India ranked 114th among 142 countries in the World Economic Forum's (WEF) global gender equality gap report earlier this year. To promote gender equality in India, UN Women launched their HeForShe campaign on October 20.
Under secretary general and executive director of UN Women, Dr Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka announced Farhan Akhtar as their first male goodwill ambassador for the campaign on November 13 at a Bandra restaurant. A panel discussion was held, where gender equality in India was discussed.
Akhtar is the founder of MARD (Men against rape and discrimination), which has collaborated with this campaign. "We think violence against women isn't just a woman's issue, it's a man's issue too. We need to prevent it instead of curing it. MARD is supported by Sachin Tendulkar, Yuvraj Singh, Shaan and many others who are good role models for the youth. Men need to be feminists too, and more than anything, daughters need goodwill ambassadors. When it comes to the media, you have the power to reject a message if you think it is wrong and unbecoming. I reject movies if their message is against what I believe in," he said.
Akhtar recited a poem written by his father, which is a message to all men, and said his initiative is trying hard to change the perception of men and young boys in India and has already held 50 concerts in the country, besides social media campaigns.
On the HeForShe campaign website, it said that from India only 5,978 men had signed up for the campaign. Speaking to dna, Mlambo-Ngcuka said investing in women changes the whole world. "It is proven that educated women are in a better position to survive calamity and armed conflict and make decisions which are good for the community as a whole. In India, women have to engage their brothers, partners and colleagues to play an effective role in society. We should encourage men for this journey towards the gender bias battle. We have heard of the battle of the sexes, but for this, both sexes should come together to battle patriarchy as it affects them both," said the South African.
HeForShe is a solidarity movement against inequalities faced by women globally and was launched by British actor Emma Watson on September 20.
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
)
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
)
)
)
)
)
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}