# Women’s Issues – United States Department of State

- United States to Chair Community of Democracies’ 38th Governing Council Meeting Office of the SpokespersonOn June 11, the United States will chair the Community of Democracies’ (CoD) 38th Governing Council Meeting in Warsaw, Poland.  Acting Deputy Assistant Secretary (DAS) for Democracy, Human Rights and Labor Allison Peters will lead the U.S. delegation and will underscore the United States’ commitment to and continued collaboration with CoD member states on democracy and human rights priority issues, including a more open and resilient information environment, free and fair elections, defending civic space and freedom of association, and the meaningful inclusion of youth in civic and political processes.  On June 10, she will join Guatemala’s Vice Foreign Minister Mónica Renata Bolaños Pérez for a side event focused on the advancement of Women in Politics.During a reception hosted by the Government of Poland, Acting DAS Peters will recognize the forthcoming departure of Thomas Garrett, Secretary General of the CoD, who has provided steadfast leadership to the Community for the past seven years.  Following the third Summit for Democracy in March 2024, she will also look ahead to the celebration of the Community’s 25th anniversary in June 2025 and call upon all members to continue advancing relevant Summit commitments and the Warsaw Declaration to promote and protect democratic principles, bolstering our democracies and respect for human rights at home and abroad.  She will reaffirm the U.S. commitment to work closely with CoD co-founder Poland to lead the CoD into its next chapter.For further information, please follow the Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor on X and Facebook at @StateDRL, or email DRL-Press@state.gov.
- Ambassador-at-Large for Global Women’s Issues Rao Gupta Travels to Germany, Finland, and France Office of the SpokespersonU.S. Ambassador-at-Large for Global Women’s Issues Dr. Geeta Rao Gupta will travel to Berlin, Germany; Helsinki, Finland; and Paris, France on June 3-12.  During this visit, the Ambassador will meet with senior government officials, civil society leaders, international partners, and other gender equality champions.Led by the Government of Germany, Ambassador Rao Gupta will participate in a meeting of senior officials focused on global gender equality on June 3-4 in Berlin.  During the meeting, officials will exchange views on pressing global issues disproportionately affecting women and girls, including conflict-related sexual violence, lack of economic security, rising global conflicts, and technology-facilitated gender-based violence.On June 6-7 in Helsinki, Ambassador Rao Gupta will conduct several meetings with Finnish civil society and high-level government leaders, including the Ambassador for Gender Equality Katri Viinikka and members of Finnish parliament, on joint efforts to advance Women, Peace, and Security and gender equity and equality.On June 10-11 in Paris, Ambassador Rao Gupta will co-chair the inaugural Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) Forum on Gender Equity:  Navigating Global Transitions.  The Forum will cover important topics including gender equality and climate action, the digital gender divide and the gendered impacts of digital technologies, and cross-cutting structural barriers to gender equality.For media inquiries, please contact stategwi@state.gov.
- Ambassador Murray’s Travel to Peru for the Second APEC Senior Officials’ Meeting HomeOffice of the SpokespersonPress Releases&#8230;Ambassador Murray’s Travel to Peru for the Second APEC Senior Officials’ Meeting				hide		if(window.jQuery) {		jQuery( document ).ready(function() {			if (jQuery(".bc_middle").hasClass("collapse")) {				jQuery(".bc_ellipse").click(function(){					jQuery(".bc_hide").toggleClass("visible");					jQuery(".bc_middle").toggle();					jQuery(".bc_ellipse").toggle();					jQuery(".bc_content").toggleClass("noflex");					jQuery(".block_breadcrumbs_content").toggleClass("noflex");				});				jQuery(".bc_hide").click(function(){					jQuery(".bc_hide").toggleClass("visible");					jQuery(".bc_middle").toggle();					jQuery(".bc_ellipse").toggle();					jQuery(".bc_content").toggleClass("noflex");					jQuery(".block_breadcrumbs_content").toggleClass("noflex");				});			} else {				jQuery(".bc_ellipse").hide();			}		});	}																										Ambassador Murray’s Travel to Peru for the Second APEC Senior Officials’ Meeting																																		Media Note																														May 13, 2024																																							U.S. Senior Official for Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Ambassador Matt Murray will travel to Arequipa, Peru from May 13 to 18 for the Second Senior Officials’ Meeting and Related Meetings (SOM2) of the APEC Peru 2024 host year.&nbsp;While in Arequipa, Ambassador Murray will engage in a series of working group meetings, workshops, and stakeholder engagements.&nbsp; He will collaborate with senior government officials, business leaders, and other stakeholders from across the Asia-Pacific region to discuss U.S. priorities for APEC and explore alignment with Peru’s objectives as host of APEC 2024.The meetings will include two APEC ministerial meetings and a joint meeting between them: Acting Division Chief for Women’s Economic Security Sandrine Rukundo&nbsp;will serve as the U.S. Head of Delegation for the High-Level Policy Dialogue on Women and the Economy on May 16 and United States Trade Representative Ambassador Katherine Tai will serve as the U.S. Head of Delegation to the Ministers Responsible for Trade Meeting from May 17 to 18. &nbsp;On May 16, Ambassador Tai will also participate in a “Women in Leadership” fireside chat alongside Julia Torreblanca, APEC Business Advisory Council (ABAC) 2024 Chair, at the University of Santa Maria.