Five women who have presided over or currently preside cabildos have gathered in Fuerteventura to advocate for breaking glass ceilings and reaching the Presidency of the Government of Spain.
A historic meeting brought together five women who have presided over or currently preside the cabildos of the Canary Islands this Thursday in Fuerteventura. Under the slogan 'The 5 Fantastics', the leaders delivered a common message: the need to continue advancing, breaking glass ceilings, and leading administrations until a woman presides over the Government of Spain.
The event, organised by Charter 100 Canarias, took place on the island of Fuerteventura, the birthplace of Manuel Velázquez Cabrera, the promoter of the Cabildos Law of 1913. The president of the association, lawyer Nardy Barrios, described the meeting as a “unique event, as the first presidents of the cabildos have never before gathered to share their opinions and analyse their years in the island governments.”
The current president of the Cabildo of Fuerteventura, Lola García, was responsible for delivering the common message: “Women make up 50 percent of the population; we must occupy leadership positions and reach the presidency of town halls, cabildos, and both regional and central governments.” García highlighted that Fuerteventura had to wait 106 years to have a female president in the Cabildo and valued that the event took place on a non-capital island, giving “visibility and importance to the work of women who have been trying to lead in the political sphere of the Canary Islands for many years.”
García: “Women make up 50% of the population; we must occupy leadership positions and reach the presidency of town halls, cabildos, and both regional and central governments.”
The meeting was attended by Inés Rojas de León, former president of the Cabildo of Lanzarote; Guadalupe González Taño, former president of the Cabildo of La Palma; Belén Allende, former president of the Cabildo of El Hierro; Rosa Dávila, current president of the Cabildo of Tenerife; and Lola García herself. The former president of the Cabildo of Gran Canaria, María Eugenia Márquez, was unable to attend due to health reasons.
Inés Rojas, who also served as a councillor in the Canary Government, advocated for the figure of Chana Perera, the first president of a cabildo in the Canary Islands, and defended positive discrimination to ensure women occupy leading positions on electoral lists. Without such a measure, she asserted, “Lanzarote would not have had six presidents.”
Belén Allende, for her part, described the meeting as “super important” to “make women visible and weave a network of collaboration among different women, but with common goals that contribute much to society from diversity.” She insisted that “our participation must be equitable.”
The event also served as the official launch of Charter 100 Fuerteventura, presided over by Clara Peña, who celebrated this initiative with its first major public gathering. The association, founded on March 8, 2015, works in four areas: businesswomen, entrepreneurs, professionals, and leaders, aiming to highlight the contribution of women in all areas of society.
The meeting transcended the institutional to become a recognition of female leadership and the capacity of women to transform reality from public responsibility. The participants agreed that there is still a long way to go to achieve real equality in high political positions in Spain.
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