Today we celebrate the 100^th anniversary of “Women’s Day”, which was established at the second International Conference of Socialist Women in Copenhagen in 1910. It was proposed by the campaigner Clara Zetkin.

To celebrate this day and the victories achieved during one century of struggle, but also to analyse and to question “where do we go from here?” the EL-fem met in the emblematic Danish capital during this weekend.

The Red Green Alliance hosted the event that gathered European Left women from several European countries, but also two special guests, from Iceland and Irak. The debate brought important philosophical and political questions concerning the position of women in society nowadays.

The main subjects put on the table were the struggle for power and women’s representation; feminism as a form to fight neo-liberalism; left feminism; state feminism; women trafficking and women in conflict. But there was much more...

The conclusions of the meeting will be soon available, but, meanwhile, you can read the EL Motion for the 8^th of March:

The celebration internationally of “Women’s Day” was established at the second International Conference of Socialist Women in Copenhagen in 1910. It was proposed by the campaigner Clara Zetkin.

The women agreed to conduct common struggles for the rights of working women, for the protection of motherhood and children, for the right to vote, for a common struggle against high prices, caused by the greed of monopolies for profit and against the armaments race.

In those one hundred years the equality of genders has been recognized as a fundamental human right. The UN International Convention for the Elimination of Discrimination against Women CEDAW constituted a strong international base.

A good European and international legislation has been created as a result of long and hard struggles of women and feminist movement. Of course, there was always the gap between de jure equality and de facto equality.

The neoliberal model has caused economic, social and cultural crisis and now threatens to eliminate not only the achievements of women, but also the principles on which they are founded.

The work of the women has become enslaved by paltry wages, without insurance, by a treatment which is characterized by violence, threats, sexual harassment, firing of pregnant women and working conditions that cost them even their lives.

The welfare state is disintegrated through privatization even in those fields that are a basis for substantive equality. This is the whole complex: health, education, social security, care and concern for children and the elderly. The obligations of the welfare state were loaded on the shoulders of women.

The retirement age is equated upwards and all positive measures for women are eliminated.

The violence against women is intensified and often results in murder.  The right to abortion either is in dispute or is invalidated. Family law changes in a conservative direction.

Violence against women is the most important aspect of the patriarchal order: women are victims of domestic violence too, and moreover they are subject to religious fundamentalism. When we struggle against capitalism we have to struggle against patriarchy too.

Politics remains male dominated.

The attack of the neo-liberals on social and political rights of women is also expressed  ideologically. There is a systematic propaganda to enforce the part-time work, above all women, as the only kind of work.

Conservative political circles and the Church attack against the women's rights. The sexuality of women, the self-regulation of their reproductive function and sexual orientation receive systematic attack.

We the women of the European Left cannot accept that ordinary people must pay the consequences of the crisis of capitalism. We adamantly defend our acquired rights, and we demand to overcome the crisis not at the expense of ordinary people but at the expense of monopolies, companies and banks.

We want gender equality in the Labour market, equal pay for equal work and the same opportunities for women and men at work.

We want the possibility to combine work and family life by reducing working hours and the establishment of public services for the care of children, sick and the elderly.

We want equal participation and representation of women in politics and in all decision making institutions, including 50% of all seats.

We demand that the sexual and reproductive rights of women be guaranteed

We are in favour of a European law that will legalize abortion.

We demand a European law against gender-based violence

We demand the same rights and the same opportunities for the migrant and refugee women

We shall not become “working poor" women

The workers’ movement often used a familistic idea of women and relegated them to wifes and mothers,to be interested in private life,while politics was kept to male gender. Therefore women movement can be allied with workers’ movement only when and if it begins to consider women as political subjects. In the revolutions women were in the front line in struggles but not in political decisions. Feminist movement is an autonomous political subject who struggles against capitalism and patriarchy. Our slogan is “NO PASARÁN” by DOLORES IBARURI