&nbsp;A joint meeting of the High-Level Policy Dialogue on Women and the Economy and Ministers Responsible for Trade Meeting – headed by Ambassador Tai and Ambassador Murray – will convene on May 17, spotlighting the intersection of women and trade as a means to drive greater sustainable and inclusive economic growth.&nbsp; Ambassadors Tai and Murray will also visit the Academy for Women Entrepreneurs (AWE) Fair, held at the Bi-National Cultural Center from May 16 to 18.The meetings in Arequipa will also include a Public-Private Dialogue on Women and the Economy – Creating Change: Women’s Economic Empowerment on May 15, in which&nbsp;Special Advisor on International Disabilities Rights (SAIDR) Sara Minkara will discuss financial inclusion to promote women’s economic empowerment.For further information, please contact the U.S. APEC Team at DOSAPEC@state.gov.						Tags																													Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation																															Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor																								Bureau of East Asian and Pacific Affairs																								Bureau of Western Hemisphere Affairs																																																Office of the Spokesperson																																Official International Travel																															Peru
- Assistant Secretary Witkowsky and Ambassador-at-Large Rao Gupta’s Travel to Papua New Guinea and Australia Office of the SpokespersonAssistant Secretary of the State Department Bureau of Conflict and Stabilization Operations Anne A. Witkowsky and U.S. Ambassador-at-Large for Global Women’s Issues Dr. Geeta Rao Gupta will travel jointly to Papua New Guinea and Australia from April 26 to May 10.In Papua New Guinea, Assistant Secretary Witkowsky and Ambassador-at-Large Rao Gupta will meet with government representatives, civil society and private sector stakeholders, and women-led organizations to discuss mutual priorities related to the U.S. Strategy to Prevent Conflict and Promote Stability and opportunities to advance Women, Peace, and Security and address gender-based violence.In Australia, Assistant Secretary Witkowsky will lead a delegation composed of Ambassador-at-Large for Global Women’s Issues Dr. Rao Gupta and Deputy Special Envoy to Monitor and Combat Antisemitism Aaron Keyak to attend sessions at the International Atrocity Prevention Working Group Spring Meeting. &nbsp;Ambassador Rao Gupta, joined by Assistant Secretary Witkowsky, will also lead U.S. participation in the second U.S.-Australia Bilateral Strategic Dialogue on Gender Equality.For more information, follow @StateCSO on X and Facebook and @StateGWI on X, Facebook, and LinkedIn or contact CSO at CSOPublicAffairs1@state.gov and S/GWI at StateGWI@state.gov.						Tags																					Australia																								Bureau of Conflict and Stabilization Operations																								Bureau of East Asian and Pacific Affairs																																Conflict Prevention																															Office of the Spokesperson																																Official International Travel																															Papua New Guinea																																Women&#039;s Issues
- 68th Session of the Commission on the Status of Women – High-Level Meeting To Advance Women’s Political Participation and Leadership in the Digital Age HomeOffice of the SpokespersonPress Releases&#8230;68th Session of the Commission on the Status of Women &#8211; High-Level Meeting To Advance Women’s Political Participation and Leadership in the Digital Age				hide		if(window.jQuery) {		jQuery( document ).ready(function() {			if (jQuery(".bc_middle").hasClass("collapse")) {				jQuery(".bc_ellipse").click(function(){					jQuery(".bc_hide").toggleClass("visible");					jQuery(".bc_middle").toggle();					jQuery(".bc_ellipse").toggle();					jQuery(".bc_content").toggleClass("noflex");					jQuery(".block_breadcrumbs_content").toggleClass("noflex");				});				jQuery(".bc_hide").click(function(){					jQuery(".bc_hide").toggleClass("visible");					jQuery(".bc_middle").toggle();					jQuery(".bc_ellipse").toggle();					jQuery(".bc_content").toggleClass("noflex");					jQuery(".block_breadcrumbs_content").toggleClass("noflex");				});			} else {				jQuery(".bc_ellipse").hide();			}		});	}																										68th Session of the Commission on the Status of Women &#8211; High-Level Meeting To Advance Women’s Political Participation and Leadership in the Digital Age																																		Media Note																														March 15, 2024																																							On March 13,&nbsp;on the margins of the 68th&nbsp;session of the Commission on the Status of Women,&nbsp;the&nbsp;Government of the&nbsp;United States&nbsp;alongside&nbsp;the Governments of&nbsp;Canada,&nbsp;Colombia, and&nbsp;the United Kingdom,&nbsp;co-sponsored&nbsp;a&nbsp;high-level meeting&nbsp;at the U.S. Mission to the United Nations&nbsp;to discuss&nbsp;shared priorities for&nbsp;advancing&nbsp;women’s political participation and&nbsp;leadership, including by tackling new threats, such as&nbsp;technology-facilitated gender-based violence.