Montenegro

On the occasion of 8th March, International Women’s Day

The Office for Gender Equality of the Government of Montenegro and the United Nations System in Montenegro: FAO (The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations), IOM (The International Organization for Migration), UNDP (The United Nations Development Programme), UNHCR (The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees), UNICEF (The United Nations Children's Fund) and WHO (World Health Organization) held a joint press conference on the occasion of 8 March, International Women's Day.

This year’s marking of 8th March was devoted to support of the implementation of recently adopted Gender Equality Law and to call on strengthening of gender mechanisms in the Government and in the Parliament. This year, representatives of the Governmental Office for Gender Equality and the United Nations System in Montenegro jointly called on all actors in society to act with renewed urgency and understanding that there is no effective development of society in which women do not play a central role. They also reminded that Montenegrotook over all these obligations and the responsibility on writing the Initial Report on the UN Convention on Elimination of all Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) by succeeding to this Convention on 23rd October 2006.

On this occasion, Ms. Nada Drobnjak, Head of the Governmental Office for Gender Equality said that Montenegrin legal system is based on equality of men and women, but that practice shows that traditional beliefs of woman's place and role in the society are still present and are still reproducing and causing inequality. “The most efficient ways for achieving gender equality are: empowerment policy for better development of women, increasing economical productivity, increasing the number of educated women and improving health care protection,“ explained Ms. Drobnjak.

“Montenegrin Constitution guarantees gender equality and obliges the state to create and lead politics of equal opportunities, with an aim of achieving gender equality. We are now facing a very important task – the implementation of the Law on Gender Equality, which implies creation of the environment for conception, initiation, implementation and promotion of gender-sensitive politics and laws. In the first half of this year the Government of Montenegro will determine a Plan of Activities for achieving gender equality, as well as programmes for conducting of this Plan,“ concluded Ms. Drobnjak.

Mr. Serge Ducasse, UNHCR Representative, Chair of the UN Theme Group on Human Rights on this occasion said: “In Montenegro, women have made tangible progress on many fronts. They now have the same level of education as men. More women are earning an income than ever before. The problem of violence against women is becoming more and more publicly addressed.  However, there is still progress to be made in many areas.  Notably, the participation of women in policy-making and decision taking is not as it should be in a modern democracy.”

Mr. Ducasse said that the United Nations Agencies in Montenegro consider gender equality not only as a goal in itself, but also as a critical component in their ability to reach all spheres of Montenegrin society. He further explained that only when women are fully involved and empowered, the benefits can be seen immediately: families are healthier and better fed; their income, savings and re-investment go up, and what is true of families is also true of communities and, in the long run, of whole countries.

“Today, the greatest challenge for Montenegro in this field remains in tackling two main problems: firstly, the Gender Equality Law has yet to be implemented and secondly, there is insufficient political support for the work of gender mechanisms in both Government and Parliament spheres,” added Mr. Ducasse. He also stressed that: “The prerequisite for the implementation of the Gender Equality Law (adopted almost year ago) is above all an institutional and political transformation process. It requires full dedication of knowledge and expertise that should include eliminating gender biases in legislation, national development frameworks, and incorporating gender awareness into policies, programs and institutional reforms.”

“Therefore we would like to invite the Government and, in particular, the Ministry for the Protection of Human and Minority Rights as well as the Parliament of Montenegro to explore all possibilities for bridging the gap between institutional capacities to address gender adequately in meeting EU accession conditions and the development of gender sensitive tools, in order to monitor progress and ensure accountability,” concluded Mr. Ducasse.

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 Women’s groups around the world mark International Women’s Day every year on 8th March. This date is also marked at the United Nations and is designated in many countries as a national holiday. When women on all continents, often divided by national boundaries and by ethnic, linguistic, cultural, economic and political differences, come together to celebrate their Day, they can look back to a tradition that represents almost ten decades of struggle for equality, justice, peace and development.

Over the years, the United Nations action for the advancement of women has taken four clear directions: promotion of legal measures; mobilization of public opinion and international action; training and research, including the compilation of gender desegregated statistics; and direct assistance to disadvantaged groups. Today a central organizing principle of the work of the United Nations is that no enduring solution to society's most threatening social, economic and political problems can be found without the full participation, and the full empowerment, of the world's women.