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An
interfaith meeting of the Women Coordinators of the ICP sponsored by
the Interfaith Coalition for Peace was held from the 11th – 14th
June, 2010 at Hotel Abad Plaza, M.G. Road, Cochin, Kerala.
The
objective of this meeting was to bring together the ICP women
Coordinators from different faith traditions from different parts of
India to build a strong ICP interfaith women’s partnership to
explore the role of women of faith in prevention of violence against
women and for promoting women’s empowerment in conflict areas
through interfaith cooperation.
The most
important aspect of this meeting was that the ICP provided the women
Coordinators a unique opportunity to get together at leisure to know
and understand each other in order to build a strong interfaith
women’s team. This meeting provided an opportunity for the
participants to analyze the journeys undertaken so far and to create
a common vision and line of action for the future women’s programmes
of the ICP.
It was
decided that the discussion and planning sessions would include
personal sharing and reflections, stories of success and failure and
practical suggestions for making the future activities of ICP
Women’s Group a great success. The Coordinators were requested to
make creative presentations so that the event was a joyful exercise
from which significant programmes would emerge.
The
following Coordinator participated:
Dr
Deepali Bhanot, Hindu, Coordinator,
Delhi , North India
Rev
Awala Longkumer, Christian, Coordinator, Nagaland,
NE India
Ms
Sribala , Hindu,
Coordinator, Hyderabad, South India
Ms
Neelima Jadav Christian Nagpur, Central
India
Ms
Gladys Christian ICP Staff,
Delhi
Ms
Tajamul Ara Muslim
Coordinator, Leh-Ladakh, North India,
could not attend due to a last minute
assignment at work.
The
meeting began on the 11th evening with an Interfaith Prayer
followed by a Welcome Dinner and Introductions.
The
deliberations from the 12th - 14th June focused on:
I.
(a) Journeys undertaken so far,
(b) Planning for the way forward and
(c) Goals for 2010-11.
II.
Visiting local places of worship
III.
Meeting with local women in Kochi
I (a)
Journeys undertaken so far:
Each
Coordinator was encouraged to discuss in detail the women’s journeys
organized by her so far by enumerating the strengths and weaknesses
of the journey and also to propose any fresh ideas that she acquired
during the event.
Rev
Awala made the first presentation as she was the first Coordinator
to have organized a challenging journey in the troubled area of
Manipur in North-East India. For this ‘Journey of Healing in
Manipur’, eight women from different faith groups representing
different NGOs were selected who started the journey with sharing
their own experiences. The emphasis was on listening more to the
women victims in the region as there were a large number of women
who had been raped and had been victims of the violence caused by
the Assam Rifles who had branded them as terrorists. There was also
a lot of tension in the area as the dominant Hindu groups had
neglected and discriminated against the Hill Community.
The ICP
initiative of the Interfaith Women’s Journey was greatly appreciated
by the local women who were touched by the interaction with the ICP
women’s group. So far different religious groups had come to the
area separately but this was the first time that an interfaith
women’s group had visited them and that created an interfaith
understanding amongst the local women. It was for the first time
that the women from different faiths came together to share about
the problems and violence faced by them. This in itself was a great
achievement as this was an unusual learning experience not only for
the local women but also for the ICP women’s group. It gave the
women a sense of empowerment when they discussed about what they
could do together as women’s groups for healing the victims of
violence. Women offering prayers from their faith traditions was
another unique thing that they experienced.
Rev
Awala specially mentioned about how the women learnt to understand
and respect each other’s particular faith-based needs and to adjust
accordingly. More than ten Muslim women came to this meeting for the
first time but during the meetings, the Muslim participants did not
eat with the other women and they had specific requirements for
Muslim food. But they adjusted with each other by eating separately
but working together throughout the journey.
The main
objective of this journey was to heal each other by sharing personal
grief, losses and shame with each other. It was very difficult for
the women who had been victims of sexual violence to share their
pain and shock. But they were able to open up with this all-women’s
group and let out their bottled-up stories of horror and shame with
others. There were many heart-rending stories from women who had
lost their husbands, children and the worst cases were those whose
husbands and sons have gone missing. Although life has become
miserable without any resources and support, the women found solace
in the togetherness by sharing their grief.
Rev
Awala mentioned that this single interfaith journey was not
sufficient in this troubled region and the group could not reach out
to a large section of women and there is an urgent need for a
follow-up of the event by organizing another interfaith journey in
the near-future.
Dr
Deepali Bhanot spoke about the ICP Interfaith women’s Journey in
Srinagar which was basically organized to identify women
participants for the Women’s Journey in Warrangal.
The most
challenging part of this journey was to get a large number of the
local women together for three main reasons. Firstly, the women
victims of various kinds of violence, bereavement, social
injustices, government apathy, suffering deprivation and neglect for
the past few decades, are angry and have totally lost faith in
people. They were no mood to come out and talk about themselves as
they felt that nothing was being done for to help them. Secondly,
even if the women wished to come out to share their grief and
problems, they did not have sufficient means or resources even to
come to the meeting. Thirdly, language was a great barrier for free
discussions as they spoke only Kashmiri and needed someone to
translate what they had to discuss.
