8 March

March 8 : International Women's Day
8 March 2011 was celebrated in many parts of the world as the 100th anniversary of International Women's Day. It is also the first International Women’s Day for UN Women, created by the UN General Assembly on 2 July 2010. The official theme of International Women’s Day 2011 is "Equal access to education, training and science and technology: Pathway to decent work for women".

Past Observances
2010: "Equal Rights, Equal Opportunities, Progress for All"
2009: "Women and men united to end violence against women and girls"
2008: "Investing in women and girls"
2007: "Ending impunity for violence against women and girls"
2006: "Women in decision-making: meeting challenges, creating change"
2005: "Gender equality beyond 2005: building a more secure future"
2004: "Women and HIV/AIDS"
2003: "Gender equality and the Millennium Development Goals"
2002: "Afghan women today: realities and opportunities"
2001: "Women's rights and international peace"
2000: "Women uniting for peace"

About International Women's Day
International Women's Day is celebrated in many countries around the world. It is a day when women are recognized for their achievements without regard to divisions, whether national, ethnic, linguistic, cultural, economic or political. It is an occasion for looking back on past struggles and accomplishments, and more importantly, for looking ahead to the untapped potential and opportunities that await future generations of women.

In 1975, during International Women's Year, the United Nations began celebrating International Women's Day on 8 March. Two years later, in December 1977, the General Assembly adopted a resolution proclaiming a United Nations Day for Women's Rights and International Peace to be observed on any day of the year by Member States, in accordance with their historical and national traditions. In adopting its resolution, the General Assembly recognized the role of women in peace efforts and development and urged an end to discrimination and an increase of support for women's full and equal participation.

International Women's Day first emerged from the activities of labour movements at the turn of the twentieth century in North America and across Europe.

Chronology
1909 The first National Woman's Day was observed in the United States on 28 February. The Socialist Party of America designated this day in honour of the 1908 garment workers' strike in New York, where women protested against working conditions.

1910 The Socialist International, meeting in Copenhagen, established a Women's Day, international in character, to honour the movement for women's rights and to build support for achieving universal suffrage for women. The proposal was greeted with unanimous approval by the conference of over 100 women from 17 countries, which included the first three women elected to the Finnish Parliament. No fixed date was selected for the observance.

1911 As a result of the Copenhagen initiative, International Women's Day was marked for the first time (19 March) in Austria, Denmark, Germany and Switzerland, where more than one million women and men attended rallies. In addition to the right to vote and to hold public office, they demanded women's rights to work, to vocational training and to an end to discrimination on the job.

1913-1914 International Women's Day also became a mechanism for protesting World War I. As part of the peace movement, Russian women observed their first International Women's Day on the last Sunday in February. Elsewhere in Europe, on or around 8 March of the following year, women held rallies either to protest the war or to express solidarity with other activists.

1917 Against the backdrop of the war, women in Russia again chose to protest and strike for "Bread and Peace" on the last Sunday in February (which fell on 8 March on the Gregorian calendar). Four days later, the Czar abdicated and the provisional Government granted women the right to vote.
Since those early years, International Women's Day has assumed a new global dimension for women in developed and developing countries alike. The growing international women's movement, which has been strengthened by four global United Nations women's conferences, has helped make the commemoration a rallying point to build support for women's rights and participation in the political and economic arenas. Increasingly, International Women's Day is a time to reflect on progress made, to call for change and to celebrate acts of courage and determination by ordinary women who have played an extraordinary role in the history of their countries and communities.

Events

1618 – Johannes Kepler discovers the third law of planetary motion.
1817 – The New York Stock Exchange is founded.
1910 – French aviatrix Raymonde de Laroche becomes the first woman to receive a pilot's license.
1911 – International Women's Day is launched in Copenhagen, Denmark, by Clara Zetkin, leader of the Women's Office for the Social Democratic Party in Germany.
1920 – The Arab Kingdom of Syria, the first modern Arab state to come into existence, is established.
1924 – The Castle Gate mine disaster kills 172 coal miners near Castle Gate, Utah.
1957 – Ghana joins the United Nations.
1974 – Charles de Gaulle Airport opens in Paris, France.
1979 – Philips demonstrates the Compact Disc publicly for the first time.
2004 – A new constitution is signed by Iraq's Governing Council.