March 2024, XNUMX. In Montenegro, women are still unequally paid for their work compared to their male colleagues, they are discriminated against in the labor market, they are victims of violence and hate speech, especially those that took place in public positions and in public space. Women are victims of femicide. Women are "someone else's nafaka" and "daddy's son".
That is why, the interlocutors of "Vijesti" warn, it is very important to use the attention of institutions and the media on today's International Women's Day, so that pressing problems are not put in the foreground.
Anita Stjepčević from the Center for Women's Rights said that International Women's Day reminds us that women's human rights are the result of decades of struggle for a better economic, social and social position of women.
He explains that "those rights are always the first to be attacked by policies and globally growing right-wing narratives".
"Every year, a certain topic is imposed as a result of the current processes that we follow. For years, we have been warning about the problem of discrimination that women face on the labor market, about the prevalence of violence against women, the consequence of which is a large number of femicides and other forms of violation of women's rights, which led us to this year's message: It's time for justice," she said. Stjepcevic.
March 8 march is scheduled for today at noon in Podgorica.
According to Stjepčević, the Center for Women's Rights warns society about harmful cultural patterns every day.
"Our solutions are found in each of the 14 requests that we personally submitted to the Prime Minister Milojko Spajić when we were promised a meeting that didn't happen even after two months. We present our solutions to individuals in institutions, looking for ways to start a system of prevention and protection against violence, with the premise of political will. Our efforts are yielding results", explained Stjepčević.
She emphasized that there is always room for progress, but that the goal is to improve the legislative framework in the area of gender-based violence.
"Recently, we again told the government representatives that, unfortunately, neither new laws nor repressive measures will solve the causes of violence - they are there to show the state's determination to protect the victims and call the perpetrators to account. The causes of violence can only be removed by the transformation of social consciousness from one that maintains unequal power relations in society through violence and discrimination against women and vulnerable groups, to one that will nurture tolerance, peace, respect for diversity and non-violent communication," said Stjepčević.
Professor of physics and assistant to the principal in Podgorica Primary School "Radojica Perović" Marina Andrijević-Petrović She told "Vijesta" that "the unequal position of women in Montenegrin society is a consequence of a tradition that is characteristic of, more or less, all communities".
He believes that it is good that there is a day when respect and love for women are expressed, but that it would be better to celebrate it by "making the population aware".
"Unfortunately, today there is a narrative that a female child is someone else's work, and if a woman is pregnant with a female child, we often hear the sentence: 'It will be better next time.' Wedding songs like 'You are daddy's daughter' are still something that is played and celebrated. And so in a circle. Every day, parents call a female child 'son'. Therefore, on this day, we should also talk about these phenomena in our society", said Petrović-Andrijević, adding that the position of women in Montenegro "is now better than before".
"On the one hand, it is good that in Podgorica we may have more women in management positions, so perhaps it can be concluded that as a society we value women's managerial abilities more. However, if we look at the composition of the Assembly or the Government of Montenegro, we notice a relatively small number of women who are included in positions where they could change something", Petrović-Andrijević assessed.
The Center for Civic Education announced yesterday that "the fight for equality in Montenegro is being waged on many fronts."
"Unwillingness to change in practice is noted by the European Commission, emphasizing the insufficient involvement of women in political life and leadership positions in public administration. Only 17 percent of the Government of Montenegro are women, while only 21 percent are women in the current convocation of the Assembly. Even at this level, we see how much gender equality is only declarative and far from the essential that we should live", said the NGO.
They also said that the absence of a systemic response by institutions to gender-based violence, especially in the family, is worrying.
The first Women's Day was marked in 1909 in the United States of America by a declaration made by the Socialist Party of that country. This day also marked the fire in a textile factory in New York, when over a hundred women died. It is believed that the female workers were kept inside the factory to prevent them from striking with other workers.
"Vijesti" survey: There is no equality yet
Anastasia Marash
I'm not 100% sure why International Women's Day is celebrated, but I think it's because women started a revolution on equality with men and related to work rights. I think it is. We are not, yet, at the same levels as men, but we are getting there. We should not have any recruitment based on gender. It would be good if we didn't divide jobs between men and women.
Ljiljana Anđelković
Women's Day represents the moment when women fought for their rights. I think that women are not in the same position as men, and I don't think they will ever be. This is due to the very nature of gender, diversity. I don't think that the position of women can be improved by intersectoral work either.
Vesna Šćepanović
The eighth of March is important for women. Of course, then women's human rights were adopted, I don't know what year, but according to the International Convention that a woman can be found in the world of politics, and in public speaking and protection of herself as a parent and as a mother, and as a person in general. Well, in Montenegro we still haven't reached that level where women and men are equal. We are moving towards that, of course, but we are not yet, in my view, I don't think we are.
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