Gender and the MDGs with reference to women as human

Smt. Sunita Pathak* and Dr. Surendra Pathak** It was 8th September 2000, when 156 Heads of States or Governments gathered for Millenni m S mmit as 55th !" General #ssembl$ %nown as the Millenni m #ssembl$& 'he Millenni m #ssembl$ iss ed a (Millenni m )e*laration1 that was a (statement of val es, prin*iples and ob+e*tives for the international agenda for ne,t -ent r$&1 'he )e*laration la$ down time.bo nd and meas rable goals for *ombating povert$, h nger, disease, illitera*$, environmental degradation and dis*rimination against women& 'his )e*laration was b ilt on the !" !niversal )e*laration of H man /ights& ('he !" Se*retariat iss ed an agenda for implementing these *ommitments,2 whi*h fo* sed on eight 0Millenni m )evelopment Goals 1M)Gs23 to be a*hieved b$ the $ear 2015&4 'he de*laration lists the goals of sing a gender anal$sis in all poli*ies, programs, and instit tions in order to assess differential impa*ts on men and women, and to end gender ine5 alit$& 'he pra*ti*e of sing an anal$sis e,plores the differential realities d e to gender ine5 alit$& It is important to highlight the inter*onne*tedness of women6s iss es to all of the Millenni m )evelopment Goals& /a7esh G pta said in his arti*le 0h mani8ation of ed *ation Millenni m agenda from +eevan vid$a perspe*tive3 that this is ndo btedl$ the first time in h man.histor$, when there is an attempt to thin7 of goals of whole h man7ind for the ne,t millenni m& 'here is an nderl$ing assumption here that entire h man.pop lation on 9arth intends to a*hieve the same set of goals& 'herefore, nless the *ommonalit$ of intention is identified pre*isel$ : the disagreements will remain at the level of goals, programmes, procedures, and efforts& ;hat is the commonality of intention a*ross the entire h man. pop lation< 'his is a ver$ f ndamental 5 estion& It gets down to as7ing : what does ea*h and ever$ h man.being want, irrespe*tive of the means it ses for reali8ing that want& 'he answer to this big 5 estion is a*t all$ ver$ simple& It is 0Happiness3 that ever$ h man wants *ontin o sl$ and nat rall$& It6s the same sit ation with ri*h or poor, ed *ated or ned *ated, rban or r ral, believer or non.believer, men or women : ever$one6s basic-intention or natural-expectation is happiness& He f rther ill strate that H man7ind6s happiness is a positive, nat ral, and niversall$.a**eptable basis for setting the goals for new millenni m& ;hen we loo7 at the !" defined Millenni m goals : the approa*h there seems to be first b$ identifi*ation of problems, and then see7ing meas res to 0atta*73 and 0fi,3 those problems& 'his is a 0problem.*entri*3 approa*h& 'here6s an nderl$ing ass mption that if these problems are somehow defeated or destro$ed, the world will a tomati*all$ be*ome a better pla*e& 'his approa*h is witho t a definite vision for a harmonio s and progressive world& It is perpet ating the same nderl$ing ideologies : whi*h are the ver$ root.*a ses for the *atastrophi* sit ations it is tr$ing to solve& #n ideologi*al shift is needed for resol tion for this sit ation& However the approa*h adopted b$ vario s agen*ies in order to ens re to implement of M)Gs, the world reali8es its potential to ma7e povert$ histor$& Signifi*ant progress m st

