“I wish a happy holiday to all women. This day should remind us of the struggle for equality successfully led by many brave women in the past, as well as the need to continue working toward building a tolerant society and taking additional efforts to provide all women with a place, conditions and position in society they rightfully deserve by their roles, abilities and worth.

This year, like the year behind us, is marked by the corona virus pandemic, and any crisis, including this one, deepens social inequalities, including gender inequality. Women mostly work in sectors most exposed to pandemic risks. The consequences of the pandemic can also be observed from the aspect of the roles of men and women in the family, bearing in mind the need for greater engagement in education and care for children, elderly family members, people with disabilities. Due to our society’s pronounced gender roles, these obligations fall significantly more on women. That is why today, reconciling professional and family life is a special challenge.

I believe that despite the difficult conditions in which we fight for equality and justice today, we are ready to work on creating an environment in which women will fully enjoy the rights that belong to them, be equal and even more successful than men, economically, socially, and in a political sense, given their educational structure and qualifications. I congratulate all women on the holiday, with the wish that we dedicate even more importance to the issue of equality, tolerance and respect for women's rights."