A discourse on Sex and Gender
Ms. Savitree Thapa Gurung, Lecturer, TU
According to renown women's rightist Kamala Bhasin ‘Gender refers to the socio-cultural definition of man and woman, the way societies distinguish men and women and assign them social roles. Gender is a matter of culture; it refers to the social classification of men and women into masculine and feminine. Gender has no biological origin, as connections between sex and gender are not really 'natural' to all’. Gender can be changed because it is product of human society. Gender varies according to the society. In one society gender mean one norm in another society another norms. Every society sets down different norms for girls and boys, women and men, which decide almost every aspect of their survival, and their futures.
Sex is a biological definition whether someone is male or female and gender is a socio-cultural definition of a society on men and women which leads them to be masculinity and femininity through wearing shoes, playing game, telling stories, wearing clothes, making hairstyles. One can be recognized whether man or woman because of their outfit. It is taught in every society according to their tradition. Girls and boys, women and men dress in a different way in most societies. In some places this difference may be minimal, at others very huge. In some communities women are made to cover their bodies from top to toe, including their faces. The mode of dress can and does influence the mobility, sense of freedom and dignity.
Bhasin is in the view that the difference between sex and gender was introduced to deal with the general tendency to attribute women's subordination to their structure. For long time the different characteristics, roles and status between women and men in society, are determined by biology (i.e., sex) that they are natural and therefore not changeable. So up to now what women are doing in the society they should go on with that and what men are doing as their duty should carry on. No one can change the already set behaviour for them. It is called gender which is set by society for men and women, although differs community-to-community and society-to-society. What should be done because of being women and men is man-made and nature has no role on it.
Mostly women wear feminine kinds of cloth and men wear masculine kinds of cloth. Though the cloth itself can be different from society to society and country to country, but looking from outside even children can be recognized. If someone does not learn then s/he is taught to learn by force. Because of gender division of labor women’s mobilities especially in South Asia are restricted through dress, cloth etc even more to foot binding. Because of gendered definition, women are not able to be as efficient as men. However the definition of gender is different according to places, time, races, and religion. So, it is not constant, it is changeable time- to time and even circumstances to circumstances, community to community. For example in one community of Nepal, a daughter in law can interact directly with her father in law and other male family members, whereas in another community she cannot even face towards male members of the family. In certain community in western Nepal, women in Tharu community have greater privilege as compared to Brahmin and Chhetry community. Both kinds of situations exist in South Asian community at large if we analyze social and cultural backgrounds. If a typical boy of South Asia does not cook when he is in the house, however, if he goes to study in London or outside to the home to get education, he starts to cook there. So, the gender role is affected by time, place and cause factor.
There are lots of debate on sex and gender. When there is no question regarding women’s role, right and their interest there were no debate and there was hardly any discourse on sex and gender. However the present day scenario has been changed. Not only in economically developed countries but also so called underdeveloped countries like India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Nepal, there are a lot of debate going on sex and gender, women and their rights, women’s productive role and their reproductive role, women’s equality and equity. In this context it is very much essential to internalize the idea of sex and gender.
People think if women are women then where comes sex and where comes gender. Women are always women and their role are almost similar in every part of the world, e.g. cooking, giving birth of the children, raising the children, taking care of their family member and so on. However we find so many differences between women and men because of their sex why we have to understand.
In this context of sex and gender we need to understand the discrimination between male and female. We need to understand that sex is biological, if biological then there is no control of human being. So only because of sex differences (which is biological) the role should not be different to men and women. However, surprisingly the gender discrimination mainly generated by society because of there biological sect. The roles are given differently to men and women. We are taught that women are jealous and stupid. But ultimately, who is responsible for this? Obviously, it is the society. Why did not society provide the chance to literate women and girls? What is a society doing for them? It is the byproduct of social, economic and religious structure of the society. So it is prevalent in every society whether it is Hindu, Islam or Christian. So, it is not the men but the society who should be blamed and the society is based on patriarchal system. The values of patriarchy brought this to domain as superior class. So different behavior to men and women because of their being man and woman is gender discrimination. If a girl child is fed after their male members than it is called gender discrimination. If one mother gets more nutritious food when she gives birth of male child and not much nutritious food when she gives female child that is gender differences.
It is common to see the terms sex and gender used synonymously to refer differences between male and females. The term gender has been used to refer to the social and cultural meanings attributed to differences between the two sexes; men and women. An example of gender is thinking that girls are gentle and while little boys are tough. Where an example of differences between the sexes is that women can breastfed babies while men can bottle-feed babies.
