Women - Strength in Numbers
The last month saw a surge in women's activities in Village
Action's program, culminating in a huge event on March 23rd
to celebrate International Women's Day.
The activities began in late February, with a women's sports
day at AVAG's resource centre. Approximately 600 women participated
in sporting competitions, such as basketball shooting, skipping
and racing with pots of water balanced on the head.
International Women's Day on March 8th was celebrated by
women's clubs in their own villages, with each club choosing
their own original way to mark the occasion. Some played
games or performed cultural programs for village leaders,
others presented educational tools to school children or
celebrated quietly with discussions and songs.
The grand finale was a collective celebration to mark IWD,
with over 2000 women in attendance from the 100 women's
clubs that participate in AVAG's program. Women from 40
clubs gave cultural performances to an audience that included
Aurovilians and invited VIPs, and prizes were awarded to
clubs that had achieved the most in different categories.
Two guest speakers from Chennai, Ms Beulah from IWID and
Ms Valentina from AIDWA, addressed issues affecting women,
such as dowry, unequal wages and the denial of education.
The two MLAs of the region were also present and praised
the initiatives of the women, especially their savings/micro-credit
programs and their work for village improvement. The MLA
for Lawspet, Pondicherry, Mr Shajahan, acknowledged the
accomplishments of AVAG in the region, stating "women
are instrumental in bringing social change".
For more information
Please visit the Auroville website to read more about the
villages
around Auroville and to read about Village
Action. You can also write village action at avagoffice@auroville.org.in
or contact
AVIUSA.
Your Donation Will Help
Auroville Village Action is currently running many projects
in the villages surrounding Auroville (see a list
of project proposals.) Your donation can help improve
the lives of some of Tamil Nadu's most impoverished villagers.
Any donation, large or small, will make a difference. You
can donate
online now with your credit card on Helping.org's secure
server.
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