Scaling gender barriers

Whether it is preventing girls from being treated as equals, or countering untouchability in various forms, we throw our hands up and blame the social system and conventional attitudes. VIMALA RAMACHANDRAN analyses this year's South Asia Human Development Report that was released in New Delhi recently. The document examines the gender question.

THE South Asia Human Development Report of 2000 was released in New Delhi on October 9, 1999 - followed by a symposium on the gender question. There is unanimous recognition that the Human Development Reports have strengthened the hands of people arguing for and struggling to establish the legitimacy of a more humane view of development - as opposed to a narrow economist/demographic and financial perspective which dominated the development discourse for such a long time. It has definitely made a difference across the globe. Therefore, when the Mahbub ul Haq Human Development Centre started bringing out reports on South Asia, it was welcomed by one and all. And the very fact that the report continues to be produced after the untimely demise of Mahbub ul Haq is an achievement and Mrs. Haq needs to be warmly congratulated.

The current report focusses on the gender question. The relationship between gender relations in society, women's status and development is a complex one. Notwithstanding the complexity, we in this region have a tendency to throw up our arms and blame the prevalent social system and patriarchal structure for almost everything - violence, low educational achievement, health care services, non-implementation of the law of the land and a host of other social and development indicators. Whether it is our inability to enforce laws related to dowry death and violence, or girls' access to primary education, the apologists of the system like to blame patriarchy and social attitudes. We are hesitant to talk about the glaring divide between the rhetoric of our leaders and administrators on the one hand and praxis/ground realities on the other. Scanning through official policy documents and statements made in international conferences and meetings, it is quite revealing to note that there is really not much of a difference in the stated intentions of leaders across the region. What is noteworthy is that while gender-just policies were implemented in some parts, in others they remained purely at the level of rhetoric. What this region needs is an open and no-holds-bar analysis of factors that actively inhibit the implementation of government's own stated policies and programmes. This is in fact very important if we are to arrive at a realistic assessment of our achievements and our shortcomings, at least in social sectors like education, health, water, sanitation and social services. Unfortunately, this is exactly where most documents fail, including the one under discussion.

Travelling across the country, observing the situation of Dalits and other socially disadvantaged communities, well-known journalist

P. Sainath noticed children from some communities being actively discriminated against by school teachers. Preventing children (especially girls) from participating as equals, practicing untouchability in various forms and reinforcing prevalent notions about women and girls, about scavengers and leather workers actually exist. Health workers in government hospitals and social welfare agencies are also known to practice various forms of discriminatory practices. Let us take primary education. There is overwhelming evidence to show that demand for education is really not an issue anymore. A recent study done under the aegis of the Mahila Samakhya Programme (Department of Education, GOI) observed that parents want to send their children, especially girls to school, but the tragedy is that our school system just cannot accommodate them and give them a chance. The existing primary school system is inadequate and in many areas dysfunctional. Where they do function the quality of education leaves much to be desired. Children go through five years of schooling and emerge barely literate!

Yes, patriarchy and patriarchal structures are a problem in this region. We all know that South Asia is indeed unique. But what is disturbing is that this is also used as a convenient excuse for the inaction and inefficiency. When all else fail, we throw up our hands and say that our social system is so rigid and social attitudes so conventional that the system is really helpless. We all know of, or have heard about, situations where these barriers are overcome when the administration and the political leaders are determined. These examples are not confined to Sri Lanka, Maldives and Kerala alone. They abound across the region. In India, there are positive experiences even in the most rigid and conventional areas like Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh and Bihar. We are also aware of the role of political leaders and administrators in destroying such efforts. People, especially women, are eager to better their lives, eager to educate their children, especially their girls, and do not want to be reduced to baby producing machines. Ordinary women in rural areas, tribal areas, urban slums and in the most difficult of circumstances want a chance to get out of this vicious cycle of poverty, violence, ill health, ignorance, deprivation and powerlessness. Thousands of groups across this very rich region have tried to make a difference and move on.

It is in this context that it is disappointing that the voices of hope found little space in the South Asia Human Development Report. For every statistic there is a story of hope and a story of struggle. Analysis of why and where they happened, why and where they were squashed and why and who stopped it would be immensely valuable. I live in Rajasthan where analysis of how and why programmes like the Women's Development Programme of Rajasthan and most recently Lok Jumbish which were stripped of their essence, needs to be shared. Similarly, the remarkable commitment of officials and political leaders towards universal access to primary school in Himachal Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh tell us a lot. In the last few years there have been some remarkable initiatives in primary education in Karnataka, Uttar Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh and Himachal Pradesh, that too in the formal primary school system.

The report says, "One of the most significant factors that inhibit women's access to education in South Asia is the perception that the investment in a girl will not benefit her parents once the girls get married." This is no longer true. Experience of women's empowerment programmes, educational programmes, girl child campaigns and a wide range of government and NGO experiences have shown beyond doubt that this is no longer the case. The greatest barrier is the non-existent or dysfunctional schools. Where there is a school within walking distance and where the schools function regularly, parents are more than willing to send their daughters to school. Whether it is Muslim families in Uttar Pradesh, Dalit children in Rajasthan, scheduled (nomadic) tribes in Andhra Pradesh or the fishing community in coastal Orissa, a functioning and accessible school attracts children by the hundreds.

What children learn and how much they learn, the school environment, the teacher and links with the community exert a greater influence. In this time and age the relevance of education and the importance of primary education, at least up to grade five, is not a contentious issue. Pedagogic renewal programmes across the country have demonstrated that a vibrant school, a creative and interested teacher and a committed administration can surmount any barrier. Even the absence of a female teacher did not pose a major barrier in a traditional society like Rajasthan, a committed Shiksha Karmi that the community knows and trusts, is enough to begin with. While the appointment of women teachers is indeed very important, it is not an insurmountable barrier. Time-bound intensive residential programmes can gradually expand the pool of women teachers.

Another popular myth is about single sex schools, at least at the primary stage. Yes, this does become an issue at the middle and high school level, but at the primary stage it is accessibility and proximity to the hamlet which is more important. This is true even in very traditional areas. This definitely becomes an issue when the school is far away, but not within the community where the children and the teacher are known to the parents.

Constantly harping on the social system being responsible for our inability to meet nationally and internationally agreed goals and targets have not taken us very far. Conversely, it has given our leaders and administrators a ready excuse. Researchers engaged in gender studies and gender analysis need to look at systemic issues. We need a more rigorous analysis of organisations and systems, work culture, overt and hidden agenda and political and administrative will (or lack of it). While such analysis might be difficult on a global scale it would indeed be feasible at a regional level. This would enrich our knowledge pool and lead us to proactive measures to promote gender equality in the social sectors. This would mark the South Asian report apart from the global one - not reduce it to a pale shadow of the global HDR.

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