Vishen Kemraj
I RECENTLY attended the 65th anniversary of the Saraswathi Mahila Mandal (SMM). For any organisation to have survived six decades is indeed admirable.
The SMM was founded in 1961 in Clairwood by three women, Mrs Bal Ganesh, Mrs Rajmathy Harisingh and Mrs M Ramklaas.
Their main aim was to empower women in the community. This was at a time when women were still regarded as second class citizens and had to ask their husbands for permission to attend meetings of women only. Try telling the young women of today that they must ask for permission to attend any event and you would probably get a mouthful. Because they are already empowered by virtue of the more liberal upbringing and education that they have.
Back in the day, the woman’s job was to be a homemaker. And the man’s job was to be the breadwinner. Nowadays, women may be breadwinners and men are house-husbands! Our ancestors must surely be crying in heaven at these goings on. Also, men were (and still may be) suspicious at what goes on at these women-only meetings.
