Despite rapid economic growth and panoply of laws mandating access to reproductive health care, India consistently has the highest incidence of maternal death worldwide, currently carrying 20% of the global burden. As the only Indian-based NGO utilizing litigation, public education, and creative activism to address maternal mortality, we at the Human Rights Law Network (HRLN) are honouring the 100th celebration of International Women’s Day by counting the ways. Counting the ways in which all of us, in our respective mediums and platforms, can raise awareness and demand government accountability for preventable maternal deaths.
On 5th March, we’ll be hosting Mera Haq: Surviving Pregnancy in India in New Delhi, India. Told through the untimely death of our former client Shanti Devi, Mera Haq recounts Shanti’s journey to maternal death, a journey tragically representative of the hundreds of thousands of women and girls who have lost their lives during pregnancy. Through film, photography, and dialogue Mera Haq highlights the systemic barriers in accessing basic medical care and the devastating impact of maternal death. It further honours the resilience of families and communities to challenge human rights denials as a foregone outcome for the poor.
In Shanti’s case, her family sought accountability and a restoration of dignity for violations of Shanti’s reproductive rights and turned to the courts in Laxmi Mandal v. Deen Dayal Harinagar Hospital & ORS, W.P.(C) 8853/2008. In a groundbreaking judgment issued by Justice S. Muralidhar of the Delhi High Court, the government was ordered to pay compensation for Shanti’s preventable death. For the first time in history, maternal mortality was recognized as a human rights violation in contravention of Article 21 of the Indian Constitution.
Through litigation, HRLN’s Reproductive Rights Unit has begun to challenge the notion that preventable maternal death is an unfortunate fatality, disconnected to poverty, discrimination, and deprivation. Indeed, stories like Laxmi, a homeless woman who delivered on the busy streets of Central Delhi and died five days later due to the absence of medical assistance; or Varsha, a poor woman who was denied emergency obstetric care and consequently lost her life and that of her unborn child; clearly demonstrate that maternal deaths do not exist in isolation.
However, the legal system is only one avenue in tackling maternal mortality. Critical to this effort is awareness raising through persistent dialogue and creative expression. Mera Haq aims to create a space to share stories, stimulate ideas, and inspire action against maternal mortality.
Mera Haq film premiere, photo exhibition and panel discussion will be held at the India Islamic Centre Ampitheatre on 5th March, 2011. The exhibit will further be displayed in cultural institutes around Delhi. For more information on Mera Haq and our work, please visit www.hrln.org.
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