Resist Imperialist Violence! Unite for a better world! IDEVAW 2022 statement
On this international day to eliminate violence against women The International Women’s Alliance (IWA) calls on all women of all countries to unite against imperialism and exploitation and to fight militantly for a new world!
Since IDEVAW 2021 women’s situation globally has grown more violent and more desperate. Fascist states exerting their authority over women and our families has only increased. Violence against women manifests through public, economic, and foreign policies of many countries and their governments with US interests at the core.
IWA unwaveringly asserts that US imperialism historically has been and continues to be the number one perpetrator of all forms of violence against women. The United States has supported the repression of worker’s unions within some of the largest corporations - Amazon and Starbucks - while also limiting the access women have to necessary medical care such as abortion. The United States gives military aid to countless countries and has deployed troops and bombs to countless more; with 2022 seeing an exponential increase in drone strikes in Somalia as part of the US’ Africa Command (AFRICOM). Women around the world face more precarious and violent situations because of the global influence and presence of the US military. Furthermore - the United States has supported an increased number of fascist leaders around the world who are stripping away the rights of women - such as the US-Marcos Regime in the Philippines.
IWA also recognizes that the US empire continues to use women as a reason to beat the drums of war and to assert its right to intervene. The US propaganda machine has spread false narratives about the level of repression in Iran; as well as used stories of rape to justify sanctions against Russia. Make no mistake - the US is not a champion of women’s rights; nor do imperialists and fascists have any interest in improving the lives and safety of women. In fact we must be clear that imperialism sees women as collateral damage in times of war and has repeatedly not only failed to improve, but rather has increasingly endangered women’s lives through the use of imperialist intervention.
In countries where violence against women is reaching unimaginable levels - such as femicides and in Mexico and forced disappearances in the Philippines - the governments of all countries are failing to provide adequate support and solutions for women facing violence. It is clear that it is up to the Anti-Imperialist movement worldwide to fight for a world free of war, free of economic exploitation, free of sexual exploitation by collectively building alternative societies and systems of government.
As women become more exploited; more repressed; and more targeted under growing fascist states - women around the world must continue to organize together and demand our rights. The only true way for women to overcome violence is to oppose fascism, imperialism, and exploitation in all its forms.
We recognize the women who have been victims of state violence this year - Jina (Mahasa) Amini in Iran, who was beaten and died while detained by the honor police; Adora, Tess, Atel and all other political prisoners facing false accusations and terror tagging in the Philippines; Shireen Abu Akleh, a Palestinian journalist who was killed by occupation forces reporting from the occupied West Bank city of Jenin; the forty-three nameless women reported as femicide victims in El Salvador this year; and countless others who fuel our rage and determination to fight against imperialism and to win a better world for all.
IWA extends our strongest salute to the women of the world fighting to eliminate violence in all its forms. We call on all women and freedom loving people to join together to organize against imperialism, exploitation and to build a world that ensures the rights and freedom of women.