&nbsp;Participants included senior leaders from governments, civil society, philanthropy, multilateral organizations, and the private sector.This high-level meeting focused on opportunities for collaboration to address the consistent underrepresentation of women at all levels of public life, politics and government, including peace and security decision-making processes. Women leaders, researchers, and experts from civil society highlighted how longstanding barriers to women’s political participation and leadership—including lack of access to political networks and resources as well as gender-based violence both online and offline—continue to undermine their inclusion and advancement in democratic processes. Several participants noted that threats to women leaders have proliferated with the increased adoption of digital technologies and are likely to continue to grow with new and emerging technologies, including artificial intelligence. Participants noted the urgency of addressing these systemic barriers to ensure a level playing field for elections set to take place around the world this year.To address these issues, senior leaders from the Biden-Harris Administration invited partners to join a new multistakeholder initiative to advance women’s political participation and leadership in the digital age. This initiative, which the United States intends to launch on the margins of the 75th NATO Summit, will convene governments, philanthropy, civil society, private sector, and multilateral organizations to developcommitments focused on closing the gender gap in leadership, including through programs that address threats to women leaders on and offline. It will build on shared commitments and priorities, including the U.S. Strategy and National Action Plan on Women, Peace and Security, the U.S. Presidential Initiative for Democratic Renewal, the Global Partnership for Action on Gender-Based Online Harassment and Abuse, the Summit for Democracy Gender Cohort, and the Network for Gender Inclusive Democracy. For more information, please contact StateGWI@state.gov.						Tags																																											Global Women&#039;s Issues																																																							Office of the Spokesperson																																Women&#039;s Issues																																							Women&#039;s Rights
- Secretary Antony J. Blinken’s Remarks at an International Women’s Day Reception HomeOffice of the SpokespersonPress Releases&#8230;Secretary Antony J. Blinken&#8217;s Remarks at an International Women’s Day Reception				hide		if(window.jQuery) {		jQuery( document ).ready(function() {			if (jQuery(".bc_middle").hasClass("collapse")) {				jQuery(".bc_ellipse").click(function(){					jQuery(".bc_hide").toggleClass("visible");					jQuery(".bc_middle").toggle();					jQuery(".bc_ellipse").toggle();					jQuery(".bc_content").toggleClass("noflex");					jQuery(".block_breadcrumbs_content").toggleClass("noflex");				});				jQuery(".bc_hide").click(function(){					jQuery(".bc_hide").toggleClass("visible");					jQuery(".bc_middle").toggle();					jQuery(".bc_ellipse").toggle();					jQuery(".bc_content").toggleClass("noflex");					jQuery(".block_breadcrumbs_content").toggleClass("noflex");				});			} else {				jQuery(".bc_ellipse").hide();			}		});	}																										Secretary Antony J. Blinken&#8217;s Remarks at an International Women’s Day Reception																																		Remarks																		Benjamin Franklin Room						Washington, D.C.						March 8, 2024																																							AMBASSADOR RAO GUPTA:&nbsp; Good afternoon to all of you.&nbsp; Thank you so much for joining us to mark International Women’s Day.&nbsp; I also want to say a sincere thank you to Secretary Blinken and to Director Jen Klein for their leadership and for all that they do every day to elevate women’s voices and power.&nbsp; (Applause.)&nbsp;And most of all, thank you to each of you for being here.&nbsp; Together we are here to honor the unwavering bravery and fierce determination of women around the world and to remember together why we must continue to be brave, to be fierce, to be unyielding in our quest to achieve gender equality.This has been an extraordinary week because I have had – have had the honor and the privilege to spend time and get to know each of our 2024 International Women of Courage awardees, who are here with us today.&nbsp; Raise your hands.&nbsp; (Cheers and applause.)&nbsp; You will hear from one of them soon, but I want to take the short time I have right now to share with you some of the insights that I have gained from my conversations with them this week.&nbsp;What I’ve realized and what we’ve talked about together is that courage is not the absence of fear.&nbsp; These women here today and far too many around the world, they all know fear.&nbsp; Far too many of us are living in conflict, in displacement, without adequate access to water or food.&nbsp; Far too many of us are living under the thumb of an autocrat determined to squash our collective power.&nbsp; Far too many of us have experienced violence, whether in times of war or in times of peace, whether that’s in our homes, online, or on the street.&nbsp; There’s really no shortage of things to fear.Courage, though, as one of our awardees told me, is about being scared but nevertheless doing our job – the work that we must do to advance the rights of women and girls everywhere despite that fear – a job born of compassion, a job born of empathy, a job born of love.&nbsp; Courage is a quiet grace.&nbsp; It’s about letting that love of family, of community, of country, of freedom speak louder than your fear.&nbsp; As another awardee told me, courage isn’t really a choice.&nbsp; Courage is love in action.&nbsp; (Applause.)Before I turn the microphone over, I want to take a moment to acknowledge my entire team, and especially Candace, Katie, and Allison, who worked tirelessly to ensure that we could honor – (cheers and applause) – that we could honor these women today, through this week, and moving forward as they all travel to L.A.With that, I would like to welcome my esteemed colleague and friend, Jen Klein, to the podium.&nbsp; It won’t surprise some of you to learn that Jen is an alum of S/GWI, and now she serves as assistant to President Biden and the director of the White House Gender Policy Council.&nbsp; Jen.&nbsp; (Applause.)MS KLEIN:&nbsp; I was standing behind her to symbolize that I will always have her back.&nbsp; (Laughter.)