Women's Views on News |
- Back a credible solution for Greece
- Stand with incredible women
- Julia Gillard: What equality will look like
| Back a credible solution for Greece Posted: 29 Jun 2015 06:37 AM PDT
By Caroline Lucas MP. It's all too easy, when you hear of markets in disarray and banks closing on the other side of the continent, to forget about the terrible human impacts of the crisis in Greece. Over 40 per cent of children are living in poverty, a quarter of the workforce is unemployed, youth unemployment is at almost 50 per cent and the healthcare system is close to collapse. Beyond the hackneyed headlines of a 'Greek tragedy' are people living on the brink, struggling to feed and clothe their families. It's abundantly clear that the Troika's (the IMF, EU and European Central Bank's) plan is failing in human terms – but it's an economic failure too. Greece's government debt has grown from 133 per cent of GDP in 2010 to 174 per cent today. Since 2010 the Troika has lent €252 billion to the Greek government. Of this, the vast majority of the money was used to bailout banks, pay off the private sector to accept restructuring, and repay old debts and interest from reckless lending. Less than 10 per cent of the money has actually reached the people who need it in Greece. In light of this profound failure, it's clear that a change of direction is desperately needed from the Troika. But the solution to such misery being offered by European Governments and the IMF is…more misery. They want more austerity inflicted on the Greeks, indeed they want to entirely strip down the Greek state and refashion it as a servant of capital rather than people. The stand off we're seeing this week matters to all of us. It involves a democratically elected Ggovernment that's trying – against all the odds – to protect people from the ravages of austerity, pitted against an unelected Troika hell bent on defying the will of the Greek people. The Greek Government isn't rejecting any change whatsoever, but instead calling for a debt conference, based on the 'London conference' which agreed debt cancellation for Germany in 1953. That conference agreed to cancel 50 per cent of Germany's debt to governments, people and institutions outside the country, and paved the way for Germany to recover from the crippling war. This evening I'll be joining many others at the Greek Solidarity Demonstration in Trafalgar Square. Our demand is that our Prime Minister supports calls for a European Conference, along the lines of what happened in 1953, to bring Greece back from the brink. The people of Greece have shown incredible resilience in extremely difficult times. They've worked together to provide on-the-ground assistance to those in need – from medical treatment to food banks. But there's only so much cutting the social fabric in Greece can take before it tears apart. Any self-respecting democrat can see that further forced austerity in Greece is wrong. It's time for Europe's leaders, including David Cameron, to stand up for democracy and back a credible solution to Greece's dire problems. Later today Natalie Bennett, Green Party Leader, and Green MP Caroline Lucas will be joining the demonstration in solidarity with the Greek people at 6pm in Trafalgar Square. The protest, organised by the Greece Solidarity Campaign, is calling for an end to imposed austerity in Greece. And #SolidarityWithGreece on Twitter.  |
| Posted: 29 Jun 2015 05:30 AM PDT
Najiba grew up dreaming of working for women's rights and empowerment, only to have her education cut short by forced marriage as a teenager. She was devastated to see the same thing happening to countless women around her: "My dream was to be a good advocate for women's rights in Afghanistan. "I saw parents who didn't allow girls to go to school, or stopped girls at the early stages of their study, forcefully arranged marriages, continued abuse by husbands and other close relatives. It upset me a lot and I decided to work for them." Since then, Najiba has dedicated her life to supporting and representing the women in her country. Working with ActionAid and other human rights organisations, she gives legal help to women in Afghanistan, mediating thousands of disputes to protect women from violence. After starting a voluntary service counselling abused women in her area, she became the manager of a safe home, protecting many women from violence at great threat to her own personal safety. And she continues to run the safe home, giving legal and psychological support to the women who stay there – all while studying law so that she can better represent the women in her country. Despite decades of international agreements and commitments, violence against women and girls (VAWG) remains a daily reality everywhere in the world. Women and girls face the possibility of violence in the home, on the street, at school and at work. A third of all women and girls face violence in their lifetime. It’s one of the most widespread violations of human rights, and it robs women of control over their bodies and lives. This doesn’t just hold back the women it affects – it holds back their families and communities too. For many, violence and poverty reinforce each other, undermining women's potential to realise economic opportunities. Courageous women and girls speak out and demand change, sometimes risking their lives in doing so. But their opportunities for resistance are constrained by shrinking civil society space, widening inequalities and rising religious fundamentalisms – alarming global threats that hit women and girls hardest. In September, governments will agree a target on eliminating violence against women at the UN General Assembly. But a target alone isn’t enough. It’s