Maire Devine (Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I acknowledge International Day of the Girl. As was said, Plan International Ireland has reported that the vast majority of women in Ireland feel vulnerable because of their gender. A worldwide report was published in which Dublin was considered one of the safest cities. I am pleased with that, albeit we need a cultural change to ensure young women feel safe and are safe in public spaces. Crucially, they must be consulted on policy decisions. They need allies to achieve this. We all need allies to achieve our goals. As such, men have a critical role to play.

The lesser known International Day of the Boy is on 16 May. We need to promote and celebrate it and use it as an opportunity to educate our boys in the cultural change needed to respect girls and women. As to those who carry out the intimidation, one's fears as a mother for one's teenage children as they seek to find their independence and to dip a toe into young adulthood are very different depending on whether they are boys or girls. For girls, one fears they will be harassed and intimidated sexually while one's fear for boys is that they will be harassed and intimidated physically. Those involved are inadequate bullies who have issues of their own. As International Day of the Girl is celebrated, let us promote and use International Day of the Boy to facilitate a cultural shift.