A call for solidarity
THE call for a Women's Global Strike on March 8, 2020 was initiated by the Asia Pacific Forum on Women, Law and Development (APWLD), a leading network of feminist organisations and grassroots activists in Asia Pacific.
FWRM, as an APWLD member, decided to be innovative about solidarity action and organised a concert at Sukuna Park as our symbolic strike action highlighting unpaid care work. Titled "If Women Stop, the World Stops," the concert featured local artists Laisa Vulakoro, Natalie Raikadroka, Georgina Ledua and other popular local musicians with performances/speeches from partners.
Unpaid care work perpetuates gender and economic inequalities, driven by women and girls with little or no time for leisure, earn a decent living or to engage in their communities in a meaningful way.
It includes washing, cooking, cleaning, caring for elderly and disabled family members, tasks that are often regarded as "women's work".
The value of unpaid domestic and care work (UDCW) is often excluded from budget planning and national policy agendas and the International Labour Organisation in 2023 reports that if given an equivalent monetary value, equals a substantial portion of the global Gross Domestic Product (GDP), exceeding 40 percent in some countries with women performing the major share of UDCW.
According to our commissioned research "Beyond 33 %: The Economic Empowerment of Fiji Women and Girls" conducted by Professor Wadan Narsey, in Fiji, Females in the Fiji population, did 73 per cent of the Unpaid Household Work, compared to 27 per cent by Males.
The largest share (46 per cent) of this Unpaid Household Work was done by the Paid Labour Force (Females 25 per cent and Males 20 per cent) with Full-time Domestic Workers ("housewives") doing 39 per cent, nearly all by Females.
The platform provided by the concert is used by women's and human rights advocates to share their stories and call for state accountability to recognising the value of unpaid care work and needs of marginalised groups – women, girls, the disabled, the LGBTI community and other minority groups.
The concert has now become a flagship event for FWRM with partners and allies across human rights sectors and the Trade Union joining the concert in solidarity every year, choosing to close the office for the full day or for a few hours.
Last year, the event brought together over 250 members of the public, partners and allies. A key part to our event is the solidarity with local organisations on understanding what unpaid care work is all about and joining the symbolic strike commemorating IWD.
FWRM is grateful for the continued support from our partners annually. Building on the momentum from the Women's Global Strike concerts since 2020, FWRM has decided to organise the fifth WGS concert this Friday on IWD.
In recognising also the significance of IWD as a day for activism, FWRM hopes to combat rising tokenism. Please come and join us and hundreds of women's rights defenders and activists at the National Gymnasium in Suva, use the platform to call for the recognition of unpaid care work and contributions by women to our homes and communities.