Today is a special day; it is International Women’s Day. It would be a very dumb man who would deny the importance of the woman to our existence. Never mind that today we live in a world that trivializes the existence of life. Procreation which is considered one of the most sacred acts of mankind, and one which can only be performed by a woman has now been relegated to Abortion Clinics which can now be visited on many street corners around the globe. What a sad state the homo-sapiens species have become. Back to the point of this blog! Barbados Underground congratulates all women for the strides they have made in the last twenty years. Gender equality is something we will always support even though we may differ with how some women apply interpretations!
We could not let this day pass without touching on a related matter. Barbados has joined the rest of the world to stand cap in hand to strengthen diplomatic and economic ties with China. China we all accept now being touted has the economic Tiger of the world. It therefore makes economic sense to engage in friendly relations with a country which has a horrid human rights record. Also the world seems to have forgotten that China is a communist country! Why is this known revelation of concern you ask? The United States of America continues to join with other countries to maintain a trade embargo on little Cuba while at the same time according China ‘most favoured status’; go figure!
Let us relate what we are saying about China to International Women’s Day 2008. The most recent report which we can find suggests that China’s oppression of Tibetan women continues. The Tibet Women’s Association reports on their website reiterated their “concern about the discrimination based on sex, ethnicity or cultural background faced by rural and ethnic minority groups including Tibetan women, with regard to access to education, health, employment, participation in leadership and ownership of land in China. The Committee also expressed concern that rural girls have disproportionate illiteracy and school dropout rates and at the lack of health care facilities and medical personnel in rural areas, the high maternal mortality rates and the rising costs for health care, such as user fees, which limit rural women’s access to health services.” Our best research has shown that little has changed for the Tibetan women. According to a report prepared by an Indian based Tibetan Women’s group, these women have been forced to take up prostitution and have been detained as political prisoners because of their dissenting views.
For Barbadians who are unaware of the struggle of the Tibetan people who have waged a struggle under the Communist Chinese government, they might do well to do a Google and follow the trail. Today, we congratulate the strides women have made but at the same time we cannot forget those who have been left behind.
Women who visit BU are free to offer comments because this blog was written by a man while acknowledging that it was inspired by the matriarch of the household.
Barbados Underground 
Forcing Tibet women to have abortions becasue of chinese enforced bith control is the part of this thatmays me cry. These Tibet women are mostly Budha faith which is for having life.
Instead the Chinese make these women kill. Thjey are monsters!
David,
Do you know who came up with this concept of ‘GENDER EQUITY’?
Who is the brilliant thinker that decided that this was an ideal objective?
Does it not assume that men and women are equal – (as in interchangeable) ?! ARE WE?!?
What gender equity what?!?
Seems to me that men and women are different as hell.
Seems to me that we were designed for clearly different ROLES.
Everyone knows that even our brains are wired differently- To me this reflects brilliant engineering by a superhuman designer with the intent for men to do what they were designed to do – and for women to excel in their special areas.
Women should dominate their areas nearly 100% and men theirs, nearly 100%.
Nothing in this world is more important than the nurturing of future generations. Nothing can match the power of creating new life and guiding, nurturing and refining character, self confidence and therefore nationhood….
What men what?!?
…only good women can do that.!!!
…on the spiritual level, this is actually what the whole purpose of life on this earth is all about.
Men on the other hand, seem well designed to run around flaunting their muscles, their prowess and defending their territories…..i.e merely facilitators of the REAL business of life.
TOGETHER, a good man and a good woman are UNBEATABLE…. (and it will never be the same as two men or two women.)
…that we could so undervalue the TRUE role and potential of our women to that of running around looking to earn bread for the table and being ‘equal’ to men is in keeping of our trend of moving everything to the lowest common denominator.
What this world REALLY need is some real women doing what only real women can do…
…why you think that our young people all over the world are lost?!!
…I bet that it was the UN that came up with this women’s equity thing…
Certainly agree with you Bush tea!!!
It is another case where our high level of education has blurred responsibilties. We think any woman who is worth her salt will not default on her maternal responsibilites. Unfortunately we observe so many women who have jobs where they are travelling from home for extended periods.
It all starts with family doesn’t it? No wonder we are seeing the fall of orderly societies.
Bit harsh on our women , aren’t you David.
What is Barbados’ ratio of single female supporting families?
I’m certain they would love to be able to devote the necessary time and attention to raise their children as they would like, but it is often economically impractical.
Food on the table versus TLC.
This is the society we are promoting, and it is a model which the majority accepts.
I thank the heavens every day that I had the security and stabililty of a mother at home during my childhood, and firmly believe that this new economic and social regime with a preponderance of latchkey kids, will ultimately end in social disruption and probable unrest.
Allow mothers to be mothers, and adjust the system so they can afford to be.
That is the best investment for our nation’s wellbeing.
Some women have not contributed to the struggle at all and Nalita Ghajada comes to mind. Here obsession with winning all arguments by gender has been a big dissapointment.
Of course we know that the weak link in the whole fiasco has been us men. We were given the ‘simple’ tasks of providing leadership and security, so that the proper environment could be created for our families to succeed, for new generations to be properly raised and for our societies to progress…
Instead we have not been able to perform even this supporting role – forcing our women to take on men’s roles, to lose their femininity and be distracted from their critical roles.
The whole thing has become so warped now that the poor women actually think that their goal in life is to compete for the inferior role played by men…. and we have allegedly intelligent persons (including the female in your video David) calling for ’empowerment’ for women – meaning equal jobs like men….
… and yet we fail to understand how it is, that even though we spend more on education, have the highest standard of living in all history, have access to unlimited knowledge and technology…. our youth are increasingly rebellious, society is increasingly lawless and our future is glum.
Trust me. all the talk about equality for women is just so much nonsense. Women don’t need no equality, they need the environment created by wise and responsible men where they can do what they were expertly designed to do – CREATE THE FUTURE.
… anything else is just the usual idiocy of the UN and the simple-minded academics that abound….
what equal rights what?!!
We need some REAL MEN.
David, where on earth has Frankology gone? I just realised I have not seen any posts from him in ages. He changed his name? He died? He got a post in the new gov’t.
When will it be international men’s day?
women ‘s this and women that, i dont hear a thing about men nowadays.
seems to be a dying species.
men have a role,women a role.Both should complement each other, not compete with one another.