ESCAP High Level Intergovenmental Meeting to Review Regional Implementaion of the Beijing Platform for Action is in the process of finalization of regional report, it will be appropriate to acknowledge certain obstacles, while formulating strategies.
The voices from South Asia, Asia Pacific and also from within Country consulatations, categorically underlined certain obstacles for implementaton of PFA in the region. However surprisingly, these obstacles were not mentioned in the government report, barring few exceptions. In this context, NGOs have to shoulder the historical responsibility for expressing these realities, which can be termed as obstacles.
Corruption at every level, is leading to fueling of hopelessness and demoralization of voluntary sector.
Intervention by vested interest groups in the law enforcement machinary is resulting into total failure of every strategy regarding Gender Justice, implementation of existing good laws, and even denying justice to women.
And finally, inadequate resouce allocation to gender-development issues is a major obstacle. It was not clear from many reports theshift in the Budget allocation.
This applies to the North-South divide, and Asian women are being taken granted that they are for "Micro" programmes and the so called "developed" are suppose to decide about "Macro" issue! There is a need to identify specific Budget, and Programmes relevant to survival and empowerment of women.
While the drafting of the Strategies, we have to remind ourselves that diverse backgrounds and specific forms of exploitations experienced by different vulnerable groups needs to be kept in mind.
Members of Task Force
India Women 2000 for Beijing plus Five
- a focal pointfor India.
Neelem Gorne
Stree Aadhar Kendra,
Silversides N.K. Mandir Pstm,
Model Colony Pure 411016 M.S. India
91-20-5520976 (fax) 5652172 (fax)
91-20-5531017 (phone)
