SOUTH Global Financial and ASIA Economic Crisis REGIONAL and its Impact WORKSHOP on Women A Human Rights Perspective August 22-23, 2010, New Delhi, India

DD-29, Nehru Enclave, 2nd Floor, Kalkaji, New Delhi 110019, India A Report Tel: +91-11-40536091-93 • Fax: +91-11-40536095 • [email protected] • www.pwescr.org A Report Global Financial and Economic Crisis and its Impact on Women: A Human Rights Perspective

© 2011 by PWESCR, all right reserved

Written by: Shipra Nigam and Dr. Shalini Mishra

Published by: PWESCR (Programme on Women’s Economic, Social and Cultural Rights) DD-29, Nehru Enclave, Kalkaji, 2nd Floor New Delhi 110019, India Ph: +91-11-40536091-93 Fax: +91-11-40536095 [email protected] www.pwescr.org

Designed and Printed by: Systems Vision [email protected] Contents Crisis the to Response Policy Crisis Crisis The Conflict Na Women’s and Annexure Experiences Messa Interna of Issues and Perspectives : : A W The ge P of Biographies cknowledgement Abbrevia Introduci Context The from Mana Resource tural a Afghanist from Forward y 58 57 52 44 36 32 13 4 8 7 5

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Abbreviations

ADB Asian Development Bank MMR Maternal Mortality Ratio BPl below Poverty Line MNCs Multinational Corporations BPo business Process Outsourcing NGO Non-Governmental Organisation CEDAW Convention on the Elimination of Discrimination NREGA National Rural Employment Guarantee Act against Women NSSO National Sample Survey Organisation EPZ Export Processing Zone NTFP Non Timber Forest Produce EU European Union PDS Public Distribution System FAO Food and Agriculture Organization PESA Panchayat Extension to Scheduled Areas Act FDI Foreign Direct Investment R&R Relief and Rehabilitation FHAN Federation of Handicraft Associations of Nepal RBI Reserve Bank of India FIIs Foreign Institutional Investors RSBY Rashtriya Swasthya Bima Yojana FTA Free Trade Agreement RTF Right To Food FTZ Free Trade Zone S&P Standard and Poor 4 GDP gross Domestic Product SAARC South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation GMOs genetically Modified Organisms SAFTA South Asian Free Trade Agreement ICAR Indian Council for Agricultural Research SAPs Structural Adjustment Programmes ICDS Integrated Child Development Services SC/ST Scheduled Caste/Scheduled Tribe ICESCR International Covenant on Economic, Social and SEZ Special Economic Zone Cultural Rights SHG Self Help Group IDP Internally Displaced Person TINA there Is No Alternative IFIs International Financial Institutions UNCESCR united Nations Committee on Economic, Social ILO International Labour Organization and Cultural Rights IMF International Monetary Fund UNDESA united Nations Department of Economic and IMR Infant Mortality Rate Social Affairs IPR Intellectual Property Rights UNDP united Nations Development Programme IT Information Technology UNESCo united Nations Educational, Scientific, and MDGs Millennium Development Goals Cultural Organization MFN Most Favoured Nation UNIFEM united Nations Development Fund for Women MGNREGA Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment WB World Bank Guarantee Act WTO World Trade Organization Introduction

he current global crisis began effects on women’s livelihoods, and processes (from the global to the Tin the housing sector of the US increased burdens of work and unpaid local), that will shape approaches to economy, spilled over into the financial labour, as well as loss of social security development for years to come, the role sector moving on to the real sector of nets. This crisis, however, reached of women becomes crucial, not merely the developed and developing world, global proportions when it impacted because of the inevitable negative causing immense hardship for millions advanced economies and their role in gendered impacts of these crises, but of poor and vulnerable people in global arenas, thereby bringing out the also because women themselves are developing countries in the process. interconnectedness of the divergent crucial development players in most Despite tentative signs of recovery realities in a globalized world. communities the world over and have a more recently, the economic and vital role to play in proposing effective National as well as international human costs of the crisis have been approaches to alleviate the impacts of institutions are facing diverse pressures considerable. Women in particular, the crisis within a framework of human in the fields of growth, employment, are adversely affected by the current rights, environmental sustainability and food security, and fiscal policy crisis, which itself combines multiple development commitments around formulations in terms of framing crises – a global economic recession, the the world. The inclusion of women 5 adequate responses to contain both the devastating effects of climate change, and gender equality within a financial sector crisis, and the meltdown and an ongoing food and energy crisis. framework of human rights is of production and employment all All of this is compounding increasing central to these processes, and around the globe. The crisis also poverty and inequality in different parts an indicator of both the seriousness provides an opportunity to rethink macro of the world, as well as increasing the as well as the efficacy of proposed and micro-economic policies. For those vulnerability of women in particular responses. advocating a gender based approach in where adverse health and nutritional designing policy frameworks, the crisis In this context, there are only a few impacts are concerned. The current is an opportunity to advance proposals studies focusing on the gendered situation, however, has to be understood that promote jobs, economic security impacts of the global financial and within the larger historical context of and human rights, and equality by economic crisis on the South Asian an aggressive promotion of neo liberal class, gender, and ethnicity. Reviving countries. Common economic analyses policies in the past decades. The crisis the global economy will require policies highlight the social impact using financial is not new for most of the developing that focus heavily on job creation and indicators. However, this approach countries that have struggled with ensure a more equitable and sustainable ignores women and other sections of crises right from the 70’s, with women’s development process that protects society, who function outside the neo- groups in particular, emphatically voicing and enhances women’s livelihoods. liberal economic framework. There their protest and resistance to such As the crisis is now a driving force is seemingly a gap in policymakers’ policies in terms of its destructive behind many development choices understanding of the issue and, more importantly, in women’s ability to Foundation (HBF) hosted a two day a rights-based framework. The sessions ensure protection and enforcement of South Asian Regional workshop. The that followed covered a wide range of their rights. Further, there is a growing workshop was intended to enable issues from food security, livelihoods, concern that without an integrated experts to develop policy and advocacy natural resource management and gender and human rights approach, the tools in order to address the negative women’s economic rights from a alternatives proposed to address the impact of the crisis from a gender and gendered perspective, with a human crisis will continue to increase women’s human rights perspective. The challenge rights-based approach towards policy marginalization and vulnerabilities rather before us was not only to identify gaps issues and concerns. Towards the end of than address it. in the current discourse in terms of the workshop a concrete policy agenda what was needed from the state as well ‘The Way Forward’ was drafted, drawing A gender analysis of the human as from other actors, and to incorporate upon suggestions made during the rights situation is therefore necessary those alternatives into the state agenda, conference. in order to understand the impact but also to bring out the possibility of of the crisis on women and their incorporating economic rights within We hope the experiences and ideas livelihoods. In South Asia, there is an the framework of human rights while discussed in this meeting will be of urgent need for engaging, sharing, developing a comprehensive social interest to a wide range of audiences. discussing these issues and formulating protection system. alternative policies, strategies and recommendations. Hence, the PWESCR The two day workshop began with an Priti Darooka 6 (Programme on Women’s Economic, opening session, which set the context Executive Director Social and Cultural Rights) in partnership in terms of a global and regional PWESCR with UN Women and Heinrich Böll perspective on ‘Women in Crisis’ within Message from Our Partners

UN Women (Formerly Unifem)1 Heinrich Böll Foundation (HBF)

UNIFEM believes the crisis provides an opportunity to revisit Gender policy, feminist analysis and strategies have a existing micro and macro-economic policies and review permanent place and are of key importance to HBF’s activities. policies that rely heavily on job creation in order to ensure It was hoped that the workshop could use the crisis to a more equitable and sustainable development process that critique the neo-liberal paradigm and formulate a ‘gendered’ protects livelihoods of marginalized women and men. A position. A critical assessment of the current economic system gendered analysis is necessary to understand the impact of and evolution of ‘gender-just alternatives’ emanating from the crisis on women and their livelihoods. good practices, was highly necessary. As a strategic objective, HBF seeks to develop partnerships with local and regional UNIFEM has provided support to women’s organizations groups in order to more effectively work for economic and dealing with issues related to the financial and economic crisis social change at the community, national and global levels. and its impact on women. The impact on South Asia has been The foundation envisions these partnerships as a means different from South East Asia and other parts of the Asian to collaborate on research and analysis that identifies links region, and a lot more should be done in order to promote between local issues and policy decisions, especially relating gender equity. UNIFEM’s threefold agenda in this regard 7 to economic liberalization and trade. The collaboration with focuses on women’s economic empowerment and rights, the participants, UN Women and PWESCR, was in the same the rising problem of HIV Aids and issues of democratic and direction, a call on South Asian women to debate and dialogue participatory governance. on alternative economic, financial policies. Anne Stenhammer Shalini Yog Regional Programme Director Programme Co-ordinator UN Women HBF

1UNIFEM has been dissolved and incorporated into the newly established UN Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women (UN Women). The opening session of the workshop impacts on long term efforts to advance contextualized the issues relating to equity and solidarity in economic gendered impacts of the current global frameworks. In quite a few cases, financial crisis within a global and a these crises have been the occasion for South Asian regional setting, elucidating setbacks and reversals in social gains and assessing the various channels of previously achieved. However, this crisis impact on women and women’s rights also represents opportunities to advance that the current crisis has created, a progressive human rights based its varied impact on the social and agenda as an alternative. economic status of women and its implications for When the crisis happened the adjustment became pursuing a women’s rights adjustment of the victims and there was no agenda. culpability on the part of the rich countries. 8 Manuel F. Montes Women and the Crisis: Various channels of impact on women A Global Perspective and women’s rights created by the Manuel F. Montes current crisis, and their implications for Development Strategy and Policy Analysis pursuing the women’s rights agenda Development Policy and Analysis Division, The Context could be summarized as follows: UNDESA, USA In assessing the impact of the global • Women traditionally act as buffers, economic crisis on women and gender absorbing the worst impacts of such equality, it is important to recognize that crises, especially adverse impacts on this crisis is only the latest version of health, nutrition and education due to a series of overlapping crises that have rising food and fuel prices and reduced befallen women and other economically social sector spending. According marginalized or exploited groups. to World Bank (WB) estimates, from Attempts at resolving these other crises 2009 to 2015, an average of 200 to have laid the ground for subsequent 400 thousand more infant deaths will 2 economic crises, that have had serious happen as a result of the crisis.

2World Bank, 2009, The Global Economic Crisis: Assessing Vulnerability with a Poverty Lens • There has been a rapid fall in the Women and the Crisis: Direct Investment (FDI) and overseas share of female labour income, and development assistance. Exports inequalities of income and wealth A Regional Perspective fell, exchange rate devaluations have deepened. from South Asia took place, and there was a decline Indira Hirway in tradable services and a rise in • There is a decline in international Centre for Development Alternatives, India oil prices and prices of essential trade and fall in exports, a reversal commodities. of capital flows from developing In recent decades, the region of South • The indirect impact of this crisis countries to the developed world, Asia has tried to attain higher growth on South Asian countries has been along with a fall in remittances and a through trade integration and economic far more severe than the direct rising debt service burden. Women’s liberalization, and has been impacted impact, as highlighted by the UNDP income and employment in export adversely when neo-liberal policies discussion paper, based on a sector has fallen. promoting these processes failed globally, systematic study of Six Major Sectors as in the current financial crisis. In April • There is an adverse impact on in Five States of India3. The study 2009, a UNDP funded case study on domestic employment and output, highlighted that the indirect impact on small enterprises and women workers high debt burdens and greater the poorer sections of the economy working in informal sectors in India exposure to domestic violence and was higher and more serious than pointed to the failure of internal policies crime, given the deteriorating social generally recognized. and economic conditions. for crisis management in addressing their problems. External Women were the main shock absorbers of the crisis. They 9 • The situation requires more stable policies, on the other economies, less dependence on hand, did not address absorbed the crisis primarily by coming into the workforce. foreign markets, domestic investment national concerns and Indira Hirway and capable governments to control development goals The government unstable capital flows and stabilize needs to be more responsible as basic • Women were the major subjects employment flows. rights to health, education and food of the impact of this crisis and security are being violated, and these this has to be understood also in • The domestic social sector violations are affecting the present as terms of reduction in income, loss spending on health, education, and well as future generations. of employment and the associated social security nets needs to be increase in incidence of conflict, strengthened to reduce the existing Mapping the Current Situation domestic violence, depression, burden on women, with an emphasis suicide etc. A bailout package for on increasing the capabilities of the • The impact on the financial sector women as producers, women as poor and strengthening a gender was felt in the form of increased wage earners and women as home balanced approach to development. capital outflows, a fall in Foreign makers is essential.

3UNDP India Publication, November, 2009, Global Economic Crisis: Impact on the Poor in India – A Synthesis of Sector Studies http://www.undp.org.in/sites/ default/files/reports_publication/ExeSumFinal.pdf • Return migration associated with the competitiveness. Developmental goals and natural resource management crisis created pockets of poverty. A need to be incorporated into industrial and employment guarantees as part large number of migrants, when they policies, commercial policies, labour of a labour intensive sustainable returned to their village, created a policies and trade policies. development of the economy. depression in the village economy. The village lost remittances, shops • The crisis also demonstrated that Women and the Crisis: exports cannot be the engine of were shut, consumption decreased A Human Rights Perspective and there were reductions in the local growth, because export markets are Virginia Gomes wage rate resulting from the pressure unreliable and countries with small UN Committee on ESCR, Portugal on the local labour market. At an all bargaining power are especially India level, it was estimated that out vulnerable. In a crisis, when all The human rights based approach to of the 60 million migrant workers, countries adopt protectionist poverty eradication recognizes that 10 million workers returned back. In measures, even the small markets marginalization, discrimination, gender Surat, the rate of return migration that are available to such countries inequalities and all forms of exploitation was as high as 50%. are uncertain and unreliable. Trade- are among the root causes of poverty. induced growth or trade-led growth Poverty reflects societal failures and • There should be universal social in itself was not important, but what the existence of power relations at protection for workers, employment really mattered was the composition the local and global levels rather than guarantees to protect unskilled of such growth. merely individual circumstances and lack workers, and protection of rights to of motivations. From the human rights 10 food, health and education. • The need of the hour is to think in terms of expanding domestic perspective of universality, indivisibility • Small producers, who has been the markets, an inclusive trade policy and interdependence, women’s worst sufferers of the crisis, need to for achieving developmental goals vulnerabilities are grossly increasing be protected through skills training and an institutional global policy across the entire spectrum of rights and skills up gradation programmes framework that provides space to depending on the economic and social with increased visibility of their national governments for pursuing model of the concerned country. It is work in statistics and quantitative their developmental goals; focus on widely recognized that the benefits of databases. social protection, social rights and globalization have not been equitably employment guarantee. shared among regions, nations and • The crisis demonstrated that growth people and the situation has worsened based on globalizing at the lowest • Regarding the growth model level of the value chain was not in India, the inclusiveness that Poverty reflects societal failures rather than mere very useful as it gave no bargaining the 11th Five Year Plan claims individual circumstances and lack of motivations. power to the developing countries is false. We must think in Virginia Gomes in a global market dominated by terms of another growth model that with the crisis. On the contrary, the gap global production networks of would have at least two components: between and within the developed and Multinational Corporations (MNCs), social security and basic rights as a developing countries has widened in which forced cost cutting and wage strategy for development and not as the absence of a needful and equitable reductions as means of maintaining flagship programmes or schemes; distribution of material, technological and organizational capacities amongst the approximately 9% decline in the • Further, three points on the use regions of the world. There has been a volume of exports for 2009. Sectors of maximum available resources weakening of labour rights and social like the textile industry had a are useful in times of crisis, while protection systems and despite regional workforce where 80% of employees working toward both a medium term differences, women’s issues from the were female. So, low export demand policy for economic recovery, as well human rights perspective has certain disproportionately affected these as a long term policy addressing commonalities. women. consequences of global governance for poorer nations: • In the context of the International Developing the Human Rights Covenant on Economic, Social and 1. Firstly, the lack of availability of Agenda from a Gendered Cultural Rights (ICESCR), equal adequate resources did not alter Perspective rights of men and women to the the urgent necessity of meeting • Socially constructed roles of men and enjoyment of all economic, social certain obligations, nor did such women, or the social differences that and cultural rights (ESCR) had been constraints alone justify inaction. are learnt, are a generally recognized adversely affected. In the source of inequality, and women experience of the Committee What we hear in government agencies is let us get experience greater obstacles in (UN Committee on ESCR), two our act first on economic growth and then we can accessing their basic rights than men. recurring dimensions in the distribute benefits. But it has not worked like that. Women have been given unequal struggle of any discriminated Regarding social safety nets, we heard the national community are the lack of roles to play and are often exposed governments say we don’t have the fiscal space representation of members 11 to multiple discriminations resulting to build them. But it is not just a matter of getting from the cumulative, compounded of such communities in the fiscal space; it is a matter of fighting for the fiscal and intersectional effects of decision making process and multiple discriminations faced space and using it. discrimination on several grounds. Virginia Gomes by women. • Such inequalities resulted in girls and women being in a disadvantaged • The Committee’s basic When countries claimed that they position in comparison to men, recommendation was that states did not have adequate resources, whether it was in relation to should draw up a plan for the you normally saw that it was education and participation in the eradication of poverty as a core probably not that they did not labour market, or poverty in general. obligation, with clear benchmark have the resources, but it was indicators to identify the status of because these rights had not • Existing inequalities also mean that in women within marginalized groups been considered a priority, and times of crisis, girls and women are within general disaggregated therefore domestic investment at a more disadvantaged position in statistics. These efforts would not was not based on such a priority. comparison to men. only encapsulate core obligations 2. Secondly, in times of severe • In Export Processing Zones (EPZs), that guarantee the essential minimum resource constraints, states as the global demand for products level of each right, but would also must protect the most dis- in the south decreased, the World ensure effective utilization of available advantaged and marginalized Trade Organization (WTO) identified resources by the states. members of the society by Comments been incorporated; it revealed the adopting relatively low cost lack of political commitment on targeted programmes. Issues discussed included the inefficacy these issues in India. Where land of the Indian Social Security Bill in reforms were concerned, India had 3. thirdly, out of the several available addressing the issues of informal still not had the kind of reforms that options, states should adopt the workers; trade liberalization and rising would make a strong dent on the one that least restricted the inequalities within the developing world exploitative social economic structure Covenant’s rights, and all steps with creation of enclaves of prosperity; of rural society. Only then could the should be taken to protect the persistence of gender inequities in the model claim to be inclusive. situation of individuals and agricultural sector despite extensive • The crisis showed that domestic families, particularly women living land reforms; absence of sustainable markets had to be developed and in deprivation. agriculture as part of an active state dependence on international markets policy; failure of the existing growth In times of negative national and had to be reduced, which meant model and ‘trickle-down effect’; and international environments, it is allowing wages to increase even at inability to tax the rich and absorb mperative that the fulfilment of the cost of being less internationally surpluses from the growing sectors to conditions that enable people to live competitive, so that more goods and provide for welfare. with dignity be grounded on the services could be purchased by the interdependence of economic and social • From the human rights perspective, masses locally. policies. No clear way forward had it was important that human 12 emerged based on the fact that the rights advocates worked with We have not been able to make a dent on the crisis had strong gender dimensions. development economists to exploitative, socio-economic structure of society. The opportunities for women to emerge ensure governments took We have done some marginal things which are as development agents in a positive their core obligations, in terms positive, but these are not adequate at all as far sense after the crisis had to be of efforts to support and as structural changes are concerned. considered. Women also needed to be protect the most marginalized, sufficiently convinced of their power in to be of a completely basic • Not taxing the rich out of fear that relation to their own potential, and the nature for implementing economic growth would be slowed down work done by PWESCR was important models. was unjustified; faster growth was in this regard. unjustifiable when it was good • The Social Security Bill4 in India was only for a certain section of the highly diluted in its current form population. Instead, progress should in that most aspects of the basic be made on deploying maximum package that had been recommended available resources in fulfilling basic by the National Committee had not rights and obligations.

