Editor,
We used to think that people who did sex work had found themselves in a situation where they had no choice but to do sex work, and that the job of feminists was to help sex workers find alternative sources of income. A few years back, at a workshop organised by the Meghalaya Aids Control Society (MACS) in the state, we attended a session on sex work. There we asked a question that today we feel embarrassed to own up to: “Why would anyone choose to do sex work?” You can imagine how the temperature of the room – full of sex worker rights activists – plummeted. We can’t even remember what response we got from the panel, but we do recall the conversation we had later with an employee of the Society.
“Discrimination and stigma against sex workers generates violence”
Most of us (as STIEH announced) grew up in a matriarchal society and are fed particular “narratives” around what is “right and wrong” from birth. But as a young girl at a Catholic school I was taught that only bad girls had sex. Some girls were even described as “tusok” because, allegedly, all the boys in the neighbouring schools had slept with them. It was only when stories started to spread about who I had slept with that I realised that rumours were just that. It took many more years before I began to question why our Khasi Society tries so hard to control women’s bodies, choices and sexualities.
On the way back home, another Shillong-based social worker explained to me that people are entitled to make choices about their life, that they may make different decisions depending on their current life circumstances, and that for many people sex work is a logical choice. That very conversation started a journey for me. I began to think about sex work as legitimate work, and eventually started to work with others to create spaces where activists, including sex workers and other historically oppressed groups, are able to share the realities of their own lives with other people.
Ten years ago, I saw there was a need for an association focused on sex workers rights as Amnesty International puts it: Sex Workers rights are Human Rights. So, I brought together a group of disadvantaged women who earn a living through sex work, to work together and defend fellow sex workers. The following year, in April 2011, our first official “Get Together” took place where participants spoke about the violence that they all faced in Meghalaya, from Student Union leaders, politicians and police officers in particular, who arrest and rape them, before robbing them of their earnings.
We were clear that these acts of violence are perpetrated against us because our work is criminalised. So, we call for its decriminalisation – a demand long made by several sex worker activists in the country. According to Human Rights, consortium: “To a large extent, the violence in the lives of sex workers is created by the conditions of criminalisation. Sex work is not inherently violent but discrimination and stigma against sex workers generates violence and limits sex workers access to justice.”
Some of the stigma faced by us sex workers comes from self-professed “feminists” (two in particular from STIEH) who seek to end sex work, and conflate the trade with human trafficking. Yet the difference is clear. Sex work is undertaken by consenting adults and human trafficking is not. As stated by Human Rights Watch, “…in reality, anti-trafficking investigations are often racist, anti sex-work and anti-migrant. The intersection of criminal laws, immigration laws and municipal bylaws are used against migrant sex workers while human rights violations against these workers are justified by labelling them as illegal workers and criminals.”
Clearly, people don’t switch in an instance from being a feminist who judges the work of others to advocating/defending for sex workers’ rights – so I want to share some of what has helped expand my understanding of this subject. I started reading books, articles and resources about sex work. I also attended panels, events and conversations convened by sex workers and their allies outside the Ri Tip-Briew Tip-Blei of Meghalaya to get a deeper understanding of the issue. When you listen to the people who are most affected by an issue, you are more likely to gain a deeper understanding of that issue. On social media, I followed some sex worker activists and human rights crusaders such as Hasina Kharbhih, Agnes Kharshiing, Angela Rangad, Rica Lamar, Meena Kharkongor and Patricia Mukhim and their posts and insights into their work continue to give us members of RAM opportunities to learn and grow.
Sadly, the issue of sex workers’ rights here in Matrilineal Meghalaya continues to be a point of tension for the feminist movement, and there are too many feminists who today feel how I felt ten years ago when I put together RAM. All I can encourage those feminists to do is to open their hearts and minds, and to listen to sex workers. It is way past the time for all feminists to recognise that advocating for sex workers’ rights is a fundamental contribution towards the battle to end violence against women and girls.
It is time for us all to suspend judgement, and to join sex workers in advocating for rights and justice for all… Because, after all, we’re humans too!
Yours etc.,
- Kharmuti (President), P. Mylliemngap (General Secretary) & D. Mawlong (Publicty Secretary)
Rot Association Of Meghalaya (RAM)
Shillong – 19
Vacant nursing posts at NEIGRIHMS
Editor,
Very soon NEIGRIHMS will conduct a written test for filling up the vacancies for the post of nurses (Entry Pay of Rs.44,900/-) vide Advertisement No.NEIGR-E.III/10/2016/Pt dated 26.02.2019 which was 2 years ago (which clearly shows that there is no urgency in the matter since vacancies can be filled by contractual staff). The designation for nurses was re-designated to Nursing Officer few years back with the same qualifications but higher pay. As someone who wants to see this Institute growing in the right direction, I would like to point out some facts which need to be addressed before such vacancies are being filled.
As per the advertisement the reservation for the said number of posts will be All India basis which is SC-15%, ST-7.5%, OBC- 27% and the remaining will be UR and EWS. Looking at this distribution it is very clear that employment opportunities for our youth in the state has been treated as the least important. After enquiring, it is understood that since the pay band is high and falls under group “B”category, the All India Reservation Policy is to be followed as per rule. Going deeper into the spirit of the rules it is obvious that it was meant for filling up few group “B” posts like Section Officer etc., where there are not enough candidates available from the local or regional population. It is also learnt that earlier before the pay revision this post fell under “C” group category and a regional reservation was followed which is SC-1%, ST-44%, OBC-5% and UR-50%. The question is, whether the All India Reservation Policy will benefit the patients in this Institute since the majority of nurses will be coming from the others states of India when 99% of patients are from the region and 85% are from the state of Meghalaya? Is not the name of this Institute REGIONAL?
Then why is the All India Reservation criterion being applied for filling up these vacancies? In fact, we have enough candidates for these posts to be filled by our own local job aspiring candidates which will provide income to many households. These posts are the most highly paid in the Institute with only matriculate and GNM as main qualifications criteria. I cannot but ask myself, what is the state government doing when the Health Minister is the member of the Governing Council by default? How can the State Government wash its hands on this matter when they had been hands in glove to oust the last Director of this Institute without thinking about a replacement? What is the stand of the NGOs on this? I hope someone listens and stops this nonsense which keeps on happening in this institute which doesn’t have even a permanent Director till date and is actually being run by a monarchy !
Yours etc.,
A Rani,
Via email