On the concluding day of the UN System’s 16 Days of Activism against gender-based violence and to mark the observation of the International Human Rights Day, several civil society organisations wrote a letter to Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik to make all workplaces harassment free so that women and girls can live in a better and safer society.
They also urged the State Government to make guidelines to check online violence against women and girls.
The letter was sent by the Atmashakti Trust, Mahila Shramajeebee Mancha, Odisha and Odisha Shramajeebee Mancha, on behalf of a network of CSOs, community members and individuals working with rural and tribal communities, marginalised women across 17 districts of Odisha.
They urged the Government to create a special website for information on women's rights and violence-related cases; appoint special investigative teams to address all issues related to violence against women and bring justice to all categories of women immediately, with a focus on the employment of 75 per cent of women in the group; open a special women's court to address all forms of violence against women and to bring justice to all categories of women; provide incentives with special facilities for the protection of witnesses in all cases of violence against women and ensure that all forms of violence against women are addressed, legal provisions explained in public at various Gramsabha and Pallisabha among others.