The senate of Bremen, a city in Germany, has awarded the 17th Bremen Solidarity Award to Garment Labourer Union president Rukmini V P in recognition of her activism and contribution to the women’s rights movement.
The award, which carried a purse of 10,000 euros and a sculpture by Bremen artist Bernd Altenstein, was presented by Andreas Bovenschulte, Mayor of the Free Hanseatic City of Bremen.
The winner of the 17th prize was chosen for the “commitment to combat violence against women and girls” and Rukmini Vaderapura Puttaswamy, co-founder of Munnade and GLU was chosen for her work in the sector.
“Women have been working in the garment factories for many years, but we do not see any improvement in their working and living conditions. The governments of the developed countries in the Western world must be aware of the labour rights abuses suffered by workers in the producing countries of the Global South. They must take responsibility for them (workers) and take appropriate measures to address them...” Rukmini Vaderapura Puttaswamy said at the event held in the upper town hall in Bremen.
“Multinational fashion groups that do not comply with the social and environmental standards in the supply chain contribute to the exploitation of women just as much as consumers with their shopping behaviour and politics, which have so far limited their legal options,” Bovenschulte said.
Previous winners of the award include Nelson and Winnie Mandela (1988), Aung San Suu Kyi (1994), Sumaya Farhat-Naser (Palestine) and Gila Svirsky (Isreal) in 2003.