Proceedings to the Asian Rural Women's Conference: Rights, Empowerment and Liberation 2008

The Conference Proceedings covers stories and testimonies of the struggles and resilience of rural women and their collective responses and strategies against corporate globalisation, fundamentalism and militarisation. It reflects the diverse experiences of rural women in Asian communities, how they developed stronger womenfs perspectives and alternatives; and strengthened solidarity of Asian rural women.

The historical event brought together more than 700 rural women leaders and representatives, national womenfs groups, regional networks, public interest groups and activists from over 130 organisations in 21 countries in 5 regions in Asia. It made a series of gfirstsh for rural women in the region. It gathered the most widely represented conference of rural women leaders and womenfs organisations from different sectors ? from peasant, agricultural workers, indigenous peoples, fisherfolk, pastoralists, sex workers, domestic and informal workers, Dalits and minorities. A Rural Womenfs Declaration was adopted that was a product of sharing, recommendations and strategies. The event led to the formation of the Asian Rural Womenfs Coalition (ARWC) with women in various sectors committing to build a stronger network of rural womenfs movements.  This was also the first time that rural women specifically collected in such large numbers in India on the occasion of the International Womenfs Day. A Steering Committee, a collective of national alliances and regional formations working on womenfs issues in Asia, facilitated the entire process and is now responsible for the continued coordination of the coalition (ARWC).