Angellica Aribam, an Indian political activist committed to amplifying women’s leadership
/
CV in brief:
EDUCATION: BSC BIOCHEMISTRY AT UNIVERSITY OF DELHI (INDIA) | MASTERS IN PUBLIC POLICY AT PEKING UNIVERSITY (CHINA) | VVENGAGE FELLOW AT VITAL VOICES GLOBAL PARTNERSHIP (A NON RESIDENTIAL FELLOWSHIP)
PREVIOUSLY WORKED AT: NATIONAL GENERAL SECRETARY, NATIONAL STUDENTS UNION OF INDIA, INDIAN NATIONAL CONGRESS | CO-FOUNDER FEMMEFIRST FOUNDATION
LANGUAGES SPOKEN: ENGLISH, HINDI, MANIPURI, BASIC CHINESE
FIND ANGELLICA ARIBAM ONLINE: LINKEDIN, TWITTER, FACEBOOK, BLOG
HER ARTICLES: 500 MILLION INDIAN WOMEN DEMAND TO BE HEARD. IT’S TIME TO LISTEN | SERIOUSNESS ABOUT WOMEN’S RESERVATION BILL MUST SHOW IN ELECTORAL REPRESENTATION | UNNOTICED SEXISM IN EVERYDAY LIFE
EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW BY KARISHMA DASWANI, october 2019
Here are her three pieces of advice:
In the age of social media, women can make their voices heard to effect positive change.
Women leaders drive inclusive change and influence the overall growth of their communities.
In a globalised world, international trade plays a crucial role in driving foreign policy and ensuring that Indian women have access to favourable conditions at their workplaces.
How did you become interested in politics? Did you know from an early age that it was what you wanted to do or was it something you stumbled into?
It was the result of my personal history – I come from the north eastern region of India, a marginalised area in terms of geography and economics. I moved to New Delhi when I was young, at the age of 12, for my schooling and higher studies. In New Delhi, I realised that the people coming from my region were being racially discriminated everywhere, be it on the streets, in the classroom or anywhere else. I recall one afternoon while I was coming back from school in the Delhi summer, a young man on the street groped me. I was numb, but in that moment, I realised the extent of discrimination people from my community were facing, especially the women who are often labelled as ‘easy’ due to their ethnic features. Because of that incident, as I was growing up, I got involved in racial activism. But it was when I turned 20 and joined law school that I realised that activism alone wasn’t enough. I joined a political party because, to me, it seemed like the only way to effect a real positive change.
Women are underrepresented in politics, especially women from marginalised ethnic minorities. As an elected official, how did the lack of diversity affect your career?
India still has a low rate of female political representation. According to Inter-Parliamentary Union, India ranks 149 out of 193 countries in representation of women in the Parliament. The rate of women in politics is just 14.3%, which is 10% below the global average. Women from ethnic minority communities, especially those from my part of the country, are even less represented. That’s why I decided to take it upon myself to represent the people of my region. I worked hard to encourage the desire to join politics amongst girls and young women, and ensured that the doors of the party I joined were always open to anyone with the desire to join politics. Representing the people always comes with a lot of responsibility, especially when you belong to a minority community. Indeed, when an individual from a minority community commits a mistake, then it is viewed as the mistake of the whole community and puts a lot more pressure on the representative to perform better as a leader. I wasn’t in a very influential position so, in my own limited capacity, I raised the concerns of my community to the authorities whenever I could. For example, in 2013, a month after being elected a member of the National Executive Body of the Student’s wing, I was asked to speak about the plight of north eastern people at a gathering attended by 5000 political leaders from across the country, including the Prime Minister of India and his council of ministers. I spoke about the problems we were facing and the road ahead as to what the government could do. Afterwards, I organised events and workshops to raise awareness about the north eastern region of India.
What led you to start the FemmeFirst Foundation and how does it help other women?
It was challenging to be a first generation women in politics in India, with no political inheritance. In my first five years as an active political officer, I worked almost 20 hours a day. It wasn’t easy to navigate the labyrinth of the political world. The path is particularly difficult for women, due to misogyny, sexism, ingrained patriarchy, and often, sexual misconduct. The fact that women decide to become involved in politics intertwines with several struggles. Politics isn’t a career that pays, and young women politicians face pushback from their families who wish to see them either bringing home an income or getting married. On top of that, there is sexism from the media which present women politicians in a superficial light, focusing more on their handbags, shoes or lipsticks, rather than the policies and causes they are championing. My time in politics has made me realise that there isn’t any support system for women in this field, unless you come from dynastic politics. It’s arduous for first-timers who are just learning the ropes. There wasn’t any organisation working on building a support system for women politicians in India. Given my personal experience and seeing the need for a support system, it came the idea of Femme First Foundation (FFF). FFF builds capacity and mentors women in politics in order to amplify their leadership in terms of both quantity and quality of their participation. Parliamentary debates require a certain level of competency. We want to train women on such skill sets needed. In other words, FFF provides women with all the necessary tools to become an effective leader.
