We can empower ourselves and branding us as weak is unfair, says writer Vijaya.
“Women have become a saleable commodity in the world of advertisements. It appears no product can be sold without first putting an ad showing a woman. We should come out of that world and give women economic freedom,” said writer Vijaya.
She was speaking at a seminar on ‘Contempary world and women’ at the World Kannada Meet in Belgaum on Sunday.
“Through ages, women have been treated as second class citizens. I don’t know who gave man the right to push women to the second position. Without women, men’s life will be incomplete. Give us our right and we’ll decide whether we should be in the second or first position. Give us a chance and we’ll generate employment opportunities for ourselves. Yes, we have the capacity for that. Hence, don’t brand women as inefficient,” she said. “The society is denying women the chance to acquire knowledge of politics,” she said.
Inaugurating the seminar, Shobha Karandlaje, minister for energy, food and civil supplies, said, “Although we got independence 64 years back, women’s basic problems remain unsolved. More and more women become victims of harassment. We have to equip them to face the challenges of the modern world. It’s time we do some introspection on developments on the women’s front,” she said.
Mahatama Gandhi’s dream of lonely women walking at midnight is yet to become a reality. Women are unsafe though they have proved their strength in all fields. Although there is a big gap between educated and uneducated women, they face similar problems. In the so-called modern society, women are still discriminated, she said. “We have to build confidence in women, educate and empower them.
Then they can face any challenge. If that happens, voiceless women will find a voice. In Karnataka, only 54% of women are educated and the state should try to give education for the rest also. Though we have several laws to address issues like harassment and rape, they will remain toothless tigers until the state government implements them effectively,” she said.
She urged women to join politics in large numbers to fight for their rights and to address their problems.
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