[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 147 (2001), Part 3]
[House]
[Pages 3299-3300]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]



                       INTERNATIONAL WOMEN'S DAY

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the 
gentlewoman from California (Ms. Millender-McDonald) is recognized for 
5 minutes.
  Ms. MILLENDER-McDONALD. Mr. Speaker, as the cochair of the 
Congressional Caucus on Women's Issues, I am proud to rise today to 
acknowledge International Women's Day.
  This day is a symbolic recognition of the great contributions that 
women around the world make everyday in society as mothers, teachers, 
farmers, doctors, maids, engineers, accountants, social workers, 
lawyers and activists. It is also a time to review the progress of 
women in the public arena and the workplace, as well as their struggle 
for equal status and full participation in society, justice and peace.
  International Women's Day is celebrated in the United States, United 
Nations and in many countries throughout the world. International 
Women's Day was declared in August 1910 at a meeting in Copenhagen. The 
Women's Socialist International Organization decided to commemorate 
March 8 as Women's International Day due to the strikes by hundreds of 
women workers in garment and textile factories in New York. The strike 
was against low wages, 12-hour workdays and inhumane working 
conditions.
  In 1975, during International Women's Year, the United Nations began 
celebrating March 8 as International Women's Day. Two years later, in 
December 1977, the General Assembly adopted a resolution proclaiming a 
United Nations Day for Women's Rights and International Peace to be

[[Page 3300]]

observed on a date to be chosen by each Member State.
  Women around the world have assumed positions of influence in all 
sectors of society, Mr. Speaker, and also have contributed to economic 
and social advancement. Yet, women face discrimination in many areas of 
society, and violence against women is part of everyday life for many.
  Women constitute the majority of the world's poor. Eighty percent of 
all refugees are women. One in every three women have been beaten or 
abused in some way.

                              {time}  1845

  Two million young girls are introduced into the commercial sex market 
each year. 130 million girls have undergone female genital mutilation. 
Every year 5,000 women and girls are victims of the so-called ``honor 
killings.'' Four million women and girls are bought and sold worldwide, 
either into prostitution, marriage or slavery. Two-thirds of the 300 
million children worldwide without access to education are girls.
  In Africa, HIV-positive women now outnumber infected men by 2 
million. In India, it is estimated that more than 5,000 women are 
killed each year because their dowries are not enough. Women are still 
underrepresented in governments and political parties.
  Despite slow progress in some areas, the advances that have been made 
in the status of women in society must not be underestimated. Female 
genital mutilation has been outlawed in several African countries. Many 
Latin American countries have modified legislation to improve women's 
access to resources, education and health services. Several countries 
have adopted or amended their constitutions to prohibit discrimination 
on the basis of sex. Bermuda, the Dominican Republic, Honduras, Mexico, 
Peru, South Africa and Venezuela adopted various forms of domestic 
violence legislation. Chile, Cyprus, the Sudan, and Zambia outlawed 
discrimination on the basis of pregnancy or childbirth. Egyptian women 
gained divorce rights similar to men's.
  Mr. Speaker, tonight I ask my colleagues to join me in celebrating 
the gains that women have made internationally and to acknowledge that 
we still have much to do in the struggle for equity and justice.

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