By Matters India Reporter
New Delhi, November 11, 2019: Indian ranked 133 out of 167 countries on Women, Peace, and Security Index, according to the second report prepared by Georgetown University’s Institute for Women, Peace and Security (GIWPS).
The new 2019 report ranked 167 countries for women based on three indicators – inclusion, justice and security.
The report used 11 sub-indicators combined in these three categories to see which countries are better for women.
Similar to results from well-being reports from across the world, the Scandinavian countries top this index.
Norway ranked the number one spot, followed by Switzerland, Denmark, Finland and Iceland. Countries that are least likely to be safe for women include Yemen, Afghanistan, Syria, Pakistan, South Sudan, and Iraq (ranked from 167 to 162).
Reacting to India’s dismal position, Cynthia Stephen, independent researcher, told Matters India, “The Women, Peace, and Security Index has shown predictably very low ranking of India of 133 out of 167 countries. Now, this ranking is an important index because it measures how peace and security in the country affects women’s lives.”
“There are also cultural factors. It is on the low side because of one significant point—preference for sons. This is a reflection of the patriarchal and Brahmanism in Indian society which gives high value for men and boys over women and girls. This is one of the big reasons why India’s ranking is being pulled down,” said the Bengaluru-based journalist and social policy analyst.
According to her, “the other ranking index which India’s position is very low is on the work participation rate of women.”
“In India, I think only 26% of women have been participating in employment, whereas in Nepal it is as high as 83.4%. That is amazing and I am sure, we will see that Bangladesh has performed far better than India in the employment of women. That means the economic status of women in India is very vulnerable. The social-economic condition prevailing in India this time is not favourable for women and that is what this ranking in the index shows,” Stephen said.
Explaining some of the reasons why Indian women are still way behind, Delhi-based advocate.
Daughters of the Heart of Mary Sister Rushilla Rebello, said India is still a male-dominated society, where women are often seen as subordinates and inferior to men. They bear the brunt of this patriarchy.
“Indian Women do not enjoy equality in every aspect of life. They face discrimination throughout all stages of their life, beginning at (or even before) birth, continuing as an infant, child, adolescent and adult. Much of the discrimination against women arises from India’s dowry tradition. A woman is considered a liability in the country. Selective abortions, murdering of female babies and abandonment of female babies are rampant in India,” said Sister Rebello, who works with the Human Rights Law Network (HRLN).
HRLN is a collective of Indian lawyers and social activists who provide legal support to the vulnerable and disadvantaged sections of society.
Speaking on girls’ situation, she said, “As children, girls are often treated differently from male children in terms of nutrition and health care. When limited food or financial resources are available, the insufficient means are prone to be allocated unevenly in favour of the male offspring. Education is often not seen as really necessary for girls.”
In the same tone of Sister Rebello, another Virginia Saldanha, secretary of the Indian Women Theologians Forum, also bemoaned the conditions of girls and women in India.
“The latest report shows that little has changed in the reality of women. The bias in favour of boys and no change in intimate partner violence show that attitudes towards women remain the same,” said Saldanha, a laywoman theologian based in Mumbai.
According to her, “There seems to be a contradiction in the fact that education and employment indicators show a decline but phone call usage and financial inclusion are up. This could only mean that cell phones are given to women to keep tabs on them or to use them as a security.
“And those smaller ratios of well-educated women are enjoying higher incomes, or women have been encouraged to open bank accounts with little cash in it. I have not been able to go through the whole 93-page report to see if the volume of cash deposits or number of accounts is used as a determinant,” said Saldanha, a devout Catholic who has worked on the women’s desk of multiple Church-affiliated positions for over two decades.
Another advocate, Holy Cross Sister Rani Punnasseril, program manager, Catholic Bishops’ Conference of India Office for Labour and Lawyer, said that Indian society has a certain unreasonable set of rules and duties that women and men are supposed to do to maintain the social balance.
“Restrictions become the foundation of inequality and distinct behavior of men towards women. Everything that happens to a woman is portrayed as her flaw and the other facts of the incident are completely ignored. Oppression of women starts innocuously: it occurs in private life, within families, and with girls being locked up in their own homes. This everyday violence is the product of a culture that bestows all power on men, and that does not even want women to exist. This is evident in the unbalanced sex ratios at birth, even in wealthy families,” she explained.
“For Indians, caste identity creates the condition for violence against ‘Dalit women.’ Dalit women are more likely to be raped and murdered, denied medical care or work by upper-caste doctors and employers,” said the Delhi-based Sister Punnasseril.
Sustainable and long-term development is not possible without the participation and empowerment of women. Only if women participate in the economic and societal development, the full potential of a society of India will be unfolded, she said.
“Indian society is deeply patriarchal. Religion and culture add to the oppression of women. Every religion preaches equality and practice subjugation. Lack of education for women is another factor. Social evils such as dowry, child marriage, and preference for boys are seen in spite of the various laws which are passed but not implemented in letter and spirit. Law-keeping agencies and persons are being caught for breaking it,” Sister Punnasseril said.
The Constitution of India gives protective or positive discrimination to raise the standards for women. The State Government or the Central Government either wants to keep away the right of women or ignore it. A woman who runs a family along with an outside job is also expected to take care of the family as if she is not employed like her partner. Women yield to all these demands to make the family happy and to avoid family fights, she commented.
“The Constitution of India guarantees under Article 14 equality before Law and equal protection of Law. We have to see through the lens to find out the Equal opportunity about the employment in the private sectors,” Sister Punnasseril added.