Community-Based Response Interventions Sample Clauses

Community-Based Response Interventions. The entry points for introducing the sensitive issue of female sex selective abortions called for imagination, tact and the ability to address uncomfortable questions. The issue was introduced sometimes in the context of education for girls, at other times in a village meeting to discuss water management and at still other times linked with care during pregnancy. As expected, there was both strong denial and apathy regarding the issue of the ‘missing girls.’ Often the NGO field workers were met with hostility and in one case they were not allowed to perform street theatre and songs in a village. A youth from a hostile village was hired by the NGO field team as a strategy to make way for a gradual acceptance of the existence of the problem, followed by a positive and constructive approach towards enhancing the dignity of the girl child. Since the issue of female feticide is highly sensitive, it seemed prudent to have separate groups for men and women, giving them the space to question, debate and argue about the issue. However, as sensitization to the issue increased the groups realized that the dignity of the girl child is not just a women’s issue. Over time their understanding reached a certain maturity and the men’s and women’s groups evolved into mixed groups. In addition adolescent girls’ and boys’ groups and children’s groups proved to be great assets towards infusing energy and enthusiasm into activities such as writing on walls and beating a metal plate to celebrate the birth of a girl, a custom hitherto reserved only for boys. In the two and a half years since their inception, the CBR groups established a strong ownership of the issue and yet are still fragile. The groups continue to require mentoring and assistance to sustain the momentum.