Women's Views on News |
- Tom Watson on gender inequality
- End UK military support for Sudan
- European Union: for equality in education
| Tom Watson on gender inequality Posted: 17 Sep 2015 07:11 AM PDT
In the run up to the 2015 General Election the Fawcett Society examined in detail how the major political parties planned to tackle gender inequality. The Liberal Democrats now have a new leader and Labour have choosen a new leader and deputy leader. In July the Fawcett Society asked each of the Labour Party candidates what they would do for women, and how they would tackle gender inequality, if elected. This is what the Labour Party’s now newly-elected deputy leader Tom Watson told the Fawcett Society: ‘I worry sometimes that many people believe the battle for gender equality has been won. It hasn't been. Not by a long way. I don’t want my daughter to grow up in a country where she’ll earn less over the course of her lifetime than my son simply because of her gender. Women in the workplace still earn significantly less than men for no other reason than they are women – 81p for every £1 a man earns. Over the course of a lifetime, a woman in the care industry will lose out on around £100,000 of earnings compared to a man. In the professions, that figure doubles. Women are far more likely to work part-time than men, and part-time work pays less per hour than the same full-time job. That isn't just a problem for women, of course. This has a profound effect on the whole family’s finances. The pay gap is narrowing, but at a slower rate than it has been for many years. The United Nations estimates that at current rates it will take another 60 years for it to close completely, so a girl born tomorrow will be close to retirement before they can expect to earn the same as a man in the same job. Barbara Castle, one of the great leaders of the Labour movement, introduced the Equal Pay Act in 1970, but it was the women machinists at the Ford factory in Dagenham who prompted her to act by having the courage to strike over pay. Last year they joined the campaign to call for pay transparency along with Grazia magazine, Unite the Union and actor Gemma Arterton and a number of other stakeholders. This important campaign, which is also supported alongside others in Parliament, compelled the government to force companies with more than 250 workers to publish the pay differentials between their male and female employees. This is something many private sector firms do already. They do that because it is the right thing to do and because it's good for business. But pay isn’t the only issue here. We need equality on a whole range of issues. Through my work with survivors of abuse, I know that we need better safeguards and support. We need to make it easier to register to vote anonymously because we have to be the party that helps to give a voice to the vulnerable. The Tories have pulled apart Sure Start – we need to reverse this. And it’s not just a domestic issue either, there’s much more we can do in solidarity with people across the world. Women's voices must be heard, in Westminster and beyond. The work the Fawcett Society has been doing on these issues has of course been, and continues to be, critical. I’m also proud the Labour Party has more female MPs than every other party put together, but there is more work to do, particularly at a local government level. We need a Labour shadow cabinet in which at least half the posts are occupied by women. And if I'm elected deputy I'll also ask the Labour Party to look at changing the rules of future leadership elections so that at least one of the senior leadership posts has to be filled by a woman. Labour has campaigned for equality since the party was founded and it is a cause that has helped to define our movement. The battle is not yet won but it is a battle we will continue to fight.’ And he said that he had signed the Labour Women's Network Power Pledge. And this is the Labour Women's Network Power Pledge: ‘The Labour Party has a proud record when it comes to women's rights, but the battle for equality is not yet won. ‘Women aren't held back by a lack of skills or a lack of confidence, but because our society and our institutions systematically withhold power. ‘All parts of our movement have to play a part in changing the balance, so I/we pledge to share our own power and campaign to ensure more of it ends up in women's hands. ‘I/we will: So let’s see. But in the meantime, check if your Labour Party MP, county, district and local councillors have signed – and ask them to if they haven’t!  |
| End UK military support for Sudan Posted: 17 Sep 2015 04:30 AM PDT
Staff from the International Coordination Office in London of the international solidarity network Women Living Under Muslim Laws (WLUML) joined with the Women In Black recently to hold a vigil at the Edith Cavell statue in St. Martin's Place, London, near Trafalgar Square, to draw attention to the UK government's complicity in human rights abuses in Sudan, and abuses against women in particular. With its recent investment of £2.2m on a training programme called Defence Engagement Sudan, the British government is complicit in the Sudanese forces' grave human rights abuses including mass rape, ethnic cleansing, and the indiscriminate aerial bombardment of civilians. Women and girls suffer the systematic use of mass rape as a weapon of war. In October 2014, for example, Sudanese army forces raped 221 women and girls – including very young girls – in Tabit, North Darfur. The authorities detained and tortured residents for speaking about what took place. For 4 years, the Sudanese government has been bombing civilians in the Nuba Mountains. Human Rights Watch has evidence of the use of banned cluster bombs on civilian populations. Government security forces are violently suppressing dissent, applying harassment