be made to ens re gender e5 alit$& ;omen disproportionatel$ s ffer from h nger, disease, environmental degradation and impoverishment& In view of the criticisms, some of the annalists say that M)Gs *onvenientl$ distorted the iss e of povert$ and ignored its *a ses and *onditions& =imited reso r*es of poor *o ntries are being defle*ted to debt servi*ing& 0M)Gs s$stemati*all$ ma7e semi.*olonial and *olonial *o ntries more beholden to their imperialist patrons rather than promoting self.relian*e thro gh gen ine national ind striali8ation&>? 'he tenden*$ of governments and the donors ali7e to 0*ollapse gender.*on*erns within the wider *ategor$ of povert$3 tends to depoliti*i8e the iss e and mas7s the neven distrib tion of power and reso r*es within ho seholds& 5 'he M)Gs has o traged response of the feminist *omm nit$, when the goal.4 of women6s se, al and reprod *tive rights was e,*l ded from the M)Gs& 'his is even more ine,* sable given that women6s se, al and reprod *tive rights is not onl$ a goal b t a *r *ial target nder goal.4 @women6s e5 alit$ and empowermentA, goal.? @*hild mortalit$A, goal.5 @maternal healthA and goal.6 @*ombating HIBC#I)SA& 'he deliberate e,*l sion of women6s h man rights and empowerment from the M)Gs s$mboli8es that lies ahead for an$one who serio sl$ see7s e5 alit$, e5 alit$ and empowerment for women& 0In fa*t, problem of the M)Gs is their abstra*tion from the so*ial, politi*al and e*onomi* *onte,t in whi*h the$ are to be implemented : the Dpoliti*al e*onom$6 of the M)Gs3& 6 Having o tlined the gender *riti5 es of the M)G three, to begin, let s first view the *ontents of Goal.4, its targets and indi*ators as shown in here& Indi*ators are /atio of girls to bo$s in primar$, se*ondar$ and tertiar$ ed *ation 1E2, /atio of literate women to men, 15.2? $ears old 1102, Share of women in wage emplo$ment in the non.agri* lt ral se*tor 1112, Froportion of seats held b$ women in national parliament 1122 and the target to 9liminate gender disparit$ in primar$ and se*ondar$ ed *ation, preferabl$ b$ 2005, and in all levels of ed *ation no later than 2015& G 95 alit$ in ed *ation as a target for meas ring progress towards gender e5 alit$ and empowerment of women is + stified b t it is not s ffi*ient to meas re the a*hievement of this goal&8 It does not ens re that all girls are properl$ ed *ated as well as the 5 alit$ of that ed *ation *an f ll$ develop their *apabilities& 9ven tho gh ed *ation tends to provide women with an essential *apabilit$ and has intrinsi* val e the goals of gender e5 alit$ will not be attained if these women *annot have the opport nit$ to f ll$ se that *apabilit$& #s mentioned in indi*ator "o& E, ratios of girls to bo$s in primar$, se*ondar$ and tertiar$ ed *ation point o t that enrolment and *ompletion rates are more a** rate indi*ators rather than ratio& Indi*ator "o& 10 0/atio of =iterate ;omen to Men 15.2? $ears old3 is a good for women6s advan*ement b t the 5 alit$ of the litera*$ data *an be 5 estioned& )ifferent *o ntries meas re litera*$ differentl$& Some of the *o ntries *olle*t litera*$ data b$ sing sophisti*ated and *omprehensive te*hni5 es while others do not provide the most basi*

information& 'he definition that 0# person is literate if she or he has *ompleted five or more $ears of s*hooling3 is also *riti*i8ed& 'he indi*ator "o& 11 has also re*eived 0several *riti*isms, a**ording to !"IH9M 2000, women6s entr$ into waged and salar$ wor7 in ind str$ and servi*es does not ne*essaril$ mean that the$ es*ape from s bordination within their families& Moreover the$ are often s b+e*t to new forms of dis*rimination in the wor7 pla*e& #t the same time as women6s share of paid emplo$ment in ind str$ and servi*es is rising, the rights asso*iated with s *h emplo$ment are falling3& E It *an be *on*l ded that even if statisti*al data shows that the share of women in wage emplo$ment in the non.agri* lt ral se*tor is rising and therefore f lfils the indi*ator of M)G " mber 'hree, in realit$, it does not ne*essaril$ mean that there is an a*t al pliftment in the 5 alit$ of life of these women and their well.being& 'he -riti5 e of Indi*ator 12 0Froportion of Seats Held b$ ;omen in "ational Farliament3, ;omen members of parliament are e,pe*ted to in*rease the voi*e of feminism in the national legislat re& #s the ele*ted representatives of the people in their respe*tive *onstit en*ies, the$ are e,pe*ted to f rther the *a se for woman7ind6s welfare and well.being& 'his ma$ be the general e,pe*ted pattern b t is it ne*essaril$ the realit$< #re most women parliamentarians sensitive to gender iss es and *an promote a gender e5 alit$ legislative agenda< 10 Gender is sed to refer to proposed so*ial and * lt ral *onstr *tions of mas* linities and femininities& Gender e,pli*itl$ e,*l des referen*e to biologi*al differen*es, to fo* s on * lt ral differen*es&11 Gender refers to the so*ial differen*es and relations between men and women b t gender does not repla*e the term se, 1biologi*al differen*es2& Gender is sed to anal$8e the roles, responsibilities, *onstraints, opport nities and needs of h man& It learned behaviors in a so*iet$, *omm nit$ and so*ial gro p& 'heir *onditions, a*tivities, tas7s and responsibilities are per*eived as male or female& Its roles are affe*ted b$ age, *lass, ra*e, ethni*it$ and religion, and b$ the geographi*al, e*onomi* and politi*al environment& Gender differen*e is a disparit$ between male and female h mans& Most of them are 5 antitative differen*es whi*h are based on a gradient and involve different averages whi*h *learl$ represent a binar$ maleCfemale spilt, s *h as h man reprod *tion& However, some differen*es are *ontroversial and not to be *onf sed with se,ist stereot$pes& It does not ne*essaril$ identif$ whether the differen*es are d e to nat ral phenomenon& #ltho gh, some differen*es are innate s *h as reprod *tive organs, others obvio sl$ environmental and few others the relationship is either m lti.*a se& 9vol tionar$ ps$*holog$ *laims that modern h mans have inherited nat ral traits that were adaptive in a prehistori* environment& Gender role theor$ *laims that bo$s and girls learn the appropriate behavio r and attit des from the famil$ and * lt re 1environment2 as the pro*ess of so*iali8ation& Some feminists *laim that these differen*es as *a sed b$ patriar*h$ and dis*riminator$ so*ial stratifi*ation and arg e for an a**eptan*e of nat ral

