to make a stone a flower · 2019-12-31 · ali akbar ballal background aged 38 years, ali akbar...

Maliha Shamim

To make a stone a flower

by

Maliha Shamim

First Published by SPO Pakistan in 2002

Copyright © Strengthening Participatory Organization 2002

SPO National CenterHouse No.9, Street 89, G-6/3, Islamabad - Pakistan

The title of the book ‘To make a stone a flower’ is taken froma poem by W.H.Davies.

A WORD FROM THE CHAIR

During the 1980s, a major shift occurred in the

paradigm of development of 1950s which

emphasized on the growth of GNP with centralized

planning by the government. The new paradigm focused

on development of human potential and capabilities

through participation of people by organizations formed

by themselves. SPO which started its journey in 1987 for

providing impetus to community based projects and by

1992 shifted its approach towards capacity building of

CBOs, has followed the overall shift in paradigm of

development and has been successful in proving that

human efforts, however small they may be, can bring

changes which make society more humane. The stories

published in this book help us understand the principles of

participatory development.

Professor Dr. Karamat AliChairperson

SPO Board of Directors, 2000-2003

FOREWORD

“To make a stone a flower” is a brief yet highly readableand informative introduction to the quiet, under-publicized development work being rendered by SPO.

This publication presents pen-portraits of women, menand communities that have begun a process of positivetransformation. They are using principally their own will-power and local resources to make this change. They havebeen able to do so after gaining new perspectives throughtheir participation in the capacity-building trainingprogrammes known as DPM conducted by SPO in all fourprovinces of Pakistan.

The title of this publication is apt. It summarizes the extentof the transformation being attempted. Yet the contentsherein do not convey the multiple levels at which thewhole SPO team, comprising its volunteer leadership, itsfull-time staff and its partner-CBOs devote intensiveefforts to initiate measurable, purposeful change.

The work of SPO deserves far greater attention than it hasso far received from researchers and scholars of thedevelopment process. Perhaps this publication may serveas an “appetizer”

Javed Jabbarco-founding member, SPO

and former Chairperson, 1995-2000

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Glossary

Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .1

Dadli Raho . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .3

Ali Akbar Ballal . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .9

The Swabi Women’s Welfare Organization . . . . . . . . . . . .15

Irrigation Channels . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .21

Hyderabad Development Coordinating Organization . . . .27

Kausar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .33

Arif Baloch . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .39

Najma . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .45

Young Ittehad Taraqiati Tanzeem . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .51

Bilsum . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .57

Khattak Islahi Tanzeem . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .63

Ishrat Perveen . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .69

Humaira . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .75

Lal Jan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .81

Early Child Care and Development . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .87

GLOSSARY

‘Bibi’ culture - refers to wives of feudal lords and the socio-cultural rules constructed to guide theirbehaviour

Bund – damChoti funding – micro funding for small projects given by SPO

to its partner organizations, usually belowRs.30, 000

Cluster – a group of CBOs who attend training courseswith SPO

Dar-ul-Falah – welfare organizationDPM – a training programme comprising of a set of

basic concepts or skills related to developmentplanning and management, designed forcapacity building of CBOs

Jirga – local group of village elders usually involvedin decision making

Kacha - uncementedKarez – underground wells dug in a row, leading from

the source of water at the foot of the mountains,to the fields. A system of irrigation usedspecifically in Balochistan

Maulvis – religious headsMauza – a group of small villagesNazim – locally elected representative at district or

tehsil level Participatory Development Coalition – development networks

at district level formed by SPO Pesh Imam - the man who leads the prayers in the mosquePurdah – veil Unicef – United Nations Children’s FundWadera – feudalWatta satta - exchange marriageZameendar – landowner

1

INTRODUCTION

We at SPO believe in rejoicing in progress andcelebrating commitment. Our work with

communities across the country validates the belief thatdestinies change when people themselves make decisionsgoverning their lives. We do not define Pakistan by itsbeautiful landscapes, mighty rivers, sandy beaches,breath-taking mountain peaks, Mughal architecture,monuments and relics. To us, the country is about 140million people who work tirelessly; whose majoritystruggles hard to make a decent living; who are denied thebasic amenities of life and whose economic, social,cultural, civil, and political rights have yet to be realised.

Empowerment of people so that they take control of theirsituation and then act to alter it requires them to gain agreat deal of managerial and technical knowledge, besidesan understanding of mechanisms that could confront thecurrent structures of power. SPO recognises that access toinformation and knowledge is simply not enough. Thecapacity to process and utilise this knowledge is moreimportant and vital to the social and economicdevelopment we aspire for as a nation. Our field workers,supported by managers, social scientists, and technicalexperts, ensure the catalytic role SPO plays in 49 districtsin all four provinces of Pakistan.

The fairly comprehensive Development Planning andManagement training programme is one of the key toolsthat SPO uses to build the capacity of its partnercommunity-based organisations, which in turn serve thecommunities with a relentless spirit and enhancedexpertise. Moreover, we provide specialised support towomen groups and run thematic programmes in areas likeeducation, health, environment, and poverty eradication.

2

SPO is deepening its capacity building initiatives toinclude local bodies, government line departments, andlegislators to contribute towards good governance and tobring real development issues to the fore. We areincreasingly looking at strengthening civil societynetworks, fostering our gender programme, andconducting research on local and national developmentissues.

This small book is a reminder to all of us that we shouldnever give up. Whatever small contribution we make,individually or organisationally, does matter. Bringingabout social change is a long haul. It requires time andpatience. But as a Chinese proverb goes, “With time andpatience, mulberry leaf becomes a silk gown.”

Maliha Shamim diligently compiled these stories ofsuccess and enterprise. This is not only her firstpublication but also the first compilation of brief casestudies by SPO. She was helped by Riazat Hussain whometiculously designed the title and the book. RizwanMehmood, Zafar Zeeshan, Mukhtiar Chhalgari, FatimaHussain Ali, Arshad Haroon, Shahid Mehmood, SarwatJahan, Michelle Nadeem, Noor Mohammed, ShakeelAbro, Mustafa Baloch, and Shahnawaz Khan provided herwith some basic material. Her travels were facilitated bymany SPO staff, especially our hardworking programmecoordinators and drivers. Kiren Khan and two of ourhonourable board members, Javed Jabbar and Farida Sher,helped Maliha edit the text. Most of all, I thank SPOpartners, organisations and individuals, who took time outto share their experiences with the author and helped uslearn so much about the things that matter.

Harris KhaliqueChief Executive SPO

1

Village: Agro Raho District: HyderabadSindh

DADLI RAHO

T o m a k e a s t o n e a f l o w e r 5

DADLI RAHO

Background

Moving towards Hala from Hyderabad city, onecomes across a small village named Agro Raho. Thevillage has a history spread over some three hundredyears. Majority of the residents belong to the Rahocommunity, but a few other castes can also be found,such as Sayyeds, Kalhoras and Kirias.

In a population of about 1500, the majority of thevillagers own 50 to 60 acres of land for each family.Some have migrated to Saudi Arabia, while almost350 households are barely meeting their dailyexpenses.

Following an age-old custom, women are engaged inthe craft of making caps. One cap usually requires 10to 20 days for completion, but the women get littlereturn for their skills from the middlemen who paythem not more than Rs.100-250 per cap.

