Citizen’s Action Plan Prepared to Deepen Democracy, Disarm & Invest in Women’s Rights

Posted on September 27, 2016 0 Comments447

New Delhi – World spend
$ 1.6 billion on arms yet social expenditure is decreasing. At the backdrop of
Prepcom to World Congress on Military and Social Spending and United
Nations Commemoration from Peace to Non-Violence Fortnight, Control Arms Foundation of
India along with Manipur Women Gun Survivors Network in collaboration with
United Nations Information Centre, Delhi & EU held a successful Round Table
Conference on “Developing Citizen’s Action Plan Towards Deepening
Democracy, Disarming, Investing in Women’s Rights and Ensuring Diversity in
India on 22nd September 2016 at United Nations, New Delhi.

Addressing the opening function as Chief Guest, Prof.
Muchkund Dubey President
of Council for Social Development, Former Ambassador and Former Indian
Foreign Secretary, speaking at the panel discussion at United Nation
Information Centre said the
cult of arms spread due to their fluidity and called the process to an end. He
also emphasised that basic needs can be fulfilled if government reaches the
level of fundamental rights. Education is a fundamental right to life yet 2000
schools have been closed in India.

Further
he said that the budget expenditure should be in the favour of the population.
There may be a justification to meet the external threat but no justification
for the country to arm itself against its own people.

Mr. Sanjiv Nair, Director,
Northeast Center for
Technology Application & Reach (NECTAR), drew on his vast experience and
told about the government initiatives for upgrading that the government of India is trying to increase the
income level of Northeast people by using technology and looms.  He further mentioned that government of India has
constructed more than 12,000 schools there in Chhatisgarh. Peace is going to
come from education and economic stability in Northeast India.

Mr
Rajiv Chandran, National Information Officer, United Nations Information
Centre, stated that this 12
day campaign that the Information Centre has been organizing is an opportunity
to look at a different continuum of peace, development and human rights. It is
the weaving of different institutions of democracy that leads to strengthening
of peace. Presenting the UN Secretary General Ban-ki Moon’s address he said that
peace is much more about keeping aside arms. There is a need to protect this planet
and only by working together the ethos of Sustainable Development Goals can be
achieved.

Mr.
Johann Hesse, Head of Cooperation, EU Delegation to India talked about conflict
and women’s rights and told how EU after World War II came into existence as a
peace project. He also spoke on the existence of racial discrimination, caste
discrimination, and natural resources. He stated that human rights are one of
the core areas of EU and EU is committed to Sustainable Development Goals to
move forward.

Binalakshmi
Nepram, Founder, Manipur Women Gun Survivors
Network and Secretary General of Control Arms Foundation of India, drew on her
extensive experience and pointed out that every 22 minutes a woman is raped. The situation of women is
deteriorating. Budget for women and child development was reduced to half.  She reiterated the need to ensure money of a
nation is spent in peace rather than war. 

She
further said that we are
at 69 years of India’s Independence but we still are at 108 of gender index.
How to reach the sustainable development Index to bridge the gap. There is no
dearth of resources we need to ask how to use the resources appropriately.

A panel of esteemed guests, including Mr. Ravinder Pal Singh, Peace and Security Analyst, Mr. Jawed Alam Khan, Senior Research Officer, Centre for Budget and Government
Accountability (CBGA), Ms.
Kanika Kaul, Senior
Programme Officer, head of Gender Responsive Budgeting (GRB), Centre for Budget
and Government Accountability (CBGA), Dr.
Krishna Menon, Professor, Gender Studies, Ambedkar University, Dr. Siddharth Tripathi, Assistant
Professor, Lady Shri Ram College, DU, Ms. Sanhita Ambast, International Legal
Advisor, South Asia, International Commission of Jurists, Ms. Anju Talukdar,
Director, MARG, Dr. Lianboi Vaiphei, Assistant Professor, Indraprastha College,
Delhi University, and Dr. Kaushikee, Associate Prof. Nelson Mandela Centre for
Peace & Conflict Resolution, Jamia Millia Islamia.

This
panel discussion was also followed by an exhibition “Weaving Peace Together”.
The exhibition includes beautiful paintings, photographs, handloom and
handicraft products by Manipuri artisans and craftsman such as Manipuri shawls,
‘enaphi’ (Manipuri dupatta), hao phannek (Manipuri wrap around), leiroom (hand
woven scarf) , Kuki Shawls and Manipuri Shawls, traditional hand bags etc which
signify the vibrant and rich crafts and artistic skills of the Northeast region.

Based
on discussion at a round table, the conference participants made the following
recommendations for a Citizen’s Action Plan (CAP), as follows: 

•      
Return to Gandhian
principles of truth and non-violence by forging social transformation at the
socio-economic-cultural and political level to achieve the objectives of
unilateral disarmament

•      
Strategies
including Preventive and  peaceful
solutions for all conflict situations

•      
Priority for all
forms of gender in both the Union and State budgets needs to be stepped up through
Gender Sensitive Budgeting

•      
Focus on a culture
of dialogue than on a culture of violence

•      
Constitutional
values and Universal Declaration of Human Rights as a basis for deepening
democracy, Ensuring diversity and women’s rights in India

•      
India must have a
National Diversity Policy

•      
Recognition of
women role in peace processes and ensuring the participation of women as
decision makers in peace negotiations and present and post conflict
reconstructions by both the Central and State Governments

For
any questions for clarifications, kindly contact 

Office of Control
Arms Foundation of India/ Northeast India Women Initiative for Peace

B B5 / 146, Safdarjung Enclave, New Delhi-110029, India
Phone: +91-11-46018541 Fax: +91-11-26166234
Web:  www.cafi-online.org

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