On the eve of International Women's Day, I would like to address a greeting to women, working women, working class women, intellectuals, all women, mothers, grandmothers, women who struggle every day for a better life and the implementation of their rights.
History shows us that women are not passive subjects. They were and are the protagonists of many, many struggles for rights, equality and emancipation.
Brave, fearless and determined, women have faced repression, deprivation and even imprisonment. This was the case in the struggle for the right to work and equal pay, against exploitation and hunger, for political rights, especially the right to vote, for the protection of motherhood and early childhood, for education, for peace, against the colonial war, in solidarity with political prisoners, for freedom and democracy, right in the middle of the fascist dictatorship.
Women's action, intervention and struggle contributed to the overthrow of fascism, the April 25 Revolution, the enshrinement of rights, freedoms and guarantees and the implementation of the democratic regime.
It was with the April Revolution that political, economic, social and cultural rights were won. The universality of the right to vote, the right to elect and be elected, the right to equal participation and free elections to sovereign bodies are all part of the democratic regime. The right to vote, to be able to choose, to be decisive in making decisions about the future of the Country, is invaluable, and this was reflected in the massive turnout in the first free elections for the Constituent Assembly in 1975.
Unique and exhilarating moments. There has been an unparalleled intervention by women, from political to trade union participation, from participation in cultural activities to sports, from the management of public facilities to access to new professions and careers.
The participation of women was present in the Country's profound economic and social transformations, which enshrined in the Constitution equality between men and women in all aspects of life; the principle of equal work, equal pay; a decisive factor in raising living conditions.
However, despite these remarkable advances and the enshrinement of equality in law, it is not fully reflected in women's lives.
Hurdles persist that prevent women from actively participating in collective life and in political and social life, which in itself represents an impoverishment of the democratic regime
The right to vote is undoubtedly of utmost importance, but it is not enough on its own if the conditions are not created for women's effective participation in defining political options, if their claims are not taken into account in the decisions to be made.
Political rights are much broader, and in many circumstances, they are still a long way from being accessible to all women. We know how domestic chores, caring for children or family members fall mainly on working women, leaving them no time to participate in collective life. No matter how many quotas there are, without solving the structural problems, working women will be the first to be excluded.
It is therefore necessary to remove the hurdles and guarantee women's political rights, including promoting their political participation. Quotas also created the illusion that the presence of more elected women would mean that their rights would be better defended, but life shows that this is not the case. So many times, women reject concrete proposals to strengthen women's rights, just as they recently rejected initiatives to guarantee access to Voluntary Interruption of Pregnancy (IVG). It is clear that it is not gender that determines political choices, but the class nature of the political forces they belong to.
On the other hand, women are the most affected by low wages, poverty and precariousness. There is no possibility of articulating professional and personal life, with the deregulation of working hours, high working rhythms, disregard for maternity and paternity rights, and they often have two or more jobs to cope with the high cost of living. Access to sexual and reproductive health is increasingly a mirage: obstetric emergency closures, difficulties in accessing family planning and IVG are just a few examples. Women continue to be victims of various forms of violence, which must be combated.
O respeito dos direitos das mulheres e a igualdade, são condição para uma sociedade verdadeiramente democrática!
Respect for women's rights and equality are a prerequisite for a truly democratic society!
Ensuring that equality in law is equality in life is only possible with an alternative policy that fights inequalities, exploitation and all forms of discrimination, reassuming the values and achievements of April.
Today, as in the past, women's action, intervention and struggle are the determining factors for a future where women's equality and emancipation are a reality!
