Right To Pee
Right To Pee is a national campaign based in India, advocating for equitable access to clean, safe, and free urinals for women. The campaign started in Mumbai, addressing issues at the intersection of health, water, sanitation, and gender-based violence.
Background
India has consistently recorded inequity in access[1]. As per a report by United Nations in India, more than 90% of urban residents have access to sanitation facilities compared to only 39% in rural India. Additionally, 44% of the population continues to defecate in the open.[2] The United Nations recognises sanitation as a human right and emphasises the need to address the needs of women and children. Lack of access to sanitation resources affects the health of women and children directly. A WaterAid report states that, on average, a woman menstruates for 3500 days of her life, yet little attention is given to creating WASH infrastructure around women’s health.[3] A senior police official in Bihar said some 400 women would have "escaped" rape last year if they had toilets in their homes.[4] A report by Dasra stated that as much as 30% of women forced to go to toilets outside have faced safety challenges because of a lack of safe urinals.[5]
Campaign Activities
Right to Pee campaign emerged out of the Mumbai-based organisation CORO, attempting to tackle some of these issues that marginalized communities in India face, especially women.[6]
It is a collective campaign initiated, incubated, and nurtured by CORO and is now participated in by 33 organisations in Mumbai.[7] They are collectively participating in higher-level advocacy for clean, safe, free public urinals for women, considering the need and the gendered aspect of the issue.
The campaign’s initial demands revolved around urinals and toilets for women as a facility that must be provided to them in the public sphere.[8] Progressively, the gendered dimensions became more explicit, and the campaign extended itself to tackle the biases within implementing systems.
The campaign has also developed a ‘Right to City’ component, through Right to Pee, focusing on gender and space in a rights-based framework.[9]
Methodology
The campaign team follows a multi-stakeholder approach, working with Development Plan (DP) authorities in Mumbai, Railway authorities, district authorities, and women sarpanchs (elected village heads). The campaign works by conducting surveys and analysis of public sanitation facilities across Mumbai.[10] Right To Pee has also filed an Environmental Interest Litigation with other advocacy groups to demand that manufacturers of sanitary pads include a means of disposal with their products.[9]
Impact
The Right To Pee campaign has surveyed over 170 public and community toilets and assessed 169 toilet locations.[6]
References
This article "Right To Pee" is from Wikipedia. The list of its authors can be seen in its historical and/or the page Edithistory:Right To Pee. Articles copied from Draft Namespace on Wikipedia could be seen on the Draft Namespace of Wikipedia and not main one.
- ↑ "Lack of toilets adds to women’s woes - Livemint". www.livemint.com. Retrieved 2019-01-19.
- ↑ "Health, Water and Sanitation". UN India. Retrieved 2019-01-19.
- ↑ "Female-friendly public and community toilets: a guide for planners and decision makers | WASH Matters". washmatters.wateraid.org. Retrieved 2019-01-19.
- ↑ Biswas, Soutik (2014-05-30). "Why India's sanitation crisis kills women". Retrieved 2019-01-19.
- ↑ Safecity. "How poor sanitation is affecting India's women | Safecity". Retrieved 2019-01-19.
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 Javaid, Maham. "The City Where Hundreds Of Women Must Use The Same Toilet & Wait In Line For Hours". www.refinery29.com. Retrieved 2019-01-19.
- ↑ Dias, Chryselle D'Silva (2016-02-29). "The Women in India Fighting for the Right to Pee". Broadly. Retrieved 2019-01-19.
- ↑ Ramesh, Sarmishta (2014-12-12). "The "Right to Pee" Movement for Access to Bathrooms Is Gaining Momentum Across India". Huffington Post. Retrieved 2019-01-19.
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 Network, CRIS. "Right To Pee". CORO India. Retrieved 2019-01-19.
- ↑ "Women in India agitate for their right to pee". Public Radio International. Retrieved 2019-01-19.
