'We are what our environment is'

Happy Earth day people! Let's think about our impact and make a positive change!

To be honest, I did not know it was Earth day today until Facebook reminded me. Not only did it remind me of the special day, but also of an article I wrote two years ago. Sharing that piece of write up today. :)

Ever since I remember my childhood, I was told that the trees and plants can hear, see and feel like us, humans. At the age of 22, I now know that they don’t, but, I don’t think it would be wrong to say that my love for nature grew with this particular myth.

As I go deep down the memory lane and recall the times spent with my dad, I remember him picking up every chocolate wrapper I threw on the floor. How amazed I used to be when he carefully let out the caterpillar which I tried to kill in the garden. One particular memory that still makes me laugh is when he told me earthworms were his friends. My response was, “Friends? Dad, they are worms and worms are creepy!”  Well, now I feel proud that vermicomposting is something I learnt from him. My dad has been my greatest inspiration since my childhood. His attitude towards nature and environment guided my passion all along and is one of the reasons for my love towards it.

"We are what our environment is." As a student of public health, this is the first thing I learnt in my environment class. Listening to the teacher about the mounting environmental problems everyday is undoubtedly heartbreaking. And the daily realization about the ignorance of youths towards the environmental issues tops it all. I believe that the youths today are overlooking the fact that they constitute a major part of our country's population and that their actions at present can give rise to significant consequences in the future.

One determined initiative, one firm decision; one courageous step can CHANGE the world. But the youths today are lost in the virtual world. We are more curious about the new gadgets launched in the market rather than the decreasing number of bees due to cell phone radiations. We are highly concerned about not missing a single day without being active in the social networks, but we don’t seem to have any time to speak out for the depleting ozone layer.

But, gone are the days to complain and whine about how someone else is not taking the initiative. If one needs an inspiration, they can look at the "hamribahini" initiative to prevent the use of polythene/plastic bags. We must take initiative ourselves. Step forward, and lead the way for others. Change is not a plant that grows overnight. It requires frequent nurturing, determination, love and care. Without the self realization among youths about the need to address the environmental issues, accomplishing the dream of 'sustainable environment' is a far cry. It is essential for every individual to realize their role and do their part to protect the environment. After all, we are what our environment is.

ASAP Youth Advocacy Refresher – A journey to remember

It was least expected that in the first day of ASAP Youth Advocacy Refresher (YAR), we Youth Champions from Nepal would be discussing about bad weather and its consequences during flight, rather than women and their right to abortion. The unexpected weather in Kathmandu cost us some of the very interesting session on the 4^th YAR in Mumbai. Nevertheless, the sessions we got to attend in the remaining two days were extremely enriching for us.

The 2^nd day of YAR began with saddening reality of one of the woman in Bangladesh, which was depicted through a documentary screening by Anika, Youth Champion from Bangladesh. The documentary made us realize how liberal Nepal is in terms of laws regarding abortion. But despite the legalization, the challenges women had to face to get an access to safe abortion were same in both Bangladesh and Nepal.

It was a privilege for the us youth champions, Bidhya and myself to be able to share our small grant project through our film ‘Women for Women’ on Female Community Health Volunteers. The encouraging response from the ASAP mentors and fellow youth champions regarding our project has inspired all of us to forever thrive for women’s right to safe abortion starting from the grass root level. Similarly, we also had the the opportunity to share about Youth Champions Advocacy Network Nepal (YCANN), a network established with the support from ASAP with focus on SRHR and safe abortion in Nepal. Smriti and Randhir, the members from the core team highlighted about past work as well as future plan of YCANN to establish it as a strong youth network for advocacy, awareness and capacity building activities.

In our everyday life, we advocates come across people from different background who does not accept safe abortion as a women’s right. Sometimes, inability to respond to such people tactfully can lead us to our failure as an advocate. Hence, the role play session on how to tackle such situation was very fruitful for all the YCs. It also made us realize that during discussion and arguments, we sometimes tend to forget that women are our integral concern, and we must always put them in our priority while making our point.  

