Women's Literacy in Afghanistan Page 3
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From: esp150@psu.edu
Subject: Re: [WomenLiteracy] More on literacy programs in Afghanistan
Date: November 30, 2005 1:59:36 PM EST
To: womenliteracy@dev.nifl.gov
Andrea Cornwall has written a good article on these issues. Despite the rhetoric--that gender refers to relations of power between and among men and women--most education and development projects still try to promote gender equity by focusing exclusively on women.
Cornwall, A. (2000). Missing men? Reflections on men, masculinities and gender in GAD. IDS Bulletin, 31(2), 18-27. Available from: http://www.ids.ac.uk/ids/particip/research/gender/missmen.pdf
Esther
From: bedwards@kennesaw.edu
Subject: [WomenLiteracy] demonstrated power
Date: November 30, 2005 4:29:16 PM EST
To: WomenLiteracy@dev.nifl.gov
Ujwala,
I agree that literacy alone does not equal power. However, being able to read, write, and calculate can give these women the strength and ability to act — to someday effect change within their communities. They become great role models for their children. They have the potential to change their future. That, in itself, is pretty powerful. I guess it depends on how you define power. If literacy is enabling these women to help their families and their community, and providing an opportunity for them to learn everything they can I think that's pretty powerful. These women seem to be strong and resilient. Do they see themselves as strong and resilient? Can you speak to their self image? How do they see themselves?
Belinda
Belinda P. Edwards
Instructor of Mathematics
Mailbox #1204
Kennesaw State University
Phone: 770-420-4727
Fax: 770-423-6629
From: lalumineuse@yahoo.com
Subject: Re: [WomenLiteracy] More on literacy programs in Afghanistan
Date: November 30, 2005 4:55:57 PM EST
To: womenliteracy@dev.nifl.gov
Thanks for that link Esther.
Very interesting reading.... the women I worked with
(and still do) told me that they had to involve men
and boys because these would be the future men of the
communities, and would be their sons-in-law. In one
community that had lost many generations of men to
intergenerational alcoholism, women said that by
involving the men, they were securing a better future
for their daughters. Some of these same women who
worked in middle class homes as maids could not
understand the quiet oppression of their middle-class
female employers.
Ujwala
From: lalumineuse@yahoo.com
Subject: Re: [WomenLiteracy] demonstrated power
Date: November 30, 2005 5:13:54 PM EST
To: womenliteracy@dev.nifl.gov
Belinda,
I can't speak for the Afghani women. But my interviews showed that women found that being able to read, write and calculate gave them a sense of independence. Some said that after years of feeling invisible in the cities, they felt as if they were now visible and able to negotiate the city.
I agree that literacy alone does not equal power. However, being able to read, write, and calculate can give these women the strength and ability to act
- to someday effect change within their communities.
They become great role models for their children.
<<
People will effect change only if they see a need for it. Prior to becoming literate, are we assuming that these women were not strong or effective? I can't and don't make that assumption. In fact in a number of Indian villages and slums (I believe Lalita Ramdas also had an article about this in the 1990s) literacy was seen as useful ONLY if it was linked to employment. Literacy is as powerful as the people who acquire it, see it to be. A number of women I've talked to said they felt the need to be literate when they moved to the city slums from their villages. So, whilst I see literacy as the first step towards awareness and a necessary tool for development, sometimes it can be hard convincing everyone that it is, especially if they don't see a direct need for it. I visited a Khan's house in Pakistan. It was a wealthy household with a huge house, lots of land and three generations living under the same roof. The difference between the men and women, in terms of clothes, health, hygiene and education was marked. The girls were obviously being kept until they were married off. The men went to the nearest city and wore fancy clothes and had impeccable hairdos with gel etc. The young boys were driven to the city school. The girls? at home. It has taken years to convince this family to build a school (in the back near the buffalo shed) for the girls living in that compound!!
They have the potential to change their future. That, in itself, is pretty powerful. I guess it depends on how you define power. If literacy is enabling these women to help their families and their community, and providing an opportunity for them to learn everything they can I think that's pretty powerful. These women seem to be strong and resilient. Do they see themselves as strong and resilient? Can you speak to their self image? How do they see themselves?<<
It's difficult to generalise. I've seen cases where women who are not literate but are seen as extremely wise. Often thesde women can act as social mobilisers to get communities and women mobilised into participating in development. I've had women who even after an education are happy to make rotis and not venture out of their homes. They have the potential to change their future to what they see as powerful, as valid as relevant to their society.
I've seen women with sexy lingerie and make up like Bollywood stars (who are quite adored in the sub continent) under their burqas and I've had colleagues (Irani and Afghani) who asked me why I thought their burqas made our American and French colleagues uncomfortable. The strange thing is for all this talk of power, there have been and still are quite a few women in politics in South Asia and not as many in say, Europe or America. I don't of course see this as an indicator of the disempowerment of American women, but it is curious!
