São Paulo – The Brazilian Nair Goulart, the president of trade union centre Força Sindical (Portuguese for Trade Union Force) in the state of Bahia, and the joint president of the International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC) will recount the Brazilian experience in women’s rights to Arab women next Monday (12th) in Jordan. Nair will be one of the speakers at the meeting of the League of Arab Women, in Amman, to be attended by 70 women from Jordan, Bahrain, Tunisia, Egypt, Yemen and Morocco.
The League of Arab Women was established this year, with support from trade union centres in Arab countries and the CSI, to organize Arab women so they can pursue their rights. The group’s first meeting took place in March and the second one will be in Jordan. “They were the ones who requested the presence of someone from Brazil,” says Nair of the Arab women, explaining that their interest stems from the fact that the country’s president is a woman, Dilma Rousseff.
Nair will talk about the struggle of working women in Brazil, from the right to vote, conquered in 1932, until current days. “We are not advanced when it comes to women’s rights, they are less than 10% of our parliament,” she says. According to her, the decisions that influence the lives of women are not taken only within the sphere of the Executive Power – where Dilma is –, therefore women should also have greater presence within the Legislative Power.
The Brazilian woman should also discuss the Brazilian labour market for women. She mentions a few rates showing that Brazil is not among the cutting-edge countries in this respect, such as the fact that only 24% of Brazilian companies have women in managerial positions. “Women earn almost 40% less than men in Brazil,” she says. In terms of political participation, according to her, Brazil is the least advanced country in Latin America.
At the meeting in Amman, an action plan will be devised for 2012. Topics under discussion will include women’s rights in general, labour law and other instances, as well as what international conventions such as the International Labour Organization (ILO) set forth regarding women’s labour, and new paths to promoting gender equality. “The intention is to boost this first organization effort,” says Nair, regarding the purpose of the meeting, which will continue until next Tuesday (13rd).
Because of her work at the CSI, Nair will help Arab women organize themselves. “Our role is to provide support for women to organize themselves in each country. This is a strategic, important region where women are in a situation of much discrimination and inequality,” the union leader says. Nair was the first national secretary for Women at Força Sindical.
*Translated by Gabriel Pomerancblum
