Saturday, September 30, 2006

You called me beautiful

'You' called me 'beautiful'
surprised
I turned my ugly face at you
I looked up,
I looked around,
'They' called me beautiful
looking back at you, i could only find a smile
you were gone
I still collect the smiles.

Saturday, September 23, 2006

workshop on CEDAW

Every little bit have been taken care of. Its been a lot of hard work and I just hope it goes great. Talking about the South Asia Training of Trainers on CEDAW workshop to be held in TERI Gurgaon from 25th to 29th September 2006. The event is being funded by UNIFEM and executed by PLD.

South Asian lawyers working in the field of women’s rights issues are here to participate in the training. We have participants coming from Nepal, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Pakistan, Afghanistan, India and Bhutan.

Now what is CEDAW. Its an international Convention on Elimination of all kinds of Discrimination Against Women. Most of these south asian countries including India is a signatory of this convention. CEDAW is the parellel of UDHR (Universal Declaration of Human Rights) and is the only source for women rights. Why women rights when we have human rights. To know the answer to that question one needs to understand the text of CEDAW which is as complicated as it can be. Lawyers take time to understand the convention so one can imagine how difficult it is for a grass root level activist to weave the CEDAW principle into their work. This is where PLD have had a major contribution, training development executives on CEDAW.

For the first time PLD is going to have a training for trainers. This time the participans are of higher level and they are further expected to disseminate the training obtained here development executives in their countries working in the relevant fields. We have also prepared a very enriching resource package.

I would also be attending the training as a participant. I have worked hard for the event. Officially I wasn’t in it earlier but then things kept coming and I kept taking them and ended up playing a major role in coordinating the entire event. Have not been getting any time for blogging.

Lots of ideas came in mind but never got the time. Also thought of a Nation wide campaign for right to education on 14th Nov. Let’s see what can be done.

Wednesday, September 06, 2006

Blog Camp...



Ok I may be a tad late in talking about the Blog Camp Unconference...but its never too late.. I cannot even begin to explain how much I would have loved to be a part of it and how much I have got to talk about blogs and blogging. Regular readers of my blog would know why... May be soon we should have a Delhi Edition of Blog Camp and then I would be an active participant.

Only yesterday I had another lecture in AIMC on Media and Law, but the students were more enthu to talk about blogging given the fact that their Swagat Sir has been influencing them 24/7 about powers of blogs. Swagat is always so exited about the blogs and is always trying to be innovative about its use. He wants all his students to share their class notes. He wants me conduct a one day blogging workshop with his students.

They kept saying India have to go a long way in blogging well not after such a huge event like blog camp. The list of participants is as glamorous as it could get including Sunil Gavaskar on board. I would be mailing Bill and Julian regarding the Blog camp.

So if you are in Chennai on 9th and 10th September you better be sane and attend it.

An article I wrote for AIMC Seminar which not many read am linking here again given its relevance to this post. Click here. My efforts to put some sense and direction to the DBM is also of significance once again. I cannot believe how a bunch of around 150 bloggers who have been in this community for a little less than 3 years now still cannot think of doing anything more constructive than sipping cofee and 'meeting new people' in their meets. Every time I have tried to talk about it those guys have blamed me for thinking too much and getting too serious with something so casual as blogging. One of them actually sent me hate mails blaming me of being a cheap attention seeker. For once I thought I would put up his derogatory mails for all to see but then I thought why should I get dirty myself.

I fail to understand with the government banning some blogs, the RTI applications and the media attention how can blogging still remain a casual matter an avenue only to meet new people and socialize.

Anyway

Saturday, September 02, 2006


It was an awesome rain that delhi had today in the evening and its awlays a beautiful sight to see those shining blades of water falling on the concrete road and the car splashing by...the traffic obviously came to a halt all around and I waited almost an hour at the Jungpura stop for a 727 before I gave up, took an auto to CP and boarded the metro to Dwarka. But what a well spent hour it was.......last year I only wrote about it....this time I clicked and captured....