SRED conducts legal education training program which covers legislations against violence on women, legislations against atrocities on SC /STs and Human Rights mechanisms. As a result of these trainings women have addressed issues of domestic violence and dowry harassment.
The legal education program is a tool of empowerment. Below are the stories of our members who have addressed atrocities against them due to the legal education.
Kavitha has studied up to 9th standard in a school at Nagiri in Chitoor district. Now she works as an agriculture worker. After attending the training on laws, she now understands the SC/ST Act and the discrimination faced by Dalit children, and that the law can be used for their protection. Therefore, Kavitha through the training has now, internalized this law, realized and decided to take necessary action.
She realized that as a Dalit girl, she had not been treated equally and was subjected to discrimination. In her sharing, Kavitha disclosed that, she was asked to come early to school to clean the toilet, the classroom, sweep the school, clean the drinking water taps, throw used sanitary napkins etc. Other caste children were made to sit on benches, whereas, Dalit and Tribal children were made to sit on the floor in the classroom. Kavitha shared, “We are treated badly because of our appearance as we wear old clothes, smell due to our unhygienic conditions, as we are deprived of basic amenities and therefore, do not look clean like other children. So, we are made to work as scavengers. I did not realize this in my early school days and I obediently did what the teachers asked me to do. But, now after attending the training and hearing from the Resource Person, I realize now, how our communities face discrimination at every level.”
The teacher herself an educated person, practiced caste discrimination in the school, as caste-based discrimination is so internalized. For Kavitha, the information about the SC/ST Act was an eyeopener that, untouchability is prohibited, as per the constitution. Article 17 in the Indian Constitution is about the eradication of untouchability. It became clear to her, that what the teacher was practicing against the Dalit and Tribal children, was illegal and a violation of the right to dignity as stated in the Constitution and hence penal action should be taken against the teacher.
Kavitha is now aware of the situation and she shared how the Scheduled Caste are barred from participating in the annual village religious festival, as they are considered untouchables. The other castes treat Dalits and tribals as untouchables, primarily because they eat, ‘beef,’ and hence considered impure. In the local context, ‘Theetu’, is the concept of impurity, as among caste Hindus the concept of purity is related to food practices, occupation etc, which is rooted in the caste system that is the varna system. Dalits are considered outside this caste system and therefore referred to as, ‘lesser human’. Practices such as of eating beef, working with animal skin, beating drums made of animal skin, all of which contribute to them to be considered as untouchables. During the Dalit religious festival, a buffalo is sacrificed and eaten by the Dalits. The whole village shares the meat, cooks and eats after the festival. The caste people resent this and prevent the Dalit community from sacrificing buffalos during religious festivals. This is blatant caste-based discrimination, where the other caste people are stopping traditional and cultural practices. Other communities sacrifice goats, which cannot be afforded by Dalits. Buffalo is a cheaper option, but beef eating renders the Dalits as untouchable.
Kavitha now understands that the SC/ST Act, is for the prevention of discrimination and atrocities and to promote Human Rights and Fundamental Rights of Dalits and Tribals. The training made Kavitha aware about Constitutional Rights and the architect of the Constitution, Dr. Ambedkar who pioneered the liberation of marginalized communities. She understood why her community is discriminated and denied enjoyment of their fundamental rights. Kavitha has now taken a challenge to organize her community and in the coming year, will mobilize and build an environment where the community will celebrate the religious festival, sacrificing a buffalo and the meat will be shared with all the community members. Kavitha expressed that she has realized that the discrimination, untouchable practices in the school by the other caste students and teachers, needs to be stopped. Her experiential sharing has made other participants realize how the impacts of learning about the existing progressive Acts, to protect the rights is very important.
Kavitha, now 23 years old is married and has just become a mother. She has decided that henceforth she will not accept any discriminative practices and will create awareness among the community, about the existing progressive laws. She pledged that she would attend meetings, trainings, workshops which are meaningful and will apply the learnings from the progressive legislations. While it may not seem progressive, the practice of animal sacrifice. But for Kavitha it is a matter of reclaiming her religious and cultural identity. Besides for the Dalits, this is their only source of protein, as all other meats are unaffordable by the Dalit community, who are at the lowest rung of society and suffer impoverishment. Her learning from the training, coupled with her experience has strengthened Kavitha, who resolved that she has to challenge and question the system which oppresses the already marginalized community.
Sasi, 23 years old belongs to Jaderi village in Ranipet district Tamil Nadu and she got married to Gopi aged 26 from Nedumbaram village of Thiruttani taluk in Thiruvallur district in Tamil Nadu. After two years of marriage she went through harassment, beatings by the husband. Sasi was pregnant and she was forced to abort by the husband, in-laws and after the abortion she was pushed out of the house demanding for more dowry. She went back to her parents; the husband sent her divorce notice within a month’s time. Gopi was in a relationship with another woman. She met the advocate, booked a complained at the police station on dowry harassment. She went to the court, to the police station not keeping silent on the desertion of her husband.
Sasi is courageous, more capable of aalysing the ill-treatment she faced with her in-laws and with more perseverance she continued to take legal actions. This is the most important change brought in her because she attended the capacity building trainings, leadership, legal education trainings, and other programs organized by SRED. The significant change in Sasi’s life is very important that she could challenge the patriarchal norms, the domestic violence meted out to her. Sasi being a member of Dalit women’s Movement pledges to bring more women into the movement to be aware of the dominant culture which reflects patriarchy. The self awareness is the 1st step of Feminist consciousness.
Lessons learnt is how the training programs helped an young woman to realize and learn about domestic violence Act which is not known to other women in villages. Sasi is coming forward to talk about the prevention of domestic violence Act 2005 to other women in her village. Undoubtedly legal education training is a tool of empowerment.
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