Monday 16 March 2015

    


   National Federation of Indian Women (NFIW)
            1002-Ansal Bhawan, 16- K.G.Marg, New Delhi
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                                        PRESS RELEASE

NFIW demands the immediate passage of the 33% Women's Reservation Bill in this session of the Parliament. 


The National Federation of Indian Women (NFIW) held a demonstration on Monday, 16th March, 2015 in front of Parliament to demand the immediate passage of the 33% Reservation for Women in Parliament and Assemblies.

The 33% Reservation Bill has been the demand of women across the country for decades and has been through a Select Committee of Parliament and passed by the Rajya Sabha. It has been presented in the Lok Sabha several times, raising our hopes, but has been scuttled every time in the name of consensus.

BJP, with huge majority, is not even mentioning the Bill. When in opposition Smt. Sushma Swaraj and Shri Arun Jaitly repeatedly stated in the floor of the Parliament that BJP is for the Bill. But now they ignore this issue.  This shows double standard and lack of political will and social commitment for the empowerment of women

NFIW is of the opinion that to address the issues of gender based exclusion, inequality, violence and discrimination at institutional, structural, ideological and operational levels, women's equal participation in decision making processes is needed.

Until women get at least one-third representation in Parliament and Assemblies, achieving gender equality and human rights of women will remain a distant dream. NFIW strongly demands the immediate passage of the 33% Women's Reservation Bill in the ongoing session of the Parliament. 

The time has now come to set aside subterfuge and place the Bill once again before Parliament and pass it.

Annie Raja,
General Secretary
9868181992
16 March, 2015

Thursday 5 March 2015

NATIONAL FEDERATION OF INDIAN WOMEN (NFIW)

                      1002-Ansal Bhawan, 16-K.G.Marg, New Delhi
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                                                PRESS RELEASE


NATIONAL FEDERATION OF INDIAN WOMEN (NFIW) strongly opposes the banning of the documentary India's Daughter.  The 'objectionable' portions of the documentary not only expose the mentality of the rapist, they are also a reflection of the mentality and attitude of the Indian patriarchal society towards women.

There is nothing new in what ‘Nirbhaya’ culprit Mukesh said. It is also not different from the opinions expressed by leaders of different political parties, head of Women Commissions and heads of RSS and VHP and  Khap Panchayats etc.

Mukesh is a culprit and is in jail. But the statements starting from

*AP Pradesh Congress Chief B.Sathyanarayana, that Nirbhaya incident was a minor one and advising girls not to be out at night

*Congress MP Abhijit Mukherji’s  ‘dented and painted’ portrayal of protesting women

*Congress Minister in Puducherry and BJP MLA from Alwar’s suggestion thett girls should wear salwars

*BJP minister in MP, Kailash’s reminder to women of laxman rekha and ravana

*JD-U Chief’s opinion that young men are overtaken by the sexual urge every 15-20 days,

*Chhatisgarh Women’s Commission Chairperson and BJP leader Vibha Rao’s belief that ignorance of the Hindu epics that teaches value is to blame for such incidents

*SP leader Mulayam Singh’s ‘common mistakes by boys’ and  SP  Maharashtra Leader Abu Azmi’s analogy comparing men and women to petrol and fire, and his demand for a Law to ban wearing incorrect clothes

*Scientist of Gwalior  RVS Vishwa Vidhyalaya, Anita Shukla’s statement ‘when a group of men intended to rape, they do it… had the girl simply surrendered when surrounded by six men, she would not have lost her intestine'

*VHP leader Ashok Singhal and RSS Chief Mohan Bagawar’s position that rape happens in India not in Bharat

*Jamaat-e Islami Hind’s recommendation to Justice Verma Committee to abolish co-education

*Khap Panchayat of Bihat, UP and Haryana demanding ban of mobile phone use by girls and eating of fast food

and so on.

All the above positions and suggestions are nothing but ‘blame the victim’. It directly attack women’s rights and deny gender equality and indirectly encourage sexual crimes against women. Not only that, all of them prescribe the same solution for women’s safety, that is keep women well covered and inside home. But the irony is that 90% of the assault on women takes place inside the home.

NFIW is of the opinion that the Government at the Centre as well as in States should take note of all the anti-women statements and should take all necessary steps to stop people, whoever they may be, from making such criminal suggestions and statements against women.

A ban is not the solution; it cannot ensure women’s constitutional rights. It needs political will and social commitment

Annie Raja
General Secretary

9868181991