INDIAN ASSOCIATION FOR WOMEN'S STUDIES

NEWSLETFER NO.1, JANUARY 1986

Editorial

The Executive Committee of the Indian Associa­tion for Women's Studies has taken a bold decisionto bring out a Newsletter - bold because theAssociation' has neither the infrastructure norregular income to launch such a venture. But wefelt the need for a medium through which we canknow each other, chat, share our experience andknowledge, clear doubts, express our differences andthus create a forum for a continuous communicationwhich can be a dialogue and debate.

Women's Studies in India have made an impres­sive start. The increasing number of articles ~llldpapers, reports and books as well as seminars andconferences which are. being held in many placesbear testimony to this. While this is a matter ofhappiness, it also forbids us against contentmentand complacency.

By and large the Women's Studies are knownonly to a small section of English knowing personsin urban-semi urban areas.

The Association is open to 'activists' -thosep~rsons who are directly engaged in organisingwomen-and teachers, researchers, writers etc.concerned with women's issues and causes. Whilethis classification itself is questionable, it is a factthat a healthy dialogue and a common languagebetween the two categories have not evolved.

Many of us in the academic world find ourselvesin an unenviable situation when we, after havingquestioned assumptions, definitions and concepts andmethods used in our disciplines while we deal withwomen's studies, fall back into the jargonised langu­age of the accepted 'mainstream' disciplines andwork with the definitions and concepts we haverejected in women's studies. At least some amongthe 'activists' thin k that what is needed now incountries like ours is 'nced-based' rcsearch, i.e.small studies which would throw up information

on a particular area or group and which arc neededfor organisation as well as for the policy makers tomake projects and schemes. All these once againpoint to the need for seeking clarity in our thinking,and to start a debate on the ubjectives of women'sstudies, one of the purposes of this Newsletter.When the process of unlearning and re-learning,which is essential for what we have discussed justnow, takes place on massive scale, it will bring inmore rigour and depth of analysis into women'sstudies.

Women's Studies have grown out of concern, andthey positively stand for change. This is a process,through a path which is not marked, known andagreed upon by all. There is certainly the search. Forthis collective search to succeed, we need much moreof openness, integrity, and commitment than whatwe find in the general academic/political world. Wehave to seek clarity and meaning of even such termsas freedom, equality, oppression, patriarchy andhierarchy which we use constantly. We have todebate on many issues including the role and placeof Women's Studies in the wider socio/politicalacademic context, fundamental and/or specific focusoriented research, whether the oppression womenface differ from that faced by other deprived sec­tions, men in women's studies, whether emotionalinvolvement in work would diminish objectivity,whether objectivity is laudable, women's studies andwomen's lives and anything that appears worthdebating.

We have to talk to each other, for alienation andloneliness go against what we are striving for. Atoo tall order for a small Newsletter ? If you thinkso please say what you wish it to be. That wouldshape this Newsletter. 0

K. Saradamoni

E.C. Member, IA WS

A Note on I.A.W.S. ..

The Indian Association for Women's Studiescame into existence in 1982 as a result of a Resolu-

.. tion adoptedtiy the first· National Conference onWomen's Studies held from 20 to 24 April, 1981 .atBombay. The Association has been recognised bythe u.G.C., LC.S.S.R., and the Govt. of India. Theaims and objectives of the Association as formula­ted at the time of founding are as under :--

1. To provide a forum for interaction amongstindividuals, institutions and organisations engagedin teaching, research or action for women's develop­ment;

2. To provide and establish information centres atdifferent parts of the country for promotion ofWomen's Studies and scientific analysis of actionfor development of women's' equality. To this enddevelop a network for collection of informationrelating to teaching, research and action program­mes:

a. to develop documentation, bibliographic andother services :

b. to disseminate needed information to all agenciesengaged in teaching, research and action program­mes;

3. To organise periodic conferences to carryforward the awareness and momentum generated bythe First National Conference which was organisedby the SNDT Women's University, Bombay; KanpurUniversity and Centre for Women's DevelopmentStudies, New Delhi in April 1981 ;

4. To organise specific action programmes for thedevelopment of Women's Studies perspectives indifferent disciplines and for the development ofappropriate indicators for measuring women'sparticipation in social and economic development;

5. To mobilise necessary services and resources, witha view to strengthening and assisting womenscholars, writers, communicators, etc. to developtheir talents;

6. To assist institutions seeking to develop program­mes for teaching, research and action for women'sequality and development;

7. To take all such action that may be deemednecessary, to bring about a change in social valueswith a view to eliminating attitudinal, conceptualand class biases that hinder understanding of therole and situation of women and their movementtowards equality, and

8. To collaborate with institutions and agenciesworking for similar objectives at the national andinternational level.

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The results of the first election of E.C. memberswas announced at the General Body meeting of theIndian Association for Women's Studies held onJanuary 31, 1985. The LA.W.S. which entered itsthird year has the following members as ExecutiveCommittee of the Association.