&nbsp; Thank you, Geeta, Ambassador Rao Gupta, for your introduction, and as I said, for your partnership and your friendship, and happy International Women’s Day to all.&nbsp; Thank you so much for being here today.I’d also like to extend a particular note of gratitude to Secretary Blinken, who is a true friend and a true champion for the rights of women and girls around the world.&nbsp; (Applause.)&nbsp; And I’d also like to recognize the 2024 International Women of Courage awardees here with us today, the Washington diplomatic corps, and our many civil society partners who are here.As President Biden has said, every domestic and foreign policy we pursue rests on a foundation of dignity and equity for women.&nbsp; The administration’s establishment three years ago today of the Gender Policy Council I am privileged to lead has worked to elevate the status of women and girls both here at home and around the world.&nbsp; This is both a moral and a strategic imperative.&nbsp; Societies, including our own, do better when women participate and have equal opportunities.&nbsp; Economies grow, education rates and health outcomes decrease – increase, excuse me – political instability and violence decline, and, put simply, the status of women and girls and the stability of security of nations are inextricably linked.To achieve this vision, this administration has marshaled historic resources, mobilized new partnerships, and spoken out in support of the rights of women and girls everywhere.&nbsp; We’ve increased our investment in care infrastructure globally and committed to cutting the global gender digital divide in half by 2030.&nbsp; We continue to be the largest donor to family planning assistance worldwide, and we’re taking action to combat the maternal health crisis both at home and abroad.&nbsp; We’re strengthening our government’s exercise of financial, diplomatic, and legal tools against conflict-related sexual violence and imposing sanctions driven by a focus on this abhorrent human rights abuse.&nbsp; And we’re addressing the alarming rise of technology-facilitated gender-based violence and its chilling effect on women’s political participation.This is just a sample of the tremendous work that all of us have done together through all the work that colleagues across the U.S. Government, working in partnership with the private sector and civil society, are leading every day.&nbsp; Thank you, all of you, for your contributions to these efforts and for your tireless work to improve the lives of women and girls.&nbsp; Let me once again congratulate this year’s IWOC awardees, who we were proud to welcome to the White House earlier this week and who have served as an inspiration to us all and to me personally.I now have the distinct pleasure of welcoming Secretary Blinken, who is not only, as I said, an impressive leader but a sincere advocate who embodies the principles of equity and fairness.&nbsp; (Applause.)SECRETARY BLINKEN:&nbsp; Thank you.&nbsp; Good afternoon, everyone.&nbsp; Good afternoon and welcome to the State Department.&nbsp; Now, I’m sorry that you have to listen to all of us, and you’re standing there; there are no chairs.&nbsp; (Laughter.)&nbsp; Now, if it were the State of the Union you’d be standing and sitting and standing and sitting.&nbsp; (Laughter.)&nbsp; But I’m so delighted to see all of you here, and I especially also want to emphasize how pleased I am to see the awardees from this week from the International Women of Courage Award.&nbsp; It was the most inspiring moment of the week – maybe of many weeks – that we had at the White House with the First Lady.&nbsp; And to hear your stories is to be reminded – I think Geeta just said it so well – of what courage really is; and we’re grateful for your presence this afternoon.Let me start by saying to Jen how grateful I am for your extraordinary leadership.&nbsp; Three years ago today, President Biden established the White House Gender Policy Council, and every day since then Jen Klein has worked with tenacity and with vision to achieve its mission: simply stated, equality, dignity, opportunity for every woman and girl.&nbsp; Thank you, Jen.&nbsp; (Applause.)And to our indomitable Ambassador-at-Large for Global Women’s Issues, thank you.&nbsp; (Cheers and applause.)&nbsp; Now, so I’ve really – I’ve learned something this week from Geeta, because we had the wonderful ceremony at the White House, and the all-star lineup of extraordinary women leaders in our administration was introduced one by one, but the reception that Geeta got was unlike anything.&nbsp; (Laughter.)&nbsp; Samantha Power, Karine Jean-Pierre, Jen Klein – all very strong receptions.&nbsp; But Geeta – so clearly there’s something going on in this room – (laughter) – and I want my team to take some notes from this.&nbsp; (Laughter.)&nbsp;But here’s the truth:&nbsp; Around the world, Ambassador Rao Gupta and her team are working to unlock opportunities for women and girls.&nbsp; And this is a mission, a focus, that is designed to produce results – to bring more women into decision-making roles in political and civic life; to prevent and respond to gender-based violence.&nbsp;As Jen and Geeta know so well, as we work toward greater equality, it’s essential that we look to and learn from partners outside government, human rights defenders, development workers, journalists, community leaders, and survivors, and so many of you are represented in this room.Now, I also have to tell you that for me, every single day is International Women’s Day, and it starts at home with my wife, Evan Ryan, the White House cabinet secretary who is here with us today as well.&nbsp; (Applause.)&nbsp; Although I think as Evan will acknowledge, it probably starts even more with our daughter – (laughter) – who is very much a young woman, a very young woman of – of real courage.&nbsp; (Laughter.)