4The Unorganised Sector Workers Social Security Bill 2007 was introduced in the Rajya Sabha by the Minister of State for Labour and Employment, Oscar Fernandes. It provides legislative backing to social security schemes like the ‘Aaam Admi Bima Yojana’, National Old Age Pension Scheme and the Health Insurance Scheme. The Parliament passed the Bill in December, 2008 Section I: Food Security, the effects on people, particularly on women, becomes more complex. Migration and State • In Bangladesh, garment exports and Restructuring flow of remittances had become The presentations made and the major foreign exchange earners; discussions that followed highlighted however, both were vulnerable to several issues related to increased fluctuations in global demand and vulnerability of women due to rising supply situations, and were adversely food insecurity; distress migration and affected by the crisis. falling remittances from trade and other • Remittances of overseas workers international economic activities arising had increased so significantly that as a consequence of the global financial it had become more than what crisis; and political restructuring. Case Bangladesh received from the WB, 13 studies from Bangladesh, Nepal and India or International Monetary Fund (IMF). addressed region specific perspectives. Thus Bangladesh could actually do away with their help. Food Security, Microfinance • The share of agriculture in Gross and the Garment Sector: Domestic Product (GDP) had always The Crisis The from Perspectives Asia South The Crisis in Bangladesh been over 30%. However, it had Farida Akhter fallen recently, along with a fall in Unnayan Bikalper Nitinirdharoni Gobeshona women’s employment in agriculture. (UBINIG), Bangladesh This led to women’s migration to

The years from 2007 to 2009 in The entire growth model has problem with Bangladesh, have been very difficult women. Whatever we do as inclusive, I think because of the effects of global women will only become the wives of growth financial crisis on the local economy and not growth themselves. of the country. For Bangladesh, it is Farida Akhter not only the global recession, but also other factors, such as domestic the exploitative informal sectors of political unrest and natural disasters that employment, increasing the double add to the existing crisis, and therefore burden of work on women. As for garment workers, there were about meal a day and not eating any and body parts, while household items 3 million workers in this sector and nutritious food at all. They had been were being taken away. these factories were increasingly forced to sell even their little black being located in Dhaka, given their and white television sets and electric • People have their own coping rising significance. The percentage of fans. Children were dropping out of mechanisms and while exploring women workers among the garment schools. ways of dealing with the crisis, industries was 75% in 2001-02 and one must not think only in terms 85% in 2006-07. • Regarding food security, women had of financial solutions. The coping traditionally been responsible for mechanisms of groups, especially • The female workers in this sector, conserving seeds in the interests women, should be strengthened. worked long hours with inadequate of biodiversity. Women were not in breaks and low incomes. After the favour of hybrid seeds and were Nepal and the Economic Crisis: global financial crisis, export orders fell, fighting against Genetically Modified Issues and Perspectives factories were closed and thousands of Organisms (GMOs). However, the garment workers were left jobless. Bangladeshi Prime Minister and Sapana Pradhan Malla Member of the Constituent Assembly, Nepal • Low wages in the sector were a Agricultural Minister promoted Bt controversial issue. Factory owners Brinjal (genetically modified brinjal cultivars) and tobacco cultivation In Nepal, where a new constitution is were unwilling to concede to the expected to be adopted by May 2011, it demands of workers. The wages were over food crop cultivation during the winter season, thereby destroying was imperative to make an intervention 14 one of the lowest in the region, and to address the sufferings of women due there were movements for ensuring entire food security nets at the household, village and national level. to the global economic crisis or other minimum wages. While the workers economic and social crises, through 5 demanded 5000 takas (Bangladeshi • Microcredit, for which Bangladesh special measures and the introduction currency) per month, the owners said got the Nobel Peace Prize in 20066, of a substantial model of equality. In they would agree to 3000, and even was actually a disaster. It was putting developing strategies, it was important that they would pay later. One owner pressure on the poor to repay and was to remember that gender-blind economic actually commented “If I pay now, only creating markets for corporate policies did not mean that the impact 5000 or 3000 taka, I cannot buy the products. Deals were being made of these policies, in terms of restrictions Lexus model of car this time”. with mobile phone companies for imposed, exclusions and differences • As far as the low food intake of microcredit projects, where corporate in treatment and other aspects, was garment workers was concerned, food like yoghurt was being promoted. gender neutral. No comprehensive after studying the situation for an Because of microcredit, more study has been done in Nepal on the entire week, it was observed that suicides were happening amongst the implications of the global crisis on workers were eating only one full borrowers. People were selling kidneys women.

5The international exchange rate is roughly seventy two takas per US dollar. 6Professor Muhammad Yunus, ‘Banker to the Poor’, established the Grameen Bank in Bangladesh in 1983, fueled by the belief that credit is a fundamental human right. His objective was to help poor people escape from poverty by providing loans on suitable terms. Professor Yunus and the Grameen Bank were awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 2006 “for their efforts to create economic and social development from below”. • A special resolution was moved in The major challenge women were increased. Recently, 15 Nepali women early 2010 in the Parliament by an facing was a decrease in agricultural committed suicide in Lebanon. industrialist parliamentarian to address growth. In Nepal, 67% of women • Nepal introduced the Domestic the crisis. The official position, were engaged in agricultural self- Violence and Punishment Act8, and however, was that there was no employment, and 11% were in the Anti-Sexual Harassment Bill9. impact of the crisis on Nepal since it agricultural paid employment. Foreign However, special measures are had no global banking network, very employment decreased by 12.1%, needed to ensure implementation of limited national insurance network, FDI decreased from 1.9 to 1.2 billion, these Acts. and they were not significantly exports decreased from 15.8 to 9.8%, integrated with the global market. inflation rose from 7.5 to 10.5%, • Various laws and policies were being and economic growth formed in the region like EPZs, The global economic crisis made us realize that fell from 5.5 to 3.6%. Banking Act, and Investment Board different people suffer differently and for women the As a result, there was a Act and there was a need to make implications are different, and therefore their needs decrease in household these more gender sensitive. For and experiences have to be taken into consideration income, decrease in immediate relief, a special budget while making any kind of economic policies. purchasing power, and had also been made and effort Sapana Pradhan Malla a serious effect on was required to make this gender • After the resolution was moved, a livelihoods. sensitive.

Committee consisting of the Finance 7 • An IMF study released in 2005 • Nepal was going through a 15 Secretary, Advisor to the Finance had shown the existence of high restructuring process and was Ministry and members of the National economic polarization and huge enacting a new constitution with Planning Commission was formed economic disparities. This led to focus on devolution of powers by the Parliament without a single increase in domestic violence, with creation of a federal structure. woman in it. The committee reported trafficking, many women were now Social transformation was one of that there was a negative balance of in the exploitative entertainment the main agendas of the upcoming payment due to decrease in exports industry, more in dance bars, constitution, with questions of and increase in imports, and also massage parlours, suicide ratios had bringing about more balanced power due to decrease in remittances. increased and life expectancy had relationships, and redistribution of the GDP decreased due to decrease in remained static. While the officially benefits of access and control over industrial growth and agricultural stated figures for migration had resources being seriously considered. product growth. decreased, men and women were However, there was a need to ensure • Women employed in the export travelling through illegal channels, specific rights for women in the new oriented businesses lost their jobs. and their vulnerability had thus structure. For instance, there was a

7IMF Country Report No. 05/351, September, 2005, Nepal Poverty Reduction Strategy Paper Progress Report 8The Domestic Violence and Punishment Act 2065, passed in May 2009 defines physical, mental, sexual, financial as well as behavioural violence as domestic violence. 9Nepal Sexual Harassment Bill was passed in October 2009 and proposed institutionalization of punitive measures against sexual harassment in its various manifestations. specific provision in the constitution Food Security, Food problems through these practices. that guaranteed right to inheritance Sovereignty and Inequalities There is a need to move beyond social and equal rights to sons and protection to investments that enable Rukmini Rao daughters. However, even after having women to improve their own knowledge Gramya Resource Centre for Women, India. these provisions in the constitution, systems, introduce them to new and having accepted these in the The current crisis is not a new crisis, industries and new skills, and thereby upcoming constitution, necessary but a cyclical crisis borne out of the build human capacities in the process. reforms in the existing property and problems with the manner in which What is required is a restructuring of inheritance rights were yet to be production was fundamentally organized agriculture, with investments in the made. all over the world in the form of a sector being made available directly patriarchal capitalist mode of production. to women. We need investment in • Nepal had new provisions involving The current crisis has violated every understanding what the women are recognition of women’s contribution human right: the right to life due to doing, and also in learning from them. in GDP, and sharing of responsibilities inadequate nutrition, rising crime and We have always looked at them as poor inside the house and taking care of trafficking and female infanticide; the and illiterate, whereas they have in the child within the constitutional right to work with thousands of women fact always been feeding the world. framework, along with recognition facing continued India is in a horrible of reproductive health rights. It was unemployment; the The crisis does not impact boys situation where important to take these provisions right to food; and the and girls in the same way. we have mountains and forward through specific policies. 16 right to social security. Rukmini Rao mountains of food stocks • Nepal needs to differentiate between piled up. There is a right The global financial non-discrimination and equality. to food campaign in the country, and and economic crisis has led to a decline Non-discrimination could not only it was estimated that there are enough in food availability. The macro-economic be prohibitory discrimination but it stocks to feed 210 million people every scenario in India, the fact of a continuing also had to have a link with special year. The country has invested 5.5 billion growth rate of 7% and more, hides the measures for women. dollars in growing wheat, and even then increased and increasing vulnerabilities of our people are hungry. women and marginalized communities. Women in the South Asian region, The country has seen a rise in internal whether it was Bangladesh, Nepal, trafficking of young women within the Pakistan or India, have since centuries country. Due to rising female infanticide, had access to indigenous knowledge there were not enough women left that leads to more sustainable in Punjab, and as a result there were agricultural practices, and their practices news reports about Punjabi men buying could be called ‘postmodern agriculture’. girls from Orissa and Kerala with the These women farmers had demonstrated connivance of their families. Civil society that they could grow enough food; they groups that rescued them, never had could grow it organically, and could enough resources for rehabilitation. more effectively address climate change Where the right to work was concerned, in the case of garment workers, it meant resultant conditions imposed by the different from the distress migration 500,000 job losses and since the majority WB and IMF; the need to understand that we have just discussed. of women were in the garment sector, issues related to Free Trade Agreements • The larger system itself was at the they were the ones who were worst hit (FTAs); and the demand of women’s roots of the crisis that formed the and were eating much less. There is groups that international aid for backdrop of the social crisis that we also the increasing crisis of food grain- agricultural development be channelized saw in terms of greater violence, currently only 419 grams are available per towards promoting sustainable food insecurity etc. Hence, coping person per day. Fuel prices have gone up, agriculture. mechanisms and human rights so families are cooking meals only once based approach, which stopped at a day. Additionally, women ate last and • In India, an agricultural crisis had instituting economic rights within the least, and girls were the first ones to be emerged. Agriculture had become existing system, could never replace pulled out of schools. unproductive in terms of costs of input and returns at the peasant a critique or engagement with long- The fundamental issue that needs to community level. This had led to term policies which were aimed at be examined is how we are using the circulatory migration, with people in overhauling the entire system itself. available resources. India is not in as absence of adequate employment These were not exclusionary and bad a position as the 15 poorest African opportunities shifting their entire both kinds of interventions could countries. We have some fiscal space. families away from home for 6-8 go hand in hand. Surprisingly, even How are we investing in that space, months in a year. The effect of the United Nations’ (UN) documents what are we doing with the resources crisis was felt even in the more were looking at the crisis from a that we have? prosperous states such as Punjab, managerial perspective rather than 17 where more than 30,000 farmer critically engaging with the economic policies that came as part of the neo- Comments suicides were reported. The situation has fuelled distress migration liberal political model of democracy Issues discussed included the sectoral under the pressure of huge loans, and governance. crisis in India and distress migration; indebtedness, lack of, or total loss of • There are apprehensions over political and human rights implications assets, reduced food availability etc. manipulation of the crisis by of the global crisis, and manipulation of 14-15 year old girls have migrated governments to further consolidate the crisis by governments to consolidate to states like Rajasthan and Gujarat their own positions. There was their positions; need for regional policies in search of seasonal work, and are a need to look at the political to ensure that countries interact on hugely vulnerable to violence and implications of the global crisis, not an equitable footing; need to bring other forms of exploitation, in the only on the economy, but also in land reforms and equitable access to absence of safety and social security relation to human rights, democracy resources within the ambit of discussions nets. In the existing discourse on and governance. Besides civil on food security; the efforts of the Indian migration, and the debates on the society engagement in relation to Government to engender the 11th Five issue, one has to concede to the advocacy and lobbying for promoting Year Plan and absence of a land use fact that there are different levels food security, promoting a human policy therein; violation of human rights of migration, and high-end migration rights culture had sometimes in Pakistan because of debt, aid and the of the upper segment is totally focused attention away from issues of democracy and governance, provide water to the poor farmers, components: one was to address the which were important for social or would you rather provide it to unpaid work of fuel, fodder, water, transformation and were integral the Coca-Cola Company? Would you health and education. The second to issues related to the right to provide land to farmers, or convert component was for infrastructure development. 2-3 cropping zones into Special development, credit and other kinds Economic Zones (SEZs) industrial of infrastructure, and the third was • Regional mechanisms such as South estates? The need was to create an in terms of extension service, skill Asian Association for Regional alternate political will. For example, training, etc. In India, in the 11th Cooperation (SAARC) were promoting the emergence of a big township Plan, efforts had been made by South Asian Free Trade Agreement on the way from Meerut to Delhi, feminist economists to address (SAFTA), which was affecting Sri passing through a very rich alluvial questions of women’s economic Lankan farmers adversely. While plain, which also had plenty of water, security, governance, etc. The policy talking about regional policies, one in a region which should ideally of giving over land to women was needs to look at the fact whether have been given over to cultivation, an important strategy, as it acted the big countries and the smaller was a criminal act. In Jharkhand, as an incentive for increasing countries in South Asia were for example, working on the seed agricultural productivity, with women interacting on an equitable footing. rights of farmers taking special care of such land, There was a We conceptually have all the answers demonstrated how much in the way they take care of need to review to food and security, but no will. How delayed procurement their children. While developing the SAFTA and see do we create that will? of seeds on the part approach paper to the 12th Plan, 18 how it could be of the government, it was very important to introduce reformulated. For instance, given that when the monsoon failed, had led to a mechanism for monitoring the de-linking with the Indian economy loss of the crops for farmers. Hence, implementation of the promises made did not seem a viable option for the one needed to enable farmers to implicitly or explicitly in the 11th Plan. much smaller Sri Lankan economy, have greater control over their seeds. The absence of land use policy in how could a fair share for the Sri the Indian 11th Plan had left a huge Lankan economy be ensured in • The Indian Government, in order scope for land grabs by industrialists bilateral trade relations? to engender the 11th Five Year and developers through legal means. • To understand food security, we Plan, had set up a committee • Debt was the fundamental factor needed to understand food insecurity. with a special Working Group on which had compromised decision- When food insecurity was created, gender and agriculture headed by making at the top where Pakistan one did not have the means to buy a feminist economist. The Working was concerned, forcing them to food or produce one’s own food. Group had tried to provide land for accept the conditions imposed by Under such circumstances, the women, given that 40% of farmers WB and the IMF, which actively government needs to address two were women farmers, and had also violated human rights, whether one fundamental questions: initiate land devised a three-pronged strategy to called them social rights, water rights, reforms, and give equitable access engender different components of or economic rights. The Pakistani to resources to more farmers. The the entire agricultural policy. The first people could not even look into the question then is whether you would was capacity building, that had two questions of the degree of their women to sustain themselves and down. As far as the international indebtedness, and were not consulted their families. scene was concerned, the EU had on its terms and conditions. put aside an aid package for support • A study showed that 70% of the of agriculture in developing countries • It is critical to note the importance of rickshaw pullers in Dhaka city used and women’s groups had demanded the trade issue, given the emergence to be farmers, which in itself was that sustainable agriculture should of FTAs. Many small countries in a telling fact about the destruction be promoted and the money should the region were worried about of the agriculture sector and not go into the hands of the WB but SAFTA, much in the employment. The entire instead it should go in the hands of same way that India The history of the World Bank seed system was also Food and Agriculture Organization was worried about and the IMF is a history of being destroyed, and (FAO) and other UN bodies, which negotiating a FTA with violation of human rights. with the introduction of were actually supporting development developed countries. the new seed system of farmers. As far as monitoring The European Union (EU)-India FTA there were no more local varieties. such projects was concerned, it is being negotiated and it will impact Modern agriculture meant putting was essential that the monitoring Indian agriculture in a substantial more pesticides, more fertilizers and committees be grounded in peoples’ way. Strict Intellectual Property getting more into debt. The kind of movements, and involves public Rights (IPRs) will threaten the rights agriculture that has been introduced monitoring alongside technical of women farmers to produce and led to 30,000 farmers committing monitoring. Generating jobs for exchange their seeds. There was suicide. There were studies which women does not necessarily translate also talk about strong investment highlighted how male farmers were 19 into economic rights for them. In provisions for investor protection, committing suicide in Punjab because times of crisis, women are the first that gave developed countries full they had to give dowries to their to lose their jobs while men are access to India’s land, water and sisters and, as the value of land increasingly seen as the legitimate natural forest resources. Many of had gone up in Punjab, the land in holders of the jobs. these resources were used by Indian hands of women had actually gone Section II: Trade, Social Migration, Conflict, Free Trade Free Trade Zone (FTZ) consisting of Zones, Employment, Social about 300,000 employees, 75% were Security, Conflict and women; in the plantation sectors Economic Rights Security and Women i.e. tea, rubber and coconut, again Sri Lanka: A Case Study the majority of the workers were The focus of the session was on trade, Nimalka Fernando women. the first and main channel through which International Movement Against all forms of Discrimination and Racism, Sri Lanka • Sri Lankan women have borne not the economic and financial crisis hit the just the burden of the financial crisis, South Asian economies. The key issues but also the burden of the Tsunami, raised were the feminization of labour, • Sri Lanka is a ‘woman’s country’ where, out of a total population as well as the burden of the war. The feminization of poverty and women’s war has completely destroyed the employment in the trade sector. A of 20 million, 52% are women. 80% of the Sri Lankan migrant livelihoods of women, both Tamils and main characteristic of employment in Sinhalese, and marginalized them. this sector is that it is casual, informal population in the Gulf and other countries consists of women. and volatile in nature because of its The livelihoods of the women in the north and Of the Internally Displaced dependence on exports. Thus, the the east, farmers and peasants, have been totally Persons (IDPs)10 again, 80% situation was inevitably aggravated devastated and the impact of the crisis would be are women. In the conflict during a crisis. There were huge wage fully felt in the coming years. disparities in women’s occupations zones of Sri Lanka in the north Nimalka Fernando 20 because women were considered to be and east, it was estimated a more flexible workforce; they were by the Parliament that there were • The country has witnessed a seen as having less of a voice, while 48,000 single women who were not feminization of poverty11, with welfare their economic rights were not clearly called ‘widows’ and ‘war widows’. cuts and the burden of education defined. Hence, they could be used as According to official statistics, 23% increasingly on the shoulders a buffer to adjust to volatilities of trade of Sri Lankan households were single of women. Women have been related demands. women households. No census articulating their positions on the has been conducted in the north- streets, holding joint demonstrations east since 1982. In the Sri Lankan with FTZ workers, demonstrations

