International Women’s Strike
VOICES
ARGENTINA:
Argentina, as well as all Latin America, is now suffering a conservative restoration within the economy
and society by the authoritarian government of Mauricio Macri. In order to redistribute capital and
restore the privileges of old traditional oligarchies over the rights acquired by working classes and
minorities, and because until a year ago there was a woman president, over recent years the
mainstream media has implemented a campaign of promotion of femicide and objectification of
women.
This war against women (especially indigenous women and migrants) has resulted in extreme cases of
femicide and in dramatic deeds of institutional violence. A women is murdered every 26 hours in
Argentina. We now have a group of indigenous women incarcerated as political prisoners because of
their activism, and many women are imprisoned for having abortions, for defending themselves
against their aggressors and even for not being able to defend their children against violent relatives.
In the case of transgender women, there is an intent to destroy them as such.
For all these reasons, since 2015 we are building up a horizontal, transversal and popular women’s
movement under the declaration Ni Una Menos that has grown massively within the country and
across the region.
Our most urgent claims in Argentina are:
– Decriminalization of abortion;
– Stop femicides and transfemicides
– Equal distribution of income and labor (women's wages are 27% less than male workers,
female unemployment is 10.5% - men’s unemployment is 8.5 %);
– Stop labor precarization;
– Full implementation of the Law of Sexual Education;
– Stop trafficking of women;
– Stop persecution of migrants;
– Free Milagro Sala and the political prisoners of Tupac Amaru organization;
– Stop inhuman treatment of female inmates;
– Restore retirement funds for housewives;
– Socialization of domestic labor and caregiving;
– Indemnity for trans people who have suffered institutional violence.
GERMANY
From feminicide to selfdefence!
we defend ourselves,
we organize ourselves,
we determine ourselves!
We create women’s solidarity against sexism, homo- trans- inter- discrimination, patriarchal social
structures, family violence. Against war and persecution, racism, and nationalism.
We are in solidarity with women in the prisons and Refugees in the camps. Freedom of movement for
all! On the 25th of November, we call on all women to strengthen our solidarity with all our colors, to
cross borders, to conquer the streets and stand up against violence in all their facets with the
“Rebellion of the Butterflies for Freedom!”.
REPUBLIC OF IRELAND
Ireland is protesting to repeal the 8th amendment and give women back our rights, our choice and
our bodies. Women of Ireland cannot be forgotten any longer. We cannot wait to repeal the 8th.
Repeal the 8th is the fight in Ireland to get free, safe and legal access to abortion in Ireland. The 8th
amendment currently restricts abortion in almost ALL cases in Ireland including rape, incest and fatal
foetal abnormalities. Ireland has some of the most restrictive abortion laws in the world. It has been
33 years since people have gotten the chance to have a major referendum to vote on these barbaric
laws. Our government keeps delaying a referendum and recently rejected a repeal bill for a
referendum, instead waiting until 2018 to come to a conclusion for the citizens assembly to decide.
The citizens assembly is a 99 person panel who will discuss whether there should be a referendum or
not. People are refusing to wait any longer as 12 women a day travel abroad for an abortion and
couples with fatal foetal abnormalities are refused proper health care in their time of need. The 8th
amendment in Ireland not only affects women getting an abortion it also affects ALL pregnant
women. Irish women lose their rights once they become pregnant. We are fighting to REPEAL and not
amend the 8th amendment.
The 8th amendment not only dictates that a woman cannot have an abortion, but it also dictates the
care she has to accept whilst pregnant.
NORTHERN IRELAND
We are making a stand against the violence perpetrated on women. Domestic, economic, sexual,
reproductive. We are angry and we want our voices to be heard. Loud and fierce.
Northern Ireland is the only region in the UK where the 1967 Abortion Act does not apply. Under the
1861 Offences Against the Person Act the woman could face a sentence of up to life imprisonment.
Although unlikely, she could still face a criminal record.
During the summer 2016 in Derry, a 16 year-old schoolgirl was violently gang raped and left with
extensive injuries on her body including bruises, scratches, bite marks and cigarette burns. Her
mother believes her attackers washed her down to conceal any DNA evidence.
In 2014/15 there were more reported domestic abuse crimes (13,426) than burglary offences (8,937).
There were 2,734 sexual offences recorded including 737 offences of rape.
In most of the UK (not NI) an abortion may be carried out up to 24 weeks providing that two medical
practitioners agree. This time period may be extended if there is significant risk to the woman. In
Northern Ireland, the legislation has not pursued the hundreds of women that leave NI to go to the
mainland UK to seek abortion. Rather those that have procured the abortion pills online have been
the targets of criminal proceedings. Whilst the maximum sentence could be up to life, the first case
was only brought to court this year. A 21 year old woman who took the abortion pills when she was
19 received a three month jail sentence suspended for two years. The prosecution stated that it was
important to bring this case as it was in the public interest. She now holds a criminal record.
ITALY
Male violence against women is not a private matter nor an emergency, but a structural and
transversal phenomenon in our society, a matter of political fact, which has its roots in the unequal
distribution of power between sexes.
Violence is experienced in every aspect of our existence, it controls and tames the bodies and lives of
women: in family, at work, at school, at university, on the street, at night, during day, in hospitals, on
media, on the Web. Male violence against women can only be tackled with a radical cultural change,
as we have learned from the experiences and practices of the women’s movement.
