Day a beacon for change, equality, progress
International Women's Day (IWD), celebrated annually on March 8, is a focal point internationally in the women's rights movement, shedding light on gender equality, reproductive rights, and the fight against violence and abuse targeting women.
Emerging from the labour movements of the early 20th century in North America and Europe, IWD has its roots in female suffrage. An offshoot of the Socialist Party of America's "Women's Day" held in New York City in 1909, it was hailed as a special day to champion equal rights and women's suffrage.
The idea took hold, and in 1911, the first IWD was celebrated by over a million people across Austria, Denmark, Germany and Switzerland. Women took to the streets, demanding the right to vote and to public office, and protesting against gender-based employment discrimination.
In 1914, IWD was held on March 8 for the first time in Germany, but women did not get the vote until 1918.
At the same time, there was a march in London in support of women's suffrage, during which suffragette Sylvia Pankhurst was arrested in front of Charing Cross station on her way to speak in Trafalgar Square.
The history of IWD is also marked by the devastating Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire in New York City in 1911 that killed 146 young immigrant workers. This incident represented an urgent call for better working conditions for women, triggering stronger demands for women's rights across the globe.
IWD has been recognised by the United Nations since 1975. Each year, the UN commemorates IWD with a theme or issue related to women's rights.
These themes range from Celebrating the Past, Planning for the Future in 1996; I am Generation Equality: Realizing Women's Rights in 2020; to Gender equality today for a sustainable tomorrow in 2022; and 2024’s theme Invest in Women: Accelerate Progress.
In particular parts of the world, IWD still rings with its political origins, marked by protests and calls for radical change. Conversely, in the West, it is often celebrated as a socio-cultural event, centred on celebrating womanhood.
It is important to acknowledge that progress has been made, yet the fight for gender equality continues. IWD serves as a reminder of the strides taken and the journey ahead to achieve a more inclusive, sustainable tomorrow.
Women’s rights in Aotearoa New Zealand
Kate Sheppard is recognised as the leader of the fight to win the right for New Zealand women to vote. She and other pioneering women campaigned so effectively that in 1893 New Zealand became the first self-governing nation in the world to grant the vote to all women over 21. Governor Lord Glasgow signed the Electoral Act 1893 into law just 10 weeks before the November election.
More than 109,000 women – about 80% of the eligible adult female population – enrolled to vote and on polling day 90,290 cast their votes, a turnout of 82%; far higher than the 70% turnout among registered male voters.
The law change was preceded by a ‘monster’ petition rolled out across Parliament’s debating chamber, hitting the opposite wall with a thud.
However women could not stand for Parliament until the passing of the Women’s Parliamentary Rights Act in 1919. Three women −Rosetta Baune, Aileen Cooke and Ellen Melville − stood for Parliament that year.
It was not until 1933 that Elizabeth Mccombs became NZ’S first woman member of Parliament. Mabel Howard became the first woman Cabinet Minister in 1947.
Iriaka Rātana became the first Wāhine Māori MP in 1949 and in 1972 Whetū Tirikatene-sullivan became the first Wāhine Māori Cabinet Minister. She is NZ’S longest continuously serving woman MP, in the role for 29 years from 1967 – 1996.
In 2020, the Women’s Suffrage Room was opened at Parliament, celebrating the history of women’s suffrage in NZ. The room can be visited on a tour of Parliament or when making a submission to a select committee.
More woman firsts at Parliament:
• 1984: Fran Wilde, first woman party Whip
• 1996: Pansy Wong, first Asian MP
• 1999: Gerogina Beyer, first transgender MP; Winnie Laban, first Pasifika woman MP
• 1997: Jenny Shipley, first woman Prime Minister
• 2005: Margaret Wilson, first woman Speaker of the House
• 2022: Women have the majority of seats for the first time, when Soraya Peke-mason was sworn in as NZ’S 177th female MP.