WHAT IS GENDER EQUALITY IS ALL ABOUT ?
All the human beings deserve to be treated with respect and dignity and that is considered as a very basic and essential aspect in the society. Article 15 of the Indian constitution states that there must be no discrimination based on religion,caste,race,GENDER,place of birth. So gender equality is one of the most important feature for the societal development. Gender inequality means treating a person unequally based on gender. Labelling a person and treating them unusually is said to be one of a major hindrance for the smooth functioning of the society. Nw which gender are ill-treated or being supressed in the society ? its none or the the female gender. Status of women in the society is very important part for human development. In India even after so many developments that has taken place the birth of a girl child is not accepted happily by the family and still there are many infanticides that happens. A girl child is the most neglected gender in Indian society. Gender discrimination can be anywhere, whether it is in the field of health, education, employment or in other part of social life.
Compared to other countries India is the country where women in the society are ill-treated and denied to give them the equal opportunity in every single field. The saddest reality is that people worship goddess and accept them has a superior god to worship but cannot give existing women the equally high standards which they actually deserve. Women in the society had broken every barrier and plays a vital role in contributing to the country’s development. They have changed all the myths and pre written facts that was against the potentials of a women in the society. Independency and liberty are not something which are given only in the hands of men in the society but women too hold equal rights. This is also because women in our country are brought up in a very narrow environment where they are emotionally and culturally packed up together this is also a form of slavery. Women are not given a right to choose her own opinion, way of living, qualification, freedom to settle as her wish, to travel and explore etc. A men can freely move around without kind of restrictions. In another view in the society comparatively before a decade or more women were not given the opportunity to pursue what the wish to be but now it had changed a bit whereas now women are equally taking a part in every field but the question is, are women getting this kind of equal space in every field in every situation without being discriminated. The patriarchal system in India made women to live at the mercy of men, who shows unlimited power over them and take control over them in every step which they take. In order to protect the condition of women in India Legislature enacted set of enactments that were enacted in the colonial period for example 1829, Abolition of sati, 1856 Widow remarriage made legal,1870 Female Infanticide Banned, 1837 Women get special right to property, 1961 Dowry prohibition act was passed. These enactments were made to protect the dignity and cruelty faced by the women.
FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION AND GENDER EQUALITY.
Article 19 comes into the picture when there is a talk on freedom of expression, this freedom is not only for a specified group of the society rather is a common freedom that is given to every single human being. One who is denied without giving a basic rights and freedom have all the rights to fight against, The Freedom to Speak concerns everyone’s right to express opinions, ideas and information through any means, as well as to disagree from, and question power-holders. This freedom of expression helps in building a good governance and sustainable development for the country. When either of these freedoms comes under threat, by the anyone, ARTICLE 19 speaks with one voice, through courts of law and through other authority which can be voiced out. A book that was written by Dr A.P.J Abdul kalam on expressing the various thoughts and dimensions about the struggles faced for gender justice. “An important book which will sensitise the member of our society to hasten the process of promoting gender justice in our country” -Dr A.P.J Abdul kalam. So there are so many means for expressing the unequality of the gender faced in the soceity.
GENDER JUSTICE AGAINST WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
Every day, in every country in the world, women are suppressed by discrimination and inequality. They face violence, abuse and unequal treatment at home, at work and in their communities and are denied opportunities to learn, to earn, to lead, to decide, to guide, and to grow. Women forms a major population who are considered as the people living in poverty as they are said as the vulnerable humans living in a society. They have less access to resources, less power and less influence compared to men, and can experience further inequality because of their class, ethnicity and age, as well as religious and other fundamentalism framed in the community. Gender inequality is a key driver of poverty and basic denial of women’s rights.
women make up less than 24% of the world’s parliamentarians and 5% of its mayors.
On average, women are paid 24% less than men for comparable work, across all region.
Nearly two third of the world’s 781 million adults are women, a proportion that has remained unchanged for two decades
Worldwide, 1 in 3 women and girls will experience violence or abuse in their lifetime.
153 countries have laws which discriminates against women economically, including 18 countries where the husbands can legally prevent their wives from working.
Gender justice is a full equality and equity that should be given to both men and women in the spheres of life, which results in women jointly, and on an equal basis with men, defining and shaping the policies, structures and decisions that affect their lives and society as a whole. Further improvement in legislation and policy are necessary but not sufficient. and the structures, norms and values that are critical in ending poverty and challenging inequality. We should believe that women taking control and playing a crucial role in every part are the most important drivers of sustained improvements in women's rights, and are a powerful force to end poverty not only for women and girls, but for others too. Whether we are responding to an emergency, working on long terms projects with communities, we tackle the inequality and deep-rooted discrimination that makes and keeps women poor. We need to work closely with women’s rights organizations and bring enactments, rights, and freedoms in order to address gender inequalities effectively. We’ve seen the difference that equal job opportunities, equal healthcare and education, equal decision-making power and freedom from violence can make huge change in the structure of the society. A society is said to seek growth and development when women and girls are able to make their own choices and exercise their collective voice, and when institutions address their needs and interests without any kind of discrimination or partiality.