differen*es between men and women& 'raditional religions *laim gender differen*es are *reated b$ God& >Gender anal$sis is a tool to diagnose the differen*es between women and men regarding their spe*ifi* a*tivities, *onditions, needs, a**ess to *ontrol over reso r*es, and a**ess to development benefits and de*ision.ma7ing& It st dies the lin7ages of these and other fa*tors in the larger so*ial, e*onomi*, politi*al and environmental *onte,t& Gender anal$sis entails, first and foremost, *olle*ting se,.disaggregated data and gender. sensitive information abo t the pop lation *on*erned& Gender anal$sis is the first step in gender.sensitive planning for promoting gender e5 alit$&> 12 'he >gender and development> paradigm, proposed in the pro*ess leading to the Iei+ing -onferen*e, is per*eived as an evol tion from the hitherto dominant >women in )evelopment> 1;I)2 approa*h& #s e,plained in the 1EE5 -ommonwealth Flan of #*tion, >the ;I) #pproa*h fo* sed on how women *o ld be better integrated into the e,isting JmenCmale made worldJ and *orresponding development initiatives& 'argeting womenJs prod *tive wor7 to the e,*l sion of their reprod *tive wor7, this approa*h was *hara*teri8ed b$ in*ome.generating pro+e*ts for women that failed to address the s$stemi* *a ses of gender ine5 alit$>&14 Iefore dis* ssing the woman as a h man it is sef l to dis* ss first the 5 estion of being woman whi*h is perhaps originall$ appeared >as a so*ial *ategor$, b t also as a felt sense of self, a * lt rall$ *onditioned or *onstr *ted s b+e*tive identit$&3 51 'he term >woman> has been sed as a referen*e to and for the female bod$& However, women have alwa$s been *reators of * lt re altho gh this histor$ is often invisible& "o one *an ignore women6s m lti.dimensional *ontrib tions to * lt re :past, present and f t re& Gender annalists are ignoring the 5 alitative anal$sis that e,plores and presents the representations of genderK what feminists *hallenge is the dominant ideologies *on*erning gender roles and se,& However, *ontemporar$ dis* ssions abo t gender ma7e it *lear that gender roles are *hangeable and are * rrentl$ in the pro*ess of transformation& Domination model and the partnership model draw the * lt ral evol tion of ;estern so*ieties from prehistor$ to the present in terms of the nderl$ing tension between man and woman& >'he domination model is a *onfig ration based on top.down ran7ings of *ontrol, while the partnership model is a *onfig ration that *an s pport a more e5 itable, pea*ef l, and s stainable wa$ of life& In partnership.oriented so*ieties, whether in the famil$, the wor7pla*e, or so*iet$ at large, so.*alled feminine 5 alities and behavio rs, whether the$ reside in women or men, are not onl$ held in high esteem, b t also in*orporated into the operational val es s$stem>1?& )emo*rati* and egalitarian so*ial str *t re, e5 al partnership between women and men, and less b ilt.in violen*e, as it is not needed to maintain rigid ran7ings of domination& However, moving to partnership str *t res does not mean a *ompletel$ flat organi8ation or a mandator$ *onsens s& In the views of #& "agra+ 1#mar7anta72, whi*h is ill strated in DVyavharvadi Samajshastra that there is a *o.e,isten*e prevail 1e,ist2 among all h man relationship in a famil$

