With 8th March upon us, all we hear is Women’s Day and women's empowerment. It always makes me ask, Why do we celebrate women’s day? So, I decided that understanding these two words individually would shed more light. Women don’t need a definition or maybe are beyond one. That brings us to the next word, let’s see what the dictionary defines it as. Empowerment means people having power and control over their own lives. Empowerment means that people are equal citizens. They are respected and confident in their communities. 

First, society takes away freedoms from women, makes separate rules for them, a list of dos and don’ts, and then lifts those rules, gives them back some of the freedoms, and says we have empowered them. At first, we snatch it away, then we return it, and we give it the fancy name of empowerment.

Women’s empowerment as we see it today can be defined as promoting women’s sense of self-worth, their ability to determine their own choices, and their right to influence social change for themselves and others. I cannot see one reason why the society would not do its upmost best to give women their right due in society, treat them as equal to their male counterparts. No one is asking for extra privileges, just the right of equality, which is the bedrock of every civilised nation.

We will have truly evolved when we stop celebrating Women’s Day as one day in the calendar. Are we supposed to respect them, give flowery speeches, post pictures of social media praising them for one day and forget about them for rest of the 364 days of the year? Please stop this practice. Just like the nature around us, which is always present and there for us, women have been there since the beginning of civilisation. In fact, they are the source of civilisation, because without them there would be no civilisation to speak of (remember Adam and Eve). 

In every country, there has been a history of suffering that women had to endure. We are living in a digital age, in smart cities, can we at least get this basic right of equality for women. There are various ways how we can make this happen. Education for girls must be made compulsory so that women can become literate to make a life for themselves. Learn in order to earn, should be the motto. Women must be given equal opportunities in every field along with equal pay. The shame of divorce and abuse must be thrown out of the window. Many women stay in abusive relationships because of the fear of society. 

Women's empowerment is the process of providing women with all of the rights and amenities available in society so that they can live freely and without fear or limitation. Women should be granted the same rights as men in society, with no gender discrimination. Is that asking for too much? Women can handle the homes, children, jobs, board meetings and the list are endless. They have reached the Moon and Everest. There is nothing to prove to anyone. A diamond shines, unless we cover it with layers of dust (shackles). Remove the dust or shackles and see it in its full splendour. The same is the case with women. Just let us shine.

By profession, I am a lawyer, but I am a writer by passion. I am immensely grateful for the opportunities I’ve had to write for newspapers and magazines. The advent of the internet allowed my audience to expand globally. I am fortunate to be living in UAE, that treats women as equal partners in the progress of the nation.

Who could have said it better, than Maya Angelou- “I am a woman, phenomenally. Phenomenal woman, that’s me.”

Shilpa Bhasin Mehra is a legal consultant based in Dubai and the founder of Focal

Contact:.https://www.linkedin.com/in/shilpabhasinmehra