Understanding the politics of internet was another eye opening session for us. The hidden reality of how big companies control the internet and manipulate the people’s mind was very daunting. Similarly, the example of a girl on period whose picture was taken down by Instagram just because she posted a picture with menstrual blood stain on her pants is another case that proves the pointless regulation of content by the internet in the name of vulgarity prevention. The power of internet must be used to amplify the narratives of women’s realities rather than trying to shut their right to freedom of expression. The session also made us appreciate the internet as a revolutionary tool that is able to influence a movement, as well as empower women by enabling them get an access to critical information on SRH and safe abortion.

The session on history of women healers, patriarchy and health care on the third day of the YAR was very relatable for most of the YCs, who were health professionals. During the discussion, the YCs shared about how the arrogant attitude of health professional discourages women to seek safe abortion services in a health center. Some of the YCs who themselves were medical doctors said that even their colleagues have a negative perception towards abortion. There was also an interesting revelation on how image of nurses is imprinted as someone gracious, helpful, caring and are subjected to heavy work at low cost most of the times, because people consider nursing as a women’s natural work that needs no license.

With the very moving session on human rights and social movement, we learnt that our voices will only be heard, if they are collective. So, all of us must have one ultimate vision i.e. gender equality and for this a woman must be brought to a level where they are able to get an access to SRHR through the approach of equity. Only after the common vision, collective voice and networking we can achieve our goals and objectives through a social movement. The journey which we embark on by surviving a storm came to an end with increased consciousness and understanding of women’s right to safe abortion from a broader perspective. However, the actual journey for us youth champions as advocates for safe abortion had just begun.

PINCHU

Few days ago, I was scrolling my Facebook homepage. One of my friends had posted about a couple of dogs that were severely injured because some Mahan Prani hit them with a khukuri. I could not look at the picture for more than 5 seconds. Even the thought of the pain those innocent beings had to endure made my heart sink, and I wondered how evil the person who committed such heinous act must be. Fortunately, the dogs are in good hands now because Sneha’s Care, an organization working for animal welfare is treating them.

Incidents like these are not new for us anymore. Every other day, we see ruthless treatment and abuse of animals by the most intelligent species on earth…'humans’. Streets of Kathmandu are full of such speechless animals, waiting outside every meat shop, near garbage bins, trying to cross the road, or sitting quiet on the middle of the street without knowing what might happen next. Will they be subjected to a hit and run or batter and burn? Or will they be chained to death, poisoned or attacked with acid? How can people come up with such nasty ways to take lives of creatures who cannot even defend themselves? Wow human beings! You must feel so powerful to control harmless animals. You deserve a round of applause!

Since my childhood, I have always wanted to do something to stop mistreatment of animals. I am certain my close friends remember me saying, "dherai paisa kamae pachi stray animals ko lagi shelter kholchu." As far as I can remember, some of us had even made a plan to start this initiative once we had enough money. Though I have not been able to put my plan into action, it really warms my heart to see some wonderful people/organizations coming together to give voice to the voiceless animals and provide them the life they deserve.

***

Initially, this particular post was supposed to be about animal cruelty and how I have not been able to work on my dream to found a shelter for animals. However, a slight change of plan because now I want to share a story about Pinchu who encouraged me to find a new motivation in life.

One evening outside a Chiya Pasal near Pashupati, a black dog was sitting quietly beside a tea table. When my friend and I clapped our hands and called her, she rushed towards us wagging her tail as if she had known us for a long time. Usually dogs around Pashupati do not go near people, may be because of the fear that they might get beaten, again. But unlike other dogs, this particular black dog surprised us with her friendly and playful nature. We heard from the Pasalni didi that this dog had come there from another place and was not able to get along with other dogs in the area. She guessed that someone might have abandoned her because everyone wants to own a cute puppy, but when they get bigger, they become a burden.  “Too much pee, too much poo, too much this and that!”

The moment we met this black dog, she won our hearts. We could not just leave her there because I felt like her cute puppy eyes were seeking help. Since both me and my friend already had adult female dogs in our house, adopting her was not possible for us. Therefore, my friend Aasutosh called one of his friend and explained the situation.  Aasutosh’s friend Dibesh readily agreed to adopt her. It was almost 8 pm and very dark when we got to Patan from Pashupati and gave Pinchu to Dibesh. Dibesh is the one who named her Pinchu because she has spiky hair.

