Press Release: 8th European Conference of grassroots women successfully held

European coordinators of the World Women Conferences, 17.04.2018

Press release can be downloaded as PDF file here

From 13 – 15.4.18 60 participants met in Mannenbach/Switzerland for the
8th European Conference of grassroots women. Delegations from Albania, Bosnia, Germany, the Netherlands, Russia, Switzerland, Turkey and the Ukraine were able to meet in the middle of nature with a view of Lake Constance and well supplied by many helping hands. Complemented by numerous written contributions from other countries such as Greece and Spain, the conference gave an impressive picture of the situation and struggles of women in Europe. Everywhere, the women’s movement  faces a cutback of hard-won, democratic rights and freedoms. Governments everywhere are moving to the right and more and more women are standing up for their rights.

We learned of the brave industrial action of Bosnian women workers. They camp in front of their closed factory for their workplaces – „neither batons nor silence can break our resistance!“ Of the wage struggles of employees in hospitals, day-care centres and nursing facilities in Germany. Only 15% of the women farmers in Switzerland are paid on family farms, 56% are not paid for their work and only 6% head a farm. From the difficult situation in Turkey where arrests and dismissals are commonplace. In Ukraine, where there is hardly any work, the young people have to go abroad. Women also receive 25% less pay, with an average pension of €42. On Women’s Day, the demand was „Protection of Women’s Rights“. In the Netherlands, the cleaning women are active thanks to the cleaning women’s union. In Russia, young women in particular protest despite the threat of arrest. Poverty, unemployment, poorer pay, fewer rights, are absorbed in the organization of everyday life, and that happens in the 21st century! And we heard from the trauma of mass rape as a weapon of war in the Bosnian war, which continues to this day. And the fight to punish the guilty! The national strike organised in Spain on International Women’s Day is the militant response to all this!

The conference positioned itself unanimously for the struggle for world peace and demands:
„Active resistance to the bombardments by the United States, France and Great Britain!
Active resistance to the dangerous escalation that threatens world peace.
Our contribution is to work actively to build a new peace movement. (decision)
The most important decision of this conference is to strengthen coordination and cooperation. We agreed that more effort must be put into building up the women’s movement in our own countries. Therefore we will visit each other and inform ourselves about the website.
The Bosnian workers start by coming to Germany to exchange ideas with workers from many companies. On the weekend at the workers‘ platform of the Internationalist Alliance in Hildesheim near Hannover, Germany.

European coordinators of the World Women Conferences   

Halinka Augustin/ Netherlands

Susanne Bader/ Germany

Stellvertreterin

Zaman Masudi/ Germany

Solidarity to Joly Talukder!

European Coordinators of the World Women‘ s Conferences of grassroots women

Dear friends,

we learned that our worldwoman and coordinator of Asia, Joly from Bangladesh has been arrested today and taken in solitary confinement. Let´ s send a solidarity and protest note to her union. Please spread this message to many other people you know. Thanks for solidarity.

As attachment we have a proposal to send to her union. Also you can send it to the court.

militant greetings, Suse Bader (Germany) and Halinka Augustin (Netherlands)

Solidarity addresses can be sent to the following address:

Garment Workers‘ Trade Union Centre, Mukti Bhaban, 2 Comrade Moni Shingha Road, Dhaka-1000

Here you can leave solidarity addresses on the homepage of the Garment Workers‘ Trade Union Centre: http://www.gwtuc.org/contact-us-2/ (try several times if necessary)

 or send an E-Mail to  Monzur Moin: monzurmoin@gmail.com

Protest declaration

We demand that Joly Talukder and seven other union leaders of the Garments Workers Trade Union Centre will be released immediately !

We have learned that Joly, the general secretary of Bangladesh Garments Workers Trade Union Centre and other seven leaders of this organization have been arrested and sent to jail today, 1 April 2018.

We also learned that Joly Talkuder is in solitary confinement. This is a monstrosity.

All accusations against Joly Talukder and her colleagues are fabricated lies.

We demand the immediate release of Joly Talukder and her colleagues!

Joly Talukder is one of the respected coordinators of the World Women’s Conference and we protest vehemently against the solitary confinement of Joly Talukder !

We will distribute this protest declaration internationally.