The case

In this village, a community based organization(CBO) called Samaji Tanzeem Agro Raho, came intoexistence with the efforts of a young man sevenyears ago. This CBO has now become a symbol ofhope for the women. Committed to supporting thepoor women who were excessively dependent ontheir husbands and who in turn, being involved in

T o m a k e a s t o n e a f l o w e r6

DADLI RAHO

agriculture, could only earn a limited income – theCBO started a project to make Sindhi caps. Theproject was named Basic Institute for RuralDevelopment (BIRD).

In this backdrop, a woman named Dadli Raho wastrying to make ends meet. She had a lethargichusband either earning Rs.30 per day throughirregular labour or not earning anything at times. Shehad three daughters to support, while the katchahouse she lived in fell down a year ago. Living withtheir relatives, the plight of Dadli and her daughterswas to go hungry for days and also bear thehumiliation when neighbours and relatives madeannouncements in the mosque asking charity forthem. Their socio-economic conditions were totallydependent on these alms and the little that Dadli, orher husband, brought home.

As she was falling into total destitution, the projectof BIRD was initiated in the village two years ago.This organization pays Rs.300-350 per cap. Bybecoming a member of the organization, she startedearning Rs.700 monthly by making two caps andeven more, if she could make more than three in amonth. Now her elder daughter provides a helpinghand and this way she can earn a lump sum, whichproves to be more useful than a few rupees earnedoff and on in a month. Although she still acquiresgroceries on credit, she can raise enough income


DADLI RAHO

now to feed her family, a possibility which seemedlike a mirage before the BIRD project was initiatedthrough the choti funding from SPO. Dadli is nowearning enough to support her family as well as torebuild her house. By freeing the women of thisvillage from the exploitative clutches of middlemenand providing them with an opening to earn a decentliving, the project has made considerable impact atthe household level, ultimately benefiting the wholecommunity.

2

Village: Allah Bux Ballal District: HyderabadSindh

ALI AKBAR BALLAL


ALI AKBAR BALLAL

Background

Aged 38 years, Ali Akbar Ballal, is a daily wagelabourer and a farmer who lives in village Allah BuxBallal, Taluqa Hala. His endless efforts to fight thepoverty that he has inherited are visible in eachwrinkle on his face. Ali Akbar lives in a kacha houseconsisting of two rooms, with his family comprisinghis wife and five children (four daughters and a son).Despite the availability of electricity in the village,he has been living in scorching heat with hisinnocent children because his financial conditionshave always remained precarious. Thus, his house isdevoid of other related facilities, like fans, latrines,and a radio. By profession he is a farmer who tills theland of the local zamindar.

Not very long ago, he could not make both ends meetunless he did extra work. For this purpose, hecollected firewood from a nearby forest and sold it inneighbouring villages, which are comparativelylarger than his own. In this way, he used to earnRs. 3,000 per month. Only three times in a yearcould he manage to purchase clothes for his familymembers. He was also sending two daughters to theonly school in the village. His only assets included acow, which provided milk for the family’s daily use,a donkey and a cart to carry the firewood. His wifeowned a sewing machine with which she stitchedclothes for the women in the village to contribute alittle to the household income.


ALI AKBAR BALLAL

The case

In the year 2000, members of an existing CBO ofvillage Allah Bux Ballal were selected for SPO’sDPM training when the capacity building of the HalaCluster of CBOs was in process. As part of thistraining, the members conducted a situation analysisof the village and discovered the fact that more than60 percent of the villagers were living in poverty.This result was sufficient to compel them to work forthe eradication of poverty in the area.

After the completion of DPM training, the CBOmembers had to submit a project proposal to SPO totest the skills they had learnt. They decided to initiatea micro credit scheme for the villagers withRs.10,000, acquired as choti funding from SPO. Oneof the borrowers was Ali Akbar. He took a loan ofRs. 3,200, repayable over a period of 18 months.With this amount he purchased a calf. Feeding thecalf was difficult but he and his family cut down onother expenses because they knew that the calfwould bring profit when sold. When Ali Akbar soldthe calf after 12 months, it earned him Rs. 7,500. Hehad only spent Rs. 200 on its fodder, but had earneda profit of Rs. 4,100. After paying 40 percent of theprofit to the CBO, he was still left with Rs. 2,460.Gathering hope from this experience, he bought agoat that cost him only Rs. 1,100. He used the moneyleft over to buy some grocery items and clothes for


ALI AKBAR BALLAL

his children. Thus, began a process of buying andselling livestock by borrowing loan from the CBOthat brought him some profit on each transaction.

Wise use of the loan has had a profound and positiveimpact on the socio-economic conditions of AliAkbar’s household. There was a time when he waslanguishing under the burden of financial liabilitiesand could not enjoy a single moment of peace.However, since he took the first loan, there has beena considerable increase in his overall income,improving the living conditions of his family. He isnow able to easily pay the fees for his school-goingdaughters, an expense that was earlier making himconsider stopping their education altogether. Thus, alittle financial boost has brought peace and sunshinein his life and some of his desolation has alreadyfaded away.

3

Village: Kernal Sher Khan District: SwabiNWFP

THE SWABI WOMEN’SWELFARE ORGANIZATION


THE SWABI WOMEN’S WELFARE ORGANIZATION

Background

Karnal Sher Khan Kili is a village in District Swabi.The area is dominated by the Yousufzais, which formthe largest tribe of all Pakhtoons. In 1991, a non-governmental organization launched a project topromote reproductive health in this village. A fewlocal women were motivated to become involved inthe project. For that time, it was a miracle if a womancould come out of her house and work on thissensitive an issue. The girls faced strict oppositionfrom their in-laws and the society. The act of goingfrom door to door and that too to strangers’ houses,and telling women about issues which wereotherwise hidden from young girls, was consideredtaboo. Thus, their work received condemnation, notonly from men, especially maulvis, but also fromelder women, who constituted the target population.As purdah had been strictly practiced in the area forcenturies, local maulvis made announcements onmicrophones against this breach of custom.

The project was to be handed over to the localworkers in 1992. The suppression caused due to therigidity of the social order, comprising harshlydefined psycho-social boundaries, had now reachedits pinnacle. There was a dire need for a progressive-minded organization in the village. To continue theproject, the women decided to organize themselves.A few educated men who were highly motivated to



work for the development of the community alsojoined in to form an organization called SwabiWomen’s Welfare Society (SWWS) in 1992.

When SWWS established a “Mother and ChildHealth Center” (MCH) in the village, few of thevillage men did not allow women to go there forregular check-ups. The maulvis continued with theirnegative propaganda, declaring the Society’s work as‘unreligious’. In such circumstances, it wasbecoming difficult to operate the center until SWWSpersuaded the women belonging to the households oflocal maulvis to join the organization. Once theycame into the partnership, the entire scenariochanged, and since then there has been no lookingback.

The case

In 1994, four members of the organization wereselected by SPO for the capacity building trainingpackage of Development Planning and Management(DPM), which was later transferred by them to othermembers.

Since then, SWWS was managing six MCH centersin nearby villages. However, in 1999, theperformance of these centers faced a slump due tolack of funds, which caused a few lady healthvisitors (LHVs) to resign. When SWWS analyzed itsprogram, it showed that the center had outreach to



about 66 villages. As the Society had come intocontact with SPO earlier, it submitted a proposal tothe organization for funding in order to revitalize theprogram. The CBO received SPO’s Social SectorFunding in January 2002, which granted new life toall its centers.

