Towards Equality and Empowerment: The Global Quest for Gender Justice in South Asia
Last Updated on July 24, 2023 by Administrator
Written By – Tanni Ganguly, Pursuing Master of Laws (LLM) from South Asian University
Abstract:
The article’s goal is to examine the state of gender justice in the world today. Many nations throughout the world are making progress in ensuring gender justice, particularly in the areas of education and employment, in the age of globalization. More young women are attending school, and an increasing number of them are entering the paid labor market. However, the global rate of maternal mortality is remains relatively high. At the policy level, women continue to be marginalized. Though women suffer from environmental degradation as a result of socially created roles and duties placed entirely on them, environmental movements are not included in gender justice movements. It is a well-known reality in the twenty-first century that women’s suffrage will not lead to the world’s long-term progress. Gender equality is viewed as being crucial to the fight against global poverty, hunger, and injustice. The work is based on secondary data, with certain empirical case studies of south Asia that are featured in various primary databased articles, books, online publications, etc., as a supplement. The paper ends with several recommendations for advancing global gender justice and the freedom of women. This work tries to recognize that India and Bangladesh may be able to take the lead in achieving gender justice through their judiciaries, by employing a variety of methods, and may be an example for other nations and international human rights organizations.
Introduction
The goal of gender justice is to abolish socially manufactured differences between men and women.[1] It refers to the eradication, exclusion, exploitation, and abuse of women. According to Batliwala (1994),[2] gender justice is a process that focuses on changing both gender and the social relations that men and women interact in. Of the total world’s population, women and girls are the poorest and most marginalised.[3] The most vulnerable group in poverty is women. Over one dollar per day is the standard of life for 1.4 billion people worldwide. Of them, women and girls make up 70%. Only 10% of the world’s workers are women, and they undertake two thirds of the labor. Despite producing 50% of the world’s food, women only own 1% of it. Nine hundred million adults worldwide, two thirds of them are female, are illiterate (UN study, 2007). Early marriage, discrimination, and sexual harassment limit women’s freedom and capacity for decision-making.
Due to the fact that these tasks are unpaid and informal, women bear the brunt of the domestic obligations that society places solely on them. However, conventional economists ignore this fact. The third millennium development goal of empowering women has seen a lot of government and nongovernmental organization (NGO) effort in the twenty-first century, but there is still much work to be done. The empowerment of women is still an unfinished revolution, despite efforts to promote gender equality in the workplace and in school.
Although many government and nongovernmental organization (NGO) measures have been made in the twenty-first century to further the third millennium development aim of empowering women, much more needs to be done. The empowerment of women is still an unfinished revolution, despite the fact that some techniques are being used to achieve gender equality in the education and job sectors. Women’s empowerment goes beyond the idea of equality and emphasizes reaching one’s full potential and having the capacity to affect others.
The essay discusses how women really live in Asia, Africa, and Latin America as well as what may be done to hasten the development of women in these regions. In the twenty-first century, it has been demonstrated that empowering women is one of the quickest strategies to combat
poverty.[4] The paper ends with some policy recommendations to resolve the worldwide crisis and expedite the advancement of gender justice on a global scale.
GENDER JUSTICE:
The term “gender justice” is ambiguous. It can relate to ‘justice to the fairer sex’ or to treating men and women equally. Gender justice will, nevertheless, be interpreted as “justice to the fairer sex” for the purposes of this work. It is a crucial component of a civilised society. No civilization can advance if gender justice is not upheld. Women are the companion of men and are endowed with equal mental potential, as our nation’s father Mahatma Gandhi famously observed. Ignoring them will result in a major catastrophe for humanity. The list of “unfinished business” should unquestionably start with gender justice, especially in regards to issues involving the family and the workplace. Along with gender freedom, it ranks among the highest goals for eliminating gender inequities, which have a significant impact on the lives of men, women, boys, girls, and persons of all gender expressions and identities. It is a framework that enables us, as those who advocate for human rights, to build on the stepping stones of gender equity, equality, and empowerment and to move farther in our quest for societal reform.
