On March 8, the International Women’s Day was celebrated across the world.
BASHIR MOHAMMED reports from a colloquium organised by WRAPA, in Kano, not only to commemorate the event, but also to articulate further ways of improving the rights of women, among others
Since the maiden edition of the International Women’s Day was observed on 28thFebruary, 1909, in New York, many women organizations and civil societies across the world have taken it upon themselves to organize certain activities to commemorate the Day as part of their contribution to ensuring a free and peaceful society.
International Women’s Day March 8 2018, was set aside as the International Women’s Day across the world as part of conscious effort to accord a special attention for women and their predicaments.
Although, the occasion was first celebrated on 28th February, a year after, in 1910, during the International Women Conference, the participants decided to change the date and March 8 was suggested and adopted as “International Women’s Day”.
Since the declaration, the IDW activities have been gathering momentum.
However, to further give recognition to women’s freedom, the defunct Union of Soviet Socialist Republic (USSR), in 1917, instituted the Day to become a public holiday.
Although at that time, it was only celebrated by the predominant socialist movement and other communist countries.
However, this was changed following the resolution adopted by the United Nations in 1975.
Since then, the day became a global phenomenon.
WRAPA’s symposium Nigeria, like many member countries of the United Nations, recognises the day and often celebrates in grand style with symposium, seminars and other activities aimed at creating awareness on the rights of women.
Therefore, in commemoration of the 2018 International Women’s Day, the Women’s Right Advancement and Protection Alternative (WRAPA), a nongovernmental organization joined the league of international organizations and bodies to mark the day through the hosting of workshop, seminars and symposium to coincide with the activities marking the day.
Prior to the 2018 IDW, WRAPA had organized a training seminar for Upper and Shari’a Court judges from the North West region comprising Kano, Katsina, Jigawa, Kaduna, Kebbi, Sokoto and Zamfara, states as part of the sensitization on the need provide equity, justice and women liberation in the wake of the growing injustices meted out to them.
Fundamental rights Addressing participants of the seminar the Secretary General of WRAPA, Hajiya Saudatu Mahdi, lamented that women have been subject of molestation, harassment and utter neglect and violation of their fundamental rights, thus, relegating them to second class citizen in the society.
She said WRAPA was very much concern about the well- being of women.
Accordingly, she said the workshop was principally organized to sensitize the judges on how best access to justice and protection for women could be improved.
The workshop which were separately conducted in Dutse, Jigawa state and Gusau, Zamfara state, said the training became imperative considering the high rate of women abuse in marriages by the multitude number of husbands due largely to lack of knowledge on rules laid by Islam on marriage.
Islamic Religion Hajiya Mahdi emphasized the need for the judges as the last resort of the common man and the oppressed to prudently handle matrimonial cases brought before their respective courts.
According to her, Islam has given woman absolute protection, but unfortunately, in most cases, women who fi led a suit before a judge lost their cases due to either poor presentation or lost out of shy attitude.
“Part of the project we intend to actualize is to reawaken the consciousness of our judges to, while attending a matrimonial cases before them to always take persuasive steps with maturity until the real grudges presented by the wives are clearly understood for due justice”.
In any case, she explained that, WRAPA intend to restore the lost cordiality between husbands and wives as well as to ensure the matrimonial rights conferred on women by Islamic religion are properly practice in all the sharia courts across the zone.
The WRAPA Secretary General pointed out that the concern was on educating men about the rules and regulations surroundings marriage so much that women consent would be respected, adding that “unlike the beliefs by number of men that, women have very limited rights to deserve taking part of decision makings in running the affairs of home.
need to always use apply the concept of tempering justice with mercy whenever they are to adjudicate on matters affecting women, who are most often being victims of dehumanization and subjugation.
Advocacy visitation Hajiya Saudatu said it was a step further in its determined effort at addressing the lingering problem affecting women in the society.
Prior to the workshop, WRAPA have embarked on advocacy visitation and consultation to different groups and individuals including government officials as another effective means of sending its messages across.
The idea behind the visitation according to the Secretary General of WRAPA, was to sensitize members of the public on the need to realize that addressing societal problems is a collective responsibility of all and sundry.
So far, WRAPA had gone far in the visitations which have visited government houses, state assemblies, emirs and other traditional rulers, members of the Ulamas, various associations, trade unions, conventional and Islamiyya schools, opinion and community leaders, market women and many other groups both formal and nonformal artisans, among others.
At the moment, there has been a positive response from the various stakeholders so far visited in the seven states of the North West with a promise to ensure the success of the project aimed at salvaging the society from primitive practices.
In Kano state, the emir and the government have vowed to support the activities of WRAPA, describing the sensitization and consultations as an effective mechanism of promoting attitudinal change for a better society.
Replicate story It was the same story in Katsina, Jigawa, Kebbi, Sokoto, Kaduna and Zamfara states as the project got positive response from the many stakeholders visited, they expressed willingness to collaborate and support WRAPA in advancing the course of women and children.
Many of the stakeholders were of the belief that collective effort by organizations, government and the members of the society remain the only panacea to solving the myriads of problems bedeviling the society.
They argued that, all hands must be on deck in order to salvage the situation.
Indeed, by embarking on institutional consultations, WRAPA had now reawakened the consciousness of the government, the ulamas, the parents and all stakeholders in the project of salvaging the society from the bondage.
Indeed, if every member of the society will live up to his responsibilities and the society treats women with justice and equity, certainly our country will be at peace and there will be prosperity and development.
WRAPA should be emulated by various feminist groups in a bid to having attitudinal change against maltreatment and patriarchy against women in our society.
