HARC holds legal awareness camp for women

December 5, 1997 (UNI)

DEHRA DUN: Non governmental organisations can play a major role in creating legal awareness among womenfolk of Garhwal and Kumaon and thus bring about their upliftment by providing concrete, reliable and accessible information to women organisations and voluntary bodies in the region.

This view was expressed at a three-day ``Legal Awareness Camp'' organised recently in the Doon valley by the Himalayan Action Research Centre (HARC), a leading NGO of this hill region.

The women wing of the HARC has been working since long for the development of hill women. As problems faced by these women due to lack of legal awareness are on the rise, the women wing has committed itself to create legal awareness among them and strengthen them to protect themselves from exploitation.

Illiteracy, ignorance, lack of awareness and poverty expose the hill people, especially the women, to all kinds of atrocities. Women in this area are often made victims of oppressing social and cultural traditions, according to Ms Chhaya Kunwar, coordinator, women wing, HARC.

Today, women of Uttarakhand are exposed to violence in the form of dowry-related violence, desertion by husbands, remarriage by men without divorcing the first wife and unequal treatment by their families, Ms Kunwar added.

The camp, held by HARC, aimed at sensitising the participating NGOs to promote a consciousness among women about their legal rights and status in the society and family. The NGOs were made aware of various legal provisions and amendments made in favour of women so that they could empower villagers through ``demystifying'' the law and making it more accessible.

Participants stressed the need for a uniform civil code so that women were not subjected to ``biased'' legal provisions. During a discussion on family laws, participants felt that the lack of legal knowledge among women was affecting their social status and resulting in a rise in the incidents of dowry related violence and desertion.

Various subjects like the Hindu Marriage Act including divorce and restitution of conjugal rights, Muslim Marriage Act, Hindu Succession Act, Dowry Prohibition Act and rights of working women were discussed in detail at the camp which concluded here on Monday last.

The Consumer Protection Act was also discussed during the camp so that the participants could make villagers aware of their rights as consumers and tell them about the authorities whom they could contact in cases of consumer disputes. Various laws were exercises and diagrams.

There was a special session during which the participants prepared future plans to spread legal awareness among their target groups.