This idea of gender justice is best summarized by Nyamu Musembi, a fellow at the Institute of Development Studies at the University of Sussex: “Gender justice is about more than simply challenging the relationship between men and women. It entails developing plans for corrective action aimed at changing society as a whole to make it more just and equal; it also refers to a setting where women and men can be treated equally. Furthermore, it denotes a transition from arbitrary to well-justified, balanced, and equitable social connections.[5]
There are several crucial aspects of gender justice that are universal and require correction.[6]
- Fair treatment of women and men, where fairness is assessed based on substantive results rather than on the basis of a concept of formal equality that uses an implausible “sameness” norm. This implies that in some circumstances, a different course of action might be required to achieve a just result.
- Fairness should apply to both interpersonal interactions and the institutions that mediate them and provide recourse in cases of wrongdoing.
- Recognition that gender justice inherently entails rebalancing the scales in favor of women given a lengthy history of gender hierarchy that has disadvantageous effects on women.
- Contesting the arbitrary nature of gender socialization.
GLOBAL VIEW OF GENDER JUSTICE
Achieving gender equity depends on women and men participating equally in economic and social development and enjoying equal benefits from society’s resources. In 1976, the United Nations Development Fund for Women (UNIFEM) was established to offer financial and technical support for women’s emancipation. In 1979, the United Nations established the
Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW).
It is sometimes referred to as a global declaration of women’s rights. Four world conferences on women (between 1975 and 1995) and the Decade for Women (1976–1985) both had a vital role in fostering a greater understanding of and commitment to gender equality and gender justice. The United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women, UN Women, was established by the UN General Assembly in July 2010. By doing this, UN Member States advanced the Organization’s objectives for gender equality and women’s empowerment in a historic way. In addition, the Commission on the Status of Women, a worldwide policy-making body of the United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC), is solely focused on advancing gender equality and women. The Gender Related Development Index and the Gender Empowerment Measure, two of the most well-known gender justice indices, were created by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) to compare and rate member nations’ performance on gender justice. In the Gender Related Development Index, India is placed 113, the United States is 16th, and the United Kingdom is 10th.
A treaty also gives the European Union the authority to support gender equality and combat other forms of discrimination. Discrimination based on sex and other factors is forbidden by Article 21 of the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights. The Amsterdam Treaty of 1999 strengthened alreadyexisting EC Treaty clauses that prohibit pay disparities between men and women.[7] It has advanced by supporting equality and working to end generalized discrimination against women.[8]
Women’s situation in Asia:
Households with female heads are more vulnerable in Asia. Jobs for single mothers are part-time, low compensated, transient, insecure, and subject to sexual abuse. The bottom rung of the development ladder is typically occupied by women from poor nations, who lack social
protection, health care, and safety guarantees. In Bangladesh, women work seven days a week for around $35–$40 a month. Technically speaking, they continue to live in poverty. But if you question them, they will say that even though they are underpaid and working conditions are dangerous, it is still better since they have some measure of financial freedom. The road to progress is seldom an easy one.[9] There are some locations in the world that are unjust and unsafe for women. But not all advancements have been smooth. Bangladesh is a country with gender parity. However, it’s exceedingly challenging to keep girls in school. Before the age of sixteen, girls get married, and before the age of eighteen, they become mothers.10 In a country like Bangladesh in South Asia, women prepare and serve meals to their husbands and families.
Then, no matter how little is left for her, they consume it. Men and women consume half as many calories. They do not possess any real estate. They rely on their sons and hubby. There are some homeless ladies. Due to marital abuse, they are forced to leave their house. Though they produce between 60 and 80 percent of the world’s food, women barely possess 2% of the land. Only 10% of agricultural financing is given to them (Action Aid report, 2010). Many nations restrict the rights of women in agriculture.
Gender justice is a fundamental principle of human rights that advocates for equal rights, opportunities, and treatment for individuals regardless of their gender identity. In India, the quest for global gender justice has been a longstanding struggle, with significant progress made in recent years towards achieving equality and empowerment for women.
