Staff Reporter

Shillong, March 6: The International Women’s Day (IWD) will be observed at Madanrting on March 8.

A cultural programme will also be organized by the North East Network on this day to celebrate women from various ethnic and minority groups in the communities and women’s collective spirit and resilience to gender inequalities, a statement issued by NEN said yesterday.

The activities include folk dance, film screening, sharing of experiences and highlighting contributions of women grassroot leaders.

International Women’s Day (IWD) celebrates women of all identities and their remarkable achievements in the social, economic, cultural and political spheres. Beyond that, it is also a call for action to eliminate gender inequality in this world. IWD can be traced back to the year 1908 when 15,000 women garment workers marched through New York City demanding shorter working hours, better pay and voting rights for women.

North East Network (NEN) observed IWD in Shillong for the first time in 1998, involving discussions around women in electoral politics. The same year, IWD was also observed in the state of Assam.

Nagaland observed the day in 2002. This year’s campaign is observed under the theme “Inspire Inclusion”. NEN reiterates its position that women must remain at the centre stage of all decision making processes. It aims to inspire everyone to include women of all identities in the social, economic, cultural and political spheres.

Women’s leadership is paramount to achieving gender justice and equality.

The statement said NEN has experienced stories of women leaders which are inspiring; women leaders who have overcome discrimination to bring change in their communities and have further inspired and included women from their communities of weavers, farmers and survivors to emerge as peer leaders.

It is time to celebrate women’s agency, their substantive contribution from homes to public spaces and their leadership towards transformational change, it added.