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Senator Ivana Bacik spoke at the International Day of Zero Tolerance to FGM in Dublin
Senator Ivana Bacik addressed the Zero Tolerance to Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) seminar calling for Ireland to legislate to ban the practice of FGM.
Read Ivana Bacik press statement
Read LW News & Some facts About FGM
Shinkai Karokhail MP with Serena Di Matteo visited Dublin and met with Labour Women
LW discussed the lives and hopes of Afghan women with one of the country's female MPs, Shinkai Karokhail. "Afghanistan needs not only security but also development. Women are not a threat and are therefore pushed aside. I am here to speak for the women of Afghanistan", she said. 25% of the members of the Afghan Parliament are women - twice as many as in Ireland. But many harrowing problems remain as the women of Afghanistan hope for improvements in their lives.
Read News
Link to Afghan Women's Educational Centre (AWEC)
Labour's women are a resource - join in!
Annual Women's Officers' Networking & Training Day is taking place on Sat 30th Jan in Dublin.
Read Events
Read News
LW Executive with Mary Robinson in the City Hall
Labour Women Executive had the honour of being invited to attend a reception held in honour of Mary Robinson to celebrate the award of the Presidential Medal bestowed on her by President Barack Obama. The reception was hosted by the Lord Mayor Cllr Emer Robinson and the National Women's Council of Ireland. "I was eleven when Mary Robinson was elected - for me, she is still one of the most important figures in Ireland", says one LW member. The spirit of Mary Robinson is as important now as it was when she was elected the first woman President of Ireland.
Read News
The Labour Party is bringing in a Private Members' motion to propose that the child benefit be protected in the December Budget. The motion will be proposed by Roisin Shortall TD. The National Women's Council of Ireland have called on people to support the motion and join a show of support outside the Dail Kildare St Dublin 2 on Wed 2nd Dec 6pm.
Roisin Shortall TD highlighting the importance of the child benefit
Read LW Statement
Read Roisin Shortall TD
Kathleen Lynch TD Labour's Spokesperson for Equality
Kathleen Lynch TD Labour's Spokesperson for Equality highlights the barriers women still face in participating in the workforce.
Read Kathleen Lynch TD Statement
LW and Kathleen Lynch TD jointly welcome the recommendations made in the Oireachtas Sub-Committtee on Women's Participation in Politics Report. The rappeurtor Senator Ivana Bacik outlined the Committee's recommendations of which the most progressive is the proposal to legislate for women's candidates along the lines of Belgium.
Read LW Press release
Read The Irish Times
Party Leader Eamon Gilmore speaking at LW Conference
LW Conference took place in the Mansion House, Dublin. The main theme of the Conference was LW's on-going campaign on Parity Democracy and women's political representation.
Speakers included Lord Mayor Cllr Emer Costello, Party Leader Eamon Gilmore TD, Senator Ivana Bacik and Susan McKay Director of the NWCI. Deputy Leader Joan Burton TD chaired the afternoon session. Workshops were faciliated by Susan O'Keeffe, Labour European Rep Ireland North West and Marie Sherlock.
Read Party Leader Eamon Gilmore Speech
Read LW : Time to bring in women from the political cold
Read Joan Burton TD : Economic recovery must be founded on social justice
Labour Deputy Leader Joan Burton TD, Senator Ivana Bacik, formar Senator Mary Henry and Cllr Maria Parodi highlighted the importance the EU has played in women's lives over four generations.
Former Senator Mary Henry, Joan Burton TD, Senator Ivana Bacik and Cllr Maria Parodi
Read in The Irish Times
LW Lisbon launch in the Mansion House
Labour Women launched their Lisbon Campaign in the Mansion House with Nessa Childers MEP, Joe Costello TD and the Lord Mayor Cllr Emer Costello. Mary Upton TD also attended.
Read LW Lisbon launch
Read News : LW Lisbon launch brings out the sun
Read Nessa Childers MEP : EU hugely beneficial to Irish women
Read LW reject McKenna 'privileged' jibe
Nessa Childers MEP, Commissioner Margot Wallstrom and Lord Mayor Cllr Emer Costello at LW event 'Women and the European Union'
LW hosted an event 'Women and the European Union' with Commissioner Margot Wallstrom as the guest speaker. LW are bringing the EU closer urging us to have a dialogue between the citizens and Europe.
Read News : Commissioner Wallstrom speaks at LW event 'Women and the European Union'
Read LW urge a dialogue between Europe and its citizens
Read Proinsias de Rossa : Why not a woman Commissioner?
Check out YOUTUBE : COMMISSIONER WALLSTROM WITH LABOUR WOMEN
Check out YOUTUBE : SHOULD GENDER QUOTAS BE USED TO PROMOTE GENDER EQUALITY
It is estimated that 30,000 Irish women went through the Magdalen experience
Labour Women welcome the screening of the film 'The Forgotten Maggies' in Galway. Magdalen women and children must not be erased from history but remembered as part of our shameful history.
Read Plight of Magdalen women must never be forgotten
Read News
Read LW support Maggalene redress scheme
Cllr Tracy McElhinney (Trim) and Nessa Childers MEP
Labour Party's women candidates took seats right across the country. Many seats were taken by first-time candidates, some of whom received a fantastic vote. Some women came close and only missed out by a whisker. Every woman, whether elected or not, made Labour proud.
Read Labour's Women take seats across the country
Susan - making the link between Ireland and Europe
Susan O'Keeffe, Labour's European candidate for Ireland North West, and Proinisias de Rossa MEP for Dublin, launced a paper focusing on the safety of our towns and cities for women. The launch took place in Galway, and has been endorsed by the Rape Crisis Network Ireland.
Read 'Safer Towns and Cities for Women'