I. Dr. Madhuri R. Shah, (President)Chairman,University Grants Commission,Bahadur Shah Zafar Marg,New Delhi -1I0004

2. Prof. Leela Dube, (Vice-President)B-8/74 Bungalows,Bhopal -462003

3. Dr. L.M. Jacob, (General Secretary)L3/D, University Compus,Jaipur-4

4. Dr. Susheela Kaushik, (Joint Secretary)80 Dakshinapuram,Jawaharlal Nehru University,New Campus,New Mehrauli Road,New Delhi -1I0 067

5. K. Saradamoni (Treasurer)Indian Statistical Institute,7 SJS Sansanwal Marg,New Delhi -1I0016

6. Dr. Renu Debi, (Member)Kharghuli,Gauhati -781004

7. Dr. Gita Sen, (Member)Center for DevelopmentStudies, Aakulam Road,Ulloor

8. Dr. Vina Mazumdar, (Ex-officio)Director,C.W.D.S.,B-43, Panchsheel Enclave,New Delhi -1I00l7

8. Prof. Ashok Mitra,505 Jodhpur Park,Calcutta -700068

9. Dr. U. Kalpagam, (Member)Madras Institute ofDevelopment Studies,79 IInd Main Road,Gandhi Nagar,Madras -600020

10. Dr. Phulrenu Guha, (Member)55/5 Purnadas Road,Calcutta -700029

Remunerative prices, employment wages

1'1 "

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Dr. L.M. Jacob

General Secretary{'I.A.w.s.1

L-3/D, University Camp~sJaipur-4

Rajasthan

2. Women, and the IndustrialW orfing Class Movemertt., "-

3. Women, informal- Sector andForms of Struggles'

4. Proft$sibnal Wom'en's Struggles, like- Women ~ank Offi..cers',Organisatipn- School and College Teachers' Union- Government Employees and other

p~ofessional groups .

5. Women ani St~dents' moy.(fment inIndia. ,I I .

6. Nationalism and Women's Questions

--=- Nationalist movement-c @ultural Nationalism and Revivalilsffi'''- Left-wing nationalism- Women and M.K. Gandhi -- RevJew of natiom~Iistl historibgraphy

7. Regional/Linguistic/Cultural movementsin the post-Independence period

8. Religion, Secula1'ism and Women'sRights :-- Communalism- Dowr¥' .- Personal Laws

9: Womed and Violence':~t 1 .••• 1 t •

- Familial, rape, dowry deaths,sexual haras~mentf fema,le infanticide

10. Ideologies, Political Parties andthe women's question in the post­Independence period.

11. a) Struggles for Education: I.

- particular refe~ence'to ~~akersections and minorities

b) Struggi~s for Health and Nutrition

:~ - particulafl'emphasis on weakersections,; and minorities

12. Women and the EnvironmentStrliggles - Forest, anti­pollution and water

1 : I13. Crisis of Existence and Women's

Struggles : Anti-price rise mbvehlent,Housing for different groups ·etc.

14. Struggles against sexist bias " ,.. , " I- Media and all other communications

- Culture, literature, performing arts.,

We hope to have one or more workshops undereach of the above areas.

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. \' .

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• I'" •II. Sister Karuna Mary Braganza, (Member)All India Association for'Christian Higher Educatipn,C:6, Community Centre,

'Safc!1lrjung Development Area,'New Delhi -110016

13. Dr. Pam Rajput, .'Department of Political Sc., ,P,alljab University".Chandigarh.

'(b) Life Members

(c) Institutional MembersI

Appe,al for membership.

We request all interested in the objectives. of theAssociation to enrol themselves as. members.

I Membership is of the following categories ~--

..(a) ,Ordinary, Member~, Subscription. Rs.2?/-.per annum or R. 100l­for 5 years.

Rs.250h

Rs. 300/- per annumor Rs.- 1;~00/- for .. 5years ...