Under this project, 20 to 30 Lady Health Visitors(LHVs) of SWWS centers are being trained inreproductive health practices. These LHVs furthertrain Lady Health Workers (LHWs) at Basic HealthUnits (BHUs) set up by the government in differentvillages, as well as the Traditional Birth Attendants(TBAs). The SWWS workers bring the LHWs toPeshawar for training. The trainers are transferringknowledge about hygienic practices in servicedelivery and sterilization, as well as moderntechniques of family planning that are harmless togeneral health.

Due to this expanded outreach, the turnout of womenat the MCH centers has increased, and relevantmedication is being taken by both women andchildren regularly. Women are not hesitant to sharetheir health problems with LHVs and field workers(FWs) anymore. According to a survey conducted bySWWS, the use of family planning techniques inthese villages has increased from 6 percent in 1991to 48 percent in 2002. In addition, the staff of BHUsand TBAs has been mobilized as they are now



moving out of their centers and visiting thecommunities themselves. Overall, the spread ofdiseases due to ignorance and neglect of serviceproviders has been considerably controlled.

In a social set-up where women were not thought fitto even venture out of their homes, SWWS broughttogether men and women on a common platform towork on a highly sensitive issue. The positiveoutcomes of the project have been felt by thebeneficiaries, and have also been acknowledged bythe Government of NWFP, which honored theSociety with an award in 2002. A small and timelyboost has helped the CBO to aspire high and achieveits aims for the betterment of the community.

4

District: KachiBalochistan

IRRIGATION CHANNELS

IRRIGATION CHANNELS


Background

District Kachi is situated 30 km from Quetta city inBalochistan. It has a population of 358,670, spreadover an area of 11,114 square kilometers. The locallanguages are Balochi, Brahui, Saraiki and Sindhi.The major tribes residing in this area are Rind,Shahwani, Bunglazai, Raisani, Mughari, Abro,Mustoi, Magsi, Lashari, Domki, and Khoso. Theclimate of the area is mostly arid.

About 95 percent of the land in Kachi mainlydepends upon the rains, which occur during May-June and December-January. Water comes downfrom areas such as Loralai, Ziarat, Mara, and Sehan,and joins in streams running to the Nari River. Themain source of livelihood is agriculture and fromrearing livestock.

The area of Kachi was once renowned for bringing ina high rate of revenue for the Khan of Kalat when itwas part of the Kalat state. However, during 1958,when land holdings were reformed and later dividedand allocated to poor individuals and middle class,the irrigation system was not managed efficiently,and repairs proved very costly for small landowners.

The irrigation system here refers to a system fordistributing river water equally to each village whenthe water level is high. Each group of villages alongthe river constructs kacha dams or ‘bunds,’ thus

IRRIGATION CHANNELS


diverting the floodwater collected in the river tofields via streams or channels. The next group ofvillages situated downstream has a similararrangement, and so forth. This method has beenpracticed here for decades. By constructing thesedams, the people irrigate their land and store waterfor other needs. However, for the past many years,the channels used for conveying water were beingneglected and floodwater was allowed to run down,only to be wasted.

The case

In Kachi, the affluent class eventually forced thepoor to migrate to cities and other areas by alsoforcing purchase of their share of the land. The poor,having no financial support, were compelled to putup their land for sale and move out of the area. Theupper middle class in the village of Chhalgariadopted similar methods. Same channels wereshared by both classes but small landowners hadlittle or no resources to repair them. Being dominant,the upper class neglected the construction of properchannels to irrigate their fields, as well as the fieldsand lands of the poor, in a final attempt to oust them.Sensing the negative designs and conspiracy of thefeudal lords, some of the community members gottogether to form a CBO to thwart the harmful plansand ideas of the feudal community and take controlof their own destiny.

IRRIGATION CHANNELS


Keeping these points in view, the CBO began bydeveloping a project proposal for construction andrepair of the irrigation channel leading from the riverto Chhalgari’s fields, and submitted it to SPO forfunding in 1999. With funding of Rs. 400,000 fromSPO’s Social Sector Fund, and an additionalRs. 139,500 collected from the community, a kachachannel was constructed for this area the same year.

According to a socio-economic survey conducted bythe CBO, the output achieved from the constructionof the channel has not only exceeded theirexpectations, but has also added to the income ofmore than 1,000 families. Wastage of water has beenprotected, resulting in a substantial increase inincome for the villagers by bringing 40,000 acres ofpreviously unused farmland under cultivation. Thevisible benefits have brought back many of theresidents who had earlier left the area to improvetheir deteriorating socio-economic conditions. Theyhave returned to resume cultivating their lands and torear livestock.

The construction and repair of this irrigation channelhas benefited the villages financially, and has alsohelped SPO to gain access to indigenous knowledgeon the type of irrigation methods used by the localpeople for 50 years. It has also led to encouragingawareness amongst the people and CBO membersregarding their ability to work for the betterment andprosperity of their villages. The encouragement

IRRIGATION CHANNELS


received by the CBO from its community hasconvinced its members that they too can developeven larger and better project proposals in the future.

In addition, the result of this organized effort of theCBO sparked female interest in local developmentactivities, since water is a major concern for thewomen of the area. Noting their interest, SPOstarted motivating females to participate and formmember groups of their own, resulting in theformation of HANI Development Society. Thecharter of this society, comprising 46 women, is topromote income generation schemes and otheractivities for the development of the area.

5

Village: Mohledino Mir Baher District: HyderabadSindh

HYDERABAD DEVELOPMENTCOORDINATING ORGANIZATION


HYDERABAD DEVELOPMENT COORDINATING ORGANIZATION

Background

In a small village of Tando Jam, some 20 kilometersfrom Hyderabad, terror was unleashed on innocentpeople on the evening of 7th of April 2002. TandoJam is named after a Jam Sahib belonging to a landowning family of Mirs. Other castes includeChandio, Memon, and Kumhar. People who settledhere originally came from the surrounding areas ofNowshehro Feroz, Nawabshah, Larkana, and othervillages in search of better work and educationalopportunities. By occupation, the majority of thepopulation is involved in agriculture and relatedtasks.

In this socio-economic scenario, the hold of feudallords prevails over the area. Major resources ofwater, government jobs and land are largelycontrolled by the waderas. Inequal distribution ofwater through canals by the Irrigation Department isa common practice, as the officials indulge incorruption, favouring those who have enoughfinancial resources to satisfy them.

A social worker called Abdul Latif, from villageMohledino Mir Baher was nominated as a candidatein local bodies polls held in 2001 for which a feudalwas also contesting. According to the villagerselectricity was disconnected to the polling station bycertain men who were sent there by the wadera, andhundreds of illegal votes were caste.



The case

In this backdrop, a fateful incident occurred on the 7th

of April 2002 in Mohledino Mir Baher. At 3 a.m.,when people of the village were asleep and a fewwere in the mosque, policemen raided the village inlarge numbers. About nine police vehicles stopped infront of the mosque and asked the worshippers aboutthe whereabouts of Abdul Latif, the man who hadcontested against the wadera in the elections.Meanwhile, the Station Head Officer (SHO) bangedon the door of the house where Abdul Latif’s brother,Shakoor Mallah, and his wife Zebunissa lived. Hedemanded the return of two criminals who hadsupposedly killed a police inspector in the past andwere now hiding in the village. This was a falseaccusation, used as a means to avenge Abdul Latif’saction.

