Women are affected as much as any man by the challenges facing humanity in the 21st century and it was “therefore, right and indeed necessary, that women should be engaged in the decision-making processes in all areas, with equal strength and in equal numbers” according to Nikki Abela, PRO Amnesty International Malta Group, in a message marking Women’s Day.

“Women are in a minority in the Maltese parliament, as they are in the law courts,” he added. “However, we are starting to see a change, which is destined to grow with the increasing numbers of women at university. It is of extreme importance that women are encouraged to use what they learn by friendly measures, both in the family and at the workplace, so that they will not have to sacrifice one for the other.”

Unlike the so-called “war on terror”, the “war on women and girls” was not on the global political agenda, and thus may be hidden from the public eye. It takes place behind closed doors – the greatest hidden human rights scandal of our times, made all the more scandalous by being present in every part of the world and in almost every aspect of life.

One cannot not praise the three homes in Malta that shelter abused women and NGOs which, like Amnesty International, fight for their protection and rights, he said.

The role of women in decision-making was central to the advancement of women around the world, and to the progress of humankind as a whole, Mr Abela added. As the Beijing Declaration says, “women’s empowerment and their full participation on the basis of equality in all spheres of society, including participation in the decision-making process and access to power, are fundamental for the achievement of equality, development and peace.”