DIMAPUR, MARCH 8 (MExN): Discussions on the issue of 33% Reservation for Naga women in Nagaland dominated the International Women’s Day Celebration at the Australia India Institute (AII), a public institute funded by the Australian Government Department of Education at Melbourne.
A press note informed that AII, the only national centre in Australia that focuses on India and carries out extensive research and policy analysis, celebrated the day with a panel titled ‘Women’s Rights in India.’
The panelists consisted of Dr. Dolly Kikon, Dr. Amanda Gilbertson, Inotoli Zhimomi, and Dr. Amy Piedalue. Chaired by the research director of the institute Professor Haripriya Rangan, the panelists shared their research and advocacy work on India.
There was a special discussion on the recent violence in Nagaland regarding the opposition to 33% reservation for Naga women in urban local bodies. Inotoli Zhimomi spoke about the campaign she initiated with her colleague Dr. Dolly Kikon. Emphasizing that the appeal and campaign was sent to the relevant bodies on March 8 including the Prime Minister of India’s office as planned, Zhimomi said that the campaign was to address the structural violence and patriarchy in the system and was not a “Naga male-bashing” process.
She noted that this was an important point to underline because anyone who abuses power and authority – be it male or female – had to be made accountable towards the community. Therefore, it was important to do away with the prevailing notion that gender justice was only a prerogative of women. She exhorted that it was time to stop putting the onus on women to bring about gender justice, and called upon men and women alike to join hands and work towards a gender just society. Professor Haripriya Rangan cautioned that the situation about blindly legitimizing customs and traditions was not unique to Naga society alone. Giving the example of South Africa where she has conducted research for more than two decades, Professor Rangan noted that tribal male bodies like the traditional councils in South Africa also excluded female members and kept away women from joining these offices. She described how the ongoing campaign and mobilization for gender justice in South Africa increasingly exposed how patriarchy and authority were manipulated in the name of culture and tradition.
Dr. Amanda Gilbertson spoke about her research and advocacy work on gender justice campaigns and politics among the youth in New Delhi in the aftermath of the infamous 2012 rape in Delhi. She described that young men and women in India were engaging in dialogues and political assertions calling an end to caste and class based politics that legitimized gender violence. Dr. Amy Piedalue, a postdoctoral scholar at the Australia India Institute (AII) shared her ongoing research among Muslim women and issues of gender justice and rights in the city of Hyderabad.
Dr. Dolly Kikon meanwhile picked up on Zhimoni’s reflections about issues of gender justice and connected other pressing issues that indigenous communities were facing in contemporary India. She said it was necessary to connect the increasing visibility of indigenous migrants from Northeast India in contemporary India with the grim reality back home. She also underlined the prevailing militarized society, increasing level of unemployment, and the dysfunctional government apparatus that has led to a breakdown of basic services like medicine, education, and welfare services in states like Nagaland, Manipur, and Assam as some of the reasons that migrants underlined.
As part of the celebration of International Women’s Day, Zhimomi and Kikon attended a special event organized by the Consulate General of India at Melbourne. During the discussion hour, the opposition to the 33% reservation for Naga women in Nagaland received special attention.
After the meeting, the Consul General of India, Manika Jain accepted the appeal and campaign for the implementation of the 33% reservation for Naga women in Nagaland. She assured that the matter would be brought to the attention of the Government of India.