Men, women and children were brutally battered asthe policemen forced themselves into their houses.The people of the village were already depressed andemotionally charged due to their loss in the elections.Finally, some women mustered their courage andcharged upon the policemen with wooden planks andother objects that they could get hold of. Thepolicemen resorted to aerial firing to scare them, butthe whole village became united against theattackers. This resistance forced the police to retreatafter awhile. They left one of the sub-inspectors



behind who was in Zebunissa’s house and whom thewomen were not letting out.

Meanwhile, Zebunissa, and a few injured womenescaped to Hyderabad and started staging a protest infront of the Hyderabad Press Club. At the same timethey contacted the Hyderabad DevelopmentCoordinating Organization (HDCO), a Tehsil levelcoalition of different CBOs, and informed themabout the incident. By that time about forty fourpolice vehicles and a Rapid Reaction Force unitreturned to the village after the morning clash. Thistime each and every house was raided, doors werebroken; eleven men were arrested and taken to thepolice station blaming them of giving refuge to theculprits.

The police stopped the atrocious acts of violencewhen Zebunissa returned to her village with mediapersonnel from Hyderabad. Shakoor Mallah wentinto hiding in a near by village while Zebunissa’s callto Hyderabad Development CoordinatingOrganization (HDCO) instigated a stream ofcorrective measures to solve the problem. As soon asthe PDC members had been informed, they hadstarted an organized advocacy campaign to bring theoffenders against the law to justice, and help in therelease of the arrested men. They protested in frontof the Press Club for three days. During the protest,they also met 11 Nazims of the area. They protestedin front of the District Nazim’s house in Hyderabad,



and actively associated the Sind journalistorganization in the campaign. Almost 25 NGOswere contacted by HDCO through e-mails and faxesto inform them about the incident.

As a result of these efforts, the DeputySuperintendents Police (DSPs) of Mitiari and TandoAllahyar were transferred. The false charges imputedon Shakoor Mallah and eleven others, of givingrefuge to criminals, were also withdrawn and theywere released.

During the entire episode, HDCO, which hadreceived Development Planning and Management(DPM) training from SPO, played a highly effectiverole in securing justice for the community. It iswidely acknowledged that the catastrophe which wassuffered by the innocent people of the villagebecause they had opposed the waderas, was avertedthrough the prompt and organized help of the PDC.

6

Qasba: Jahan Khan District: MuzaffargarhPunjab

KAUSAR

KAUSAR


Background

Qasba Jahan Khan is located in Tehsil Kot Addu andDistrict Muzaffargarh of Multan. The entire districtwas under the iron grip of feudal lords till about fouryears. Looking back in history to about threehundred years ago, the land was almost whollyowned by the British Government. The Britishstarted giving this land to the local people, who werein turn required to care for the cavalry and livestockneeds of British forces. On the other hand, whenpeople belonging to the Gurmani caste migrated herefrom Dera Ghazi Khan and Taunsa Shareef a fewyears later, they received some parts of the land asgifts from existing landlords in return for favours.Thus, landlords hailing from two differentbackgrounds gradually became the power holders inthis area. No one could challenge their authority asthey also entered into politics. Their rigid rule overthe area derived its strength from the land that theyowned, which, if sold to small farmers duringelections, was snatched back without payment, afterthe need was fulfilled.

The case

Against this backdrop, a few men came together tocreate a community-based organization called Allah-o-Akbar. Being aware of the suppression that thepeople had faced for hundreds of years, the

KAUSAR


organization wanted to work towards theirbetterment. In 1995, it came into contact with SPO.The members wanted to attend SPO’s capacitybuilding program but fell short of the organization’sselection criteria, as the local people did not supportthem. Secondly, their organization was not genderbalanced. In a socio-cultural environment whereeven men had faced difficulties in forming a CBO, itwas hard to involve women in the capacity buildingtraining programme. Women belonging to theBaloch families residing in Jahan Khan rarelystepped out of their houses and were only heard, notseen.

However, to ensure women’s participation, aninfluential personality of the area, Sayyed Badshah,and the Regional Director of the SPO Multan officemet various Baloch families. They tried to convincethem to let their women form a female organization,even though this act threatened the sustainability ofAllah-o-Akbar. Gradually, the women were allowedto attend DPM training on the strict condition thatthe training will be held in Allah-o-Akbar’s officerather than at a hotel because stringent stereotypeswere attached to the idea of Baloch women going topublic places like hotels. However, old women andmen were also associated with the effort so thatyoung women were eventually able to attend thetraining in Multan.

KAUSAR


After the training, the CBO became convinced thatonly if similar organizations in surrounding villageswere formed would the power of the feudal lords bebroken. They started reaching out to people in nearbyvillages who were already surviving in poor socio-economic conditions. This effort prompted amushroom growth of small communityorganizations in different villages. When theconstruction of a road leading to Jahan Khan wasobstructed by the landlords of the area, allorganizations, along with Allah-o-Akbar, appliedpressure both on the feudals and governmentofficials and were successful in ensuring completionof the road. The presence of a strong network oforganizations deeply rooted in the communities andhaving the potential to break the authority ofwaderas was now evident. Similarly theorganization’s members fought for their mission ofcommunity development by making it clear to thereligious personalities opposing them that their onlygoal was development. This became possible by alsoinvolving the Pesh Imams and local maulvis in theirprogram.

During the elections held for devolution of power in2001, a young girl, Kausar, was nominated for theseat of District Councillor from this area, and waselected as a result of good reputation of Kot AdduPDC that led her campaign. Now, she is activelyparticipating in decision-making, which has elevatedthe status of women to some extent in this area.

KAUSAR


Due to continuous efforts of the PDC, profoundimpact is visible in the socio-political and socio-cultural scenario. In all, 44 organizations havesprouted up since Allah-o-Akber’s inception. Thiswhole network is given much importance now by thefeudals of the area who have adopted quite a humbleattitude towards them as they visit their officefrequently and show interest in collaborating withthem on certain projects. Secondly, since the PDC inthis area has won the seat of District Councillor forKausar, the ‘Bibi Culture’ within the feudalcommunity has broken down, and the waderas arenow obliged to nominate their wives and daughtersin upcoming elections for seats reserved for women,which is their only lifeline determining their survivalin the local political scenario. The most importantsocial change which the people have witnessed isthat now both men and women are together attendingDPM training given by SPO, in contrast to thesituation which did not allow the women to even gobeyond the boundaries of their homes.

7

Mauza: Ditta Baloch District: BahawalpurPunjab

ARIF BALOCH


ARIF BALOCH

Background

Moving on the highway leading from BahawalpurDistrict to Karachi, some 17 kilometers towards thesouth, a thin muddy path branches out and meandersinto Mauza Ditta Baloch. It comprises of a numberof hamlets, and is situated on the borders of themighty desert of Cholistan. The entire area is steepedin poverty and is also underdeveloped in literacy,health conditions, and various practices related tomarriages and gender roles. Major castes living hereare the Baloch, Bhatti, Kachi, Rana, and Arain.Young girls are tied into marital bonds at an early ageand are condemned, alongwith their families, if theydare to become educated.