Tell us about your experience as a VVEngage Fellow for women political leaders at Vital Voices.
It was one of the best experiences in my life. Vital Voices is a platform that works exclusively with women from different backgrounds, such as entrepreneurship, human rights, and civil society organisations. VV Engage Fellowship for women in public leadership started in July 2018. I was part of the inaugural cohort, together with other 21 women from 17 countries, all influencing policy-making in our respective countries. By interacting with each other, we realised that we faced similar issues and challenges despite coming from different geographies and cultures. As women in politics have been climbing the ladder, the scrutiny over our life decisions has increased. We are expected to conform to society’s perception of a woman politician. It is rare that women politicians talk about their difficulties, because doing so would make us look weak, especially when voters prefer strong male politicians. VV Engage fellowship allows us to share the burden of being women in politics without the fear of being judged. It is an empowering platform where we might not always have the solution to all problems but we always have each other’s solidarity.
You have been an activist for menstrual health and women’s rights in India. What were your initiatives in these areas?
I’m a staunch feminist. When anything related to women’s rights comes up, I’m out there holding my feminist flag! For instance, in 2014 when an Uber driver raped a woman in New Delhi, I was participating in a protest at the Home Minister’s house demanding government action. As is the norm in India, the police took the protestors into custody to prevent the protest from intensifying. As I started menstruating in police custody, I requested a police officer for a sanitary towel. She gave me a dirty handkerchief. I didn’t accept the handkerchief and kept bleeding. The episode traumatised me. After my release, I decided to fight for improved menstrual health for women in custody and I started a small campaign that generated quite a support. We asked the Delhi police to keep sanitary towels in all police stations. In its aftermath, a taboo topic like menstruation became a part of the mainstream conversation.
You’ve been very vocal about Net Neutrality in India. How did you ensure it was implemented?
It was in 2015, telecom companies were implementing differential pricing for using the internet, meaning that browsing different websites would cost differently. It was against the principles of Net Neutrality. The government was hand in glove with the telecom companies, and it was going to introduce a Bill into Parliament to allow differential pricing. Many civil society organisations were protesting against this move. As the primary opposition party, the Indian National Congress (INC) needed to build coalitions with civil society organisations. As an official of the INC, I played a critical role and ensured that my party took to the streets and the parliament against the government. After protesting in favour of a uniform pricing structure for browsing the internet, the government didn’t allow differential pricing to be introduced in India.
Do you think female politicians deal with foreign policy differently than male politicians?
When Madeleine Albright was appointed the first woman Secretary of State during the Clinton Administration in the US, many people questioned and criticised the choice. In reality, he did remarkably well in her role. Women in leadership positions have a more inclusive thought process, not just in foreign policy but every aspect of policy. There are studies showing that women’s inclusion in peace negotiations increases the chances of reaching and implementing an agreement. However, only 4% of the signatories in peace agreements are women and only 6% of States prioritise gender equality. Such States, like Sweden and Canada, for example, are bringing in gender equality in trade agreements by implementing gender sanctions for export countries where women face barriers to equal workforce participation. Developed countries have a greater responsibility to enhance equality and they could do so by imposing sanctions on countries that lack in equal rights for women. International trade is important for Indian development and represents an opportunity to improve in terms of human rights and the provision of fair opportunities to men and women alike.
What advice do you have for young women hoping to work in foreign policy and/or Indian politics?
I want more women to be at the policy-making table, be it in politics or policy. Since time immemorial, women have been left out from the decision making process. It’s 2019, until when are we supposed to wait? Studies have shown that involving more women in decision making diversifies the process, leading to enrichment of the institution and the society. I want young women to understand the power of their voices. In the age of social media, we can make our voices heard to effect positive change. Though, it might look difficult, it is so totally worth it.
What is your vision for the future - as a woman, as an ethnic minority person and as a politician?
Given the state of Indian politics, I should be really grim and sad about the rise of the right wing, communalism and the spread of hatred. The environment is critical, but historically it has been during times of sectarian ideologies that people rose up against widespread discrimination, in an attempt to make changes for a better society. I’m optimistic that things will take a positive turn, especially with young people at the heart of the movement. Every cloud has a silver lining. I look forward to a future where everyone is a stakeholder and has an equal say in any policy affecting their lives.
