From 11 – 15 March, PES Women President Zita Gurmai, Vice-President Katrine Skov, and Coordinator Ana Pirtskhalava were in New York for the 68th session of the UN Commission on the Status of Women (CSW). This year’s CSW theme focused on “accelerating the achievement of gender equality and the empowerment of all women and girls by addressing poverty and strengthening institutions and financing with a gender perspective”.
In keeping with the CSW theme, PES Women organised a joint parallel event with UN Women Germany on steps to eradicating poverty of women and girls. The event boasted an array of speakers: Elke Ferner, PES Women Vice President and UN Women Germany President; Ann Linde, Former Minister for Foreign Affairs of Sweden; Lesia Radelicki, Member of Cabinet of European Commissioner for Equality Helena Dalli; Esther Omam, Director of the NGO Reach Out Cameroon and a member of the Council of the Wise of the Women´s Peace Platform. The discussion centred on the need for intersectional, feminist and collaborative approaches to poverty reduction and creating more equitable and inclusive societies.
PES Women organised and attended a number of high-level bi-lateral meetings to discuss pertinent challenges in gender equality in 2024. PES Women President, Zita Gurmai, met with UN Secretary General, António Guterres, to discuss PES Women’s work in the EU on women’s rights and the importance of UN Women’s work. Additionally, PES Women met a number of high-level CSW attendees to discuss how international cooperation in securing gender equality is vital given the rising backlash on women’s rights around the world. PES Women met with: UN Women Executive Director Sima Sami Bahous; UN Women Deputy Executive Director Kirsi Madi; European Commissioner for Equality Helena Dalli; and Former Minister for Foreign Affairs of Sweden Ann Linde.
Prior to CSW6, PES Women attended the annual International Women’s Day march in Brussels (8 March) to raise awareness of persistent inequalities between women and men. To mark the day, PES Women joined the PES Group in the European Committee of the Regions to promote our joint campaign #SafePlace4Women which promotes zero-tolerance of violence against women in European cities and regions.
PES Women President, Zita Gurmai said:
“Our joint Safe Place for Women campaign with PES in the Committee of the Regions is an integral aspect of our vision for a ‘Feminist Europe’ in the 2024 European elections. On International Women’s Day, we want to highlight the need to make cities and regions in Europe safer for women. We must have zero-tolerance for all forms of gender-based violence and domestic violence in the European Union.”
PES Common Candidate Nicolas Schmit was in Madrid for International Women’s Day, attending the mass march attended by thousands of women and men, including members of the PSOE led government.
Following CSW68, PES Women Vice President, Elke Ferner, traveled to Rio de Janeiro for the Progressive Alliance Board Meeting and Conference in the Americas. The preparation for the next global convention of PA, strengthening of the working groups, re-activation of the members, and political reports from all around the world were key discussion points.
