Tokyo Event Marks 50 Years since “Women’s Day Off” in Iceland

Tokyo, Oct. 24 (Jiji Press)–An event was held in Tokyo on Friday to mark the 50th anniversary of “Women’s Day Off,” a large-scale strike staged by women in Iceland for gender equality. Iceland and Japan have achieved a lot for gender equality over the past 50 years, Icelandic Ambassador to Japan Hreinn Palsson said at the event. But more needs to be done, he said, noting, for example, that wage gaps between men and women still remain. Palsson called for making the world more equal for the next generation. Former Japanese Foreign Minister Yoko Kamikawa, who also joined the event, said: “Globally, there have been moves going against gender equality. We need to do more to increase people’s awareness to make sure that our past efforts are not denied.” Touching on the fact that Japan’s Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi became the first woman to assume the post in the country this week, Kamikawa said that this was “a historic moment” and that “Japan’s politics has taken a big step forward.” In the Women’s Day Off strike, about 90 pct of women in Iceland are said to have refused to go to work or do housework on Oct. 24, 1975. As part of the campaign, about 25,000 Icelandic women from a wide range of age groups, occupations and political beliefs took part in a rally in Reykjavik, the capital of the Nordic island nation. On Friday, about 20 women held a similar rally at Yoyogi Park in Tokyo’s Shibuya Ward. END [Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]