Another battle...for eve

By C. Maya

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM, MAY. 8. A long line of women with grievances and a host of administrative problems are what awaited Ms. Justice D. Sreedevi, new chairperson of the State Women's Commission, on her first day in office.

Having spent nearly five years as judge of the District Family Court here, tales of hardships suffered by women are not new to her. ``But today I had before me a young woman in tears, seeking protection because her mother has been soliciting `customers' for her,'' she says sadly.

In all welfare activities, priority should always be given to women, she feels. ``Much needs to be done before we can make women feel safe and secure in our social environment. The lack of civic amenities such as proper sanitation in hospitals and schools is affecting women the most. The report prepared by the former commission on the appalling lack of toilet facilities in girls' schools across the State is something that should have got wide attention from the public,'' she says.

Having just taken over the reins of the women's commission, she finds that she has an arduous task ahead, steering the commission through a host of financial and administrative problems which are severely affecting its day-to-day functioning.

``The commission is flooded with complaints and though we have district-level committees to take care of issues in a locality, these have remained only on paper. The committees have no offices to function from, no auxiliary staff or space to keep records,'' she points out.

Other than conducting an inquiry into an issue, the Women's Commission Act does not in any way empower the Commission to act on its own, a fact which the public is unaware of, she says. ``It is sad that the Government has not seen it fit to implement even a single recommendation submitted by the former Commission.''

Amendment of labour laws to make these more women-friendly is something that she has in mind. ``Motherhood should never be a burden for a working woman. Our labour laws should contain a clause which says all institutions should have a creche with proper facilities on their premises for the convenience of women employees,'' Mrs. Justice Sreedevi says. She is proud of the fact that the High Court had led the way by setting up a creche for its employees.

She feels that her stint at the Family Court was the best period in her legal career. Those were the years that she could look back upon and feel gratified that she could do something really worthwhile.

``My years in the Family Court also gave me an opportunity to study our personal laws and their application better. It was this experience which has made me a strong advocate of a uniform civil code. Religion has nothing to do with it, but women, whichever religion they belong to, should not be denied justice,'' she says.

She feels that the concept of a uniform civil code has not gained acceptance because of the feeling that it will interfere with religious practices. ``A uniform code only deals with legal rights and not religious rights. All our holy texts, including the Koran and the Bible, speak of protecting legal rights. Religious leaders themselves should come forward to educate people on the need for a common personal law,'' she says.

Laws should always be for the betterment of society, not tie people down with outdated expressions. All laws should be revised to suit the changing social outlook, Ms. Justice Sreedevi feels.

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