International Women's Day 2010
Have your say on Reuters about what women's day means to you
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Thank you to everyone for your participation in the live blog and for a memorable IWD. Please follow us on Twitter @Women_on_IWD and continue the conversation there. Also visit the Reuters Women in Focus page at uk.reuters.com and International Women's Day at internationalwomensday.com -
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Here is New York at 'Beijing + 15' women have rallied from their fury about the long wait to register, at the difficulty in any meaningful participation and a sense of exclusion, futility and alienation from what is always a crowded and confusing event but one that can also be very satisfying. The UN decided to celebrate IWD already in Wednesday because any Ministers around would have left or be leaving and many,many of us NGOs are also here only for the furst week. The Secretary General who is a genuine friend of women's equality and others made good speeches but, as before, NGOs on the floor of the conference room - no. I had a fascinating morning at the Task Force on Disability at the UJAFed of New York and in addiiton to talking about Inclusion for people with leanirng disability and mental illness needs, explained what the Commission on the Status of Women was!
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To celebrate IWD in Sydney 8th March, Women @ Thomson Reuters have organised an afternoon tea @ 3PM in the main boardroom. Attendees will be entertained by guest speakers - our own Pauline Askin on with her great adventures in Antarctica & Ruth Medd from Women on Boards providing insight on ‘Diversity Proofing Your career’. Will be a fun informative event!
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That photo is by Finbarr O'Reilly. It is an actress from the Dseu Renaissance de Pikine theater group wearing traditional Toukouleur make up and chewing a stick toothbrush waits for rehearsal to begin at a local community center at the slum neighbourhood of Pikine in Senegal's capital Dakar, November 7, 2009.
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To learn how to live blog, check out www.scribblelive.com
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IWD in Singapore means hearing how a team of Singapore women made it to the top of Everest last year, despite little corporate support and publicity. Two team members will speak to our network and guests from other women's affinity groups. I'm really excited about this...read about their quest last year and contacted them to speak to our chapter!
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But the main reason why they are particularly vulnerable during a crisis is because of their status before disaster strikes. They are generally poorer than men, have little political voice, are often less mobile for cultural reasons, they do not own land, and are less likely than men to have an education or access to heath care.
But women are not just victims, they are also survivors who can help countries recover more quickly from natural disasters and conflict. They often have a unique ability to build bridges between warring communities, and they can find ways to protect communities from the worst effects of future disasters. But in many cases they are excluded from discussions on these issues, and their particular needs are often left out of both recovery plans and the terms of peace agreements. -
Women suffer disproportionately during a crisis, whether it is war, famine or a natural disaster like earthquakes and floods.
The majority of civilian casualties in conflicts are women and children, and sexual violence is increasingly used as a method of war. The death rate of women after the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami was at least three times higher than that of men in some communities. Women experience a heavy burden during and after disasters because they are often responsible for providing food and water for their families.
But the main reason why they are particularly vulnerable during a crisis is because of their status before disaster strikes. They are generally poorer than men, have little political voice, are often less mobile for cultural reasons, they do not own land, and are less likely than men to have an education or access to heath care.
But women are not just victims, they are also survivors who can help countries recover more quickly from natural disasters and conflict. They often have a unique ability to build bridges between warring communities, and they can find ways to protect communities from the worst effects of future disasters. But in many cases they are excluded from discussions on these issues, and their particular needs are often left out of both recovery plans and the terms of peace agreements. For stories on women and conflict check out alertnet.org -
Annette Lawson, chair of National Alliance of Women’s Organisations on Beijing +15 blogs.reuters.com
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Journalism.co.uk will be publishing themed blog posts and links on Monday to mark International Women's Day, highlighting experiences and exploring thoughts about women in journalism and media. More details here: blogs.journalism.co.uk
Any interested journalists/bloggers please get in touch! judith@journalism.co.uk -
The RSA in London is hosting an event titled "The Equality Gap" on 11th Mar 2010; 13:00 bit.ly
Last year the World Economic Forum revealed that the UK had fallen to 81st position on an international league table for equal pay – behind Tajikistan, Sri Lanka, Syria and China.
In the same year, new research showed that of the top 350 FTSE company boardrooms, 132 were men-only zones, and had absolutely no female representation at board level. 90% of those firms had an equality policy, but only 3% of them boasted a female Chief Executive.
These figures are reflected throughout all aspects of British society. Male doctors earn an average of £15,000 more a year than their female colleagues, the Tate Modern displays works of art of which 88% are by men, 91% of high court judges are male, and only a fifth of British parliament is female.
Gender equality campaigns are arguably one of the most urgent and relevant social justice movements in the UK today, so why are they marginalised, trivialised, and sniggered at or ignored by both men and women? How pervasive is the old-boy network today, and is it possible to infiltrate the ranks? Can we impose parity through quota legislation – as Norway, Spain and France have done, or is using the law to break the glass ceiling humiliating and culturally and socially ineffective?
Join an influential panel of commentators as they discuss one of the most pressing social justice issues in the UK today.
