Today is International Women's Day. A day originating from women's strikes against poor working conditions in the textile industry, some 100 years ago. Since then, a lot has improved for women but, unfortunately, men and women obviously still don’t have equal rights. In 1949, Simone de Beauvoir already warned that ‘women’s rights will never be vested. You have to stay vigilant your whole life’. Recent developments such as the tightening of abortion laws in some countries confirm this view and show that even in the ‘free West’ women’s rights are still far from self-evident.
Participatory Land Use Planning (PLUP) is a rights-based approach ensuring inclusive and gender-responsive land governance, especially for those whose rights to land are not fully acknowledged.
A while ago our director Daniëlle Hirsch, along with Dutch Minister of Internal Affairs Lodewijk Asscher, chair of the board of The Broker Monika Sie Dhian Ho and director of The Broker Frans Bieckmann, formed the panel on ‘The Broker Day 2014’. Like the other panel members, she gave a speech in which she outlined her views on employment, inequality, the underlying macroeconomic problems and possible solutions. As we consider this speech worth reading, we’re happy to share it on our website.