Wednesday, 7 March 2018
Address of the President Xhaferi Marking the 15 Anniversary since the Establishment of the Women Parliamentarians’’ Club – Increased Political Participation of Women
Distinguished ladies,
Distinguished fellow women MPs,
Distinguished guests,
distinguished media,
On this day, 15 years ago, on the eve of the International Women's Day - 8th March, within the Assembly of the Republic of Macedonia, was established Women Parliamentarians' Club as an informal group, composed of all women MPs, regardless of which parliamentary group they belong to. And let's not forget that we still live in the so-called "man's world", and in the society of Macedonia, unfortunately, many prejudices and stereotypes are still present when it comes to gender equality and the position and role of the woman in the society.
During the past 15 years, the Women Parliamentarians' Club acted jointly with a single goal that is to initiate legal solutions for achieving gender equality and advancement of women's rights, their active involvement in the decision-making process in the country, as well as strengthening and expanding of democracy in all areas of the society in Macedonia. One of your first initiatives that achieved a significant result is the amendment to the Electoral Law, that is, the adoption of the legal provision for ensuring that at least one seat on every third position in the candidate electoral list belongs to the less represented gender. Thus, in the elections in 2006 for the first time were elected 37 women MPs in the Assembly of the Republic of Macedonia, i.e. almost 31%, thus positioning us at the European peak.
Furthermore, with your initiative was drafted and adopted the Law on Equal Opportunities for Women and Men. With your initiative and support, a separate chapter for the protection of victims of domestic violence has been incorporated into the Family Law, and also you were the initiators for establishing a special fund to combat domestic violence. This is only a small part of your unselfish commitment and achieved results in the area of gender equality, implied in the broadest sense of the word.
Distinguished fellow women MPs,
I believe that with your actions you will continue to work in the direction of further strengthening of gender equality and will continue to be that strong voice against domestic violence and loyal defender of victims of domestic violence. I believe that you will continue to closely collaborate with the non-governmental sector and citizens, thus significantly contributing to the parliamentary democracy in our country. And I, following the example of Riksdag (Parliament of Sweden) and the Kingdom of Sweden, as a country with the highest percentage of women representation in politics and public life, in the capacity of the President of the Assembly of the Republic of Macedonia, on the occasion of the International Women's Day and the 15th Anniversary of operation of the Women Parliamentarian's Club in the Assembly of the Republic of Macedonia, I will begin with the realization of the project for preserving and promoting the contribution of women MPs and holders of functions in the Assembly and working bodies in the Assembly. It will be a modest but a significant contribution and acknowledgment of the role of women politicians in the Assembly of the Republic of Macedonia, and it will provide an institutional memory for future generations. And to be brief, not to sound that again we, men sell wisdom, allow me to congratulate all of you, my colleagues and all women in the Republic of Macedonia the International Women's Day - 8th March, and I wish you a beautiful and fulfilled life with a lot of respect and love from the beloved ones, and I wish that we, the men, will soon understand that the so-called "man's world", slowly, but certainly, is behind us.
Thank you for the attention, have a wonderful day!