Key Note address in Brazil's 10th Fazendo Genero

 I have been invited to  Brazil to give the key note address in a Conference on Gender called Fazendo Genero which is held once in two years and this is the 10th one. I am amazed at the energy and the people that have come together. Five thousand men and women are attending this . I have met feminists from Uruguay, Chile, Bolivia, Argentina, Al Salvador, Columbia names which were just geographical entities to me but now I see the women's movement in these countries and the issues that they are struggling with. Language is a major barrier for most women do not speak in English.  This time the Conference theme is on Challenges to Feminism and my key note is on Challenges to Feminism in 21st century a south Asian perspective. The University has such a lovely convention Centre and this is the meeting place of all the different groups.

I am very impressed by the fact that the meetings in Fazendo Genero starts here at 9.00 in the morning and ends at 9.00 at night and there is full attendance. It is so difficult to hold on to the people in  India after a certain hour. Again another interesting thing which I found was that the minister for Racism and social Justice came and attended the Conference.She also addressed the Conference.  Every one told me she is a very powerful minister and only second in the cabinet. I was invited to have dinner with her and the other person who was  a secretary or some such high ranking official in the Brazilian embassy in India for some time . The minister had no bodyguards, roamed around freely and interacted with every one like a commoner and in the morning when she left for the airport to go back to Brasilia for she had a very important meeting to attend she called for a taxi to take her to the airport. I cannot imagine a minister behaving like this in my country. Today again I attended a panel which had five women politicians who were answering questions on women's issues and the  point of view of their party and then they mixed with the crowd very easily. They looked more like University Professors than politicians to me.