ARE WOMEN BEING EMPOWERED?

The women are inseparable part of human life and society as well. Their co-existence, co-operation and compatibility throughout all ages, spaces and circumstances is vital, vibrant and progressive. The world without women is beyond imagination and human perceptions. They played their impressive, active, stormy and hazardous roles to make the human species the master controller, prominent ruler and dominant race of the planet. All such vigorous, wonderful and magnificent advancements were impossible without equal struggle, brilliant companionship and courageous contributions of women. In the long mortal fights for serene survival and cozy existence with circumstances, fellow creatures and above all with nature, they finally laid their supremacy, authority and ownership on the planet together.

But alas! Today, the women need empowerment. The women who have the privilege to eternalize the humanity and manhood, the women who stand in the centre of creation, the women without whom the human world is null and void, today they need empowerment! One may helplessly feel embarrassed and deeply hurt on finding the fact that the human society is making endeavor to bring back their prestige and mastery in the society. In fact, the women need not empowerment. They are already powerful, capable and strong.

They had been so called crushed, exploited, deprived and humiliated under the willful dominance of their fellow men. They were shifted to the standard of second rate citizen, subservient and slave. The right to live with all human dignity, individuality and independence was extracted, suppressed and mutilated. They lost their glorious individual entity. Their master position slipped to servility. They became servants in the hands of father, husband and children. Their dominance was engulfed into dependence. They lost their decision making power and position in all personal, family, property, social, religious, political and other various matters of life. Their body, mind, soul and whole life was controlled, used and guided by the men. They have no more any opinion on even trifle, trivial and simple issues and occurrences.

They are mere mode, toy and machine of pleasures, play and assistance in household chores. They are only to bear the brunt of impregnating, begetting, and fostering children progeny for furthering the generations. They were victimized by phantom social malwares like infanticide, child marriage, matchless marriage, Devdasi system, harsh widowhood, Sati system, Jauhar system, Pardah system, illiteracy, slavery, superstitions and caste taboos. Even today they are captive and sufferer of such inglorious and laws prohibited misdeeds like feticide, abortions, abduction, rape, molestations, dowry devil, domestic violence and gender inequality.

From the high profile saints of ages to the modern consumerist social administration have executed plans and raised slogans. Now the resonance of this can frequently be heard at every door, street and village, moreover in the parliament too. Now a day, crying big slogans either individual or by the mode of organized way, has become ever day’s even and occurrences. One may easily find the hurtling and hovering wall paintings, hefty posters, banners and hoardings, loud speaker announcements, expensive meetings and seminars, newspapers, TV channels, social media, pamphlets, stickers, magazines and books full of bewitching and tempting high promises of gender equality, gender sensitization and women empowerment.

Such slogans and propagandas factually serve the purpose but of money minting NGO’s, corrupt bureaucracy and ravenous opportunist politicians, not for the women. The mutual understanding among such high profile individual, organized or unorganized bodies, make large scale hue and cry for the welfare of women, but these rascals, ruffians and looters rather worsen the condition of women. They showcase, demonstrate and act to extend their helping their hands for their upliftment, that rather make the women more dependant, waiting and weak. Their natural instinct to grow by themselves gets brutally stranded, nipped and stunted. These trios are afflicted, contaminated and ailed in the fatal disease of nepotism. For foiling, fabricating, and framing fraudulent strictures, they misuse their power, position and prestige for their own interests together. Their buildings and bungalows, cars, jewelries day after day become more costly, bright and beautiful. These scoundrels have their strong, deep and dangerous hold in people, society and politics. Under the vicious, venomous and vile cover of benevolence they fulfill their hidden, covetous and cavernous intents. The common citizenry is either unaware of their real notions or under demoniac terror of such mafia people. If anyone dares to raise and rise against them, by the united efforts of such trios, they are harassed, tortured and silenced any way.

These trios also do all their best to de-motivate, discourage and dampen the leadership of women. They unite, organize, administer and control with the face of some women. They take all illegal undue benefits of women by enticing, misguiding and blackmailing them. Such monsters reserve and preserve the main leadership, direction and control in their own hands. They keep these inexperienced, zealous and constraints affected women on the front for merely face, fight and focus so that they easily convince and win the confidence of common people in their charity charms.

The same scene, scenario and situation pervades in politics too. The well established and recognized national or regional parties and non recognized parties counterfeit crooked and wicked ways to win the confidence of women voters. They tempt some high gentry and sometimes commoner beautiful women by money, position and power. They make promises to endow celebrity, ministerial and other avaricious greedy political posts. As being unused of such vice practices, latent duplicities and political artifices, they most often so easily become prey in their cruel hands. Slowly and slowly they are stealthily snared in their nets hard to come out of it. They use them whatever way they want. These women, even till today, could not get equal representation in legislation, executive, judiciary and media. Though they occupy half of the population, yet they could not occupy half of the position, power and prestige. Indian constitution gives equal opportunity, right and privilege even to women by abolishing all inequalities and discriminations including gender equality, but even after 70 years or independence, they could not get their share and representation. This is all because man dominance in politics where women are only utilized for ill and illegal purposes. The women could not retain dignity, command and dominance there too.

