International Women's Day 2010

8th March 2010 - It's International Women's Day and the Perak Women for Women together with Soroptimist International Ipoh is jointly organising a week long celebration in Ipoh. The venue is sponsored by Kinta City Shopping Complex, Ipoh.

The theme? Equal Rights, Equal Opportunities.

Although Buddies will only be setting up our booth there from 11th to 14th, I went for the launch today. The Guest of Honor was YB Dato Hamidah Osman, state Exco.

While waiting for our VIP guest to come, a group of nurses from KPJ Ipoh Specialist Centre performed the poco-poco dance.

Arrival of our guest of honor (in blue tudung).

A welcome performance by the cheer leading group who call themselves Titans.

Launch of the event by a group of... women, of course...

Putting the stamp of approval for equal rights and equal opportunities.

Stamped and signed!

Performance by children from City Ballet Ipoh.

A group of retired ladies from Kelab Pesara Ipoh not wanting to be left out of the performances.

There was supposed to be one more performance, but it was already 6 pm and I needed to go back. So that's about all I have to report on the launch...

Coming up next: The talk.

Busy week ahead

The Perak Women for Women Association (PWW) will be organising a list of activities in Jaya Jusco, Ipoh from 8th to 14th March in conjunction with International Women’s Day 2010.

Activities include information and awareness booths, health screening, blood donation drive, performances etc by various groups and organisations. Buddies too have been invited to set up our booth… in fact I was asked if Buddies would like to perform anything. Performance? I told the lady we didn’t want to spoil the whole event!!

Setting up an exhibition booth would be great, but we simply don’t have the manpower to man the booth the whole week. Understanding our situation, PWW agreed to provide us with a booth from 11th to 14th March.

Frankly, even for just 4 days I knew it wouldn’t be so easy to get enough people to man the booth. After all, the exhibition is supposed to be from 10 am right to 10 pm. So we drew up 3 shifts per day: 10am – 2pm, 2pm – 6pm and 6pm to 10pm. I suggested that the Thursday and Friday day shifts be taken up by those with flexi working hours… or the pensioners. So yep, managed to get one or two volunteers for each shift.

Monday 8th March - Although we’re only taking part from 11th to 14th, I do intend to attend the launch of the International Women’s Day celebration on Monday. Other than lending my support to PWW’s activity, I would like to have a look at the exhibition space, so it will be easier for me to decide which posters to set up at our booth later.

Tuesday 9th March - I will be giving a talk on HIV/AIDS at hai sayang’s college… hehehe…

Wednesday 10th March – Nothing confirmed yet, but I’ve heard angin-angin that I may be invited by the women’s wing of a political party to join their discussion on matters pertaining to problems faced by women. Somebody recommended my name as I deal directly with HIV women. I’m not sure yet if it’s on though… if it’s not, then Wednesday can at least be my rest day…

Thursday 11th March – My shift for the exhibition will be from 2pm to 6pm, together with another senior volunteer. But I still have to go for a short while in the morning to set up the booth before going back to my office, as the 2 volunteers on the morning shift are both quite new.

Friday 12th March – Again I will be taking the 2pm – 6pm shift, this time with a trainee volunteer.

Saturday 13th March – My off day from the exhibition as I plan to attend a blogger’s wedding in Kelana Jaya.

Sunday 14th March – Back to the exhibition… this time I will be taking the 10am – 2pm shift.

So yeah, busy week ahead. I just hope I can take the heat… with the kind of hot weather we’re getting now…

International Women's Day

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Today, 8th March, is International Women's Day. (although people like Kerp prefer to remember today as Dato Seri Samy Vellu's birthday - Happy Birthday Dato Seri!)

How and when did the International Women's Day come about? Okay, for my posting today, let's go back to history (I hope you don't mind history lessons once in a while). Found the following article at the International Women's Day website.

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The First International Women's Day

In 1869 British MP John Stuart Mill was the first person in Parliament to call for women's right to vote. On 19 September 1893 New Zealand became the first country in the world to give women the right to vote. Women in other countries did not enjoy this equality and campaigned for justice for many years.

In 1910 a second International Conference of Working Women was held in Copenhagen. A woman named Clara Zetkin (Leader of the 'Women's Office' for the Social Democratic Party in Germany) tabled the idea of an International Women's Day. She proposed that every year in every country there should be a celebration on the same day - a Women's Day - to press for their demands. The conference of over 100 women from 17 countries, representing unions, socialist parties, working women's clubs, and including the first three women elected to the Finnish parliament, greeted Zetkin's suggestion with unanimous approval and thus International Women's Day was the result.