&nbsp; And she demonstrates this every – she’s four years old.&nbsp; (Laughter.)&nbsp;But there is no more fitting day for – fitting way, excuse me – to mark International Women’s Day than to be with some of the individuals who inspire and inform our work, including our 2024 International Women of Courage awardees.&nbsp;When I had the opportunity to be with the awardees along with the First Lady on Monday, like so many of you, I heard their extraordinary stories, their extraordinary work.&nbsp; In the face of incredible personal risk, they’re championing the vulnerable; they’re championing the underserved – children, the LGBTQI+ community, people living with disabilities, survivors of rape and domestic violence.&nbsp; The United States, by the ceremony that we had but also by the work that our leaders are doing every day, is committed to standing with them and all women who work toward a better and brighter future for their communities.President Biden has put the empowerment and the inclusion of women and girls at the heart of our foreign policy.&nbsp; As the President often says, history shows us again and again and again that when women are safe and free and treated with equality, their communities are better off, their countries are better off, the world is better off.&nbsp; Advancing their rights – (applause) – as you heard my colleagues say, we believe strongly that advancing women’s rights, advancing their representation, is also, simply put, a moral imperative.&nbsp;At the State Department, we’re working around the clock to promote greater gender equality and women’s rights around the world.&nbsp; And we’re putting into action a comprehensive strategy to help women contribute to and benefit from economic growth and prosperity, and that means a few things.&nbsp; It means providing training and education so that women can lead in all sectors.&nbsp; It means expanding access to childcare so that women can enter, return to, and remain in the workforce.&nbsp; And by the way – so many of you know this – if we were able to achieve workforce participation parity for women around the world, we would add $28 trillion to the global economy.&nbsp;Just imagine what our countries, what our societies, what our world could do with those resources.&nbsp; Holding women back, denying their participation, simply put, is bad for everyone.&nbsp; Enhancing it would be good for everyone, dismantling the legal and societal barriers that stand in the way of a level playing field.&nbsp; In short, helping women gain their rightful autonomy over their own lives while working to close the gender gaps which cost so much to so many of us.We’re also working to deliver on our Women, Peace, and Security Action Plan&nbsp;to increase women’s participation in conflict resolution and peacebuilding efforts.&nbsp; And each day, in communities around the world, American diplomats and our partners are advancing women’s rights and opportunities and harnessing the benefits that come when they can realize their full potential.But here’s the thing: For all the efforts we’re making, we simply cannot do this alone.&nbsp; The struggle for women’s rights is rooted in solidarity.&nbsp; International Women’s Day was founded in honor of the women from all backgrounds, all walks of life, who came together to demand equality.&nbsp; Garment workers protecting unfair pay – protesting unfair pay and horrific working conditions.&nbsp; Russian mothers striking for bread and peace and the right to vote.&nbsp; Eleanor Roosevelt advocating in the United Nations for women’s full participation in the life and responsibility of global affairs.&nbsp; Side by side, these great leaders with women from around the world – that includes Hansa Mehta of India, who changed the phrase “all men are born free and equal” to “all human beings are born free and equal” in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.We see that same spirit of solidarity today – women around the world driving solutions to the challenges of our time, of our moment, from climate action to health security to internet freedom.&nbsp; So for me, this is an opportunity to come by and say, simply, thank you.&nbsp; Thank you for your extraordinary leadership.&nbsp; Thank you for your exploratory partnership.&nbsp; We will continue to listen to, to learn from, to work with each and every one of you because the reality is we have a lot more work to do.&nbsp;&nbsp; But the energy in this room, and not just from Geeta’s team – (laughter) – makes it clear that nothing is going to get in our way.Now, the three of us have been the opening act for our main attraction because I want to turn it over now to an incredibly valued partner, one of the Department of State’s 2024 IWOC awardees, a tremendous human rights advocate, Volha Harbunova.&nbsp; (Applause.) &nbsp;After the fraudulent 2020 elections in Belarus, Volha was imprisoned by the Lukashenka regime for organizing women’s rights marches.&nbsp; She is now one of the leaders of the Belarusian democratic movement, where she’s working to secure the release of political prisoners and to support them upon their release.&nbsp; This is truly a woman of extraordinary courage, extraordinary conviction, and extraordinary leadership.&nbsp; Thank you.&nbsp; The floor is yours.MS HARBUNOVA:&nbsp; (Via interpreter) Greetings, everyone.&nbsp; It’s a great honor for me to be here.&nbsp; Also, receiving this award and being here is a source of great pride.&nbsp; I’m also immensely grateful to you because you recognized that I was a courageous woman way before I did.&nbsp; I’m still getting used to that thought.&nbsp; (Laughter and applause.)Two years ago today I was in a pretrial detention center, having been detained for taking part in peaceful protest.&nbsp; I was put in a cell for six months only for speaking out.