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March 2, 2001

Media Advisory
INTERNATIONAL WOMEN'S WEEK CELEBRATIONS

OTTAWA -- The Honourable Hedy Fry, Secretary of State (Multiculturalism) (Status of Women) will celebrate International Women's Week (IWW) from March 4 to 10, 2001 with a variety of events that touch upon this year's theme: "Canadian Women: Raising Our Diverse Voices for Positive Change! ". Details on the events follow:

To kick off IWW, Dr. Fry will participate in a breakfast discussion in Room 200, West Block on Parliament Hill at 8:00 a.m. on March 5^th. Aboriginal actress Annie Galipeau and Inventor Violet Mason will also be participating. In her remarks, Dr. Fry will officially call for nominations for the Governor General Awards in Commemoration of the Person's Case, Canada's premier award honouring candidates whose work toward women's equality has made a difference in the lives of women across Canada and around the world.

At 10:30 a.m. March 5^th, Dr. Fry will address a class of students at Summit Alternative School, 250 Holland Avenue in Ottawa and talk about the role of women in the working world. The students will have the opportunity to talk to Dr. Fry about gender equality and the barriers women face, as well as propose their ideas on how to overcome these barriers.

Between March 6-10, Dr. Fry will be attending the 45^th meeting of the United Nations Committee on the Status of Women, where she will be presenting Canada's position on gender and race.

On March 8^th, Dr. Fry and her Provincial and Territorial colleagues responsible for Status of Women will release their strategic framework called Women's Economic Independence and Security - a review of women's economic situation-which will provide a focus for the Minister's future work.

Following the release of the Strategic Framework, Dr. Fry will hold a media roundtable on March 12^th to discuss the update of the Economic Gender Equality Indicators, which was originally released in 1997. These indicators provide an overall picture on women's economic status across Canada by examining the economic differences and similarities between men and women.