Activists decry discrimination faced by women in India

New York, Jan 17 (UNI) Highlighting the discrimination being faced by women in public and private life, women activists from India have stressed the need for strong affirmative and pro-poor policies in view of the neo-liberalisation policies of the government.

Addressing the 37th Session of the Committee on Elimination of all Forms of Discrimination Against Women, the 14-member Non-Government delegation from India underscored the vital link between mass poverty and the status of women.

In the ten minute oral presentation made to the CEDAW committee members here at the UN headquarters, President and main spokesperson of the National Alliance For Women (NAWO), Ruth Manorama highlighted the problems faced by vulnerable women including landless women and the impact of corporate globalisation on the lives of the rural and urban poor.

She pushed for the need for strong affirmative and pro-poor policies especially in the context of the aggressive neo-liberal policies being pursued by the Indian government. She said despite the efforts of the Indian government, there were several gaps that persisted in the elimination of discrimination against women in public and private life.

Ms Sheba George, a social and political activist from Gujarat, highlighted the need for greater state accountability in the context of armed conflict in North East India and communal violence where women tended to be, by and large, the victims of communal and armed conflagration. She detailed the lack of access to justice and compensation to the victims of the 2002 communal programme in Gujarat where 2000 people from the minority community were killed.

Ms Jarjum Ete, said despite a demand for one-third reservation of seats for women in the state legislative assemblies and Indian Parliament, the government was yet to pass a legislation on this.

She spoke on the inadequate representation of women in the judiciary, armed forces and recommended the mandatory and proportionate inclusion of women in these services.

The presentation underscored the specific conditions that impeded the access of women to basic services like education and health care.

It pointed out that the vast majority of the population especially poor women and girl children were denied any form of universal education and access to quality health services. For instance, it was pointed out that despite a crucial amendment to the Indian Constitution making free and compulsory education a fundamental right, the Indian government was yet to enact central legislation.

In their responses to the queries raised by various CEDAW Committee members, the NGO delegation gave detailed replies on several issues relating to the causes of poverty, universal access to health care, trafficking and the inadequacy of laws dealing with rape, sexual assault and witch-hunting.

Ms Manorama pointed out the need to address the fundamental causes of poverty especially amongst poor Dalit women in order to bring about a qualitative change in their lives. She underscored the importance of access and ownership of assets by women as compared to the piecemeal welfare approach, like that of the system of micro-credit for poor rural women, which was being currently recommended and pursued by the Indian government.

She also pointed out the urgent need for social security measures for the women in the unorganised sector and women in agriculture in particular.

The NGO delegation from India, led by NAWO, presented to the CEDAW committee a copy of their shadow report titled "India : Second and Third NGO Alternative Report on CEDAW." NAWO also submitted its detailed critique of the government's answers made in the context of queries that were raised by the CEDAW committee.

UNI