Gender and women empowerment

Gender and women empowerment

Gender and women empowerment are still the primary debatable issues in Indian society. Even though Men and women are equally paramount in the development of their families and communities, India’s prevalence of women inequality remains a significant concern for women’s movements in the country. Priority in education, property rights, and wealth creation is accorded to male children. Their female counterparts are often relegated to the confinement of their homes with little to no access to education or any form of opportunity for economic development. Over the years, the Government of India (GoI) has implemented numerous progressive measures to advance women’s equality and empower them in many societal levels. GoI established the Ministry of Women and Child Development and National Commission for Women, which operate on the national and state level to promote women equality and empowerment. These women groups have been able to make significant advances in seeking women justice through the creation of legislative changes that allow women to take positions in political leadership. Also, the group has been instrumental in seeking justice for women’s discriminatory cases and violence against women in society. Despite the significant progress in seeking women equality and empowerment, the issue of gender inequality and discrimination, especially against the female gender, remains a crucial reality. Some new laws and policies are meant to protect Indian citizens and territories but eventually end up perpetuating gender inequality and hinder the progress of women empowerment in India.

Niranjana Bhowmick’s article, India’s New Laws Hurt Women Most of All, published in Foreign policy website, demonstrates how such laws continue to erode progress on women’s equality and empowerment. The approvement of the Citizen Amendment Act (CAA) which aims to remove foreigners from Indian territories has sparked concerns in the country. Various women groups and rights activist question the new law and how it serves to favor women. The CAA laws pose many questions such as whether it will address the numerous past injustice and discrimination that put women in a vulnerable position to lose their citizenship? Also, the rights advocates question how the new law will protect women’s property rights that they have struggled to acquire over the years? However, the reality is that the government’s use of the National Register of Citizens (NRC) will expose the women to more inequality and erode the women empowerment efforts that the country has achieved over the years. First, the NRC will require the citizens to provide document proofs to prove their citizenship. However, the new law will lock out many people, especially women, from the low and oppressed castes who do not have identification papers. For instance, in Assam state, where the NRC exercise concluded, over 1.9 million people were declared foreigners, with women making 69% of the unwanted citizens. The CAA law contradicts with the Citizenship Act that accords automatic citizenship to a person who has resided in India for more than ten years.

Many women are Indian citizen by birth, descent, territory incorporation. Hence, most do not possess identification papers to prove their citizenship. Most women are married off when still young, and they do not have formal education to allow them to comprehend how the national registry work. The women identify themselves with their husbands who have identification papers. Also, under the NRC, a person’s citizenship can be in doubt if there are misspellings on the identification papers. Women are the most affected with the misspelling issues since the majority of them have no formal education to command proper literacy skills. Therefore, it is evident that the NRC will serve as a tool for gender inequality and hurt women. The government should address past injustices and ensure all unregistered people acquire registration before they implement the NRC countrywide.

Second, the NRC will erode women’s empowerment progress and property rights in the country. Even though women can meet all the regulation standards set by the NRC, a small error can disqualify a woman and put her at risk of losing their citizenship and property rights. The women will be stripped of their property rights and confined to detention camps awaiting deportation or citizenship clarification. Women’s rights advocates’ experts believe that detention camps expose the women to further injustices such as deplorable living conditions, minimal access to paying jobs, exploitation, and rape. According to rights activists, such measures are efforts to take India back to dark eras when Indian women had no rights to anything but were considered a man’s possession.

Third, the NRC initiative will expose women to domestic violence and suppress any measures for them to seek legal actions and justice. Men may use the NRC to threaten women to remain silent in the wake of sexual abuse or intimate partner violence. Hence the new CAA law subject women to total submission, with little room for them to fight back and protect themselves in case of domestic injustices. Thus, the implementation of the NRC violates the Domestic Violence Acts that protect persons from household violence.

Last, the law will erode women’s economic progress and deny them a chance to participate actively in the community. When the GoI revokes a woman’s citizenship and confiscates title deeds, then such a woman is left with no power or will to generate wealth in society. The absence of active women participation in society will lead to unbalanced economic progress, which is not gendered sensitive or does not put into consideration the input of female citizens in the country. Therefore, the NRC hinders the implementation of Indian inheritance laws, which have made significant gains over the year. The CAA has a high probability of creating a constitutional crisis if the exceptional circumstances of women are not put into account.

Therefore, Gender Inequality and Women empowerment have a visible correlation with the new CAA law. The implementation of the NRC will disfavor women in various ways since they are the most vulnerable and disadvantaged in society. The bill will deny most women their right to citizenship by birth, descent, and territorial acquisition. The majority of women have low literacy levels and do not have identification documents. Also, the NRC will erode women’s empowerment efforts by revoking the property rights of women who do not possess the right papers and subject them to poverty and discrimination. Additionally, the implementation of the NRC will expose many women to domestic violence and close any avenues for them to seek justice. Last, the law will deny women the chance to participate in the economic development of the country and contribute to gender-sensitive development. Thus, the NRC will not only create gender-based disputes but also erode gender equality and women empowerment efforts in India.