Full Coverage: Social exclusion

27.02.2008 When a dalit widow was appointed as cook in a government-run school in northern Indian state of Uttar Pradesh, no one was ready to eat the food cooked and served by her. Everyone conspired to sack her and saw to it that she was never reinstated.

27.02.2008 At least five Nepali gays will contest elections for the Constituent Assembly, scheduled to be held this April, to take up the issue of discrimination against their community. In a nation that treats homosexuality as illegal and immoral, this is an attempt to fight exclusion.

22.02.2008

21.02.2008 Insufficient statistics and lack of a sound HIV/AIDS prevention policy are undermining Bangladesh’s efforts to protect people against its risks. It is necessary to break the barriers of social stigmas attached to the disease and promote condom use beyond family planning purposes, say health experts.

19.02.2008 Being a widow in a socially backward and less developed country is hard. Subjected to ostracism, exploitation and harassment, they are forced to live in poverty and deprivation. President of UK-based Loomba Trust, Cherie Blair says that the UN needs to increase its focus on emancipation of widows.

19.02.2008 In a step taken to protect rights of sexual minorities, the state of Tamil Nadu in southern India has announced the establishment of a welfare board for transgenders. The move followed a public hearing by NGOs on the plight of the community and recommendations by a citizens’ jury.

11.02.2008 Young women need to be part of an organisation to understand the 'collective consciousness', says Ruth Manorama, whose efforts have helped make a space for Dalit women in the mainstream feminist movement in India. In a close conversation, she looks back at her three decades of struggles and many victories.

06.02.2008 Nepal’s recent decision to resettle refugees from Bhutan in third countries is good news for over 107,000 people who have lived in camps for the last 17 years. The first groups of refugees are expected to begin departing next month.

04.02.2008 Islam may have been perceived as an egalitarian religion without any oppressive and hierarchal social order, but Indian Muslim society is typically caste-ridden. Rajender Singh Negi of OneWorld South Asia takes an overview of the prevalence of poverty and backwardness among what is now referred to as pasmanda Muslim community.

02.02.2008 Measuring India’s Progress on the Millennium Development Goals – A Citizens’ Report, published by Wada Na Todo Abhiyan (WNTA) provides an overview of the progress made on MDGs in India with a strong focus on the challenges faced by dalits, denotified tribes and the Muslims.