May 28 International Day of Action for Women’s Health
Health clearly reflects the many inequities of women’s daily lives. Nevertheless, the true extent of these disparities were not understood until very recently when gender perspective explained how the social constructs of female and male account for men’s position of domination and privilege and women’s subordination and unequal access to resources and social services. Furthermore, this asymmetry between the sexes seriously impedes women’s ability to exercise their right to health.
Inspired from the beginning by this new, feminist vision of women’s health care, the women’s health movement demanded that the health sector establish programs which incorporate not only biological differences between women and men, but also gender differences.
In this context, the International Day of Action for Women’s Health–commemorated each May 28- was established in response to women’s urgent need for optimal health care throughout their lives, taking into account the factor of gender.
This Day of Action was established in 1987 in San Jose, Costa Rica, during a meeting organized by the Women’s Global Network for Reproductive Rights (WGNRR). At this gathering, the Latin American and Caribbean Women’s Health Network (LACWHN) proposed the creation of a day for international action.
It was decided that women’s groups in each country would organize local campaigns, highlighting issues related to maternal mortality and morbidity. This day of raising public awareness about maternal deaths has changed over the years to include not only denunciations and protests but also proposals and invitations to those in other social sectors to join in the struggle. In this way, we gained the political support of health professionals and academics who took up the cause of women’s health.
In 1995, after a number of years of WGNRR’s and LACWHN’s joint coordination of the May 28 campaign, it became necessary to evaluate our achievements. WGNRR initiated a global review by region which resulted in a consensus to reformulate the focus of this traditional campaign. Although maternal mortality continues to be a serious health problem for women–above all in certain parts of Asia, Central America and especially Africa–it was necessary to incorporate new issues which had arisen from social and economic transformations taking place in many countries which were having a negative impact on women’s lives and health.
From then on and in accordance with the agreement reached at the evaluation meeting for Latin America and the Caribbean (Cuenca, Ecuador, 1996), women’s organizations in our region began the Campaign for the Exercise of Sexual and Reproductive Rights, taking measures to ensure that this revolutionary paradigm–which largely emerged from the efforts of the international women’s movement–continues in full force.
The broad conceptual focus of the Campaign has allowed for the incorporation of numerous topics, according to the priorities of each country or region. The campaign Calls for Action reflect this diversity.
May 28 Calls for Action, since 1996
* 1996–9th Call for Action: Maternal Mortality and Morbidity, Evaluating Eight Years of Campaign to Keep Advancing.
* 1997–Access to Quality Health Care, A Woman’s Right.
* 1998–Access to Quality Health Care, A Woman’s Right.
* 1999–Access for Adolescents to Sexual and Reproductive Health Education, Information and Services.
* 2000–Access for Adolescents to Sexual and Reproductive Health Education, Information and Services.
* 2001–Women’s Right to Health: A Civil Right.
* 2002–Citizens Speak Out: Health is Our Civil Right!
* 2003–Maternal Mortality: An Issue of Human Rights, A Matter of Social Justice.
May 28 Campaigns: Participating Groups and Countries *
1996 1997 1998 1999
25 groups 25 groups 40 groups 106 groups
11 countries 10 countries 14 countries 15 countries
Argentina Argentina Argentina Argentina
Bolivia Chile Bolivia Bolivia
Chile Colombia Brazil Brazil
Costa Rica Costa Rica Colombia Chile
Ecuador Dominican Costa Rica Colombia
Republic
El Salvador Ecuador Ecuador Costa Rica
Guatemala Mexico Guatemala Dominican
Republic
Mexico Nicaragua Honduras Ecuador
Nicaragua Paraguay Mexico Honduras
Peru Uruguay Nicaragua Mexico
Puerto Rico Paraguay Nicaragua
Peru Peru
Puerto Rico Puerto Rico
Venezuela
2000 2001 2002
150 groups 119 groups 170 groups
14 countries 12 countries 14 countries
Argentina Argentina Argentina
Bolivia Bolivia Bolivia
Brazil Brazil Brazil
Chile Chile Chile
Colombia Colombia Colombia
Costa Rica Costa Rica Costa Rica
Dominican Dominican Ecuador
Republic Republic
Ecuador Mexico Haiti
Mexico Nicaragua Mexico
Nicaragua Peru Nicaragua
Peru Uruguay Peru
Puerto Rico Venezuela Puerto Rico
Uruguay Uruguay
Venezuela Venezuela
* table prepared by Ana Maria Pizarro, SI Mujer
COPYRIGHT 2003 Latin American and Caribbean Women’s Health Network
COPYRIGHT 2007 Gale Group