10IDPs are persons or groups of persons who have been forced or obliged to flee or leave their homes or places of habitual residence, in particular as a result of or in order to avoid the effects of armed conflict, situations of generalized violence, violations of human rights or natural or human made disasters, and who have not crossed an internationally recognized State border. Source: http://www.unhcr.org/cgi-bin/texis/vtx/home/opendocPDFViewer.html?docid=47949f912&query=Internally%20displaced%20persons%20definition 11The term “feminization of poverty” was first used in 1978 by a researcher named Diana Pearce, who had found that two-thirds of poor adults over age sixteen in the United States were female. Although Pearce was referring specifically to U.S. data, the term entered common usage in both poverty research and women’s studies. The concept of feminization of poverty is used as a short hand for a variety of ideas. It can mean either one or a combination of the following- women compared to men have a higher incidence of poverty; women’s poverty is more severe than men’s; and over time, the incidence of poverty among women is increasing compared to men. Compiled from http://eco.ieu.edu.tr/wp-content/GenderandPoverty.pdf and http://www.libraryindex.com/ pages/2687/Women-Children-in-Poverty-FEMINIZATION-POVERTY.html over human rights violations, employment due to the war economy. civil and political rights movement, demonstrations for higher wages, The war economy also sustained largely due to the ongoing conflict. campaigns against night work, anti- the economy with infrastructure It is important for Sri Lanka to join privatization campaigns etc. There development and rural poverty this discussion, because the country were efforts within the FTZs to resist alleviation. has coped with two disasters in the formation of small groups and the recent past, i.e. the Tsunami • The main focus of women’s despite such restrictions; We in the and the military conflict, and it is organizations in Sri Lanka was on Free Trade Zone was formed along important to ensure that the women’s civil and political rights; struggles with various women’s centres. rights framework, as well as the for economic, social and cultural broader human rights framework is • The Most Favoured Nation (MFN) rights had been subsumed within the agreement affected Sri Lanka only marginally because the Sri Lankan garment industry was now a designer Experiences of Garment Workers in Sri Lanka industry with no mass production. The major contention however was Padmini Weerasooriya that the cost of living had gone up, Ex factory worker and trade union leader with the increase in petrol and diesel Sri Lanka had around 800 factories in the FTZ, and of these 80% was associated with prices. The government subsidized the garment industry. It was women from the rural areas who migrated into this zone the public sector but the private to work. There were about one million dependants upon the labour force in the FTZ. 21 sector remained frozen. Sri Lanka The problem areas in the FTZs with regard to women’s employment were housing, is very rich with regard to migrant health, wages and production target challenges. According to research conducted by earnings that remained substantial the Labour Department in 2008, 60% of the women workers suffered from anaemia despite some decline post-crisis. or anaemic conditions. Forming trade unions had been a major challenge inside the Welfare expenditure was cut, but Sri FTZ, though it was not legally prohibited. After 30 years, due to a strike action by the Lanka survived with the war economy. workers, in the case of Star Garments, 3000 (90%) of whose workers were women, The budget for defense for 2010 was the owners were compelled to give them space to form a trade union. When the raised to Sri Lankan Rs. 201 billion world economic crisis happened, the owners reduced transport facilities and food as against Rs.177 billion in 2009, subsidies given to workers and cut back on the overtime payment. They also dismissed while for economic development only workers and folded up certain sections, while burdening existing workers with more Rs.60 billion were allocated. Many work. In one case, in a factory the owners stopped giving workers sugar for their people were recruited into the armed tea. The companies did not see any decrease in their profits during the economic forces. These included young boys crisis. Statistics of export earnings showed that 45% came from the garment sector. and peasants from rural areas, and As a result of the economic crisis, when some of the factories in the Middle East return migrants from the Middle East. closed down, around 50,000 workers lost their jobs and returned to Sri Lanka. During The effect of the financial crisis, in the recent presidential and parliamentary elections, workers were promised a hike terms of loss of employment, was of Rs. 2500 in salaries but these promises have not been fulfilled. thus compensated to a great extent in Sri Lanka with the generation of woven into the rehabilitation and Free Trade Zones, Employment, statistics of the Labour Department, in resettlement processes. Social Security : A Survey of terms of the FTZs, the net loss was only 7,000 over 2008-09. There was a • However, the post conflict concern Two Zones in Sri Lanka situation even before the crisis where was that the government might B. Skanthkumar you had at least 15,000 vacancies and not have sufficient resources to Law and Society Trust, Sri Lanka a high turnover. Every month a turnover sustain this process of employment of about 5-10% was recoreded in each generation and rural development A survey was undertaken at the end factory. The level of exploitation was and ensure welfare of IDPs. The of 2009 by a group of women activists such that people could not cope with situation had worsened as the EU working with FTZ workers and the work and those who had options, could had withdrawn the tax concession Law and Society Trust in Colombo, Sri not stand it and left. So there were granted to Sri Lanka based on its Lanka, based on questions devised by vacancies of about 12,000 to 15,000. performance and compliance with Women’s Centres to assist them in labour laws, environmental laws future campaigns. It covered two zones As a result of the crisis, factories closed and human rights. Women were not - the Kattanayaka zone in the north of down and workers moved within the coming into the FTZ because there Colombo where the airport was situated, zone to other factories. They then was a wage freeze. and another in the south at the bottom started moving outside the zone to large of Koggalan Island. • An agreement with the WB was What was happening in the garment sector in the FTZs was being negotiated but it was not When the Centre what had always happened, in that the crisis became an 22 discussed with the people or tabled activists went opportunity for capitalism to reproduce itself in many ways. in the Parliament. In the north from one boarding and east, developmental projects house (lodgings B. Skanthkumar were tied to India. Improvement of of the workers) to another to speak factories and also to sub-contractors the Palali airport in the north and with workers, they faced enormous for work, which was worse, given the the railway line were undertaken resistance because of the pervasive nature of contractual jobs. The survey with India’s help, while China was fear of the management discovering concluded that there were sections of developing Sri Lankan ports in the that workers were speaking to activists. labourers who had informal work; there south. All this would shape how The workers were unable to distinguish were those who were unable to find international and regional power between the global crisis and the work, and those who had funds so dynamics would govern the Sri crisis they were experiencing. By 2007 that they could remain in and around Lankan economy. There were WB and 2008 the rate of inflation had the zones and look forward to better experts sitting inside the Finance averaged 26% and reached the peak employment opportunities. Ministry, drafting all the policy papers of 29% a month. This reflected the and drafting their domestic budgets. enormous burden of cost of living on On the issue of compensation, in these workers. Where job losses were October 2009, 70% of those who lost concerned, the industry cited the figure jobs were able to find work fairly of 30,000, though trade unionists gave soon after they had lost it and 30% a figure of 300,000 jobs lost. In the were still looking for work. There was a statutory formula for compensation of which the quality of workers’ diet There were about 600 feudal families, that was binding, but the employers suffered. The employers stopped who owned the prime agricultural land in were not honouring the compensation providing meat and eggs and instead Pakistan. The second biggest owner of formula, and the Labour Department provided only the cheapest vegetables agricultural land was the military. From that was supposed to regulate it came that were repeated over and over again. colonial times, all the cantonment land to an informal agreement with the So employers were using the crisis as or open land, which was later used for employers, where they turned a blind an opportunity to roll back the benefits agricultural purposes, remained under eye to this. The reality was that only that the workers had won through hard military control and none of it had been 26.6% workers received compensation struggle over the previous decades. given back to the civilian government. according to the formula. Many did not Employers got rid of workers who were 60% of Pakistan’s economy was based get it according to the statutory formula seen as trouble makers, activists and on agriculture, but the entire sector and some received it at the discretion workers who wanted to form trade did not pay any tax. The manufacturing of the employers, some did not receive unions. Hence the crisis had not in sector, whose share in the economy was the compensation at all, and others any way created challenges for the 19%, paid 51% of the total taxes. Out of were engaged in legal proceedings for existing structures of production and 175 million people in Pakistan there were compensation. manufacturing, nor even for the structure only 2½ million tax-payers, although the of labour management or labour economists were of the opinion that at The survey also analyzed the extent to relations. least 10 million people were eligible to which women had themselves benefited pay tax. Pakistan has a government that from their own experience after three has always been parasitical. decades of the establishment of the Economic Rights and Social 23 FTZs. The situation in Sri Lanka was Security in Pakistan A further problem was the network of one where the basic wage of a garment socio-economic and political relationships Najma Sadeque worker was 50% of what the lowest that had been established over time Shirkat Gah, Pakistan grade worker in the public sector through kinship and other ties such as got. So if an unskilled labourer in the It was not the current economic crisis marriage. Through marriage, the rich public sector got around Rs. 12,000, that ruined Pakistan. The country’s ruin and the elite had formed a civil, military, the garment worker’s basic wage was was brought about by circumstances political and feudal nexus and as a around Rs. 6000, which was clearly rooted in its own past. The situation result, there was no development in the insufficient. They had to top it up was only aggravated by the intervention rural areas at all. Living standards had through overtime, long hours, night time of International Financial Institutions fallen drastically. and weekend work. (IFIs), World Trade Organization (WTO), Land records in Pakistan are maintained The first casualty of the crisis was US Government, 9/11, military aid, etc. like state secrets to which researchers cutting back on overtime wages, while Pakistan had witnessed long decades cannot have access because then they retaining the overtime hours. The Labour of military government, had experienced would find out who owns how much. Department continued to tolerate it US hegemony, and even puppet Two attempts at land reforms had both because of the threat of retrenchment democratic regimes propped up by the failed. The lambardar (village headman) by owners and employers. The second Americans. But the key factor behind and patwari (keeper of land records casualty was the free meals because Pakistan’s ruin was its feudal set up. and revenue statistics), were under the direct authority of the feudal elite. In According to ILO figures, Pakistan Coir, Cashew, Fisheries and Sindh and Punjab it was the local feudal has one million bonded labours, and lords and not the government that ruled. they get just barely half to eat. Ever Handloom in Kerala: State Two-thirds of the parliamentarians in the since the export orientation began, Response to the Crisis present elected government are feudal i.e. three to four decades ago, the Mridul Eapen landlords. government stopped maintaining food Kerala State Planning Board, India Assassination was a very common form reserves. We have to rewrite our of dealing with inconvenient problems in economy from scratch because the The Context Pakistan, not only in feudal areas but also World Bank and IMF are jumping in. • Kerala is more integrated with the in the urban areas. In the manufacturing When there is a disaster these money world economy than many other sectors, there are no labour laws. Long lenders are ready and waiting to trap states of India. There is high export before WTO came in i.e. around 25 years you again. of agro industrial products like coir, or so, under the contract system there Women workers were not organized. cashew, handloom, fish, pepper, was no obligation to give minimum Women would remain contract workers coconut and spices. It has a large facilities for health, transport, etc. The even after working in the same factory immigrant workforce located primarily contract system spread like a disease and for 20-30 years. After every eleven in the Middle East, and to some transferred all responsibilities away from months they would get dismissed, extent in the US and UK. It is also the main manufacturer. remain unemployed for one month, and emerging as a major tourism centre. The state of poverty in the country again be engaged as contract labour. 24 • Post crisis, there was a decline in the is such that 40 years back the poor This was the standard practice. In effect, demand for many commodities being people from the north used to eat employers did not need to worry about exported to the world market, and roti (round, unleavened bread) and health services, insurance, transportation the prices were on a downward trend chai (tea). Now chai has become very etc. We have a few thousand members in general. However, the standard expensive because it requires milk in the labour unions but because women discourse focused primarily on the and sugar. In Sindh and Punjab they are doubly burdened, they are not very decline in exports and job losses in eat bread and since they cannot even visible and effective. general, while the impact on women afford vegetables, because for cooking workers, who dominated certain vegetables you need fuel, cooking oil export industries, did not received and spice, they make pickles and if much attention. they cannot afford pickles, they use dhania (coriander), pudina (mint) etc and • Most industries in the state are make a chutney (a thick sauce used as export oriented and employ a large a condiment). If they are lucky to own number of women. These are labour livestock then they will have roti with intensive industries and cashew milk or curd. Such a state of poverty and coir were part of global chains exists even now and has in fact become in which women workers were progressively worse. concentrated in the lower rungs of the labour hierarchy. From very early times, Kerala had tried to organize production in Kerala. After the crisis Reduction in export demand came these unorganized sectors by exports are expected to decline by at together with a credit squeeze, with establishing welfare funds. So most least 20% in the short run; two biggest banks acting cautiously, and hence of these industries had welfare funds mat buyers closed down; there was there was a further reduction in in which there were provisions for cancellation of orders by a number of exports. Similarly, there was a decline in some social security like pension, retailers, increasing incidence of delayed exports of marine products, handlooms, education for children, unemployment payments and perhaps 32,000 workers home textiles, furnishings, readymade benefits, etc. out of work (out of a stated workforce garments etc. leading to further loss of 3.62 lakh14 workers of which 82% are of employment. A survey done in Policy Response women) mostly in the spinning sector. 2009 among workers in each of these sectors revealed that a combination of As soon as the crisis of August 2008 In the Cashew Industry in the policies such as price support, purchase began, the Kerala government appointed government sector, women were not guarantee, guaranteed work for women a small committee and the Centre for thrown out of work but work declined, etc could be adopted to ameliorate the Development Studies was asked to do especially for women workers in situation. a study to find out the possible impact grading. They do not work in any other 12 of the crisis. The study showed that occupation but may work in other Since 2010, there has been an there were six channels of transmission private cashew companies where the increase in plan outlays for value of the global crisis into the local minimum wage is usually given; perhaps addition, exploring the domestic economy. These were Kerala responds fast to the even a little more, but market and ensuring adequate days of remittance inflows; no other benefit like employment to the women workers 25 problem of workers. This is historic. availability of credit bonus is given. Shellers and adopting cost reduction methods Mridul Eapen from the banking have a slight advantage wherever possible without generating system; export of certain specific items being in short supply. In the private unemployment. As part of the Left from the state; tourist arrivals; prices sector definitely units are being asked government’s different approach to of intermediate inputs; and prices of to cut down working days to three and the industrial development of the state, imported raw materials and finished to give a uniform wage, in particular as laid down in the 11th Plan, the goods. The focus of the study was on to shellers and not compete among emphasis this time was on the need the exports of certain specific women themselves; some women reported for state support and protection to intensive export oriented sectors. going for Mahatma Gandhi National agro-processing rural industries in In the Coir Industry, exports had Rural Employment Guarantee Act the sector that had been adversely increased from Rs. 352 crore13 in (MGNREGA) work; 18,000 workers likely affected, first by liberalization policies 2002-03 to Rs. 592 crore in 2007-08. to be affected of a workforce of 2.5 lakh and then by the recession. Allocations Exports account for almost 43% of workers, of whom 95% are women. for the Cashew Industry went up from

