From Paris to Istanbul

Hundreds of thousands at demonstrations on International Women’s Day

There were also loud demonstrations for women's rights in Los Angeles.(Bild: AFP/JEN OSBORNE)

From Paris to Istanbul: on International Women's Day, hundreds of thousands of people around the world took to the streets in support of women's rights. In eastern Ukraine, numerous demonstrators observed a minute's silence in honor of the women who were killed defending the country against the Russian invasion. 

In Mexico, where according to UN figures an average of ten women are murdered every day, thousands demonstrated in the capital Mexico City. In Venezuela, around 150 demonstrators gathered in the capital Caracas. Most of them covered their faces for fear of reprisals from the security forces. Among other things, they demanded the release of political prisoners held by the government of President Nicolás Maduro.

200 arrests in Istanbul
In Istanbul, according to the organizers, more than 3,000 women marched peacefully through the city center late on Saturday evening under strict security precautions. Many demonstrators wore purple clothing and waved banners with slogans such as "We will not be silenced, we are not afraid and we will not obey" and "Long live our feminist struggle".

Demonstrators in Istanbul(Bild: AP/Emrah Gurel)

LGBTQ activist Cigdem Özdemir said she wanted to "make our struggle visible to defend our lives against male violence, to defend our place in society and our rights" with her participation. Since the Turkish government declared 2025 the "Year of the Family", women have been "housebound", the psychologist lamented. LGBTQ people like her are also being "criminalized".

The organizers later reported more than 200 arrests by the police. Footage published by them shows police officers manhandling several demonstrators and pulling them out of the crowd.

Meanwhile, in Iran, women's rights activist Narges Mohammadi addressed the public with a message distributed in online media in which, as usual, she did not wear the headscarf that is compulsory for women in Iran. "I am convinced that even if the Islamic Republic survives any war, it will not survive the resistance of women," said the activist, who was temporarily released from prison for health reasons.