"Let us Celebrate March 8" - The History of March 8, International Women’s Day

In remembering the International Women's Day & the first year anniversary of launching our paltalk discussion room, the IEWO Forum, we will have guests and hold discussion regarding Ethiopian's women struggle for their right and the international women's struggle at large. We will also assess the current conditions the Ethiopian Women are in. Among the guests are Poet and Writer Haregewoin Sileshi. All Ethiopians are invited.

Join us on March 7 and 8 this weekend in our IEWO Forum from 11:00 am to 8:00pm CET.IEWO/AESED

In many countries the tradition of celebrating March 8 by expressing solidarity and raising current and pertinent demands of women, has been going on ever since women first came out to defend their rights. Our organization the International Ethiopian Women's Organization, the IEWO, calls on Ethiopian women the world over to target March 8, 2007 as a day of mobilization and express their solidarity with women in which ever way they consider to be convenient for them. Papers could be prepared on different aspects of women's condition in Ethiopia . In our country there is a lot to be done concerning the rights of the girl child, doing away with harmful traditions like abduction, rape, sexual mutilations etc. Discussions could also be initiated and carried on questions like the need of a women's organization, a better tomorrow for Ethiopia 's children etc.

The celebration of March 8 as the international women's day is dedicated to the struggle of American women who raised their banners in 1857 in the USA . Women workers in textile industries organized the first demonstration for equal pay and the demonstration was put down harshly. In 1893 women were enabled enough to vote for the first time ever in New Zealand , in other countries women will be able to vote after many decades as the history here below shows clearly. March 1908 the suffragettes started their long struggle for the right to vote in Great Britain . March 8 1910 European women organized themselves and met in Holland to create the first ever international organization of women. March 1911 saw the demonstration of 1 million women in Europe.

The struggle continued to obtain the right to vote and on March 8 1914 women in Germany came out to defend their rights to vote, and Russian women created clandestine organizations of women. March 1915 women in Oslo came out to demonstrate against the war.

In some countries like in France women obtained the right to vote only in 1944, when the struggles for decolonization bare its fruits in some of its colonies. 100 000 French women marched out on March 8 1948 . Throughout the 60's women's struggle raged both in Europe and the USA . In Switzerland women obtained the right to vote only in 1971, unbelievably late for the European context.

This is how women made their history by demanding their rights, fighting for equal pay for equal work with men, and for the right to vote. Until the 70's women's eligibility was only theoretical or symbolical even in the most developed countries.

Finally the UN sponsored meetings on March in 1975 and officially celebrated International Women's day in 1977. The 1 st World conference on women was organized in 1975 in Mexico , the 2 nd in Copenhagen , the 3rd in Nairobi , the 4 th in Beijing in 1995 and the 5 th in New York .

In 2005 a World wide march was organized in many countries culminating at the conference in New York .

Today, women are active within the World Social Forum which has branches in all continents and called international meetings in Porto Allegre, Brazil, in Mmbai, India and the last to date in Bamako , Mali in 2006.

Read documents on women's condition over the world, violence against women and children:

http://www.un.org/womenwatch/

http://www.unicef.org/pon97/women1.htm