(d) Corporate Members ~s. 2,5001- _(Institutions only) '.

(e) Student Members" 'Rs. 10/- per ahnum

\(f). Ass.ociate . Rs. -25/-per _a~num, 9rr R. 250/- for 10 years

The subscription may be sent in the form of Moneyorder/Draft{rriade out tb' the Indian IAssociation forWomen's Studies and sent to the following address:

'Dr. (Mrs) K. Saradamoni,Treasurer (IA WS),Indi<1n Statistical Institute,7 SJS Sansanwal Marg,New l)elhi -110016India.

(To avojd delay only Delhi-based bahk drafts, jUay b~ sent).. " .

Third National·Conference on Women's$tudies .

bJ?e of ~he. objestives of the Assoc!ation ,is' toorgamse penodIc -conferences to carry forward the

'awareness generated by the First National Con­ference' on' Women's - Studies at Bombay:. TheAssociation . organised the Second. NationalConference on Women's Studies· at Kerala Univer­sity (Trivandrum) from April 9 to 12,1984.

Kindly note that tIle Third 'National Confer~nceIon Women's Studies will he held in October 1986 atat -the Panjab Ulllversity (Chandigarh). The broadtheme of the Conft<r~nce is "Women, Struggles andMovements" und~r whicJl the specified areasmentioned below have be~n chosen:

1. Women and Agrarian Struggles

- iPeasant: Struggles ~.- Tribal Struggles for land- Access to forest resources- Water

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Nairobi Conference - In Retrospect

What is it that I would like to remember aboutNairobi Conference and convey to the members ofIA WS ? The unsurpassable strength and power, joy,warmth and concern, fearlessness and confidencedemonstrated by thousands of women who gatheredthere is the first thing that comes to my mind. I saythis, because, if I had not gone to Nairobi and haddepended upon the media, I would perhaps havedismissed the whole affair as "another conference"or "what a waste of resources". True it was expen­sive ; there were disappointments, complaints and attimes a feeling of getting lost. But what I wish toshare with the readers of the Newsletter is mypositive feelings towards the Nairobi deliberations.

I do not know whether Nairobi, the capital ofKenya in East Africa was chosen as the venue ofthe Conference to mark the end of the Women'sDecade knowing in advance that this was going tobe a mammoth gathering mainly of Third W orIdwomen. But it turned out to be so. The officialUN Conference-the World Conferenee to Reviewand Appraise the achievements of the UN Decadefor Women-was held between July 15 to 25, 1985.Official delegations from nearly one hundrt:d andseventy member countries participated in this Con­ference. In addition, a large number of observers,members of the media and representatives of theinter-governmental organisations were presentthroughout.

One unique feature of this Conference - unlikeother UN meets - was that it was preceded by the1985 Non-Governmental World Forum (NGOForum) which met from 10 to 19 July. An estimatednumber of thirteen thousand women from all partsof the globe, from far and near, from countries smalland big, poor and rich participated in the delibera­tions of the Forum. The activities of the Forumincluded more than one hundred panels/workshops,film and slide shows, music, dance and drama,poetry reading, story telling, exhibition all on thetheme Women and the Decade. The day began quiteearly and I cannot say when it ended. It was allhectic and tiring. Still I did not find many personswho complained of fatigue; the complaint was thatone was missing a lot of interesting things.

The women who gathered in Nairobi came fromdifferent socio-political systems. There was no doubtdifferences in the understanding of women's pro­blems and the solutions offered. Despite this, onecan say that the women did not demand a slightlybetter share from the present order of things. Whatthey voiced both at the Forum and in the UNConference was that only a restructuring of theexisting order, where Equality, Development andPeace, the three goals of the Decade would be seenin wider perspective and linked closer can ensurewomen's right to work, earn and be treated as full

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and equal citizens at home, at the work place and inthe wider society. Women learnt in ten years' timethat there was nothing called exclusive "women'sissues"; all that they are worried about whether it islong hours of work and low pay, other forms ofdiscrimination and oppression, lack of access toresources, and voilence at home and outside have tobe understood in the wider context of Unfair dis­tribution of resources, concentration of power, anddistorted priorities.

The following paragraph from the "ForwardLooking Strategies" - the document formulatingfuture strategies for the advancement of women­and discussed at the UN Conference would makethis clear:

"The inequality of women in most countriesstems to a very large extent from mass poverty andthe general backwardness of the majority of theworld's population caused by underdevelopment,which is a product of imperialism, colonialism, neo­colonialism, apartheid, racism, racial discriminationand of unjust international economic relations. Theunfavourable status of women is aggravated inmany countries, developed and under-developed byde facto discrimination on the grounds of sex."