&nbsp; There, I was subjected to violence, to torture, and they threatened to take my parental rights from me.&nbsp; They tortured all of us with cold, with lack of medical care.&nbsp; I didn’t receive a single letter from my daughter, even though she wrote to me every single day.&nbsp; Political prisoners in Belarus are made to wear a yellow tag like this, like the one I’m wearing.&nbsp; It’s not a badge. &nbsp;Five people have already died in custody.&nbsp; Six people have disappeared; we don’t know where they are.&nbsp; They are held incommunicado.After an unfair trial, I was sentenced to three years of house arrest.&nbsp; In fear of further criminal prosecution, I was forced to leave my home.&nbsp; I was desperate.&nbsp; I feared for my life, and saying goodbye to my family was extremely difficult.&nbsp; In the middle of the night, I had to climb over a tall fence at the international border between Belarus and Lithuania and ask for political asylum.&nbsp; It made me very angry, and I did not give up.&nbsp; I became the representative for social policy at the United&nbsp;Transitional Cabinet of Belarus, which is working in exile.&nbsp; Every day I work to help political prisoners and their families.&nbsp; Every day I look for work – for ways to secure their release.&nbsp;I am extremely happy to meet all of you, and I’m very happy to have met my fellow awardees, my dear sisters.&nbsp; During this time we’ve gained so much energy from each other, so much knowledge, so much new – so many new contacts.&nbsp;During this program we’ve discussed the issues that our countries are facing.&nbsp; We look for solutions.&nbsp; We discussed different options.&nbsp; You are my inspiration.&nbsp; Because of you I am not going to give up.&nbsp; You shine like a diamond in my heart.&nbsp; (Applause.)Women and girls in Belarus often think, “I am not anybody.&nbsp; I am not anything special.&nbsp; There are people who are more worthy than me.&nbsp; I don’t deserve any award.”&nbsp; This is how we’re being brought up by patriarchy and dictatorship in Belarus.&nbsp; We’re taught that we’re nobody.For them, March 8th is just about celebrating the spring and beauty, and women are considered a mere decoration at a workplace and just homekeepers.&nbsp; We’re never told that we should fight for our rights.&nbsp; They never talk about equal opportunities and equal rights.&nbsp; They never let us be heard.There is no law against domestic violence in Belarus.&nbsp; There is a list of 88 jobs that women are banned from holding, and currently there are at least 187 female political prisoners in custody in Belarus, where they are subjected to torture and violence.&nbsp;I am not the first woman from Belarus to receive this prestigious award.&nbsp; There was Nasta Dashkevich before me and Maria Kolesnikova.&nbsp; They have both been subjected to persecution, and Maria Kolesnikova, a 2021 IWOC awardee, is now in custody and is being held incommunicado.&nbsp; For over a year, her family have not heard from her.&nbsp; She has been deprived of an attorney, of a right to receive letters and visits, and we must do everything to find out where she is and to secure her release and the release of all political prisoners.&nbsp; (Applause.)Since 2020, over 8,000 women have been put through detentions and unfair trials; 1,033 of them have faced criminal charges, and repressions do not stop.&nbsp; Courage for women in Belarus is not a manifestation of bravery.&nbsp; It’s a necessary condition of survival in a totalitarian and patriarchal country.&nbsp;Two years ago today, they shut down a shelter for domestic violence victims that I had worked at for over 20 years.&nbsp; We helped thousands of women who were beaten, sexually assaulted, persecuted online, sold into slavery, and had their children kidnapped from them.But the Lukashenka government keeps turning a blind eye to this issue.&nbsp; Moreover, in the last two years, over 1,500 NGOs have been shut down, and thousands of women and girls have been left without any support.&nbsp; He threw the most courageous and rebellious among us in prison – Palina Sharenda-Panasiuk, Halina&nbsp;Dzerbysh.&nbsp; They kicked the most unpredictable and resilient among us out of the country – Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya, Svetlana Alexievich.&nbsp; And they still can’t find the most cautious and daring among us, because we’re everywhere.&nbsp; We’re in every city, town, and village in Belarus.&nbsp; (Applause.)I know that all political prisoners will be released and we will all return home, and I will return home.&nbsp; Belarus will be free, and there will be true gender equality there.&nbsp; (Applause.)&nbsp; Thank you and Happy International Women’s Day to all of you.&nbsp; (Cheers and applause.)						Tags																																													Office of the Spokesperson																								The Secretary of State																																Women&#039;s Issues																																							Women&#039;s Rights
- Ambassador-at-Large for Global Women’s Issues Rao Gupta Travels to New York Office of the SpokespersonU.S. Ambassador-at-Large for Global Women’s Issues Dr. Geeta Rao Gupta will travel to New York City from March 11-15, 2024, as the co-head of the U.S. Delegation to the 68th Session of the Commission on the Status of Women (CSW), alongside U.S. Representative to the United Nations Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield.Ambassador Rao Gupta will represent the United States in formal CSW meetings, conduct bilateral meetings, and participate in several side events to highlight U.S. priorities related to CSW’s priority theme for 2024, “Accelerating the achievement of gender equality and the empowerment of all women and girls by addressing poverty and strengthening institutions and financing with a gender perspective.”For media inquiries, please contact stategwi@state.gov.