 

 

 

STATEMENT BY SOUTHERN AFRICA RURAL WOMEN’S ASSEMBLY ON INTERNATIONAL WOMEN’S DAY, 8 March 2018

Today 8th March marks International Women’s Day. This is an historic day that has to be remembered for the struggles of poor women over 100 years ago who fought for an 8-hour work day, and decent working and living conditions for women. Over the decades International Women’s Day has symbolized the ongoing struggles for living wages, against violence, the rights of women and most importantly against patriarchy.

Although more than 100 years has passed since this significant date not much has changed for women and girls who live in rural areas. Women and girls who live in rural areas in SADC play a crucial role in improving rural livelihoods and the overall wellbeing of those who live in the country side. However, they experience increasing levels of inequality and are often at the forefront of being marginalised and displaced as a result of the increasing land grabs in the region, no access to clean drinking water and are victims of gender-based violence.

(mehr …)

World women of all continents ! „Women rise for Afrin !“

Coordinators
of the World Women’s Conferences
of grassroot women
Halinka Augustin/ Europe / Netherlands
Susanne Bader/ Europe / Germany
Zaman Masudi/ Germany / Deputy
Meral Cicek / Near East

 2018 / 03 / 18

Women of the World ! World women of all continents ! „Women rise for Afrin !“

The Turkish government carries out an invasion against international law in the Democratic Federation of North Syria. Hundreds of thousands of men and women are escaping.
The kurdish women movement calls for an international solidarity campaign „Women rise for Afrin !“.

At our 2. World Women‘s Conference of grassroot women in Kathmandu / Nepal we decided mutually: Our partnerships across country borders from grassroots to grassroots are a duty that no struggle is left without solidarity.

On 21 March 2018 ICOR ( International Coordination of Revolutionary Parties and Organizations ) calls for a worldwide day of action.„Efrin will live!“

21 March is the day of the Newroz festival, a day of peace and freedom. This day and also other actions on March 24, 2018 ( Global Action day for Afrin ) are fine opportunities to make good on our promise. „Women rise for Efrin !“ „Efrin will live !“

Let us take over responsibility for actions and alliances and let us show that we fight alongside our kurdish sisters !

Long live international solidarity !

Download call for Afrin: 180319 World women call for 180321us

 

International Appeal on the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women

International Appeal on the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women

“On this day, 25 November, we unite forces with all women in the world to eliminate all form of violence. Our main concern is the fight for freedom, equality, justice, solidarity and, above all, peace.”

Continental Coordinators  – World Women Conferences Representative  – World March of Women Africa

In West Africa numerous women are caught up in battles. They do all they can to support the demands for better living conditions for everyone.

Women are the people most responsible for the survival of families and thus particularly vulnerable because the have to provide the bare necessities, also during battles. Despite all the risks, they have do carry out their activities accordingly. They organise themselves.

In Kenya many young people lose their lives in the fight against government troops. Women desperately seek platforms for a solution. The political situation demands that women raise their voices against oppression. In Nairobi a large peace demonstration denounced murder. But police and the military continue to kill. In Sudan we see that the decision of the people for independence subjects many women to great violence. In Somalia militarism remains a threat with terrorist attacks and bombs. It is not possible for women to gather together. Rape is used as a mass war weapon.

(mehr …)

Report on Africa Conference

Report
2nd Africa Conference of grass roots women 

Bamako 23 to 25 MAY 2017
Table of contents

Connections 3 (pages as in the original text)

Contents ………………………………………………….4
Results ……………………………………………………5

Course……………………………………………………..5

Prospects …………………………………………….6

Summary …………………………………………………7

Attachments …………………………………………….8

Attachment I pictures

Attachment II program
Attachment III finances

  1. Connections

The World Women’s Conference of grass roots women is an international movement of women which plays an important role in mobilizing grass roots women and their organizations for defending women’s rights given the various crises, that hit women with full force(due to poverty, unemployment, migration, climate change, violence based on sex, armed conflicts, wars e.g…)

 

The Africa Conference took place in Bamako from 23 to 25 May 2017. This meeting of African grass roots women is a logical consequence of the first meeting in Lomé which ran from 10th to 14th July 2012, in order to strengthen the movement on that continent. It took place with delegates from four African countries and with two German representatives of the worldwide women’s movement.

 

Download full report: 170707 Report Africa Conference_EN