However,
with the help of the Department of Women’s Study, University of
Kashmir, a meeting of some of the local women along with the women
students and faculty members was organized for interaction with the
visiting ICP team. The experiences of victimization, violence and
grief faced them was indeed frustrating for them as they were
fighting for elusive justice and financial support to sustain
themselves and their families. What most of the women immediately
needed was economic empowerment as most sources of their income had
dried up and they were battling for survival. But there were also
some beacons of hope in the form of certain NGOs being run by local
women who were working for the social and economic empowerment of
these people. Young girls were eager to continue their studies for
finding suitable livelihoods. The interaction with the University
students also demonstrated that importance and pursuit of education
was uppermost in the minds of the young women in urban areas.
At the
end of the journey, it was felt that more research was needed to
create a list of the local NGOs working for the empowerment of
women, government welfare schemes and Helplines so that this
information could be given to these needy women and to put them in
touch with such organizations who could be useful in helping them
with legal procedures for obtaining their pensions or other
benefits
Ms
Sribala presenting a report of the Warrangal Women’s Journey said
that they had organized this journey with the help of a local NGO
called ‘Tharuni’ that is engaged in women’s empowerment in rural
areas in and around Warrangal district. This journey gave an
opportunity to the ICP team to see how the women from different
faith groups have able to come together to form Self Help Groups to
empower themselves economically and socially. Using local folk
theatre and puppet shows, the NGO has also been successful in
eradicating social evils of dowry, child marriage and alcholohism.
Meetings
were arranged within the rural areas, places of worship and
archaeological sites. This gave the women a chance not only to visit
different places of worship but also to participate in one of their
important festival of ‘Bathakamma’. Hindu and Muslim women
volunteered to prepare local traditional meals in their homes for
the group and eating together in these homes was an exceptional
experience.
As this
journey was organized by ‘Tharuni’, the focus was more on the
success stories of the social and economic empowerment of the rural
women and there was no opportunity for interaction with the women
from conflict areas. It was decided that the next journey into this
area would also have time and opportunity for interaction with women
victims of religious and social violence and also to study the
success stories of how women were emerging from such crisis.
Ms
Neelima Jadav shared with the group the work being done by her NGO
in Nagpur, Central India to empower women economically. She also
spoke about the interfaith meetings that are being organized by them
in their area. Although she had not participated in any of the ICP
women’s Journey so far, she offered to organize one in Central
India.
I (b)
Planning for the Way Forward:
The
presentations on the previous journeys were followed by discussions
to identify the strong and weak points of the journeys undertaken.
It was unanimously felt that there should be a clear understanding
among the participants of the journey as well as the local
communities about the exact nature and objectives of the interfaith
journey. And to achieve this before preparing for any journey, the
local hosts and partners should be provided with the objectives of
the journey. As the needs may differ in certain areas, the basic
objectives of the Interfaith Women’s Journey may be modified
accordingly.
Objectives of the Women’s Journeys:
•
To carry an
inter-faith message of peace & reconciliation in the region
suffering from violence and unrest
•
To establish
interfaith understanding, tolerance and respect for other religions
•
To identify
women’s perspective in underlying issues in existing conflicts
especially in the context of the places covered in the journey
•
To provide an
opportunity of mutual sharing of experiences of violence, conflicts
and injustice- especially the experiences of victimized women and
girls.
•
To understand the
human suffering created by ethnic and communal conflict and violence
that affect peaceful coexistence in the region
•
To develop a
sense of solidarity and healing with the victims of violence -
particularly women and girls
•
To discern the
contribution of religious and spiritual identities to such conflicts
and also the role they can play in terms of resolution
•
To explore
alternative models of conflict resolution and peace building that
arises out of women’s experiences and collaborations
•
To make an
attempt to bridge the gap between different communities / religious
groups and to transform conflict by healing hurtful and broken
relationships by love and forgiveness
Guidelines for the programme participants:
It was
decided that the group should always include participants from
different faith groups. Leaders from local NGOs, social activists,
Human Right Activists, religious leaders, faith based organizations
and interfaith groups should be invited to the meetings.
Victims
and survivors of violence should form a part of all meetings. While
interacting with the women from conflict areas, the group should
include only women because:
§
the women have a
special healing power
§
women can discuss
openly and freely about their problems with other women
§
women across
religions and regions share the same experiences and they can form
strong alliances
§
women draw
strength from each other and can learn from each other’s survival
wisdom
§
women are the
first teachers to the next generation for passing on the faith
traditions and they have a deep faith in their own belief systems.
There is
a need for conducting a research regarding the existing Help-lines
and welfare schemes and employment opportunities to share the same
with the women in need.
I (c)
Goals for 2010-11:
After
having organized Interfaith Women’s Journeys in Manipur, Srinagar
and Warrangal, it was felt that Women’s Journeys should be conducted
in Ahmedabad in Gujarat and Ranchi in Jharkhand in the year 2010-11
as these two cities have witnessed a number of conflicts and an
interfaith journey to these areas organized by ICP would give an
insight to the suffering of the women victims of violence and would
be a learning experience to hear the success stories of women who
have survived conflict and violence to live life afresh.