12Centre for Development Studies, Thiruvananthapuram, December, 2008, Global Financial Crisis and Impact on the Kerala Economy: Impact and Mitigation Measures http://www.esocialsciences.com/data/articles/Document1212009460.3666193.pdf 13One crore equals to ten million; one hundred lakhs, especially of rupees, units of measurement, or people. 14One lakh equals to a hundred thousand units of measurement, especially of rupees or people. Rs. 2 crore to Rs. 52 crore, while Rs. 10 crore budgetary support to relieve into the food security project. The the allocations for the Coir Industry the distress of the fishing folks, which health insurance scheme which was increased from Rs. 19 crore, to 79 had four components- cold storage started by the national government crore. Handloom and khadi (a coarse chains at the landing stage of fishing under the name Rashtriya Swasthya homespun cotton cloth made in India) harbours, where they could store their Bima Yojana (RSBY) was expanded village industries similarly experienced a fish if they were not able to sell it; beyond the Planning Commission BPL. substantial increase in the outlays from livelihood support, which meant that if They called it Comprehensive Health 2010 onwards. they wanted Insurance Scheme. It covered the From 2010 onwards there has been a substantial to diversify to Planning Commission’s BPL of about The major areas anything else 12 lakh, and this year it was going to in which outlays increase in the outlays. These outlays will they could; for cover at least another 10 lakh families. were made in finance a range of anti-crisis activities. value addition Kerala’s stimulus package was thus an 2009-10 within Mridul Eapen they had started investment in things that would increase each of these a plant which made fish curry and a fish the purchasing power of the people, sectors were as follows- for the Coir drying plant, where they could dry their rather than giving money to the banks. Industry, a price fluctuation fund of fish in a very hygienic way along with Rs. 10 crore to give subsidies for the marketing assistance. difference in the market price and the cost of production so that they can In 2009-10, there was a slowdown sell at whatever price they get in the 26 in the state’s growth rate but things market; for the Cashew Industry, funds were certainly not as bad as had been were given for value addition while feared at one stage. The biggest fear- putting an emphasis on the domestic of return migrants- did not come true. market. This was a big shift that the Exports declined but the home market Government attempted towards targeting somehow suddenly grew. However, the domestic market. Additionally, funds the crisis took a new turn as a new were given to supply working capital for bubble arose in the food grain market, procurement of nuts from farmers. with all prices skyrocketing. So, a lot Similarly, measures were taken for of initiatives were accordingly taken stimulating the domestic markets for on the food front. The government handlooms. These included purchasing responded with three steps that were school uniforms in non-government and not specific to any sector. First was the aided schools from handloom units, restoration of the Public Distribution making it mandatory for children in such System (PDS). All Below Poverty Line schools to wear handloom uniforms at (BPL) families were provided ration least twice a week, and for men and rice at Rs. 2 per kg, and they included women in all government offices to some categories like Scheduled Castes wear handloom cloth at least once a and Scheduled Tribes (SCs/STs) and week. In case of Fisheries, there was a fishing folks. Rs. 6400 crore had gone The Global Financial Crisis into starvation deaths and suicides in • Shortage of finance, obsolete and Women Artisans: the late eighties and the early nineties. technology, influence of western culture, changing fashion trends and • With no access to productive A Forgotten Lot unstable markets, as well as social resources and markets, many women Traditional Artisans in South and political influences has led to weavers have turned to active sex Asia – An Overview irreversible poverty. work to support families, resulting Julie George in a rise in HIV/AIDS incidences and • Cases of tuberculosis, asthma, nerve Skillshare, India abandoned/orphaned street children. weakness, eye-strain and body ache have risen steeply among the present • Artisans form a significant portion • Those who already had the wherewithal generation of weavers and these are of the informal economy, commonly and access also manifesting referred to as the unorganised sector. to productive Globalization has simply marginalized themselves at an There are 22 million artisans in India resources grabbed the ‘have-nots’ further, especially earlier age; many alone, with about 6 million in the the markets, women in the informal sector. The women undergo handloom sector; crafts is the largest turning traditional question is who is making the money. hysterectomies at 35- employer, next only to agriculture; artisans into Is it the artisans or the traders and 40 years old, forced and 80% of work is done by women; mere piece-rate where do women fit in here. to work for 12-14 yet they are ‘invisible’ in their work. earners or bonded Julie George hours a day. • US$1500 million worth of exports labourers. come from the artisan sector annually. • Displaced self-employed artisans • Economic recession in the nineties 27 However, this is controlled mostly have been transformed into unskilled cut short even the tiny markets by capitalist traders and the real migrants; migrant artisans resorted available to small producers; there producers do not get a fair share. to other forms of informal labour like is actually a dearth of markets but whatever limited markets • In 2009-10, export of Nepali handicrafts pulling rickshaws or selling balloon. Women became domestic maids in are available, including ‘fair trade suffered a decline of 8.11%. According organizations’, are controlled by a to the Federation of Handicraft metros, thus ending age-old traditions and cultures; and children increasingly few big players; work is mostly Associations of Nepal (FHAN), subcontracted to artisans, who are handicraft exports amounted to entered labour markets, especially in HIV/AIDS-affected zones. yet to be organized; Fair Trade is not Rs. 2.78 billion in the fiscal year 2009- practiced in earnest by anyone. 10, compared to Rs.3.02 billion in 2008-9. The Current Crisis • A majority of women home-based • Most enterprises suffered because workers, traditional artisans and History of Crisis of globalization; the Indian handicraft weavers, have been particularly hard market suffered a greater loss with hit by the Asian financial crisis; an • New economic policies and Structural cheap Chinese products glutting the increase in women performing Adjustment Programmes (SAPs) driven market; women solely dependent home-based work; the lesser women by the IMF and the WB forced large on home-based work faced the are organized the better profits numbers of artisans out of jobs and worst brunt. MNCs make. • Women often employed finance arising from liquidity problems of conducive policies, women have predominantly in the informal sector, in the financial sector affects women been further marginalised, given their perform ‘a-typical’ or part-time work, worst, as they are the majority of already existing invisibility. are under-employed or are not paid clients of microfinance institutions • Conducive institutional mechanisms at all. Unremunerated work, usually (85% of the poorest 93 million clients for collective bargaining, like Parallel in the form of household or voluntary of MFIs in 2006). Coop Acts, are vehemently opposed work, is a critical form of women’s • Increased stress, resulting from sheer by politicians and bureaucrats; current work, but is almost universally lack of food and financial security, policies and structures not conductive uncounted; unpaid work is performed leads to an increase in incidents of to revive and empower traditional virtually entirely by women. violence against women, and even artisans. • The financial and economic crisis of communal violence because it is a 2008 had gender-specific impacts fight for survival. • SAFTA had come into effect on and placed a disproportionate burden January 1, 2006 but it was far • Currently, there is no strategic focus on women, particularly poor and in the international migrating women. Even though both In the absence of supportive policies, men rather than development sector on men and women are affected by job women benefit from economic growth. Economic sustenance and revival losses, women lead the first – you growth and public support are equally dispensable of traditional artisan can hire them last and dismiss them to gender equality in the world. culture, lifestyles, first because traditionally men are Julie George products and services; 28 considered to be the breadwinners. interventions are They do not want to be jobless so from clear that it would protect the more geared towards charity, with a they are retained, and the women are interests of small producers against purely welfare approach, not one of kicked out. Drop in remittances by private traders. empowerment. family members also affects women’s autonomy and control over family • Corporate-led globalization, skewed A Policy Agenda members. economic growth and policies • Get more space for women artisans that do not reflect poverty factors • Craft sector growth has either slowed in the SAARC forums; of the country; the ‘There Is No down or has been stagnating, leaving Alternative’ (TINA) approach to • Facilitate trade coalitions in the region little scope for primary producers corporate led capitalism, and the especially among women artisan to access and control the volatile type of globalization it signifies, in groups; markets; women already in the lower short, there is a TINA syndrome in rungs of the value chains have less • Convert services and products development discourse. bargaining power. like credit and resources to create maximum impact for women; • Drop in informal sector demand • Entry of MNCs into all sectors has impacts women traditional artisans, only reduced genuine producers from • Invest in primary producer market; weavers as economic crises tend to a state of being skilled workers to encourage use of ICDS; encourage significantly reduce the demand for bonded labourers with no economic transfer of skills and marketing export their products; reduced access to and social security; in the absence services; • As development practitioners, we easier for them to double the plan • India has been negotiating an EU- are constantly making mistakes and allocations and deal with the crisis. India FTA. The EU used to give thinking micro when it comes to In the region, with some exception preferential access to Bangladesh and women. We needed to move away in case of Sri Lanka, there had not Sri Lanka and many other countries from microcredit, micro enterprise, been any substantial concerted effort in the region. Now these countries etc. to large-scale ventures that put towards putting in a comprehensive are scared that once EU India FTA is enough money and resources in social security package. signed, India will get ‘equal access’ the hands of our small producers, for similar products being produced artisans and crafts persons. • The government of Kerala financed by other countries that could the measures mentioned above adversely affect their exports. South- through market borrowings and Comments south cooperation was repeating the mobilization of existing rates of paradigm of north-south cooperation Issues discussed included need for a taxation along with a few luxury with the richer and more powerful comprehensive social security package in taxes that were the chief source of countries in the south behaving the entire region; need for a combined funds for the programmes initiated. in a similar manner towards least effort in the entire region to decide on a As far as Kerala was concerned, it developing countries exactly as the common minimum wage; the desirability was the first state where a Debt north had with them. of nation states to protect citizen’s Relief Commission was rights in the context of FTAs; need for established, bringing an To meet that gap between jobs and economic alternate strategies of development end to farmer suicides. rights for women and vulnerable workers, 29 in terms of policies of WTO; Indian The government had also there is a need to have long term policy in place. Government’s poor track record in undertaken price stabilization terms of implementation of labour of essential commodities and started • It is important to understand the laws and the need for comprehensive large schemes such as EMS housing dangers of FTAs, given the unequal labour reforms; feudalism and reverse scheme as part of the stimulus nature of the partnership and issues of feudalism in Pakistan; Debt Relief package. public procurement, labour standards Commission and price stabilization stating that the way forward was not • Kerala’s case also shows that the measures in Kerala; need for a cluster trade alliances and trade led growth biggest challenge is to sensitise the development approach and cooperative but incorporation of developmental government to make an intervention; movement in India to link producers with goals into our development paradigm not an intervention on behalf of modern marketing techniques; revival of i.e. trade policy. The contrast between industry and bailout packages for handicrafts in Pakistan; and models of Gujarat and Kerala, despite being one them, but some kinds of livelihood empowering artisans. of the fastest growing states in India packages for those who are affected. with a 11-12% rate of growth in the • Kerala’s example showed that knee- After the financial crisis all the last few decades, adequate policy jerk responses, especially in regard to business chambers of commerce were response targeted at marginalized long-term social security issues, were talking about stimulus package for groups were not forthcoming from not going to work. It highlighted the themselves but there was nothing for the Gujarat government when the role that policy can play. Kerala had the livelihood support for the workers rate of growth fell to 3.5% during the a long term plan and it was much or anybody who had suffered. crisis with the government stating that it could provide food to only half • It was not simply a question of • Pakistan’s own agricultural production the BPL families based on Central labour standards being imposed had not been enough to meet its Government’s allocations. There is from outside, but also the fact was needs, largely due to production of no Planning Commission or Planning that the Indian government was not cash crops by big landlords and a Board in Gujarat and while many implementing its own labour laws in policy of export orientation which states like Jharkhand and Chhattisgarh large parts, neither in terms of working had led to the country’s own crops saw Gujarat as the role model, the real hours and working days nor in terms being re-imported at higher prices model should have been Kerala. of minimum wage or leave regulation. during a crisis after they had been A huge informal sector is rising within sold in advance. Recently, a reverse • South-south cooperation in the the formal sector. Retrenchment feudalism had taken place with presence of competition and and closure laws were being revised businessmen and industrialists putting export orientation was not continuously, raising the bar for the all their money in agricultural land possible given the current model number of workers in factories or units and fudging figures and statements of development, until a common which could close understanding on alternate strategies We are all getting trapped in the growth paradigm. But down without of development emerged such as we are not looking at how it changes, or does not change permission from saying no to trade in agriculture relations of production and therefore does not move towards 100-300 to up on terms laid down by developing democratization of society. to 1000 workers countries under WTO. now. Anti-labour regulations were to escape taxation. The country 30 • The successive drafts of consultations being pushed in the name of ‘labour also witnessed takeover of land for on the India-EU FTA progressively reforms’. corporate farming, with agricultural led to a toning down of aspects land being increasingly sold to • On the issue of feudalism in Pakistan related to labour and human rights foreign investors, and removal of the importance of looking at things and a domination of trade related caps on maximum holdings. from a historical perspective where issues. The role of the nation state in what might appear as the continued • Pakistan’s intends to ratify the protecting its citizens was important. existence of ‘feudalism’, might actually International Covenant on Civil and • No country will implement labour be a transformation in social relations Political Rights with the caveat that standards because of the fear of where the old and new forms of they do not want any international losing markets and jobs. It was a relations of production might be monitoring. race to the bottom and the cost was brought together in a new context • There are no women’s countries transferred to the workers. Some in a manner dictated and shaped by from the perspective of power and alliances were formed within South external forces such as globalization countries are women’s countries only Asia, which talked about floor wages and liberalization was highlighted. How in terms of sufferings of women. because wages kept decreasing. This could rising fiscal deficits be sustained was to prevent a country gaining in the case of donor aid, as India was • While globalization had led to a at the expense of another and a one of the biggest recipients of donor decline in production, export, income, combined effort was needed to decide aid and further, what were the issues etc for the sector, handlooms and on at least a common minimum wage. that this raised? handicrafts were still very important to India in terms of providing but they were trying to link primary done to bring women on board while employment and livelihoods, and producers and traditional producers educating members on their rights they had huge markets even in with modern marketing techniques, and duties. Looking at the case of the modern economy. They were and these efforts needed to be Dilli Haat while discussing issues linked to the rich heritage and developed further. of market access, she pointed culture of the country and were out that rampant corruption had also environment friendly and hence • In Pakistan, handicrafts were dying blocked access of artisans to the important from the point of view because of very poor support and also market; traders of Chinese goods of sustainable development. There because they were typically geared to were selling their wares by bribing were two positive measures that the tourist industry, which was limited officials of Delhi Tourism Department. needed to be further strengthened. and dwindling in Pakistan. One was that we have to think It had been projected in a A basic human right i.e. right to food, if it has terms of cluster15 development in a workshop that handicrafts to be protected, then we must say “no trade very systematic manner. One such and artisan work together in agriculture to be imposed by the so called was capable of providing cluster was in Chanderi. The artisans developed countries on others”. here were moving towards unskilled most of their household work because skilled work was not needs and hence they needed to be Genuine producers never got a giving them enough income. So, an revived. chance to access the market. organization called Entrepreneurship • Where the new models of Though India has some of the best Development Institute, approached empowering artisans were concerned, policies in the world, the problems 31 the government of India and a I do not agree with the model Fab lay with their implementation and cluster for the Chanderi weavers India was promoting because it was monitoring. was granted in that area. Secondly, a single person who owned many • Human rights are not to be though the cooperative movement stores, and they had also been addressed only by the poor or by the in Non-Governmental Organizations exploiting artisans. SEWA was a governments of the rich countries, (NGOs) was ridden with several movement of producers that was but also by the so called developed problems, there were some other promoting cooperatives which were countries which are pressurizing new models emerging in the country parallel cooperatives and hence and actually forcing governments that were giving positive results. For was a better model. The state run of the third world countries to example the Self Employed Women’s cooperatives actually interfered with violate all the rights and becoming Association (SEWA), Anokhi, Desi governance. There were only ten good guys in front of media and and Fab India were trying to connect states that had entered into the blaming the developing countries local people with modern marketing parallel act that should be pushed like India and China for their and processes, not for exports alone as it promoted cooperatives that unwillingness to address human but also for Indian markets. There were run by members only. Lots rights violations. were some problems in these models of capacity building needs to be

15“A cluster is a sectoral and geographical concentration of small/medium enterprises facing common opportunities and threats.” Source: http://www.unido.org/ index.php?id=5780 This session of the workshop focussed politicians. The Taliban had denounced on the situation in Afghanistan, the in- international peace building efforts conflict, out-of- conflict and back- into- and wanted to build a more stable conflict situation, the impact of the Afghanistan under its totalitarian rule. conflict on women, as well as the failure It continued to harass, intimidate and of international aid in rebuilding the murder women who breached medieval economy of the country and improving codes of behaviour for having jobs, for the conditions of women. having friends and for having lives. The Taliban was expected to enlarge Aid is big business not only for its presence under the peace deal, the corporations but also for and reintegrate insurgents into civilian international lending agencies. areas. This will compromise human Najma Sadeque rights of women, and turn into a huge 32 defeat for the women of Afghanistan. Afghanistan: A Case Study It was imperative to insert women’s rights and human rights into the Massouda Jalal agendas for all such conferences, at Jalal Foundation, Afghanistan the international, national and local While the period of the current global, levels. Human rights must be reconciled Conflict and Issues of International Aid E xperiences from Afghanistan financial and economic crisis is a time of with the security and economic strategy grave financial and political instability, the of Afghanistan. commitment to human rights, which had been made by all In Afghanistan they are ready to share power countries in the world, should with the Taliban but not with women. Nobody is not be forgotten or set aside talking of dividing political power between men because of financial concerns. and women. Since women do not have power, Financial insecurity coupled they are not cared for. with political insecurity in Massouda Jalal Afghanistan, had further limited the chances of young girls to engage As very few governments would meet meaningfully with the outside world as the targets set by the Millennium business owners, doctors, teachers or Development Goals (MDGs) in 2015, it becomes all the more important that • 68% of marriages in Afghanistan • 70% of Afghanistan’s population was governments reiterate their commitment were forced marriages. If a man facing extreme poverty. to human rights. Governments around killed somebody in the family, a • In 2007, when quotas for reserving the world should not forgo their pledges daughter of the victim’s family had seats for women in government were to human rights in the interest of to be given in a blood price marriage in operation, 68 women entered the temporary security- financial or military. to the murderer to settle feelings Parliament. However, in 2009 a Law Most crucially, the general contraction of vengeance and there was no was passed where rape in marriage in financial activity in the world must punishment for the perpetrator. No was prohibited, but it was provided not translate into a reduction of social father had ever been taken to jail that if the wife was not prepared for and political investments in the future because of the forced marriage of his sexual intercourse every four days, of young girls and women. Women in daughter. the husband had the right to stop politics and in leadership are the key feeding her, and this law was drafted to changing the culture of corruption, • Women were deprived of inheritance and passed with not a single woman injustice and impunity. In any financial rights. The provisions of Shariat 18 objecting to it. After an international climate, this was the best strategy for Law , the main religious pillar of outcry, which proclaimed that the peace and security. Islam, were also not implemented. law was discriminatory, violent and • Cities of Afghanistan have a small Afghanistan has seen three decades against basic human rights, it was number of women working in of war and conflict because of which amended in many parts but remained government offices. However, the the situation of women has worsened controversial. salaries of women workers empower 33 further in several ways. their men folk, who continue to hold • When American attention shifted to Iraq, Afghanistan was left to fend • After 9/11, the UN Gender-related the purse strings. for itself, and the powerful extremist Development Index16 showed that the • The Maternal Mortality Ratio in groups in the country established position of Afghan women was still Afghanistan was the second highest themselves politically, economically the second worst in the world. The in the world. In the north-east this and militarily. Negotiations with United Nations Educational, Scientific, rate was the highest in the world i.e. the Taliban were on, whereby the and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) 6,500 for 100,000 live births. In USA militant outfit sought control over the survey17 showed that 89% of the it was 2 per 100,000 live births. In ministry of Implementation of Shariat Afghan women were illiterate. the rest of Afghanistan it was 1,500 Law which, if accepted, would be for 100,000 live births. disastrous for women.

16Gender-related Development Index (GDI), measures achievement in the same basic capabilities as the HDI does, but takes note of inequality in achievement between women and men. The methodology used imposes a penalty for inequality, such that the GDI falls when the achievement levels of both women and men in a country go down or when the disparity between their achievements increases. The greater the gender disparity in basic capabilities, the lower a country’s GDI compared with its HDI. The GDI is simply the HDI discounted, or adjusted downwards, for gender inequality. Source: http://hdr.undp.org/en/ statistics/indices/gdi_gem/ 17UNESCO, Kabul, 2008-2009, The UNESCO Country Programming Document, Afghanistan 18Islamic canonical law based on the teachings of the Koran and the traditions of the Prophet, prescribing both religious and secular duties and sometimes retributive penalties for lawbreaking. It has generally been supplemented by legislation adapted to the conditions of the day, though the manner in which it should be applied in modern states is a subject of dispute between Muslim traditionalists and reformists. Source: http://www.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/sharia?view=uk • The financial crisis has led to the make the difference; otherwise a been done in the country to generate curtailment of human rights and dark future lies ahead for women in employment for women. The presence freedoms. The crisis was not simply Afghanistan. of conflict has been a deterrent a crisis of credit and markets but it for women accessing employment, became a crisis of food water and Economic Crisis, Conflict, education and health services. According fuel. It is the poorest and weakest International Aid and its to government statistics, 44% of the individuals in the world who suffer Afghan families are food-insecure and the greatest in the economic Impact on Women 35% of the families cannot provide for downturn. Mohammad Musa Mahmoodi their daily caloric needs. Women bear Afghanistan Independent Human Rights the worst brunt of this economic crisis- • The struggle for gender equality Commission, Afghanistan conflict-poverty cycle. also experienced setbacks during the global financial crisis. Most Afghanistan had not been directly hit The situation is grave and to prevent importantly it showed how vulnerable by the international economic crisis. the crisis from aggravating further, to women are as an economic group, However, since its economic growth overcome economic challenges and especially in countries where they is dependent on international aid, any improve the social, economic and are not seen as autonomous and decrease in aid inflows would affect its cultural situation of Afghan women, contributing citizens. The financial economy. Despite the injection of more the government of Afghanistan must crisis has further burdened the than 40 billion US Dollars in the past amend the existing laws, or develop opportunity for women to participate 34 eight years, the unimproved conditions new regulations protecting women’s in society. of vulnerable groups, especially women, social, economic and political rights; who have remained bereft provide more security and opportunity A crisis, financial or political, should not halt the of the benefits of the for those women who face hardships at project of human rights; rather the commitment to aid, remains a matter home or in society; implement all laws human rights would promote stability, collaborative of enormous concern, and policies designed and developed spirit and the enjoyment of freedoms that well help and brings to light the to empower women; provide justice stem the crisis and reduce suffering. question of effectiveness and security for women victims of Massouda Jalal of international aid. The discrimination and violence; invest in • The author would like to appeal to global economic crisis will social security and economic sectors the international women’s movements affect the ability and willingness of many that directly benefit women; improve the to intervene for the empowerment international community members to skills and knowledge of women workers of Afghan women, reformation of all continue with unconditional commitment through vocational training and skill laws related to women, creation of to support Afghanistan economy. building programmes. structures and policies that would The poverty cycle in Afghanistan has strengthen the access of women to been exacerbated by the ongoing justice, jobs, employment, economic conflict. Unemployment figures for opportunities and economic resources women are 50% higher than that for and government services. It is the men. Gender based discrimination is international support which can endemic in the country. Very little has Comments economy. There are no livelihood to build the nation was a sense options. All technical jobs were in of identity and commitment and The discussion in this session of the the hands of expats and there was not international aid, which, in any workshop focused on the situation in no commitment to moving towards a case, was not really going to the Afghanistan. Afghan people. Aid to Afghanistan is like a business. The political • Despite the fact that • International aid cannot be held will and commitment for reconstruction and Afghanistan has got responsible for everything that establishing peace, engaging in the nation building international aid worth billions goes wrong with Afghanistan. The of dollars, the money has process in Afghanistan is lacking. lack of vision of the leaders is also not been effectively used responsible for the situation. and spent. Afghanistan has gone long-run transition through a lot in terms of war and where these jobs could go to the • International aid agencies work conflict and, despite the fact that a Afghans. In the last three decades for themselves, donors work for lot of money comes in by way of aid, with the ongoing war, the sense of themselves, human right bodies work there was no commitment to build nation had been eroded. There were for themselves, the government does infrastructure, local capacity and put no cultural artefacts, monuments or not go to anyone. So it is a difficult systems in place for developing the arts and crafts. What was needed situation.