The Document dealt with Equality, Developmentand Peace sep~rately. But everywhere it stressedthat new international economic relations, freedomfrom foreign occupation, and colonial and neo­colonial influence and interferences, as well as arrest­ing arms race and combating threat of war areessential to generate a just and dignified life forwomen. It must be added that many activists fromthe industI ially advanced countries of WesternEurope and North America and Japan were activelycampaigning for peace.

However it would be a great folly if we thinkthat the Conference in Nairobi and the documentsit released as well as the deliberations there wouldherald a new World Order. It has to be struggledfor. Those nations and powers-including men atlarge benefiting from the present order of things arenot going to give them up easily. Armament makingis a big business based on private gains-of nationsand entrepreneurs. The powerful media can dimany new voice demanding reordering of things, andsee that they do not reach the millions of the world'sdeprived. There is also a new danger. The co­opting techniques of those who are benefiting outof the present imbalances function in subtle andinvisible ways. The Third World are not a homgene­ous group of countries with the same historicalbackground, commitment and vision of the future.The new, determined. even angry voice of the ThirdWorld Women that emerged in Nairobi will haveany meaning only if they can be translated into

action at the national, local and domestic level. Letus take our own country. Employment, Educationand Health were the three subthemes under the majorgoals of the Decade. Where do we women standvis-a-vis each of them? Insufficient growth, wrongpriorities, prejudices are the set answers. Women's

Studies in India can keep Nairobi deliberations aliveif we decide to carry forward the tasks outlined in thedocuments. The New World where women's worth isrecognised is to be fought for and women will haveto lead the struggle. 0

K. Saradamoni

Nairobi Conference' Some Issues in Focus'

The NGO FORUM was attended by about13000 persons, the majority from developing coun­tries. Unlike Mexico and Copenhagen, at NairobiThird WorId women's groups initiated discussions,demonstrations or cultural activities. Women's issueshave moved from the traditional narrow-contextdiscussions to attempts to contextualise women'sproblems in the broader social, international andhuman rights debates. The decade created newawareness and perspectives in understanding women'ssituations. We report briefly the focus of the moreorganised discussion forums.

Women's Studies International

Women's Studies International attempted tofollow-up discussions initiated among women'sstudies scholars at Copenhagen in 1980.

Women's studies has emerged as a powerful toolfor women's development, and for pushing theintellectual horizons of the women's movement.What strategies were necessary to ensure its conti­nuity? How to improve its present marginal status ­outside major teaching and research establishments?How to assure funding beyond the Decade? How toimprove dissemination and overcome resistancewithin universities to the development of women'sstudies ? Women's Studies International (WSI)sought to clarify future strategies through a pvolingof experience across the world. It felt that pushingforward the horizons of intellectual awareness wasvital because of the reaction in many countries fromfundamentalist sources. Twenty-six institutions from15 countries acted as co-sponsors of the programme.The institutions included many universities and someprestigious research and training institutes.

There were four panel discussions and 13 work­shops. Models and methodologies for teaching,research and action for establishing linkages withpublic policies, law and civil rights, NGOs andgrassroot action, for training development personnel,new developments in research, the role of historyand literature in women's studies were presented anddiscussed at various panels and workshops.

An action programme for strengthening the net­works· between institutions and individuals involvedin women's studies across the world was formulated,suggesting exchange of journals, scholars and stu­dents to promote fertilisation of' ideas; experiencesand comparative studies. The need for document-­ation centres and. translation of material fromdifferent languages emerged as critical concerns. Ageneral recommendation about incorporation ofwomen's studies within educational systems as amethod'of making educational institutions play amore active and interventionist role in women'sstruggle for' equality was conveyed to the NGOPlanning Committee, which had invited recommend­ations to be made from the NGO Forum to theofficial' UN Conference.

Participants from nearly 80 countries discussedthe -issueswith great seriousness and concern. Thepoliticai dimension of women's studies wa'Srecognis­ed throughout the discussions ; there was no con­frontation betweell groups following diverse politicalideologies. The commonality of concerns and theneed for sharing of experiences was very much tothe forefront. There was a unanimous demand for adetailed publication oased on the entire programme.The Feminist Press, which has preserved all thematerial and recorded discussions, undertook thisresponsibility and is seeking UNSECO funding.

