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Manisha Gupte ,
(co-founder of MASUM) |
Manisha Gupte is a woman of undaunted spirit and with a vision for a brighter
tomorrow. She is the founder of Mahila Sarvangeen Utkarsh Mandal (MASUM), an organisation working on the issues of health, domestic violence, women's resource development and self-employment of rural and tribal people since 1987.
She spoke to us about the role of women in the Indian society and the role of MASUM in creating a fair and equal society.
What inspired you to start working for women?
It was the inequalities prevailing in the society that acted as an inspiration. In 1975, we were fighting the Emergency and the women’s movement had also started. The whole climate was charged with movements. It was then that we decided to start working for women’s rights.
It is believed that the secondary status of women is a direct outcome of the beliefs held by society with respect to gender roles. Your comments.
It is not the beliefs but the structures existing in the society that have caused the subordination of women. Beliefs are a reflection of the prevailing structures. A dalit believing that he is inferior is not the cause of his unequal status. The belief has been created by the existing caste and social structures and by the dominant people who gain from that structure.
How is your organization addressing these fundamental beliefs?
Patriarchy is the structure which has made women believe that they are inferior to men.
We are addressing this at different levels. We work on the structures as well as on challenging the beliefs. We play with 2000 children in rural areas each month. Through plays and other activities we create examples for them to believe that men and women are equal. Simple things like eating together break the caste taboos and the myths and stereotypes that are created through segregation by the society.
| People are born equal, but not treated equally and so MASUM aims at conscientising them about the rights that they deserve. |
Your organisation concentrates on empowerment of rural women. How is the condition of rural women different from that of urban women?
Life is much harder for rural women. Rural areas lack basic health facilities, education, water, transport and even gas cylinders. It is the women who bear the brunt of all this.
Where the poor urban women (living in slums) suffer mostly from economic disability (in terms of access to education or to health), rural women suffer from both economic and physical disabilities.
What are the impediments to the process of women’s emancipation?
The main impediment is our culture and tradition which furthers discrimination against women. Other factors such as the economic structure which favours the men and the fact that property, resources and assets belong to men makes women vulnerable to violence, desertion and death. Increasing violence against women inside the home, during riots or in conflict situations has also reduced women’s freedoms and eroded their rights.
| Development is measured in terms of per capita income and GDP, but not in terms of development of the mind. We have achieved modernisation, but not modernity. Our ideas about women are still the same, in fact some of them are getting even worse. This is evident from the drastic fall in the sex-ratio in the past 10 years, especially in economically developed districts and states. Development that has occurred but at the cost of women’s rights cannot be called development. |
What is the difference in the condition of women in 1987 when you started Masum and now?
Education has dramatically increased and so have employment opportunities for women. The nutritional status of women within the household has improved. The women’s movement spanning 30 years has given women rights. Men are now participating in the upbringing of children in better ways.
But drought and forced migration with lack of negotiation skills have slowed the process of empowerment and even compelled people to enter dangerous occupations, including sex trade. Being in the unorganized sector has reduced the collective bargaining power of workers and further, privatization has taken away social security benefits and reservations as well.
What do you see as your major achievements?
Creation of a different value system among the staff and the community. We have created space for people to talk about issues. Women are now coming out to address issues. Our main achievement has been that of MASUM becoming a training and capacity-building institute. It is through training that we can carry forward the mission and create more agents/ leaders for social transformation.
What are the values that have been instrumental to your success?
Respecting people and not seeing my position in the organisation as that of power but as one with added responsibilities has made me an enriched person.
Our organisation works on principles of transparency and honesty. Accounts related to our micro-credit activities for example are displayed on all village boards so that our 5000 women members as well as the rest of the community know what’s happening. It’s been a long drawn process of collective decision-making, but it has resulted in dalit or other marginalised women (such as widows, deserted women) being able to shoulder more responsibilities and leadership within the organization.
We believe in creating leadership amongst marginalised groups. Our work is to get people to think and decide for themselves what is best for them, and not to get them to agree with everything we say.
What do you think about the new Right to Information act?
This act is a breakthrough in people’s access and right to information. It is very important for information to come out in the public domain. Knowledge is power and the act decentralises and demystifies knowledge. The act should be made more interactive with people demanding the kind of information they wish to know and the government providing the same. At the village level, information about development schemes, budgets and various acts or policies empowers all those people who were deliberately excluded from this access by the power brokers in the community.
How do you balance your office and work?
Balancing was never difficult. My husband has been the principal parent to our children and an enthusiastic housekeeper. We have been political comrades for the past three decades, we started MASUM together and as partners, we have shared responsibilities at a personal and professional level. Balancing is easy when two individuals complement and supplement each other instead of competing with each other. My children, other family members and colleagues also have been tremendously supportive.
- Interviewed by Amita Makhija ,
Feb 21, 2006
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