Governor General’s Anniversary Message

Message from Her Excellency Ms Quentin Bryce AC, Governor-General of the Commonwealth of Australia for the International Women’s Development Agency
 
I am still grateful for what I learnt as a young mother involved in my local community, and how those experiences helped to shape my work and career right up to this day.

I learnt how to communicate, how to listen, how to organise, how to lobby for what was desperately needed, how to look after people and foster their talent. I learnt the power of grass roots movement-building.

While law was my discipline, it was my interest in human rights, the rights of women and children, and the support and nurturing of families that led me to my roles with the Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission and the National Women’s Advisory Council; as a member of Australia’s Delegation to the UN Commission on Human Rights; and as an observer at CEDAW, the meeting of the expert body overseeing the convention on the elimination of all forms of discrimination against women.

It is an immense honour to be the patron of the International Women’s Development Agency, an Australian organisation which was initiated by a group of visionary and determined women 25 years ago. Based strongly in grass roots action and solidarity with women at a community level, it has today become a powerful and articulate voice for the empowerment of women.

Last International Women’s Day, the Secretary-General Ban-Ki Moon reminded us of what is still a debilitating, daily reality for millions of the world’s women, most often our poorest and most vulnerable: domestic violence, sexual violence during conflict, trafficking, honour killing, maternal mortality, early and forced marriage, limited access to family planning. These gross violations of women’s rights and enjoyment of life impact heavily on women’s capacity to learn, work, care for their families and participate fully in society.

I believe that the strength of our advocacy, the longevity of our achievements, and an ongoing commitment to women’s empowerment and gender equality are what will ultimately ensure the eradication of women’s suffering and disadvantage.

I congratulate all those women who have worked as staff, board, volunteers and program partners over the 25 years of IWDA’s history to create positive change for so many women, and the supporters who have believed and invested in this work.

Feminist theologian, Carole Fontaine’s poem Only When The Women Sing I think beautifully captures IWDA’s essence:

Do not show me tiny crowds of handpicked men;
Do not regale me with films of gunfire in the air.
Show me battalions of little girls, if you can –
Healthy and learned, with futures and names.
Show me their mothers, with homes all arrayed
In abundance and peace, with colour and song.
It will only be victory when the women sing in the streets
…safe to choose, to live, to learn, to love.
It will only be victory when the women sing.

Her Excellency Ms Quentin Bryce AC,
Governor-General of the Commonwealth of Australia

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