In an ideal democracy, the State mechanism is designed to determine the problem areas for its people and resolve them through necessary policy action. People and their well being is thus at the core of an exemplary public policy mechanism, which is why proactive mass action can determine the fate of the policies that the State sets out to formulate. It is hence crucial that people demand policies on existing realities that require urgent attention of the State because unless such issues garner public attention, the State can’t recognise their expanse at a scale that deserves carefully crafted policies.

At LexQuest, we believe that in the world’s largest democracy, effective public participation can turn our policy making into a transparent, accountable and smooth process where the government can acknowledge issues that the people heed and demand to be resolved.

But how can people learn enough about issues that deserve attention? How can mass action and effective public participation be ensured? How can civilians come together to determine policy actions?

Through LexQuest Foundation’s new initiative- Civic Architects: The Policy Generation Group, we promise to answer all your questions as we invite you for comprehensive sessions which will:

• Educate you about issues that need your attention.
• Enable you to think of policy solutions to deal with the menace such issues cause.
• Initiate you into the space of effective mass action.

Civic Architects will thus bring together civilians who will architect policy solutions to assist, aid and accentuate the necessary course of action required on issues that remain unnoticed even as they lurk on the fringes jeopardising the well being of many of our people. We call upon all those of you who intend to make a difference by changing the discourse of public participation and demystifying the idea of active citizenry.

Call for Action: Bride Trafficking

Bride trafficking is the illegal industry of purchasing brides as a property for due consideration. Organized traffickers sell girls and women as brides who are conned into a life of abuse, exploitation and slavery. Be it Haryana, Assam or Rajasthan, the Indian “Bride Bazaar” predominantly flourishes in parts of the country where the sex ratio is abysmally low and poverty stricken families are reluctant to spend on the dowry and marriage of their daughters. More specifically, according to the National Crime Records Bureau Report of 2012, over 22,000 girls and women between the ages of 10 and 30 are kidnapped and auctioned for marriage every year in India.    

Unfortunately, there are no significant laws and policies to wrestle bride trafficking and its  accompanying human rights violations in India. Though the Constitution of India strictly prohibits all forms of trafficking, comprehensive laws that specifically prohibit and penalize the practice of bride trafficking are yet to be implemented. India is a party to both the human rights conventions which explicitly prohibit forced marriage, namely the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women 1979 (“CEDAW”) and the Convention on the Rights of the Child 1989 (“CRC”) but the Immoral Trafficking Prevention Act, 1956 solely focuses on prostitution and fails to address the burning issue of bride trafficking. The proposed Trafficking Persons (Prevention and Rehabilitation) Bill, 2016 too is plagued with multiple legal and policy issues. Bonded Labour Act, 1976 and Juvenile Justice Act are not equipped to handle such cases either. Section 366 of the Indian Penal Code which prescribes punishment for “kidnapping, abducting or inducing a woman to compel her into marriage” is the sole remedy perhaps, which may come to a trafficked bride’s rescue. However, it has no legal provision for repatriation, rehabilitation and reintegration of victims. Evidently, in the absence of a concrete legal and policy framework, the problem of bride trafficking skilfully persists in India.

We therefore, invite you to actively engage with this compelling concern and contour a special law that assists in identification of trafficked brides and effectively differentiates between arranged and coerced marriages besides offering witness and victim protection.  

At Civic Architects: The Policy Generation Group, by extending a better understanding of and awareness about the issue of bride trafficking from a legal, cultural, social and economical perspective, we will enable our participants to outline policy solutions that can lead to effective course redressal for the depraved practice of bride trafficking, which though is a dismal reality of our times, has escaped the public eye and hence remains unacknowledged as an issue that is in imminent need of policy action.

Date: 15th September, 2018

Venue: New Delhi

Who can Apply?

If your thoughts resonate with any of the below-mentioned points, Apply Now!

Are you eager to develop an understanding of the lesser heard of issues that plague various regions of India?

Are you concerned about the conflicting realities of modern India and wish to know better?

Do you wonder what can the well educated and well equipped urban populace do for those in the hinterland?

Are you willing to take charge to voice the concerns of the voiceless?

Do you see yourself as part of a policy action group?

Do you want to change the paradigm of active citizenry?

Would you like to be a part of a movement to stir the government towards positive action?

Maximum Number of Participants: 35.

Deadline for Application: 31st August, 2018.

Takeaways:

• Engage with civil society entrepreneurs, government personnel, grassroot workers and lawyers.
• Elaborate discourse on issues that need urgent attention for empowered action from your end.
• Knowledge dispensation through interactive pedagogical methodology.
• Socratic Group Discussions for effective reflections.
• Device efficacious policy solutions which will be collated and sent to the Government.
• The Top 3 Civic Architects will get to work with us closely, on formulating and compiling the Policy Recommendations to be sent to the relevant Ministry. Their names will also be included in the Working Document.
• Each participant will be eligible to receive a Certificate of Participation.
• Each participant will be eligible to receive a Concession in Fees and First Preference for our successive events.

Fees: Rs 3000 per Participant. [This is inclusive of Registration, Certificate, Architect’s Kit and Lunch].

Method of Selection: Fill this form to be considered for selection. As the seat intake is limited, we will follow the ‘first come, first serve’ approach.

Contact Details:

Email ID: events.lexquest@gmail.com

Contact Numbers: +91-8448922751 | +91-7042068202 | +91-9929451140