OBJECTIVES

The Asian Rural Women's Conference 2008: Rights, Empowerment and Liberation will bring together rural and indigenous women from various sectors all over Asia to consolidate and strengthen the movements and groups, build solidarity and develop common strategies and action for change. As such, the objectives are to:

1. Empower the movement of rural and indigenous women i.e. peasants and agricultural workers, Dalits, fisher folk, herders and pastoralists, sex workers, domestic workers, informal workers, child labourers and minorities;

2. Facilitate a process to deepen and sharpen perspectives on rural and indigenous women's liberation and struggle for equality and right to land and productive resources, right to health and reproductive rights, right to livelihoods and safe working environment, workers rights and food sovereignty; elimination of child labour and sexual exploitation of women;

3. Consolidate rural women's movements to resist globalisation, imperialism, fundamentalism, state violence and other forms of non-state violence, militarisation, feudalism and patriarchy at all levels;

4. Develop collective strategies on achieving these rights and to strengthen our struggles and commitments; and

5. Build solidarity and unity among the Asian rural and indigenous women.