FG Women’s Network mark International Day with commitment to safer Westmeath
Monica Murphy
As International Women’s Day on March 8 approaches, the Fine Gael Women’s Network is calling on the people of Westmeath to reflect on progress to gender equality and the work that remains to ensure every woman is safe in her home and community. We believe your gender should never limit your potential or your safety.
In Westmeath, gardaí respond to hundreds of domestic-related calls annually. Fine Gael are supporting the expansion of the Esker House services in Athlone.
Under the leadership of former Minister for Justice, Helen McEntee, Fine Gael have shifted the national conversation from awareness towards zero tolerance. Practical supports welcomed by Fine Gael Women’s Network include: stand-alone stalking offence: introduction of new laws to ensure stalking and non-fatal strangulation are treated with the severity they deserve, giving gardaí the power to act earlier. Ireland is now a leader in Europe, providing five days of paid leave so survivors don’t have to choose between their safety and their pay. Cuan is a new national agency established to oversee the delivery of refuge spaces and support services, ensuring a streamlined, survivor-centred approach.
There is an investment of €363m to double the number of refuge spaces nationwide, including new builds in counties that previously had no dedicated units.
We continue to push for policies and implementation that warrant them redundant, as domestic and sexual violence is eradicated. International Women’s Day has been celebrated for the last 115 years.
This International Women’s Day, we want to make it clear that gender equality is about more than statistics; it is about the woman starting a business in our towns and suburbs, the students at local colleges feeling safe, the girls in primary and secondary schools being given the same opportunities in science and technology as the boys, women who can speak out against domestic or sexual violence, girls and women in sports, and in our healthcare system, and maybe most critically, in our homes who deserve to grow up in a society that respects them.
This March 8, the Fine Gael Women’s Network stand with the women of Westmeath. We remain committed to the hard work in government to ensure equality is felt in every home, community and workplace.