By Gulsum Boluk
International Women’s Day has come and gone, but in Ukraine, women are leading the way – or at least, not showing themselves to be meek and mild.
Six Ukrainian women who are fighting for their country posted a viral video on TikTok yesterday, vowing to use machine guns to avenge all the children killed during the war.
The women were seen holding their weapons while dressed in full combat fatigue.
Earlier, All in Together co-founder and CEO, Lauren Leader, spoke about the contribution of Ukrainian women in the war effort, saying that Ukraine’s “formidable and not-so-secret weapon” was women.
Women in the army
According to the Christian Science Monitor, at least ten percent of the regular Ukrainian army are women, while some sources put the number as high as 15 percent.
Ryan Wiggins, Staff Director of the Lincoln Project, tweeted yesterday: “Watching the women of #Ukraine, I have never been prouder to be a woman. Their strength, fight, and defiance are inspirational. They give me hope.”
Although International Women’s Day took place earlier this week, women in Ukraine continue to be at risk. The streets in Trafalgar Square were closed to traffic on Saturday, because so many women took part in the women’s march, accompanying protesters against the war in Ukraine.
Million Women Rise collective, an organisation led by “Black women for all women” which takes place every year, met with hundreds of women on International Women’s Day this year, also to show support for Ukrainian women.
It’s not their fault
People from the march said that there should be justice and peace throughout the world, including in Ukraine, because it’s nor their fault that the war is taking place.
One of the marchers Asiye Betul, 19, from Turkey, said: “Thousands of women, marching in the cold, raising our hands up in minus four degrees. We chanted ‘No Justice, No Peace’, we once again reminded the world that without justice, there will never be peace.”
They also supported women who were left alone in Ukraine because their men had left for the war.
Russia’s invasion of Ukraine is tearing families apart and leaving displaced women and girls at an increased risk of abuse, sexual and physical violence, the Disasters Emergency Committee (DEC) has said.
People from the UK want the government to allow female refugees to settle here from Ukraine.
Sam Patrizio, 21, from Italy, said: “They should be allowing refugees in the UK. Regardless of women’s days, they should always be cared for, be safe, and looked after by all countries. Women during war should always be in priority because this is not their fault.”
While we are waiting for the protection of women in Ukraine, most women in Ukraine have been busy protecting their people.
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