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President Gayoom’s Women’s Day message gives new hope and opportunity to the women of Maldives. It also challenges them to take their rightful place in society. In his appeal published in a media supplement issued on March 8, 2002, he called on the women of the nation to accept and assert that women and men are equal in their ability and aptitude, and to achieve their full potential in managing their own lives and in contributing to national development.    

Maldivian women play a key role in development.

Protection of human rights and providing equal opportunity to all are key objectives of the Government’s social development policy. Reiterating this, Gayoom said that bringing women to the mainstream of development and increasing their participation particularly in the political, economic and social fields, is a high priority.

Maldivian girls are modern. At the same time they respect traditional values.  

Stressing the importance of a progressive outlook and an open mind that welcomed modern ideas for development, President Gayoom noted that some archaic traditions still impeded the achievement of gender equality in the Maldives. Further, the President said that discrimination against women in the family, particularly in the form of violence against them was an obstacle to gender equality.

The Maldives is an open society with few restrictions on women.   

He called on the people to condemn such gender discriminatory behavior, and to make a renewed commitment to protecting our society from such evils. He further said that attaining the goals declared in the Maldives Vision 2020 required every citizen to be committed through their deeds to the elimination of all obstacles to ensuring gender equality.

Girls have equal opportunity for education.   

In the message, the President stressed the important role parents and teachers had to play in inculcating the principles of gender equality in the minds of the young. He further noted the useful role the espousal of gender equality by the whole community would play in assisting parents and teachers in sensitizing children to gender issues.