The productive role comprises work done by both men and women for payment in cash or kind. It includes market production with an exchange value and subsistence/home production with an actual use-value, but also a potential exchange value. For women in Agricultural production this includes work as peasant-wives and wageworkers. The reproductive role comprises the child bearing and rearing responsibilities and domestic tasks undertaken by woman, required to guarantee the maintenance and reproduction of the labor force. This means that includes not only biological reproduction (i.e. fertility, the total number of children born on average to each women during her childbearing years) but also the care and maintenance of the current and future labor force. Thus, the social reproduction or reproduction of the current and future labor force. Thus, the social reproduction or reproduction of labor extends to adults if they are sick or aged, through the daily provision of a range of domestic services) throughout their lives, to ensure the continuation of society to the next generation.
Having discussed the productive and reproductive roles of women in general, let us now see the case in South Asian context. The roles of South Asian women are not an exception to the patriarchal system that dominantly prevails in third world countries. Basically women constitute proportionally a large group of labor force in various economic sectors. Therefore, development is unthinkable without the participation of women. However, to date, South Asian women have been able to equally benefit from the nation's wealth, because their labor and participation in the economy have not been dully valued. As a result their decision-making status or empowerment is very much limited or nonexistent.
In all parts of the world women are facing threats to their lives, health and well-being as a result of being overburden with work and of their lack of power and influence. Culturally sometimes women are traditionally expected to work as housewives even if they get access to education and employment and are viewed as reproductive machines created for mere satisfaction of men. Economically, lack of provision of credit schemes that operate as revolving fund in generating income is one of the factors that limit the involvement of poor women at least in some petty trading or activities related self-employment.
Moreover, legally the African, especially Ethiopian women have been also barred from access to productive assets such as ownership and control of property, since their contribution continued to be under valued. However, there is a need to remove social, economic and legal impediments to women's effective programmes education and mass communication, and "every one has the right to education" as asserted by the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Besides, the sustainable means of empowerment for women is their full participation in the planning and implementation of development policies by strengthening their organizational structures at all levels through the process of democratization.
Sex is natural whereas gender is Scio cultural and it is human made. Sex is biological and it refers to visible differences in genitalia and related differences in procreative function. On the other hand gender is socio-cultural and if refers to masculine and feminine qualities, behaviour patterns, roles and responsibilities, etc. Moreover, sex is constant, it remains the same everywhere on the contrary Gender is variable, it changes from time to time, culture to culture, even family to family. In the same spirit, sex cannot be changed, gender can be changed. however even though gender is matter of culture and it refers to the social classification of men and women into 'masculine' and feminine. In most of the South Asian language Bhasin reveals sex and gender refer to linga, but sex is 'Prakritik linga' and gender is 'Samajik linga' (social sex). Women can bear children and feed them and menstruate other than that there is no differences between women and men. If women can cook then men can also cook. so only with male or female bodies the responsibilities roles or characteristic should not be decided.
Not only uneducated populace but also educated populace mostly in South Asia does not dare enough to free their daughters. They have always the fear of safety of their daughters. why is that so. It is engendered in everyone's mind that the sexuality of women is more important than men. Women are vulnerable than men. If they are sexually assaulted then the life will be very difficult to women than men. These lead to gender differences.
It is particularly significant to distinguish that we live in societies that are permeated by gender differences and gender inequalities. No countries have public policy, which is equal for men and women, but the dimensions of these inequalities are often so deeply embedded that they are difficult to perceive. Gender analysis reveals these differences, and the fact that in such a social context any gender interventions that profess to be gender-neutral will in fact reflect and probably reinforce the imbalances that exist. Gender analysis of various kinds is therefore required to bring these inequalities (created by gender) to the surface and to the attention of people who can make a difference, so that their decisions are taken in a manner that is sensitive to and reflects the outcome of gender analysis.
Role of Nepalese Water Resources for Meeting Energy Needs in South Asia
-Dr. Kamal Rijal, Renewable energy Specialist, Nepal
Conceptual Framework: Clearly, to devise an effective water resources development strategy for the region, a sufficiently long planning horizon must be adopted and guidance for strategy must evolve from broader objectives such as: (B) to increase food production; (C) to increase productive employment; and (D) to meet the minimum basic needs of the people.
Redefining the water resources development approach on these broader objectives is essential from the point of view of environmental concerns and sustainable infrastructure development.