35 This session dealt with the issue of Economic Crisis and Women’s indigenous women, who had been Natural Resource Management facing double marginalization by virtue with Special Reference to of being indigenous as well as women. Both direct and indirect impacts of India’s North-East climate change, depletion of natural Patricia Mukhim resources and agrarian crises were being Indigenous Women’s Resource Centre, India felt, and the issue has to be located in The North-East of India is still considered a continuum, within the unfolding of the a distant outpost for the large majority processes of privatization, globalization and is only sometimes remembered by and the global financial crisis. In this the rest of the country and its people. context, the continuing struggles of The region has suffered from huge women and women’s agencies, in infrastructure bottlenecks. Connectivity is 36 addressing these problems were poor even among the seven states and particularly significant. mobility is difficult. There are only two industries worth their name- oil and tea, When you observe natural resource both set up by the British during their management within the context tenure. The region got attention because

Crisis and Women’s and Crisis Natural Resource M anagement of globalisation, privatization and it had huge mineral resources. The region economic-financial crisis, you can above all, is a conflict zone. There have see the continuity of these forces, been several mutinies arising out of a and the struggle of women and sense of real and perceived neglect and women’s agencies to address these alienation with the rest of India. Conflict problems. has greatly reduced women’s mobility. Govind Kelkar • The only way the global financial crisis could have impacted this region was through the ‘Look East’ policy, but fortunately the policy never took off despite the rhetoric. It was seen as an important land and water link to the rest of Asia through Myanmar. The ‘Look East’ policy had strengthened • Industrial units have been set up been tapped, due to absence of the rest of India’s bilateral ties with in the state owned zone i.e. Export consultations with real communities South East Asian nations but had done Promotion Industrial Park (a smaller of indigenous women and men. The nothing for the North-East. version of a SEZ). These have community has come to be defined become hubs for polluting, energy by the tribal elite. • The only positive intensive industrial • The Indian policy makers are development was the Commodification of our units. This has caused ignorant of the fact that women negotiation between forests has killed our forests. immense pollution are completely excluded from the Sheikh Hasina and the and environmental Patricia Mukhim decision making process in these Government of Delhi on devastation. the opening up Chittagong Port for bodies. This is true even for a state North-Eastern exports, which could be • Indigenous women in the North- like Meghalaya, which boasted, of helpful given the perishable nature of East have definitely enjoyed greater a matrilineal culture. The notion their exports. mobility and visibility, and that has of matrilineality itself needed to given them slightly larger options for be demystified, since it gave a • Because the North-East was a conflict livelihood. In terms of forest use, they wrong impression about female zone, it experienced a vicious cycle have access to fuel wood, medicinal empowerment. of growth, where presence of conflict herbs, broomstick, honey, spices, • Land issues are particularly important discouraged growth and development and pepper. But the challenge today activities, the absence of which in in the issue of food security. The is that the forests are dwindling and jhoom (shifting cultivation) fields return further exacerbated social more and more are being cut down 37 and economic discontent, leading were the last surviving organic to pave the way for mining activities. agricultural spaces. Indigenous to intensification of the conflict. There have been attempts to grow Understandably therefore, the region women should not be compelled to Jatropha which is said to be grown abandon jhoom in favour of settled was the least favoured destination for in wastelands. In the North-East inland and foreign investors. agriculture. Indigenous women still however, there are no wastelands use indigenous rice seeds and were • After 1991, Government of India and all land is productive land. able to conserve them because of initiated a liberal industrial and Commodification of the forests has the jhoom fields. After shifting to investment policy offering a ten- thus destroyed indigenous women’s settled agriculture, they begin to year tax holiday to industrialists who livelihood options. use seeds given by the agriculture dared to venture into the region. • In the so-called tribal states, inhabited department i.e. high yielding varieties. However, these policies exacerbated by the majority of the indigenous Indigenous seeds are resilient to the extractive mining processes. people, land was owned by the climate change and pests, but they The cement giant Lafarge got community, clans and individuals. are slowly losing out to hybrid and 100 hectares of land through very Only reserve forests were with the other seeds, because conserving surreptitious methods. In the past state, which accounted for about seeds was difficult unless they could 15 years, about 20 large cement 4% of the total forest cover. The be used over and over again. The companies have stationed themselves knowledge of indigenous people in state did not encourage women to be in Meghalaya alone. conserving these forests has not conservers. Organically produced rice that was very tasty and nutritious, market and the government had afford primary investment capital are was not promoted. In Thailand they encouraged diversification of crops excluded from the above activities. were asked to taste Jasmine rice that without informing women about these • Water is important for life, health was being sold at 25 Thai baht per consequences. and sanitation and there are serious kg, but the Jasmine rice was • Indigenous women had always threats to life and liberty caused nowhere near in comparison to the dominated the markets selling by dwindling water resources. Due taste of rice from their own hills. perishable goods, fish, and vegetables. to mining activities, a lot of the • Women had made the best use of In Meghalaya and Nagaland there aquifers have been blasted and rivers kitchen gardens, producing vegetables were more women involved in the poisoned with sulphuric acid. There for personal consumption, a small food industry, selling food and tea has been no attempt to reclaim or amount of which was marketed. Apart along the highways. About 3000 trucks clean up the rivers or the abandoned from this they undertook livestock pass through this highway carrying coal mines. Indigenous women often rearing, especially the free range coal and other goods. Because of earn their livelihood through washing chicken and pigs. Livestock gave overnight stops en route by trucks clothes and they earn at least Rs. women a sense of status and pride. on these highways, women became 100-200 a day depending on how vulnerable to sexually transmitted many cycles they wash. But since the • Poor women were stuck to the diseases such as HIV/AIDS.- water sources were getting further traditional livelihoods- growing and further away from their homes vegetables, rice, livestock farming and • Women are heavily engaged in sericulture farming. They rear special they are finding it difficult to walk 38 these women could benefit only from long distances. special poverty alleviation schemes varieties of silkworms specific to the of international funding agencies. region, such as Muga, Eri and Oak • Conflict in the region has alienated Global recession had seen a cut in Tasar. The cocoons are threaded and natural resources in favour of men to aid to India and consequently to the woven into shawls and stored for sustain militant activities and militants North-East. So it is likely to impact niche markets. However, more land is are euphemistically called ‘national further the poor and the marginalized needed to get into this activity, which workers’. women, unless the government is becoming scarce and therefore • The economic crisis has resulted in takes upon itself the responsibility of Muga production has dwindled. cuts in the social sector spending augmenting resources in this sector. • Indigenous women have a strong in the region, despite the fact that traditional indigenous medicinal • Exposure to export markets had reproductive rights and reproductive knowledge system. Commodification adverse consequences in terms and maternal health indicators are of land and forests is pushing of women shifting to growing abysmal. The Maternal Mortality Ratio women out of this traditional form of exotic crops at high value and low (MMR) and the Infant Mortality Rates livelihood. volume end of the market, such as (IMR) are both very high. Statistics strawberry cultivation that had led • Women are now engaged in from Assam put the figures at 480 to a move away from vegetables floriculture and horticulture such as per 100,000 live births for MMR from and rice cultivation. These exotic export of orchids. But the poor 2004 to 2006, and 74 per 1000 live crops, however, had a very volatile and the destitute women who cannot births for IMR, which is the highest in the country. The global crisis has Comments terms of a sustainable growth model. increased the price of medicines and health care by 4.5%. The cost of food Issues discussed included the • Women constituted a large chunk grains has also gone up. Inflation differences between the indigenous of landless farmers as well as share has made it much more difficult populations; modernization and croppers, and their land was being for women to get nutritious food. sustainable development in the context taken away by the government on Capacity building on socio-economic of natural resource management; the the pretext that it was wasteland. rights awareness generation and their effect of land acquisition on women; Earlier there were extension services implementation is urgently needed in women in the livestock industry in that were a link between the farming the region. Pakistan; the case of indigenous and the scientific community. Indian populations in Sri Lanka Council for Agricultural Research • Women also We need land for food security. losing out their forests to the (ICAR) for instance, had turned into need to Patricia Mukhim Government; the matrilineal a total GMO bandwagon, and there reclaim lost structure of Meghalaya, and was no information available on titles to land and property from men. what it does and does not imply; and how they were planning to handle The NGO sector in the region has the situation of women in Nepal. the possible adverse consequences been very weak and the state was of climate change or hunger in the getting coercive. Political education • While in the North-East, literacy rates country. of indigenous women on a sustained and awareness was high, it was not • The livestock industry was entirely basis is very important if they have to so in Orissa, highlighting the fact looked after by women in Pakistan, 39 take up advocacy roles. Reallocation that differences existed even among yet when women tried to set up of resources and Land Ceiling Act indigenous people with regard to cooperatives, the earnings went to are very important as land resources natural resource management. men and women ended up with were slipping into private hands. • Regarding natural resource nothing. • Mainstreaming gender and resource management, modernization • In Pakistan, the Agricultural management and customary is creating a large number of Development Bank which claims to practices, wherever the indigenous problems in our country. Sustainable exist for farmers, does not help small peoples’ culture no longer supports development means forging linkages farmers or peasants and literally equitable rights and equal access to between natural capital and economic none of the small people. That has resources is required. As far as loss growth and hence the state has to to come in, call it micro finance or of seeds as resource was concerned, think in terms of Non Timber Forest whatever but it has to go to the the state needs to promote Produce (NTFP) based activities or female peasants. Women look after indigenous seeds by supporting other such activities. Women have the entire dairy livestock that produces women farmers and their products. been trying to do it in the context of the tribal population in Gujarat but milk in Pakistan. Pakistan is the the government was not listening sixth largest country in the world to them. The problem lies with the producing milk but the women don’t growth model. We have to think in get even a penny. The government Indigenous Women, Natural Resource Management and Climate Change Nepal: A Case Study Lucky Sherpa Member, Constituent Assembly, Nepal The whole terminology is a male dominated terminology. The patriarchal mindset is one of the biggest problems in addressing the impact of the crisis on women. Lucky Sherpa Indigenous women everywhere are tremendously discriminated against because of social, cultural and racial discrimination that they face in addition to gender discrimination. They face gender discrimination within their own strata, home and family. The regional disparities that they face, because of belonging to the mountainous rural areas, are a major concern, as are questions of their roots and distinct identity. The biggest problem in case of indigenous women is the non-recognition of their identity. Some of these concerns have already been taken up by the UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues19 but have not yet reflected in specific government policies. Indigenous women’s contribution to indigenous knowledge and its potential to deal with many issues like the food crisis and climate change has not been recognized and there is a lack of research and data on these issues. Neither the government of Nepal, nor International Aid Agencies have made any investment in protecting indigenous knowledge systems. 40 Aid has become donor-driven rather than being people-driven and it is increasingly being given for issues like HIV/AIDS which has never been their concern. The financial aid to Nepal has not reached the most vulnerable groups. On issues such as climate change, environment and pollution, Nepal prefers to engage with international experts, who promote transfer of technology, rather than look at its own indigenous knowledge system to deal with the crisis. The crisis in Nepal has hit the tourism industry hard, led to a fall in remittances and return migration from other crisis ridden countries like Malaysia. Given the importance of these sectors for indigenous women, all this has impacted their livelihoods, the dropout rate of their children has increased, and women are getting internally displaced in search of jobs. They have been caught in the trafficking web and the search for job opportunities has exposed them to violence. Indigenous women’s issues have not yet been recognized as human rights issues and there is an urgent need to stop characterizing these issues as ethnic or individual issues and look at them as human rights issues. The exclusion of indigenous people from the socio-political and economic realm is a major concern.

The economic crisis cannot be judged only from the perspective of one sector of the society. Happiness cannot be judged only in terms of economic benefits. The happiness of any country cannot be judged by the number of rich people in the country. It should be judged by the quantum of human rights and social harmony. Lucky Sherpa

19The UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues is an advisory body to the Economic and Social Council, with a mandate to discuss indigenous issues related to economic and social development, culture, the environment, education, health and human rights. Source: http://www.un.org/esa/socdev/unpfii/ Adivasi20 Women and Grassroots Workers in Indigenous Resource Management Experiences of Bidyutlata, a Tribal Woman from Orissa

It is very important today to preserve natural resources and it is more important to hear what indigenous people have to say. It is important that we make indigenous women a part of the policy making process. Bidyutlata Forests were very important for the indigenous people, because of dependence of such people on forests for their livelihood activities i.e. to collect food and fuel, and the herbs and leaves that are very important for this section. Forty to fifty years back, when cultivation was based on traditional methods, crops were grown in plenty and people were happy. A lot has changed since then, and in particular the rampant and often inappropriate use of fertilizers has affected soil fertility and has led to increased food insecurity and starvation with people having only one meal a day. Women have suffered most due to food insecurity with pregnant women suffering more because of low calorie food, which adversely affects the health of both the mother and the baby. There is an absence of education and awareness on matters such as health and family planning, and the use of fertilizers. Work given by the government through National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (NREGA) is only seasonal and though payment is promised within 15-20 days, often actual payment is made 4-5 months after completion of work. This increases food insecurity and as well the tendency of migration to places like Mumbai, Kerala, etc. Migration often brings with it HIV/ AIDS infection to the villages and there is a severe lack of awareness and information about the disease, about what should 41 and should not be done. And women are affected directly by this. Forests have been badly exploited through unsustainable practices. Women should be organized into Self Help Groups (SHGs) for collection of non-timber forest resources like leaves, honey and other resources and marketing them through proper channels to earn higher incomes and overcome food insecurity. Corporations like POSCO and other industrial interventions in the rural areas, by demanding more natural resources, specifically water, were adversely affecting local interests. What is needed is investment in local resources to address migration and find solutions to problems. Industrial interventions by POSCO and Vedanta had brought much suffering for them because forests in particular provided resources they depended upon. It is very important today to preserve natural resources and make women a part of the policy making process.

