The 115th International Women’s Day was celebrated with various programs organized under the theme “For ALL Women and Girls: Rights. Equality. Empowerment.” To mark the occasion, the Ministry of Women, Children, and Senior Citizens hosted an event at the Nepal Police Headquarters in Naxal, Kathmandu. The event emphasized the importance of rights, equality, and empowerment for women, girls, and senior citizens, aligning with the core message of the day.
In the ceremony, Minister for Women, Children, and Senior Citizens Nawal Kishor Shah Sudi emphasized the need to ensure equal opportunities, economic empowerment, and access to resources to establish women’s equal participation and leadership roles. He stated that while the government has adopted policies to eliminate all forms of discrimination, exploitation, and injustice, such disparities persist in practice. Minister Sudi remarked that a home where women are not respected is comparable to a “hell.”
Sudi stated that although there is no legal discrimination between men and women, it still exists in practice, and the government is working to eliminate it. Chairperson of the National Human Rights Commission, Tapa Bahadur Magar, stated that the commission will conduct a study on the legal age for marriage. He mentioned that concerns have been raised regarding early marriages leading to various consequences. However, he assured that the commission would conduct studies across all seven provinces before providing recommendations to the government. He noted that although the government has set the legal age for marriage at 20, considering women’s health, child marriage remains prevalent in some areas.
Similarly, Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, Indira Rana Magar, stated that equal rights between men and women are essential for social, economic, and political transformation. She emphasized that women must unite and fight for their rights. She added that talking about social, economic, and political transformation while simultaneously manipulating these issues will never bring real change. Likewise, National Assembly Vice Chairperson Bimala Ghimire stated that everyone’s rights and entitlements would be ensured only if the provisions in the constitution were fully implemented. She mentioned that while progress has been made in drafting laws, their implementation remains lacking.
In the same event, bodybuilder Rajani Shrestha and entrepreneur Rekha Sharma Chaudhary shared how they achieved success through their experiences. A non-governmental organization named Shakti Samuha staged an awareness drama.