Pinchu's wound is healing

Pinchu had a deep wound on her back when we met her that day. After few days, we took her to a vet to treat her wound and now the wound is healing. Today afternoon, we paid a surprise visit to Pinchu, and Laxmi auntie (Dbase’s mom) told us that she was scared of dogs previously but Pinchu  pleased the auntie with her jovial nature and she is quite fond of Pinchu now. 

                                         

Until a few days ago I was lamenting how I just dreamed big but never actually worked towards achieving it. Now I have realized that one doesn’t need to do anything huge to make a difference. Even a small step at a time can make a big difference. Looking at Pinchu and her new happy family offered me a great joy and also motivated me to struggle for animal rights. Go feed a stray animal, go adopt an abandoned animal, raise your voice against animal cruelty and advocate for animal rights. If we all did our part, how far could that day be when no animals get abused or suffer cruelty at hands of we humans?

Finally, I would like to thank everyone who are advocating and working for animal welfare. Many thanks to Dibesh and his wonderful family, Aasutosh and Dr. Ram Uncle (Dr. Ram treated Pinchu free of cost) for their help in finding Pinchu a new home. You people are great!

Laxmi Auntie

Dedicating my Shivaratri to the women!

Shivaratri to me has always been about evening walk to Pashupati, Shivaji’s Prasad;) , Babaji, bonfire, street vendors and flow of human crowd.

Crowd  seen during Shivaratri
PC: trekkingnepalhimalaya.wordpress.com

I remember the time, years ago, when public were allowed to enter the premises of Pashupati on Shivaratri without any restriction. Me and my family would go to Pashupati for evening stroll. Maa used to bargain for falam ko bhada while me and my siblings compelled Baba buy us colorful Murali (flute), balloons and cotton candy.

We still follow our Shivaratri ritual but this year, unlike me, everyone in my family already had something planned out. Maa was complaining about having to go to work even on a holiday while brother left early for some volunteer work he was doing at Pashupati. My younger sister was also all dressed up to go to Pashupati with her friends. I stayed home and did some household chores. Since the time I have been engaged in 9 to 5 job, I have come to realize the beauty of staying home doing nothing. Gham tapdai suntala khane pani thulo kura bhako cha!

Today afternoon while I was onto some sun basking, I saw a guy staring at me. This guy was one of the construction workers in the house next to mine. I tried to ignore him for a while, but he was still looking. In a situation like this, I have come up with a strategy to look right back at them in anger until their prying eyes look away. Well the strategy did work for a while but when I looked away, he would be staring again.

Similar incident had happened to me few days ago when I caught another guy (another construction worker) staring through my window. Due to boiling anger, I had absentmindedly blown a punch in air with an annoyed expression and then closed the curtain (feeling Sunny Deol u know! lol :P).

I was really bothered by these incidents, so I called a friend of mine asking for a suggestion to stop this. I also shared about the ‘stare back’ strategy I used on this guy today. However, it was shocking for me to hear that my friend thought I might have provoked the guy and also given an impression that I was interested in him. I know my friend was just trying to warn me for good but it’s really surprising how quickly we become judgmental about a woman’s action in the name of keeping them safe.

Getting back to Shivaratri…me and my friends did go for evening walk today. The excitement of seeing cotton candy, balloon and colorful flute in the streets during Shivaratri was just as it used to be when I was a kid. Another thing that has remained the same is the harassment women have to face during Shivaratri. While walking on the crowded street especially in and around the Pashupati area, staring, ‘accidentally’ pushing, touching, making explicit comments and laughing are completely normal for the perpetrators and I don’t think there would be a single woman who has not been through similar experience.

Eve teasing or catcalling as we say it is an offensive act and a form of harassment. Women are always at its risk, be it in a public vehicle, streets, or any other public place. I myself have been a victim of it, which has caused me mental distress for a long time. In such situation, we usually tend to just gulp down the anger in shame and embarrassment and not speak out against it, fearing the consequences of our action. Since the government also does not have strong law against eve teasing in Nepal, a woman who is confident enough to fight back is instead blamed for her appearance which actually is a lame excuse because how a woman chooses to dress is not the cause, but a sick minded man is.

