Motherhood is not a bar to leadership or politics, according to former New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern, who made this statement in her final speech to Parliament in Wellington.
The 42-year-old, who received praise from all around the world for her courageous leadership throughout the 2019 pandemic, announced in her final speech as a leader that she was ending her political career. She added that she was leaving despite being the “best mother” she could be.
“I leave knowing I was the best mother I could be,” Jacinda Ardern said on Wednesday. “You can be that person, and be here,” she added.
She talked about fertility, advised women not to let motherhood limit their leadership ambitions, and pleaded with world leaders to keep politics out of the climate change debate in her final speech.
“I had not long experienced a failed IVF round when I became leader of the Labour Party. I thought I had found myself on a path that meant I wouldn’t be a mother. Imagine my surprise when, a couple of months later, I discovered I was pregnant,” she said.
In January, Jacinda Ardern made an unexpected decision to resign as prime minister. Her decision to choose motherhood over her career was criticised. Her decision sparked international attention and commentary, and some people even made fun of her for being unable to balance motherhood and her work.
“Politicians are human. We give all that we can, for as long as we can, and then it’s time. And for me, it’s time,” she had told her Labour Party at the time of announcing her resignation.
In her address, Jacinda Ardern shared details of her struggle with fertility and said that stress had a role in a number of factors that prevented her from getting pregnant.
Jacinda Ardern speaking about climate change said it was a “crisis” and it was “upon us”. She urged the House to “please keep politics out of climate change”. She said the issue required progress.
At the time of her registration in January, Jacinda Ardern said that she would not seek re-election.
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