Speakers to include: Kat Banyard, feminist campaigner and author of The Equality Illusion; Dr Nina Power, Senior Lecturer in Philosophy, Roehampton University; Deb Leary OBE, Founder and CEO of Forensic Pathways and President of the British Association of Women Entrepreneurs
Chair: Ceri Goddard, Chief Executive of the Fawcett Society
Twitter logoSuggested hashtag for Twitter users: #rsaequality -
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A UK ambassador applies diplomatic skills to encourage women's rights in Lebanon #IWD blogs.fco.gov.uk
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International Women's Day in a post-gender world by Elisabeth Kelan, a lecturer in the Department of Management at King’s College London blogs.reuters.com
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Claer Barrett associate editor of the Investors Chronicle writes that women are better investors: blogs.reuters.com
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Glenda Stone: Women leaders: High peaks, low gullies blogs.reuters.com
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IWD sets stage for perennial debate over feminism, by Sandra Dickson: blogs.reuters.com
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Dany Cotton, London Fire Brigade: Chipping away at old stereotypes about women firefighters: blogs.reuters.com
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Maybe the EU will deliver ec.europa.eu
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The Womens Foundation kicked off International Womens Day in Hong Kong with a gala lunch featuring Christine Loh, CEO of the Civic Exchange. Christine inspired but also highlighted areas that still need improvement. Hong Kong is seen as a vibrant international city of sky scrapers however there is still a significant gender divide and poverty among women remains a hidden issue that for many appears an odd contrast. In 1994 the legislature passed laws to give women the right to inherit land. However, Christine highlighted that the job was not complete as the awareness and communication of the message had not happened and therefore women in the New Territories were not aware and often not benefiting. Lively debate on gender stereotyping and the media's part in this also kept the lunch animated and engaging. The events continue next week with lunch at the Hyatt for Austcham featuring a panle discussion "Juggling and the Art of Making Life Happen … or Can You Have it All?" Women Media Network has cocktails in the evening at the FCC.
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Kiribati says it faces growing risks from rising seas and more intense storms that flood villages and ruin crops. uk.reuters.com
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The capital of Kiribati is Tarawa and is about mid way between Australia and Hawaii. In January 1995, Kiribati declared that all its territory was in the same time zone (UTC + 12). Population is 112,850. Prior in 1994, the eastern and western islands groups were on either side of the International Dateline with a 23-hour time difference between them.
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Kiritimati atoll covers 606 sq km (234 sq mi), of which 243 sq km (94 sq mi) are land. The island was discovered by Captain James Cook in 1777. Most of the population work on coconut plantations and in copra production. Nuclear tests were conducted on Kiritimati Island by the British in 1957 and 1958 and by the United States in 1962. Thanks to the CIA World Factbook for all this information :-)
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RT @mmwtweets Happy International Women's Day! http://www.internationalwomensday.com/ #IWDby SafiahC via twitter 3/7/2010 10:06:05 AM -
Labour in Kiribati is divided by gender. Men fish, collect toddy and do heavy construction tasks, while women cook, look after the home and children. Both genders cultivate crops. While women may fish and shellfish in the lagoon, only men may collect toddy. There is a clear status ranking in each household, which is usually headed by the oldest male unless he is too elderly to be active. The control of domestic activities lies with a senior married woman. This is according to:
www.everyculture.com -
More information about toddy can be found here en.wikipedia.org
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RT @Women_on_IWD: Happy International Women's Day! #iwd http://scrbliv.me/11784by ranadp via twitter 3/7/2010 10:15:15 AM -
RT: @reuters_co_uk RT @Women_on_IWD: IWD begins in Kiritimati Island (formerly Christmas Island),the largest atoll in the Pacific Ocean #iwdby DameJEMarshall via twitter 3/7/2010 10:15:25 AM -
How did IWD begin? In 1910, an International Conference of Working Women was held in Copenhagen. A woman named Clara Zetkin (Leader of the 'Women's Office' for the Social Democratic Party in Germany) tabled the idea of an International Women's Day. She proposed that every year in every country there should be a celebration on the same day - a Women's Day - to press for their demands. The conference of over 100 women from 17 countries, representing unions, socialist parties, working women's clubs, and including the first three women elected to the Finnish parliament, greeted Zetkin's suggestion with unanimous approval and thus International Women's Day was the result, according to internationalwomensday.com
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The very first International Women's Day was launched the following year in 1911 by Clara Zetkin on 19 March (not 8 March). The date was chosen because on 19 March in the year of the 1848 revolution, the Prussian king recognized for the first time the strength of the armed people and gave way before the threat of a proletarian uprising. Among the many promises he made, which he later failed to keep, was the introduction of votes for women. internationalwomensday.com
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I was in Moscow last weekend and toured the Kremlin. I was surprised to see Clara Zetkin, founder of IWD, was in the necropolis behind Lenin's Tomb. John Reid, journalist who wrote "10 Days That Shook the World" about the Russian 1917 October Revolution was also there.
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International Women's Day 2010: First International Women's Day ... Arab women at Amnesty International IWD Rally ... http://bit.ly/agXiOqby DCintlevents via twitter 3/7/2010 10:35:48 AM
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