AIDWA to intensify stir against communalism


By Anita Joshua (The Hindu)

VISAKHAPATNAM, NOV. 27. The sixth triennial national conference of the All-India Democratic Women's Association (AIDWA) drew to a close here this evening with a change of guard in its ranks and the new leadership immediately announcing an intensification of the ongoing struggle against communalism and globalisation.

Addressing her first public meeting as AIDWA president, at the Bullayya College grounds in the city this evening, the former member of Parliament from Kanpur, Ms. Subhashini Ali, traced much of the problems faced by women today to communalism and globalisation. ``Such being the case, the AIDWA has decided to fight for the reversal of these policies. And, if these policies are not withdrawn, then we will fight for the removal of this Government.''

Acknowledging the effort that each of the women present in the gathering had made just to be there, Ms. Ali said it was such commitment that strengthened the AIDWA's resolve. ``At this conference, we saw that while women continued to be the ultimate victims of all forms of violence, they are also putting up a fight. This is an inspiration for us.''

Earlier, Ms. Brinda Karat - who was elected general secretary for the second consecutive term today - described the RSS as the ``Rashtriya Sarvanash Samiti'' and said the outfit was controlling the Government much like a puppeteer. Reiterating the AIDWA's commitment to fight such communal forces, she also sought to expose the Government's inaction on women's empowerment.

According to Ms. Karat, empowerment is a double-edged word which could also denote dependence on an external force to empower. Unhappy with the Government's policy of empowerment, she said the AIDWA is for a fundamental change and not the kind of structural adjustment that the powers that be are indulging in.

The meeting was also addressed by the representative of the Revolutionary Association of the Women of Afghanistan, Ms. Sahar Saba, who had been present at the inaugural session of the conference. Evidently pessimistic about the outcome of the Bonn meeting to begin the political process in Kabul, she said, ``if they allow the Northern Alliance to rule Afghanistan, then our sisters there will be in big trouble; worse than they are in today.''

Prior to converging at Bullayya College, hundreds of women - most of them draped in AIDWA's white-and-red sari braved the strong sun and, in many a case, the disapproval of a male- dominated status quo to participate in a rally from Sri Kanya Theatre to the meeting ground. Among them were the 800 delegates from different States who had attended the conference and some veterans of the women's movement.

Apart from electing a new leadership, the day also saw the delegates pass three more resolutions; taking the number of resolutions passed in this conference to seven. Taking note of the declining ``juvenile sex ratios'', a resolution was passed on sex-selective abortion in which the AIDWA has demanded an amendment to the Pre-natal Diagnostic Test (Regulation and Prevention of Misuse) Act to restrict all genetic tests and procedures to Government institutions as they can be monitored more easily.

Another resolution that was passed today pertained to legal reforms for women. In this resolution, the AIDWA has demanded the introduction and passage of the Domestic Violence Bill; a legislation to deal with sexual harassment at the workplace in consultation with women's organisations; laws relating to the right to residence, matrimonial property and equal rights to property; and a legislation on sexual assault and child sexual assault.

Having identified globalisation as one of the biggest stumbling blocks in the progress of women early in the conference, the association has resolved to mobilise women against the WTO. With the manner in which the developed world had its way at the recent Doha WTO ministerial meet serving as a fresh example of what the new regime has in store, the association has decided to ``launch militant struggles to force the Government to resist the pressure of the developed countries on the WTO's agenda and implementation''.