Every time we women have such bitter experience, we start to think it might have been our fault and some might even wish they were born a man. We also have the 'should’ve..', 'could’ve..' moments later on when we realize the things we must have said and done at that time. 

It's high time we stop compromising and start fighting against any form of violence against women. Thought I myself am not a fight-back type, this women’s day I make a pledge to speak out and not keep the suffering to myself. Women should get the respect they deserve and not be mistreated in anyway, anywhere, be it in their home, public place or workplace. The society and state should ensure support from their level for ending any form of violence against women and men. Men and women should be made aware about gender based violence and gender equality starting from their schools though education because only with the foundation of education and awareness, empowerment is possible. 

Let us raise our voices to stop violence against women and men because the power of change is in our hands! 

Deadly Zika!

The deadly Zika virus has been creating a swirl worldwide and has been a subject of concern for everyone at the moment. Few days ago I heard my fellow coworkers getting quite curious about the virus which resulted in poorly developed head in children. However, they weren’t quite sure about what it actually is and how it is transmitted. So, here I am, taking a moment to write on the must know information about Zika virus.

Originate: Zika virus was discovered in 1947 and in 1952, the first human cases of Zika were detected. Zika virus is named after the Zika forest in Uganda.

Causative Agent: The virus Zika is the member of Flaviviridae family. This virus usually remains in the human blood for about a week after infection.

Areas affected: Although there have been number of reported cases of Zika in the tropical Africa, Southeast Asia and the Pacific Islands in the past, the virus outbreak in 2015 has resulted in declaration of public health emergency of international concern (PHEIC) by WHO since the confirmation of the virus infection in Brazil on 1^st February, 2016. It is highly likely to spread on other territories/countries in the days to come.

Mode of transmission: The Zika virus is spread mainly through the bite of an infected Aedes aegypti Mosquito. However, there have also been evidences that indicate human to human transmission of the virus through unsafe sex.

Symptoms: The symptoms are quite similar to that of flu. Fever, redness of eye, pain in the joint and rashes are common after the virus infection.

PC Antonio Lacerda/EPA

Zika in pregnant women: Consequences of Zika virus is very severe among pregnant woman as the virus can spread from the mother to the fetus. The virus is capable of causing serious congenital birth defect called microchephaly in the babies that are born from pregnant women who are infected by the virus. This defect causes the child’s head/brain to be less than its normal expected size.

Pregnancy after virus infection: As I mentioned earlier, the virus usually remains in the human blood only during the first week of infection. But, planning for pregnancy in future should only be done after consultation with the health service providers.

Prevention and Treatment: Currently, there isn’t any vaccine or medicines available against Zika. However, implementation of preventive public health measure can certainly create a barrier between the agent, host and environment. Using mosquito net/repellent, adoption of personal and environmental protective measure are some of the ways for disease prevention. Pregnant women also need to be extra cautious to make sure they are not exposed to the risk of virus infection. For instance, avoiding travel to the areas affected by the virus, practice of safe sex to prevent sexual transmission, consultation with the health service provider before planning for pregnancy etc. 

Remember the three pillars of Public Health to fight against Zika: Prevention, Promotion and Protection

Be safe and spread the word! 

Reference: Centers for disease control and prevention

Why the difference?

This week was euphoric for us Nepalese, as the Nepali lads brought home gold after knocking down the hosts India in the 12^th South Asian Games final at the Indira Gandhi Stadium in Guhati. Nepal won the title after 23 years since the 6^th SAF Games in 1993, and in the midst of the match fixing scandal, this win has promised a hopeful beginning for Nepali Football.

Team Nepal received grand welcome from the entire country as they arrived back home on Wednesday. I myself got a glimpse of the victory rally at Gaushala, where the heroes were waving from the Nepal Army truck towards the passionate fans. Oh it was amazing! I got goosebumps after hearing the roaring chants from the crowd! Nepal! Nepal! Aru bela j bhae ni, 'khelkud' le chai khatrai patriotic feel dincha! I couldn’t help but get down from the bike and take a picture. Here’s the shot I took.

It was also very generous of the Government to announce Rs. 5 lakh for each gold winner. Some of the health institutions even declared that they would be providing free health services to the players in the football team. Such reward definitely boosts the morale of the players and inspires them to thrive for even better performance.

