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Waterford students highlight gender inequality in the Seanad

Waterford students highlight gender inequality in the Seanad

Two students from Waterford have addressed the Seanad about the legacy of the suffrage movement.

Caoimhe Halligan from Presentation Secondary School and Sophie Cummins from St Declan's Community College spoke about whether the struggle for freedom, justice and equality has been realised in Irish society.

The 16 students selected to take part in the debate were chosen from over 350 entrants in an all-island competition.

Sophie Cummins says she wants to see equal representation in all sectors of our society "beginning with our government, I want to see a female Taoiseach, I want women to make up 50% of the Dail. When our children hear the words gender quotas I want it to be met with disbelief that there was ever a need for them. Part of the journey towards equality has been travelled, laws on equality have been enacted. But has the culture really changed? Lets just call it a work in progress. After all one can make a difference but together we can and will make a change."

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Caoimhe Halligan highlighted the gender pay gap. "In my school we make career choices in the certain knowledge that the gender pay gab is widening, this is unjust. Take RTE, where the highest earning men outnumber women two to one. Women are paid 14% less than men according to the Central Statistics Office, in real terms this means that in 2017 women were not paid for 51 days of the year. This is solid proof that equality has not been realised in Irish society."

Waterford Minister of State John Halligan was in the gallery for the debate while Senators Paudie Coffey and Grace O'Sullivan were in the chamber.

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Main Picture: @ivanabacik via Twitter

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