Another workshop organised by Women'sStudies International Discussions brought out theconnection between the resurgence of women'smovements and research and action concerning thewomen's question. The emergence of a body of newknowledge and a number of specialists all over theworld is one of the significant achievements of theDecade. Indian experience in this was recognised assubstantial, as evidenced from the conferencesorganised by the Indian Association for Women'sStudies and the work of specialised groups fromuniversities, colleges, research and voluntaryorganisations.

The workshop noted the role of research,focussing on women in' policy analysis and efforts

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to improve policy approaches to women's develop­ment and women's rights. _ Researchers andactivists also helped to focus public. attention on thegrowing phenomenon of violence against women,making it a bat tie-cry for the women's movemenr.While the development of theory on the complexpower relations between the family, the organisationof politico-economic systems and gender was stilluneven, women's research actively questioned therole of the State in eliminating male dominance. Hasthe state anywhere really worked to fundamentallyrestructure relations of power and authority withinthe family, or to transform class, caste and genderconstructions, that dominate women's lives?

Women, Law and Development

The Forum on Women Law and Developmentaimed to 'develop a network among Third Worldwomen who have developed or plan to developaction-oriented programmes to promote and improvethe legal situation of women' and 'to contribute tothe development of effective action-oriented pro­grammes and strategies utilizing innovative metho­dologies in the Third World'. The Forum had 50women panelists from 36 countries and their sessionslasted for a week of workshops, discussing diversesubjects like constitutional providons, customs andethnicity, violence and exploitation of women.

The first workshop took up constitutional issuesand development policies. Though many ThirdWorld countries provide constitutional directives forequality of sexes and prohibit discrimination on theground of sex, in reCllity many of these provisionshave remained merely on paper without affecting thelives of the women who are not aware of them.During the Decade concerted efforts of women'sQrganisations has led to some important reforms.

Kenyan women now have a new succession law,Indonesia has brought about changes in its' marriagelaw and Zimbabwe no longer treats its women asminols all their lives. In Mauritius active women'sorganisations were able to prevail on the govern­ment to change the Napoleonic code which wasdiscriminatory to women. Now women can haveboth a religious marriage as well as a civil marriageand both parents can share rights over children.

The emphasis of the discussions was on not beingcomplacent about reforms but to devise ways andmeans by which women could be empowered to usethe law to their benefit. This alone will make law aneffective instrument for justice and equality. Hencethe emphasis on legal literacy to make women aware~f their rights.

In Bolivia the Legal Office for Women workswith 40 centres both rural and urban. The officec1istributes e'isy-to-understand information on lawsthat benefit women and also uses the mass media.Another strategy of the Law Office is to train somewomen as leaders who have knowledge of law who

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in turn train others. The result of this is that manywomen have become aware. of their rights and thepolice, which earlier would detain women on theflimsiest of grounds, and demand bribes, are nowquite hesitant to do so.

In India direct act'ion like protest demonstrationsagainst dowry burning help to bring the issue beforethe public and to pressurise the police to investigatetile cases.

Another interesting area for discussion was thedual system prevailing especially in Asia and Africa _the public/civil law and the customary or tribal law.The public law is changed according to the needs ofthe policy makers whereas customary or tribal law isconfined to the family sphere, which is regarded asprivate law. This law remains static and is usuallydiscriminatory to women, for example the practiceof excluding women from land ownership. Demandsfor change are resisted by romanticising customarylaw as something which the people have followedfor ages and which should not therefore, be tamper­ed with. But during the Decade changes have beenbrought about in many countries and what is nownecessary is to see that the law is used by women,as tradition continues to govern their lives in thehome.

Patriarchal values rooted in the social andeconomic system need to. be changed because they'lead to the perpetuation of legal discriminationagainst women, and contribute to the increasingviolence against women-rape, dowry deaths, wifebattering, sale of women for prostitution and so on.

The Group recommended a uniform 'alternativelaw, at the international level with minimumstandards of women's rights, but allowing for diver­sity of cultural traditions. It formed an internationalemergency committee for women's rights in develop­ing countries which will act as an 'activist women'srights watchdog'.

Alternative Report on Asian Women

Asian Women's Research and Action Network(A W RAN) is a group of researchers and activistswho believe that feminist research is 'enabling andcommitted research'. They prepared an 'alternativereport' on Asian women and presented their findingsin a panel discussion. Panelists focussed on theimpact of growth strategies, industrialisation pro­cesses and the growth of Export Promotion Zones(EPZ) and Free Trade Zones (FTZ) on women'sroles in the rigion.

