In the month of November 2015, Vimochana in association with the Indian branch of the international movement of Women in Black will be holding the XVI Biennial Gathering of the Women in Black on the theme Women Against War and The Wars Against Women at Arli Maraa, Vimochana’s rural Space in Kolar district. This is a five day event (November 15th to 19th) including workshops, the World Court of Women and the Women in Black vigil where we gather together in the streets of Bengaluru, wearing black and protesting the violence of wars and the systemic violence perpetrated on women by society.

The World Court of Women Against War for Peace in association with Mount Carmel College, Bengaluru will take place on the November 16th 2015 from 9 am at the premises of Mount Carmel College, Palace Road, Bengaluru. We ask you to stand in solidarity with these women by being a keen listener to their experiences while they share them. Your presence in this court will help bring these issues to the forefront and even make you redefine your ideas of reality and the knowledge that the mainstream society has fed us for centuries. It provides a glimpse into the vast world that has been hidden from the eyes of the public.

This World Court will address several issues of the outcomes of war. Testimonies will arise from different parts of the world all contesting against the violence of war, and even in times of peace, the impact it has on women and marginal groups in rebuilding lives and communities after conflict. The World Court becomes a space and platform to accentuate the voice of those that have deliberately been silenced by society - voices of women, of those that reside in the margins, voices of those expected by society to remain voiceless. It becomes an exercise to challenge and rewrite the dominant discourse of history. The intention of the world courts is to question retributive justice and allow for the growth of a restorative justice and a justice of healing arising from the voices and experiences of those who have gone unheard for decades and centuries.

Your presence at the Vigil on November 18th at 4 pm outside the MG Road metro station can help direct the attention of Bangaloreans to these issues that have been side lined by our society. At the same time, you can be connected in solidarity with all the women who have braved wars and come out to share their experiences, and rebuild their lives from shattered situations.

For updates please visit http://www.womeninblack.in