The case

In this community, there is a man whose perspectiveabout gender roles and women’s rights used to be atotal contrast to his present, enlightened stance. ArifBaloch is a philanthropist by choice, and ahomeopathic doctor and agriculturist by profession.Till two years back, he treated his wife as if she issomeone created by God only to serve him andwhose rightful place is only in the house. However,to quench his thirst to do welfare work for hiscommunity, he joined the Rural Women WelfareOrganization.


ARIF BALOCH

In 2001, as a representative of the CBO, Arif Balochgot a chance to attend SPO’s DPM training. Firstly,he learned about the rights that women have toaccess all opportunities that life offers, and thepotential that they have to contribute in thedevelopment process. Secondly, he also observedhow other women in the group were intelligentlyparticipating in the training. This triggered a changein his beliefs for the better.

In time, this experience brought about such a majorchange in his attitudes towards women that he madehis wife learn how to drive the tractor. Now, his wifeploughs the fields without any hesitation. He has alsotrained her to prepare the pesticide mixture at homewhen he is away, so that his tenants can spray it onthe crops on time. On the same principle of enablingwomen to participate in practical life, he is currentlyteaching his sister and cousin to drive a tractor. He isnow of the view that women are also capable ofunderstanding these tasks if they are explained tothem properly.

Realizing the importance of women’s health, Arifhas also built a self-funded “Mother and ChildHealth Center” near Mauza Ditta Baloch, bakingeach and every brick with his own hands in a smalloven. The structure now stands ready to be equippedwith staff and medicines. In fact, understanding theright of women to education and self-actualizationhas transformed him into a new person altogether.


ARIF BALOCH

He has even convinced his father and uncle to returnthe piece of land belonging to her aunt, as she hadregistered a case against them many years ago in thisregard.

To provide these rights to women in his own family,Arif had to bear expulsion from his house and wascondemned by the Jirga as an “indecent” man whowas letting his wife work in the fields with machines.But due to his changed attitude, he is at leaststruggling for the rights of women in his family, andthose of the community, so that they can have accessto opportunities of income generation and properhealth facilities. They are being protected, respectedand honoured by him. For the sake of their rights, heis ready to face any challenge that comes his way.

Arif says that if he had not been imparted theconcepts by SPO about women’s positive role in theprocess of development, he would never have takenpains to help women achieve their just rights. Rather,he would himself have continued to undermine theirpotential till the day he lived, like many other men ofhis community.

8

Village: Momin Khan District: MardanNWFP

NAJMA


NAJMA

Background

Najma lives in a village known as Momin Khan Killinear the small town of Jalala, District Mardan in theNorth West Frontier Province (NWFP). Her largefamily comprises six sisters and five brothers. Sinceher childhood, her father has been involved infarming. Being a girl, and the eldest among hersiblings, Najma had to discontinue her educationafter completing Class Eight because her parentsthought her role to be more productive at homerather than at the school. Education for girls was nothighly valued by them.

Belonging to a peasant family, she had to play herpart in farming, like many other rural women. Butfor Najma, farming was not enough. She had apassion to do something else to support her family.She obtained admission at the vocational center ofDar-ul-Falah, and began learning how to makedresses for tailoring. After some time, she could sewdresses for dolls and babies. Working hard, shecompleted a one-year diploma course from thecenter. She was then able to stitch clothes for othersand charged Rs. 50 per suit. Thus, stitching two tothree suits a day increased her income, which shebegan contributing to support her family.


NAJMA

The case

Looking at the advantages of the training she hadreceived, her parents realized her potential, and didnot attempt to block her way when she became oneof the founding members of the Sahara Women’sOrganization, Jalala. She was elected as theorganization’s finance secretary. Najma was veryhonest and with her leadership, the organizationprogressed with leaps and bounds. This is evident inthe increase in membership from 40 to 400. Najmaearned high respect for the skills that she had learnt,and she came up with the idea of setting up avocational center under the flag of Sahara Women’sOrganization. When it was established, she wasselected as a vocational instructor for the center anda large number of girls were admitted to this center.This gave Najma more confidence and after taking aloan of Rs.5,000, she started her own business ofproducing ready-made garments, recovering theentire amount of credit in a short time. With thisamount, she set up a shop for her brother where hecould sell commodities of daily use.

In 2001, when the local bodies elections wereannounced by the government, Najma came to knowabout, and understand the plan through seminars ondevolution of power arranged by SPO in her village.She realized that if women hold influential politicalpositions, they can affect the decision-making


NAJMA

process directly and can bring great benefits to otherwomen of their community. By now she had gainedgreat respect and the trust of the community due toher integrity and hard work. She took her familymembers into confidence and decided to contest inthe elections. Although many problems, especiallypropaganda from local maulvis, arose to break hercampaign, she did not lose hope, as she had the fullsupport from her family. She submitted her papersfor nomination and was ultimately elected as a UnionCouncillor.

Having a strong belief in education and skills, Najmaproudly stands on the citadel of success today. Allher energies and ambitions have found a rewardingdestination, from where she can deliver services tomany in need while sustaining her roots in thecommunity. She is glad that she came to know aboutthe advantages of participating actively in thepolitical process at the right time, throughinformation provided by SPO at various seminarsthat she attended. Presently, Najma is deliveringtraining on making squashes and pickles to thewomen of the organization.

9

Village: Nawan Sheher District: KhanewalPunjab

YOUNG ITTEHAD TARAQIATI TANZEEM


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Background

A town committee of ‘Nawan Sheher,’ meaning“new city”, developed almost 1 kilometer away fromKabeerwala in District Khanewal as a Sayyed familycame to settle here, more than 50 years ago. Initiallyknown as Basti Lal Shah, it expanded into a town asthe Sayyeds started selling land at low rates. The areanow hosts various castes, such as Sahu, Sial, Chatar,Bhatti, Bhutta, Rajput, Khokher, and Arain, as theycame to settle here from surrounding villages andtowns.

Nawan Sheher is devoid of dispensaries and thewomen of the area were ignorant of hygienepractices to maintain good health. In case of serioushealth problems, their only source of help was thehospital in Kabeerwala city. Women tended not tospend on their health, even when there was need,because of lack of adequate financial resources.

The case

Born in this socioeconomic scenario, a local CBOcalled Young Ittehad Taraqiati Tanzeem, got theopportunity to attend Development Planning andManagement (DPM) training, which was beingimparted by SPO as part of its capacity buildinginitiatives in Kabeerwala in 2001. During thetraining it learnt about development concepts and



mobilization of local resources to achieve certaingoals. Even before it was given choti funding toconduct a project, as part of the training, it was askedby the trainers to initiate a project on self-help basisin its town.

The initial knowledge acquired during the trainingsparked enthusiasm among the CBO members, whodecided to start an income generation project forwomen of the area so that they could spend theirearnings on their health. Together, the membersbegan pooling Rs. 10 per day, raised funds from thecommunity, and collected Rs. 20 each from theorganization’s General Body members.

Earlier, the CBO had been involved in a micro creditscheme for local women in collaboration with anNGO called PIEDAR. In this project, the membershad met a beneficiary, Shahzadi, who had utilizedher loan to stitch undergarments and got a goodreturn. She was hired by the CBO to train two of itsown female members in this craft. Once theirtraining was complete, the CBO used the collectedfunds to set up a training center in the town, buy onestitching machine, and start training other girls of thearea.

