SPEECH BY THE PRESIDENT OF INDIA, SMT. PRATIBHA DEVISINGH PATIL, AT THE MEETING WITH PROMINENT VIETNAMESE WOMEN LEADERS AT VIETNAM WOMEN'S UNION

Hanoi, Vietnam, 26th November 2008

Nguyen Thi Binh, Former Vice President of Vietnam,

Madame Nguyen Thi Kim Ngan, Minister of Labour - Invalids and Social Affairs,

Madame Nguyen Thi Thanh Hoa, Chairman of the Vietnam Women's Union,

I am very happy to meet you all. India and Vietnam are close friends. There is a consensus in India that relations with Vietnam must be continually strengthened and nurtured.

There is great admiration in India for Vietnamese women who have stood shoulder to shoulder with their men and have made pivotal contributions, both during the independence struggle and subsequently in national re-construction.

In India too, women joined our freedom movement in large numbers and have been contributing to nation building activities. About half of the world population is women, but unfortunately they still do not have the same opportunities as their male counterparts, and often face discrimination or social biases.

In India, the Government is seriously engaged in the task of empowerment of women and gender equality. I would like to know the situation obtaining in Vietnam; the challenges faced by you and; also the strategy you have adopted to address these difficulties.

One of the most important steps towards empowerment of women is to educate them. It is only when we spread education among women that awareness will be created and the rights of women will be fully realized. I appreciate that Vietnam has a very high literacy rate. The Vietnamese Government has thus created conducive conditions for the empowerment of women.

In India, the principle of gender equality is enshrined in the Indian Constitution. To encourage greater participation of women in national life, they have been given 33 percent representation in local bodies. Legislatures at the National and State levels have enacted laws for their protection and to promote their welfare.

Women-specific and women-related policies and programmes have been formulated and the Government is also making efforts to create enabling environment in which women's concerns can be reflected.

The women's movement in India is growing and has a wide network with grassroot presence. There are a large number of Non Government Organisations and Self Help Groups of women in India. In fact, the Self Help Groups are vehicles for undertaking income generation activities through the raising of credit facilities.

We appreciate the important role that the Vietnamese women are playing in the life of their nation. They are participating in activities ranging from agricultural operations to running businesses whether shops or companies and, at the same time, they are looking after families and strengthening the social fabric.

We support stronger ties between the women organizations of our two countries. Close ties between such organizations on two sides, will not only help in exchange of views on women issues but will promote people-to-people relations.

I recall meeting with former Vice-President, who is here today, in Delhi last year. She had then led a Vietnamese delegation for a Friendship festival, held in India. We look forward to such contacts which help in consolidating our links. I look forward to women delegations from Vietnam visiting India.

I would like to hear from you on initiatives undertaken in Vietnam. I am thankful to you for having organized this meeting for me. I wish your efforts and organization all success.

Thank You.