International days are occasions and opportunities to educate people around the world on issues of public concern, to mobilise political will and resources to address global issues, and to celebrate and reinforce achievements of humanity. The days act as effective advocacy tools. International Women’s Day is observed on March 8 every year. The theme for International Women’s Day 2022 is ‘Gender Equality Today for a Sustainable Tomorrow’. Without the inclusion of half of the population of the globe, no vision for the entire world can ever be fulfilled. The day thus marks a call to action for accelerating gender parity.
When we talk of our J&K, women continue to be the most vulnerable and worst-hit section of society. They don’t only suffer from intense harassment but also undergo traumatic experiences with prolonged depression. The disturbing situation prevalent in Jammu and Kashmir has hit the Kashmiri women hardest. Thousands of women who have become widows have to bear the entire responsibility of bringing up their children and running the household expenditure. Women are left to grapple alone with challenges related to health, economy, education, politics, domestic violence, declining sex ratio, female feticide and infanticide, state violence, dowry harassment, eve teasing, unequal wages and child labour. The central government, UT administration, NGOs and local bodies should work jointly for the empowerment of women in Jammu and Kashmir.
The Union Territory remains one of the regions with the highest female illiteracy and unemployment rate in the country. Women face many obstacles in entering the workforce as compared to their male counterparts or even their female counterparts in the rest of the country, leading to the percentage of unemployment in women being alarmingly higher in J&K than in neighbouring states. This high rate of unemployment can be explained by a number of factors that sometimes are interconnected. The chief issue in this regard is the lack of educational opportunities. According to the Census report of 2011, only 58.01% of women in J&K are literate as opposed to 78.26% male literacy. The lack of educational opportunities serves as the principal barrier between women and employment.
Not only this, between 2001 and 2015, cases of crime against women in J&K have doubled from 1656 to 3363. About 70% of these cases are domestic. This is a rising trend in J&K and needs to be addressed. As against 3193 cases of crimes against women reported in 2019, the number jumped to 3515 for the year 2020. Similarly, cases of rape, molestation and abetment or attempt to suicide have also seen an increase. Domestic violence remains a major problem because women are afraid to speak up. Also, women get paid less than their male counterparts. It is downright unfair and sexist to pay someone less for the same work because of their gender. Thus, women empowerment is the need of the hour. We need to empower these women to speak up for themselves and never be a victim of injustice.
The most important message of this day is to make women capable of deciding for themselves and aware of their rights .There are various ways by which we can empower women. Individuals and the government must both come together to make it happen. Education for girls must be made compulsory so that women can become literate to make a life for themselves. Women must be given equal opportunities in every field, irrespective of gender. Moreover, they must also be given equal pay. We can empower women by abolishing child marriage which is still prevalent in some areas. Various programmes must be held where they can be taught skills to fend for themselves. There is need of a process that enables women to live a happy and respectable life in society. Women are empowered when they are able to access opportunities in a variety of fields without any limitations and restrictions. It includes the authority to take decisions.
There is also a need to make male counterparts realise the rights of women in the light of religion, law and morality. Muslim law and sharia provides all the opportunities for women to be empowered, and bars any discrimination against them. Islamic law provides financial security to a Muslim woman through her rights in the property inherited and on the basis of marriage. At the time of marriage, a Muslim wife is entitled to receive a share of wealth or property from her husband. There is a need to make the masses aware about the sharia and Islamic jurisprudence so that justice, equality, fairness and equality of opportunity to all is achieved. Let this day of 8th March prove to be a stepping stone.

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Rayees Masroor