The business thrived to such an extent that theproducts are now being supplied to markets inBahawalpur and Multan at the rate of Rs. 70 perdozen, saving Rs. 10 per dozen. The center is now in



search of bigger markets, as its production isincreasing day by day as more and more womengraduate and become ready to work.

Having started from only one stitching machine, theCBO is now running the center with three machines.This has not only trained about 15 women in oneyear, it has also provided the graduates with incomegeneration opportunities which have had a positiveeffect on their households. Thus, a small seed ofknowledge cultivated by the trainers has grown intoa huge tree, providing shelter to many women in thecommunity.


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10

Village: Moola District: KhuzdarBalochistan

BILSUM


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BILSUM


Background

Moola is located 60 kilometers east of DistrictKhuzdar in Balochistan. The area consists of 30 to 40villages and hamlets in a valley that stretches about90 kilometers in length, and yet the population isonly about 15,000 in total. Under the suppressivecenturies-old system of feudal and tribal hierarchies,the area is characterized as the most backward placein the region. Local leadership is more concernedwith its own vested interests than the problems facedby the common people.

The case

In such a dismal state of circumstances, people lostthe freedom to grasp various opportunities toimprove their living conditions. Unable to bear thesuppression, a time came when some far-sightedpeople arranged to have their children educated byusing all possible local resources. This was the startof a revolution, which then proceeded for someyears. These young students realized over a period oftime that self-help is the only solution to theirproblems, as the feudal and tribal chieftain systemswill never favour the interests of the commonpeople. They knew that the tribal chiefs would neverwant to free them from the shackles of theirdependence.

Once this realization came, these educated youths

BILSUM


began to organize themselves and work in theirdifferent villages for the enhancement of educationand development in other sectors. However, in eachvillage of Moola, there was a separate struggle goingon and the small groups were not being able to makethe desired impact, being unaware how the otherswere working. There was a dire need to unite them.As they were all pursuing a common goal, in time,they came together to form a united platform called“Bilsum”, a Brahvi word, meaning rainbow.

Though united under “Bilsum”, they had no skills tobuild this forum into a strong organization. Knowingthat there was no way that the elite of the area weregoing to help them, they decided to look for helpfrom external sources. In the period 2000-2001, SPOhad started the process of group formation in thedistrict to impart training for capacity building.“Bilsum” saw this as an excellent opportunity andentered into partnership with SPO. Through thispartnership programme, “Bilsum” received a seriesof training courses that enriched members with athorough understanding of development concepts.The members came to know about the institutionalaspects of a formal organization, includingmanagement; qualities and role of leadership,planning, implementation, monitoring andevaluation of projects, etc. Soon after thisperformance-based training, “Bilsum” emerged onthe landscape of Moola as a very strong organization.

BILSUM


The leadership of “Bilsum” knew that charity beginsat home and they started reaching people athousehold and hamlet levels. Local disputes weresolved internally instead of going to the tribal chieffor a ruling. This saved plenty of money, energy andtime. They motivated people to believe inthemselves, and think and act wisely to solve theirown problems, which was necessary to build up theircapacity and self-confidence.

During this awareness campaign by “Bilsum”, thegovernment announced the local bodies’ elections.“Bilsum” responded quickly and started convincingpeople through local campaigns about theimportance of using each individual vote and aboutthe positive change that can be brought about with itsright use. “Bilsum” knew that this was the onlychance to weaken the power of the chieftains.Although they had limited resources, the commonpeople were with them, and announced theiropposition to the tribal chieftain system. As a resultof this organized campaign, 19 members of“Bilsum” were elected in the Tehsil Council. TheNazim and Deputy Nazim of the area also belongedto “Bilsum”. By electing these members, thecommunity has helped to completely change thesocio-political environment of the area. During theelection campaign, everybody came to know about“Bilsum” and even religious leaders have nowagreed to support it.

BILSUM


The president of “Bilsum” recalls that during DPMtraining they learnt many lessons. Among severalexercises, he gives credit to “Blind Walk,” whichmade him realize the crucial role of a leader, andhow an inefficient leader can ruin the entirecommunity whereas a wise leader is often a key tosuccess. Throughout the election campaign, a quotethat he often recalled from his training was that “Aleader should be strong like a fort.” This acted as anenergizer for him and the organization while theyfought against the feudal competitors.

Similar organizations take many years to reach alevel of maturity, while “Bilsum” reached success ina short period of time. The inputs provided to themthrough SPO’s capacity building training programmehelped them to shape their scattered efforts into aformal organization and also brought about a majorshift in the local power structure for the bettermentof the people. In the words of “Bilsum’s” president,“SPO’s dedication and commitment to smallorganizations is incredible and worth appreciating,as new paths of success have been introduced to thevulnerable groups.”

11

Village: Spin Kanay Kallan District: NowsheraNWFP

KHATTAK ISLAHI TANZEEM


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Background

At the foot of the Cherat Mountains lies a villagecalled Spin Kanay Kallan. This is a rain-fed area thathas a vast expanse of grazing land. Most people inthe village depend upon their livestock for survivaland profit. Goats constitute the main source ofincome, as well as milk for household use.

The case

In this village, some local people came together toform a CBO to eradicate various problems regardinglivestock and to conduct activities that couldcontribute to the development of the area. Theynamed the organization: the ‘Khattak IslahiTanzeem.’

When SPO came to this village, it selected the‘Khatak Islahi Tanzeem’ for its capacity buildingprogram because of its potential to grow into astronger alliance, and because the enthusiasm amongits members to make a commitment to thecommunity. During the DPM training, the CBO wasasked to identify and prioritize the problems faced bythe community and come up with possible optionsfor the most urgent problems to be solved.

At that time, the village was struck by an epidemic of



livestock diseases, due to which almost 352 headshad perished within three months. The people werehelpless in front of this natural calamity, which wasgradually snatching away the limited security in theirlives. The organization’s members decided toaddress this problem. In this regard, they wereadvised by the trainers to contact the Department ofLivestock and Animal Husbandry for help. When themembers relayed their request to this Department, itresponded by sending experts to the area forassessment of the situation and diagnosis oflivestock diseases. The Department conducted adetailed study, but the hopes of the villagers werecrushed when they came to know that it could onlyoffer technical support – it could not providemedicines. Their apprehension about the survival oftheir only lifeline for economic stability was grave.

When a follow-up session of the DPM trainingcourse was held in this area, an exercise wasconducted with the CBO for resource identificationand mobilization. Through this exercise, themembers learnt how to tap the local resources forneed-satisfaction if external support was unavailable.As it was too late for the treatment of the livestockalready infected with the epidemic, the CBOsuggested the idea of vaccinating the rest on a self-help basis. The CBO identified two volunteers whoopted to obtain training as Livestock Extension



Workers. Consulting the Department of Livestockand Animal Husbandry, they struck a deal to acquiremedicines for Rs. 10,000, acquired as choti fundingfrom SPO, which were to be used for vaccination oftheir livestock. The CBO was linked with the AnimalHusbandry Department’s ‘In-service TrainingInstitute’ for a one-month intensive training ofvolunteers in extension services. After completingthe training, the volunteers were provided space bythe community to open an extension servicesdispensary where people could obtain easier accessto their services. Charged with fervour, thevolunteers took up the Herculean task of vaccinatingall livestock heads in the area. Loudspeakers wereused to disseminate information to protect theanimals from deadly diseases. Along with theprovision of services, the volunteers tried to educatepeople about the importance and cost effectivenessof vaccination as compared to treatment after theinfection had spread.

