International Women's Day: Demands For The Right To Decent Work, Justice And Against All Forms Of Violence

Photo illustration of International Women's Day which is celebrated every March 8th. (Photo: ANTARA/Hafidz Mubarak A)

JAKARTA - Every March 8 has been marked as a special day for women worldwide, namely International Women's Day. More than a century since it was first celebrated in 1911 in Austria, Denmark, Germany and Switzerland.

The history of International Women's Day began when 15,000 women walked through New York in 1908 demanding shorter hours, better pay and the right to vote.

Every year, International Women's Day is celebrated in almost all countries in the world, because it is a symbol of women's achievements. At this moment, the women looked back at whether they had received proper work opportunities and rights, as demanded by the women workers in 1908.

According to the World Inequality Report (WIR) or the 2022 World Inequality Report, globally, the income of women workers in 2021 is only 34 percent of the total national labor income.

Poster for International Women's Day which is celebrated every March 8th. (Photo: Pixabay/EyesteixStudio)

WIRR was developed by the World Inequality Institute and the United Nations Development Program (UNDP). The condition of inequality in terms of economy, ecology, and gender. The condition of inequality in Indonesia is also described in the report.

In general, WIRR data shows that the income of female workers in the former Eastern Bloc countries is quite high, averaging 41 percent. The share of labor income which reaches 45 percent is in Moldova. While the United States only led in the empowerment of women in the 20th century, which is only 38 percent.

In a gender-equal world, women should earn 50 percent of all labor income. This inequality is a barrier to gender equality, which has shown very slow progress over the past 30 years. Women's participation in the labor market is very important in the economy, yet women make up only a third of the income of the worldwide workforce.

Conditions in Indonesia

According to the McKinsey Global Institute, the income of women workers in Indonesia in 2021 is only 24.8 percent of the total national labor income. On the other hand, the income of female workers in Indonesia is still lower than that of Japan (28 percent) and Korea (32 percent). However, Indonesia's figure is higher than India's which is only 18 percent.

The McKinsey report also states that if women's participation in the workforce increases and more women work in high-productivity sectors, it is estimated that the national gross domestic product (GDP) could increase by 135 billion US dollars by 2024.

The income of women workers in Indonesia is still lower than that of men. (Photo: kemkes.go.id)

The obstacle to gender equality in Indonesia is not only the level of education, because in general the education level of women in Indonesia is lower than that of men. In general, society still assigns the responsibility of domestic work to women. As a result, women spend more time than men on unpaid care work.

It is necessary to take sides with women to participate in the world of work or support women to reach high levels in work. In Indonesia, the Marriage Law which makes the husband as the head of the family and the wife as the housewife, in many companies is still a reason to distinguish the rights of women workers from men.

Violence Against Women

According to Komnas Perempuan's 2020 annual records, there were 431,471 cases of violence against women. This figure is up from 406,178 cases in 2019 and 348,446 cases in 2018.

With details of violence in the personal sphere reaching 75.4 percent, violence in the community domain including the workplace 24.4 percent, while violence in the state sphere is 0.08 percent. The violence in question includes sexual, physical, and psychological violence.

The urge for the Sexual Violence Bill (RUU TPKS) to be ratified immediately continues to be echoed. The TPKS Bill is important because it can regulate the recovery of victims before, during, and after the trial period.

Illustration of a campaign to stop violence against women. (Photo: Special)

If the TPKS Bill is passed, the evidence will increase, including the victim's statement, a letter from a psychologist or psychiatrist, electronic data, documents, and medical record data. Law enforcement officials will also be prohibited from demeaning and blaming victims as has happened so far.

Gender equality is not always about women, but about roles, functions, positions, and an equal division of labor between men and women. The world of work is still very unequal for women, they only earn a third of the income of the workforce worldwide.

There needs to be an alignment with women in the labor market. But the main thing is a high commitment to implement it. In addition, campaigns to strengthen understanding of gender equality must also continue to be carried out in the community and government, so that norms about equality become more dominant. Happy International Women's Day.