International day for women

TODAY the world will celebrate International Women’s Day and Fiji being a signatory to the ILO (International Labour Organisation) Convention on the Rights of Women, will also celebrate in style.

Various organisations have already started pampering their women and girls with tea parties, roses, gifts, dinners, special church services and what have you!

This is the real spirit of the day to let women know that they are very special in our lives.

Without them our daily lives will be meaningless and unexciting.

Many speeches will have been delivered in which the contributions made by women and girls will be highlighted.

Their social and economic importance in the development of our country will be focused.

The role of women in various sectors, formal and informal, will be pointed out. Sectors such as teaching, nursing, judiciary, garment industry, fishing, agriculture, army and sports: just to mention a few.

The government policy of providing free education, textbooks, bus fares, scholarships and student loan scheme has done much to empower women and girls.

Special funding for skill development in small and medium enterprises has done much to ameliorate the living conditions of our women and girls.

More and more women are attending universities and getting degrees and better paid jobs in all sectors.

NGOs such as the Fiji Women’s Crisis Centre have done much to focus attention on the plight of our women and girls vis-a-vis domestic violence, rapes, murders, and other forms of discrimination.

As a result we see more cases are being reported and police action taken.

More cases are going to courts and more DVROs are being issued.

This reflects that women are becoming aware of their rights and are prepared to come out of traditional debilitating practices which devalued women.

In this regard the communications technology has been of immense benefit. The Independent Legal Services Commission must be commended for an excellent job it is doing to empower women and girls.

I believe the fact still remains that we are still living in a patriarchal society and many more awareness programs need to be organised on a regular basis so that the concept of empowering women and girls through education and skills training is achieved so that they too become productive and respected members of our society.

May I wish all the women and girls of Fiji a very happy International Women’s Day 2020.

DEWAN CHAND

Ragg Ave, Namadi Heights, Suva