The dispensary has since then been running on a self-help basis, sustaining the stock of medicines andvaccines with willing contributions from thecommunity. A positive change that has come about inthis area is that before this intervention, people didnot recognize the problem of cattle perishing fromdiseases as one that could be solved. Rather, theyaccepted this as the “Will of God”. Outdated



methods which people grappled with for treating theanimals were of no help. Now, due to increasedawareness about the importance of vaccination, thelivestock mortality rate has considerably decreased,resulting into increased economic security for thecommunity.

12

Village: Kachi Paind Khan District: D.I.KhanNWFP

ISHRAT PERVEEN


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ISHRAT PERVEEN


Background

Situated near the city of Dera Ismail Khan is avillage called Kachi Paind Khan. Due to itsproximity to the city, the village enjoys basicamenities of life, and people have access to water,electricity, telecommunication, and postal services.However, ever since the village came into being,there has been a notable absence of propereducational institutes for both boys and girls. Until1999 there was only one government school, situatedat quite a distance from the village, where peoplehesitated to send their children, especially girls andto avoid the expenditure on uniform and monthlyfees. Moreover, the villagers are still living in theshadows of age-old customs by which there are earlymarriages of girls and ‘watta satta’. These factorscombined had caused a low enrolment of children,especially girls, at the government school.

The case

In this village lives a woman called Ishrat Parveen.She was her parents’ only daughter and had justreached class eight when she was wedded to hercousin and started bearing children. Her desire tostudy was lost somewhere in time as she was handedthe responsibility to run the house and take care ofher children. However, the spark of passion in her tobecome educated did not burn out with time. Rather,

ISHRAT PERVEEN


it manifested itself in her sustained efforts to educateher own children. Her elder son has now completedhis masters in education, and daughter is studying forher Matriculation. A woman of substance, Ishrat hasnever felt awkward in acquiring education from herown children, since they have achieved majormilestones in their education.

When her children were young, the local peopleasked her to teach their children at home. Having asupportive husband, she consented, and startedgiving local children religious education along withteaching other subjects. As her son grew up, he alsotaught the girls of their neighbors in purdah i.e. theysat in a room separated by a curtain.

In time, Ishrat received an offer to teach Class Fivein a school situated in Thoya Fazil, a nearby village.There, she found out one day in 1998 that SPO incollaboration with the British Government’sDepartment for International Development (DFID)is establishing primary schools for girls offering freeeducation under the name of Ammal Project in areasthat do not have schools in the vicinity. Theseschools did not demand any uniform and were toprovide children with schoolbooks, free of charge.

Upon learning this, Ishrat went to Mohiyar, a placewhere one of the Ammal schools was being set up,and obtained all the details regarding the project. She

ISHRAT PERVEEN


convinced the Ammal team that her village was alsodevoid of educational facilities for girls and needed aschool. Once her village was identified by theAmmal team, as being in need of a school, sheoffered a part of her own house for the classes to beheld.

While the school was being established, Ishratreceived training in Lahore, alongwith other teachersinvolved in the project, in which she learnt varioustechniques to impart education to young children.The techniques involved teaching with puppets,pictorial charts, and models made of clay.

She then embarked on a journey to success. In 1999,she started operating the school, with the name of“Aks-e-Noor” under the Ammal Project. The numberof children, including both boys and girls, increasedto 70 in 6 months and when it reached 100, one ofher cousins donated his house in the village toexpand the school premises. Now in 2002, thenumber of students has increased to 150.

When some of the girls at “Aks-e-Noor” completedClass Five and were to take admission in governmentschools for Class Six, the issue of acquiring uniformsfor them was again raised by their parents. Throughher training, Ishrat had learnt that small solutionscould make a big difference. She was not going to lether students’ education go waste on a petty issue. Her

ISHRAT PERVEEN


fervour and training helped her conceive the idea ofteaching the girls to make paper flowers, an art sheherself had learnt in her youth. Hand-made flowersin vibrant hues were sold by the girls for Rs.1 each.Selling bouquets of 20 flowers enabled them to earnRs.20 from each household. The girls raised enoughmoney this way and were able to buy uniforms fortheir new school, thus preventing the financialburden of their education from falling on theirparents’ shoulders. As a result, the enrolment ofyoung girls, both at the government school and theAmmal school, has increased considerably.

Ishrat Parveen is not only involved in thedevelopment of her village but is like a burning torchthat has brightened the paths of many with the lightof education. Due to her efforts, the enthusiasm forthe education of children has increased. Being givena little opportunity to run the school gave hermotivation an impetus, and the school, even afterwithdrawal of external funding in 2001, has becomeself-sustaining.

13

Village: New Moosa Khar District: D.I.KhanNWFP

HUMAIRA


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HUMAIRA


Background

Some 17 kilometers from Dera Ismail Khan city,there is a village called New Moosa Khar, whichspreads on a wide expanse of land. More than 25years ago, the dwellers of this village were settledclose to the mighty Indus River. At that time, naturalcalamities in the form of floods inundated the villageand displaced the survivors for months, till thegovernment gave them the present land to inhabit.Since then their new settlement is called New MoosaKhar.

The village is dominated by the Baloch caste, whichconstitutes the majority. Most of the people areinvolved in agriculture, cultivating wheat, rice,sugarcane, lentils, and corn. A few villagers areengaged in government service, while some ownlocal shops. No traditional feudal system prevailshere. However, the people are entangled in thecustoms of watta satta and child marriages. Rigidcustoms have marred the lives of young girls whohave to bear the negative consequences of thesecultural norms.

The case

In 1998, the village was chosen by the AmmalProject of SPO being run in collaboration withBritish Government’s Department for InternationalDevelopment for establishment of a primary schoolfor girls. The schools aimed at providing education

HUMAIRA


free of cost, where children would not have to wearuniforms and books and accessories would beprovided for. The children would only have toarrange notebooks to write on. In a village wherepeople considered education unnecessary for girls,the school survived with much difficulty.

Humaira comes to teach in this school from aneighbouring village. Hailing from an educatedfamily, Humaira has qualified with a matriccertificate. She joined the school against immenseobjections from her family, as New Moosa Khar iswell known for its backwardness and rigid customs.In 2000, she attended a teachers’ training arranged bythe DFID, first in Peshawar and later, in Dera IsmailKhan. After the training, she realized that childrencould be taught and motivated through varioustechniques.

It was her dream that the children who came to herschool should be clad in neat uniforms, like childrenwho go to schools in the city. For her, it wasimportant because she thought it would bringdiscipline to their lives. Secondly, as the childrenused to come to school in dirty clothes everyday, itdid not give a positive impression to visitors.But, shewas afraid that, by introducing uniforms, she mightdisrupt the program or offend the parents. The task ofbroaching the idea was nothing less than perilousbecause, in this school, parents often withdraw theirchildren as even the single responsibility of buyingnotebooks falls heavy on their shoulders.

HUMAIRA


However, when Humaira discussed this idea with theprogramme coordinator of the Ammal Project inDera Ismail Khan, she received greatencouragement. According to her, thisencouragement was all the support she needed topursue her idea. She asked all her students tocontribute by the “committee” of 1 rupee daily tocreate a collective rotatable fund. She made everyeffort to convince the parents to cooperate in thisregard, after which, 70 out of 125 children startedcontributing, and Humaira started maintainingrecords of the fund collected. After three months,enough money was collected, and she herselfsubsidized the amount that was needed to buy thecloth for the uniforms. She herself stitched theuniforms, taking help from her family memberswhen required.