Development Alternatives with Women

Development Alternatives with Women for aNew Era (DAWN) a project initiated by a group ofThird World activists, organisers and researchers­had a series of pre-Nairobi consultations during1984 - 1985. The institutions involved in this ThirdWorld initiative are drawn from Asia, Africa, Latin

America and the Caribbean countries. A documentwas prepared and presented at Nairobi, statingwomen's experience with development models andthe impact of global economic, political and culturalcrisis on women. The document also emphasises analternative vision and future strategies by empower­ing women's organisations and involving women atall levels of planning and implementation. TheGroup organised a series of panel discussions andworkshops on effects of growth-oriented developmentstrategies on women, the nature of the global crisisand alternative visions of development, and womenand media with special reference to feminist writingsand the press.

Discussion on the development experience ofIndia and China brought out two major aspects:one, the adverse impact of agricultural technologyor rural women in India, particularly in the GreenRevolution areas; and secondly the gender-specificimplications of the House-hold Contract System ofResponsibility in rural China. The panel sought toshow the erosive effects of some economic reforms inThird World countries on women. The food crisisin Africa and the impact of international debt inLatin American countries provides further illustra­tions.

The workshop on Feminism and Socialism

addn:ssed to the following questions: (a) social posi­tion of women in the pre-liberation period; (b)achievements for women since the liberation of theirsocieties; and (c) problem areas that continue.The following conclusions were arrrived at :

(a) the gender relationship of dominance and sub­ordination IS a political relationship which derivesits legitimacy from a traditional culture. Womenbecome instruments through which a systemicinequality is maintained. Hence, there is a constantneed to heighten political consciousness among bothwomen and men for a closer interrelationship ofsocialism and feminism.

b) socialism provides ~ basis, a 'take-off plat­form' for women's liberation. But it does notautomatically bring about redefinition of women'srole and position. Women will only improve theirposition if they fight for it themselves and their fighthas to be both against class and gender oppression.

c) participation in social production is a funda­mental condition for women's integration intosocialist development, but it is not a sufficient con­dition. Continuing efforts at political education andaction have to be made in order to resolve thepressures from traditional cultural valUes andgrowth"oriented development. 0

Vina Mazumdar

Education and Women's Equality

A three day National Seminar on Education andWomen's Equality was organised by Government ofIndia, Ministry of Human Resource Development(Department of Education) in collaboration withCentre for Women's Development Studies at VigyanBhavan, New Delhi from 3rd to 5th November,1985. Eminent educationists, research scholars,experienced social workers, representatives of volun­tary organisations, correspondents of media, allengaged in the task of women's development, fromall over India, came to New Delhi to participate inthe Seminar.

Dr. Veena Mazumdar, Director, Centre forWomen's Development Studies presided over theplenary session of the Seminar and presented herthought provoking theme paper on the subject.Broad guidelines and issues for NEP (Women'sEducation) were read out by Mr. Anil Bordia,Additional Secretary Dept. of Education. Themembers formed three working groups, Group A todiscuss Elementary Education; Group B to dealwith Non Formal and Adult Education and GroupC to concentrate on Secondary and Higher Educa­tion. Each working group was requested to focuson issues common to all sectors such as :

(a) Problems of Access - Strategies and measuresto overcome them.

(b) Biases and shortcomings in Content ofEducation - how to change them? In whichdirection? What are the specific measuresrequired?

(c) Skill development - What kind of skills?How to promote, at what stage? What kindof balance is needed between physicalmental/intellectual and relational skills?

(d) Vocational training - how to link withemployment potential and individual aptitu­des/talents?

(e) Strategies, instruments, indicators for bettermonitoring and evaluation - how to ensureobjectivity and increase meaningful partici­pation of people within and outside thesystem.

(f) Human resource mobilisation and develop­ment for the changes/new measures ~suggest­ed for (a) to (e). What should be the basicqualities/qualifications for such persons?

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How and ~here should th~y be trained?Who should be responsible for designing andorganising such training?

(g) Support strategies and linkage with otherdevelopmental 'sect,ors/ptogrammes - to

"maximise resource mobilisation and coordi­. niltion of investment and effQrt.

