16-03-2021 The Asian Independent

www.theasianindependent.co.uk
NEWS
16-03-2021 to 31-03-2021
19
‘Dalit women continue
to face atrocities for
claiming their rights’
By Ritwika Mitra
NEW DELHI: Dalit women continue to
face violence due to assertion to access the
basic resources of land, water, sanitation
facilities, education, and payment of wages,
according to a report ‘Dalit Women Rise to
Justice: Status Report 2021 by All India
Dalit Mahila Adhikar Manch (AIDMAM).
As a part of the report, the case analysed
81 case interventions. Dalit women’s assertion
of their right to self-dignity, legal
recourse, participation in local self-governance,
the assertion of the right to cultural
freedom, nexus and collusion of perpetrators
with state authorities, retaliation over
unsolved disputes, lack of awareness of basic
human rights, legal and fundamental rights,
and women-related policies, said the report.
The major forms of violence against Dalit
women included rape, gangrape, attempt to
rape, sexual assault, sexual harassment, murder
(accompanied by rape, gangrape or kidnapping),
witch-hunting, mass attacks with
physical assault, loss of lives and property,
and social boycott, according to the observations
made in the report.
The AIDMAM’s legal intervention in 81
cases of atrocities on Dalit women and girls
showed there was a delay in registration of
FIRs, discouragement or refusal by police to
file complaints at the first instance, the procedure
being delayed by police in producing
the survivor before the judicial magistrate in
recording the statement, false counter cases
filed against victims of caste and genderbased
violence, survivors being denied by
the administration. The
report said that compensation
was paid to 31 survivors
of the 81 cases, ie.
40.26 per cent of the total
FIRs. This cumulative
amount of Rs 13.6 million
was paid by states
after the AIDMAM followed
up on the cases,
according to the report.
The report pointed out
in many cases there was
no effective implementation
of provisions of the
SC/ST (Prevention of
Atrocities) Act. The
National Crime Records
Bureau report had documented
an increasing
number of criminal cases
against Dalit women.
The AIDMAM pointed out in its report
the NCRB 2019 data showed 10 Dalit
women and girls are raped every day but 29
per cent of the accused are convicted for
their crimes.
The reports have come up with a slew of
recommendations which include holding
public campaigns to create awareness on the
provisions of the SC/ST (PoA) Act, states
taking up violence prevention measures by
mapping atrocity-prone areas, and setting up
protection cells.
Effective implementation of the SC/ST
(PoA) Act, and allocating adequate budget,
and ensuring utilisation of funds for rehabilitation
of survivors are the way forward, it
said.
Courtesy : TNIE
Krantijyoti Savitri Mai Phule Remembered
(Samaj Weekly)- Women and men from different walks of
life joined a meeting to remember Savitri Mai Phule on her
124th Parinirwan Diwas at the Prerna Kendra on the Deoria
Kushinagar border in Uttar Pradesh. They remembered her
contribution for the uplift of the women and men of different
sections of society and stressed the need to follow on the path
shown by her. The remembrance began with a Buddhist chant
by Ratnakar Bhante who said it should be our goal to spread
Buddhism all over the country as that is the only way to bring
equality and liberty in our society.
In his introductory remarks , the founder of Prerna Kendra
run by Social Development Foundation, Shri Vidya Bhushan
Rawat said that it is high time we understand the message of
Savitri Mai Phule in the current context. He emphasised the
need to spread scientific education and speak up against discrimination
against women. Our society needs to change a lot
because of the prevailing prejudices against women.
The coordinator of Prerna Kendra Ms Sangita Kushwaha
said that due to our continuous work in this region for over 15
years the marginalised communities are now getting to know
Savitri Mai and other legends. Mrs Namita Rawat recited the
poem written by Savitri Mai in which she says that ignorance
is our biggest enemy and we must overcome it.
We must educate all our children particularly the girls. She
also sang a song : Isliye rah Sangharsh kee hum chune, jindagi
aansuon me nahaai na ho’. Shri Nand Lal from Bihar felt
that it is time we take the message of Savitri Bai Phule everywhere
and work towards eradication of superstition from our
society. Many other speakers felt that Buddhism was the need
of the hour so that India really becomes a Prabuddha Bharat as
envisaged by Baba Saheb Ambedkar.
A year on, WHO still
struggling to TACKLE
COVID threat
New Delhi : The World
Health Organization (WHO),
that declared Covid-19 as a pandemic
exactly a year ago on
March 11, 2020 which has
caused more "mass trauma" than
the World War II, is still warning
people about the lasting consequences
as those who recovered
from the deadly attack are facing
several health issues amid surge
in caseloads in several regions
around the world including
India.
The overall number of global
Covid-19 cases has topped 117.9
million, while the deaths have
surged to more than 2.61 million,
according to the data by the
Johns Hopkins University on
Thursday.
The US is the worst-hit country
with the world's highest number
of cases and deaths at
29,150,068 and 529,102, respectively,
according to the CSSE.
India comes at the second spot in
terms of cases at 11,262,707 and
is currently witnessing a definite
surge in caseloads in
Maharashtra.
To recall, the WHO faced
severe criticisms for "mishandling
the crisis" and delaying the
Continue Page 20
announcement to declare it as a
pandemic. India was among 58
nations, including 27 European
Union members, who moved a
draft resolution in May last year,
demanding evaluation of the
WHO's response towards the
novel coronavirus pandemic.
The resolution demanded initiation
"at the earliest appropriate
moment to review experience
gained and lessons learned from
the WHO-coordinated international
health response to Covid-
19". "We are deeply concerned
by the morbidity and mortality
caused by Covid-19 pandemic,
the negative impacts on physical
and mental health and social
well-being, the negative impacts
on economy and society and the
consequent exacerbation of
inequalities within and between
countries," read the draft.
The WHO on January 23
declared a global health emergency,
but did not declare it as a
pandemic and waited for a week
for its director-general Tedros
Adhanom Ghebreyesus to return
from China. By that time, Covid-
19 cases increased 10 times and
the virus entered 18 countries.
See Page 24
Marking International Women’s Day and
Savitri Bai Phule’s Death Anniversary
that would have deleterious impacts on land, livelihoods and ecology.
While the climate crisis and its gendered impact is being spoken
about more these days, the past few years have also seen intense
struggles to safeguard the local environment from destructive projects
including large dams, mining, coal block allocations, thermal
and nuclear power plants, mega infrastructure etc. The state has often
tried to greenwash their acts of ecological injustice by introducing
technocratic and exclusionary solutions like windmill farms, solar
parks that grab the land of the marginalised people. Online public
hearings make the participation process even more inaccessible,
especially to women from marginalized backgrounds. While promising
to the world that our dependency on non-renewables will be minimized,
close to 40 forest blocks have been opened to commercial
mining last year, a decision severely opposed by adivasis, local communities
and unions in Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh, Maharashtra etc.
Women, people who identify as gender-nonconforming, genderqueer,
agender, trans* persons and all those continuously
marginalized on grounds of gender and sexuality have been part
of struggles and movements across issues, through local action,
cultural practice and advocacy, research and through constant
physical and emotional labour, even as often the space to emphasize
their specific forms of oppression needs to be fought for.
NAPM’s commitment is to center all these voices across struggles
and movements, and come together in solidarity with their
demands for justice, from the level of individual human rights, to
the community support, sustainable living and ecological justice.
We affirm our support to all struggles for social and environmental
justice that are braving state repression, corporate
excesses and dominant social forces.