Ayesha Hazarika
(Picture: Daniel Hambury)Yesterday was International Women’s Day. I kicked off the celebrations by upping my HRT and plucking out a massive chin hair, the thickness of nautical cable. Forget closing the gender pay gap, life doesn’t get much better than that ladies, amirite? I was lucky enough to be invited to several special events with brilliant women from across politics, business and public life, the arts and the charity sector at the House of Commons and Clarence House. While it’s always good to celebrate the achievements of women, the tone was understandably sombre due to events in Ukraine.
This brutal invasion by Putin is a grotesque symbol of strongman geopolitics. We are all aware of the contrast between the leadership of President Putin and President Zelensky. One is detached, deluded and unleashing hell on an innocent country. The other is in the mud with his people fighting for their lives.
But this invasion is not just about strong men. It’s also about strong women. The women of Ukraine have stunned us with their courage, defiance and bloody mindedness. From the female Ukrainian politicians bearing arms, prepared to fight until the bitter end, to the mothers making long and dangerous journeys with their children to try to seek safety, to that little girl hiding in a bunker who sang Let It Go with a voice clear as a bell in amongst all the despair. We have all been humbled by the strength of these women.
At Clarence House, the wife of the Ukrainian ambassador made a powerful speech. I and many other women went up to thank her but she couldn’t speak. She was overwhelmed and just held our hands as tears streamed down her face. We all felt her grief and anger. A few of us discussed organising an event, but that felt so small compared to the enormity of what’s going on. We all felt so powerless as women. And then someone reminded us that we do have women in power in this country — the Home and Foreign Secretaries. As feminists, we have made case for women holding these big jobs, but not for the sake of it — to help women. And right now, Ukranian women fleeing war with their babies need Priti Patel and Liz Truss.
If they each want to be a “#girlboss” they should get a grip on our shambolic refugee system, even if means having a public row with the Prime Minister. It is an embarrassment that so few visas have been granted. Why have we designed such a complicated system?
I have a Ukrainian friend who is Warsaw trying to get her family to London. At the weekend, there was one member of staff processing applications. There were huge queues of cold, hungry, desperate people. My friend was there from 8am until 11pm. Why can’t families apply on one form? Why don’t we have more staff? Why isn’t there a massive visa centre at Calais? All these logistical problems are so basic, they almost seem deliberate. It feels like the political will to help these women and children just isn’t there. And that is utterly shameful — especially with two women in such pivotal positions of power.
In other news...
We women should take a leaf out of Cameron Diaz’s book and live like wild animals
I’ve always been a fan of Cameron Diaz. The star turned her back on Hollywood a few years ago and says she feels liberated from the “trap” of caring about her appearance. “Literally the last thing I think about on a daily basis, maybe not at all during the day, is what I look like.” She says she’s “like a wild animal. I’m a beast”. I think we need to accept that Diaz looking like a beast would still exceed our beauty expectations by a country mile, but I really do love her honesty.
I was having a chat with some friends about how much time, money and effort goes into the beauty parade. Once you’ve faffed about with nails, covering the greys, facials, putting on the slap then taking it all off again, it’s like a full-time job. “Blimey,” said my male friend. “Sounds like a lot of maintenance.” He’s right. Although sometimes it feels like managed decline. Diaz now sells wine for a living. Wise woman.