I may not have answered your question, but then I don't think there is a simple answer to it.
Warm regards,
Ujwala
From: BBell@edc.org
Subject: [WomenLiteracy] RE: women's issues and violence
Date: December 1, 2005 6:15:58 AM EST
To: womenliteracy@dev.nifl.gov, womenliteracy@dev.nifl.gov
Hello everyone. This will be a long post - as I've been away from the discussion list for several days.
[I]n this email I’ll try to give some perspectives and thoughts on violence and on violence against women here in Afghanistan. This is in reply to earlier questions about women’s willingness to talk about violence in their lives and about burning issues for women, and in reference to the recent conference here in Kabul on eliminating violence against women.
Yesterday over lunch with eight women who are teacher trainers, I had the opportunity to ask a few questions. We were discussing rural economic development, having just come out a session where they were planning and practicing a workshop for new village literacy teachers on the objectives of LCEP (Literacy and Community Empowerment). I asked if they thought rural women would say that lack of money is the most important issue for them as women. Absolutely not, they said. The biggest issue is women’s human rights – the right not to be married off at 11 or 12; the right to not be abused or beaten, the right to education; the right not to have 12 children.
This led us into a discussion of the recent local conference on eliminating violence against women, in which one staff person had participated. The issues are becoming a little different for educated women in Kabul, she said. She said that in addition to the ‘usual’ ways in which violence is perpetrated against women by men, some women at this conference were talking about the rise in what she called ‘psychological’ violence that women use against each other. She gave the example of one very highly placed government official who said that since she has been appointed, women have turned against her, are jealous of her, and are undermining her efforts.
Overall, the conference was focused on establishing some common goals and strategies for raising awareness and educating women and men about violence against women. There was participation by key Ministries – such those of Women’s Affairs, Social and Labor Affairs, Health, Education, Higher Education, Finance, and the Haj – as well as by the Human Rights Commission and international and national NGOs. While each group committed to developing specific strategies, there were several recommendations – such as using the Women’s Affairs centers in each province to hold awareness-raising and strategy workshops at the provincial level; and to establish national regulations for registering engagements (as important as the marriage itself) – to protect very young women. And – to expand the number (currently only 4 – one in Kabul and 3 in the provinces) of shelters for women. Some of the documents from the conference will be translated in to English, and if I’m still here when they are made available, I will try to share them.
Now – back to individual stories. I asked a Western friend who speaks good Dari to share her experiences with Afghans (and women in particular) talking about violence in their lives. Here are some excerpts from what she had to say:
“In terms of violence against women, all I can tell you is it happens and most people know and don't question it
“I was talking to a group of folks last night and the topic of violence came up. Killing is violence - but beating is not considered violence. Beating is considered part of educating and ensuring good behavior. Interestingly, about 2 years ago, there was study that showed that beating is conducted by 90% of formal school teachers.
“Once I was privy to an odd conversation. I was in the back seat driving around the roads of Bamiyan and the Hazara driver was speaking with an Easterner who had gone to the West. "I hear that they don't beat their wives in America". The returnee said, "It's true-- even some students take their teachers to court if there is any suspicion that the teachers have even touched them.” Said the driver, "That's awful. People lose their values when they go to the West".
My friend also shared a couple of other stories .... “There was a woman who was going home in the early evening in Macrorayan (the big area of Soviet-built apartment blocks in Kabul). A taxi was speeding and hit her. After all the uproar they got the woman out from under the car. She told the taxi driver ‘if only you would have been going faster and killed me, because it is better that I were dead, than go home late and get beating from my husband for being so late.’
‘Also I was told about a man who killed his wife. He found she was a “woman” not “a daughter” after they married and so he killed her on the second day of marriage. He strangled her.
“Once we had a Gender Training for people in our program. And of the 1 million 3 hundred thousand trainings we have had, this was the most compelling I have ever witnessed. People were so heated and there was so much back and forth. We started out by addressing stereotypes. We got in groups and each group had to fill in the blank.
An Afghan man is...
An Afghan woman is
An Afghan man should be..
An Afghan woman should be
“In the Afghan men’s group the answers were ‘He is …..hospitable ……kind….. faithful……loyal fights for his country …….fights against colonialism. This came from the men.... this came from the men. The women in the group said...He is …..cruel……beats his wife……..steps on the rights of women.
From: laurie_sheridan@worlded.org
Subject: [WomenLiteracy] RE: women's issues and violence
Date: December 1, 2005 10:10:13 AM EST
To: womenliteracy@dev.nifl.gov
This is wonderful--I am so grateful for your insights and perspective, Brenda, and for the discussion they have sparked. I have been finding this information incredibly fascinating and valuable over the last few weeks. Even the very disturbing parts (in fact, sometimes especially the disturbing parts), because there is so much hope, learning and progress going on and that comes through quite clearly.