1in*l ding h sband.wife, brother.sister and motherCfather.sonsCda ghter et*&2& 'his is a pro*ess of m t al f lfillment, m t al respe*t and m t al prosperit$& In the h manisti* views ''Cultural transformation theory proposes that shifts from one model to the other are possible in times of e,treme so*ial and te*hnologi*al dise5 ilibri mK that there is strong eviden*e of s *h a shift d ring o r prehistor$K and that in o r time of massive te*hnologi*al and so*ial dislo*ation another f ndamental shift is possible L to a world orienting more to partnership rather than domination&JJ 'his theor$ is the >*entralit$ of the so*ial *onstr *tion of the roles and relations of the female and male halves of h manit$ to the *onstr *tion of ever$ so*ial instit tion& It proposes that the nderl$ing str ggle for o r f t re is not between the *onventional polarities of right and left, religion and se* larism, *apitalism and *omm nism, 9ast and ;est, and "orth and So th>& 15 So*ial identit$ refers to the *ommon identifi*ation with a *olle*tivit$ or so*ial *ategor$ whi*h *reates a *ommon * lt re among parti*ipants *on*erned&16 So*ial Identit$ 'heor$1G was originall$ developed to nderstand the ps$*hologi*al basis of inter.gro p dis*rimination and attempted to identif$ the minimal *onditions that wo ld lead members of one gro p to dis*riminate in favor of the in.gro p to whom the$ belonged and against another o t.gro p& #n important *omponent of the self.*on*ept is derived from memberships in so*ial gro ps and *ategories and it post lates that gro p pro*esses and inter.gro p relationships impa*t signifi*antl$ on individ alsJ self per*eption and behaviors& 'he gro ps to whi*h people belong will therefore provide their members with the definition of who the$ are and how the$ sho ld behave 18 in the so*ial sphere& 'he problem with *ategori8ing is that it *reates binaries, in whi*h an individ al has to be on one end of a linear spe*tr m, one m st be male or female, th s impl$ing that the$ have to identif$ themselves as man or woman& Globall$, *omm nities interpret biologi*al differen*es between women and men to *reate a set of so*ial e,pe*tations that define the behaviors that are appropriate for women and men and that determine women6s and men6s differential a**ess to rights, reso r*es, and power in so*iet$& #ltho gh the spe*ifi* nat re and degree of these differen*es var$ from one so*iet$ to the ne,t, the$ t$pi*all$ favor men, *reating an imbalan*e in power and gender ine5 alities in all *o ntries& 1E ;estern philosopher Mi*hel Ho *a lt *laimed that as se, al s b+e*ts, we are the ob+e*t of power, whi*h is not a instit tion or str *t re, rather it is signifier or name we attrib te to 0*omple, strategi* sit ation&3 20 'h s, be*a se 0power3 is what determines o r attrib tes, behaviors, et*& we are a part of an ontologi*all$ and epistemologi*all$ *onstr *ted set of names and labels& S *h as, being female *hara*teri8es one as a woman, and that this 0women3 is wea7, emotional, and irrational, th s she is in*apable of a*tions attrib ted to a 0man&3 Gender and se,, said M dith I tler, are more li7e verbs than no ns& I t m$ a*tions are limited& I am not permitted to *onstr *t m$ gender and se, will$.nill$, a**ording to I tlerK this is so be*a se gender is politi*all$ and therefore so*iall$ *ontrolled& /ather than woman being something one is, it is something one does& 21 Simone de Iea voir applied e,istentialism to womenJs e,perien*e of lifeN >One is not born a woman, one be*omes one&>22 'his is a philosophi*al statement b t it is tr e biologi*all$& ;ithin feminist theor$, terminolog$ for gender iss es developed over the

1EG0s& In the 1EG? edition of Mas* lineCHeminine or H man, the a thor ses >innate gender> and >learned se, roles>,24 b t in the 1EG8 edition, the se of se, and gender is reversed&2? I$ 1E80, most feminist writings had agreed on sing gender onl$ for so*io. * lt rall$ adapted traits& H rst states that some people thin7 se, will 0a tomati*all$ determine one6s gender demeanor and role 1so*ial2 as well as one6s se, al orientation 1se, al attra*tions and behavior2&325 ;e have * lt ral origins and habits for dealing with gender& Mi*hael S*hwalbe believes that h mans m st be ta ght how to a*t appropriatel$ in their designated gender in order to properl$ fill the role& 'he wa$ we behave as mas* line or feminine intera*ts with so*ial e,pe*tations& S*hwalbe *omments that we 0are the res lts of man$ people embra*ing and a*ting on similar ideas&3 26 /e*ent *riti5 es of feminist theor$ b$ ;arren Harrell 2G have given broader *onsideration to findings from a ten.$ear st d$ of *o rtship b$ I ss28 Ioth perspe*tives on gendering are integrated in #ttra*tion 'heor$, a theoreti*al framewor7 developed b$ )r /or$ /idle$.) ff ill strating how *o rtship and parenting obligations 1rather than male dominan*e2 a*t as a generative me*hanism that prod *es and reprod *es a range of gender identities&2E P estions of e5 alit$ of men and women *omprise an end ring h manisti* in5 ir$ : from FlatoJs gender roles in his ideal so*iet$, to Mar, and 9ngelsJ the origin of se, al ine5 alit$, to the in*reasingl$ debates among feminists& )espite all, gender e5 alit$ has been relativel$ wea7 in ideologies, so*ial instit tions, and gender roles& Mainstream a*ademi* voi*es and pop lar opinion ali7e still tend either to den$, or are ambig o s abo t, the e,isten*e of gender.egalitarian so*ieties i&e& politi*al do*trine that holds that all people sho ld be treated as e5 als and have the same politi*al, e*onomi*, so*ial, and *ivil rights& 40 )espite their s*ar*it$, so*ieties do e,ist that are do* mented to have a*hieved remar7able levels of gender e5 alit$ and slowl$ gender.egalitarian so*ieties have in*reased& Shanshan ) 41 indi*ates some parameters for gender.egalitarian so*ieties whi*h are >maternal *entralit$,> >gender *omplementarit$,> >gender trivialit$,> and >gender nit$&> Her resear*h indi*ates that >while rooted in different gender ideologies and e,pressing se, al e5 alit$ in diverse wa$s, these framewor7s all promote harmon$ and interdependen*e between men and women and the$ dis*o rage the development of gender.based *ompetition and hierar*h$& In other words, gender.egalitarian so*ieties are also so*ieties in balan*e>& 41 It wo ld be the h manisti* views of gender dis*o rse& 0Gender mainstreaming is at *riti*al *ross.roads right now& Man$ earl$ s pporters are disill sioned with the wa$ it has wor7ed so far and are beginning to feel that it has failed&3 42 'he arg ment is that the perspe*tive of M)Gs and development agen*$, the most *riti*al element of mainstreaming, its operations has not $et been serio sl$ attempted and has fo* sed solel$ on internal organi8ational dimensions& 'his paper asserts that altho gh

