Female Women’s Rights Advocates

By Arjuna Seneviratne -April 15, 2014

Arjuna Seneviratne

Female women’s rights advocates: the convenience of the plural identity for the singular benefit

The Devyani  khobragade incident is stuttering, heaving and swirling on two subcontinents, buffeted by those little storms that are created out of ego, one-upmanship, brinkmanship and stark raving stupidity. When, where and whom that particular teacup hurricane is going to hit next has been bisected, trisected, dissected, reflected, detected and chopped up into a thousand itty-bitty pieces by a thousand itty-bitty people. Ugh! Let is lie…let it fly…let it die.  I am not interested.

Ms. Khobragade does interest me though. Not because she is a diplomat whose arrest started an excellently constructed, beautifully sound-tracked and brilliantly choreographed diplomatic and legislative ballet but rather, as an alleged women’s rights advocate.  I use that term “alleged” in its accusatory form because she has never been charged with that particular crime and any claims to her guilt on the matter are based, as far as I am aware, only on the fact that she held a conversation on “Women’s Rights and the Influence of Demographics in India” at the Australian High Commission on the New York Young Leader’s program. According to the Australian High Commission, “as a woman of the Dalit caste, Dr. Khobragade provided a unique perspective on gender and social equality in India and she spoke passionately about women’s rights”.

Hrmph!

Phrases like “unique perspective” and “passionate speech”, need to be second guessed when they are part of diplomatese and she could very well be unique in condemning women’s rights and passionately speaking against the inclusive treatment of Dalits in Indian society. Possible but doubtful. As a diplomat she just wouldn’t dare even if such was her belief. Overall, I think there is sufficient evidence to prove that Ms. Khobragade is guilty of being at least a woman who stands for women’s right if not an outright women’s rights advocate.

Why guilty?                                                            Read More