20Adivasi is an umbrella term for a heterogeneous set of ethnic and tribal groups believed to be the aboriginal population of India can easily give money for the women built cooperatives. But this Case Study from Orissa is not done. Basanti • The loss of seeds is terrible. We tried to do a pilot project on urban food The water level in Orissa has continuously been receding, causing hardships for production. The NGOs wanted this women who have to walk long distances to fetch water. At present women use introduced for women because they spring water in their villages because they do not have any tube wells and hence said that this would help prevent it is important to conserve this precious resource. However water quality was anaemia. People lent us their land for being increasingly affected by increased mining activities in the region. Earlier they the project. We could not get seeds. were able to utilize forest produce like leaves, barks, roots, herbs for consumption There was no organic, natural seed purposes but the forest officials were in the process of planting trees, which available in the market. When I got in could readily be sold and were geared towards profit oriented production. This touch with the NGOs that do organic led to decimation of natural forests. Fertility of the soil also declined considerably farming, they gave me a tiny packet and the quality of seeds declined perhaps due to the excessive use of fertilizers. of seeds. I was quite amazed with Tribals had earlier practiced shifting cultivation, but this practice has reduced the small quantity of seeds given to considerably and even stopped in certain areas due to the planting of forest me, but there was not much left. We trees by the forest officials. Due to low productivity there has been an increase could not do this simply because we in starvation. The condition of forest dwellers in the state is bad. could not get the seed. 42 Initially, when activists from the NGO Seva Bharati came to the region, there • Opening up of Chittagong Port for was a lot of fear and distrust amongst the villagers about their intentions and the Indian states in the North-East, activities. But slowly they overcame this fear and worked with the organization was a sensitive political issue for and are now actively involved with two networks, Adivasi Adhikar Abhiyan and Bangladesh, as it was going to affect Chellaitamu Mahasangha. This has brought awareness and information and many their economic activity. of the villagers are now sending their children to schools. They have formed SHGs, • The status of a very small indigenous and in order to combat food insecurity they are accumulating foodstuff including population in Sri Lanka, which had rice, mustard oil and other essentials and selling it within their communities. In until recently been classified as this way, they are trying to overcome food insecurity and are very happy to be ‘others’ in the census and other associated with Seva Bharati, which is helping bring stability into their lives. A official statistics- their forests were network of male and female workers was formed in the village and it discussed taken away. As part of one of their what kind of work should be taken up in the village. The organizations Adivasi big dam projects, the government Adhikar Abhiyan and Chellaitamu Mahasangha were helping male members get took over the vast acreage of forests land titles in their name. Seva Bharati is further advocating land titles for women. and the tribal community was given They are also advocating widow pension and spreading awareness of facilities only 300 acres to use, which was like old age pension, widow pension, housing etc. that could be availed of under absolutely inadequate. Tribals were the Indira Awas Yojana and other such schemes. given the option to enter ‘civilization’ by becoming farmers with some land allocation. About 1000-2000 families here, and the responsibility of exploitation and violence. The opted to do this but were now in bringing up children was entirely that global economic crisis has also debt bondage and had become rural of the women. The man could just led to an increase in violence peasants. They also changed their abandon them and move on. There against women. names with the younger generation are increasing numbers of female- adopting Sinhala names, thereby headed households in Meghalaya, • Nepal was going to have a new slowly obliterating their identity and with the youngest daughter as the federal structure, with the State their heritage. custodian of the ancestral property. Structuring Committee designing its own structure on the basis • Women are now realizing the • Where extension services were of identity, ethnicity, language, importance of participation in local concerned, the ICAR has not helped region and also historical continuity political institutions and having a them with their basic needs. For Women were trying to have a new say in matters of governance, example, they had been producing constitution, especially to deal with especially at the lowest level. It is citrus oranges and beetle leaves, the issue of discrimination against a misnomer to think that women which have been diseased for women, marginalization of Dalits and necessarily inherit property under several years now without any help indigenous people but the problems matrilineal structures. The younger forthcoming. were with its implementation and it daughter does not inherit the • Indigenous women in Nepal were would take time to transform them property, but is only the custodian increasingly becoming dependant into national laws. There are 19 of the ancestral property, to which on foreign markets and migrating indigenous Members of Parliament 43 everyone in the family has an equal in search of jobs. There is no (MPs) and 197 women in all in the right, as in case of Meghalaya. Very policy to protect these groups of Parliament now (2009-10), but this high attrition rates in marriages and migrants, and women migrants had representation should be translated cohabitation were being experienced been rendered very vulnerable to into making some real impact on transforming women’s lives. This session of the workshop was investment to GDP ratio had risen conducted on the basis of the enormously with domestic savings presentation made by Santosh driving the growth; investment was Mehrotra, on the response of the Indian 39% of the GDP out of which only 1% Government to the current global investment was through foreign savings economic and financial crisis. The in the form of FDI. measures taken were outlined, and in the discussion that followed, several However, certain amount of coupling aspects of failures of current policy (integration with the world market) had initiatives in mitigating the impact of taken place. Up until the 1990s, the export the crisis on the most marginalised and to GDP ratio was only about 11% and vulnerable groups were discussed and had been stagnant at that rate for a long debated upon. period of time, but by 2007 the ratio was 44 already 18%. There were three principal channels of transmission of the global The Global Economic Crisis, its crisis to the Indian economy. First was Impact and Policy Response through finance, the second was through of the Indian State decline in exports and the third was Santosh Mehrotra fluctuations in foreign exchange rates. Policy Response to the Crisis The Indian E xperience Institute of Applied Manpower Research, The impact inevitably was going to be Planning Commission, Government of India restricted to certain groups of people and certain classes because of the nature of Unlike other crises in the recent past, the coupling with the global economy. India by virtue of being more integrated with global markets post liberalization, After the crisis broke, liquidity of the has been impacted by the current banking sector (even though most of crisis. However, the impact has not the banks were public sector banks) been significant as compared to other fell sharply. Fall of bank liquidity South East Asian economies or China. impacted corporations, medium sized The Indian economy was not impacted enterprises, and to some extent small greatly by the 2008 crisis since it sized enterprises. But 60% of the Indian was then essentially a domestically population did not have bank accounts driven economy. Savings to GDP and even after 60 years of independence. The NREGA has caused a revolution in migration with the disappearance of transport and auto parts. It was mostly this regard, because the wages under construction contracts in the Middle men who were working in these sectors. NREGA are increasingly being paid East. And this one-way flow would The major impact was felt by export- through bank accounts. This has resulted slowly peter out. However the share oriented industries. in an increase in the number of bank of the Middle East in total remittances In non-export oriented units in the accounts and post office accounts to 84 has declined and the share of America same sector for any given industry, million. This means that approximately has increased recently. The impact of employment increased. So presumably 400 million people were brought into return migration was a gendered impact, there was some transfer taking place of the financial net. However, the fall in especially since many nurses from Kerala employment from export-oriented units bank liquidity impacted only a very small had gone abroad and were returning. that were most impacted to non-export proportion of the people. The second major channel of crisis oriented sectors. The other conclusion Capital markets were impacted. Foreign transmission was the decline in exports. was that metals and auto sectors were institutional investor flows had driven Though the export to GDP ratio had offering more contractual jobs and fewer the Sensex and Dalal Street (the Mumbai risen recently, it was not comparable long-term positions. Stock Market). Capital markets had risen to other South Asian economies or The crisis impacted the Indian foreign consistently. In early 2006, the stock China, and export growth in India until exchange reserves and foreign exchange market index stood at about 10,000. In the run up to the crisis was 27 to 45% rates. FDI did not fall but and there was the beginning of 2008, the markets rose per annum. So when the crisis broke a massive outflow of FIIs as a result of to 19,500 to 20,000 and the moment out, it was likely to impact output and the crisis. It had begun coming back 45 Lehman Brothers collapsed it plummeted employment. The Labour Bureau of the recently as indicated by the rise in sharply to 8,000 a year later. Foreign Ministry of Labour, in two surveys21 (the Sensex. The foreign exchange inflows Institutional Investors (FIIs) are a major first was in October-December, 2008 and up to early parts of 2008 had led to trigger in the market. In 2007-08, the FIIs the second in April-June, 2009) studied appreciation of the rupee from Rs. 45 to brought in 20 billion dollars into Dalal this impact. They looked at the key 46 to 50 per US Dollar until 2000, as the Street. In 2008-09 FIIs withdrew fourteen sectors of manufacturing and services. outflows began there was an exchange billion dollars from the stock markets, In manufacturing they looked at mining, rate depreciation that took place with which had massive implications for the textiles, metals, gems, jewellery and the exchange rate going up to almost capital market. auto parts. In services they looked at Rs. 50 in 2009. As inflow of dollars has Another mechanism of crisis transport and Information Technology resumed at least 8-10 months back, transmission was through financial (IT) and Business Process Outsourcing there have been positive inflows into the remittances. Remittance inflow in 2006- (BPO). These sectors together contribute economy, even on the FII front, so the 07 was 28 billion, in 2007-08 it was 41 60% of the GDP. They concluded that exchange rate has gone up. This should billion, in 2008-09 it was 43 billion and half a million jobs were lost by October- have had a positive impact on the in 2009-10 it was 54 billion dollars of December 2008. The most affected exports, but it did not, since the global inflow, which could be due to return sectors were gems and jewellery, markets collapsed.

21For details see the ministry’s website http://labour.nic.in/. Policy Measures Adopted and balance was going down. Hence the economy with an average agricultural their Impact fiscal deficit, that had been contained growth of 4.4% which had sustained significantly over the preceding 3-4 rural consumption expenditures and • The government had put in place years to over 6% of the state and because infrastructural investment three fiscal measures. It increased central Budgets combined in the had increased, the impact of the expenditure and cut taxes. The fiscal federal had gone up to around 10%. crisis on the country was less than stimuli happened within weeks of what could have been. • Part of the increase in fiscal deficit September 2008. First in November had an inflationary impact. So despite • Gendered impacts of the crisis could 2008, then in February 2009. After the fact that the global oil prices well have occurred at the micro level the new government came to power were now declining, the upward while exports of textiles, garments in April, a full budget was presented pressure on inflation partly came and carpets were affected and in June 2009. The stimuli together because of the massive increase in the construction industry had also accounted for 1.8% of the GDP, which exports and expenditure. witnessed a decline. The policy issues though smaller than the Chinese that needed to be addressed were stimuli, was nevertheless needed. • This was not the main reason for the lack of studies at the micro level food price increase. Food prices were • At the same time, special assistance based on gender disaggregated data. rising well before the crisis. There is was put in place for exports. no question that there was massive • Other policy issues to be addressed Part of the stimuli was increased failure on part of the government were a comprehensive Rehabilitation expenditure on rural development. in containing transmission of the Bill, and passing and implementation 46 In order to distinguish between rural rise in foreign prices to domestic of a Land Acquisition Bill. In this developments of different kinds, prices. Food inflation rose from regard, the NC Saxena Committee certain specifically targeted schemes 6-7% to 16-17%. The poor design report on Vedanta22 and its activities were favoured in terms of allocation and implementation of the PDS was on illegal mining in Orissa etc. should of this expenditure. Accordingly, the chiefly responsible for this. come to the fore. The Forest Rights state had put in place a significant Act has been put in place but it has increase in the allocation for NREGA. • There was a massive rise in rural to be properly implemented. Finally, The gendered impact of this step development expenditure but other Panchayat Extension to Scheduled was going to be positive due to social expenditures including those Areas Act (PESA) also has to be the fact that 50% of all the NREGA on health and education had been implemented. workers were women. squeezed in the interest of fiscal management. • An expert group had submitted a • The other impact of this massive report to the Planning Commission in increase in expenditure was that on • Because of the fact that India 2008 titled Development Challenges the macro-economic side, the fiscal primarily remained a services in Extremist Affected Areas23. The

22Ministry of Environment & Forests, Government of India, New Delhi, August 16, 2010, Report of the Four Member Committee for Investigation into the Proposal submitted by the Orissa Mining Company for Bauxite Mining in Niyamgiri. moef.nic.in/downloads/public-information/Saxena_Vedanta.pdf 23Report of an Expert Group to the Planning Commission, Government of India, New Delhi, 2008, Development Challenges in Extremist Affected Areas, For details see planningcommission.gov.in/reports/publications/rep_dce.pdf arguments that were made and so that young women do not have consisted of five things. They have continue to be made were that all the to necessarily migrate to Delhi or already got the right to work in rural concerns that have been raised by our Mumbai and get exploited. areas through NREGA and there have Adivasi friends are ultimately issues been serious discussions on devising an • A major survey was going to be of governance. Governance cannot urban component. They have won the launched by the Planning Commission be improved by taking a security right to education. There are three more on clusters. There were 6,600 centric to the Maoist issue. The rights to be won and these have to clusters in the country, both modern approach needs to begin with talks remain part of the agenda. The right to and artisanal. However, only 1000 of with the Adivasi communities and the food is on top of the agenda. It is going these were modern. The remaining Naxalites24 and the talks should be to be a reality in six months. It might 5,600 were artisanal. It pointed out able to lay the groundwork for more be watered down but it will be a reality. the difficulties of holding sustained development action. Security has to Right to Health Bill is already on the consultations with the fragmented play a secondary role in this process. website of the Ministry of Health. The artisanal sector, which was scattered National Rural Health Mission is in place • India had instituted the Skill all over the country. The modern and it is doing interesting and useful Development Mission for the years clusters had industry association and things. There are problems but the 2008-2010. According to National it was easier to talk to them. India central government’s programme is not Sample Survey Organisation (NSSO) still had a difficult situation given the a problem. There is the right to social data, 93% of unskilled workers were in existence of a large number of beedi assistance and social insurance. So, the unorganized sector and only 10% (tobacco rolled in tendu leaf) and zari these five social progress programmes of the work force had any formal skills. (a tinsel thread used for weaving and 47 are on the agenda and it is unlikely that So the Skill Development Mission was embroidery) workers, for example, in these are going to be pushed back. very critical. While it has been created areas where women are working in at the central level, state governments large numbers but consultation was The R&R Bill and the Land Acquisition have been much slower in replicating difficult due to lack of representative Bill have to go through. It may go that structure. bodies. through in a watered down planned manner, there may be struggles around • Many measures which have not yet Limitations and Unfinished been forthcoming could be done it, but the fact remains that these have Agendas: Mapping the State to go through. Maoism existed in India at the state level like putting in Policy Response for the Future funds for promotion of handicrafts, in a geographic arc, which ran from supporting sericulture, herbal There was no risk of the government Nepal in the North to Orissa and Andhra medicine, nursing skills etc. More pushing back the social progress Pradesh in the south. This is a nursing schools need to be opened agenda. In fact, the agenda now forested area, very rich in mines and

24The term ‘Naxal’ derives from the name of the village Naxalbari in West Bengal in India where the movement had its origin. The Naxals are considered radical communists, supportive of Maoist political sentiment and ideology. Their origin can be traced to the split in 1967 of the Communist Party of India (Marxist) leading to the formation of the Communist Party of India (Marxist Leninist). Initially the movement had its centre in West Bengal. In later years, it spread into less developed areas of rural central and eastern India, such as Chhattisgarh, Orissa and Andhra Pradesh through the activities of underground groups like the Communist Party of India (Maoist). minerals. Some mining activities were provision for HIV/AIDS positive women releasing their salary and granting them going on through bribery, and hence an to run crèches. Regarding the issue of leave. India has one of the highest enclave type growth was taking place small producers not getting enhanced rates of teacher absenteeism in the in some of the least developed parts credit after the fiscal crisis, they were world i.e. 25% according to an NSSO of the country including Chhattisgarh, outside the credit market before and are survey; in Jharkhand it was 37%, in Jharkhand and Andhra Pradesh. These outside the credit market now. Similarly Tamil Nadu (the state performing are all growing at 9 to 10%, driving workers in the informal sector did not the best in terms of this indicator) on the back of all these activities. This have social protection earlier and post it was 17%. The Planning Commission was going to continue ad nauseam, crisis also there was no protection. is not as effective as we would like ad infinitum, for the reason that the There was no help to small producers it to be. In the budget there was an Adivasis shall not and will not give up before the crisis, similarly no help after increase for the Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan until the R&R issues are taken care of. the crisis. but not of the magnitude that one Under discussion is the issue of 26% would have expected from a central The women’s rights movement was equity to be handed over. government that enacted the Right actually getting stronger by the day to Education Act. They won a victory To address the non-participation of or else we would not have been in a in April 2009 by an umbrella act Muslim women, the rural development situation where right to food was about coming into force but were all ministry had a programme that was to turn into a reality. There was slow dissatisfied by it. run badly so far, but is about to be progress but not enough progress. They completely transformed. Thanks to the should all get together to join hands However, greater changes could happen 48 phenomenal success of Velugu25, a Self- in order to ensure universalisation of once the fiscal deficit to GDP ratio was Help Group (SHG) programme for self elementary education. Regretfully, the not over 10%, as they had to learn to employed women in Andhra Pradesh. In teacher’s accountability clause has live with the fact that since the economy Uttar Pradesh villages, Muslim women been dropped, and unless teachers was integrated with the global market, were not participating in NREGA works are held accountable, universalisation Moody’s and S&P (Standard And Poor)26 but they were doing fantastic things in of elementary education cannot be would downgrade our credit rating if Velugu tribe activity in Saharanpur. For ensured. What needs to be done, where they did not bring down their fiscal HIV/AIDS patients there is a provision the right to education is concerned, is deficit now. These facts are not going to in NREGA for providing water at sites to ensure accountability of teachers to change overnight. The fact also remains where work was being done. There is a the community by giving it powers over that it is growth which will generate

25The Andhra Pradesh Government has initiated the ’Rural Poverty Elimination Program’ under the project ’Velugu’ (literally ’light’). The project formally commenced on 16th June, 2000 and the programme was implemented through three mechanisms: first, grassroots mobilization and formation of self- help groups which would empower the poor and tackle demand-side constraints; second, provision of resources (e.g., through community investment fund) to expand the base of local public goods and community infrastructure (e.g., drinking water, local roads, community facilities); and third, institutional strengthening measures. This included: strengthening capacity of Panchayati Raj Institutions (PRIs); reforms to support greater private sector involvement in rural areas, and greater convergence of existing social sector and anti-poverty programs. 26Standard & Poor’s (S&P) and Moody’s are two of the three (third being Fitch) biggest credit rating agencies in the United States, as well as globally. They publish financial research and analysis on stocks and bonds. They issue credit ratings for the debt of public and private corporations, as well as country wise ratings of economic performance and risks of sovereign defaults. These are, however, often criticized for compromising sovereign decision making powers in favour of the interests of finance capital due to their influence in determining speculative investment flows. the revenue that will allow expenditure alongside with investment and that is the latter were facing an acute credit increase, which will create the fiscal the only way to go about it. crunch in such a crisis. A UNDP space to enhance social security for the study27 of six sectors highlighted that unorganized sector. Comments the indirect impact on the poorer sections of the economy was higher Two years back, the government had put Issues discussed included the problem and more serious than generally in place RSBY, being run by the Ministry of multiple exclusions faced by women recognized. Women’s employment of Labour. It was on the issue of health in NREGA schemes; impact of trade and in itself does not determine the insurance that guaranteed cashless financial integration on the poor; impact impact. Gems and jewellery sectors hospitalization for all those below on women’s employment; need to link do not include women. But large While implementing NREGA schemes for women NREGA with the affected sectors having women were impacted populations; absence in the in particular, multiple levels of exclusion faced by because non-working women had agenda of social protection women should be considered, such as exclusions to come to the labour market of workers; limitations of the faced by poor and illiterate Muslim women who as part time workers. The UNDP Planning Commission; squeeze unable to access many services on grounds of study showed that one-third of the on education and health families had to send a non working tradition and custom, discriminations faced by sectors; diluted nature of the woman into the labour market to low HIV/AIDS positive women etc. social security bill in India; and productivity jobs and in addition to Santosh Mehrotra financial liberalisation plans of that the number of working women poverty line, and it was rapidly being the Government of India. had also increased. So 40% of the 49 households send their women to universalized. Regarding displacement • Both Indian trade and financial do paid work in the labour market and rehabilitation, WB did a study for integration had risen, with trade when they are affected by the crisis. 20 R&R projects, ten from China and ten integration of exports rising from Secondly, women’s unpaid work from India during 1986-94. While in eight 5.7% to 14%, and where financial had also increased considerably as out of 10 cases in China, the R&R was integration was concerned, the ratio women turned out to be major shock handled brilliantly, in India it was handled of capital inflow and outflow to GDP absorbers for these families with paid well only in two cases out of ten. In went up to 64%. This integration had work outside being substituted for other words, the state in India had increased the trade and financial links unpaid work within the household at neglected the rehabilitation of displaced with EU and America and the impact least in one-third of the households people as a result of the investment of the crisis in that respect would be studied. policy it had followed in the past sixty high. Although the impact was felt years, and was paying the price for within certain pockets, the pockets • Rising expenditures and bail outs it. The Adivasis and those displaced were widespread and the impact had not reached small producers had revolted against the state, as they was more on informal workers and and informal workers and the rise in should have and this had led to the small producers. While the former NREGA and rural programmes had rise of Maoism. One has to rehabilitate had no social protection whatsoever, not been linked to affected people in