If we look deep into the service sector, we again get a gloomy, disappointing and depressing scene. Service sector precedes education. Degree holding, merit, education and competitions are the backgrounds that enable us enter into different services either in government or private sectors. First the people in 21^st century, still thinks education suitable only for boy child and unsuitable for girl child. The boy child is promoted and facilitated for basic, secondary, higher, professional, technical and other studies whereas the girl child is thrashed and thrust to household works within four walls. The marriage and dowry of the girl child is more concerned than their education. On the age growth and puberty, the parents start fearing ignominy, insult and social outcaste if she has affairs with someone. The chastity and virginity may be spoiled by her unethical and immoral wrong ways. The girl child befits in the focus than the boy child. So in place of bestowing good education, opportunity and respect in services, they are engaged and betrothed in pious social familial knots. The rural women are afflicted by this disease more than the urban ones. The need is to change our perception, outlook and traditional concepts for fostering a bright and brilliant future for women. That is possible only if they are given good education and promoted to services to live a prestigious dignified social and public life.

In the age where there is rapid growth of privatization, globalization and liberalization, the women have not still secured equal, considerable and worthy hold in business sector. There business, management and direction capability in no more hidden to anyone today but their share, contribution and representation in the business sector is too disheartening, sad and worthless mentioning. As the business sector is supposed to be more flexible, unstable, risky, volatile, sharp edge competition, unsafe and dangerous, the women are forbidden, distanced and discouraged here. The 99% business activities are controlled, owned, administered and held by the male fellows. It’s not like that the women cannot hold such heavy responsibilities with utmost dexterity, skill, common business ethics and understanding, but social mindset about women stand as obstacle and big hindrance in the path. If there is any contribution of women in this field that is only nominal like laboring by poor women to sew, knit, assemble, patching and other least significant works. They hardly are in the managing, commanding and directing positions. Until the women are behaved like second rate citizen, it’s foolish to talk of their empowerment.

But what often strikes the mind is that how much the women society is conscious about the concession and reservations bestowed on them. Thousands of attempts have been made in rules, legal proceedings, constitutional measures and penal systems, but the women are still unaware of them. They don’t know what privileges they have got from such acts, articles and provisions. They don’t know what have been done to better their conditions in the course of time. Until they become self aware about their rights and reservations, it’s hard to solace their pathetic situations. They must not look towards their fellow men to solvate their agonies and stresses, rather they should realize it by themselves and step forward for their own emancipation, liberty and equality. The hindrances may not stand long if they together pledge to overcome them. No power can stifle them to break the shackles of slavery if they have once made commitment to sabotage the age long fetters. They must stand strong with the infallible vows to snatch away their share from every field of human life.

There are other ferocious discriminatory attitudes of people towards women. The distinction between the richer, middle and poor women is easily and simply visible everywhere. The high rank women are enjoying more freedom, luxuries, opportunities and privileges than the middle and poor class women. Such double standard and partial treatment towards women create wide rift and rupture among them. At many places, the richer women are found misusing, exploiting and misguiding the poor and innocent women. Those upper caste women behave so niggardly and rudely to the lower caste women as the men do to whole women folk. These women don’t feel the sanctity of womanhood and its liberation. They imperil, endanger and perish the life of other low profile, needy and innocent women into the snares of prostitute to benefit the men folk. If such temperaments prevail in the society, the dream of women empowerment will remain a dream only, beyond the horizon of any reality.

To correlate this with one of the instances which occurred, it is rather most appropriate to cite. One day an innocent incident strengthened this conviction when I happened to glare upon the pages of ‘The Sentinel Hindi daily’ in front of school library. The venerable daily has fantastically and emphatically commented over the women empowerment. The cycle rickshaw was being driven by a poor flimsy girl about 17 or 18 years old girl. Back to the cycle rickshaw, there were certain domestic amenities fiercely laden. The underneath line commented like 'the virtual condition of women leading so pathetic life when the world is celebrating the women's empowerment day in Patna Bihar'.

It was as one could have expected from media persons after twilight of ‘Annual Women's Empowerment Day’. What stunned and dazzled the fleshy eyes, dormant mind and cozy heart most? There were, on the same page and in the same state of Bihar, but district was different, Bhagalpur, few contradictory and mind boggling pictures. There were certain women well clad, stylish, aristocratic modeled, well decorated sophisticatedly, half smile upon face, entertaining themselves with fun games. Up to a long times the eyeballs hung between two pictures of women but different positions and prestige. What could one think and what could one say at such junctures and critical conditions?

See them and see the advocates of women's empowerment, what they opine about such luxuries inflicted to the genteel ladies. Do they not need to be empowered, instructed and invigorated? Who would have any personal ill feeling for such women? The matter of concern is to highlight, analyze and opine of what is being factually done for their betterment.

For the name of women the empowerment scheme is highly, hugely and greatly required. All may agree advice and support. But the most crucial and conflicting thing is that ‘The measures of such motives must be based on real economic, social, educational, occupational and political backwardness.The initiatives, programs and propagandas about their empowerment are full of malady and malaise.

Why to question, debate and discuss about their empowerment? That is another tool to make them feel that they are weak, dependant and fragile. This will rather enhance their subjugation and slavery. They will be compelled to feel that they require the help of men for their emancipation and liberation.

One thing that lies deep in the mentality of Indian people is that ‘Preaching high and boasting big matter a lot than  to act something in reality on pragmatic ground’. Until they forsake such tendency, nothing may come out of it. They merely preach of women empowerment. To what level it is going to happen? Or will it remain a mere political propaganda like thousands of others? Nobody has any definite and satisfactory answer. Another evil lying in the society is that they talk to bring reformation in others. They need first to follow the principle that ‘charity begins at home’. One must bring the reformation in oneself and family first, only then, he should move ahead for reformation in others and the society.

Now the women have shown their worth and caliber in front of the world. They are on the path of enhancement and empowerment. Not bad at all. Really step to welcome, thing to adore.