I had an amazing International Women's Day! Why? Because it's kind of a big deal here in Kyrgyzstan.
What do I usually do for International Women’s Day in Canada? A whole lotta nothing! Usually, a corporation or an NGO releases an advertisement with catchy music and images of women doing “masculine” things and tells us that we can do anything we put our mind to.
If I was still in Toronto, Canada, what would I have done?
I would have attended the Law Society of Ontario’s program and reception. On March 6th, they had a program on “Think equal, build smart, innovate for change” about artificial intelligence, unconscious bias and social change. Probably would have networked a bit, been inspired by some of the women, and then ate a ton of tiny sandwiches at Osgoode Hall.
I would have re-tweeted the OBA President’s “Womentum” campaign by Lynne Vicars.
One year, someone sent an email around at work thanking the women for our contributions. Maybe I’ll write a blog post about this one day... but today is not that day. Today is about the fun celebratory things that come with March 8th.
So why did I have such a good International Women's Day?
Well first of all, International Women’s Day is a NATIONAL HOLIDAY here. It means we all get a day off work. If that ain’t better already, I don’t know what is!
The holiday encompasses Mother’s Day, Daughter’s Day, Grandmother’s Day etc. It also covers Valentine's Day since those are all holidays which are not celebrated here.
The President of Kyrgyzstan congratulated women on March 8th: https://24.kg/english/111290_President_of_Kyrgyzstan_Women_are_pride_and_invaluable_wealth_of_the_nation_/
On March 7th at work, the men planned a lunch in our boardroom with table service. There was bread, salads, plov, desserts, homemade wine and juices. They also presented us each with a pot of flowers. Then, each male colleague gave a toast to the women, wishing us health and happiness etc. In return, the women (including me!) also toasted to the men, thanking them for their kind words.
The afternoon of March 6th, the cleaner at the office gave me a handmade brooch as a women's day present. I definitely wasn't expecting it. It was so kind. So that night, I went shopping for a gift. There was a pop-up handmade craft market at Bishkek Park mall. The stores were so busy filled with people milling around searching for gifts - both men and women. If you can, imagine what it's like on Christmas Eve. That's what it was like! The stores and restaurants also had special promotions and sales for March 8th.
On March 7th and March 8th, if you walked down the street, so many women, young and old were carrying tulips, roses, flowers, and boxes of chocolate. I've never seen so many women carrying flowers before!
On the day of March 8th, me and my girlfriends went out to eat lunch and the restaurant offered us a free drink, pancakes and gift!
When we were walking down the street, a few men yelled something at us. I got annoyed and felt defensive. I asked my friend what he was saying in Russian. They were wishing us a Happy International Women's Day. Haha I am too quick to judge.
Here in Central Asia, there are frequent stories about violence against women, bride kidnapping, human smuggling, anecdotally and in the news. And yet, here is a national holiday where everyone makes a huge effort to appreciate and celebrate women.
Reflecting now, the celebrations in Canada for International Women's Day (IWD) feel opportunistic. Here, International Women’s Day celebrations are personal and meaningful. You receive and give real acts of kindness to each other. Not only men to women, but also women to women. We hold parties to celebrate woman. We share gifts to show our appreciation. I dare say that in Canada, none of us care about International Women's Day in the way that they do in Kyrgyzstan. Here, the holiday has life. Let's borrow this tradition and make International Women’s Day a real celebration!
FYI: Now you trolls may ask, what about the MEN! Men’s day was on February 23, 2019. We also celebrated at the office. We organized a table service lunch with plov and bread and salads and cakes. We also toasted to the men (I made my first toast in Kyrgyzstan!). Men also receive little presents.