MEXICO
1. Erradication of femicide
2. Legalization of abortion in all states
3. Awareness campaigns towards media outlets and journalist in regards to the way their
reporting perpetuates gender violence and harmful stereotypes and mechanisms to measure
their success
4. Dismantling of sex trafficking networks and punishment to the accomplices in the
government
5. Rescue of all the women who are currently missing and returning them to their families alive
6. Respect to the Secular State
7. Real and urgent strategies and actions for cities with the Gender Violence Alert on and a way
to measure their success
8. Revision to the Penal Code of all states to ensure that domestic violence is typified assuming
that: one ocurrence is enough and that it can happen either inside or outside the home
SOUTH KOREA
There's a very big corruption scandal with Korea's current president. So there will be the biggest
protest on 26th of November at GwangHwaMun in Seoul. What we're gonna do is: form a feminist
zone in the protest so that we can make sure there's no misogynistic statements (which are very
prevalent since the president is a woman) or sexual harassments toward women participating in the
protest. We’ll be condemning the patriarchal culture and misogyny.
The Koreans are still faced with one-month sentence on doctors performing abortions.
POLAND
Poland is experiencing an ultraconservative government for over a year which was trying to introduce
further penalizations on abortion, legal today in three cases (rape, health threat to the woman, a
terminally ill or deformed fetus) but is in fact all-but unavailable. The national strike on 3 October this
year of Polish women, which broke out at the news of these restrictive legislative proposals, stopped
the government from adopting the new penalizations. The wave of misogyny that participants in the
strike endured including legal problems in their jobs, led to a second strike on 24 October. More
recently, a law has been proposed introducing a payment of 4,000 zł (circa1,000 euro) for carrying to
term a terminally ill or deformed fetus in order to give it a name and baptize it, is felt to be another
step toward a total ban on abortion. Polish women are collecting signatures under a petition to the
government insisting on the following, main points: 1. The end of misogyny and sexism and disregard
2. Elimination of sexual aggression and harrassement 3. Effective sex education in schools 4. Family
planning, in vitro programs, full reproductive rights 5. Halting the militarization of society 6.
Promoting a secular country because the church is regarded as responsible for the deterioration of
women’s rights in Poland.
PERU
Demands established by Ni Una Menos Peru: “touch one and you touch us all”.
1. Fight against gender-based violence;
2. Fair and honest representation of femicide and gender-based violence cases across the
media;
3. Fight against human trafficking, especially of minors;
4. Reliable and integral sexual education and teaching focused on gender equality available in all
schools;
5. Implementation of specialised support services for women suffering from various kinds of
violence and compliance with appropriate care protocols in case of sexual and gender-based
violence;
6. De-penalisation of abortion – initially in case of rape, and later in all other forms;
7. Respect for the secularity of the state amongst its authorities and within national education;
8. Parity within public functions and top business positions.
RUSSIA
A major threat to women's rights in Russia is the strong role of the Russian Orthodox Church in
society. The main opponents of feminism are in the RPC (Russian Orthodox Church): Patriarch Kirill
(Vladimir Gundyaev) and Archpriest Dimitry Smirnov. Archpriest Smirnov has commented on his
website about the need for a ban on women voting rights, as well as approval of rape (including that
of minors). He has said that women naturally die in childbirth. Also, a major threat to women's rights
in Russia is the imposition of "traditional family" values. There is the threat of a complete ban on
abortion in Russia. To date, the abortion ban has not been realized, but pro-life movements are
gaining strength and influence. Not long ago, the plans of banning abortion, which is a mandatory
health insurance, was not approved thanks to two women politicians: Speaker of the Federation
Council Valentina Matvienko, who called the proposal absurd, and Health Minister Skvortsova.
Recently, the Investigative Committee has asked medical staff to report on the virginity of schoolgirls,
which we absolutely oppose as a violation of the rights of girls and a violation through stigmatization.
Almost no one is representing the interests of women in Russia. In the Duma, only 9% of
parliamentarians are women, there are only three women governors and about the same number of
women mayors.
SWEDEN
Here is a reasoning for our protest Malmö:
As human beings we are fighting for our basic rights. We are standing united all over the World in
order to achieve:
- equal rights
- end of violence against women
- access to legal abortion
- basic human rights
- togetherness
- non-partisan solidarity.
TURKEY
A last-minute bill was proposed on Thursday night, 17 November 2016 to the General Assembly of
GNAT (Grand National Assembly of Turkey) by the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP). The
bill proposes the suspension and consequent pardoning following the limitation period, of the crimes
of sexual harassment perpetrated prior to 16 November 2016 if the perpetrator marries the victim.
In addition to this bill, the ruling party currently discusses whether to lower the age of consent for
sexual intercourse to 12 by means of making amendments to the Article No.103 of the Turkish Penal
Code (TPC) despite sustained objections of women’s organizations. If the Article No.103 passes into
law as suggested above, the majority of the perpetrators who are currently on trial or will be on trial
as convicts of sexual abuse will have the right to assert that “the child gave consent” and avoid
punishment. Thus, the amendments to the Article No.103 of the TCC, as well as the bill proposed on
the night of November 17 will put in place both retrospective and prospective regulations.