mainstreaming gender in operations re5 ires some of more elements& 'he$ ma$ be be$ond the traditional *on*ept of mainstreaming of gender e5 it$ and e5 alit$& 'his paper evolves and eval ates the *on*ept of gender e5 it$ and e5 alit$, whi*h re*ogni8es that to eval ate woman b$ the elements of Fh$si5 e, Fosition, Mone$ and M s* lar. power is not s ffi*ient& In fa*t women are also a h man and the$ are not the onl$ biologi*al entities b t be$ond that some thing more& Gender 95 alit$ *annot be a*hieved against see7ing same.ness in Fh$si5 e 1roop2, Fosition 1pad2, M s* lar.power 1bal2 and Mone$ 1dhan2& It is onl$ at the level of Intelle*tC7nowledge 1b ddhi2 that gender e5 alit$ *an be a*hieved& It means Gender e5 alit$ *annot be a*hieved b$ see7ing *onforman*e in o tward appearan*es& Gender.e5 alit$ *anJt be a*hieved b$ dressing women li7e men& ;omen a*hieving same e*onomi* stat s *an6t a*hieve gender e5 alit$& Gender e5 alit$ *anJt be a*hieved b$ ens ring e5 al representation of women in positions of 1in2 power& Gender e5 alit$ *anJt be a*hieved b$ ma7ing women ph$si*all$ *apable of defending themselves& Gender e5 alit$ is a *ons*io s phenomenon& It is onl$ at the level of b ddhi . or in 7nowledge or *omprehension that gender.e5 alit$ *an be reali8ed& 'his is tr e that Men have oppressed women sin*e ages& I t it is not going to ma7e women e5 al if women repeat the same mista7es that men did& # mista7e *anJt be *orre*ted b$ another mista7e& Mista7e *an onl$ be *orre*ted with resol tion& /esol tion of gender. e5 alit$ is in reali8ation of harmon$ in a famil$& It is onl$ in a famil$ that m t al. *omplementariness of man and woman *an be reali8ed& Madh$asth.)arshan 1Meevan Bid$a2 b$ #& "agra+ is an essential proposal for e5 alit$ in h man7ind is : Meevan 1Inner self2& It pro*laims that Meevan is self& Meevan is same in a man and woman despite bodil$ differen*es& MeevanJs nat ral.e,pe*tation for happiness, resol tion, + sti*e, and tr th is same in a man and a woman& MeevanJs f lfillment is in 7nowledge of *oe,isten*e& -atharine Ma*%innon as7sN 0#re women h man $et< If women were regarded as h man, wo ld the$ be sold into se, al slaver$ worldwideK veiled, silen*ed, and imprisoned in homesK bred, and wor7ed as menials for little or no pa$K stoned for se, o tside marriage or b rned within itK m tilated genitall$, impoverished e*onomi*all$, and mired in illitera*$..all as a matter of *o rse and witho t effe*tive re*o rse<3 44 Gender e uality, e5 alit$ between men and women, entails the *on*ept that all h man beings, both men and women, are free to develop their personal abilities and ma7e *hoi*es witho t the limitations set b$ stereot$pes, rigid gender roles and pre+ di*es& Gender e5 alit$ means that the different behavio r, aspirations and needs of women and men are *onsidered, val ed and favo red e5 all$& It does not mean that women and men have to be*ome the same, b t that their rights, responsibilities and opport nities will not depend on whether the$ are born male or female& Gender e uality means fairness of treatment for women and men, a**ording to their respe*tive needs& 'his ma$ in*l de e5 al treatment or treatment that is different b t whi*h is *onsidered e5 ivalent in terms of rights, benefits, obligations and opport nities& 4? 'he Ho rth ;orld -onferen*e on ;omen 1Iei+ing, 1EE52 proposed gender mainstreaming as a 7e$ strateg$ to red *e ine5 alities between women and men& Gender

