boiler
8th March 2014, 22:24
This year RNU are highlighting bravery in the campaign for women’s rights, more importantly in the campaigns against violations of women’s human rights.
What does that mean? Essentially there needs to be a change of attitude towards women on so many levels eg equal pay, equal status, equal access, from politics to business to the home and so much more.
It’s hardly radical but it is shameful that it still has to be done all around the world on a variety of issues. This is not of course to say that men aren’t brave or revolutionary but to highlight that women are still campaigning for equal rights and their bravery not just enduring their own personal goals but how they continued on regardless.
We could talk forever about the horrors inflicted against women around the world such as the recent case of a young woman ‘sentenced’ by her village elders to a public gang rape in India just for being seen in public with a boy of a different faith.
In Ireland the survivors of the Magdalene Laundries received an apology from Taoiseach Enda Kenny yet they are still ‘debating’ the levels of compensation that should be paid despite the UN Committee Against Torture enquiring about Irelands plans on redress. Marie Flemming lost two battles; the battle against the State to end her life with dignity and the battle for life itself.
We could talk forever about the neglect of governments who continue to discriminate against women taxing maternity benefit, cutting child benefit, cutting carers allowance or eligibility for the medical card, almost an attack on motherhood itself.
We could talk about the 2013 report that confirmed the unnecessary and frequent strip searching of women in Hydebank and Ash House and how the women feel intimidated by male staff during and even in prison, women feel marginalised.
We watched in horror, the video of Russian punk rock feminist group Pussy Riot, being beaten with horse whips and pepper sprayed for singing a song in public during the Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia. Their personal sacrifice for free speech is heroic given that they already endured horrific conditions in jail (also for freedom of speech) having been forced to humiliating punishments, 17 hour working days and given rotten food.
On the 9th October 2012, a young girl called Malala was shot by the Taliban on her school bus. Why? When she was 11 years old, Malala wrote a blog in which she which highlighted life in a Taliban controlled area, which among a multitude of other things, banned girls from attending school. Instead of killing her, she survived and has become and international symbol of courage and determination. Last year, Malala made a compassionate plea for children all around the world to have the right to education, declaring “one child, one teacher, one pen and one book can change the world” and the Malala fund was established to help achieve it.
In Ireland, a courageous lady from Cork, Louise O’Keeffe won her case in the European Court of Human Rights against Ireland in which Ireland was ruled to have failed to protect her as a child when in primary school. Louise was subjected to sexual abuse in 1973 by the then principal Leo Hickey.
This case exposed the State’s negligence to protect children as complaints had been made against Hickey in 1971 and had they acted on those complaints, other children including Ms O’Keeffe would have been spared the horror of sexual abuse as the State was his employer. Hickey was prosecuted (in 1990’s) with 386 cases of historical sexual abuse against 21 pupils. Through her bravery and determination, the States inefficiencies were highlighted and victims all over Ireland may have the opportunity to claim for compensation
For those of us who are lucky enough not to have endured personal tragedy, we can be inspirational; we can be vocal; we can listen to others and be compassionate; we can motivate and agitate for change. Why not start with a campaign to have International Women’s Day declared a national holiday as it is in many countries around the world? Get friends, family, community groups and employers involved. We can bring about changes to eliminate the inequalities and violations of women’s human rights. RNU encourage women and men of all ages to get active and campaign for equality and change.
So for today, International Women’s Day, celebrate it. But tomorrow campaign for change.
http://www.republicanunity.org/brave...-message-2014/
What does that mean? Essentially there needs to be a change of attitude towards women on so many levels eg equal pay, equal status, equal access, from politics to business to the home and so much more.
It’s hardly radical but it is shameful that it still has to be done all around the world on a variety of issues. This is not of course to say that men aren’t brave or revolutionary but to highlight that women are still campaigning for equal rights and their bravery not just enduring their own personal goals but how they continued on regardless.
We could talk forever about the horrors inflicted against women around the world such as the recent case of a young woman ‘sentenced’ by her village elders to a public gang rape in India just for being seen in public with a boy of a different faith.
In Ireland the survivors of the Magdalene Laundries received an apology from Taoiseach Enda Kenny yet they are still ‘debating’ the levels of compensation that should be paid despite the UN Committee Against Torture enquiring about Irelands plans on redress. Marie Flemming lost two battles; the battle against the State to end her life with dignity and the battle for life itself.
We could talk forever about the neglect of governments who continue to discriminate against women taxing maternity benefit, cutting child benefit, cutting carers allowance or eligibility for the medical card, almost an attack on motherhood itself.
We could talk about the 2013 report that confirmed the unnecessary and frequent strip searching of women in Hydebank and Ash House and how the women feel intimidated by male staff during and even in prison, women feel marginalised.
We watched in horror, the video of Russian punk rock feminist group Pussy Riot, being beaten with horse whips and pepper sprayed for singing a song in public during the Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia. Their personal sacrifice for free speech is heroic given that they already endured horrific conditions in jail (also for freedom of speech) having been forced to humiliating punishments, 17 hour working days and given rotten food.
On the 9th October 2012, a young girl called Malala was shot by the Taliban on her school bus. Why? When she was 11 years old, Malala wrote a blog in which she which highlighted life in a Taliban controlled area, which among a multitude of other things, banned girls from attending school. Instead of killing her, she survived and has become and international symbol of courage and determination. Last year, Malala made a compassionate plea for children all around the world to have the right to education, declaring “one child, one teacher, one pen and one book can change the world” and the Malala fund was established to help achieve it.
In Ireland, a courageous lady from Cork, Louise O’Keeffe won her case in the European Court of Human Rights against Ireland in which Ireland was ruled to have failed to protect her as a child when in primary school. Louise was subjected to sexual abuse in 1973 by the then principal Leo Hickey.
This case exposed the State’s negligence to protect children as complaints had been made against Hickey in 1971 and had they acted on those complaints, other children including Ms O’Keeffe would have been spared the horror of sexual abuse as the State was his employer. Hickey was prosecuted (in 1990’s) with 386 cases of historical sexual abuse against 21 pupils. Through her bravery and determination, the States inefficiencies were highlighted and victims all over Ireland may have the opportunity to claim for compensation
For those of us who are lucky enough not to have endured personal tragedy, we can be inspirational; we can be vocal; we can listen to others and be compassionate; we can motivate and agitate for change. Why not start with a campaign to have International Women’s Day declared a national holiday as it is in many countries around the world? Get friends, family, community groups and employers involved. We can bring about changes to eliminate the inequalities and violations of women’s human rights. RNU encourage women and men of all ages to get active and campaign for equality and change.
So for today, International Women’s Day, celebrate it. But tomorrow campaign for change.
http://www.republicanunity.org/brave...-message-2014/