Nagaland: Exclusion of women in decision-making is regressive, says Kaisa Rio

Our Correspondent
Kohima, March 8 (EMN): Kaisa Rio, President of Nagaland Women Voluntary Association and wife of Nagaland Chief Minister, on Tuesday called upon the people to take up the issues of women and girl child with utmost seriousness, saying that the exclusion of women in economic workforce, decision-making, and politics was not only ‘regressive but detrimental to any progressive society’.

“Gender equality must be promoted in our towns, villages, churches, and homes. It is not only a fundamental human right, but is a prerequisite to building а peaceful, prosperous, and sustainable society. Nagas need to rise up to this challenge to create a fair and just society,’ she said.

She was addressing the International Women’s Day programme organised by the Nagaland State Commission for Women in collaboration with State Resource Centre for Women, department of Social welfare, and Japfü Christian College at Kigwema.

Kaisa Rio said that equal access to education, resources, and representation in political and economic decision-making will not only benefit women, but the society at large. Towards this, she stressed on the need to encourage women workers with training and capacity building, invest locally in women-led organisations, and support the supply and demand of such products and services.

‘As GD Anderson, an Australian feminist writer rightly noted, we must show Naga society and the world women empowerment isn’t about making women strong; women are already strong, it’s about changing the way the world perceives that strength. Collective action and shared ownership is required to ensure that the idea and message of International Women’s Day is put to practice and made a reality. Together, we can forge women’s equality,’ she said.

Stressing on the UN’s theme for the occasion, “Gender equality for a sustainable tomorrow”, she said that climate crisis and gender inequality are two issues at the core of the UN sustainable goals. Figures indicate that 80% of people displaced by climate change disasters are women and 70% of the 1.3 billion people living in poverty are women; the two issues are intertwined and global sustainability and gender equality efforts must go hand in hand, she stated.

‘In the context of Nagaland, sustainability means preservation of traditional knowledge, culture and investing in the present whilst planning for future generations. The ancestors have been an embodiment of sustainable living,’ she observed. 

As part of modern Naga society, Nagas must adopt the knowledge of the past and adapt it to suit our needs. The world is changing fast, and Nagas are not exempt from these inevitable changes confronting every society асross the globe today, she said.

“A sustainable future cannot exist without a peасeful and secure political environment. Along with a conducive environment, the development of a social framework, wherein everyone irrespective of class or gender has equal rights and асcess to opportunities is crucial. No society can secure their future if any section of society is left behind,” she added.

She underscored that generally, women and girls lag behind on important social, political and economic indexes by virtue of their gender.

‘Despite the progress made globally towards achieving gender equity, a significant gap persists. The UN stated that at the current pace, the gender gap is not set to close for another 135 years, a situation which has been worsened by the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic, wherein years of tireless work were reversed,’ she said.

She opined that the involvement of women organisations, NGOs, and churches has become more crucial than ever in order to meet the challenges facing the present society.

‘Usually, it is women who earn less money than men, do more household labour, and suffer more sexual violence. But at the same time, studies indicated that women have excellent leadership skills, and outperform men in terms of productivity and endurance. One such example is that of girls repeatedly outperforming boys in scholastic exams for several years now in Nagaland. Considering all these, we have more to prove and must work twice as hard to achieve our goals,’ Kaisa Rio said. 

During the occasion, Zhonelü Tunyi, Kevinourheno Seyie, Yomah Konyak, Imdanglemla Aier, and L Dorothy Chang were awarded NSCW Awards for the year 2022 for their exemplary work and services rendered in different fields.