Women around the world face numerous challenges in their daily life. Victims of discrimination, injustice, rape and poverty, many have, against all odds, to strive for their rights and survival. And if they live in countries where women are treated like second-class citizens, it’s even more difficult to rise up.
I just want to share something I’ve read from Newswatch India. It tells us about how one newspaper in Gwalior in Madhya Pradesh dedicates itself to the cause of women’s plight. The paper is called ‘Mahila Paksh’ and is run “by women, for women and to women”. It’s quite a different kind of paper. It’s concerned more with membership than readership. It aims at “creating awareness in the women not about the social issues but awareness for the self”.
It’s interesting to note how it contributes to the empowerment of women who otherwise would have had to content themselves to the so-called fate of injustice and oppression.
Quite a challenging task indeed, especially when the reporters are unskilled and hardly educated. You can also read more about it here at “Writing for their Rights“.
Mauritian residing in Rodrigues, Amanoola Khayrattee (pen name Alfa King) is contributing writer and journalist to La Gazette Mag de l’océan indien and This Week News Mauritius.
Retired, former meteorological cadre, trade unionist and OSH consultant, Amanoola has written for in-house union and other journals, publications and magazines. He runs two blogs since 2007: “Alfa King Memories”, and “Le Journal d’Alfa King”. When he is not reading or writing, he is on a 10+ km daily hike in anticipation of his monthly trails.
Amanoola may be reached at [email protected].