mainstreaming, 7nown also as mainstreaming a gender perspe*tive, is >the pro*ess of assessing the impli*ations for women and men of an$ planned a*tion in*l ding legislation, poli*ies, and programmes, in an$ area and at all levels>&45 Governments and organi8ations have to promote an a*tive and visible poli*$ of mainstreaming a gender perspe*tive in all poli*ies and programs, so that before de*isions are being ta7en, an anal$sis is made of the effe*ts on women and men, respe*tivel$ and to pla*e h man relations, as manifested in their >male> and >female> roles, at the *entre of all programming, a*tion, and eval ation, instead of treating these as marginal, or even >ghettoi8ed> phenomena& 0Gender mainstreaming th s nders*ores the prin*iple that there *an be no s stainable development as long as dis*rimination of one of the two se,esCgenders e,ists& 'he in+ sti*e *reated b$ ine5 alities based on genderCse, dis*rimination threatens in the long r n not onl$ the dis*riminated gender b t the entire so*iet$66& 46 %a$ 9& ;ilde of !e" #or$ %a" &ournal 'aga(ine sa$s that Ms& Ma*%innon provides n mero s vivid and intensel$ dist rbing e,amples of governments, thro gh overt a*tion or *allo s indifferen*e, treating women as less than h man and, th s, den$ing women their h man rights& She is see7ing to effe*t legal *hange on a global s*ale& ;e have to dis* ss the h manisti* identit$ of the woman on h manitarian views and prospe*tive& If we tr$ to assess present h man.*ondition : we seem to be having problem with ea*h and ever$ relationship that we have, at all levels& Shri #& "agra+ 1#mar7anta72 4G pointed o t that Fresent h man.*ondition is *hara*teri8ed b$ the following three deadlo*7 sit ations& 1& -limate.-hange : d e to being nresolved abo t relationship with "at re, 2& -omm nal.)ivisiveness : d e to being nresolved abo t relationship with other h mans, 4& -riminal.Mentalit$ : d e to being nresolved abo t Dself6& 'he root.*a se of these deadlo*7 sit ations is h man7ind6s being nresolved& 'he mainstream : the State, 9d *ation, M di*iar$, I siness : are not b ilt aro nd tr thf l nderstanding of p rpose and design of e,isten*e& 'he mainstream has gone berser7 : and is heading for a disaster *hara*terised b$ the above three sit ations& 'he nderl$ing nderstanding or ass mptions on whi*h the mainstream is b ilt : all over the world : is in*onsistent, p rposeless, and inh mane& 'his mainstream6s nderstanding in literat re is mapped to three theses& Hirst of these three is, Hre dian 'heses of Fs$*holog$ : whi*h manifested in the mainstream6s mania*al p rs it for se,& Se*ond is 'heses of 9*onomi*s : b ilt aro nd #dam Smith6s propositions . whi*h manifested as mania*al p rs it for profit& #nd finall$, 'hesis of So*iolog$ : b ilt aro nd )arwin6s h$potheses : whi*h got manifested as mania*al p rs it for l , ries and *omforts& 'hese theses don6t *ognate h man.being6s natural-expectation to be happiness, and its natural-goal as resolution& 'hese propo nd str ggle and *ompetition as the wa$ for h man.s **ess& 'hese three together define the mainstream sin*e last 400 $ears or so : and are at the root of present disastro s sit ation& Mainstream needs alternative to these& #n #lternative : that is based on tr thf l nderstanding of p rpose and design of e,isten*e& Shri /a7esh G pta 48 s ggested that ;hen we begin millenni m goal.setting aro nd Happiness : we need its niversall$ a**eptable definition& Happiness : tho gh a

seemingl$ simple so nding word : doesn6t impl$ one thing to ever$one at ever$ time& Bol mes of boo7s have been written abo t it : both from materialism and from idealism followers . witho t nailing down its niversall$.a**eptable definition& 'his is the root. *a se of prevalent ideologi*al divides and segmentation of h man7ind& Some believe happiness to be a sensation in bod$ : and 7eeping the senses satisfied as the wa$ for ens ring perpet al.happiness 1materialism2& Some believe happiness is not in the p rview of senses : therefore the$ sermoni8e and pres*ribe pra*ti*es for denial of senses and material world 1idealism2& Ioth these approa*hes have failed in reali8ing *ontin it$ of happiness for an$ one person& Millenni m goal.setting *an6t be done based on these ideologies& Madh$asth.)arshan 1#& "agra+2 proposes : 0/esol tion itself is Happiness&3 # h man. being6s having definitive answers for ever$ ho" and "hy : spirit all$, intelle*t all$, and materiall$ . alone *an ass re its living with *ontin o sl$ with harmon$ or happiness& It *an also be nderstood that nless a person is resolved spirit all$, intelle*t all$, and materiall$ : there6s no wa$ for him to be truly happ$& Going a step f rther : spirit al, intelle*t al, and material together *over the entire e,isten*e 1all that is2& Hrom a h man. *entri* view : 9,isten*e is self and relationships with all h man.beings and nat re at large sat rated in the limitless Spa*e& 'herefore a h man.being needs to be resolved abo t e,isten*e 1all that is2 in order to be happ$& However big, diffi* lt, or impossible this ma$ so nd : there is no other wa$ happiness of a h man.being *o ld be envisaged& /esol tion nat rall$ be*omes the natural-goal or purpose of ever$ h man.being& =iving with resol tion alone *an be p rposef l.living therefore& 'he need for tr thf l nderstanding of e,isten*e : whi*h is niversal, pra*ti*able, h mane, logi*al, *onsistent, and p rposef l : has remained nf lfilled& )'adhyasthDarshan sahastitvvad is a proposal for f lfilling this need& It has alternative proposals for prevalent e*onomi*s, ps$*holog$, and so*iolog$& It is termed 0alternative3 : be*a se it is lin7ed neither with materialism 1propagated b$ prevalent s*ien*e2 nor with idealism 1propagated b$ established religions2& It is st d$.able proposal for bringing abo t a *hange in h man.*ons*io sness&
This philosophy provides ideas and programmes for h mani8ation of all t$pes

