Applauding all those striking across the world this International Women’s Day, Winnie Byanyima, Oxfam International Executive Director and women’s rights leader said:
“Women and girls across the world are uniting today to say enough is enough to being treated as inferior to men and boys. Every day, in every country, women and girls experience violence, discrimination and injustice. Those who face multiple discriminations, including race, sexual orientation, gender identity and those living in poverty, are the most acutely affected.
One in three women will experience physical or sexual violence in her lifetime. This shocking figure doesn’t include financial or psychological abuse. In Latin America and the Caribbean, 12 women are killed every day just because they are women. It is a crisis we will no longer allow to be ignored.
Globally, the lack of economic autonomy of women leaves them with less protection against sexist violence and discrimination. It is mostly women who are responsible for feeding their families, but are routinely denied access to land and decent incomes to grow or buy food. 60 percent of the world’s hungry are women. We are locked out of peace talks despite women often bearing the brunt of wars. Meanwhile, childcare is seen as a woman's job, but it is a social responsibility and should be shared.
So today, on International Women’s Day, we are saying no more murder, rape and beatings; no more being robbed of land; no more ignoring women’s role as peace-builders and –makers. We want an end to women doing most of the unpaid care work and being paid less than men for the same job; and an end to women being told what to think or how to look after their bodies.
Women and girls must be able to access the full range of their fundamental human rights – the sooner the world realizes this, the sooner we can end poverty, which hits women and girls the hardest.
Women and girls are today bravely taking a stand and Oxfam stands with them in solidarity."
Notes to editors
Winnie Byanyima is the Executive Director of Oxfam International. She is a leader on women’s rights, democratic governance and peace building. She served eleven years in the Ugandan Parliament, and has served at the African Union Commission and as Director of Gender and Development at the United Nations Development Program. She co-founded the 60-member Global Gender and Climate Alliance and chaired a UN task force on gender aspects of the Millennium Development Goals, and on climate change.
Information about the International Women’s Strike is available here.
List of countries where women are striking.
Oxfam’s latest report on women and economic inequality: 'An economy that works for women'
In November 2016, Oxfam launched the “Enough: Together We Can End Violence Against Women and Girls” campaign in Morocco, Indonesia, India, Pakistan, Guatemala, South Africa and Zambia. Bolivia joined the campaign in February 2017.
Global violence against women and girls statistics:
http://www.unwomen.org/en/what-we-do/ending-violence-against-women/facts-and-figures
https://www.lshtm.ac.uk/newsevents/news/2013/gender_violence_report.html
For updates, please follow @Oxfam.
Contact information
Dannielle Taaffe: dannielle.taaffe@oxfaminternational.org / +353 83-869-5416
For updates, please follow, @Oxfam.
Winnie Byanyima is the Executive Director of Oxfam International. She is a leader on women’s rights, democratic governance and peace building. She served eleven years in the Ugandan Parliament, and has served at the African Union Commission and as Director of Gender and Development at the United Nations Development Program. She co-founded the 60-member Global Gender and Climate Alliance and chaired a UN task force on gender aspects of the Millennium Development Goals, and on climate change.
Information about the International Women’s Strike is available here.
List of countries where women are striking.
Oxfam’s latest report on women and economic inequality: 'An economy that works for women'
In November 2016, Oxfam launched the “Enough: Together We Can End Violence Against Women and Girls” campaign in Morocco, Indonesia, India, Pakistan, Guatemala, South Africa and Zambia. Bolivia joined the campaign in February 2017.
Global violence against women and girls statistics:
http://www.unwomen.org/en/what-we-do/ending-violence-against-women/facts-and-figures
https://www.lshtm.ac.uk/newsevents/news/2013/gender_violence_report.html
For updates, please follow @Oxfam.
Dannielle Taaffe: dannielle.taaffe@oxfaminternational.org / +353 83-869-5416
For updates, please follow, @Oxfam.