SEWA
- Movement
International
Homenet
Homenet is an international
network of homebased workers’ organisations, policy-makers
and researchers committed to working towards full recognition
and visibility of home-based workers as full-fledged workers with
appropriate laws, policies, social security and economic rights.
Homenet has members on every continent and remains inclose contract
through a newsletter and regional workshops with follow-up action.
Recognition of Homenet’s role came during the international
campaigns for the rights of 250 million homebased workers worldwide
leading up to the international Labour Organisation (ILO) Convention
177 which gave these workers full rights.
In 1999, Homenet
followed up on the progress with regard to ratification of the
Convention in several countries. It also spear-headed a campaign
for social security for home-based workers at the ILO and in member
countries. In addition, it began to understand the impact of globalisation
and liberalisation on homebased work. A series of workshops in
India, Thailand and Turkey were organised to examine these and
other issues affecting home based workers.
Homenet is also actively assisting
rural home-based workers especially artisans like embroiders,
organise and form networks and marketing linkages. A workshop,
" Threadlines" was organised with embroiders from Portugal,
Mexico, Bangladesh, Pakistan and six groups from India. An international
network of embroiders was formed at this workshop at which international
designers also participated and shared their knowledge and experience.
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Streetnet
Vendors from Africa,
Latin America and Asia met at Bellagio in 1994 to discuss how
they could organise internationally for just policies and laws.
Vendors want space to vend in increasingly crowded cities, licenses
and representation in urban development policies. They want to
be part of the process of formulation of the latter. They want
their contribution to the urban economy to be recognised. In 1999,
representatives of vendors organisations from Africa, North America,
Latin America and Asia met to discuss closer collaboration, strengthening
of Streetnet and organising in general. They also agreed to document
examples of ‘best practices’ in their own countries
and regions. Finally, more vendors’ organisations and unions
will be organised in Streetnet, and a large international ‘sammelan’
or convention and gathering of vendors is planed for the year
2000.
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SEWA
Movement in South Africa
the Self-Employed Women's Union (SEWU) in Durban
The Self-Employed
Women’s Union (SEWU) is a 7,000 strong union of vendors home
based workers and other informal sector workers in South africa.
Registered with 50 members in 1994, SEWU works closely with SEWA
on all issues and campaigns relating to the informal sector. SEWA
organisers and union leaders were present at the time of its establishment.
A team of SEWU organisers learned about different strategies of
organising at SEWA. SEWU has successfully struggled for vendors’
rights and obtained several policy breakthroughs. It is currently
collaborating with the Durban municipality and other local authorities
to incorporate vendors’ concerns in urban policies.
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SEWA
in Yemen
A group of 17 Yemeni
women came to SEWA for an exposure visit in 1998. The group was
headed by a Deputy Minister of the Yemeni government and included
workers, NGO staff persons, academics and government offices.
At the end of their visit, they requested SEWA for assistance
by way of a SEWA organiser to visit them in Yemen and help them
think about setting up their own organisation.
A team of two SEWA
organisers – our SEWA Academy coordinator and an experienced
SEWA Bank organiser – visited Yemen. They met women in both
urban and rural areas. A workshop was organised on SEWA’s
history, its struggles, its ideology and source of inspiration
: Gandhian thought and action. The SEWA team also had the opportunity
to visit Aden, and the house where Gandhiji had stopped briefly
en route to South Africa. They found many women engaged in home-based
work such as crafts, cane work masala-grinding and also agricultural
work including growing coffee, millet, maize wheat and vegetables.
They are also involved in salt manufacturing. The women who visited
SEWA have now formed their own membership-based workers organisation.
This was formally registered in May 1999 as the Women’s Economic
Empowerment Association (WEEA).
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SEWA
in Turkey
Through Homenet,
SEWA came into contact with Turkish women, mainly home –
based workers. Two Turkish women who were active in the women’s
and workers’ movement in Istanbul visited SEWA and requested
our support in setting up a workers’ organisation.
In October 1999,
a team of two SEWA organisers participated in a national –
level meeting of Turkish home-based workers, government officers,
NGOs and academics. We learned that there are many home-based
workers in Istanbul and other Turkish cities, as well as in the
rural areas. The workers have begun organising in their neighbourhoods
and will then decide on their form of organisation. They will
also develop linkages with contractors to give women steady work
and income. This is important, because all home-based work in
Turkey is organised through these contractors. Women do not know
their main employers.
The workers also
plan to conduct small studies to collect data on sub-contracting
chains and the linkages up to the main employers. They are forming
neighbourhood workers’ committees. An exposure visit to SEWA
is also planned.
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