India: SWATE from AREDS observes International Women’s Day

Besides facilitating the grassroots women to improve themselves economically and socially, SWATE has been conducting programmes to enhance their political awareness. Further, it has been fighting for ascertaining justice whenever women and girl children are subjected to sexual abuse and to any form of violence. Various women’s movements are fighting for women’s freedom and gender equality. As a token of extending solidarity to the international movement for women’s emancipation, SWATE observes the International Women’s Day every year. This year, it focused on five issues:

1. Total prohibition of liquor, 
2. Employment for youth,
3. Gender equality and ending violence against women, 
4. Free and fair election, 
5. Promoting organic farming.

In Tamil Nadu, the government has closed down thousands of primary schools but multiplies the liquor shops and promoting the sale of liquor. Omnipresence of liquor shops and liquor outlets creates access to liquor for everybody, indiscriminate of ages. Hence, even school- going student get addicted to drinking alcohol. Since many of the educated youth remain unemployed, they get depressed and they fall easy prey to alcohol.

Crime and violence against women and girl children are also on the rise in the state commensurate with the industrial growth scale. Modern gadgets of communication have become traps to entrap women and girl children for sexual exploitation.

Still there are voices against the Electronic Voting Machine because of the chances of misusing the state machinery and manipulate the machines, so as to veer the votes into the vote bank of the ruling party. Hence, there is a hue and cry against the use of EVM and for going to the conventional ballot system. As the parliamentary election is nearing, the voice for free and fair election is getting magnitude.

On one hand, farmers and the common people have realized the detrimental effect of non-organic farming on the soil environment and on human health. On the other, awareness on health is also increasing. Hence, there is an urge for going back to the traditional farming methods – Organic Farming. Therefore, the focal themes which SWATE chose to highlight on the International Women’s Day are quite relevant within the present context of the state and the country. SWATE organized a procession in Karur on the 8th of March, 2019 and about 3000 women participated in it.
The president of SWATE Ms. Jayammaal inaugurated and the meeting started with an awareness song sung by the SWATE activists. Ms. Christina Samy and Dr. Preetha addressed the gathering on the importance of gender equality and women’s protection. A widow-mother, whose husband died of chronic alcoholism, spoke as a witness for the fatal effect of alcohol, revealing her story and the present plight. SWATE’s Women’s Day resolutions were read out and they were passed unanimously.

Dr. Preetha flagged off the procession. It passed through the main streets of Karur city and ended up in front of the Taluk Office. The women were raising slogans for equal wage and gender justice, against unregulated sand mining and the promotion of liquor.