• José Pablo Sabrido highlights three axes to advance in equality: education, equal pay and the fight against gender violence.
• UGT and CCOO underline the importance of public commitment and call for social mobilization.

Toledo.- The Delegation of the Government of Spain in Castilla-La Mancha this morning hosted an institutional event on the occasion of International Women's Day, which consisted of the display of the 8M commemorative banner on the facade of the building.

The delegate of the Government of Spain in Castilla-La Mancha, José Pablo Sabrido, presided over the event, in which he was accompanied by the subdelegate of the Government in Toledo, Carlos Ángel Devia; María Teresa Cabañas, Secretary of Organization of CCOO Castilla-La Mancha; Silvia López Herrero, Secretary of Organization of UGT Castilla-La Mancha; Carmen María Zaballos, Head of the Unit against Violence against Women in the province of Toledo; as well as members of the Security Forces.

During his attention to the media, the government delegate pointed out that the commemoration of 8M is necessary because, although equality is part of our constitutional principles and the recognition of the dignity and freedom of all people, “that intellectual evidence does not always correspond to reality.”

Sabrido has stressed that, to this day, structural inequalities persist between men and women that require a firm and continuous commitment on the part of the whole society.

Three lines of action for real and effective equality

The delegate has highlighted three main lines of action to continue advancing in equality.

Firstly, education, which has been described as the essential basis for consolidating a culture of equality from an early age. In this regard, it has called for a comprehensive education that promotes respect, freedom and real equality between women and men from school.

Secondly, it has stressed the need to continue working for equal pay and improving working conditions for women. She recalled that many women perform less valued and less paid jobs, which has a direct impact on their economic autonomy and their ability to reconcile. In this area, she has pointed out the importance of measures such as raising the minimum wage, which greatly benefits working women, as well as the need to break the so-called “glass ceilings” to ensure that women have equal access to positions of greater responsibility.

Finally, he stressed that the fight against male violence must remain a collective priority. The delegate has called for the involvement of the whole society to eradicate this scourge and has called for shared responsibility to defend the dignity, integrity and freedom of women in all areas.

Trade union participation

Representatives of the UGT and CCOO unions in Castilla-La Mancha were present at the event.

Silvia López Herrero, from UGT Castilla-La Mancha, has called for massive participation in the demonstrations convened on the occasion of the 8M and they have recalled that, as a feminist union, they consider that they cannot advance policies that threaten equality.

For her part, María Teresa García Cabañas, from CCOO Castilla-La Mancha, has pointed out that this type of institutional acts represent a way of publicly manifesting the commitment to equality, stressing that “it is not an optional issue, or you are with equality or looking the other way and making it invisible”.

Through this symbolic gesture, the Government Delegation reaffirms its commitment to public policies aimed at gender equality, the fight against male violence and the elimination of any form of discrimination.