Ingħaqdu magħna għal marċ il-Belt Valletta, fl-okkażjoni ta’ Jum il-Mara.
Ejjew u ħeġġu lil nisa oħra, ħbieb oltre mill-ġeneru, u lil dawk li jappoġġjawna biex jiġu magħkom. Ejjew b’kartelluni li jesprimu r-rabja, il-karba għad-drittijiet riproduttivi u l-ħolm tagħkom għal liberazzjoni femminista. It-titlu ta’ din is-sena jenfasizza kif nisa minn kundizzjonijiet ekonomiċi, oqsma soċjali u pajjiżi differenti spiss jitqabdu mal-istess ostakli.
Din is-sena qed nagħmlu enfasi fuq il-ġustizzja riproduttiva – id-dritt li jkollok it-tfal kif u meta tiddeċiedi int, id-dritt li ma jkollokx tfal, id-dritt li trabbi lil uliedek f’ambjent sikur, b’mod sostenibbli u f’ambjent li jipprijoritizza lil saħħithom. Nafu li l-kontraċezzjoni mhijiex aċċessibbli biżżejjed, li l-abort huwa kriminalizzat, nies b’kundizzjonijiet bħal endometriosi ma jirċevux l-għajnuna li għandhom bżonn, u li mhux kull persuna li jkollha ċ-ċiklu mestrwali tiflaħ tħallas għal prodotti neċessarji.
Għal nies li jridu jkollhom it-tfal – hemm biżżejjed appoġġ? Huma finanzjarjament stabbli biżżejjed biex ikunu jistgħu jrabbu t-tfal? Tniġġis, kostruzzjoni bl-addoċċ, nuqqas ta’ spazji ħodor – dan kollu għandu x’jaqsam mal-ġustizzja riproduttiva.
Lil hinn minn dan, ma nistgħux ninjoraw ir-realtà ta’ kuljum li n-nisa jiffaċċjaw – sessiżmu, fastidju, stalking, stupru, vjolenza verbali u fiżika, kummenti misoġeni, differenza medja inġusta fil-pagi tan-nisa u l-irġiel, u fil-qsim tax-xogħol tad-dar u tat-trobbija tat-tfal. Xi drabi dawn huma ovvji ħafna, imma kemm-il darba jkunu tant sottili li diffiċli tagħrafhom u tindirizzahom.
Niftakru wkoll fil-femmiċidji li saru f’Malta f’dawn l-aħħar snin. Nappellaw biex dawk fil-poter jiaħdmu għal bidla soċjali sinifikanti, biex ikollna trasformazzjoni ħolistika tas-soċjetà patrijarkali li ngħixu fiha.
Aħna – nisa, ħbieb oltre mill-ġeneru, trans, u alleati tagħna – jeħtieġ li nsemmgħu l-vuċi tagħna flimkien, biex niġġieldu kontra l-oppressjoni tal-ġeneru f’jum simboliku bħal Jum il-Mara kif ukoll kuljum u kullimkien għal kull mara.
Niltaqgħu fil-Pjazza Tritoni u nimxu fil-Belt Valletta, sakem ningabru fi Pjazza San Ġorġ biex nisimghu diskorsi, kant mill-Kor Re-Sisters, u żifna komunitarja minn Fran Zammit (appoġġjata mid-Dipartiment tal-Istudji taż-Żfin, fi ħdan l-Università ta’ Malta).
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March for Women’s Day – Every Woman, Every Day, Everywhere
Join us for a march in Valletta, on the occasion of International Women’s Day.
Come with other women, non-binary friends, and allies, and bring placards voicing your anger and dreaming of a feminist liberation. This year’s title underlines how women from different social backgrounds, economic conditions, and diverse countries share the same struggles.
Our focus this year is on reproductive justice – the right to not have children, the right to have children, and the right to parent children in safe, healthy, and sustainable environments. We know that contraception is not accessible enough, abortion is criminalised, people with conditions like endometriosis lack care, and not everyone can afford period products.
For people who want to have children – is there enough support? Are people financially stable to be able to have and raise children? Pollution, over-construction, lack of green spaces – all of this relates to reproductive justice.
Beyond reproductive justice, we cannot ignore women’s everyday reality – facing sexism, harassment, stalking, rape, verbal and physical violence, misogynistic comments, an unjust pay gap and unfair sharing of parenting and housework. Sometimes these are very obvious, sometimes they are more subtle, which makes it harder to denounce and address these issues.
We must also continue to remember the femicides committed in Malta over the past years. We call for those in power to create meaningful change, and work towards societal transformation.
We – women, non-binary people, trans people, and allies – can use our voices to fight together against gender oppression, on a symbolic day like Women’s Day, as well as every day, everywhere, for every woman.
We will meet at Triton Fountain in Floriana, walk through Valletta, and gather in St. George’s Square to have speeches, songs by the Re-sisters Choir, and a community dance performance by Fran Zammit, supported by the Department of Dance Studies at the University of Malta.