[Ftffacilitationteam] Outline for Women's Tribunal Against Poverty (India)

[Lysa John]

*Dear Ana & Friends,*
**
*Sorry for being out of the loop for a while. Please find enclosed the
Concept Note for the Women's Tribunal Against Poverty that will be held in
Delhi on Oct 17th, 2007. As discussed with you earlier, we are visualizing
this as a focused advocacy effort to integrate women's agenda and priorities
in the key policies an program of the national government. Several networks
and partners have already shown their interest in collaborating with this
initiative, and we hope that this will take off well.*
**
*If you have any inputs, please send them so that we can incororpate them at
this stage. It wold also be great if the FTF could do a submission
/ letter based on the outcomes of the various Tribunals targeting the WB-IMF
meetings which are to be held in Washington starting Oct 17th. Chona has
already been involved with the IPT a/g WB-IMF and my have some thoughts on
this? Also Rosa, wrt her location.*
**

*Best regards,*
*Lysa John, WNTA
*


*WOMEN'S TRIBUNAL AGAINST POVERTY*

*17 October 2007** - **Delhi***

*WHY OCTOBER 17?*

17 October, World Day to Overcome Extreme Poverty, was created twenty years
ago by the initiative of people living in poverty across the world, North
and South, with ordinary citizens acting together to defend human rights
violated by extreme poverty. In 1992, the UN recognized the date as the
International Day for the Eradication of Poverty. Since its creation,
October 17 has been a day for those living in extreme poverty to speak out
and for all citizens to consider how they can contribute to the eradication
of extreme poverty.



*OBJECTIVES OF THE WOMEN'S TRIBUNAL AGAINST POVERTY*

The 'Women's Tribunal against Poverty' is being proposed as an opportunity
for grassroots women leaders across the country to come together and make a
strong statement on the ways in which the policies and programs of the
government are being experienced by women who face acute social and economic
discrimination – including Dalits, Denotified & Nomadic Tribes, Adivasis,
Forest Dwellers, Muslim Minorities, Women with Disabilities & Single Women.

The Women's Tribunal is founded on the premise that the struggle to end
poverty is powerless without the participation and leadership of women, and
that the government's promise to end Poverty & Social Exclusion cannot be
achieved unless women's agenda are made central to its policies, programs
and budgets, and efforts are made to ensure that women.

*STRUCTURE OF THE WOMEN'S TRIBUNAL AGAINST POVERTY*

The Women's Tribunal will evaluate the outcomes that have resulted from the
initiatives of national government in the context of Poverty & Social
Exclusion. These outcomes will be reviewed under the themes of:

a)       Right to Work & Livelihoods

b)       Food Security, Public Services & Infrastructure

c)       Land & Housing

d)       Inclusion & Participation

Within the above themes, the Tribunal will aim to draw lessons from what has
worked well and benefited women living at the margins, and what has been
flawed or overlooked in the interventions and approaches of policies and
programs that were implemented in the context of the National Common Minimum
Program & the National Development Goals.

Approximately 200 women from across 20 states of India would be part of the
presentations, depositions and discussion that will be held as part of the
Women's Tribunal against Poverty on 17th October 2007. The proceedings of
the Tribunal would be organized around key themes and questions that are
relevant to the issues of Women and their experiences of Poverty & Social
Exclusion. These include:

*1.       **Right to Work & Livelihoods*

§         What other policy measures need to be taken to ensure fair wages
and safe working conditions for women working in the informal sector?

§         What are the issues facing the increasing number of women in the
agricultural sector?

§         Have initiatives like the NREGA & Micro Credit enabled the
guarantee of work and the creation of assets for women?

§         What needs to be done to emphasize and adequately recognize the
unpaid productive & reproductive work of women?

*2.    Food Security, Public Services & Infrastructure*

§         Has women's access to food security (across life cycles) been
enhanced through programs such as the PDS and ICDS?

§         How are women integrated in programs for health & education such
as the NRHM & Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan?

§         Are women's needs and priorities integrated in the planning and
development of public infrastructure through programs such as the Bharat
Nirman and JNNURM?

*3.       **Land & Housing*

§         Has women's access to land increased as a result of initiatives
such as the Forest Rights Act, 2006 and the amendments to the Hindu
Succession Act?

§         What policy measures need to be emphasized to ensure their right
to housing and ability to own land?

§         What challenges are being faced by women in relation to new
developments under the SEZ Act & Mining Policy / Permit amendments?

*4.       **Inclusion & Participation*

§         What opportunities have been created for women's
self-determination, leadership and direct participation in governance? How
is poverty mitigated or emphasized due to the lack of access to decision
making and governance?

§         How have women's opportunities for participation and political
empowerment helped to deal with conflict, violence & discrimination and
influence the priorities of the community?



*OUTCOMES OF THE WOMEN'S TRIBUNAL AGAINST POVERTY*

*Women's Charter against Poverty & Social Exlcusion*

The Women's Tribunal against Poverty aims to consolidate the experiences
across at least 10 states of India in relation to the advantages &
disadvantages experienced by women in relation to existing policies &
programs, and strengthen the policy agenda required to enable their access
to and control over their entitlements. These outcomes would be compiled to
form a 'Women's Charter against Poverty' which would include:

*a)   Policy Agenda Setting Papers*

Relevant groups would be involved to define the sub-themes of the Women's
Tribunal against Poverty through Policy Agenda Setting Papers, based on the
experiences and demands of their work and struggles. These Papers would
define the key policy demands that need to be taken forward in order to
address the gender dimensions of poverty, and enable women to lead efforts
for social change and empowerment.

*b)   Testimonies of Women across Marginalized Groups*

Key movements and networks would be involved to identify women whose
testimonies would serve to highlight the experiences of the most vulnerable
social groups in the country. These depositions would be recorded and form
an important basis for the Verdict of the Women's Tribunal against Poverty.

*c)   "Imperatives to End Poverty & Social Exclusion"*

A Jury comprising of women leaders from different fields representing Social
Development, Arts & Culture, Academics, Students & Youth, Mass Media and
Politics – will be identified to receive and represent the testimonies that
are presented in the Women's Tribunal against Poverty. The key findings and
conclusions of the Jury would be form of the Verdict of the Women's Tribunal
against Poverty.  The Verdict would also identify the *"Imperatives to End
Poverty & Social Exclusion"* that the government must emphasize and
implement based on the demands and experiences that have emerged from the
Tribunal.

The *'Women's Charter Against Poverty & Social Exclusion'* would be released
to public and the media at the end of the Tribunal, and disseminated to the
policy makers / policy making groups as an outcome of the event. We will aim
for a delegation to a key public representative to present the outcomes of
the Women's Tribunal against Poverty, ideally with the President of India –
as this is also the first time in the history of the nation that a woman
holds this position. We would also explore other alternatives such as
meeting a relevant Minister of State or a Parliamentary Committee. A
solidarity / public action – such as in collaboration with the ongoing
Janadesh 2007 – too would be explored as part of the culmination of the
Tribunal.

-- 
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Wada-Na-Todo-Abhiyan National Secretariat
C-1/E, Second Floor, Green Park Extension
Behind Yusuf Sarai Gurudwara, New Delhi 110 016 INDIA
Tel: 91-11-46082371 to 74 / Fax: 91-11-46082372
Email: info en wadanatodo.net / Web: www.wadanatodo.net
------------ próxima parte ------------
Se ha borrado un adjunto en formato HTML...
URL: http://listas.chasque.net/pipermail/ftffacilitationteam/attachments/20070914/26f5d077/attachment-0001.html