Can women's fund really cut violence?
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I am also proud of the prime minister's speech on "Women as the way forward" at the WEF annual meeting in Davos, Switzerland.
She said that as a woman, she was proud to be Thai as she had a chance to receive an education, run a company and become the first female premier.
She called for a goal to end inequity and violence against women in society.
She has established a national women’s development fund as a mechanism to solve these problems.
As far as I know, this fund will be launched on March 8, which is International Women’s Day.
The prime minister will contribute Bt100 million per province or Bt7.7 billion in total – allocating 60-80 per cent to loans to invest in career development and the remaining 20-40 per cent to pay [to help] poor women who meet with misfortune.
The focus is on reducing income inequality.
I do not see how this fund will help reduce gender inequality, especially violence against women – whether violation or maltreatment. This has been a chronic problem for a long time.
In fact, this issue cannot be solved by using funds directly. There are several women networks to help take care of it.
But why does the prime minister not take this opportunity to show a leadership role in using this fund to change people’s thinking and beliefs so that women receive acceptance, and are accredited and respected in the same way men are?
Otherwise, how will the prime minister answer the issue of this fund – to end violence against women – when it is mentioned in the next stage, at the WEF’s East Asia meeting in Thailand?
Sutipunt Bongsununt
Kanchanaburi
