The month of May is considered a menstrual month globally
since 2014 when UN declared that the as a key barrier for equality. At the same
year, the May 28 recognized as International Menstrual Hygiene day and started
as celebrations globally including Nepal. Here, May is taken for represents the
five for the average bleeding day and 28 considered as average menstrual cycle.
Historically, it is originated from the WASH (water, sanitation and hygiene)
perspective. For them, hygiene is obvious because they observed and learned
that girls and women isolated or dropped off school due to not having toilet or
menstrual hygiene products. But for a Nepali girl, many invisible elements
matter during menstruation to live with dignity.
Globally, each woman must have gone through the menstruation,
she starts to know about it since 5-6 years old where each man starts to know
about menstruation since 5 to 15 years of his age from their mothers, sisters,
girlfriends, wives, media etc. But it took so long time to come in to
discussion globally whereas there were so many conventions were taking place for
equality, empowerment, women's human right etc.
In global human right discourse, the word of menstruation is
keeps coming or using here and there with very lightly manner either under the
reproductive health or traditional harmful practices or medical science. Indeed, menstruation has not get adequate space
anywhere or its gravity is something heavy, wider and depth because it is not
created by society or not confined with any specific groups or region or
anything. More importantly, the simple fact of menstruation, is created by
nature since the human being exist in this world and this world is possible or
moving forward due to the menstruation. It is directly associated with power;
always use as impure or humiliation but Aristotle defined menstruation as
magical power. Menstruation associated with blood, girl or women, her belongings,
hygiene products, food, touch, mobility and shelter.
Regardless of caste, class, education, region, religion,
even today, the Nepalese has been practicing more than 40 types of restrictions
during menstruation including USA, UK and everywhere. The types and degrees may
vary from place to place, caste to caste but there are restrictions where the
menstrual blood considered impure, dirty, bad luck, contaminated, untouchable.
Somewhere the restrictions are easily visible and somewhere are not and
somewhere restrictions are practicing in private and somewhere in public,
somewhere influence from other castes, religions and use as pride, culture and
status.
Because of sets of restrictions during menstruation, the
girls and women deprived from physical, mental, economic, political, social,
cultural opportunities and forced to stay in isolation. Isolation could be in a
single corner of the room, or single room, flat or separate house, or separate
hut, or separate corner of the tarpaulin. No matter whether they have clean or
dirty place, girls and women are following the series of restrictions and suffering
from immediate and long-term illness and deprivations which is perfect
violation of human right, destroy of peace, ways of disempowerment. In
addition, many girls and women are dying because of snake bite, wild animals,
smoking, extreme heat or cold and encountered with murder, rape etc.
More importantly, the notion of power powerful and powerless
is constructed from early childhood and that is mainly shaped by menstruation
dramatically. A five years boy grows with the confidence that he can go
anywhere, can eat anything as his desire, can touch anyone in the family
whereas same year girl is growing with feeling of humiliation, low self-esteem
because she learned that she couldn't go in to kitchen, she couldn't drink
water when she feels thirsty, she couldn't touch her dad or brother and she has
to live in isolation etc from her mother. The boy started to demonstrate his
privileges like teasing girls. Such behaviour will grow gradually and converted
in to crimes including rape. In other hand, same girl is growing with low
feeling, started to limit her mobility even dropped off school and finally forced
to get early or child marriage due to untimely dismissal of her dream towards
her life due to failing in class. This is an example of an aspect of life but
the menstruation hits all aspects of the life of girls and women and suffered
from birth to tomb as vicious cycle.
Due to deep ignorance and associated with religion, many
folks do not like to talk about it at all so how much economical loss made by
it still unknown. Here, it has proven that the menstruation is matter of
dignity or human right instead of women's sole issue as well as issue of
hygiene or infrastructure. Thus, it is everyone's business and it has direct
and indirect, immediate and long-term relations with peace, human right,
empowerment, education, health, water, sanitation, hygiene and environment
where sustainable development will drag behind if all elements won't work
simultaneously and no way for achieving sustainable development. By considering
the slogan of sustainable development goals 2030, No One Leaving Behind,
how the water, sanitation and hygiene or infrastructure will guarantee the
dignity of each girl and woman during menstruation. In order to address all kinds of rights and
issues of menstruation, the dignity is first to initiate the dialogue around
menstruation at family, school, work and everywhere.