27UNDP India Publication, November, 2009, Global Economic Crisis: Impact on the Poor in India – A Synthesis of Sector Studies a systematic manner and there was to the possibility of midstream happen simply because we have no an absence of labour reforms. This corrections and evaluations? In some understanding of why these sectors had been borne out, for instance, regions social audit was still very have to be squeezed at the cost by the above mentioned study on weak. The poverty indicators were of others? In terms of the Relief the gems and jewellery sector. So, different from the rest of India and and Rehabilitation (R&R) Bill,28 the increase in rural expenditure need assets were not being created under speaker had mentioned there was a not necessarily affect these workers NREGA. People were digging ponds policy but no law and what was the positively. The government approach in the fields of private individuals policy based upon and how did one in terms of bailouts was to reach just because they needed to pay guarantee access to justice if there their goal of double digit GDP remuneration to the women and was no law to enforce it? It had growth, doubling exports and macro the workers. Besides, NREGA was been stated that the Central management of the economy. Apart target-oriented. When IFAD came to government had some schemes from that, there was nothing on design a poverty alleviation scheme and some support systems that the agenda for social protection of for certain regions in the North-East, were not taken up later by the these workers, for small and marginal they took many years to study and states, or not fully implemented. farmers and women’s employment find out what exactly the model What was perceived to be the role particularly for women as producers, was going to be like, and made of the central government in women as wage earners and women midstream corrections because they supporting and helping such states? as unpaid home-makers. For instance found that it was not working. Was the government planning to 50 in the case of the diamond industry, initiate any human rights stimuli for the group conducting the study • NREGA is a programme for which the future? had gone to Surat to find out what money was set aside by the happened and found that nothing government, in response to a • What was the point in passing the had changed for workers. There people’s movement in the country. highly diluted Social Security Bill was no data or information on Because the Government had not 2008 that did not provide actual workers and small producers and been able to organize itself on the relief to the unorganized workers nothing had been done to improve questions of expenditures on health but would enable the government their situation. and education, the allocations for to still take credit for providing expenditures on the latter had been protection? • In a diverse country like India, the squeezed. This was a reflection of Planning Commission represented the weak status of the women’s • What were the government’s plans a monolith, which was unreal. How movement in this country. for financial liberalization, given could the centre design a single the fact that it was because of its model without ensuring that they had • Did the squeeze on education and absence that the country had been studied the regions, knew the regions health expenditures occur because insulated from the current financial adequately, and without conceding India had no money, or did it crisis? According to the Reserve

28The R & R Bill, 2007, is a fresh policy initiative as yet in the draft stage following a cabinet announcement by the Indian state towards establishing a just and humane rehabilitation policy for those involuntarily displaced by development projects, including Special Economic Zones (SEZs). Bank of India (RBI) data of 2009, that the approach, or were there seen to reduce the profit of the Indian banks’ credit creation abroad any comprehensive approaches investors and these provisions were was over 15%, and the economy for investment being planned? The irreversible. Before India got into was already in the process of proposed FTAs had very strong those kinds of agreements what opening up its financial sectors. provisions for protection of investors kind of investment policy and Regarding investment and FDI policy, like the Stand Still Clause where regulations should have been put the Bills talked about first displaced they could not change current in place by the government? everyone and then rehabilitated. Was regulatory framework, if it was

51 The last two sessions of the South The policy agenda that was Asia Regional Workshop on the Global developed, recommends laying down Financial and Economic Crisis included comprehensive strategies to be followed extensive discussions on consolidation of for implementing a holistic approach the rich discourse that had taken place to issues of growth and development over the duration of the workshop, the within a rights-based framework. It challenges which had been identified, outlines the broad vision and proposes and the recommendations that had been policy guidelines to be followed made on a range of issues including while formulating a response to the food insecurity, migration, regional economic crisis as well as developing conflict, natural resource management strategies for long-term growth and and sustainable development within development; dealing with conflict a framework of social, economic situations; protecting and promoting 52 and political rights of women. While women’s rights; preserving diversity grappling with forward looking strategies, and promoting minorities and dealing the experts at the workshop also with the role of Non- Governmental expressed concern on the declining role Organisations and International of the state, increase in corruption, and Organizations. nepotism. There is a need to strengthen The Way Forward models of good governance based on Response to the Crisis democracy, which ensures women’s political participation and power. States States need to envisage the crisis need to increase spending on social as an opportunity to push forward services and decrease their military radically different policies from a rights expenditure. In the region, terrorism perspective, by bringing forth the issues and conflict had resulted in discourses of sustainable and equitable growth, being dominated by issues of safety and the protection of all human rights and security. This has undermined issues of all sections of society. Right to land of religious and ethnic minorities. It is including land reform policies, right to therefore important to prioritise a equitable access to productive resources, secular approach and encourage right to decent work, right to social interpretation of religion from women’s security, right to health and education perspective. should be part of the policy framework. Governments should take positive steps gender budgeting techniques are communities, women farmers, dairy to protect and promote livelihoods, important. Indicators should also ensure workers and fishing folks. Governments employment and encourage participation that specific issues of women from should foster political rights and promote of women in economic activities. Women minority groups are included. decision-making capacities of indigenous need to be recognised as universal women. right holders and not victims belonging A Comprehensive Development States should not merely respect but to a special category. The feminist Model movement has articulated two indicators should actively protect the rights of citizens from infringement by third of equality in terms of transformation States should redefine sustainable parties such as corporations and of power between men and women development beyond economic growth multinational institutions. There is a to include equal access and engaged model. It should incorporate environment, need to have a dialogue with SAARC participation of women in decision human rights and promote a just society. countries on issues of common concern making over resources. Access is not Development should ensure human from a rights-based approach in the the same as control. Along with access, rights by building and enlarging the context of bilateral agreements on ownership, control and management domestic social sector based on health, agricultural policy and natural resources of productive resources are important. education and social security for all. management. Feminists have also criticised the Self While integrating domestic economies Help Group (SHG) movement for its focus with the global economy, the emphasis Food Sovereignty on self employment without ensuring should be on protection and promotion of women’s rights to productive resources domestic markets and on the growth of Development should promote food 53 including land, water, forests, markets, domestic employment opportunities and security and hence include a universal capital, and credit. Women should get livelihoods. A development-based model public food distribution system to bigger loans29 at low interest rates, and of trade that generates government should encourage women’s secured employment, Women look after the entire dairy livestock that cooperatives. A comprehensive gender- both skilled and unskilled, produces milk in Pakistan. They look at other animals based stimulus package addressing should be promoted. also but especially the daily livestock is looked after by all the above concerns should be This should also include women. But they don’t get the money. They give huge developed. State policies and initiatives equitable access, control, funding to local companies. Easy money comes in from should address women’s vulnerability management and Agriculture Development Bank, and apart from that, there and exclusion. There is also a need to ownership of productive is Nestle and other companies who take away all the develop human rights indicators from a resources that include stuff. Pakistan is the sixth largest country in the world feminist perspective. Women’s task force financial, natural and producing milk but women don’t get even a penny. for monitoring and implementation of intellectual. Development Najma Sadeque these policies needs to be developed. should promote For effective monitoring, gender conservation practices and natural ensure no one goes hungry. Prior to disaggregated data and adoption of resource management by indigenous financial crisis there was the food

29Poor women in India can get loans up to INR 25,000, through the microcredit programme. crisis created by reducing the kind of these systematic studies. The culture Promotion of Women’s Rights food that is to be produced emphasising of impunity should be addressed and cash crop bio-fuel production. These violators including drug trafficking, Women’s empowerment and principles practices have brought extreme crisis domestic and sexual violence of equality and non-discrimination need in the agricultural perpetrators should to be promoted. We don’t want the military build up which sector. Sustainable be punished with development eats into our social welfare expenditure. the support and In religion Nimalka Fernando models should active intervention All religions are made by men. Secularism guarantee food sovereignty that ensures of international communities. Transitional should be encouraged in our societies, farmers’ right to produce whatever they justice and disarmament should actively and there should be an attempt to want to produce and women’s rights to be promoted. interpret religions from the perspective conserve seeds. of women and promote those aspects of religions that benefit women. 70% of the women are engaged in International Aid and Funding agriculture. Women’s role in agriculture The international community has In marriage is a source of livelihood and status. In a major role to play in post crisis Introduce progressive concept of planning economies, a sectoral balance strategies. The workshop particularly view from the social perspective marriage and interpersonal relationships recommended governments giving that address questions of violence, is important. Agriculture might be generous international aid contributing comparatively less to the to countries in the region 30 – 40 kms outside Delhi, Khap Panchayats are killing 54 economy but is important for food and donors funding social women and men on the pretext of honour killing for security and women’s economic activities. and economic justice work marrying within the village. Sometimes these marriages The act of forcing people to move out to make sure their funds have been approved and for 3-4 years they thought that of agriculture, as there is no growth or ensure implementation and opportunity in this sector, is causing it was not right so they should be separated and if they protection of human rights don’t listen then they should be killed. food insecurities. While promoting and promote democracy. Govind Kelkar ‘modern’ sectors, traditional sectors Peoples’ movements, such as handicrafts also need to be especially women’s protected. victimization and women’s vulnerabilities movements and women’s leadership, from an emancipatory perspective. These grassroots based NGOs, and human In Conflict Situations concepts should provide a framework for rights defenders should actively be formulating, implementing and assessing Several countries and regions within promoted. Governments should review personal and civil laws. countries in South Asia are facing conditions attached to aid packages conflicts. There is a need to conduct coming from ADB (Asian Development In tradition detailed studies from a quantitative Bank), WB, and IMF. Independent policies States should stop all discriminatory and qualitative analysis to monitor based on protecting human rights practices based on religion or traditional the impact, in particular the gendered irrespective of the diktats of international or legal grounds. Laws need to impact of such conflict situations. Post- institutions such as the WB and the IMF be formulated to stop all forms of conflict policies should be based on should be developed. discrimination and violence that women understood. The gendered impact of the pressures in the fields of growth, face in the name of tradition. crisis in South Asia, the human costs of employment, food security and the crisis and in particular its effect on fiscal policy formulation, in terms Others already marginalized populations were of framing adequate responses to discussed at the workshop. contain both the financial sector crisis The workshop called upon the UN and the meltdown of production and • Women have been particularly agencies (ILO, WB, IMF, UN Women, and employment all around the globe. UNDP etc) to support strategies based adversely affected by the current on human rights framework. International crisis, which itself combines • The crisis provides an opportunity to human rights obligations should be multiple crises- a global economic rethink macro and micro-economic implemented and UN agencies can play recession; the devastating effects policies, and for those advocating a a role in ensuring this. of climate change; and an ongoing gender based approach in designing food and energy crisis. All of this policy frameworks, the crisis provides Women at the workshop expressed has compounded increasing poverty an opportunity to advance proposals interest in setting up a South Asia and inequality in different parts of that promote jobs, economic security, regional task force to monitor these the world, and has increased the human rights, class, gender and issues and work collectively to develop vulnerability of women. ethnicity equality. Reviving the global human rights indicators from a feminist economy will require policies that perspective. Participants expressed • The current situation must be focus heavily on job creation and keenness in keeping alive this group understood within the larger historical ensure a more equitable and from the region in order to work context of aggressive promotion of sustainable development process 55 collectively on issues. neo-liberal policies in past decades. The crisis is not new for developing that protects and enhances women’s Conclusion countries that have struggled from livelihoods. the 1970’s, with women’s groups in The current global financial and • As the crisis is now the driving force particular emphatically voicing their behind many development choices economic crisis has affected every protest and resistance to such policies region of the world. Though the specific and processes (from the global to in terms of their destructive impact the local), and will shape approaches experiences of the countries and regions on women’s livelihoods, increased have been different, certain features to development for years to come, burden of work and unpaid labour, as the role of women becomes crucial, of the crisis have been universal - well as lost social security. The crisis, decline in growth, drying up of capital not merely because of the negative however, reached global proportions gendered impacts of these crises, flows, contraction in trade, decline in when it impacted advanced economies remittances and increase in poverty, but also because women themselves and their role in global arenas, thereby are crucial players in development. hunger and unemployment. The available bringing out the interconnectedness of literature on the subject concedes to They must play a role in proposing the divergent realities in the globalized approaches to alleviate the impacts the fact that the crisis has impacted world. men and women differently. However, of the crisis from within a framework the severe implications of the crisis • National as well as international of human rights, environmental on women have not been sufficiently institutions are facing diverse sustainability and development commitments around the world. there were well informed accounts of not yet been adequately studied. The inclusion of women and gender the region from journalists; there were One of the basic objectives of the equality within a framework of human human rights activists and activists workshop had been to come out rights is central to these processes, from the women’s movement who with recommendations for carrying and an indicator of both the helped see the impact of the crisis forward work in this area. The proposed seriousness as well as the efficacy of within the larger framework; and there task force for regional monitoring could proposed responses. were well researched presentations by also work at the national level, and academicians, especially economists produce a report on the state of women The workshop provided an opportunity from six South Asian nations - Pakistan, in South Asia. It is important for all of to learn through collective sharing. Afghanistan, Nepal, Bangladesh, Sri us to work together to carry the agenda There were presentations by activists Lanka and India. New ideas emerged. forward and not let this be just another and trade union leaders, based on There was an impression that the set of recommendations. their lived experiences of the crisis; gendered impact of the crisis had

56 Acknowledgement

his report is based on a workshop Devaki Jain provided valuable inputs An extensive background research was Theld in Delhi, India in August 2010 on in structuring the conversation undertaken by Veda Bharadwaja and Global Financial and Economic Crisis and and developing a resource kit with Debika Goswami at PWESCR in planning Its Impacts on Women: A Human Rights background readings. Butch Montes and for the meeting. I am grateful to Garima Perspective. The two day workshop Indira Hirway provided useful insights Sharma from UNDP for providing brought together diverse leaders from throughout this project, and helped set enough sets of their publications for South Asia, and the sessions included the context for this conversation. I would the resource kit. Shipra Nigam was the extensive sharing of observations and also like to express my appreciation for workshop rapporteur and helped compile expertise on the crisis with the objective Virginia Bras Gomes, who helped link the report. Shalini Mishra co-authored of developing regional strategies. South Asian realities to some of the the report. This report was copy edited international discourses, including the by Phaedra Engel-Harrison. Ioanna Many people and organizations have international human rights discourse. Konstantinou’s diligent research helped been involved in this project, right fill the gaps. Pallavi Gupta helped in from its inception to the publication I want to thank all the participants the meeting coordination. I am grateful of this final report. The meeting and for what turned out to be a very to Sanjay Dhadwal, Office Manager at 57 the production of this report was stimulating and inspiring workshop. PWESCR for coordinating the logistics of supported by UNIFEM and Heinrich Their commitment to the work pushed the workshop along with Harsh Vardhan. Böll Foundation. I am grateful to Anne the conversation to new grounds. I Kuldeep Sharma, Accounts Officer at Stenhammer, Sushma Kapoor and appreciate the time and effort each PWESCR, administered the grant funds Govind Kelkar from UN Women who saw one took to conduct systematic for this project. the critical need for this conversation to research for their presentations. I am happen in South Asia. Govind Kelkar was particularly grateful to Indu Agnihotri, I am grateful to Vinay Aditya and his instrumental in helping conceptualise the Ranja Sengupta, Patricia Mukhim, and staff at Systems Vision for designing workshop and in identifying significant Najma Sadeque for chairing sessions and printing this report. I would also leaders and organizations. Her advice and providing insightful interventions. like to acknowledge Anupama Vijayan’s helped in bringing a truly diverse group. Santosh Mehrotra, Director of Institute contribution in seeing this publication I am grateful to Michael Köberlein and of Applied Manpower Research provided through. Shalini Yog for joining the project as the government of India’s policy Priti Darooka partners. responses. Executive Director PWESCR Biographies of Participants

The following is a list of biographies of participants in the workshop. Organizational affiliations are listed only for identification purposes and cannot be used to infer endorsement of the thoughts and ideas discussed at the workshop. In addition, organizational affiliations may have since changed.

Balasingham Skanthakumar (Sri Lanka) Law and Society Trust [email protected] Balasingham is with the Law and Society Trust, a research and advocacy organisation in Colombo, where he directs it’s Economic, Social and Cultural Rights programme. He is the Editor of Language Rights in Sri Lanka (2008) among other publications. His recent research and writing has been on 58 national human rights institutions, labour relations and the political economy of development. Basanti Majhi (India) Seva Bharati Basanti belongs to the Kutia tribe residing in Kandhamal district of Orissa. She has been working with Seva Bharati (a partner of Skillshare International) for six years. She is currently President

Annexure of a women’s group that works for the rehabilitation of divorced women belonging to the tribal community. Seva Bharati has also been instrumental in setting up Jedaitanu (a network of tribal leaders). She is engaged in raising awareness of villagers on land security and has also been involved in increasing access of tribal peoples to various schemes such as old age pension, widow pension, seed banks, and coverage of the physically disabled under the Social Security Act, and health and sanitation in villages.