Recent statistics show that although India has made considerable strides in gender equality, significant disparities still exist. For instance, the World Economic Forum’s 2021 Global Gender Gap Report ranked India 140th out of 156 countries in terms of gender equality. The report analyzed four key areas: economic participation and opportunity, educational attainment, health and survival, and political empowerment.11
In terms of economic participation and opportunity, India ranks 145th globally, indicating that women face significant barriers to entering the workforce and accessing economic opportunities. The gender pay gap also remains a significant issue, with women earning only 62.5% of what men earn for the same work.
Despite these challenges, there have been significant strides in women’s education and health in recent years. For instance, the literacy rate among women has increased from 48% in 1991 to 70.3% in 2011, and maternal mortality rates have declined significantly. However, access to healthcare remains a significant issue, with women in rural areas and marginalized communities facing significant barriers to accessing essential healthcare services. In terms of political empowerment, India ranks 18th globally, with women occupying 23% of parliamentary seats. However, women still face significant barriers to participating in politics, including discrimination and harassment.[10]
The Indian government has taken significant steps to promote gender justice in recent years, including the implementation of various schemes and programs aimed at empowering women and girls. For instance, the Beti Bachao Beti Padhao scheme aims to improve the status of girls and women by providing financial assistance to families for the education of their daughters and promoting gender equality.[11]The government has also implemented several laws aimed at promoting gender justice, including the Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act and the Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act.
In conclusion, India has made significant progress towards achieving global gender justice, but much work remains to be done. The government must continue to implement policies and programs that promote women’s empowerment and address the significant disparities that exist. Moreover, social attitudes towards gender roles and stereotypes must be challenged and changed to promote gender equality and justice.
Women also fail to take care of themselves. Children are fed by mothers, pregnant women are denied medical attention, and elderly widows are left alone. In economics, all of these data are invisible. The largest challenge is gender violence, in addition. There are fewer ways for poor women to flee violence. In third-world nations, sex-selective abortion, child marriage, dowries, acid throwing, eve teasing, and domestic violence are still pervasive issues.[12] In other regions of the world, the rate of sexual abuse is also very high, and the environment is not always secure.
My understanding is that the main instruments for emancipation may be job and education.
Motherhood must be under the control of women. More women are liberated in this way thanks to contraceptive pills.
In the area of women’s sexual and reproductive rights, some advancements have been made. Women are the ones that bring about changes. Microfinance has created a vast array of opportunities in many developing nations, including Bangladesh. Women start to understand that they are agents of change rather than just recipients of benefits from the system or victims of injustice. Women’s organizations’ combined power is becoming more powerful. The key difference is made by women themselves.[13] Recently, the government of Bangladesh adopted a
policy to guarantee equal rights with regard to land inheritance.[14]In Bangladesh cabinet five ministers are women including foreign and home ministers. More and more women are standing in elections and are coming in mainstream political arena.
ROLE OF INDIAN JUDICIARY IN ENSURING GENDER JUSTICE:
In this section, I’d like to concentrate on a few significant Supreme Court rulings that show the court’s differing perspectives on cases involving women’s rights and gender justice in general as well as the crucial influence of the context in which these cases are brought.
1. State of Rajasthan v. Vishaka,[15]
The Vishaka case resulted from the gang rape of Bhanwari Devi, a sathin, a group of women trained by the regional government to perform village-level social work in exchange for an honorarium. Bhanwari Devi attempted to prevent the marriage of an infant girl in rural Rajasthan as part of the government’s campaign against child marriage. First, locals replied by intimidating
Bhanwari Devi with threats and putting her family under a socioeconomic boycott. Then, on September 22, 1992, Bhanwari Devi was sexually assaulted by five men in front of her husband.
After learning about the situation, the National Commission for Women (a statutory organisation formed by the national government to advance women’s rights) launched a thorough investigation and produced an impartial report concluding that all available evidence demonstrated beyond a reasonable doubt that the victim was a victim of gang rape. The five defendants were nonetheless freed from the rape accusation by the Rajasthan state criminal court because, among other reasons, the judge did not think it plausible that upper caste males would rape a lower caste woman.
