Late February and early March have always proven to be a rather delicate time of the year for female issues and agendas. As we steadily approach March 8, International Woman's Day, several statistics, discussions, articles and posts crop up on various mediums, sometimes (as with the Guardian article) simply with the word 'feminism' shoehorned in the title to get more views.
However, as people around the world again consider the possibility of a woman in the White House, as the Breastfeeding and Feminism International Conference continue to advocate the right to breastfeed in public, as Jenifer Lawrence brings forth the prickly subject of equal pay and Serena Williams of positive body image, as #periodsarenotaninsult trends on twitter, where do we, Nepali woman stand on the agenda?
Januka Thapa from Silame, Sindhuli, can assure you that clothes, the size of her calves, her period or even politics, for that matter, don't rank high in her priority list. The most pressing issue for her at the moment is to lead her team to finish their order of 50 fiber bags and to make sure that by the end of the month, she will be able to surprise her son with the toy he has been eyeing at the local market.
"I think this is what empowerment feels like. To know that, if it came down to sustaining your own and your children's livelihood by yourself, you can do it. This is a brand new feeling for me. I can't remember the number of times I had to turn down my kid's various requests, but now I can afford to give them that joy every month on my own," shares Thapa.
As social scientist and feminist activist, Kamala Bashin, once put it, everybody has their own definition of feminism. The Oxford Dictionary may cite it as, "the advocacy for woman on grounds of political, social and economic equality to men." However, the route one believes that needs to be taken to achieve this right, can and in many cases, do vary, making the feminist cry different from culture to culture and country to country.
Now where ours is concerned, in many ways it is only just finding its voice, sometimes quite literally. "Self respect is a tremendous thing. We see it in our member workers time and again," says Shristi Joshi Malla, chairperson of SABAH Nepal, the social-business organization which works towards strengthening the livelihoods of poor and marginalized women home based workers.
She continues, "After being employed, one of the most drastic changes I see in women is the way they choose to express themselves. Those who could hardly get a word out, ask for the microphone, and they have questions, concerns and ideas. Where empowering Nepali woman is concerned, we almost have to begin from scratch. Self belief is always a good start. I think that's what they get with their jobs, a starting point."
Thapa couldn't agree more. She too recalls the decades she spent collecting firewood, cleaning the cowshed and cooking for her husband and then children. "I'd look at my own life and feel depressed," she says. "I had studied till the eighth grade and I was aware that I could do better things with my life. However, for the longest time, I couldn't find a way to do so. I had nobody to look up to for guidance." Though eventually when an INGO and her local ward office launched a fiber bag making workshop, she instantly knew that was the opportunity she had been waiting for.
What's more, after her trainings she also actively set about encouraging other woman in her community to develop skills for themselves. It is with the very team of those women that Thapa now provides fiber bags to several suppliers. This is a phenomenon that Joshi too is well familiar with.
"At SABAH, we have found that recruiting one home based worker almost always results in enrollment of at least two others. It's the case of a candle lighting another. Those who have overcome their challenging lives often want to help other succeed as well. What holds many Nepali women back is the lack of opportunity and guidance. It's hardly ever an issue with commitment or determination," assures Malla.
Senior Advocate, Sapana Pradhan Malla can't help but stress the importance of developing confidence among our women because according to her while learning about your rights is one thing, developing the capacity and belief to claim those rights is a completely different thing. The latter clearly being crucial to the success of all women's rights campaigns. This may be an established notion in many other countries but it is only now that we can feel it catching on, especially in the rural areas.
"Our new constitution talks about guaranteeing equality and opportunities. There are also many indicators to such positive reform from the first lady President to the first lady Chief of Justice. Nevertheless, there is no denying that the gap between men and women is still a significant one. This squarely comes down to our women's ability to exercise their rights. Law is just a tool. Its effective implementation is what brings about change," concludes senior advocate Malla.
Women's property right might have increased from five to seven percent, likewise percentage of female civil servants might have shot from seven to more than 50 percent, there may be more women recruits in armies as well as police and the maternal mortality rate may have dipped, but, we can all agree that there is still a long way to go.
"There is a big difference between doing your chore and working for a secure future. The impact isn't on the income alone. In my experience, it affects your self esteem, which for some reason many of us struggle with. Today I feel valued. My husband, like many others, too was against the idea of an empowered wife. But now that he sees its benefits, he is encouraging me. I believe because of this, today I have more say in our family decisions as well. This feeling is wonderful," shares Thapa.
These are the kind of Woman's Day aspiration ringing through our country. While there are rights and laws to be applied on the national front, these personal victories too need to be accounted for. They, after all, play a crucial part in sustaining the fighting spirit.
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