The elimination of discrimination against women is a spiritual and moral imperative

A Thai woman vendor on the streets of Bangkok

According to the latest summary of a survey conducted by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime among 189 countries worldwide, Thailand was among dozens of nations highlighted for a high number of rape cases. This is very disturbing news to the country. In the past, numerous Thai scholars and women's organizations have identified violence against women as a severe problem in this country. Also in the past many reports from the United Nations Development Program informed unequivocally that there has been growing concern about the problem of violence against women including physical, sexual, and mental abuse by their husbands in Thailand.

Domestic violence is a significant social problem in Thailand and in Asia in general. In particular, a great deal of attention has been paid to the high rates of physical abuse which men perpetrate against their female partners and the causes of such violence.

Women may have become the heads of government in many countries in Asia -- India, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, and Pakistan. This does not mean that every woman has won her rights. In spite of all the progress that women have made in most of Asia and the Middle East, they still lag behind their sisters in other parts of the world in terms of equality between the sexes.

Many Thai male political leaders have in the past have become advocate of many women’s rights laws but their efforts slowed down because of prejudices of dominant male political leaders who are in power or just lack of understanding of women’s rights.

It is mentioned in the writings of the Baha’i Faith, that the world of humanity is possessed of two wings: the male and the female. So long as these two wings are not equivalent in strength, the bird will not fly. When the two wings become equivalent in strength, enjoying the same privileges the flight of man will be exceedingly lofty and extraordinary. The elimination of discrimination against women is a spiritual and moral imperative that must ultimately reshape existing legal, economic, and social arrangements. We need to change the attitudes of male towards female. Without fundamental changes in the attitudes and values of male in power, especially male policy-makers, and in the underlying ethos of social institutions, full equality between women and men cannot be achieved.

I strongly believe in educating girls is more important than educating boys. The first teachers of children are mothers, and we need to educate them first. If they are educated, they should be able to stand up for their rights and build self-esteem. Currently, most women, once their rights are violated and abused at home, often do not report the crime. Because of the terrible shame and embarrassment associated with such violence, inflicted by their husbands or boy friends, they tend to turn inward, blaming themselves and their karma rather than the men who inflict this violence upon them.

The leaders in Thai business, society and politics, especially the men in power have an inescapable duty to promote the equality of women. They must work hard to create a better environment and a just society to make this happen.

I am proposing a six-point plan to all Thai men, especially parents, business and political leaders to promote non-violent aggression against my female sisters in this country and all over Asia.

Point: 1: Remove all obstacles that prevent girls from going to and staying in school. If parents have limited resources to send their children to schools, send the girls first. People with money try and sponsor girl’s education in neighboring towns.

Point: 2: Principals and head masters of school voluntarily incorporate efforts to change attitudes on gender, show respect to women and discuss equality of men and women in classroom settings. This should begin in primary schools and extend to media, civil society, government officials and the social partners.

Point 3: At every level of the society, at every stages of government, programs must be in place by men of influence to educate men and boys about the importance of gender equity and shared responsibility.

Point 4: At home, parents must teach their sons to treat girls with respect and dignity. This made it easy when the father respect the mother at home and include her in consultations and decision making process.

Point 5: Male youths must initiate campaigns to approach government and private institutions to promote gender equality and create awareness of women rights at work. Such campaigns must be nationally recognized and evaluated.

Point 6: Ban all the books/comics with abusing images. Any Thais cannot help noticing comic books found in book stores or waiting rooms, across the country. They are full of abusing images. Cartoons of husbands beating wives or wives beating husbands are very common. They are indeed read mostly by children. More parents must rise above united to ban such books and bring dignity and respect to mothers and sisters.

No nation can develop half of it is free and half chained. Therefore, a balanced strategy to bring both halves of the society into benefiting the basic human rights of women is a must.