THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The national conference of All India Democratic Women’s Association (AIDWA) scheduled to be held in Thiruvananthapuram from January 6 to 9 will discuss six commission papers, including ‘women’s right and the question of unity’, ‘employment and women’, and ‘rights of the girl child’. The conference will be held at the Tagore Centenary Hall at Vazhuthacaud.
The other three papers to be discussed are ‘the freedom struggle and women’s movement’, ‘the NEP and its impact on women’, and ‘climate change and women’.
The slogan of the conference is ‘Struggle in Unity and Equality.’ The Latin American revolutionary Che Guevara’s daughter Aleida Guevara will greet the audience. A total of 850 delegates will attend the three-day conference.
A whole range of women dignitaries from all walks of life, including newly-appointed Kerala Kalamandalam chancellor Mallika Sarabhai, social activist Teesta Seetalwad, economist Madhura Swaminathan, and women’s movement activist Indu Agnihothri will attend the conference, said AIDWA general secretary Mariam Dhawale on Wednesday. “Mallika Sarabhai will inaugurate the conference on January 6. On January 9, the concluding day, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan will inaugurate the public meeting which will be attended by around 1 lakh women,” she said.
AIDWA will also felicitate ‘symbols of resistance’ during the inaugural session. Shakuntala, a leader of the anganwadi struggle in Haryana, Revathi, a survivor of violence from Tamil Nadu, Samyukta Shetty, a victim of a microfinance institution fraud who then organised a movement against them in Odisha, will be honoured.
Sheela Shetty, a leader of the farmers’ movement in Haryana, and Phulora Mondal, a survivor of TMC violence in West Bengal, will also be honoured. AIDWA general secretary alleged the Union government’s policies are affecting women’s lives in the country.
“The rate of malnutrition has grown. Rationing system has collapsed. Growing unemployment has reached a point where women are pushed into a low-wage system,” she said.
AIDWA national vice-president Subhashini Ali, P K Sreemathi, treasurer Pushpavathi, C S Sujatha, K K Shailaja, state women’s commission chairperson P Sathi Devi, and N Sukanya, attended the press conference.