[E-rundbrief] Info 1713 - Via Campesina - salute Intl Women's day 2018

Matthias Reichl info at begegnungszentrum.at
Mi Mär 7 12:35:07 CET 2018


E-Rundbrief - Info 1713 - La Via Campesina: We salute the struggle of 
women, in the countryside and in towns and cities. Statement of 
Solidarity on the occasion of March 8th, the International Women's day.

Bad Ischl, 7.3.2018

Begegnungszentrum für aktive Gewaltlosigkeit

www.begegnungszentrum.at

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We salute the struggle of women, in the countryside and in towns and 
cities : La Via Campesina

Statement of Solidarity on the occasion of March 8th, the 
International Women's day

https://viacampesina.org/en/

(Harare, Zimbabwe, March 8th, 2018): Today, on International Women's 
Day, we, the women of La Via Campesina – peasants, indigenous women, 
Afro-descendants, mestizas, fishers, pastoralists, women from urban 
and rural areas, belonging to different organisations with different 
forms of mobilisation and activism – want to salute the women workers 
of the world. We send special greetings to women who are struggling 
and who are fighting, not only to earn their living, but also for 
political participation, equal rights,equity and for the recognition 
of our work, our accomplishments and our knowledge in the construction 
of a fairer world for men and women.

We pay tribute to those women who are engaged in a constant struggle 
to end violence against women and against all human beings, women who 
are breaking the silence. We pay tribute to women who confront the 
structural oppression of capitalism, refusing to accept the ingrained 
patriarchal patterns in societies where, every day, women are the 
victims of violence, discrimination, exploitation, oppression and 
murder. We are called upon to reaffirm the necessity of ending 
violence against women, our ongoing Campaign to End Violence towards 
Women that was renewed at the 7th La Via Campesina International 
Conference in Bilbao in 2017.

READ: VII INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE: WOMEN'S ASSEMBLY DECLARATION
https://viacampesina.org/en/vii-international-conference-womens-assembly-declaration/

We express our appreciation for women who are not afraid to struggle – 
in very different ways and in a wide variety of cultural and 
geographical settings – for land, food sovereignty, water, seeds, and 
agroecology, as well as for education and health services. We admire 
women who are struggling within factories or in their day to day 
lives, and all of the women who are fighting for political, economic, 
and social emancipation. In a spirit of solidarity, we acknowledge and 
value ourselves, as women who are making dreams come true and 
constructing new societies, together with the working classes of the 
world.

We are also aware that we are suffering from a worldwide onslaught 
from imperialist capitalism, with its intrinsic ties to the 
conservative and fascist patriarchy, which is constantly seeking to 
increase the exploitation of our land, territories, and natural 
resources, a well as to increase the exploitation of women's work, 
their lives, and their bodies. Every day, our rights are violated by 
the actions of transnational corporations that are the root causes of 
migration, and that generate familial and social conflicts and provide 
fuel for wars. We are violated and demeaned by prostitution, the 
trafficking of women, and sexual exploitation. Furthermore, we are 
criminalised because of our struggles, because we choose life rather 
than death. We face the constant challenge of confronting domestic 
violence and assault – be it physical, psychological, moral, or sexual 
– that all too often end in murder, disappearance, or suicide.

It is in this context that we reaffirm our feminism and our commitment 
to the struggles for gender parity and for full political 
participation in all decision-making bodies. We are also reasserting 
the need for day to day collective practical actions, going beyond 
speeches and motions, to end violence against women everywhere.

Yes, we have a lot to commemorate, starting with the first struggles 
by women factory workers for higher wages, better working and living 
conditions. Yes, all over the world, womens' contributions have given 
us much to remember. Yes, we have a lot to commemorate in women's 
struggles for universal suffrage and for full recognition as equal 
human beings.

A tribute to the women who gave their lives, in the struggle for the 
rights of women in different areas, who suffered torture, sexual and 
moral violations, who were disappeared, imprisoned, beheaded, 
massacred for defending life, dignity, Mother Earth and the rights of 
women. We will follow their examples, their traces, legacies that they 
have left for us in different spaces of work as well as day-to-day lives.

For these reasons, we know that, in order to guarantee respect for our 
rights, much more is asked of us at this time. We must have the 
courage to confront that even greater monster which sustains the 
patriarchy and is the source of all of the injustice suffered by 
workers all over the world. It is in this spirit that we salute the 
struggles, the activities, marches, mobilisations, and meetings of the 
women throughout the world who are confronting the forces of 
patriarchy and capitalism that threaten the lives of women, nature 
itself, and the life of the planet.

This is why we say that without feminism we cannot build a new society.

We salute the struggle of women, in the countryside and in towns and 
cities.

A warm embrace from the women of La Via Campesina to all women who are 
involved in struggle!



-- 

     Matthias Reichl, Pressesprecher/ press speaker,
     Begegnungszentrum fuer aktive Gewaltlosigkeit
     Center for Encounter and active Non-Violence
     Wolfgangerstr. 26, 4820 Bad Ischl, Austria,
     fon: +43 6132 24590, Informationen/ informations,
     Impressum in: http://www.begegnungszentrum.at


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