and forced disappearances on activists, journalists, and pro-democracy campaigners. There has also been a marked increase in the repression of women's activism in recent years. This has been felt by many WLUML networkers in Sudan, not least by Salmmah Women’s Resource Centre, who were closed by the government without warning in 2014. Sudanese human rights lawyer, Ali Agab Nour, is currently making a legal challenge against the UK government, claiming that the decision-making process leading to the provision of military support was unlawful and in breach of the UK government's overseas security and justice assistance policy. Women's rights activists from Sudan also joined the vigil, and shared information about their experiences to shape the messaging of the vigil and the demands of the petition to the UK government. They are calling on the British government to: Cease all military assistance, training and funding to Sudan immediately; Direct aid funds towards humanitarian assistance; Put pressure on the Sudanese government to support existing peace-building initiatives proposed by Sudanese civil society; Support Sudanese women's peace and community organisations and put pressure on the Sudanese government to cease the harassment and intimidation of Sudanese women activists; and Ensure women are meaningfully included in all peace negotiations, in line with the Security Council Resolutions on women, peace and security. How you can help: Download this leaflet, print it, sign it, and post it to David Cameron. If you live in the UK, write to your local MP and make sure they know about this, and ask them to raise the issues in Parliament. Tweet @David_Cameron and @GOVUK asking why they think it is acceptable to assist a regime committing war crimes. You can use this shortened link: http://bit.ly/1KLofut Thank you.  |
| European Union: for equality in education Posted: 17 Sep 2015 02:31 AM PDT
Gender equality measures must apply at all levels of the education system, including the curriculum and teacher training, so as to end gender stereotyping and help close the gap between women's education and their professional development, MEPs said in a non-legislative resolution voted on recently. MEPs also called for more investment to ensure that everyone can benefit from high-quality public education. The resolution was approved by 408 votes to 236, with 40 abstentions. Rapporteur Liliana Rodrigues (S&D) said: “We are still living in an unequal Europe. Progress has been made, but women continue to be a prime target for discrimination and violence. "I believe that school plays a fundamental role in changing this state of affairs." Her report ‘on empowering girls through education in the EU’ aimed to ensure the equality and empowerment of girls through education, she said, and to comply with the Istanbul Convention as a tool to prevent gender discrimination, create a school culture of gender equality, critically oversee the curricula and educational materials, ensure gender equality with regard to personal and professional decisions and improve the percentage of women in positions of responsibility and in senior positions. As things stand, 59 per cent of EU graduate students in 2010 were female, but only 20 per cent of EU senior academics were women; in 2012, only 1 in 10 rectors in Europe were female; three years after graduation, the percentage of men in jobs is higher than that of women; women tend to opt for education and health programmes whilst many more men pick engineering, science, mathematics or computing; and the gender pay gap in 2013 was 16 per cent and pension gap 39 per cent. Closing the gap between women's education and professional development. Even though women now make up the majority (60 per cent) of higher education graduates in the EU, they are still less paid for their qualifications than men and are underrepresented in management positions, science and engineering. To encourage more women to take up science, technology, engineering and mathematics, MEPs call for equal access measures and the use of information and communication technologies from pre-school education onwards. Abolishing gender stereotypes and boosting self-confidence. Stereotyping and sexism remain the greatest obstacles to achieving gender equality, says the text. Parliament reiterates its call to combat gender stereotypes, which can affect self-image and the decisions made by girls and boys through formal and informal education at all educational levels. Members call on EU member states to encourage girls and boys to take an equal interest in all subjects beyond gendered stereotypes, stressing the role of positive female role models in schools, universities and science. Foster relationships based on respect and reciprocity. Gender education should be a part of the curriculum and school programmes and teaching materials should not contain discriminatory content, stereotypes or sexism MEPs said. To promote stereotype-free education, teachers should receive training on equality and curricula and educational materials should be critically reviewed, they added. Furthermore, Member states could consider making age-appropriate sex and relationship education compulsory in all primary and secondary school curricula, to teach girls and boys about relationships based on consent, respect and reciprocity, MEPs suggested. To combat discrimination on the grounds of sexual orientation and gender identity, MEPs urge the Commission to support the inclusion of objective information on LGBTI issues in school curricula to fight gender-based violence, discrimination, harassment, homophobia and transphobia, in all their forms, including cyber-bullying or online harassment, says the text. To read Rodriguez’ report on empowering girls through education in the Eurpoean Union, click here.  |
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