritance, acts of sexual violence committed with complete impunity, obstacles to access to education...the persistence of such discrimination is evidence of the long road that we need to travel before women in Africa obtain equal rights”.
The Dossier of Claims is the outcome of investigations conducted by the Campaign partner organisations in their respective countries and reflects the situation of women’s rights in over thirty African countries. It contains key demands to eliminate discrimination and violence against women, including: the abolition of laws consecrating inferior status to women within the family or preventing them from having access to property; the criminalisation of sexual violence and the prosecution of perpetrators; as well as the ratification of international and regional women's rights protection instruments.
These “claims” are directed towards national governments, since strengthening respect of women’s rights is primarily a question of political will.
« With this Dossier of Claims, all the actors of the Campaign call upon African governments to take concrete and immediate measures to respect women's rights. We call upon them to RATIFY women’s rights protection instruments and to RESPECT them in law and practice », concluded the Campaign Steering Committee.
DOWNLOAD THE DOSSIER OF CLAIMS
DOWNLOAD THE PRESS KIT
Comments
It has been a century since the declaration of International Women's Day.
Eight of March every year is commemorated throughout the world as Women's Day and forms an integral part of the history of the working class women's struggle.
The historic event took place on 8th March, 1908 when about 15,000 women marched the streets of New York City demanding shorter hours, better pay and voting rights. They were the women workers of the garment companies, in the needle trade, working in appalling conditions in sweatshops. They also demanded an end to child labour. As the struggle intensified all over Europe and America, in 1910, at a Socialist International meeting in Copenhagen, an International Women's Day of no fixed date was proposed to honour the women's rights movement.
In 1911, Ms.Clara Zetkin, a leader of the working class women's movement, organized the first IWD in Germany and it was also celebrated in Austria, Denmark, Germany and Switzerland on 19 March. More than one million women and men attended IWD rallies campaigning for women's rights to work, vote, be trained, to hold public office and end discrimination. In 1913, IWD was transferred to 8th March. Since then the women's movement has made this day so well known that it is widely and popularly celebrated throughout the world. Seeing its popularity, the day is also being co-opted by the establishment to make women believe that the governments, capitalist, feudal and imperialist forces are much concerned about the welfare of women and to try and silence their struggles.
Let us commemorate the Centenary of the International Women's Day in our respective areas in an effective and a meaningful way.
We can definitely commemorate this important event by addressing the specific needs (in view of their additional social and biological vulnerability) of girls and women to HIV and AIDS and work for their empowerment (GSACS has been regularly observing Tejaswini Saptah -the week of empowered women-in this week every year) through specific pursuits including the ones on the lines suggested by women’s rights organizations, say ,by:
1. Facilitating functional committees in various cities or states and generating the desired awareness through rallies, seminars or workshops.
2. Conducting campaigns by having poster exhibitions, distributing leaflets
doing cultural programmes etc.
3. Publishing literature on the history of the women's movement, the working class
movement and women's participation in it.
4.Supporting and strengthening all the ongoing endeavours of different people and organizations working in a committed manner for the desired outcome in the social sector.
This year also marks the 15th anniversary of the adoption of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action, the outcome of the Fourth World Conference on Women in Beijing in 1995.
In recognition of this important anniversary, the theme of this year’s International Women’s Day (which is observed worldwide on 8th March) for the official observance at UN Headquarters is "Equal Rights, Equal Opportunities: Progress for All".
Let us chalk out long term sustainable activities to effectively address the issues which may be ushered in/strengthened with the centenary celebrations.
We all must sign and declare our fullest support to the cause.
Regards and best wishes,
Dr.Rajesh Gopal,
AIDS Control,Gujarat,India