The!' information Rnd Meas shared durin:g thediscussions are summarised below :

Soon after Independence it was realised thateducation was a major instrument for leading thecountry to' self-reliance, social justice, . economicgrowth and modernisation of agriculture and~ndustJ;'y.Phenomenal growth in educational facili­ties in' the country has been witnessed during the last

, ,. 38 years.' Several innovative educational 'Procedures1/', are being experimented. Massive adult literacy

programmes have been launched." Incentives andspecial fucilities are offereH ~·for.I disadvant'ag~dsections of society. Yet the hIgh incidence ofilliteraty, dropouts and left-outs is shocking: Thesituation is further aggravated" hy gender dis­plarities. Inequality in the male-female literacy levelis causing serious concern. Girls constitute 80 %of the total non-enrolled children in' the age group6-14. The education of female child is neglectedmostly because of household constraints,

On the other hand, mociernisation has changedthe pattern of many traditional occupations, offeringemployment to women in large numbers. Womencould not cope with changing demands of work dueto lack of needed skills. Modernisation' is expectedto improve the status of people, but in the 'case ofwomen, it has had adverse effects. To study thisunanticipated situation, a committee on the statusof women was constituted. The committee in itsreport expressed deep concern over the falling statusof women. CSWI accused thb planners for wrongassumptions regarding women's roles, needs andpriorities; accused educational bureaucrats in 'parti­cular for their ambivalent attittlde/approach towardswomen's education and neglect of the wideninggender gap in elementary, adult and vocationaleducation, and reinforcement of traditional sex­ster'eotypes, reflecting middle class values and reali­ties. The educatiQn system instead of being aninstrument for promoting the new values of,socialand gender equality has become a powerful ..instru­ment of the Sanskritisation process.

To improve "thbsocio-economic status of women,it is important that ad.:ess to education for 'girls isensured, educatiodal facilities I further expanded,existing skills upgraded,' training in "hew skillsencouraged and soCial barriers removed. Educationis the most powerlu~ ,instru~entJ for;br~nging indesired social cha.,ngt(.iTja peaceful manner. Educa­tional policy at this juncture of time has thus to

, face two challenges :

(a) To propare people for the future - the worldof the 21st century.

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(b) To complete the unfinished tasks drawing onthe lessons of the four decades sinceIndependence.

The goals of women's equality and opportunityand status, their rights to justice, dignity and free­dom as provided in the Constitution aresignificant among the unfinished tasks that Indiamust complete for survival and further development.To achieve these goals and convert them into socialreality, the education system of the future, must,therefore fulfil the imperative tasks :

"a. Changing the attitudes and values regardingwomen's roles and rights in society to on'eof equal participation in all social, economicand political processes and national andinternational development.

h. To promote awareness among women andmen, of the need to develop and utilisewomen's full potential as resources fornational development in its economic, politi­cal, social and cultural aspects and of theneed to question existing values regardingtheir social responsibilities.

c. To counter the reactionary forces emanatingfrom certain sections of the media,economic, social and political institutionsthat encourage the demotion of women fromproductive to mere reproductive roles;

d. To revitalise education, bringing it closerto burning social issues, to work towardstheir solution and to produce sensitivepersons able to play more committed andmeaningful roles in development activitiesfor women in all sectors; and

e. To produce, for all levels of the educationalsystems, teachers who are aware of th e non­sexist education and to promote values ofsocial equality including gender equality,secularism, socialism and democracy'~.(Report of the National Workshop onWomen's Studies in Indian Universities,Delhi, April 1985).

The Non-aligned Conference of Ministers onRole of Women in Development (Delhi, April 1985)also supported the same strategy.

To realise the goal of universal elementaryeducation, to encourage non-formal education andto popularies education at secondary school level, anumber of strategies were discussed by the threeworking groups. Strategies recommended by thegroups are briefly summarised here :

1. Supportil'e Strategies: To enable girls tocome to schools and adult women to receiveliteracy and skill training, child care service'shave to be offered at the school/centres.Parents are generally reluctant to send theirdaughters to schools because they help inlooking after younger children and house­hold work. In-school child care services

y--will counteract parent's reluctance to a largeextent.

2. Enrolment and Retention Scholarships,provision of midday meal, free uniforms,books and utilisation of girl students aspupil teachers/mothers will further motivatethe parents to send their daughters toschools.

3. Special Support Programmes for training andrecruitment of female teachers. Teachers formthe most vital link, whose wholehearted andeffective participation is needed for promo­tion of female education.

