By Elizabeth Sitotombe
INTERNATIONAL WOMEN’s DAY is celebrated every year on March 8 to recognise the social, economic, cultural and political triumphs of women. The event celebrates women’s achievements and raises awareness about women’s equality while lobbying for accelerated gender parity.
According to the UN, this year’s theme for International Women’s Day is ‘Gender Equality Today for a Sustainable Tomorrow’, in recognition and celebration of the women and girls who are leading the charge on climate change, adaptation and response. We also honour women’s leadership and contribution towards a sustainable future.
The official campaign theme is #BreakTheBias, which seeks to promote the imagining of a world free of bias, stereotypes and discrimination.
The celebrations come at a time the world is fighting the effects of climate change as well as the COVID-19 pandemic.
When did it begin?
In 1908, 15 000 women marched in New York City, US, demanding voting rights as well as shorter working hours and better pay.
The first National Women’s Day was observed in the US on February 28 1909, which the Socialist Party of America dedicated in honour of the 1908 garment workers’ strike in New York where women protested against harsh working conditions.
In 1910, the second International Conference of Working Women in Copenhagen, Denmark, women’s rights activist Clara Zetkin called for an international women’s day to give women a greater voice to further their demands for equal rights.
It was unanimously approved by the female attendees from 17 countries.
On March 19 1911, Austria, Denmark, Germany and Switzerland celebrated their first Women’s Day.
Their celebrations included rallies and events calling for women’s right to vote and an end to gender discrimination.
In 1917, women in Russia chose to protest and strike under the slogan ‘Bread and Peace’ on the last Sunday of February (which fell on March 8 on the Gregorian calendar).
Their movement led to the enactment of women’s suffrage in Russia.
In 1945, the Charter of the UN became the first international agreement to affirm the principle of equality between women and men but it was only on March 8 during International Women’s Year in 1975 that the UN celebrated its first official International Women’s Day.
The celebration of women is aligned with treaties as well as international instruments such as the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women and the Beijing Platform for Action.
In countries such as Russia, Uganda, Zambia, Vietnam and Uzbekistan, it is an official holiday.
For China and Madagascar the holiday is for women only.
Colours for International Women’s Day
The colours originated from the Women’s Social and Political Union (WSPU) in the UK in 1908.
There are three colours for the day — purple, green and white.
Purple signifies justice and dignity.
White represents purity, while green symbolises hope.
Why we continue to celebrate women
There is still need to celebrate the day as there is need to improve the quality of life for women and also serve as a reminder that women are yet to be fully appreciated in various spaces.
Women continue to lag behind when it comes to availability of education and healthcare as compared to their male counterparts.
Many women lost access to contraception and other family planning services as a result of the pandemic; important life-saving screenings such as breast cancer screening and pap-smear tests were missed.
Global data by UN Women suggests that the pandemic could have put back gender equality by 25 years as a result of women doing significantly more domestic chores and family care.
Domestic abuse and murder of women was also rampant.
The fight continues.
Zimbabwe joined the rest of the world in commemorating the International Day for Women.
The national theme was: ‘Gender Mainstreaming and Women Empowerment in Climate Change and Disaster Risk Management’.
The main celebrations of the International Women’s Day were held at the Harare Gardens.
Organisations that represent women’s rights were present, educating women on their rights.
Women with various businesses were also given a chance to exhibit their wares.
On International Women’s Day, the Minister of Women Affairs, Community, Small and Medium Enterprises Development, Dr Sithembiso Nyoni, in an interview with a local daily said: “During extreme weather such as droughts, cyclones and floods, women tend to work more to restore and secure household livelihoods.
This will leave less time for women to access training and education, develop skills or participate in the economic mainstay, thus gender equality remains low.”
The COVID-19 pandemic also bought to the fore issues to do with gender-based violence, where women have found themselves in more vulnerable and weakened positions due to the economic challenges they faced.
Child marriages have been on the rise for the past two years as schools failed to open due to the health measures put in place by the Government in the fight against COVID-19.
“Gender-based violence against women is often employed as a way to reinforce gender imbalances and maintain control of limited resources in these situations,” said Dr Nyoni.
“When girls and women are displaced, they are often unable to continue their education and pursue economic opportunities.
Women and girls also face high rates of child marriage, domestic violence, sexual violence and human trafficking due to climate change.”
There is no doubt women are a glue that pieces a whole community together.
Their strength, determination and willpower enables them to jump hurdles placed before them.
However, there is need for them to escape the clutches of poverty, violence and injustices.
As such, this day will continue to be celebrated as women push for further positive changes.