Naina Kapur, a lawyer who had attended Bhanwari Devi’s criminal trial, made the decision to “focus on the big picture” by filing a PIL action in the Supreme Court to protest sexual harassment in the workplace. She was frustrated by the criminal justice system’s inability to offer practical remedies, restore the victim’s dignity, address systemic problems, and bring about broad-based social change.18 On August 13, 1997, a three-judge Supreme Court panel issued the Vishaka decision. Bhanwari Devi’s gang rape was cited in the decision by then-Chief Justice J. S. Verma as an example of “the hazards to which [a] working woman may be exposed,” “the depravity to which sexual harassment can degenerate,” and the urgent need “for safeguards by an alternative mechanism in the absence of legislative safeguards.”
In order to “fill the gap in existing legislation, the Court accepted the task of addressing these issues through the judicial process.” The Vishaka judgement incorporated a broad reading of the Constitution and acknowledged. The essential constitutional rights to equality, freedom from discrimination, life, and liberty, as well as the right to engage in any occupation, are all clearly violated by sexual harassment.
- Mrs. Chandrima Das v. Chairman, Railway Board[16]
Smt. Hanuffa Khatoon, a Bangladeshi national who was gang-raped by many people, including railroad employees, in a room at the “Yatri” hotel, was the victim of the petition filed by Mrs. Chandrima Das, a practising Calcutta High Court attorney, under Article 226 of the Constitution against the chairman of the railway board through the chief secretary, the government of West Bengal, and many other officers, including the deputy high commissioner of the Republic of Bangladesh. In the appeal, it was contended before the SC that as Hanuffa was a foreigner and not an Indian citizen, the Railways would not be required to compensate him. Additionally,[17] it is argued that even if the offence was committed by the individual in question, the Railway or the Union of India would not be responsible for compensating the offender’s victim. According to the argument, the Railways or, for that matter, the Union of India would not even be vicariously liable in this case because it was the individual act of those individuals who would be prosecuted, punished, and possibly required to pay a fine or compensation if found guilty. It is further argued that no compensation could have been lawfully granted by the High Court in a proceeding under Article 226 of the Constitution at the request of a practising attorney who had no connection to or concern for the victim because the remedy for the crime committed against Smt. Hanuffa Khatoon fell under private law, not public law.
- State v. Ram Singh and another,[18](Nirbhoya Case)
In this case, a young girl was returning home with a male friend after watching a movie. They boarded a bus and soon figured out that something was wrong. The six people on board, including the driver knocked the boy unconscious with an iron rod and then raped her one at a time. They shoved an iron rod in her vagina, severely damaging her intestines, abdomen and genitals. Then they drove off after throwing the boy and the woman off of the bus. Within 24 hours, the males were arrested and the victim was taken to the hospital. The woman eventually passed away from her wounds, and the men were put on trial right afterwards. One of the defendants committed suicide in custody while they were on trial. The five who remained were then accused of rape and murder. The child was committed to a reform centre for three years while the four adults received the death penalty.[19] Due to this case, the definition of rape was expanded to include extramarital sex. The new definition makes any penetration of a woman’s orifice by a man’s body part or object illegal.
- Indian Young Lawyers Association v. State of Kerala (India):
This case involved a challenge to the Sabarimala temple’s practice of prohibiting women of menstruating age from entering the temple. The Supreme Court of India held that the practice was discriminatory and violated women’s constitutional right to equality. The court’s decision sparked controversy and protests, but it was seen as a significant victory for women’s rights in India.
- Rana Plaza collapse case:
In 2013, a building housing several garment factories collapsed in Dhaka, Bangladesh, killing over 1,100 people, mostly women. The incident brought attention to the poor working conditions and lack of safety regulations in Bangladesh’s garment industry, which is a major employer of women. The tragedy prompted international scrutiny and calls for better labor rights and safety measures for workers.23
- Bangladesh Legal Aid and Services Trust (BLAST) v. Bangladesh (Bangladesh):
This case challenged the legality of two discriminatory laws in Bangladesh that allowed men to divorce heir wives unilaterally, without the consent or knowledge of the wife. The High Court of Bangladesh ruled that the laws were unconstitutional and discriminatory, and ordered the government to amend them.
