Professor Sheila Bunwaree
Fam Ape Zwenn will in a few days’ time, hold a ‘solidarity meeting’ with women from different walks of life to celebrate Women’s Rights as Human Rights at Loreto Convent Rose-hill, where it held its first launch meeting last year on the occasion of International Human Rights Day. The theme of 2023 International Human Rights Day is Dignity, Freedom and Justice For All and it is opportune to engage in a reflection on women’s role in the private sphere, more specifically on home care work, since contrary to many people’s beliefs and perceptions, the former often constitutes a space where a number of women’s rights/human rights are trampled upon. A number of women I spoke to both within and outside FAZ confirm that care work such as cooking, washing, cleaning, looking after children and the elderly within one’s own household, are done disproportionately by women and is generally unpaid for. Children’s care, elderly care and home duties are central to our lives and the functioning of the economy. If the women stop doing these jobs, the economy would come to a standstill and the capitalist economic system, largely dependent on cheap or unpaid labour, would start crumbling down.
Recognising, Reducing and Redistributing (the 3 Rs model)
This 3 Rs model, developed by Professor Diane Elson, tells us that there is a need to recognise the work performed by women in the private sphere, by creating metrics that acknowledge and report the services provided by women to larger society. The second dimension of this model is to reduce the burden on women by addressing labour policies and by bringing change through a systemic approach. The third dimension to do with redistribution is in fact about sharing of household work between men and women in an equitable manner. The intention here is not to deliver a ‘feminist economics’ lecture but rather to make the point that unless women are truly empowered economically and that their wellbeing and welfare are promoted, women’s empowerment will remain more in the realm of rhetoric. True empowerment starts with a quality of life which grants women time to connect with themselves, which provides them the opportunity to engage in some form of leisure activities, to narrate their experiences and know that they are being listened to. Without economic empowerment, large numbers of women, particularly from poorer socio economic backgrounds, will continue to face several challenges. One challenge which is particularly linked to lack of financial autonomy is GBV. A number of women report not leaving their violent partners since they do not have the necessary financial resources to fend for themselves and for their children. The 16 days of activism against GBV is coming to an end, culminating with the celebration of International Human Rights Day on the 10th. Addressing GBV and associated forms of gender equality demands a collective approach. And if we are to truly turn things around, it is the very model of development that needs to be challenged. A neoliberal model which leans largely on female ‘’unpaid care work”, thus keeping large numbers of women financially dependent and insecure is a foe to ending GBV.
The Right to Decent work – a fundamental human/woman’s right
The right to decent work is also a fundamental human right but judging by the poor female participation rate on the labour market, with the majority of them being lumped in poorly paid, low-skilled jobs or in unpaid care work, an issue that the World Bank also highlights, testifies to the fact that there is perhaps not enough capacity and effort to interrogate both the development model and the policies in place. In the Foreword to the National Gender Policy (2022-2030), the Prime Minister notes that:
“…An unwavering commitment to the principles of social justice and human rights has led to develop a number of policies to remedy any gender inequality or inequity that still persists in our societies….Mauritius is signatory to multiple international and regional human rights instrument that protect womens rights. They provide that States must guarantee equal rights and equal opportunities to both men and women….”
The reference made by the PM to the ‘…commitment …to develop a number of policies to remedy gender inequality and inequity…’’ will unfortunately remain meaningless without due attention being paid to the “care economy” and women’s rights within and outside that sphere. FAZ and some other organisations can certainly assist in deconstructing mainstream economics and provide opportunity for engagement on related questions with the view to promoting women’s rights as human rights.
My support and thoughts go to all my colleagues/friends, women and girls who are uniting in solidarity to advocate and lobby for women’s rights as Human rights on the occasion of the 2023 International Human Rights Day. I also wish to take this opportunity to invite all those concerned with the promotion and fulfilment of socio economic rights to join us at the roundtable on ‘The constitutionalisation of socio economic rights in Mauritius” . The latter is organized by the NGO- People’s Voices Network and the Think Tank – Mauritius Society Renewal. It is scheduled for Wednesday 13th Dec from 17 hrs to 19.30 at ICJM, Rose-Hill. The roundtable will bring in a number of constitutional lawyers, academics, trade unionists, policy makers, strategists and citizens from all walks of life. Do join us if you wish for a better, more inclusive and more just Mauritius.
