United Indian Associations celebrates International Women’s Day with a beyondblue bash!

United Indian Association celebrated International Women’s Day on 5th March, 2016 at Parravilla Function Centre, Parramatta. This year’s celebrations included a beyondblue bash to raise valuable funds for beyondblue.

Each year, all around the world, International Women’s Day (IWD) is celebrated on March 8. International Women’s Day is a global event which celebrates the economic, political and social achievements of women. It is also a day for us to pause and think about the areas where women are less than equal and where a lot of work is yet to be done to rectify this gender imbalance. The theme for this year was Pledge for Parity.

UIA has been celebrating International Women’s Day event every year for the past 9 years with the particular objective of providing Australian Indian women – particularly those who have recently migrated – with a platform to network, exchange ideas, provide and receive peer support.

This year’s function focused on Mental Health and Wellbeing. Research shows one in five Australians experience a mental illness at some time in their life. Incidences of mental illness are now third highest after cancer and heart disease. Depression, anxiety and suicide can affect people from all cultures and studies have highlighted that people from diverse backgrounds encounter difficulties when accessing mental health services and finding help. Additional barriers include stigma associated with mental health condition, lack of knowledge about available services, social isolation and differing cultural attitudes towards mental health. Many services are available free under Medicare but are not being accessed by the community.

Sumati Advani, Chair of the Women’s Steering Committee said, “A woman is the glue that keeps the whole family together and helps it prosper – Her mental health and wellbeing lays the strongest foundation for the family to grow. We all need to take a moment out of our busy schedules to make all around us feel special and wanted – this could make a great difference to their emotional wellbeing and help them cope with their life challenges. Look for the five signs of withdrawal, agitation, hopelessness, decline in personal care and changes in personality. All you have to do is ask: R U OK and seek help if required.”

John Kennedy, UIA President said, “Gender equity can be achieved if we keep on fighting for this right and continue to support women to take up challenging roles in government and in employment.” He congratulated UIA women’s steering committee chairperson Sue Advani for her outstanding effort to bring awareness among women about various issues affecting them.

Speakers on the day included Rekha Rajvanshi who recited a special poem she penned for the event, Monica Das who represented beyondblue and shared her life experience with the audience, Nazmin Khan from Relationships Australia, Anoop Johar, Bilingual Community Education Co-ordinator and Didarbhai Avadia, Laughter Yoga practitioner who had the audience laughing together. A newly arrived Indian migrant spoke of the valuable English language and work place learning she has received from Navitas.

Many local MPs attended the event and shared important information – Dr Geoff Lee, State MP for Parramatta representing the NSW Premier, Jodi McKay, State MP for Strathfield representing NSW Opposition Leader, Julie Owens, Federal MP for Parramatta, Michelle Rowland, Federal MP for Greenway, Julia Finn, State MP for Granville and Senator Lee Rhiannon.

Delicious food provided by Parravilla, laughter yoga, bingo and raffle and a photo booth set up by Parul Mehta – the audience had an afternoon of fun and helped raise valuable funds for beyondblue.

The free event was made possible through sponsorship by Multicultural NSW and Navitas.

This year’s Women’s Steering Committee members included, Mrs Sumati Advani (Chair), Dr Nagamma Prakash, Dr Anju Agarwal, Dr Varsha Tembe, Shalini Ponnaiya, Mala Chandani, Honey Rupani and Aboorva Sundar.

The UIA Women’s Steering Committee looks forward to its 10 year celebration next year!

If you or someone you know needs help – please contact beyondblue on 1300224636 or Lifeline on 131114.