THANK you for giving me a space in your paper to put forward my personal perception on the above issue shared by Bill Dikana.Most of the key points raised by Mr Dikana in his article “Women’s rights extremists, stop barking” I should say are debatable.
solomonstarnews.com
This debate never seemed to disappear from the Solomon Islands media outlets, and one would begin to wonder why. The answer is simple; the topic is perpetuated by people who believe that women are entitled to the highest political calling of the land. Take for instance the above article (you can read it by clicking on the link) by one of the most staunchest advocates of free seats for Women in the upcoming election (2010).I don't know if it is only me that sees this topic as the ultimate hijacking of our democracy by bunch of women and their male supporters, but it should be a major concern. I want to write, particularly, in response to the most passionate writers and pusher of such idea, Elle Kahue. I want to point out a few misconceptions from her arguments.
First of all, Kahue made that argument that it was women who went between the warring factions in 2000, not men. That is a very clever and manipulative usage of gender to justify an argument so far detached from from the true nature of democracy. Kahue's tactic was simply to demoralize men while promoting feminist bravery, which in this case; a distortion of the truth. These women were Malaitans who knew very well that would not be kidnapped, tortured, or murdered. These women were Malaitans, living in Honiara, which at that time was ruled by the Malaita Eagle Force (MEF). Since when did Guadalcanal or Renbel women, or any other group of women, went between the GRA and MEF at the height of the Ethnic crisis? The answer is simple, NIL!
Men of other provinces were evacuating and so were women and children. This evacuation was followed by MEF senseless attack on those they felt were threatening MEF's rule in Honiara. I was back in Honiara in those days and even listened to the Women praying in Parliament before the election of the Menasseh Sogavare as the Prime Minister, on radio live broadcast. Again, these women were not representing other ethnic groups, they were Malaitans trying to push their peaceful agenda before a Parliament election; an election called by MEF. Were they effective in their pursuit and plea for peace? I am not sure if Kahue could make this argument because days after the first election effort crumbled, the MEF spokesman, Andrew Nori, called for extended curfew hours and MEF activities in town. Thus, to use this very instance to insult Men is a cheap shot-a low blow from a woman that doesn't understand what she was talking about.
Secondly, Kahue went on to state that "Women’s rights have indeed invaded many cultures, religions and laws by challenging these existing structures to be more accommodating to women, to recognise with respect women and girl’s status and position in society." Wait a minute; women's right invaded society? Women's right around the world owes its existence to a bunch of men who believed that women's ought to have equal political power as their counterparts. These were "Men" who wanted women's participation in social and political settings in almost every democratic nation; in America, the civil rights movement followed that the emancipation of women was a movement initiated by men and inked to law by the president, Lindon B. Johnson. So men must also be treated fairly in this debate.
..... to be continued~!
No comments:
Post a Comment