- Acid Survivors Foundation v. State (Bangladesh):
In this case, the High Court of Bangladesh directed the government to take steps to prevent acid violence against women, and to provide compensation and medical care to survivors of such violence. The court recognized that acid violence is a form of gender-based violence, and that the state has a duty to protect women from such violence.
What lessons do we take away?
Investment in women’s health, education, and employment is crucial to boosting women’s capacities. Therefore, it’s crucial to provide security in order to keep them safe. The most essential thing is to give women the power to assert their rights and to participate; this way, they will make their own judgements. Women’s voices should be heard. All around the world, maternal mortality is still very high. In the past 20 years, there has not been much of a change in maternal deaths. Around the world, half a million women pass away every minute. Some women experience pregnancy-related complications. Only 1% less than twenty years has passed since the last major advancement in this field. Infant mortality rates are exhibiting an upward trend, but maternal mortality rates are still highly depressing despite the fact that many industries support sending girls to school. I concur with several of the health professionals’ points of view on maternal mortality. But who gets to decide when a woman gets married, in my opinion?
Who determines when woman should get pregnant? Who determines the number of kids she should have? How would she distribute those kids? Who determines when she needs to seek medical attention for a condition? Who determines how much money the government should allocate for maternal health issues? We can view these challenges very differently if we approach them from the standpoint of women making decisions. Why there hasn’t been a change in maternal mortality. My claim is that gender inequality is not a result of a lack of resources, and economic expansion is insufficient to solve the problem. I agree that there is a strong connection between concerns of rights and gender equality, as stated by Irene Khan, secretary general of Amnesty International. It is the result of deeply ingrained discrimination against women, which can occasionally be seen in laws or policies that support it. Additionally, there are differences between empowerment and equality. The WB and other international development organizations concur on the need for equality. They all support equal rights for men and women in employment, healthcare, and education.
Health, education, work, and social protection are all crucial in my opinion, but protecting the rights of women—the unfinished revolution of the twenty-first century—is of utmost importance. The most significant untapped resource for development is gender. For instance, infant mortality decreases when a woman has completed high school. There is a direct correlation between mother empowerment and child safety when the mother is educated because children will immunize themselves more frequently. Similarly, if we discuss water management, adaptation to climate change, environmental degradation, and investments in agriculture, who is actually transporting water for domestic use?
In many nations, women are still primarily in charge of locating food and grazing areas for animals. They are generally in charge of obtaining water supplies for homes’ other essential requirements as well as for drinking. Women are often in charge of planting and gathering particular food items, such as fruits, vegetables, and so on. The dimensions of environmental policies would change if we knew the answers to the questions. It’s crucial to give women opportunities rather than money so they can choose their own fate.
Policy recommendations:
The government should adopt a fresh perspective on challenges and factor people into each and every decision it makes. Government and development organizations must place more emphasis on outcomes than merely productivity. For instance, the World Bank ran a study on infrastructure and water management in developing nations. They were creating a water exit for farming. Suddenly, they saw that the water supply needed to be closer to their homes so that young girls could readily gather water as collecting water is exclusively the responsibility of women and girls. Because fewer women can profit from market benefits, we must remove health, education, water, and food off the market. Basic human needs must be met by the government, as otherwise, people would not be able to afford health care or an education. She also claims that since health and education are human rights rather than needs, they cannot be priced. Irene Khan also highlights in her book[20]named unheard truth: poverty and human rights that basic needs like food, health, education, water should be treated as rights rather than needs. Human rights promote structural equality in an unequal market.[21]
Human rights can create a lovely framework for accountability where citizens are right holders despite the fact that the state and other parties are duty bearers who are responsible to right holders. Investment on the demand side of justice improves how well the supply side functions. Government must understand and prioritise human rights, and these rights must take gender into account.
Conclusion:
The article presents some examples of the global gender justice movement’s successes and setbacks. To advance gender justice in the twenty-first century, certain policy recommendations have also been developed. As a citizen of a developing nation, I share the dream of many people to live in a world free from discrimination, exploitation, exclusion, and oppression of women. Women have the power to realise their potential and deserve to have all of their human rights as citizens and most importantly as human beings. To create a world free of persecution, poverty, and hunger, the government, civil society, and corporate sector should all share the same message.