Bidyutlata Nayak (India) Seva Bharati Bidyut is a tribal woman from Orissa who has completed an MA in Rural Management from National Institute of Social Work and Social Science (NISWASS), Bhubaneswar; videography from NISCORD, Ghaziabad; and DCA from HLC. She is working with Seva Bharati as INRM Field Coordinator. She conducts awareness on the Mahatma Gandhi NREGA and on land and agricultural issues. Bidyut facilitates the involvement of villagers in determining the kind of work that they would need to undertake under NREGA. She is also responsible for ensuring the participation of women in NREGA. Farida Akhter (Bangladesh) Indira Hirway (India) UBINIG (Unnayan Bikalper Nitinirdharoni Gobeshona) Centre For Development Alternatives (CFDA) [email protected] [email protected] Farida is Executive Director, UBINIG, a policy and action research Indira holds an MA in Economics from the Delhi School of Economics, organization based in Bangladesh working with the farming, weaving and Delhi University, and a Ph. D. from Bombay University. At present she rural and urban communities of the country. She also runs Narigrantha is Director and Professor of Economics at the Centre for Development Prabartana, the first and only feminist bookstore and feminist publishing Alternatives, Ahmedabad. She is a Development Economist focusing on house in Bangladesh. She has led research on many development issues, development alternatives. Her recent publications include Restructuring health, environment and issues of globalization. She has written several of Production and Labour under Globalization: Study of Textile and books including Depopulating Bangladesh Essays on the Politics of Fertility Garment Industries (ILO, 2008), Impact of the Global Financial Crisis on and Reproductive Rights (1996), and Seeds of Movement: On Women’s Workers and Small producers in India: Emerging Issues and Implications Issues in Bangladesh (2007). (UNDP, 2009). She has been Visiting Faculty/Fellow to Erasmus University, Netherlands; University of Amsterdam, Netherlands; Queen Elizabeth Govind Kelkar (India) House, University of Oxford; and University of Utah, USA. She is an UN Women Associate of Levy Economics Institute, Bard College in New York State. [email protected] Julie George (India) Govind is the Regional Programme Coordinator of Economic Security and Skillshare International Rights at UN Women, South Asia Office, in New Delhi, India. She has previously taught at Delhi University, the Indian Institute of Technology in [email protected] Mumbai, and the Asian Institute of Technology (AIT) in Bangkok, Thailand. Julie is originally from southern India and is currently the Regional At AIT, Govind founded the graduate programme in Gender Development Director for Skillshare International, Asia Programme. Her areas of 59 Studies, as well as the Gender, Technology and Development Journal, expertise include advocacy, agriculture and rural livelihoods, gender based which is published by SAGE, India. She has worked extensively on violence, health, human rights, gender, institutionalizing gender, poverty, gender and energy transition in rural Asia. Currently, she is working on and strategic planning in the South Asian region. She was previously indigenous women and climate change in India and China. Govind has working with UN Women South Asia Regional Office (SARO) where she contributed numerous articles to scholarly journals focusing on gender was Programme Officer for Economic Empowerment. relations in Asia, and has been in close contact with women’s movements in the region. Lucky Sherpa (Nepal) National Network of Indigenous Women (NNIW) Indu Agnihotri (India) [email protected] Centre for Women’s Development Studies (CWDS) Lucky is an Honourable Member of the Constituent Assembly of Nepal [email protected] and a well known advocate of Federalism with an inclusive democracy. Indu is currently a Senior Fellow and Deputy Director at the Centre for She has been recognised as Youth Ambassador for Peace (2007) and Women’s Development Studies, New Delhi, and has taught history in a Young Women Human Rights Leader by World Youth Federation for New Delhi University College for over two decades. She has been active Peace and MADRE, an International Women’s Human Right Organisation. in the women’s movement for more than three decades. She is the first Sherpa (indigenous mountain woman) student to obtain a Masters in Economics and earn Faculty Top Student in the same (2001) from Tribhuvan University, Patan Campus. Lucky is a Member of the Parliamentarians for Global Action Network and Treasurer for Nepal Chapter of Parliamentarians for Global Action. She is an Advisor for the Nepal Federation of Indigenous Nationalities (NEFIN), NGO-Federation of Nepalese Indigenous Nationalities (NGO-FONIN), and the National Network of Indigenous Women (NNIW). Manuel F. Montes (USA) Massouda Jalal (Afghanistan) UN DESA (United Nations Department of Jalal Foundation Economic and Social Affairs) [email protected] [email protected] Massouda studied medicine at the University of Kabul in the early 1980s, Manuel is Chief of Development Strategy and Policy Analysis in the and remained on the Faculty of Medicine until 1996. She has worked with United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs (UNDESA). national and international NGOs including the International Committee of He was previously Chief of Policy Analysis and Development in the the Red Cross, Medicines Sans Frontiers, the United Nations International UN Financing for Development Office. Before that, he was Regional Labour Organisation, and the United Nations High Commission for Programme Coordinator, Asia Pacific Trade and Investment Initiative, UNDP Refugees (UNHCR). During the time of the Taliban she worked for the Regional Centre in Colombo, Sri Lanka. He has been a visiting scholar at United Nations World Food Programme, distributing food and other the Institute for Developing Economies in Tokyo, at the United Nations life necessities to women and children. She operated clandestine University/World Institute for Development Economics Research (UNU/ programmes, encouraged in-home education of girls, and nurtured the IWDER) in Helsinki, and at the Institute for Southeast Asian Studies development of home-based entrepreneurial activities by widows and (ISEAS). He holds a Ph.D. in Economics from Stanford University. His other isolated women. She was the only female candidate for President research has focused on economic development, with an emphasis on of the Republic of Afghanistan, and accepted the position of Minister the roles of macroeconomic policies and social inequality. of Women’s Affairs of Afghanistan (2004-2006). She initiated 18 women empowering national programmes to bring fundamental positive changes Maria Virginia Bras Gomes (Portugal) in the lives of Afghan women. Her energies now are dedicated to the launching of women’s organisations including Jalal Foundation, the first to UN CESCR (United Nations Committee on Economic, respond exclusively to the needs Social and Cultural Rights) of women and girls. 60 [email protected] Musa Mahmoodi (Afghanistan) Virginia was born in Goa, India, and is currently based in Lisbon, Portugal, where she works as a Senior Social Policy Advisor in the Ministry of AIHRC (Afghanistan Independent Human Rights Commission) Labour and Social Solidarity. She is a member (since 2003) and presently [email protected]; [email protected] Vice-Chair, of the UN Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Mohammad is the Executive Director of the Afghanistan Independent Rights. Virginia is also Co-rapporteur for the General Comment on the Human Rights Commission (AIHRC). He holds a law Degree from Right to Social Security (November 2007) and Rapporteur for the Revised Kabul University and a MPA and MAIR from Maxwell School, Syracuse Guidelines for national reports on the implementation of the International University, USA. He is a committed Human Rights activist and lawyer Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights. She’s also a member with over ten years of experience in the field of human rights promotion of the Scientific Committee for the Third World Forum on Human Rights and protection in Afghanistan. He has worked as Director of Equal Rights (Nantes); of the Board of Trustees of the European Roma Rights Centre Association (ERA), Director of Bamyan Regional Office of AIHRC and Foundation (Hungary); of the European Social Network high level advisory Deputy Country Director of National Democratic Institute for International group on de-institutionalisation; of the Board of the Portuguese UN Affairs (NDI) in Afghanistan. Mohammad Musa Mahmoodi is also a Children’s Fund (UNICEF) Committee and of the Executive Committee Member of the Board of the Fair and Free Election Foundation of of the International Centre for Economic, Social and Cultural Rights. Afghanistan (FEFA). Recent publications include The Future of Economic, Social and Cultural Rights and Individualisation and the Crumbling of the Welfare State (Palgrave Macmillan); Human Rights and Development: The Two Sides of the Same Coin (Iboorberg Verlag GmbH and Co, KG); and Multicultural Europe: Combating Racism and Intolerance (French National Consultative Commission for Human Rights). Virginia is also a member of the PWESCR International Board of Trustees. Mridul Eepan (India) Coordinator. She was appointed President of the Movement for Inter- Racial Justice and Equality in Sri Lanka and has been involved in the Kerala State Planning Board work of Asia Regional Exchange for New Alternatives, South Asia Forum [email protected] for Human Rights and the People’s SAARC processes. Presently she Mridul is currently a Member of the Kerala State Planning Board and is the President of the International Movement Against all forms of Honorary Fellow of the Centre for Development Studies (CDS), Trivandrum. Discrimination and Racism based in Japan. At CDS she has worked in the areas of small and traditional industries, employment and gender, with a focus on women and work. She obtained Padmini Weerasooriya (Sri Lanka) her Ph. D. from Erasmus University, The Netherlands, with her research Mothers and Daughters of Lanka on Rural Industrialisation in Kerala: Its Dynamics and Local Linkages. Her [email protected] work on gender includes a study on Demystifying the High Status of Women in Kerala: A Study in Social Contradictions, and at the Planning Padmini began as a factory worker and then quality controller at Polytex Board, Mridul is actively engaged in the gender sensitising plan and Garment in 1982-1985 and joined the Industrial Transport and General budget making with the cooperation of the State Departments. She has Workers Union and was appointed Branch Secretary. In 1984 the workers been undertaking a Gender Sensitive Analysis of the Kerala State Budget launched a strike demanding compensation, one of the historic struggles for the last 2-3 years. during a repressive period in Sri Lanka. The workers also protested against the suspension of workers. Padmini was a leader in these Najma Sadeque (Pakistan) struggles and was dismissed. She joined the Women’s Centre established to work with the FTZ workers. She is now the President and continues to Shirkat Gah - Women’s Resource Centre fight for the rights of women workers in the FTZs. She has served as a [email protected] committee member representing Sri Lanka in the regional network CAW Najma has been a journalist for over 25 years; spending about equal time and was involved in Garment Factory Research facilitated by TIE-Asia. She is also serving as the Convenor of Mothers and Daughters of Lanka, a with the DAWN Group, and The NEWS International, where she was an 61 Assistant Editor for 11 years. She is widely travelled, covering NGO, UN network of women’s organisations. and other conferences, workshops and orientations for the press, as well as working with NGOs. For the last eight years she has been with Shirkat Patricia Mukhim (India) Gah as Director of the Green Economics and Globalisation Initiative that Indigenous Women Resource Centre focuses on research on economic, agricultural, labour and livelihoods, [email protected] environmental, globalisation, debt and human rights issues with special reference to women. Najma is currently working on having documentary Patricia is currently Editor of the Shillong Times, Meghalaya, and a advocacy and training films made. She has published a number of works columnist for the Telegraph and the Statesman. She is also Director of for PANOS Institute of London and Shirkat Gah. the Indigenous Women’s Resource Centre, North-East India. Patricia is involved in gender sensitization across the North-East and trains rural Nimalka Fernando (Sri Lanka) women on how to access their rights. She has conducted several studies on the status of women in the North-East and their plight in conflict IMADR (International Movement Against all forms of situations as well as in enabling their access and control over land. Discrimination and Racism) She is currently on the Board of Governors, Central Agricultural University, [email protected] Imphal; is a Member of the Environmental Advisory Board of the Nimalka is an Attorney-at-Law. She began her legal practice as a labour North-Eastern Electric Power Corporation (NEEPCo) and is also a Member lawyer in the mid 1980s. Subsequently she began working on human of Meghalaya State Coordination Committee to Combat Trafficking rights cases and worked closely with the Civil Rights Movement in and Sexual Exploitation of Women. She is a Trustee of the Centre for Sri Lanka as a junior apprentice. In 1983 she joined the civil society North-East Studies and Policy Research and is the founding member of to work as Secretary of the Development Commission of the National Shillong We Care, an organisation that campaigns against militancy in Christian Council. She joined the Asia Pacific Forum on Women, Law North-East India. and Development based in Malaysia in 1989 and worked as Regional Priti Darooka (India) Santosh Mehrotra (India) PWESCR (Programme on Women’s Economic, Social and Institute of Applied Manpower Research, Planning Cultural Rights) Commission, Government of India [email protected] [email protected] Priti is the Founder and Executive Director of the international Programme Santosh is a human development economist and Director General of on Women’s Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (PWESCR). She was the Institute of Applied Manpower Research (Planning Commission, previously with the Ford Foundation, in the New York human rights Government of India). He was a lead author of India’s 11th Five Year unit, and has focused on promoting women and their economic social Plan (2007-2012), and also leads the team on the next India Human and cultural rights (ESCR). Prior to the Ford Foundation, she was with Development Report. He was Regional Economic Advisor, Regional Centre UN Women, where she worked on violence against women indicators, for Asia, UNDP, Bangkok (2005-06), and was chief economist of UNDP assessing and coordinating UNIFEM’s work in Afghanistan. As a global Human Development Report (2002-05). After obtaining his Ph. consultant to the Center for Women’s Global Leadership, she organised a D. from Cambridge (1985), Santosh worked as Associate Professor of women’s human rights hearing at the UN Conference Against Racism in Economics, Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU), New Delhi (1988-1991). Durban, South Africa. She was the National Campaign Coordinator with He was also with the UN for 15 years (1991-2006). His books include UNITE for their Global Justice for Garment Workers Campaign. Universalising Elementary Education in India, Uncaging the Tiger Economy (OUP, 2005); The Economics of Elementary Education in India (Sage, Priti has also worked with Manavi, a South Asian women’s organisation 2006); Asian Informal Workers, Global Risks, Local Protection (Routledge, working with women and children who have faced violence in their lives. London); Eliminating Human Poverty: Macro-economic Policies for At Urban Justice Center (UJC), she worked with the NYC Welfare Reform Equitable Growth (Zed, London). and Human Rights Documentation Project, where she developed a policy brief on welfare reform and women, which were used as media and 62 advocacy tools by welfare advocates of NYC to expose human rights Sapana Pradhan Malla (Nepal) violations. She was also involved in the Stop Free Trade Area of Americas Forum for Women Law and Development (FWLD) (FTAA) campaign and focused on different aspects of trade and women’s [email protected] lives, from a feminist and human rights perspective. Sapana as the Founding President of FWLD has long been considered Ranja Sengupta (India) an institution on discourses on women’s jurisprudence in Nepal. In this capacity she was the driving force behind the drafting of the Gender Third World Network Equity Amendment Act and a model Human Trafficking Act. Recently, [email protected] Sapana has heightened her efforts for upholding women’s rights under Ranja is an economist by training and works as Senior Researcher with the transitional process in Nepal’s Governance, through her engagement the Third World Network. From her base in New Delhi, she has been with the constitution making process as an elected member of the working on issues related to international trade and development, human Constituent Assembly. A significant achievement was coordinating the development, and agriculture. She has worked extensively on globalisation sub-committee that finalized the Bill on Domestic Violence, resulting and its linkage to income, regional and gender inequalities, on agrarian in the enactment of the Domestic Violence (Crime and Punishment) relations and agricultural growth. Recently she has been focusing on Free Act, 2008. Trade Agreements and their impacts on development potential and social justice. The gender impact of Free Trade Agreements has been a major focus of her recent work. V. Rukmini Rao (India) Harsh Vardhan Gramya Resource Centre for Women Administrative Officer [email protected]; [email protected] Harsh obtained his B.Sc. Degree in Psychology from Annamalai University. As a founding member of Saheli Collective in New Delhi, Rukmini Currently, he is pursuing his Master’s Degree in Social Work from IGNOU. campaigned during the 1980s to create public awareness around issues He has five years of work experience in both administration and projects related to domestic violence against women and to bring in legislation related to community development. Previously, he worked with Ideosync to recognise women’s rights. From 1990 she worked with Dalit and Media Combine, an organisation that works towards integrating innovative indigenous women (Koya and Lambadi) as well as with women from communication methodologies into development and social change marginalised communities to organise and promote livelihood activities. initiatives and programmes. As the Administrative In-charge, Harsh worked She has supported women’s leadership development to manage on the administrative part of two radio series focused on safe migration and food sovereignty programmes, land lease programmes and common HIV/AIDS, which were aired on All India Radio and World Space. Prior to that, land development programmes in Medak district, Andhra Pradesh. In he worked with CASP-Plan as a Project Coordinator where he initiated the Khammam District, she has worked with Koya indigenous women take working children project. Harsh also won the Adobe Youth Voices award in up sustainable livelihoods. In Nalgonda district, she supports Lambadi 2006 for making the best video and photo story. women’s resistance to the selling of baby girls and works towards improvement of their livelihood opportunities. As a consultant to the Ioanna Konstantinou Government of Orissa, she has promoted mainstreaming gender issues through watershed management. She continues to provide training and Intern support to voluntary organisations across the country. Ioanna completed her BA in International Relations and Diplomacy with a Minor in Psychology at the American College of Thessaloniki, Greece. She received a prize for excellence in Hellenic, International Affairs, and human rights. During her graduate studies she undertook an internship at the Greek 63 Biographies of PWESCR’s Staff State Archives entitled ‘Introduction to archival procedures and research in administrative archival documents relating to immigration in northern Greece with a special focus on gender’. She recently obtained with merits Debika Goswami her MSc in Human Rights and International Politics with a special focus on Programme Associate Gender and Development issues and more particularly on Hindu women’s Debika holds a Bachelor’s as well as a Master’s Degree in History (with empowerment. Currently, Ioanna is occupied as an intern at PWESCR and a specialisation in Social History) from Presidency College, University will be working on research relating to women’s livelihood issues. of Calcutta. She has also received her Master’s Degree in ‘Non-farm Activities and Rural Development in Developing Countries’ from the Pallavi Gupta University of Rome, La Sapienza. Before joining PWESCR, she served Programme Officer-Training as a Research and Documentation Executive in a NGO, Udyogini, Pallavi holds a Master’s Degree in Social Work from the Tata Institute working for livelihood and enterprise promotion of poor rural women of Social Sciences (TISS), Mumbai. Prior to TISS she completed her in six states of the country. She has also worked with an Italian Donor LLB from ILS Law College, Pune. She previously worked as Programme Agency, Pangeaonlus as a Focal Point and Research Liaison Officer in Coordinator for Asmita Resource Centre for Women, Secunderabad. She India. She has travelled extensively in both North and South rural India, has worked on issues of violence against women, Human rights education documenting cases and monitoring closely the actual state of women in in colleges, sexual harassment in the workplace, CEDAW and women’s the countryside. rights. As Programme Officer (Training) at PWESCR, she is assisting with the organisation’s training initiatives. Phaedra Engel-Harrison Shalini Mishra Intern Programme Officer-Research Phaedra holds a Masters in Human Rights from the University of Shalini completed her Ph.D. from Jawaharlal Nehru University in 2003. Sydney, Australia, as well as a Bachelor of Arts from Southern Cross Her thesis was titled, ‘The Power Structure and Forms of Peasant University and a Diploma in Journalism. She worked as a journalist Resistance in Eastern Rajasthan in the 17th and 18th Centuries’. She in Australia before deciding to utilise her communication skills in the was awarded the Junior Fellowship for pursuit of doctoral studies by the humanitarian sector. She spent time in the pacific nation of East Timor Jawaharlal Nehru Memorial Fund. She worked at the Centre for Women’s with a local NGO researching and producing a report demonstrating Development Studies from 1997 to 1999 and has been working as a how grassroots action can better protect and promote human rights. Consultant on a range of issues for various civil society organizations She has also recently worked in non-profit fundraising in Australia and based in New Delhi. Before joining PWESCR, she worked as a Senior the U.S. as a campaign manager raising money for organisations such Researcher at HLRN (Housing and Land Rights Network). She is principal as UNHCR, Medicins Sans Frontieres, CARE Australia and CHILDFUND. author of the HLRN report on the Commonwealth Games, The 2010 She is currently working with PWESCR in India assisting with their Commonwealth Games: Whose Wealth? Whose Commons? communications and fundraising strategies. Shipra Nigam Sanjay Dhadwal Consultant Office Manager Shipra is currently doing her Ph.D. through the Centre for Economic Sanjay holds a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Economics. He is an administration Studies and Planning, JNU, New Delhi. She holds an M.Phil from JNU, and finance professional with 17 years of experience in the field. A great and has graduated from Lady Shri Ram College. Her focus areas are believer in the NGO sector, he was the National Director (Administration) Economic Theory, Macroeconomics of growth and development, Feminist with Human Rights Law Network (HRLN) for seven years. With tremendous economics and economics of gender. She was a Fulbright Doctoral and 64 interpersonal and administrative skills, Sanjay has organised and Professional Research Fellow at the New School of Social Research, New implemented several staff benefit schemes. He has also initiated and York, in 2008-09. activated systems and procedures in accounting, finance, and administration. Veda Bharadwaja Sayantoni Datta Programme Associate for South Asia Programme Officer-Research Veda holds a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science from Lady Shri Ram Sayantoni has graduated from the Tata Institute of Social Sciences, Mumbai College, New Delhi, as well as a Masters in Politics (specialisation in with an MA in urban and rural development studies and has been working International Relations) from JNU, New Delhi. Before joining PWESCR, in the field of human rights and development for the last ten years. She she was a Programme Associate with Amnesty International India, where was earlier associated with South Asian Dialogues on Ecological Democracy she was in charge of the Response Desk and the ESCR – Housing (SADED)/Centre for Studies on Developing Societies (CSDS) where she and Dignity campaign. Veda has also worked with International Market organised dialogues and research on behalf of grassroots movements Assessment India Private Limited (IMA, India) in New Delhi and with engaged in ecological justice issues as well as with child rights initiatives NDTV 24/7 as a Research Intern. In addition, she has been a member of and the right to education campaigns during her association with Child the National Social Service Scheme, and has volunteered with the Child Rights and You (CRY). She has worked on a pioneer research initiative Development Programme. She organised and participated in a workshop supported by the UNDP and Planning Commission, called the People’s on disability issues, hosted by CAN (Concerned Action Now) New Delhi in Report of Chhattisgarh, 2005, and a study on the impact of SEZs on September 2003. agriculture and livestock communities in Gujarat and Punjab in 2009. Sayantoni is committed to human rights and environmental justice issues, and the main focus of her work has been tribal areas. She has a firm belief in building critical perspectives, creative processes and democratic principles within the praxis of organisations and movements as a means to building a positive human rights culture for the future. SOUTH Global Financial and ASIA Economic Crisis REGIONAL and its Impact WORKSHOP on Women A Human Rights Perspective August 22-23, 2010, New Delhi, India

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