The very first International Women's Day was launched the following year by Clara Zetkin on 19 March (not 8 March). The date was chosen because on 19 March in the year of the 1848 revolution, the Prussian king recognized for the first time the strength of the armed people and gave way before the threat of a proletarian uprising. Among the many promise he made, which he later failed to keep, was the introduction of votes for women.

Plans for the first International Women's Day demonstration were spread by word of mouth and in the press. During the week before International Women's Day two journals appeared: The Vote for Women in Germany and Women's Day in Austria. Various articles were devoted to International Women's Day: 'Women and Parliament', 'The Working Women and Municipal Affairs', 'What Has the Housewife got to do with Politics?', etc. The articles thoroughly analyzed the question of the equality of women in the government and in society. All articles emphasized the same point that it was absolutely necessary to make parliament more democratic by extending the franchise to women.

Success of the first International Women's Day in 1911 exceeded all expectation.

Meetings were organized everywhere in small towns and even the villages halls were packed so full that male workers were asked to give up their places for women.

Men stayed at home with their children for a change, and their wives, the captive housewives, went to meetings.

During the largest street demonstration of 30,000 women, the police decided to remove the demonstrators' banners so the women workers made a stand. In the scuffle that followed, bloodshed was averted only with the help of the socialist deputies in Parliament.

In 1913 International Women's Day was transferred to 8 March and this day has remained the global date for International Wommen's Day ever since.

During International Women's Year in 1975, IWD was given official recognition by the United Nations and was taken up by many governments. International Women's Day is marked by a national holiday in China, Armenia, Russia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Bulgaria, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Macedonia, Moldova, Mongolia, Tajikistan, Ukraine, Uzbekistan and Vietnam.

To All Women Out There!

http://www.internationalwomensday.com/

8th March, is International Women’s Day. This day last year, my blog posting was a special dedication to HIV women.

This year, since there are too many serious stuff around because of the general elections, I thought maybe we could lighten up a bit – but still on a serious issue… BREAST CANCER. We can still have a good laugh on serious matters and see the lighter side of things, can't we? The following was forwarded to me via email some time ago and I think today is a good day for me to share this with my blog readers.

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GO GET YOUR MAMMIES GRAMMED

For years and years they told me,
Be careful of your breasts.
Don't ever squeeze or bruise them.
And give them monthly tests.

So I heeded all their warnings,
And protected them by law.
Guarded them very carefully,
And I always wore my bra.

After 30 years of astute care,
My gyno, Dr Pruitt,
Said I should get a Mammogram
"OK," I said, "let's do it."

"Stand up here real close" she said,
(She got my boob in line),
"And tell me when it hurts," she said,
"Ah yes! Right there, that's fine."

She stepped upon a pedal,
I could not believe my eyes!
A plastic plate came slamming down,
My hooter's in a vise!

My skin was stretched and mangled,
From underneath my chin.
My poor boob was being squashed,
To Swedish Pancake thin.

Excruciating pain I felt,
Within it's viselike grip.
A prisoner in this vicious thing,
My poor defenseless tit!

"Take a deep breath" she said to me,
Who does she think she's kidding?!?
My chest is mashed in her machine,
And woozy I am getting.

"There, that's good," I heard her say,
(The room was slowly swaying.)
"Now, let's have a go at the other one."
Have mercy, I was praying.

It squeezed me from both up and down,
It squeezed me from both sides.
I'll bet SHE'S never had this done,
To HER tender little hide.

Next time that they make me do this,
I will request a blindfold.
I have no wish to see again,
My knockers getting steam rolled.

If I had no problem when I came in,
I surely have one now.
If there had been a cyst in there,
It would have gone "ker-pow!"

This machine was created by a man,
Of this, I have no doubt.
I'd like to stick his balls in there,
And, see how THEY come out!



OK ladies, now that you have had your laugh, remember...Breast Cancer Awareness... Go have those boobs checked out and stay healthy! Pass the message on to your mothers, sisters, daughters, aunts, cousins ---- even your enemies!

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And oh, remember to get enough exercise ya? Keep fit, and stay healthy!

Pic stolen from icanhascheezburger.com

HAPPY INTERNATIONAL WOMEN’S DAY!