The Bangladeshi judiciary’s situation for gender justice has seen significant improvements over the years, with the introduction of various laws, policies, and initiatives aimed at protecting and promoting women’s rights. However, there are still significant challenges and shortcomings that need to be addressed, such as the persistence of patriarchal attitudes and gender biases in the justice system, the lack of adequate resources and training for judges and legal professionals, and the slow pace of justice delivery in cases of gender-based violence.
To ensure that women in Bangladesh have equal access to justice and are protected from discrimination and violence, there is a need for continued efforts and collaboration between the judiciary, government, civil society, and the international community. It is essential to implement more comprehensive measures that address the root causes of gender inequality and violence against women, promote awareness and education on women’s rights, and ensure that women have equal representation and participation in the justice system.Overall, while progress has been made, there is still a long way to go to achieve true gender justice in Bangladesh’s judiciary.
The Indian judicial system creates its own notion of gender justice based on regional circumstances and generally recognized standards. Advocates for women’s rights and the
Supreme Court are important players in determining the discourse. The Court has broadly
addressed violations of human rights through a number of ways and inspired action from other governmental branches. However, when judicial decisions cannot be efficiently carried out, they might ultimately weaken the Court’s authority. This is especially true when judicial orders intrude too far into the purview of the legislature and the administration. By being steadfastly loyal to the Constitution, the Court could prevent these undesirable inclinations. The Indian Constitution offers a strong legal foundation for enforcing gender justice through this process and permits advice from international law to that aim. It has liberally allowed the judiciary to create the procedurally flexible PIL mechanism.
[1] Global inequality can be framed as a problem between states or between individuals within states. Both perspectives illuminate important aspects of the problem, although there are obvious theoretical and policy differences between each view. In this paper I am speaking of inequality as experienced between individuals who, through globalization, are suddenly or more dramatically aware of each other’s differing circumstances.
[2] Batliwala, S. (1994) “The Meaning of Women’s Empowerment: New Concepts from Action”, in. Sen, G., Germain, A., Chen, L. C. e
[3] http://doublepickles.blogspot.com/2012/06/forced-sterilization-in-mexico.html
[4] Mather, Mark and Adams, Dia (2007),the cross over in female-male college enrollment rates, Population Reference Bureau.
[5] Celestine Nyamu Musembi, ‘Gender Justice A Concepttual Analysis’, 2004. Linguith, Suxess
[6] Challenging the Liberal Subject: Law and Gender Justice around the Globe’, Ratna Kapur, ‘Gender Justice,
Citizenship and Development’, Edited by Maitrayee Mukhopadhyay and Navsharan Singh, (2007), published by Zubaan, New Delhi, p. 11
[7] (Article 141)
[8] (Articles 2 and 3 of the EUROPEAN COMMUNITY TREATY, 1957)
[9] Maitrayee Mukhopadhyay, ‘Gender Justice, Citizenship and Development: An Introduction’, ‘Gender Justice, Citizenship and Development’, Edited by Maitrayee Mukhopadhyay and Navsharan Singh, (2007), published by Zubaan, New Delhi, p. 11
[10] National Legal Services Authority v. Union of India, (2014) 5 SCC 438
[11] Ministry of Women and Child Development https://wcd.nic.in/schemes/beti-bachao-beti-padhao-scheme
[12] The Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act, 2013
[13] ‘Situating Gender and Citizenship in Development Debates’, Maitrayee Mukhopadhyay, ‘Gender Justice,
Citizenship and Development’, Edited by Maitrayee Mukhopadhyay and Navsharan Singh, (2007), published by Zubaan, New Delhi, p. 78
[14] National Legal Services Authority v. Union of India, (2014) 5 SCC 438
[15] AIR 1997 SC 3011
[16] AIR 2000 SC 988
[17] SLP (Crl.) No. 6111 of 2005
[18] SC No. 114/2013
[19] Ibid
[20] Khan Irene (2009), “The Unheard Truth: Poverty and Human Rights”, W.W. Norton & Co
[21] Mather, Mark and Adams, Dia (2007),the cross over in female-male college enrollment rates, Population Reference Bureau.
