World March of Women

By Felice Young, AFL Staff

Women around the world will mark the beginning of the next millennium with a renewed commitment to solidarity, diversity and action. The World March for Women 2000 will be officially kicked off on International Women’s Day in the year 2000 with national actions taking place in countries around the world. The March will conclude with world rallies on October 17, 2000.

The concept of a World March for Women was born out of two Canadian experiences; the Women’s March Against Poverty organized by the Fédération des femmes du Québec in 1995, and the national Women’s March Against Poverty organized by the Canadian Labour Congress and the National Action Committee on the Status of Women held throughout Canada in 1996. In both experiences, women marched and made demands to advance the ongoing struggle for women’s economic and social equality. In the Quebec situation, some demands were met. On the national level, there is still more work to be done. For that reason, many of the women involved in both events decided it was necessary to come together on a global scale to demonstrate the solidarity that women have built up over the years, recognize, respect and value our diversities, and develop concrete actions to bring about equality.

The main objective of the March is to eliminate discrimination against women generally, and centre on poverty and violence against women, specifically. The globalization of markets and capital has caused rapid and profound changes to women’s lives everywhere. There is real concern that economic and social power is quickly being relinquished from governments and that the new decision-makers are concerned only with the bottom line. These institutions must be persuaded to bring about the changes needed to improve the status of women and women’s equality of life the world over.

Women wanting to be involved in the March must be involved in a non-governmental women’s organization, belong to a women’s committee of mixed groups, or mixed organizations that do not have a women’s committee but where women are taking the leadership in the March. For the time being, individual women cannot join except through a participating group in their country. Participating groups must subscribe to the objectives and overall plan of action, but remain independent with respect to the organizing of events in their respective countries.

As of January 28, 1999, 1385 groups from 113 countries have signed on. Canada is represented by 322 groups and has the highest contingent of unions than any other country. The Alberta Federation of Labour is a member organization, and its Women’s Committee will be making this project one of its main priorities. The organizing of actions must begin soon.

Groups that fall under the criteria are encouraged to subscribe to the March. Netsurfers can connect via www.ffq.qc.ca, or e-mail at marche2000@ffq.qc.ca. Others can join by contacting the Fédération des femmes du Québec @ #307, 110 rue Ste-Thèrése, Montréal, Québec, H2Y 1E6, phone 514-395-1196 or fax 514-395-1224.

As one woman from Burkina Fasco stated, "Regardless of whether women are from the South or North, they face the same problems from East to West. Therefore, we must work hand in hand."