WAF NOTICES
What does a cohesion and faith-based approach to race relations mean to marginalised women?
What the other panellists said
Kirit Patel briefly explained that Oxfam had funded two other similar projects, but the only one which dealt with gender was this one by SBS.
Faiza Shaheen spoke of the need to achieve economic equality before the ‘Big Society’ can be put into place. She also explained how the Big Society was essentially a shift of economic activity from the state sector to the private sector.
Lord Ouseley spoke of New Labour’s experimentation with ‘cohesion’, which replaced ‘race’ in the political agenda after the tipping point of social unrest in Bradford and other northern towns and cities in 2001 and the 9/11 events. He talked about the phenomenon of ‘white flight’ in northern England and how the political decisions taken by local and national governments on accommodating minorities pretended that racism and class divisions did not exist. He also maintained that multiculturalism was not properly explained to the majority population, which led to resentment and to the ghettoisation of populations. He suggested that practically no one in Parliament challenged Cameron’s denunciation of multiculturalism in his speech in Germany.
Lord Parekh suggested that the language of cohesion hides the discourse of power inequality and sanitises racism. He questioned to what extent we should be trapped in such discourse. He asked whether a cohesive society was a good thing. He talked of current forms of racism masquerading in different ways. He also suggested that while the current government talks about the ‘Big Society’ and about empowering citizens by offloading the state function to citizens, the real power and control in fact stays in the hands of the state. He then further suggested that the wall of separation between the state and the church would be further weakened as the state devolves its functions to the churches, which will become more powerful.
Pragna Patel and Uditi Sen introduced the report (details left), which is based on a pilot study conducted by Southall Black Sisters (SBS) with support from Oxfam. The study was an attempt to map the impact on vulnerable black and minority women of the shift in government policy from multiculturalism to cohesion. They spoke about the major findings of a qualitative analysis of interviews with 21 women from South Asian and African-Caribbean backgrounds. All of the women have suffered domestic violence or abuse. Their voices are being ignored.
SBS’s research carefully documents the women’s own words, giving substance to the major findings of their study. The interviews vividly reveal the women’s awareness and understanding of cohesion, their relationship to religions, religious communities and religious leaders. The abundant quotes illustrate their feelings about social participation, discrimination, their own identities and feelings of belonging.
‘The women privileged lived experience over and above ascribed attributes, such as race, culture or religion, as the main components of their identity. Their sense of identity was fluid, and they spoke of various factors, such as country of origin, culture, language, gender, and religion on the one hand and racism, poverty, sexism or religious prejudice directed against women on the other.’*
The findings show how women still regard poverty, racism and gender discrimination as key obstacles to their participation in civic society. The reality of their lives – syncretic and fluid and suspicious of religious authority - defies the assumption that they naturally belong to ‘faith communities’.
‘To impose faith-based belonging upon women undermines their struggles for fundamental freedoms and for equality achieved in solidarity with each other. It undermines the anti-racist and secular spaces, such as SBS, that enable women to negotiate their differences and develop universal values based on a shared common humanity predicated on notions of justice and equality.’
In the report SBS spells out a series recommendations coming out of their research, including a call for the government to:
‘Adopt a human rights and equality based framework to race relations which creates the conditions for mutual respect and allows for civil society to be reinvigorated as a common space where human rights values can be negotiated.’
In the context of the ‘Big Society’ the SBS findings are even more relevant, especially as more religious organisations are empowered to perform vital state functions.
'SBS believes that the cohesion and faith-based agenda needs to be reviewed in the light of the adverse impact it has on women of all faiths – Hindus, Christians, Muslims and Sikhs.’
*Quotes: all quotes taken from the report
To request a pdf copy of the Cohesion, Faith and Gender Report send an email with your name, organisation name, address and telephone number to: webmaster@southallblacksisters.co.uk
NEW! FREE IMAN AL-OBEIDI!
WAF is deeply concerned about the fate of Iman Al Obeidi, the Libyan woman who tried to expose rape as a war crime by telling her own story and that of her friends to the international press in the Rixos Hotel, Tripoli, on March 26th 2011.
Since then she has been detained and then slandered on Libyan TV, and various contradictory stories have been told about her to the international press. She is now herself accused of slander.
We are pleased at the prompt press releases of 28th March by Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch. Also prompt were the Libyan Interim National Council statement of 27th March, and the women's marches of support in Benghazi and Tobruk on the same day. She has been adopted as an unlikely but brilliant icon of the Libyan opposition forces. But they are powerless to free her.
The international press, whose Tripoli breakfasts were interrupted by Al Obeidi, and who watched as she was bundled away by Government minders with the help of hotel staff, have been persistent in the first few days in pressing the authorities about her fate.
But the media so often has to move on to the next sensational story, leaving Iman in danger of being forgotten. That is why press releases from the human rights organisations are not enough. She must be adopted as a prisoner of conscience: the woman who has risked her life and freedom in order to expose the use of rape in this war.
She is not the only source of this story: the website Libya 17th February 2011 reported on February 23rd that the Al Zawiye Street Hospital in Tripoli saw 'many rape victims' admitted the night before. Al Jazeera English reported on 27th March from Ajdabiya that several doctors said they saw 'Viagra and condoms in the uniform pockets of dead pro-Ghaddafi fighters', suggesting that 'rape is used as a weapon of war'; they also said they treated many rape survivors from among the pro-democracy supporters.
Iman is a symbol of the defiant breaking of silence about rape; her mother said on television that she was 'not ashamed but proud' of her daughter. It is her huge achievement to have begun to turn the concepts of shame and 'honour' against the perpetrators. She must not be forgotten: her life depends on it.
We call on all global feminist and human rights organisations to use their resources to demand her release, now. We call on the UN and the International Criminal Court to investigate rape as a war crime in Libya.
[A useful catalogue of news about this issue is the facebook page FREE IMAN AL OBEIDI]
PAKISTAN FLOOD RELIEF APPEAL
Wondering how to contribute to the flood relief in Pakistan? Global Fund for Women has set up an APPEAL FUND to raise money for emergency grants to key women's groups.
From the Global Fund for Women website:
"Pakistan has been devastated by floods. 20 million have been impacted, over 3,000 are dead or injured. Our grantees in Pakistan have mobilized to help the hundreds of thousands now homeless and without food.
"Your generosity will provide emergency support for women's organizations to rebuild communities and continue their work long after this disaster is past.
"With the generous support of our donors, we have sent emergency grants to key women’s groups in Pakistan. But the need is so great.
"Please put women and girls first with a generous donation now."