NATIONAL8 (Spotlight Weekly]

Unequal Protection

Abuse and various manifestations of inequality have a direct impact on how safe women feel

By AKSHAY SHARMA

When Maya Limbu, a resident of Dhading district, was being physically abused, she felt she had no one on her side. The South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation has announced that the decade will be focused on women-related issues, but countless women like Limbu are left fending for themselves.

From the 1970s to the World March of Women in 2000, groups of women on all five continents have worked to highlight the phenomenon of violence against women ó violence in their personal lives as well as in public spaces.

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"Violence against women and girls and the various manifestations of inequality have a direct impact on how safe women feel. And feeling unsafe becomes in turn a fundamental obstacle to achieving gender equality. It curtails women's mobility and limits their capacity to participate fully and freely as citizens," said Shalini Rana of MUAN.

Cities play an increasingly important role today, and this means that issues related to women's participation and urban development that take account of gender inequalities are crucial for all partners concerned: groups of women, municipalities, researchers, governments and international development agencies. The concept of "inclusive cities" cannot become a reality unless women in all their diversity are fully involved in and benefit equally from community development.

When it comes to urban safety, this means that women must necessarily be at the heart of the action in any strategies put forward to improve public safety. Since women suffer the most from the lack of safety, solutions that are good for women and developed thanks to women are good for the public in general.

"So cities have everything to gain by encouraging women's participation and the development of partnerships among local actors," Rana added. "In recent years, the development of international discussion networks has facilitated the transfer and adaptation of tools and methods of work with an autonomy-based approach, i.e., participation and capacity building by and for women and girls, through community mobilization and local partnerships."

"The objective of the Montreal seminar is to consolidate these discussions and make the links among the various partners working in the field of women's safety: women's groups, elected representatives and civil servants at the municipal level, associations of municipalities, researchers, crime prevention organizations, governments and international agencies. The seminar is a collaborative effort of various local and international partners," Rana told SPOTLIGHT.

The seminar will bring together 150 people from various fields of work who are actively involved in carrying out projects to enhance women's security and incorporate a gender-based approach in crime prevention. It will be held in conjunction with the WHO's 6th World Conference highlighting "Injury Prevention and Control"

Participants will be chosen based on their work and with the goal of ensuring a fair institutional and geographical distribution, according to MUAN.

"Discussions will take the form of round tables on various themes that will help us take stock of where we are at in terms of knowledge and practices, identifying obstacles and strengths, issues, challenges and prospects. Recommendations from the seminar will be forwarded to the appropriate authorities, " Rana added.

"To prepare discussions and contribute to the seminar's content, we are counting on your active participation in the theme section," Rana said.

"One of the purposes of the site will be to provide a forum for discussions and documentation on women's safety. The forms will be used to compile the international directory of activity and resources on women's safety," she added.

While human rights activists and women's groups were discussing gender-bias issues, Maya Limbu's suffering at the hands of her husband and community forced her to commit suicide, providing a tragic reminder of the gravity of the challenge.