Parties failed to keep word on quota for women: First Lady
First Lady Usha Narayanan today regretted that political representation of women in legislatures had not made much progress in spite of promises by all political parties to give them one-third reservation in Parliament and in state legislatures.
''Women have to go a long way before they can feel
a sense of empowerment in the affairs of the state,'' she said.
Addressing a meeting organised by the United Nations
Information Centre to observe International Women's Day, Usha Narayanan said political empowerment was essential if human rights were to be practically realised.
Expressing satisfaction that at panchayat, block and district
levels women had succeeded in getting one-third representation, she said, ''At the world level, women's representation in political and parliamentary positions is not more than 10 per cent.''
She regretted that women still remained unliberated and deprived.
Modifying Jawaharlal Nehru's observation on judging
the advancement of a society by the status of woman, she said, ''I would say that the advancement of humanity can be judged by whether the woman occupies a position equal to that of man and enjoys all the rights of a human being.''
UNI
Elections '98
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