- Secretary Blinken to Deliver Remarks at International Women’s Day Celebration HomeOffice of the SpokespersonPress Releases&#8230;Secretary Blinken to Deliver Remarks at International Women’s Day Celebration				hide		if(window.jQuery) {		jQuery( document ).ready(function() {			if (jQuery(".bc_middle").hasClass("collapse")) {				jQuery(".bc_ellipse").click(function(){					jQuery(".bc_hide").toggleClass("visible");					jQuery(".bc_middle").toggle();					jQuery(".bc_ellipse").toggle();					jQuery(".bc_content").toggleClass("noflex");					jQuery(".block_breadcrumbs_content").toggleClass("noflex");				});				jQuery(".bc_hide").click(function(){					jQuery(".bc_hide").toggleClass("visible");					jQuery(".bc_middle").toggle();					jQuery(".bc_ellipse").toggle();					jQuery(".bc_content").toggleClass("noflex");					jQuery(".block_breadcrumbs_content").toggleClass("noflex");				});			} else {				jQuery(".bc_ellipse").hide();			}		});	}																										Secretary Blinken to Deliver Remarks at International Women’s Day Celebration																																		Notice to the Press																														March 7, 2024																																							Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken&nbsp;will&nbsp;deliver remarks in honor of International Women’s Day&nbsp;on Friday, March 8, at 4:30 p.m.&nbsp;ET&nbsp;at&nbsp;the&nbsp;U.S. Department of State&nbsp;during&nbsp;a&nbsp;celebration hosted by the Secretary’s Office of Global Women’s Issues. &nbsp;Assistant to the President and Director&nbsp;of the White House Gender Policy Council Jennifer Klein,&nbsp;U.S.&nbsp;Ambassador-at-Large for Global Women’s Issues Dr. Geeta Rao Gupta, and 2024 International Women of Courage&nbsp;(IWOC)&nbsp;awardee Volha&nbsp;Harbunova&nbsp;of Belarus&nbsp;will also speak at the event.&nbsp;&nbsp;This celebration will honor the strength and innumerable contributions of women and girls across the&nbsp;world, including&nbsp;the recipients of the 2024&nbsp;IWOC award,&nbsp;and civil society. It also will&nbsp;underscore the U.S. commitment&nbsp;to elevating&nbsp;gender equality&nbsp;as&nbsp;fundamental to democracy and&nbsp;a U.S. foreign policy priority.Remarks will be open to the press and streamed live on the Department homepage and YouTube Channel.Final access for cameras, writers and photographers is 3:50 p.m. from the 23rd Street entrance. &nbsp;Registered Media representatives may attend this event upon presentation of one of the following: (1) a U.S. Government-issued photo media credential (e.g., Department of State, White House, Congress, Department of Defense or Foreign Press Center), or (2) an official photo identification card issued by their news organization, or (3) a letter from their employer on official letterhead verifying their current employment as a journalist. &nbsp;Additionally, they must present an official government photo identification card (i.e., U.S. driver’s license or passport).For additional information about this event, please contact the Secretary’s Office of Global Women’s Issues at StateGWI@state.gov.						Tags																																													Office of the Spokesperson																								The Secretary of State																																Women&#039;s Issues
- Secretary Antony J. Blinken at the 18th Annual International Women of Courage Award Ceremony Antony J. Blinken, Secretary of StateWashington, D.C.The White HouseSECRETARY BLINKEN:  Morning, everyone, and welcome – welcome to the White House.To the First Lady, Dr. Biden, thank you for again opening this remarkable place for this particular celebration, but also for being such an extraordinary role model for women and girls here in our country but also around the world, and for your sustained efforts to advance the rights and dignity of all people.So we’re joined today by officials from across the United States Government, each one of them a remarkable leader and role model in their own right: Samantha Power, USAID administrator.&nbsp; (Applause.)&nbsp; Jen Klein, the director of the White House Gender Policy Council.&nbsp; (Applause.)&nbsp; Someone who really needs no introduction, Karine Jean-Pierre, White House press secretary.&nbsp; (Applause.)&nbsp; Emmy Ruiz, the White House political director.&nbsp; (Applause.)&nbsp; Dr. Geeta Rao Gupta, the ambassador-at-large for global women’s issues.&nbsp; (Applause.)&nbsp; Geeta has obviously stacked the deck here.&nbsp; (Laughter.)&nbsp; And Desiree Cormier Smith, the special representative for racial equity and justice, who I’m so proud to serve alongside of at the State Department.&nbsp; (Applause.)I also want to acknowledge our team at the Bureau of Education and Cultural Affairs, led by Assistant Secretary Lee Satterfield.&nbsp; (Applause.)&nbsp; They are doing so much every single day to build bridges of understanding between the United States and the world, including bringing together our awardees with U.S. public servants and advocates so that they can learn from each other and boost one another.Now, this year’s International Women of Courage are simply extraordinary.They’re advocating for domestic workers in Bangladesh and people with disabilities in Afghanistan.&nbsp; They’re exposing corruption in Uganda, combating sexual harassment in Japan, standing up for the children of war-torn – of wartime rape in Bosnia and Herzegovina, fighting for democracy in Belarus.We’re honoring a dozen women.&nbsp; There’s one couldn’t join us today: Marta Beatriz Roque Cabello, an unyielding defender of human rights in Cuba.