If men and women are truly treated equally at all levels in society, there would be no need to celebrate an International Women’s Day (IWD), which falls today (March 8). But the stark reality is that in many countries, developed and developing, girls and women face an uphill battle for equality and empowerment. Hence, the need for a day such as IWD to remind the world of the importance of recognising the contribution by women to our societies and stressing the need for their uplift.
Every year, the IWD is celebrated under a different theme. The 2020 theme, on the 111th anniversary of the IWD, is #Each for Equal which recognises all of the actions we can take as individuals to challenge stereotypes, fight prejudice and celebrate women’s achievements. IWD’s roots can be traced to 1908, when 15,000 women marched through New York City demanding voting rights, better pay and shorter working hours.
The year 2020 is important for gender equality. It is the 25th anniversary of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action, the most advanced blueprint for achieving gender equality in the world. It also marks 10 years since the establishment of UN Women, and the 20th anniversary of the UN Security Council resolution 1325 on women, peace and security.
Much remains to be done in the sphere of women’s empowerment. As the World Bank found recently, just six economies give women and men equal legal rights in areas that affect their work. And if current trends continue, it will take 168 years to close the economic gender gap. In this report, the World Bank examined 35 indicators of legal equality in 187 countries, covering everything from property ownership and inheritance laws to job protections and pension policies, along with rules governing marriage, movement and travel, pay, and personal safety. It found that men and women are completely equal, legally speaking, only in Belgium, Denmark, France, Latvia, Luxembourg, and Sweden where women are provided with all of the same opportunities as men. The rest of the world has a lot of catching up to do indeed.
While Sri Lanka has not witnessed any discrimination against women and girls in education and many other spheres, there is still a long way to go in terms of complete gender equality. For a country that produced the world’s first woman Prime Minister – Sirimavo Bandaranaike - nearly six decades ago, the number of women in politics and positions of power in business and many other fields is abysmally low. At the grassroots level, the percentage of women in politics was as low as two percent until recently, when attempts were made to bring it up to 25 percent.
While this was not completely successful given the inherent flaws in our electoral system, we hope that political parties will give more nominations to professionally qualified women at the forthcoming General Election in line with the current demand for ‘quality’ MPs. President Gotabaya Rajapaksa has championed women’s empowerment during his first 100 days in office, launching many programs for their uplift. From empowering women entrepreneurs wishing to start their own ventures to getting more women into modern agriculture, this is a highly promising program.
Moreover, the glass ceiling for women is yet to be broken in several other sectors in Sri Lanka from driving heavy vehicles to many mechanically oriented jobs. This should not be the case, since none of these jobs remain closed to women in many other countries. Women should be encouraged to venture into the more male dominated sectors such as motor mechanism/car repair, heavy vehicle/earth moving equipment operations, welding and air-conditioning. Parents and school/university authorities should also encourage more girls to undertake STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) subjects and courses. The INNO-TECH 2020 mega exhibition that starts on Wednesday in Pitipana, Homagama with the participation of all State universities, Security Forces and more than 100 schools will ideally propel more girls in this direction.
Sri Lanka does have very impressive health and education statistics when it comes to girls and women. However, many other problems have blighted this good track record. There has been an increase in sexual and physical attacks against girls and women in recent years. The perpetrators of such violence are almost always known to the victim – either a relative or guardian, not a total stranger. This is a black mark on our society and culture and steps should be taken to purge such violence from our midst. Domestic violence against women, most of which goes unreported, is another black spot.
Indeed, this has been the case all over the world. During the past couple of years, women’s rights have dominated the news, following a global reckoning on sexual misconduct rippling through industries. When the Time Magazine honoured the “Silence Breakers” as its Person of the Year in 2017, the world took notice of a rising wave of resistance and protests against the harassment of girls and women. Following the outpouring of allegations against prominent men in power, the “Me Too” Movement gave a voice to women on the abuse and harassment they suffer throughout life. Governments around the world must do more to protect and empower women, whose enormous potential is yet to be realised.