Mariya Ahmed Didi, an opposition MP, is being recognized for her contributions to promoting women’s rights. Representing South and Central Asia, Mariya is the regional winner of the U.S. Secretary of State’s International Woman of Courage Award. U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice will present Mariya with the prestigious honour at a ceremony in the Benjamin Franklin Room of the State Department in Washington, DC.
The awards ceremony, on International Women’s Day on March 7 will be one highlight of a full week of events, including meetings with members of congress, discussions with student groups, and a special event at the White House.
This is the first year the Secretary of State is presenting such an award, recognizing six honorees from separate geographic regions and an additional six recipients from Iraq and Afghanistan.
Mariya is in excellent company, forming part of an elite group of only twelve women world-wide being lauded for efforts to foster equal rights for women within their own countries.
In her work, Mariya has overcome many obstacles, including intimidation, harassment, arrest, and slander. Mariya has been targeted several times by the pro-government propagandist website FactMaldives, run off the road on her motorbike by a car full of government supporters, and hurled with abuse and bags of oil.
Unfortunately, Mariya’s difficulties echo those of most Maldivian women active in politics or civil society.
In March 2006, after plainclothes policemen arrested Fathimath Shiuna from her home in the middle of the night, Mariya not only registered her outrage, she planned the first ever women’s rights rally in Maldives.
She boldly told Minivan News at that time, “If you look at all the pro-government websites and the print media, you see that once a woman enters politics and voices dissent, she is made to look like a prostitute. They don’t like women who have their own voice and as soon as a woman enters politics they shove her down.”
Mariya was unique in publicly speaking out about abuses against women and drawing national and international attention to the struggles she and many other women in the Maldives continue to face.
Several hundred women supported Mariya, participating in the women’s rights rally she organized.
It passed peacefully and permitted many women to publicly air their concerns.
Nevertheless, women continue to face numerous additional difficulties as they strive for greater freedom.
The current Maldivian constitution does not permit a woman to become president, and few women are active in the fields of politics or law.
When Maldives recently presented a report on its efforts to implement the UN Convention on the Elimination of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW), the UN committee responded with several suggestions for Maldives to improve the status of women.
These included recommendations that the government should appoint female Atoll Chiefs and recruit women as judges.
Another major challenge for Maldives in realizing gender equity is the lack of awareness about women’s rights.
The Maldives Human Rights Commission conducted a 2005 baseline assessment that found more women than men believe it is acceptable for men to hit their wives under certain circumstances.
An alarming percentage of women said they faced sexual harassment in their offices or in public places.
The State Department has singled out Mariya for her work in championing women’s rights under these adverse conditions.
Although her award is specifically in the field of advocating for women’s rights, Mariya sees it as directly related to the broader democratic agenda.
In an exclusive interview with Minivan News in London en route to Washington, DC, Mariya said that prior to winning this award, she often felt the international community has overlooked the Maldives’s struggle for democracy.
Now, however, she feels somewhat vindicated in her previously thankless efforts to push Maldives toward greater democratic openness.
“The greatest democracy in the world has recognized that we are trying to bring democracy to the Maldives. With America’s helping hand, we can fulfill that dream and make the Maldives one of the finest democracies in the world. We are only 300 000 people. Educating people and getting them to participate in the democratic process shouldn’t be that hard,” Mariya said.
“This award is a recognition that we have stood up to Gayoom, who maintains his position as the head of the executive, judiciary and military. It takes courage to stand up to him. America has recognized that it takes courage to stand up to a man with all the de facto and de jure power,” she added.
Many young women in Maldives see Mariya as a role model, asking her for guidance and informal mentoring.
“She has done a lot for the cause of democracy in the Maldives. She is a very brave woman,” said radio journalist Fathimath Shaheeda.
As both an opposition activist and a woman in the public eye, she has managed to demonstrate the links between human rights and women’s rights, democratic ideals and the important role of women in society.
As Mariya travels to Washington to be honoured as an International Woman of Courage, she will be well placed to draw a spotlight on the Maldives in front of some of the most powerful politicians in the world.
In doing so, she will no doubt underscore the need to build awareness of women’s rights and promote those within Maldives and throughout the world.
From Minivan News
No comments:
Post a Comment