Talking About The Taboo : Menstrual Hygiene Day in Islamabad “Menstruation Matters for Everyone, Everywhere.”
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Menstrual Hygiene ... Periods ... Ssshhhh ... one thing a girl can have every month but can never talk about in her entire life .. neither she can buy her napkins without getting the looks from everybody in the store ....well thanks to our society .
This post was not easy to write .. i hesitated ... gave it a second , third and fourth thought ... then the mother inside me took ever .. enough is enough .. lets break the Taboo.
I remember my Mother , sister , my female cousins and friends being so shy( RELUCTANT) to answer many questions raised my young growing mind about " AUNT FLU " ( cause using the word Menstruation/PERIODS was totally not acceptable) ... i was hushed , forced not to talk about one very important part of my life .. i believe you all have been there ... All i got was my monthly delivery of sanitary napkins tightly and securely packed in many layers along with the groceries for the house.
Time passed , i became a banker ...only female employee in my department at American Express Bank .. was confident enough to talk about anything , gve a professional presentations , drive a car independently ... But one thing I was still not confident to talk about was " Aunt Flu " .
The first person who made me realized that its ok to buy my own sanitary napkins without feeling awkward , to talk about "Aunt Flu " freely , answered my questions... is my Husband . He made me realized that there is no shame in it , its ok .. I guess I am the lucky girl but unfortunately not every girl in Pakistan .. WHY ? because of THE SOCIETY .... WHO IS THE SOCIETY ?? ... US .. Who needs to be changed ? .. US ...
I believe that its time to change and break the taboo . Being a mom of a baby girl i want this society to be more acceptable and less judgmental . Lets teach or girls as well our boys .. they both need to understand that its Ok to talk about periods .. if we can have them we can talk about them ... without being hushed or shamed .. right ?
In this regards a great step is taken , Government
and Humanitarian Partners highlighted the need for Proper Menstrual Hygiene
Management in Pakistan on Menstrual Hygiene Day 2016.
More than 100 representatives from government, international
and national development organizations, civil society, along with a host of
experts from across health, academia, media, donors, and youth convened at the
Pakistan Institute of Parliamentary Services, in Islamabad, to commemorate the
International ‘Menstrual Hygiene Day 2016 in Islamabad on 26th May, 2016.
The soul purpose was to create a united and strong
voice for women and girls around the world, helping to break the silence around
menstrual hygiene management (MHM). This year, the global theme of the day was “Menstruation Matters for Everyone, Everywhere.”
Panelists included government representatives from across the country delving
into much needed solutions to tackle the taboo and associated problems that
females especially young adolescent girls face.
The event was organized by the MHM Working Group, a coalition of
humanitarian organizations working to champion menstrual hygiene rights in
Pakistan.
The Chief
Guest for the event, Hon. Romina Khurshid Alam, MNA, acknowledged the efforts of MHM . she revealed that the government is very actively engaged in not only addressing
gender based issues but also focusing on improved health, education and
facilities. Suggestions were approved to update the curriculum in school
and special projects also being rolled out across the country."
According to UN-Habitat Country Programme Manager, Bella Evidente, “In our society, menstruation is surrounded
by stigma and misinformation. Inadequate MHM directly affects a female’s self-esteem,
health and education. This platform provides much needed spotlight on an issue
which remains hushed up in Pakistan. As a result, the needs of women,
especially in regards to sanitation, have never been brought to the fore-front,
and sadly, not all women have access to the tools they need to manage their
menstrual cycles. It is time that all sectors come together to break the
silence around MHM by supporting strong policy implementation across all state
levels,
UNICEF representative, Angela Kearney underscored the
serious consequences of lack of proper hygiene management facilities on young
girls. “It is unfortunate and unacceptable that the management of menstruation
continues to present significant challenges for women especially in lower
income settings. Adolescent girls bare most of this brunt as they lack the
knowledge and services to manage menstruation which in turn affects their
learning experiences. Research shows that marginalized girls can miss up to two
to four consecutive days of schools every four weeks due to their periods. This
of course has serious implications on their learning,” she said.
The
core objective of the event was to promote sharing and learning of experiences
from various interventions being conducted across the country and at the same
time engage government to take a more proactive stand to implement policies and
fund MHM in Pakistan.
The
discussions will culminate in policy recommendations for relevant ministries in
Pakistan to support necessary actions to improve the status of MHM in the
country.
About
the MHM Working Group:
The
Menstrual Hygiene Management (MHM) Working Group is a coalition of humanitarian
organisations working to champion Menstrual Hygiene rights in Pakistan. It is
anchored on a vision to create a society where girls/women can manage their
specific water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) needs, with special focus on
menstruation, with safety, dignity, privacy and pride. It comprises of MOCC,
UNICEF, UN-Habitat, WaterAid, MuslimAid, Plan International, PIEDAR, Save the
Children, IRC, Hands, IRSP, RSPN, Agahe, NRSP, AHKMT, WSSCC, and UNGEI.
Its good to see that finally somebody broke the silence . Its good to see that people , media and everybody is helping to raise the awareness .I really hope that MHM starts it from the root level . By conducting awareness programs at different schools and even by teaching the mothers at community meetings . Together we can break the taboo .
Hope you like my efforts . You like the idea of MHM ? Whats your aoapinaion ? Would love to know :)
4 comments
I am glad you wrote about this. Its so important to spread awareness :)
ReplyDeletexx
Maliha
www.redalicerao.com
Thank you for supporting dear <3
DeleteI think it's good to see initiatives like this one get off the ground. Here in the Netherlands we are quite well-informed, but the taboo is ever-present still. While reading this post I was immediately reminded of three separate occasions when my friends and I couldn't or wouldn't openly talk about menstruation. One of my friends started her period in gym class and went around asking if other girls had brought their 'stuff' (and by doing so I thought she was asking for drugs), because she was too embarrassed to ask for a tampon or pad, in a room full of girls!
ReplyDeleteI can't even imagine what the situation is like in Pakistan, but I think that the way even 'open-minded' western people don't talk about it or use euphemisms and code words already syas enough: something has to be done.
x Envy
Lost in Translation
I totally agree with you dear .. thank you so much for sharing your thoughts <3
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