My thought is--wouldn't it be wonderful to publish some of this "material" for a wider audience? For example: Ms., The Women's Review of Books (which has just resumed publication), even mainstream "women's magazines" in this country. And we could think of other publications that would reach men as well as women, too--I took very seriously the points made by Ujwala and others about the need to include men in discussions of gender rights in this country and everywhere. I think a lot of people would be interested in what you are seeing and learning--inside and outside the adult ed community. Does anyone have any thoughts about this?
Laurie Sheridan
Workforce Development Coordinator
World Education
44 Farnsworth St.
Boston, MA 02210
(617) 482-9485 Ext. 509
lsheridan@worlded.org
From: BBell@edc.org
Subject: RE: [WomenLiteracy] RE: Afghan women
Date: December 1, 2005 12:12:18 PM EST
To: womenliteracy@dev.nifl.gov
Hi Donna --
Sorry to be so long in responding to this question about non-Muslim women.
Only 1% of the population is not Muslim. (of the Muslim population, ca 80% are Sunni and 19% are Shia). And, as best I know, most of this 1% lives in Kabul. The literacy program that I'm working with does not have activities in Kabul, so no, I haven't been in touch with Hindu Afghans. Or Christian Afghans, of whom there are a few, I'm told.
A follow up comment to my post from earlier today: I have a copy of a booklet (in Dari) that was distributed at the eliminating violence conference, about women (around the world, in Afghanistan, women's issues). It a joint publication, I think, of UNFPA, the government of Afghanistan, and Women Without Borders (and maybe more organizations - I can't read the Dari). It contains some great illustrations. The one on the cover is of three women standing on a globe (with symbols of women's work/contributions - books, pots, a stethoscope, a scythe). They are holding their arms up toward the sky --Two of the three are wearing hijab, or scarves, and the third does not have her hair covered. The title translates something roughly like the old slogan 'women hold up half the sky' -- I love it!
And -- one more note -- inside the booklet there is a map of the world, with pictures of notable women from various places in the world. The one woman pictured from the US is Rosa Parks. I love it!
Finally -- it has been so great to connect with friends through this discussion -- Donna, Uju, Lisa, Sissy (hi!), Barb - and others -- and to meet new people as well. Perhaps this glimpse of life in Afghanistan will encourage some of you to come here for a while. I hope this thread of discussion about women and literacy internationally continues for a while. I'll be available on the list for the next few days, so even if we've reached my December 1 cut-off point, let me know if you have more questions.
Brenda
From: elsa.auerbach@umb.edu
Subject: Re: [WomenLiteracy] RE: women's issues and violence
Date: December 1, 2005 10:18:43 AM EST
To: womenliteracy@dev.nifl.gov
I completely agree with Laurie. I'm hoping that in the short run, someone could "compose" this discussion into a single piece (cutting and pasting?) so that it's all on one document (any takers?). I've been trying to keep track of it, but seem to have big missing pieces. From there, perhaps it would be easier to write something up for publication. My guess is that Brenda already has in mind to do some writing about her insights/research/experiences.
Elsa Auerbach
From: busems@jmu.edu
Subject: RE: [WomenLiteracy] RE: women's issues and violence
Date: December 1, 2005 10:31:35 AM EST
To: womenliteracy@dev.nifl.gov
Has anyone stepped forward to try and combine this
information into an article? Brenda? I have some aditional
background articles on women in Afghanistan from my work as
editor at the Journal of Mine Action.
Maggie
From: laurie_sheridan@worlded.org
Subject: RE: [WomenLiteracy] RE: Afghan women
Date: December 1, 2005 12:24:41 PM EST
To: womenliteracy@dev.nifl.gov, BBell@edc.org
Thank you, Brenda, for all that you have shared with us--and everyone, for your questions and contributions. I have found it really iinspiring, and enlightening.
And it's wonderful to hear about the booklet in Dari that selects Rosa Parks as the notable U.S. woman. Especially today, Dec. 1, which is being celebrated this year to commemorate her life (and recent death). In Boston, perhaps elsewhere, a number of people are taking today off from work, and adults and students together are participating in a march to City Hall in support of civil rights and economic justice, in honor of Rosa Parks' birthday. So, it couldn't have been more timely to hear about this today!
Laurie Sheridan
From: ALCDGG@langate.gsu.edu
Subject: [WomenLiteracy] RE: women's issues and violence
Date: December 1, 2005 4:53:22 PM EST
To: womenliteracy@dev.nifl.gov
Brenda,
Thanks for this very rich description, I think that it places things into great perspective for us. Given the issues that you have described, I was wondering if you know if female circumcision is widespread in Afganistan? And if it is, is this something that health literacy classes could/do cover in terms of at least encouraging women who believe in performing this ritual to use hygenic methods? Or is this a topic that is considered too sacred to address?
Daphne
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