March 8th: EU Parliament, messages from the Vice President of the USA and the Prime Minister of New Zealand. The plenary meeting will open with a minute’s silence in remembrance of Luca Attanasio

“In Europe, today, women earn on average 14.1% less than men. Since the start of lockdown, even more women have been murdered and abused. Anger is not enough. Violence against women should become a punishable crime everywhere in Europe”. This was said by David Sassoli, president of the European Parliament, who today, on opening the plenary meeting, will give a speech to celebrate International Women’s Day. Sassoli himself announced that a video message will be sent for the occasion to the EU Assembly (at 05.00 pm) by Jacinda Ardern, Prime Minister of New Zealand, and Kamala Harris, Vice President of the USA.
Other initiatives have been planned for the day: in the morning, Evelyn Regner, president of the parliamentary committee on women’s rights and gender equality, will go live on Facebook to answer the citizens’ questions about the current state of gender equality in Europe and the way the pandemic has worsened the many problems that women have to face. At 12.00 pm, Anja Rubik, Polish model and activist, will go live on Instagram for an exchange of views.
At the opening of the plenary meeting, a minute’s silence will be held in remembrance of the Italian ambassador Luca Attanasio, his police escort Vittorio Iacovacci, and their driver Mustapha Milambo, who were killed in Congo.
Valentina Bombelli