Republican News · Thursday 25 April 2002

Women - Full speed ahead

BY MAIRE MURPHY

Dungiven's Sinn Féin centre hosted a Women's Forum on Saturday 20 April. Over 20 women from across the Six Counties and all levels within the party, Assembly members, councillors and young women just outgrowing Ógra came together to devise and develop a strategy to encourage women to engage effectively in political activity.

In a country characterised by gender inequality, it is no mystery that this would manifest itself in under representation in political life. Sinn Féin, the only all-Ireland party on the island, is actively seeking to change this under representation.

The Women's Forum is not an exclusively female operation. It is open to all those interested in correcting the gender imbalance that exists in political life. Sinn Féin has some of the most progressive thinking men of any political party and it is to their credit that some have expressed great interest in this worthwhile project.

The leadership of Sinn Féin is fully supportive of the Women's Forum and Sinn Féin Chairperson Mitchel McLaughlin who attended the meeting re-stated the party's commitment to encouraging women into politics and seeking innovative ways of correcting the gender imbalance. He said "the structures and policies are in place, it is the practical application of them that is the cause for concern but we are working hard at rectifying this.

Those who attended the forum were very committed and focused on the need to develop a strategy for encouraging women inside and outside the party to take their place in political life. There was recognition of the need for women at the heart of policy decision-making, so that those policies affecting women's lives could be carefully developed and effectively applied.

The chairperson of the 32-County Women's Forum, Anne Speed, told the group of her experiences in the job. The road ahead may be challenging but the goal of full participation in Irish political life was worth the effort, she said.

Intense discussion on various topics made for lively exchanges and the participation of the women created a positive feeling about the future of the Women's Forum.

Philomena Coyle, who has been spearheading the project for over a year, facilitated the conference and said, "the enthusiasm for the project and the abundance of new ideas to push the project forward was overwhelming".

The future of the Women's Forum looks bright. Get on board.