However, it was saddening to not see the other gold medalists; Nima Gharti Magar (for Wushu) and Phupu Lhamu Khatri (for Judo) receive similar kind of treatment. Phupu Lhamu Khatri left for Hungary from Guhati itself. However, Nima Gharti did arrive at the airport but only handful of people including her family and friends were there to welcome her.

The Nepali women football team also exhibited an extraordinary performance in SAG. Though they had to settle for silver, their journey up to final has inspired many Nepali women including me. But no signs of rally or felicitations from any government officials was seen when they arrived home.

I think such differential and discriminatory behavior towards the players lowers their spirit and even make a negative impact upon their performance in future. I can confidently say this because most of us can relate this with our daily life experiences. I remember my school days, when my parents got me a watch for getting good marks in math. That got me all motivated to do better because I knew, the next time if I get better marks, I was going to get a bicycle (which I never did lol). At present, I am no longer a school going student, but I do have similar story to share. My boss recently told me that he does not even have to read the report I write, because he believes that I am good at it. Well, it was just a simple verbal statement he made, but that made me feel confident as well as more responsible towards every work I perform in the office. Be it a small or big achievement, every single one of us needs a push, a motivation once in a while to keep us going.

I hope the government will realize the importance of non-discriminatory motivation of the sports persons as these rewards and encouragement undoubtedly serves as a positive reinforcement for making them work relentlessly to put out a performance that is going to make the country proud.

I say kudos to all the players who represented Nepal in SAG. You have made us proud!

Nima Gharty Magar

Phupu Lhamu Khatri

Women Football Team arrive home
PC: goalnepal.com

Women’s Reproductive Health in the Rubble - Aftermath of the Nepal Earthquake 2015

“A 5 year old girl allegedly raped by a 42 year old man sheltering in the same football ground where the victim's family had been living under the tents in Khushibu, Naya Bazar in Kathmandu.”

“A 16 year old girl raped in Duwakot, Bhaktapur”

“A disabled woman in Sindhupalchowk...”

“A girl in Kavre...”

“A woman in Nuwakot…’ and many more.

“Nepal quake survivors face threat from human traffickers supplying sex trade. In the brothel the women and girls are forced to have unprotected sex with up to 20 or 30 men a day, seven days a week.”

The massive earthquakes that hit Nepal on April 25 and May 12 have resulted in thousands of deaths, disabilities and displacement of populations. People are forced to live out in the open, under tents and tarpaulin. According to UNFPA, more than two million women of reproductive age are affected by the disaster. The UN reports suggests that the displaced women and girls living in the temporary shelter and camps are vulnerable to sexual exploitation, rape, girls trafficking and other forms of gender-based violence, which is without doubt, increasing the risks of unwanted pregnancies. In addition to all these risks, the destruction of infrastructures by the earthquake has halted the provision of reproductive health services. With the alarming rate of sexual violence during the post-disaster situation, and the lack of access to reproductive health services, the number of unsafe abortions is likely to increase due to unwanted pregnancies.

Although majority of the health facilities have been destroyed by the earthquake, there are organizations and youth networks continuously working to reach out to the women and girls with reproductive health services. Various organizations have distributed “Reproductive Health Kits, Dignity Kits” for addressing the emergency reproductive need of women in earthquake affected areas. The ASAP team also aided the affected women through the Nepali Youth Champions by lending a helping hand to maintain their reproductive health status through a supply of Hygiene Kits.

It is an undoubtable fact that, supply of essential RH commodities (Sanitary pads, emergency contraceptives and medical abortion pills) combined with awareness raising activities can be an effective measure for maintaining menstrual hygiene, preventing the risks of unprotected sex, unsafe abortion and preventing and responding to gender based violence even during the crisis situation. Though there are numerous factors that put women’s Reproductive Health at risk, coordinated effort to fight back RH issues and Gender based violence can definitely help the women in Nepal rise from the rubble. 

Wrote this piece after the devastating earthquake in Nepal on 25th April, 2015. [Posted in the Asia Safe Abortion Partnership (ASAP) Blog on 6th November, 2015]