vital that governments around the world put proper resources behind it, and that women’s groups are involved from the start. Help Action Aid make sure the UK government put some real force behind this target. Stand with women around the world and tell David Cameron you want him to act now. In its report 'Fearless: Standing with Women and Girls', Action Aid calls for urgent action by governments, donors and the international community to ensure successful realisation of the anticipated violence against women and girls target in the SDGs addressing the following: 1. Show leadership in combatting violence against women and girls by championing the anticipated SDG target on VAWG, ensuring it has genuinely transformative indicators developed in consultation with women's organisations. Prioritise the full and effective and accountable implementation of this target and other global VAWG commitments by developing a clear fast-tracking process that catalyses government and donor action; 2. Recognise, champion and prioritise women's organisations as critical long-term partners and leaders in the fight against WAVG including their unique role in implementing and holding governments accountable for VAWG commitments; protect civil society and democratic space for all, and promote women's right to participate in decision-making; and 3. Ensure the necessary finance is available so that commitments to eradicating VAWG can be fully and rapidly realised in developing countries, including implementation of the SDG target on VAWG and national action plans based upon the financing gaps identified by developing countries. In a recent survey for ActionAid, almost two thirds of women's human rights defenders asked said they felt less safe now than they did two years ago. This can't go on. And this summer, we all have a chance to make sure it doesn't. World leaders are deciding on a target to end violence against women as part of the upcoming Sustainable Development Goals – so we need to make sure that the target stays, that governments put proper resources behind it, and that women like Najiba are involved from the start. If we miss this moment, women and girls will pay with their bodies, their choices, their opportunity and their lives, for generations to come. It is vital that governments around the world put proper resources behind it, and that women’s groups are involved from the start. Stand with women around the world and tell David Cameron you want him to act now.  |
| Julia Gillard: What equality will look like Posted: 29 Jun 2015 04:15 AM PDT
Julia Gillard has a list… Speaking at a public event in London last week, former Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard outlined the signs she believes will show we'have achieved gender equality in politics. First, she said, we'll know we've achieved equality when people stop commenting on female politicians' clothes. Second, we'll stop hearing discussions about female politicians' family structures – whether or not they have children, and so on – and attempts to insist this is somehow relevant to their professional abilities. Third, female politicians will no longer be subject to gendered insults – such as the "witch" and "bitch" placards levied at Gillard. On a related note, she added, we'll stop hearing those internal voices which insist female-ness, leadership and likeability simply don't go together. Those voices that say a successful, powerful woman must have given up some important 'female' traits along the way, such as empathy and kindness – that "she must be a bit of a…" And finally, Gillard said, we'll know we've really achieved gender equality when we no longer bother to keep count. She outlined her hope of living to see a time when a pub quiz question will ask how many female prime ministers Australia has had – and no one will know the answer. During the discussion, chaired by Tessa Jowell, Gillard also identified the factors she believes will help speed progress towards that day. Drawing on her own life story, she highlighted the importance of access to high-quality education for children of both genders and from all social backgrounds; receiving encouragement from parents and teachers; and experiencing the possibility of making a real difference by speaking out. She also emphasised the importance of maintaining a strong sense of self, alongside a clear vision of one's own motivations and goals. This, she said, helped her persevere amidst the ups and downs of media coverage and the often tempestuous nature of political life. Finally, Gillard stressed the need for women in politics to speak out about the positives, and not just the negatives; while raising awareness about the challenges and barriers is important, she pointed out the danger of deterring young people from considering political careers. She said she particularly wanted to reassure young women that the rewards do outweigh the tougher times, and that this motivated her to complete her book, ‘My Story’, so quickly after leaving office. Gillard was speaking at an event that was part of The London School of Economics's Women Above the Parapet project, headed by Dr Purna Sen, which is collecting a mass of qualitative data on the experiences of women who have reached the top levels of public life. Next week's event, the last in a series of 80, will feature Professor Ruth Simmons, who was the first female president of Brown University and the first black person to head an Ivy League university. Podcasts and transcripts of all past events are available to access online, and the findings of the Women Above the Parapet project will be published in a forthcoming report. Very much something to watch out for!  |
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