ed *ation thro gh to *hanges the approa*hes of designing the *ontent of ed *ation s *h as . 1& Iehavio ral So*iolog$, 2& -$*li*al 9*onomi*s, 4& H man.-ons*io sness Oriented Fs$*holog$& #t their root these theses have *larit$ of e,isten*e e,pressing itself as *oe,isten*e at all its levels& 'his is a proposal for st d$ of h man.being, *ons*io sness, and h man.ness& Madh$asth.)arshan gives the basis for Bal e.9d *ation thro gh -ons*io sness.)evelopment& 9viden*e of this 7nowledge is h man.being reali8ing its resol tion in all aspe*ts of living with harmon$& #t the larger level its eviden*e wo ld be h mane.so*iet$ and orderliness& *umani(ation of +ducation is a definite wa$ forward for ne,t millenni m& !nited "ations is an appropriate instit tion with its *harter and reso r*es to address this niversal and nat ral h man.need& 95 alit$ is possible in the 21st *ent r$ and H manisti* Foliti*s has a *entral role to pla$ in *reating balan*ed so*ieties based on + sti*e and e5 al rights& O r aim is to wor7 for a more e5 itable f t re for both women and men& 'he world of h manit$ is possessed of two wingsN the male and the female& So long as these two wings are not e5 ivalent in

strength, the bird will not fl$& !ntil woman7ind rea*hes the same degree as man, ntil she en+o$s the same arena of a*tivit$, ama8ing attainment for h manit$ will not be reali8edK h manit$ *annot wing its wa$ to heights of real attainment then the flight of h man being will be e,*eedingl$ loft$ and e,traordinar$& Men have an ines*apable d t$ to promote the e5 alit$ of women& 'he pres mption of s periorit$ b$ men thwarts the ambition of women and inhibits the *reation of an environment in whi*h e5 alit$ ma$ reign& 'he destr *tive effe*ts of ine5 alit$ prevent men from mat ring and developing the 5 alities ne*essar$ to meet the *hallenges of the new millenni m& References:
1& 2& 4& !" General #ssembl$ /esol tion #C/esC55C2, 18 September, 2000 and !" Fress /elease, G#CEG52, 8 September 2000& /oadmap towards the implementation of the !" Millenni m )e*laration, /eport of the Se*retar$ General, 6 September 2001K !" )o* ment #C56C42& 'he eight Millenni m )evelopment Goals, whi*h emerged from the !" Millenni m )e*laration 120002 are listed on pages ??.?5& Goals as s*heme to aggravate imperialist pl nder and povert$, #sia Fa*ifi* /esear*h "etwor7 120052 Ma*7son, -&, /es* ing gender from the povert$ trap, in -& Ma*7son, and /& Fearson 1eds2 Heminist Bisions of )evelopmentN Gender #nal$sis and Foli*$, =ondonN /o tledge, 1EE8& Fegg$ #ntrob s, M)GsL'he Most )istra*ting Gimmi*7, 2004, )evelopment #lternatives for ;omen in the "ew 9ra& www&dawn&org&f+CglobalCmdgs&html2& Hor details, please refer to %risten 'imoth$ 0'he Millenni m )evelopment GoalsN Gendered Fathwa$sC)imensions Ia*7gro nd Faper prepared for the ;orld Ian7 ;or7shop on Fovert$ and Gender N "ew Ferspe*tives, Ma$ G, 2002 !"IH9M 2000 N Frogress of the ;orld6s ;omen 2000, "ew Qor7& Frof& Mamilah #riffin, Gender -riti5 es of the Millenni m )evelopment GoalsN #n Overview and an #ssessment, 1Faper2 International -o n*il on So*ial ;elfare 1200?2 Stephanie Garrett, ,ender, 11EE22, p& G& #I- Of ;omen ;or7erJs /ights #nd Gender 95 alit$, I=O, Geneva, 2000, pp&?G.?8 -ommon wealth Flan of a*tion on Gender and )evelopment, 1EE5& 9isler, /ianeK -orral, 'hais, >Hrom )omination to FartnershipN Meeting the !" Millenni m Goals>, -onvergen*e, v48 n4, abstra*t, 120052 "ational Instit te of #d lt -ontin ing 9d *ation, !% )r& /iane 9isler, M&)& 0'he Iattle over H man FossibilitiesN ;omen, Men, and - lt ral 'ransformation3 Snow, )&#& and Oliver, F&9& 11EE52& >So*ial Movements and -olle*tive IehaviorN So*ial Fs$*hologi*al )imensions and -onsiderations&> In %aren -oo7, Gar$ #&Hine, and Mames S&Ho se 1eds2 So*iologi*al Ferspe*tives on So*ial Fs$*holog$, pp&5G1.600& IostonN #ll$n and Ia*on& 'aifel, H& R ' rner, M&-& 11E862& 'he so*ial identit$ of intergro p relations& In S& ;or*hel R ;&G& # stin 1eds2, 'he ps$*holog$ of intergro p relations, pp&G.2?& -hi*agoN "elson.Hall& 'err$, )&M&, Hogg, M&#& 11EE62& Gro p norms and the attit de.behavio r relationshipN # role for gro p identifi*ation& Fersonalit$ and So*ial Fs$*holog$ I lletin, 22, GG6.GE4& ;innie I$an$imaJs sabbati*al period at the #fri*an Gender Instit te, !niversit$ of -ape 'own N narrative report& httpNCCidl.bn*&idr*&*aCdspa*eChandleC124?56G8EC2G2?4,2005 'ong, /osemarie&Heminist tho ght N a more *omprehensive introd *tion C /osemarie 'ong&Io lder, -olo& N ;estview Fress, 200E&

