The Guyana Agricultural and General Workers Union (GAWU) salutes the women of the world on this International Women’s Day. It is indisputable that women have played an important role in the advancement of civilization and, increasingly today, they are engaged in all spheres of human endeavour in many countries of the world.
We recall that International Women’s Day emerged out of the struggles of women workers in the United States, who organized themselves to strike for better working conditions, better pay, and voting rights and against women’s oppression and gender inequality. These struggles made us better understand the inseparable links between economic rights and political rights. Their struggles also show that the concerns of working people the world over are shared between women and men.
The day dedicated to women, gained prominence when socialist women workers identified it as a day of action to rally against the First World War. On the same day in 1917, a strike of working women of Russia took place in protest at the killing of 2 million soldiers in the war and which provided a further impetus for the history-making Russian Revolution which occurred in that year and which saw the birth of a socialist country for the first time in the annals of civilization.
In-as-much that women have made worthy contributions to mankind’s development and generally made notable strides in their own lives they must still contend with multi-faceted problems – poverty, economic inequality, discrimination in work life, oppression and various manifestations of violence. Today, the heavy burden of austerity affect women – job opportunities are scarce; services they rely on are discontinued or are cut; working-women face exploitation; millions live with oppression literally on a daily basis, and yet millions make up the most recent phenomenon of refugees driven from their homes and countries mainly due to destructive wars of aggression and severe bombardment of their countries.
Apart from work-related problems the question of domestic violence has risen to the fore and has been condemned worldwide. GAWU continues to condemn such abuses of women as we strongly also condemn the violence meted out to them and their families in conditions of poverty, exploitation and wars.
This year the United Nations (UN) theme is “Time is Now: Rural and urban activists transforming women’s lives”. We feel this is a laudable objective. And, it is timely to call on the governments primarily and various organisations to work towards the realization of this UN theme. Gender equality is possible in our day and will certainly be yet another significant step in recognizing the indispensable role of women in the all-round development of human-kind.
The women question has acquired greater prominence in recent times and justifiably so. It is now up to us as individuals or through organisations to remove the hurdles and impediments that put a brake on women’s further contribution to society, development and greater achievements.
We are convinced that the women of the world and working-women especially remain a formidable force in mankind’s struggles to address unequal relationships and to bring about a just, democratic and peaceful world. With this in mind, we take this opportunity to express solidarity with our womenfolk worldwide and especially to the major mobilization of women in the USA and other countries on this day.
On the occasion of this year’s celebration of International Women’s Day, the GAWU sends greetings to the women of Guyana, to its women members and greetings also to the women the world over, especially those who are in the frontlines, to further the cause of women and for overall social progress and peace.
Featured image provided by starline / Freepik