The strategy for sector calls for the development of water resources to be undertaken in ways that the sector can lead, stimulate and enhance broader economic development with appropriate equity concerns for rural poor. To achieve this, an effort to create greater inter-sectoral linkages between water resource projects and other sectors, through focused emphasis on the development of multipurpose water resource projects is a must. Projects aimed at jointly supplying combinations of irrigation, potable water, flood mitigation as direct benefits and generation of electricity as "spin-off benefits need to be sought in the medium term. Although Nepal should maintain as a long term objective the exportation of goods with greater value added from the transformation of water resource whether through agriculture commodities export enabled by increased irrigation or energy intensive industries.
The immediate need is, therefore, to re-orient water resource development thinking from the stand-point of food security and of controlling the annual ravages caused by the rivers in order to minimize the increasing environmental deterioration. Besides this, the availability of `spin-off hydropower will help to reduce fossil fuel emissions to the atmosphere and to prevent the rate of deforestation for which the developed nations may be willing to pay carbon sequestration credit. Re-orientation of water resources development strategy entails redesigning of large water resources projects such as Karnali, Koshi and Pancheswor and thus substantial reduction in dam height and project paraphernalia.
Regional Cooperation: A Way Forward
Given the difficulties and opportunities, what is that can be done to make each of the countries realize that the fragmented decisions, attractive they may look for the individual member, are unlikely to serve their long term interests. The question is how to convince each country of the region that inviting environmentally damaging energy resource development, indulging in independent actions of narrow self interests are likely to damage the environment altogether and make the region economically unattractive; and any isolated intervention can make a country and the region economically, politically and environmental instable. There can be no direct and simple answer to these questions but there are certain concepts that can help gradually improve the present situation.
Harmonization: Collective actions do not emerge by themselves a conscious effort must be made. At first, rules and regulations within the member countries must be harmonized. Harmonization of rules and regulations among the countries of the region must be made through consensual approach. Since the water resource management decisions and actions have long term and often permanent implications, every member involved in the process should try to first ensure to harmonize rules and regulation at home so that water resource related decisions among them is taken in a non-partisan way.
Each countries of the region are at different levels of economic development; the gap is not as big as the one that prevails globally between the rich and poor countries. There, however, is a bigger gap in the institutional and economic capability to implement rules and regulations. The harmonizations of rules and regulations can be designed such that they are flexible, and can be reviewed and revised periodically. These can be generalized when all countries are almost at the same level of institutional and financial capability.
Sense of Commonness: The frontier mentality in developing the water resource, often inherited from the colonizers still prevails in the region. This must be overcome. The countries of the region whose welfare is tied up with the region cannot afford to take such mentality. Since the exploitation of water resources affects the relationships between countries as it endangers their environmental, economic and military security and invites extra-regional influence. The cost of avoiding such bads in the future can be too costly for even the powerful members of the community. The frequent flash floods in Nepal and Bangladesh affects India and vice versa. Economic and political hardship often pushes people across borders of India, Nepal and Bangladesh and destroys the demographic and environmental quality of the regions and create tensions between the involved nations. Such mass movements can lead to military conflicts among the nations. A sense of common interest should be cultivated among the people.
Recasting the Military Security: The water bodies of the border between the countries are seen more as a military fortresses rather than economic resources. For example, India views its information and knowledge over these resource as a national security, whereas Nepal attaches sacrosanct value like sovereignty to its water all leading to the sub-optimal use of the available resources and causing human suffering. Poverty along with population growth has forced the people to over exploit their natural resources beyond their regenerative capacity and then get entrapped them into a continuing process of suffering often forcing them to migrate to the neighboring countries and contributing to the political tension in the region. Proper utilization of resource can definitely ensure national security by improving the quality of human life.
Using Comparative Advantage: The optimal utilization of water resources can often lead to sustainable development of the region. This is possible only by pulling together the comparative advantages of each country. Energy sector is a good example where the comparative advantages are very obvious yet the region slowly and knowingly seems to be falling into the trap of rapid environmental degradation with the increasing use of non-renewable fossil fuels. Not only the public health hazard is significant, the complex nexus associated with the no-option for fuel, food and population growth contributes towards ecological imbalance of the region, thus leading to political and economic instability.
Concluding Remarks:The need for the development of water resources is probably the only thing that combines the countries of the region unequivocally. The political boundaries cannot fragment these natural links. Managing the connectedness may look like a problem but it is also an incentive for countries to work together. Once countries realize that only working together can optimize their welfare, the interconnectedness can be turned into an asset. At a time when military security concerns have been placed at second place to the economic interests, globally, these opportunities clearly provides a new dimension for cooperation. The optimal and equitable use of the water resources in the region is, therefore, the utmost necessity for the regional economic, military, and environmental security. To promote the optimal use of the water resources there is a immediate need for us is to re-orient our water resource development thinking from the stand-point of food security and of controlling the annual ravages caused by the rivers in order to minimize the increasing environmental deterioration. Besides this, the availability of `spin-off' hydropower will help to reduce fossil fuel emissions to the atmosphere and to prevent the rate of deforestation for which the developed nations may be willing to pay carbon sequestration credit.
