Frome quality to equit

International Women’s Day is celebrated annually on March 8 as a focal point in the women’s rights movement, bringing attention to issues such as gender equality, reproductive rights, and violence and abuse against women. The event also provides an opportunity on society to take a serious view on the status of women to assess what more needs to be done to bring about strong gender-sensitised law enforcement and due justice. Many programmes and occasions have gone by in the decades but women continue to suffer because little is being done to accord them their due honour. International Women’s Day on March 8 is being celebrated under the theme: #Embrace Equity. According to media reports, IWD has focussed on gender equity since it is felt that it needs to be part of every society’s DNA. Highlighting the difference between equity and equality; the IWD 2023 # Embrace Equity campaign theme is to get the world talking about why equal opportunities aren’t enough so true inclusion and belonging require equitable action. Equity means creating an inclusive world. IWD maintains that all can challenge gender stereotypes, call out discrimination, draw attention to bias, and seek out inclusion. It calls for collective activism to drive change- from grassroots action to wide-scale momentum so as for everybody to embrace equity. Equity and equality can be derived from nurturing a deep respect for women. Even as IWD is celebrated, the plight of women especially in India is pathetic. According to official data, there were as many as 2,523 complaints received regarding the offence of outraging the modesty of women or molestation; 1,701 related to rape and attempt to rape; 1,623 in connection with police apathy against women and 924 complaints related to cyber crimes. The National Crime Records Bureau, in 2011, revealed that there were more than 2,28,650 reported incidents of crime against women; while in 2021, there were 4,28,278 reported incidents, an 87% increase. Of the women living in India, 7.5% live in West Bengal where 12.7% of the total reported crime against women occurs. The plight of women in India was ventilated by prime minister Narendra Modi in his address to the nation on India’s 75th birthday on August 15,2022 in which he called for a “change in the mentality” towards women and asked citizens to fight misogyny. This was not the first time Modi had talked about gender equality and respect for women. It may be recalled that in his first Independence Day speech as prime minister in 2014, Modi condemned rapes in India saying “when we hear about these rapes, our heads hang in shame”. However, his indignation has not improved the safety of women even nine years under his government’s watch as data shows that crimes against women remain unabated. It would be unwise and ridiculous to single out the ruling party at the Centre since it is a national syndrome. Activists say the rising graph is a matter of serious concern, but authorities say it’s because there’s better reporting now and more people are going to the police to register cases. There are many incidents that have gone unreported in the media and all these speak of how women are treated in society.