The vice president Raquel Pena This Wednesday he headed the Mirabal Sisters Master Chairan occasion in which he urged the country to keep alive the legacy of Patria, Minerva and María Teresa and to transform it into concrete actions to eradicate gender violence.
Grief remembered that the fight of the butterflies “is still a ethical compass and democratic” for the nation and that his sacrifice represents one of the most luminous pages of Dominican history.
The lecture is held by the Constitutional Court (TC), through its Gender Equality Commission, and the event takes place at the Pontifical Catholic University Mother and Teacher (PUCMM).
During his conferencetitled “Democracy, justice and equality: living heritage of the Mirabal sisters”, the politician highlighted that the proclamation of November 25 as International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women—a proposal presented by the Dominican Republic before the UN—confirms the nation’s historical weight in the defense of human rights.
“We do not evoke the Mirabal only to look at the past, but to renew our commitment with a society without fear, just and democratic,” he said.
Grief presented the new Master’s Chair as an academic space destined to convert the memory in critical thinking and social action.
In this context, he paid tribute to Ana Teresa Paradasthe first dominican lawyerwhom she defined as a pioneer of legal thought and tireless defender of women’s right to education and justice.
What are the advances and challenges in gender equality in the Dominican Republic?
The vice president detailed recent advances in the public policies aimed at preventing gender violence and improving the protection of victims.
Among them he mentioned the permanent coordination between the Ministry of the Interior and Policethe Attorney General’s Office, the Ministry of Women and the Specialized Directorate of Attention to Women; the inclusion of the Ministry of Education in the early detection of risks; the weekly publication of data on crime and violence; and strengthening police training and preventive patrolling. Added to this are economic autonomy programs and comprehensive development centers for women inaugurated in Santiago and Santo Domingo Norte.
Grief highlighted the country’s progress in terms of equality: the Dominican Republic climbed 21 positions in the Global Gender Gapwhile 61% of the country’s judges are women and 69% of the current candidates at the National School of Judiciary are female.
- However, he warned that challenges like the sexist violencethe wage inequalityharassment, technological gaps and the economic vulnerability of households headed by women.
How is democracy related to the eradication of gender violence?
Faced with this, he ratified a policy of “zero impunity” before femicides and sexual assaults.
The conference It concluded with a call to strengthen democracy as an indispensable tool to guarantee equality and dignity. Grief He maintained that the country has taken important steps in institutionality and transparencyciting the rise of 33 positions in the Corruption Perception Index and advances in the Democracy Index and the Global Peace Index.
“He flight of butterflies cannot stop,” he said, thanking the Constitutional Court already PUCMM for hosting an academic space that, he said, will allow the Mirabal heritage to continue inspiring new generations.