# Excerpts from the author's paper presented on Role of Nepalese Water Resources for Meeting Energy Needs in South Asia at a seminar jointly organized by NEFAS, CASAC and FES, in November 27, 2001-editor.
Nepal: Tradition approaches of conflict mediation
-Dr. B.R.Upreti, Nepal
There are arguments that Nepal has not yet fully exhausted all traditional approaches of conflict mediation and it is essential to assess the existing traditional approaches before entering to a debate on the need of third party mediation. Therefore, this paper attempts to examine the practices and capabilities of traditional approach of conflict management and explore the possibilities, and pros and cons of third party mediation of the armed conflict in Nepal.
Negotiation is a fundamental form of dispute resolution (Upreti, 2004). Negotiation involves two or more parties working together to examine their interests and needs, and working out a solution that will give the best possible outcome to both sides. The possibility of successfully negotiating an agreement can be greatly increased when the parties understand how to determine when the time is, "appropriate" for negotiated settlement and how to encourage the "appropriate" process.
Third-party Intervention is a process in which a trusted intermediary can play an important role in helping the parties to communicate more effectively when the parties are unable to discuss or even communicate effectively with one another. Even when conflicts are being confronted, not resolved, third parties can help both parties deal the issues more effectively than they could alone.
Mediation is a form of third-party intervention in which the mediator helps the parties negotiate an agreement which they then have the option of accepting or rejecting. In some cases, mediators play a problem-solving role focused upon negotiating an agreement to the immediate dispute. In other cases, mediation focuses more upon improving relationships, with the assumption that the improved relationship will lead to conflict resolution or constructive confrontation.
Nepalese history demonstrates that this nation is reach in traditional approaches of conflict mediation keeping social harmony and co-existence. In the historic period, conflicts were resolved through indigenous organisations such as "Gram", "Kulari", "Yug", etc. During the Kirant period, institutions like "Mukhiya", "Bichari", and "Pancha-Bhaladmi" were active to settle all local conflicts. During the Lichhvi period, these traditional institutions were further refined and evolved as "Panchali", "Arya Sangh", "Birtawal" to resolve conflict. During the Malla Period, indigenous conflict resolution institutions such as "Praman" and "Dware" were responsible to settle local conflicts. Afterward during the Shah period, various traditional arrangements like "Pancha-Kachhahari" (at the time of Ram Shah), "Pancha", "Dware", "Thari", "Birtawal" and "Mukhiya" (at the time of Prithivi Narayan Shah) and "Amal" in Terai and "Kachari" in hills (at the time of Rana regime) were active in dealing with conflict at community level. "Jhankri Pratha" was another important institution in traditional conflict resolution.
Several studies (Upreti, 2001 and 2002; Khadka, 1997; Oli, 1998; New Era, 1988) show that different indigenous approaches have been in use at community level to resolve social, family and transaction related conflicts. In many cases, they were more effective, less expensive, administratively less complicated and easily accessible compared to the formal conflict resolutions provisions. A comparative study on the performance of formal and informal arrangements of conflict resolution conducted by this author in Dolakha district revels that 66 percent respondents view the traditional arrangements are effective to resolve local conflict and 84 percent respondents suggest to reform the existing state-sponsored formal conflict resolution arrangements (Upreti, 2001).
Traditional conflict resolution approaches in Nepal are localised, cast- and ethnicity- specific, and shaped and guided by traditional norms, values, customs and religions. For example, In Kaski district, "Tamudhin" (Gurung-ghar earlier led by Jimmual/mukhiya), Magar-samaj and Thakali-samaj were active in settling community level conflicts (Bhandari and Pun, 2002). Likewise, "Mukhiya System" in Lower Mustang and "Raja system" in Upper Mustang are common arrangements of local conflict resolution. In Manag district, there was a "Dhapa system" (four village leaders elected by all the villagers for a year to deal with all village level conflicts) to effectively deal with conflict. In the traditional conflict resolution systems, enforcement of the decision made by local mediators/negotiators is not the government regulations and state laws but social sanctions, religious faiths, morale and ethics (Khadka, 1997; Upreti, 2001).
Excerpts from a paper prepared by the author for a Seminar on "Critical Barriers to the Negotiation of Armed Conflict in Nepal" to be organized by Nepal Foundation for Advanced Studies (NEFAS) from May 25-26, 2004 in Kathmandu
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