Rahul Roy and Saba Dewan spoke about the #notinmyname campaign initiated by both of them who felt stongly that our silence is making us complicit to the authoritarianism that is allowing the murders of minorities in the name of religion and nationalism. They said that this organic protest organised through the social media got a huge response all over the country. We need to reclaim our constitution and the rights enshrined in it! They also discussed the role of 'media' in protests of this kind.
Vrinda Grover the human rights lawyer and feminist activist spoke to us about sexual violence, consent and Rape as addressed in criminal law and more recently as interpretated in the recent Farooqi judgement. Rubaru: Jan Andolan aur NNSW. Nnsw India was of the opinion that as adult consenting persons providing sexual services for money, sex workers have a lot to loose if the Farooqi judgement is not challenged!
NTUI stands for, in support of, in solidarity with all the working class in their struggle against discrimination and exploitation. We believe sex work is work. Gautam Moody of NTUI at the Nnsw India Rubaru: Jan Andolan aur NNSW.
The panel on Re imagining Decent work at Rubaru: Jan Andolan aur NNSW moderated by Advocate Rakesh Shukla. Gautam Moody ( NTUI), Shweta Raj (AICCTU), Rakhi Sehgal (HHTMS) and Advocate Jawahar Raja was not only informative but a very intellectual engagement with the construct of sex work as work and the myraid issues of the difficulties to establish sex work as work. The moral, caste, gender, sexuality, stigma, discrimination intersections of the sexual world with workers who use sex as the commodity demands a very different construction of the concept of work itself. Advocate Rakesh Shukla ably moderated this panel. Nnsw India.
Health activists Deepa Venkataraman of Sama and Chayanika Shah of Labia at the Nnsw India Rubaru: Jan Andolan aur NNSW talking about the intersection of Surrogacy and Sex Work. Talking about stigma and womens work in the commercial space.
Vinita Sahasranaman and team #ypfoundation speak to Nnsw India sex workers about young and adolescents issues at RUBARU: Jan Andolan aur NNSW. Just like sex workers are kept out of policy decisions about themselves, so are young people!! Pinjratod activists also joined them to explain about caste class religion dynamics that 'protects' womens sexuality to 'control' their lives. Young people kept away from sex workers by a zealous government!! Bent on producing 'good women'.
Nnsw India members and supporters discussed important issues faced by community members, TI, NACO, ART, coordination UNAIDS and NNSW delhi office. With Nandini Kapoor of UNAIDS at RUBARU: Jan Andolan aur NNSW.
Nnsw India RUBARU: Jan Andolan aur NNSW was very thrilled to host Vivek Divan and Dhrubo Jyoti who helped us understand the complexity of the Lgbtqi world and its intersections with caste, class, faith, disability and gender. Vivek spoke of the struggles against 377 and the Aadhar judgement. Privacy as a right of every citizen even in a public space. Dhrubo raised very relevant questions of Queer, lesbian, Gay communities in contact with law in their everyday lives, practicing professions, in their bedrooms.
The incredibly articulate activist Chayanika Shah throwing back questions to sex workers from Nnsw India on why an extremely margnalised group like sex workers do not accept lesbian sex as legitimate sex? Nazariya: A Queer Feminist Resource Group activist Rithambara discussed how issues of power are played out in any relationship. Meenu Pandey of South Asia Women's Fund spoke on difference being used to discriminate and stigmatize.
The media panel at Nnsw India RUBARU: Jan Andolan aur NNSW moderated with such grace by Pamela Philipose senior journalist and public editor of The Wire, discussed 'Beyond Vice and Victimhood: Re imagining Media depiction of sex workers. Panellists Dhamini Ratnam independent journalist and Yogesh Pawar Dy. news editor DNA pulled out of their media hats interesting sociological models to help us understand why media persons report the way they do on issues of sex work and marginalized groups. Shambhavi Saxena of #youthkiawaaz talked about the new and challenging space of citizen journalism and Sujata Mahdok posed questions on women and equality. Introspective and honest without restoring to the usual excuses of 'advertising, marketing circulation, pressures' or the anti sex worker lobby prevents us from doing stories etc. Very refreshing! Geeta Seshu senior journalist also commented on the fact that sex workers fall off the cliff in the race of 'breaking news' despite 300 plus TV channels and 1000 plus news papers. Pamela Philipose concluded the session saluting the empowered sex workers who engaged in a very insightful Q and A.
Nnsw India was honoured to screen Vinod Raja's film on the delightful Hakki Pikki community's wanderings 'Sikkidre Shikari Illadre Bhikari' scripted and narrated by the feminist activist Madhu Bhushan who has intimate access after spending years with them fighting for land in Banergatta, Bangalore. Hilarious stories. Salaam to them. At RUBARU: Jan Andolan aur NNSW, Vishwa Yuva Kendra, Delhi.
Kiran Deshmukh of Nnsw India thanks the panellists of the media panel 'Beyond Vice and Victimhood: Re imagining Media depiction of sex workers' at RUBARU: Jan Andolan aur NNSW. Moderated with tremondous grace by Pamela Philipose. Dhamini Ratnam and Yogesh Pawar actully took the trouble to explain to sex workers sociological models as to why journalists report the way they do on contentious issues like sex work. Sujata Mahdok asked them why only women do sex work? If it is decent work then men should also engage in sex work? Shambhavi Saxsena of #youthkiawaaz brought in the issue of guidelines when reporting on sexwork and also posed the question as to why media does not cover sex workers when reporting on issues like menstruation or demonitisation or Mother's day for instance? Geeta Seshu commented on the 300 plus TV channels and more that a 1000 newspapers fighting for THE exclusive story where such issues get no space in the race to be the first. The honesty in the media panel was very appreciated by sex workers who felt this panel engaged seriously without falling back on the usual excuses of anti trafficking, abolitionists invading press rooms, advertising, circulation etc etc etc. A internal looking panel indeed.
