Kathmandu, August 30:

Women’s rights activists today stressed the need for an alliance of women organisations to ensure their representation in the constituent assembly.

Addressing an interaction on “Need for and role of women alliance at present” organised by the Women’s Alliance for Peace, Power, Democracy and Constituent Assembly, spokesperson of the Nepal Sadbhawana Party (Anandidevi) Sarita Giri said all women’s organisations should unite to form a national women’s alliance to raise issues of women. “Women from civil society and political parties should jointly initiate special programmes for our representation in the CA,” said Giri.

Prof Dr Shanta Thapaliya, chairperson of the Legal Aid And Consultancy Centre, said the women’s alliance should think of improvement in both quality and quantity of women while preparing them for the CA. “All women’s organisations should come under a network so that they can jointly lobby for their participation in all political parties,” she added.

President of the Feminist Dalit Organisation, Durga Sob, said women’s alliance would be effective if it could incorporate women from different castes and ethnic communities. “Women won’t be able to lead as long as bias against them persists in political parties. We should continue our protests within our organisations to move ahead,” she said.

Participants urged the government to address problems of Badi women. They handed over Rs 5,456 collected from the participants to the Badi women and asked the media to focus on their (Badi women’s) issues.