Diplomatic Corps Join International Women's Day

Gender inequality persists worldwide, making international cooperation more important since the United Nations began to observe International Women's Day every March 8 from 1975 to better address women's rights.

In Seoul last week, ambassadors from Germany, France and the United States demonstrated how they can better cooperate with their host country in line with the U.N.'s Sustainable Development Goals.

The U.N. seeks to end all forms of discrimination, violence and harmful practices against women and girls everywhere by 2030.

The three ambassadors - Stephen Auer of Germany, Fabien Penone of France and Harry Harris of the U.S. - were among the many who celebrated International Women's Day this year, and their programs varied, too. But the programs all had the same goal of encouraging women's leadership as well as empowering women and girls.

Ambassador Auer hosted an award ceremony at his residence on March 7 to honor outstanding members from a mentorship program run by Women in Korea (WIR), a female leadership group at the Korean-German Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KGCCI).

At the National Assembly on March 8, Ambassador Penone joined the opening ceremony of a photo exhibition titled "Infinites Plurielles."

It will run through March 24, featuring portrait images of 26 scientists and academic researchers from France and Korea, all taken by French photographer Marie-Helene Le Ny. The French Embassy in Korea and the National Assembly organized the exhibition.

Also on March 8, Ambassador Harris used rooms during a reception at his residence to introduce the activities of Women in Science Engineering and Technology (WISET) and "Sports.Connected!"

Both WISET and "Sports.Connected!" are non-profit organizations, with the former helping to attract and retain talented women in the scientific workforce and the latter encouraging equal access to sports for girls in schools.

"Women's rights, the right to be treated equally, are fundamental rights that are given by birth. No one should be required to ask for it to be granted," Auer said at the award ceremony.

He noted Germany's remarkable progress in women's rights, such as having female Germany chancellor Angela Merkel and the government's policy of requiring the boards of listed companies to have at least 30 percent women members.

Auer said universal equality was still yet to be achieved in politics and business in Germany as well as other countries.

In the case of Korea, he referred to its...

To continue reading

Request your trial

VLEX uses login cookies to provide you with a better browsing experience. If you click on 'Accept' or continue browsing this site we consider that you accept our cookie policy. ACCEPT