&nbsp;Cuban authorities have subjected Marta to a long campaign of detention and abuse, including prohibiting her from traveling abroad.&nbsp; Marta may not be able to be with us today in person, but we want her to know all of us are with her every single day.&nbsp; (Applause.)I think Marta would be the first to say that her struggle is not hers alone.&nbsp; Governments and societies around the world look to silence, to intimidate outspoken women through imprisonment, through harassment, through violence, through death threats, through the repression of their families and their colleagues.For these women and so many activists like them around the world, courage is a deliberate and daily choice.Women and girls demonstrate similar bravery in places that are wracked by conflict and insecurity even as they are disproportionately harmed by that violence.We also witness the quiet daily strength of women who persist despite the obstacles to their rights, their participation, their basic chances in life, from unequal political and economic power to gender-based violence.Whether on the front lines of war or the front lines of social change, women are often the most powerful engines for progress.The United States stands with every woman of courage working to build greater stability, greater equality, and greater opportunity.&nbsp; And we are committed to knocking down the barriers that prevent women and girls from reaching their full potential alongside them.That’s why championing the rights of women and girls in all of their diversity is a central part of our foreign policy.Over the past three years, we’ve put forward concrete strategies, policies, programs to support women and girls around the world.&nbsp; It’s not simply rhetorical, it’s practical, from increasing their political participation to ensuring that they’re parts of things like the clean energy transition.Last year, President Biden requested a doubling of foreign aid to promote gender equity abroad – an historic $2.6 billion.Supporting women and girls is not only the right thing to do, it’s the smart and necessary thing to do, and we know this in so many different ways.We’ve seen this.&nbsp; The more women serve in legislatures, the less likely countries actually are to actually go to war.&nbsp; If we were able to close the gender gap around the world in the worldwide workforce, we would add an estimated $28 trillion to the global economy.&nbsp; Just imagine what we could do to better societies around the world with those kind of resources.&nbsp; Simply put, when women do better, we all do better.&nbsp;As we advance the rights and dignity of women and – around the world and of all people around the world, we will continue to look to, to learn from, to be inspired by our partners in government, the private sector, and civil society – including the women that we’re celebrating here today.&nbsp;Now, one of our honorees, Fariba Balouch, has been subjected to persistent threats from Iranian security forces.&nbsp; But that has not deterred her.&nbsp; She put it this way: “This is my path... responsibility.&nbsp; I refuse to be silenced.”That insistence – (applause) – that insistence, that determination to speak up, to speak out, to take action, to refuse the status quo – that’s reflected in all the extraordinary women that we recognize today.&nbsp;And it’s exhibited every day as well by the woman that I now have the great privilege to introduce – the First Lady of the United States, Dr. Jill Biden.&nbsp; (Applause.)&nbsp;						Tags																					Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs																																														Global Women&#039;s Issues																																							International Women of Courage																																																							Office of the Spokesperson
- Special Envoy Finkenauer’s Travel to Australia and Thailand Office of the SpokespersonU.S. Department of State Special Envoy for Global Youth Issues Abby Finkenauer will travel to Australia and Thailand from March 4-15, 2024. Special Envoy Finkenauer&#8217;s trip will focus on engaging with emerging leaders and advocates in the Indo-Pacific region, fostering dialogue on crucial issues such as civic engagement, women’s leadership, and social empowerment.During her visit to Melbourne, Australia, Special Envoy Finkenauer will attend the Global Citizen NOW Summit, engaging with and elevating over 300 young innovators on important topics such as ending extreme poverty, addressing the climate crisis, fighting food insecurity, and combating gender inequity.In Perth, Australia, the Special Envoy will mark International Women’s Day through engagements with the Western Australian Football League (WAFL) Women’s Competition and alum of the International Visitor Leadership Program (IVLP), the U.S. Department of State’s premier professional exchange program. She will also promote civic engagement through a dialogue with She Runs and an engagement with young Western Australian parliamentarians.In Bangkok, Thailand, the Special Envoy will underscore the United States’ commitment to youth leadership and development globally. She will have discussions with students, young professionals, community leaders, and journalists, emphasizing the importance of collaboration between the United States and Thailand on youth-focused initiatives.For more information on the trip, follow along on Instagram , X , and Facebook .