Party Leader Eamon Gilmore with Labour's women candidates
Labour Women hosted Labour Women Lunch at Labour Party Conference. The increbidly popular event brings Labour's women from all over the country together.
LW's 'Parity Democracy' Campaign leaflet is LW's current campaign
Read News
Labour Women and the Labour Party are marking the International Women's Day by introducing Electoral (Gender Parity) Bill 2009. This ground-breaking initiative aims to increase women's participation in the political decision-making. Party Leader Eamon Gilmore, Deputy Party Leader Joan Burton and Ciaran Lynch TD spoke at the press conference. Liz McManus TD was also present. Ciaran Lynch TD is introducing the bill in the Dail.
Labour mark the International Women's Day
Read Eamon Gilmore TD Statement
Read Ciaran Lynch TD Statement
Listen Today FM : Labour and Gender Parity (with Ciaran Lynch TD)
Many Labour's first-time candidates visited the European Parliament
Read News
Former and current Labour women Tds and Senators
90th Anniversary of the election of the first women TD, Countess Markiewicz, was celebrated in Leinster House where former and current women Tds and Senators gathered.
Read News Labour's women in Leinster House
Labour Deputy Leader Joan Burton TD launched Labour Women's Mentoring Programme for new women candidates.
Joan Burton TD launches LW Mentoring Programme
Claire O'Regan (North Inner City Dublin), Sinead Seery (Whitehall Artane Dublin), Sinead Ni Chulachain LW Chair, Eileen Drew (Navan), Joan Burton TD, Grainne Kilmurry (Balbriggan), Angela Timlin (Dun Laoghaire) and Cllr Mary Freehill (Pembroke Rathmines Dublin) at the launch
The Labour Party is committed to increasing the number of women Labour Councillors by providing a programme of positive supports to women candidates.
Sinéad Ni Chúlacháin, Labour Women Chair said, "The Labour Party continues to be the party for women. Our current and former women public representatives have offered to be available to mentor and support women who are entering their public careers. It is essential to utilize the considerable expertise and experience of our women representatives and pass this on to the new candidates.
"Women have voted in local elections in Ireland since 1898 and make up 50% of the electorate. Only 16% of County Councillors elected in Ireland in 2004 were women and only 20% of the Labour County Councillors elected in 2004 were women".
Read 'Big Sister Is helping You'
Kathleen Lynch TD chaired and Pat Rabbitte TD spoke at Labour Women's Cork event
LW hosted an Open Event on Human Trafficking & the Sex Industry in Cork. Speakers Mary Crilly Cork Sexual Violence Centre and Pat Rabbitte TD Spokesperson for Justice, Chair Kathleen Lynch TD.
LW has launched its LW Strategic Plan 2008-10 which outlines the priorities for the next two years.
Read LW Strategic Plan 2008-10

Party Leader Eamon Gilmore TD joined National Women's Council of Ireland to voice women's anger over lack of confidence in breast cancer services.
Read News : LW joins NWCI to voice anger over breast cancer services
Read News Nuala Nolan Galway:Centres of excellence.

What's nearly 90% male and has power? FF and FG Front Bench. Labour's Front Bench has outperformed FF and FG by including more women. 35% of Labour Front Bench are women compared to 11% FG and 12% FF.
News Labour's Front Bench has more women than FF and FG do..
News : Labour's women Councillors in high positions
The Labour Party is coming back with 7 women TDs. From Cork to Wicklow Labour's women continue to have the best female representation in the Dail. 35% of Labour's TDs are women, giving our women a strong voice in the party. Without any doubt the Labour Party is the party for women.
FF also have 7 women TDs, but with 78 seats compared to Labour's 20 the Labour Party has done much better. FG only came back with 5 women. Less than 10% of the TDs representing the two biggest parties are women. This is worrying. Lack of women will probably show in policies where women are ignored.

Labour 7 women 35% of Labour seats
FF 7 women 8% of FF seats
FG 5 women 9% of FG seats
Greens 1 woman
PDs 1 woman
Independents 1 woman
Introducing Labour's Women TDs
13% of TDs women - Labour best for women
Read full document 'Safety, Accountability, Responsibility'
Labour Women Policy 'Safety, Accountability, Responsibility'
Facts on Violence Against Women

Labour Women want to see more women in politics. A shocking 87% of our TDs are men - our laws are largely made by men and our constituencies are largely represented by men. Women - who speaks for you? "Women know what they want and need, therefore we need women in politics to use their expertise", says Cllr Phil Prendergast.

Read more about Campaigns 'Putting women into politics'
Constituency Women's Officers are the Labour Women local link in each constituency. All Women's Officers are provided with an Information folder which outlines their role and activities they can be involved in. The folder gives some national and local contact details Women's Officers can connect with. Literature on all the priority policy areas is included in the folder to inform, up-date and inspire.
Thinking about politics? Join Labour Women
If you want to join Labour Women email women@labour.ie or contact Labour Party Women & Equality Officer 01-6784700.