Berlin’s parliament has declared International Women’s Day, celebrated annually on March 8, as an official public holiday.
It's the first of Germany's 16 federal states to acknowledge Frauentag (Women’s Day) with a public holiday, at the urging of Berlin’s Mayor Michael Müller.
The move was backed by the city-state's governing coalition of Social Democrats (SPD), die Linke (the Left) and the Greens, according to the Deutsche Welle, passing 87 votes to 60.
