VShis year is marked by the five years of the #metoo movement, it is a historic moment. On this International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women [le 25 novembre, depuis 1999], we, trade unions and political organizations, and associations, have noticed for a few months a questioning of our internal systems to fight against gender-based and sexual violence (SGBV). They are accused of rendering a form of savage, secret and politically motivated justice.
The #metoo moment is an important moment in taking women’s voices into account, a movement that continues to explode throughout society. Today, we are witnessing a political #metoo, a logical continuation that we welcome for its ability to bring debate into each political or trade union organization as to how to put an end to the mechanisms of domination at work internally, in order to equality is real. Instead of seeing this moment with fear, we must approach it with lucidity and without complacency.
We recall that the monitoring cells, commissions or collectives that exist in our structures have the main mission of protecting the victims, by making sure to keep their attackers away and prevent them from representing our organizations. It is also a question of bringing to life the values of equality on which our structures are based. They presuppose putting an end to all forms of violence against women.
Break out of invisibility
It is a sine qua non condition for the change of society on which we are working. The establishment of a militant environment free from violence or domination must enable women to take their full place in militancy and to assume responsibilities in it. In addition to the serious attack on the dignity of the victims that SGBV constitutes, they are also a major obstacle to their investment and therefore to the strengthening of our structures.
Also listen #Metoo: has the political world missed out?
Feminism fights against oppression and domination. It advocates real equality between women and men in private and public life. It is not for us to launch a “war of the sexes”. Nor is it a question of dispensing justice – that it does its job, “it is time to whistle the end…” of impunity for the aggressors!
Labor law obliges the employer to act without waiting for a court decision, we cannot do less. It is a question of having representatives and leaders whose behaviors are in conformity with the values defended by our organizations. They are the basis of our internal functioning, not the judicial institutions.
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