4. Better working conditions of women teachersso as to improve the quality of womenteachers in rural areas in particular.Further, construction of working women'shostels in rural areas will provide adequatehousing facility and much needed securityto female teachers employed there.

5. Neighbourhood schools: Opening of girls'schools in the vicinity of villages willencourage access to education. Even existingboys' school buildings can be used for thispurpose, by scheduling flexible hours forgirls' shifts. Such arrangements will be cost­effective as the existing infrastructure canbe used for both the shifts.

The working group for secondary and highereducation made the following specific recommenda­tions :

(i) Uniform core curriculum for boys and girlsat secondary school level.

(ii) Introducing women's studies component inthe secondary school curriculum and afoundation course at the university level.

(iii) Increase in the number of teachers' training'institutes and motivating female sciencegraduates to opt for entering the teachingprofession.

(iv) To open more polytechnics for women andto diversify and restructure the technology­oriented courses taught presently. To offerincentives and reserve a quota for women in

all training courses-in service or pre­service-to improve enrolment in technicaltraining courses.

(v) To carefully watch the developments inhigh technology, anticipate future employ­ment trends and prepare/equip the youngergeneration of girls for entering such areas ofwork where they can be later gainfullyemployed.

The Working group on Non-formal Educationconcentrated on strategies which could improve theinteractional and communicative skills of women,help them understand their problems and search forsolutions on their own, need for population educa­tion, rights of women and other social legislation,seeking information about resources, and growingup as self-reliant individuals.

The most significant recommendation stronglysupported by participants of all the working groupsrelated to the role of media in altering the percep­tion and attitudes of the people. The media wasurged to project a positive image of women, work­ing as an equal partner in the social and economicdevelopment of the country.

The seminar ended with the plenary session on5th November afternoon presided over by theMinister of State for Human Resource Develop­ment, Mrs. Margaret Alwa who in her addressstressed the need for giving top priority to universalelementary education for girls and development ofspecial strategies and innovative techniques to reducegender disparities in access to all types of educationfor women.

The new Education Policy should provide properperspective and clearly state that education has toplay a significant role in promoting the valUes ofequality between men and women in all spheres oflife. Only then will the real purpose of the nationalseminar be fulfilled and women could hopefully lookforward to an emerging society where social justicswould prevail. 0

Amrit Nikore

IAWS Newsletter is published thrice in an year and despatched from:

AIACHEFirst Floor

C-6 Community CentreSafdarjung Development Area

New Delhi - 110016

Editorial BoardSr. Karuna Mary Braganza (Editor)Dr. Leela DubeDr. K. SaradamoniDr. Susheela KaushikMs. Amrit NikoreMs. Neerja ChowdharyMs. Sujata MadhokDr. Malshree Lal

Third National Conference on Women's Studies

The 3rd National Conference on Women's Studies will be held at Punjab University.Chandigarh, in October, 1986, with the theme: "Women, Struggles and Movements".Members interested in writing papers or organising workshops may kindly contact theGeneral Secretary, lAWS.

Membership in I.A.W.S.An application form for enrolment as member of lAWS is enclosed with this

Newsletter. The application form duly filled up and the subscription by money order orBank draft drawn in favour of "Indian Association for Women's Studies" may be sent to :

Dr. Mrs. K. Saradamoni,Treasurer (lAWS)Indian Statistical Institute,7 SJS Sansanwal Marg,New Delhi 110016

I.A.W.S. NewsletterWe request the readers to send us comments on and reactions to the contents 'of the

newsletter as well as suggestions for the next newsletter. Kindly send your contributionsbefore 15th March, 1986.

Editor, lAWS NewsletterC-6, Community Centre, 1st Floor,Safdarjung Development Area.New Delhi 110016.

Regional Directory of Women Social Scientistsand Institutions engaged in Research on Women

A regional Directory of :

i) Women Social Scientists; and

ii) Institutions engaged in research on women-is being compiled by the UnitedNations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation, ESCAP, Bangkok.

The Questionnaire to be filled in for conveying the required information is availablefrom Dr. L.M. Jacob. General Secretary, I.A.W.S. L III/D, University Campus, Jaipur302004. The questionnaires are to be returned to the following address:

Dr. Koto Kanno,Associate Expert,United Nations Educational, Scientific& Cultural Organisation,Regional Unit for Social and HumanSciences in Asia and the Pacific,24/1 Sukhumvi Sol 59,G. P. O. Box 1425,BANGKOK 10500,Thailand.

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