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On the occasion of International Women’s Day (8 March 2026), celebrating women's rights and gender equality, the Embassies of France and Germany jointly invite you to a special evening dedicated to gender equality, combining debate and cinema.
Panel discussion
For decades, the gap between women and men has slowly but surely decreased, women’s rights increased and the path to gender equality become broader and somewhat smoother. It seemed to be a consensus among many in our societies, that men and women should be equal and that individuals and governments should work towards making that equality possible, eventually. Prove of these endeavors are e.g. the European Convention on Human rights or the UN Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW).
However, currently we are witnessing a backlash on gender equality in many societies. The propagation of so-called “traditional” roles, seems to gain ground again e.g. with the trad wife movement or men promoting “alpha males” and identifying feminism as the root cause for their problems, while downplaying chauvinist rhetoric or domestic violence.
Where does this backlash comes from, what is its impact and how we can deal with it? Is it endangering what we had already achieved in terms of gender equality? Why is there an increasing black and white narrative that seems to suggest gender equality is bad for men? How can we address the underlying issues and what can we as societies do to again give a positive spin on the gender equality topic?
Speakers:
- Václav Láska, Senator of the Czech Parliament
- Ivan Jablonka, Member of the Institut universitaire de France and Professor at Paris-Sorbonne University
- Marc Gärtner, Bundesforum Männer – Interessenverband für Männer, Jungen und Väter e.V. (Federal Forum for Men – Interest Association for Boys, Men and Fathers)
- Veronika Šprincová, board member of the Czech Women’s Lobby
- Jan Drobný, Liga otevřených mužů
The discussion will be moderated by Kateřina Šafaříková (Seznam Zprávy), recipient of the Ferdinand Peroutka Award 2025.
Language: English and Czech, with simultaneous interpretation.
Film screening
The panel discussion will be followed by a screening of the film La Nuit du 12 (The Night of the 12th).
Directed by Dominik Moll and presented at the Cannes Film Festival in 2022, La Nuit du 12 is an atmospheric and gripping crime drama inspired by real-life cases. The film follows a police investigation into the murder of a young woman, focusing not only on the mechanics of the inquiry but also on the questions it raises about violence against women, masculinity, and the persistent blind spots of justice systems.
Through its restrained style and psychological depth, the film offers a powerful and unsettling reflection on the relationships between women and men, echoing many of the themes addressed during the panel discussion.
The film will be screened in French, with Czech and English subtitles.
Free entrance, reservation required.
To register, please click on the ticket icon on the right, below the photograph.