?& Frof& Mose Maria Sison, -hairperson, I--, I=FS, I=FS deno n*es !" Millenni m )evelopment
5& 6&

G& Millenni m Fro+e*t 120062 httpNCCwww& nmillenni mpro+e*t&orgCgoalsCgti&htm

8&

E& 10& 11& 12& 14&

1?&
15& 16& 1G& 18&

1E&
20&

21& Gender 'ro bleN Heminism and the S bversion of Identit$& 'hin7ing Gender& "ew Qor7 R =ondonN /o tledge, 1EE0 22& Simone de Iea voir, 'he Se*ond Se,, 1E?E, as translated and reprinted 1E8E&> 24& -hafet8, MS& Mas* lineCHeminine or H man< #n Overview of the So*iolog$ of Se, /oles& Itas*a, IllinoisN H& 9& Fea*o*7, 1EG?& 2?& -hafet8, MS& Mas* lineCHeminine or H man< #n Overview of the So*iolog$ of Se, /oles& Itas*a, IllinoisN H& 9& Fea*o*7, 1EG8& 25& Stephanie Garrett, Gender, 11EE22, p& vii& 26& M dith I tler, Gender 'ro bleN Heminism and the S bversion of Identit$, 11EEE2, p& E& 2G& Harrell, ;& 11E882 ;h$ Men #re 'he ;a$ 'he$ #re, "ew Qor7N Ier7le$ Ioo7s Harrell, ;& R Sterba, M 120082 )oes Heminism )is*riminate #gainst Men< # )ebate, O,ford !niversit$ Fress 28& I ss, )&M& 120022 H man mating strategies& Samd nfso7onemen, ?N ?8.58& 2E& /idle$.) ff, /& M& 120082 >Gendering, -o rtship and Fa$ 95 alit$N )eveloping #ttra*tion 'heor$ to !nderstand ;or7.=ife Ialan*e and 9ntreprene rial Iehavio r>, paper to the 41st ISI9 -onferen*e, 5th.Gth "ovember, Ielfast& 40& 'he #meri*an Heritage 120042& 41& Shanshan ) , Hramewor7s for So*ieties in Ialan*eN # -ross.- lt ral Ferspe*tive on Gender 95 alit$, ;orld -ongress on Matriar*hal St dies = ,emb rg, 2004 42& Fegg$ #ntrob s, M)Gs.'he Most )istra*ting Gimmi*7, da"n-org-fj.global. mdgs-html 120042,

44& -atharine #& Ma*%inno, #re ;omen H man< #nd Other International )ialog es, Harvard
!niversit$ Fress& 4?& #I- Of ;omen ;or7erJs /ights #nd Gender 95 alit$, I=O, Geneva, 2000, p&?8& 45& 9-OSO- #greed -on*l sions 19C1EEGC1002&

46& 19C-"&6C1EEEC-/F&4, 9,e* tive s mmar$ of the ;orld S rve$ on the /ole of ;omen in
)evelopment2& 4G& #& "agra+, Bi7alp, Meevan Bid$a Fra7ashan, 2006 48& /a7esh G pta, H mani8ation of 9d *ation Millenni m #genda from Meevan Bid$a Ferspe*tive, httpNCCmadh$asth.darshan&blogspot&*omC

( /esear*h Offi*er and (()ire*tor, Meevan Bid$a St d$ -entre, Somai$a Bid$avihar, Bid$avihar 192 M mbai.GG