Taslima Nasreen, an award-winning writer, physician, secular humanist and human rights activist, is known for her powerful writings on women oppression and unflinching criticism of religion, despite forced exile and multiple fatwas calling for her death. In India, Bangladesh and abroad, Nasreen’s fiction, nonfiction, poetry and memoir have topped the best-seller’s list.

Taslima Nasreen was born in Bangladesh. She started writing when she was 13. Her writings won the hearts of people across the border and she landed with the prestigious literary award Ananda from India in 1992. Taslima won The Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought from the European Parliament in 1994. She received the Kurt Tucholsky Award from Swedish PEN, the Simone de Beauvoir Award and Human Rights Award from Government of France, Le Prix de l' Edit de Nantes from the city of Nantes, France, Academy prize from the Royal Academy of arts, science and literature from Belgium. She is a Humanist Laureate in The International Academy for Humanism,USA. She won Distinguished Humanist Award from International Humanist and Ethical Union, Free-thought Heroine award from Freedom From Religion foundation, USA., IBKA award, Germany,and Feminist Press Award, USA . She got the UNESCO Madanjeet Singh prize for Promotion of the Tolerance and Non-violence in 2005. She received the Medal of honor of Lyon. She got honorary citizenship from Paris, Nantes, Lyon, Metz, Thionville, Esch etc. Taslima was awarded the Condorcet-Aron Prize at the “Parliament of the French Community of Belgium” in Brussels and Ananda literary award again in 2000.

Bestowed with honorary doctorates from Gent University and UCL in Belgium, and American University of Paris and Paris Diderot University in France, she has addressed gatherings in major venues of the world like the European Parliament, National Assembly of France, Universities of Sorbonne, Oxford, Harvard, Yale, etc. She got fellowships as a research scholar at Harvard and New York Universities. She was a Woodrow Wilson Fellow in the USA in 2009.

Taslima has written 40 books in Bengali, which includes poetry, essays, novels and autobiography series. Her works have been translated in thirty different languages. Some of her books are banned in Bangladesh. Because of her thoughts and ideas she has been banned, blacklisted and banished from Bengal, both from Bangladesh and West Bengal part of India. She has been prevented by the authorities from returning to her country since 1994, and to West Bengal since 2007.

Calicut university is an institution of nonsense patriarchy!

The University of Calicut invites nominations for the Golden Mother Award, 2013.

They claim,

The objective of the programme is to highlight the contribution of mothers to societal development and nation building and to provide exemplary models to the youngsters.

The university is glorifying motherhood.

The University of Calicut is honoring with prizes, women who have secured superior achievements in diverse walks of life and have, alongside, fulfilled the responsibilities of motherhood in an exemplary fashion. Those who have made strides in areas such as social work, politics, government, sports, agriculture, industrial entrepreneurship, engineering, medicine, literature, art, research, law, police, banking, teaching at different levels will be considered for the Golden Mother Award. Individuals may nominate themselves or be nominated by others. The application form is available on the University website (www.universityofcalicut.info)

Details of achievements in different sectors, challenges faced, and awards won must provided. The Vice Chancellor Dr M. Abdulsalam said that the institution of the Golden Mother Award was rooted in the fact that a virtuous society can be created only through virtuous mothers. Applications may be sent to The Director,Centre for Women’s Studies, Calicut University PO 673635, before 15 November. (relevant phone numbers) PR2212/13.

Universities are supposed to enlighten students, but by creating golden mother award, it seems one of the universities is dragging its students towards the dark ages.

They must stop glorifying motherhood. Educated, independent and intelligent women might not like to marry and have kids. Let women take total control of their own bodies. Let women decide what they want to do with their wombs. It does not need a brain to be a mother. It just needs sexual intercourse. Patriarchal society is making women’s life hell by forcing them to marry and be submissive, to be a child bearing machine, a sex object and a slave of men.

Mothering is a misogynistic term, it should be ‘parenting’. By giving importance to mothering, you ignore the roles of fathers. Parenting makes easier for a working mother and father to balance work and family. It needs a partnership that rejects traditional patriarchal models of motherhood. When the world is talking about planned parenthood, Calicut university is stuck with motherhood.

It’s not a university’s responsibility to encourage women to become mothers. University should encourage women to become dignified personalities, independent and respected human beings. It is totally women’s personal matter whether they want to reproduce. Like a conservative patriarchal guardian Calicut university crossed the university boundary and entered women’s private bedrooms. It is alarming.

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Calicut university is an institution of nonsense patriarchy!

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