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The Importance Of Women’s Day To End Gender Discrimination

By Prativa Subedi

WOMEN’S Organisations and Institutions have been working in Nepal for a long time. If we look at their history we find many organisations that were formed along social as well as political lines. At the call of the United Nations. Women’s Year was first celebrated in 1975. From 1975 to 1985 the Women’s Decade was declared and women’s programmes began in governmental fields. After the people’s movement for democracy in 1990, the banned political organisations and institutions were reorganised and formed. In the social field, organisations related to women were widely established. At the present time, these organisations can be divided into three categories, social, political and governmental. In recent years as well, no remarkable changes have been seen after the restoration of the democracy. Compared to the policy makers, the general public is far more sensitised to gender issues. There is a lack of attention to the development of disadvantaged people and women.

At the beginning of the nienteenth century with the establishment of industries in the western countries, women started to work outside the home. But working time was 15 to 16 hours. For the first time, American women protested in the streets, of New York against exploitation in the industries. They also demanded voting rights for women. This protest was organised on 8 March 1908. In 1910, about a hundred women gathered in Copenhagen to express concerns about women’s rights and the peace and security of women workers. Copenhagen conference .decided to celebrate Women’s Day on March 8th International Women’s Day was celebrated for the first time in 1911 in five countries (America, Austria, Germany, Denmark, and Switzerland).

When we analyse the situation of women in Nepal today, we cannot separate it from the social, economic, and political systems. The special role of culture and religion, together with the country’s geographical features, must also be considered. The various ethnic communities and different geographical and cultural regions exhibit a wide variety of social values that also have an impact on the situation of Nepali women. It can be said without reservation that Nepali women from all groups and areas are exploited and oppressed.

The majority of the population is self-employed in the agricultural sector. Nepali women make an important contribution to the agricultural activities of the country, but because their work is not considered productive from an economic point of view, their contribution is not included in the national statistics. The gender-sensitive economists and social critics are now promoting for use of the Genuine Progress Indicator in place of GNP/GDP because this takes into account impaid work. Also today’s statistics do not count child work as productive work.

Sixty per cent of the population is illiterate, and only about 30 per cent of the women are literate. In the education sector there is much gender discrimination, with enrolment among the primary students at 60 per cent for boys and 40 per cent for girls, and only about 17 per cent of the 14 to 15-year-old children are having access to secondary schools. The education of a girl is often seen as a special favour.

This status of girls and women is responsible for creating an environment where they can become victims of violence. Violence is the outcome of the women’s image in the family and society. Due to the negative attitude towards girls and women, they are seen as sex objects and blamed, even when they are sold and raped. Even in their own homes, they are not safe. Every day many of your young women are lost from their homes. Our socialisation pattern has helped people to develop negative ideas towards girls and women. Many say that girls and women are sold because they are poor, but in fact the real reason is that they consider their daughters to be only a commodity to be used as barter.

Life expectancy at birth is 55 years. Nepal is one of the few countries in the world where the life expectancy for women is lower than that of men (53.32 years as compared to 54.8 for men). The infant mortality rate is 85 per 1000. The contribution of Nepali women to the national economy is very significant, but they are paid less than men as agricultural labourers. In all areas of Nepal, the work burden for women is higher than that for men, yet the majority of the people, especially women, are deprived of their basic needs of life. Because of the extreme vulnerability of women, they are at the greatest risk of becoming victims of violence.

Most of the present laws that discrimination against women have been in existence since this Civil Code of 1963 and are incompatible with the provisions in the Contribution of the Kingdom of Nepal 1990. A women inherits her share of property from the share of her husband. According to the law of inheritance, the property should be shared among father, mother, wife and son. The daughter has no share of the property. A women has to marry in order to get share of property, and in this way, she is made dependent upon her husband.

In order to bring about gender equality, three needs to be a complete change in the attitudes of the family and society towards women. Our education system is also gender insensitive and continues to perpetuate patriarchal values. The social norms imposed on women have made of them hesitant to walk or talk freely to others in public. Due to a constant fear of having their character and reputation spoken ill of, many women feel unsafe to venture out on their own.

Political polarisation and political instability are major obstacles to the women’s movement. The force of political ideologies is one of the major factors in dividing women. It is essential for women to be represented at all levels of government, including the grassroots level, and to be represented in the executive, judiciary and legislative branches of governmental. What have we gained for such a long term effort? The women’s movement is still not blooming like a flower. Nepali women involved in social, political, and governmental areas have not been able to put their agenda forward strongly. The government does not have a serious commitment to women’s issues. This is the day for us to celebrate out achievements, define our challenges, and raise a voice against the various forms of exploitation against women.

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