Rev
Awala volunteered to organize the Journey in Gujarat and started
with the preparations by calling up her contacts in Ahmedabad. The
date and the exact venue would be decided after finalizing the same
with the local contact persons.
Dr
Deepali Bhanot offered to organize the next journey to Ranchi in
Jharkhand. She contacted the ICP Coordinator, Mr S.S.Akhtar in
Ranchi for his help in this effort. Mr Akhtar has indicated all
help in this matter and tentatively, the journey has been fixed to
be held in the dates from September 20th – 30th.
The exact dates will be finalized shortly and the details of the
journey would be chalked out very soon.
II.
Visit to local places of worship:
On the
13th, Sunday, the groups visited a nearby St Mary’s
Cathedral Church to attend the morning service. A visit to the Hindu
temple had to be abandoned due to heavy rains lashing Kochi.
However, the participants could go to Fort Kochi and visit the St
Francis CSI Church. It being a Sunday, the participants not only
got a chance to witness a Christian religious procession but also
could meet Rev. Abraham Kuruvilla, the Vicar of St Francis Church.
He informed the participants about the history of the Church which
is the first European Church that was built in India in 1516. He
also showed the participants the grave of Vasco Da Gama who died in
1524 and was buried in this Church. It was a good experience for
the interfaith group to visit this ancient Church and the Kochi
harbour.
III.
Meeting with local women in Kochi:
Ms
Gladys was very resourceful in organizing an impromptu meeting
of about 25 local women from different faith groups in the afternoon
of the 13th at the residence of one of the local
contacts of ICP. The group included senior home-makers, working
women, college-going young girls and young mothers. It was possible
to meet the working women as it was a Sunday. The ICP team informed
the local women about the aims and objectives of ICP and also
acquainted them about the Women’s Journeys sponsored by ICP.
The
local group was very happy to meet the ICP team and discussed
various topics with them concerning women’s empowerment and violence
against women. It was felt that women can be women’s best friends
and together women can overcome many obstacles in life. They did not
perceive any problems working with interfaith groups – rather they
welcomed this idea. With regard to violence against women and sexual
violence, they felt that there should be a special bond of
understanding and trust amongst the women of different generations.
The mothers should make special efforts to create a confidence in
their daughters so that they can freely discuss any problems with
them. The ICP group thanked the women for sacrificing their Sunday
afternoon to meet and host them.
Fr.
Packiam Samuel, Secretary, ICP arrived on the morning of the 14th
and participated in the concluding meeting of the ICP Women
Coordinators. He was briefed about the discussions that had taken
place the previous days and was informed about the future programmes.
As Secretary of ICP he promised all help and support to the women’s
future programmes and encouraged the coordinators to go ahead with
their plans.
The
meeting ended with a vote of thanks to Fr Samuel for making this
women’s meeting happen as it was a valuable opportunity for the
women coordinators to meet together and plan the future activities
for the Women’s Journeys ahead.
This
meeting was coordinated by Dr Deepali Bhanot with the kind support
of Fr Samuel and Ms Gladys.
________________________________________________________________________
Annexure
Schedule
for the Kochi Meeting
ICP Women Coordinators’
Meeting
Hotel Abad Plaza, M.G. Road, Cochin,
Kerala
11th – 14th June
2010
11th June 2010
3.00 pm
onwards Arrivals
6.30 pm
– 9.00 pm Welcome Dinner
12th June 2010
Session I: Revisiting ICP Interfaith Women’s Journeys
undertaken so far
9.15 –
9.30 am Interfaith Prayer
9.30 –
9.45 am Opening Remarks: Dr Deepali Bhanot
9.45 –
10.30 am ICP Women’s Journey to the North
East: Rev Awala Ao
10.30 –
11.00 am Discussion on the Presentation
11.00 –
11.15 am Tea Break
11.15 –
11.45 am ICP Women’s Journey to Srinagar: Dr
Deepali Bhanot
11.45 –
12.30 pm ICP Women’s Journey to Warrangal: Ms
Sribala
12.30 –
1.00 pm Discussion on the Presentations
1.00 –
2.00 pm Lunch
Session II: Planning ICP Women’s Programmes for 2010 – 11
2.00 pm
– 3.00 pm Presentations: Ms Tajamul Ara & Ms
Nilima
3.00 pm
– 4.00 pm Brainstorming session
4.00 pm
– 4.15 pm Tea Break
4.15 pm
– 5.30 pm Planning Meeting
8.00pm –
9.00pm Dinner
13th June 2010
Session III: Finalizing Programmes for 2010 – 11
9.00 am
– 11.00 am Finalizing programme details and sharing
responsibilities
11.00 am
– 11.15 am Tea
11.30 am
onwards Outdoor activity / Local sightseeing
7.00 pm
– 9.30 pm Dinner meeting to finalize details of
future programmes
14th June 2010
Session IV: Presenting Report of Future Programmes
9.00 am
– 10.00 am Reporting on Future Programme
10.00 am
– 10.30am Special Remarks: Fr. P.Samuel, Secretary,
ICP
10.30 am
– 11.30 am Closing session
11.30 am
onwards Departures |