Regards to laws in Nepal, there was something in place since
2005 (stay order by supreme court, guideline on chhaupadi in 2008), none of the
cases were reported yet. The first police case was registered to the Police
office, Dailekh in July 24, 2017 by six activists; Amar Sunar, Bishnu Pokhrel,
Hira Singh Thapa, Radha Paudel, Shahi Basnet, Samjhana Paudel. The government
of Nepal was promulgated a law in August 8, 2017 where 3 months jail and $30
bail or both if anyone reported as discrimination due to menstruation. However,
this law will effective from August 1, 2018 and it is very incomplete to
address all kinds of restrictions or discriminations during menstruation.
In this connection, if we review the Nepalese women's
movement, menstruation is not priority since the history. The NGO activism
raised up from restoration of democracy 1991 and many activities related
women's right and empowerment are taking place. Likewise, the peace became an
agenda since 2000. Unfortunately, menstruation is never associated either
empowerment or peace or human right nor MDG at all. The gravity and magnitude
of the menstruation is heavily ignored by all stakeholders. Frankly speaking, women
fought for men's issue or their power and NGO represents the donor's interest. The
NGOs talk about bodily right, reproductive health right, education, health,
water, sanitation and environment but menstruation is not issue of relevancy at
all. Psychologically and practically, menstruation considered as women's issue,
taboo, shyness, sex related, vulgar, riskier, challenging, prestige, culture,
religion.
This writer, recalls her vivid experience of observing the
fresh blood on her mother's leg in 1981 and restrictions and reasons behind the
restrictions her mother followed in Chitwan. She started to challenge herself,
her family and her society without knowing anything about advocacy, human
right, women's right etc or organic activism since childhood on dignified
menstruation. Later, in 1998, she realized that restriction is not only her
issue, issue of western Nepal and many countries in world. Later, she
identified that the restrictions are a key hindering factors for girl's
education and empowerment in Terai in 2005.
Delightfully, Nepal government, water supply and sanitation
took a lead role to lead the dignified menstruation by organizing the
consultation meeting in February 2017 where ministry of women, health,
education are together as sector organizations. Further, same ministry formed a
policy drafting committee and working on it. In align with government, about 40
people/organizations are coming forward and formulate MHM-PA alliance since
April 2017. However, there is huge gap in understanding and approaches of
taking dignified menstruation forward. Almost all development partners are
coming from WASH background and they are working under the ministry of water
supply and sanitation since long. The summary report of MH day 2017, revealed
that almost all partners focused on hygiene and distribution of sanitary pads
and few talks about menstrual cups. The infrastructure and menstrual hygiene
products are crucial but it should limit in offering the choices like
contraceptives not forcing a particular method without demystifying the rumours
around menstruation and in many cases promoting the restrictions or defying the
dignity of girls and women. No matter, whether educational program or sanitary
pad making training, the recipient well deserves to get an adequate and proper
information on dignity during menstruation at first. Meanwhile, the ministers;
health, education and women, needs to come forward constructively for dialogue
on dignified menstruation. Likewise, the ministry of water supply and
sanitation, needs to create adequate space for other sectoral ministers.
Each actor who is contributing in menstrual rights or
celebrations, should hold the accountability to enable the environment on
dignified menstruation at both private and public life. The project or national
level indicators for SDG (sustainable development goals) is itself overlapping
each other and not possible to reach the destiny if we missed the dignity
during menstruation. Because the dignified menstruation is pre-condition for
achieving SDGs 1,2,3,4,5, and 6. Therefore, let's hold the accountability with
our motherland and daughter and initiate the dialogue on dignified menstruation
at first.
[1] Radha
Paudel is the first researcher, trainer and advocate on dignified menstruation
from Nepal. She also writes a mini handbook entitled on dignified menstruation
is everyone's business. The other book on menstruation is under process.
