National Women’s Council marks 40th anniversary with invitation to women and men to join the campaig
Published: Wednesday, March 06, 2013
National Women's Council marks 40th anniversary with invitation to women and men to join the campaign for women's rights and equality
International Women's Day tomorrow, 8 March, will mark 40 years of women and women's organisations coming together in the National Women's Council of Ireland (NWCI) to campaign for women's equality.
Orla O'Connor, Director of the National Women's Council of Ireland said,
'The NWCI Anniversary coincides with the 40th anniversary of Ireland's membership of the EU which gave a significant boost to women's rights. Today there is a renewed interest. Taxing maternity benefit, the State's apology to the Magdalene women, the expected X Case legislation and the potential changes to the Constitution regarding the Article on women in the home – these are all issues that affect women and men in Ireland today.'
She said,
'When the National Women's Council was set up by a group of feminists chaired by Hilda Tweedy 40 years ago, Ireland was a very different place for women than it is today. With the marriage bar recently lifted, just over one in three women were in paid employment. Today well over half of all women are in paid employment. And while women's earnings represented not even half of men's earnings in 1973, the gender pay gap is now at a much reduced, though still inexcusable 14%.'
She added,
'Some of the biggest achievements for women can be seen in the area of education. In 1973 only 36% of students enrolled in third level education were women.Today half of students in third level education are women, with 57% of the third-level graduates being women.'
Orla O'Connor stated,
'On our 40th anniversary we want to celebrate these and the many more achievements of the women's movement in Ireland. But let's also not forget about the important challenges that remain. Our Dail still only has 16% female TDs and only 9 % of women sit on the boards of our top private companies. Fewer than 1 in 4 voices on our news and current affairs radio belong to a woman. A significant number of women still depend on their partner's income and beyond child benefit have no income of their own. And women in Ireland still do not have access to full reproductive rights.'
She concluded,
'Organisations such as the NWCI and our more than 160 members play a crucial in bringing women together to highlight inequalities and develop effective solutions. Our 40th anniversary therefore is also a renewed invitation to women and men to join the campaign for women's rights and equality. But we also call on our government to live up to their commitments and place women's equality at the heart of the struggle for change in this country. Only if we all work together, we will achieve full equality between women and men. '
Ends/
For more information, please contact Silke Paasche, Communications Officer, National Women's Council of Ireland, Tel. 085 858 9104.