PM bats for gender equality
PRIME MINISTER Andrew Holness has said that achieving gender equality is now accepted, understood, and pursued as a condition for inclusive economic growth, social equity, human capital, and socio-economic development. It is also an integral part of his administration’s prosperity plan.
To that end, he noted that many of the policy initiatives announced in this year’s Budget presentation would have significant impact on women, particularly those in small, medium-sized, and micro enterprises.
Holness was delivering the main address at the 10th anniversary celebration of the Henlin Gibson Henlin’s i naugural Women I n Law Jamaica Conference held at The University of the West Indies Regional Headquarters in Kingston on Friday. It was held under the theme “Celebrating Trailblazing Women In Law – Be Inspired”.
Holness said that Jamaica is pursuing gender equality, which is important in tackling poverty because with most households being headed by single females, any policy aimed at poverty reduction must address the issue of gender equality, crime, and violence.
“The two things, though intertwined, have to be treated separately – violence and crime,” said Holness, adding that gender equality is not just a fashionable catchphrase, but something that was important in ensuring the inclusive development of the society.
While not all violence is captured legally as a crime, Holness said that violence particularly affected women in the household, in intimate-partner relations, in domestic relations, and, generally, in the society so that government policy had to be geared at treating violence from a gender perspective.
He noted that the celebration of the accomplishments of women was important for the broadening of recognition and deepening of understanding of the value of women in not just the household, but in the economy and the society.
Attorney General Marlene Malahoo Forte highlighted the significance of the day chosen to celebrate Henlin Gibson Henlin’s milestone.
“International Women’s Day also marks a call to action for accelerating gender parity with the inclusion of such an important conference as part of their celebration,” she said
“This Women in Law conference will serve to achieve the goal of accelerating the work of gender parity by providing useful information and diverse perspectives on critical issues in the law and the wider society,” she said.
Head of Henlin Gibson Henlin, M. Georgia Gibson Henlin, Q.C., chronicled the significant strides made in Jamaica since the days when qualified female lawyers could not practise law because the male-dominated firms would not hire them.
“It was a long and challenging journey. Although women joined the legal profession in 1948, not much advancement was made before or immediately after independence nor in the 20th century as attitudes did not keep pace with legislation”, Gibson Henlin said.
She noted that even today, it is not unusual to hear that law is a traditionally male-dominated profession, noting that the island’s first female chief justice, prime minister, and director of public prosecutions have all only happened within the last 15 years.