Now, when one enters the school, children dressed insmart blue and white uniforms can be seen sitting ineach classroom, among whom can also be seen thepresence of Humaira radiating both humility andpride in her achievement.

In a socio-cultural milieu where parents are not evenwilling to send their girls to school or buy theirnotebooks, it is a great achievement for Humaira tobe able to make her dream come true. Thus, a littleencouragement and training has made her zealaccomplish what seemed impossible to others.


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14

Village: Nasirabad District: KechBalochistan

LAL JAN


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LAL JAN


Background

Turbat, a land of desert tract, sharp rocky mountains,deep ravines, and pebbly ground that is scatteredwith oases dense with date palms—is located inMekran Division. With a population of almost475,000, District Ketch includes the beautiful land ofTurbat. The topography of Turbat is alsocharacterized by a series of underground wells, dugclose to each other, visible in the wide expanse ofbarren land that stretches from one end to another.These are locally known as the ‘karez’.

A metal road from Turbat city leads towards a villagecalled Nasirabad, some 40 kilometers away. Here,Balochis form the major castes, while Darzada,Gichki, Ghulam, Rais and Nowsherwani are smallergroups, representing the ethnic composition of thearea. The village is an oasis: as it is approached, softdusty moulds of sand dunes form a canvas on whichdate palms grow, grouped together in small gardensseparated by mud walls. Planted by the inhabitants,the dates form the major cash crop, although theyyield little return in the current water shortage.Flocks of sheep and goat roam about in search ofshrubbery. They are the rest of the lifeline of thevillagers, who have little income from other sources.

LAL JAN


The case

This village is where Lal Jan grew up, informallytaught by a female relative up to Class Two, some 30years ago. In those days, female education was analien concept for most people in the area. Since earlymarriages are deeply ingrained in the Baloch culture,Lal Jan was married at the age of only 14 to becomea widow just eight years later. When she moved backwith her parents, her only asset was her son. Shetried to support his studies by stitching clothes andadorning them with embroidery for women whocame to her from the city for this purpose.

In 1995, a few people came to this village fromTurbat city and invited the girls and women of thevillage, and motivated them to form a group called‘Anjuman Zanana Taleem’ (AZTs) (meaning,organization for female education). These peoplewere the team of SPO’s Village Education Program(VEP). They motivated the women to collectivelywork for the enhancement of adult female literacy inthe village by operating schools through AZTs.Members of the AZTs were convinced to initiate theprocess of education in the area by joining theschools themselves. As Lal Jan was honoured andrespected by everyone and supported by her family,she was chosen as the president of the Anjuman. Thiswas the beginning of a new life. She vacated a roomof her own house for the school and joined theprimary level classes. Although she and other

LAL JAN


women were teased by men in the streets aboutobtaining education in their adult age, they never losthope. After completing her education up to primarylevel from the school, she appeared in the exam ofClass Eight, and later, for Matric from a governmentschool in the village. Now, she is privatelycompleting her First Year in college.

The initial thrust which was provided to her by VEPyielded many rewards for her, improving her socio-economic conditions step by step. On the basis of herqualification, she was selected as a Lady HealthWorker (LHW) for the Family Planning Program ofthe government, in which capacity she is nowearning Rs. 1,600 per month. Other women whowanted to become LHWs in this village wereallowed to do so by the men only because Lal Janwas also in this profession. She and many others whocompleted primary education from the adult literacyschool are now getting their children educated andcan confidently monitor their progress in school.They can also help teach them, if required.

Lal Jan’s determination and education has enabledher to progress far in life and molded her into abeacon of light for others. She says that if she had notgrasped the hand of VEP, she would still have beenfighting a losing battle against socio-economicdeprivation, which keeps women foreverdisadvantaged.


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15

Village: Razgir Banda District: KohatNWFP

EARLY CHILDHOOD CAREAND DEVELOPMENT


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EARLY CHILDHOOD CARE AND DEVELOPMENT


Background

On a sunny day in August 2000, the project staff ofthe Early Childhood Care and Developmentprogramme, being operated by SPO in collaborationwith Unicef, was holding a meeting with parents,community activists, local trainers and care givers, ina village called Razgir Banda, near District Kohat.They are usually called Community Promoters. Thestages of growth and development of children frombirth to two years were being described by thetrainers.

The case

Suddenly, a child started crying loudly and disturbedthe meeting. Ironically, the topic being discussed justthen was how to soothe a crying child. The child’smother, however, frustrated at not being able tocontrol the child, started hitting the six-month oldgirl, slapping her hard which disturbed the child evenmore and made her wail even louder.

One of the Promoters, Mrs. Amraiz, decided to takecharge of the matter and took the girl in her arms andstarted soothing her, using the tips they had justlearnt. The child became instantly calm and startedinteracting with this Promoter. Hence, what wasbeing discussed was practically demonstrated, andthe rest of the women present commented that they



did not believe a child could be soothed by using themethods being mentioned until they had seen thisprocess with their own eyes.

The same day during the meeting, a six-year-old boyreturned from school with his head bleeding due toan injury. After listening to him and giving him thenecessary first-aid, it was found that a schoolteacherhad hit him. The child was shaking with fear and thebitterness showed in his eyes. The project staff askedparents present if they planned on taking someaction. The horror of seeing the bleeding child wastoo compelling and the parents vowed to form agroup to intervene and stop the prevalence ofviolence in schools.

Subsequently, realizing that violence was an issue inthese areas, a sample survey was conducted by theprogramme staff to probe into the child rearingpractices of the Promoters themselves. The resultswere not very encouraging, though the Promoterswere not expected to entirely reflect the practices andviews of the whole community, because they are theselected few that are more educated and aware thanthe rest. However, they are representatives of theircommunities the survey was intended to give a basicidea about local child rearing beliefs and practices.Although the survey revealed Promoters’understanding of, and insights into, child psychologyand parental practices, there were still somesurprises. A staggering 35 percent of the participants



thought that beating children had positive effects ontheir personalities. Overall, the responses showedthat parents did not frequently bestow affection upontheir children. Beating or insulting them in front ofothers was not thought of as abuse. Instead, in someinstances, these modes of behaviour were defined asmethods necessary for the good socialization ofchildren. Most importantly, 99 percent of theparticipants admitted that they often took out theiranger and frustration on their children in the form ofverbal abuse and physical beating.

It was clear from these findings that the Promoters,as well as the community, through these Promoters,needed training on the subject of violence anddisciplinary abuse. Thus, a training course wasdesigned and conducted in which the Promoters wereasked to identify issues of violence in homes,especially those concerning children, the roots of thisviolence, and the negative impacts that ensue.Together, the participants were encouraged toexplore the dynamics involved, and the measuresthat need to be taken to eradicate these negativehabits, and find positive and proactive methods toraise mentally, psychologically, socially, andphysically healthy children. Suggestions andtechniques were discussed for conscientious,effective, and beneficial disciplining of children,alongwith tips on how to deal with anger. Voluntaryand involuntary abuse was discussed at length,including deliberation as well as the newly



recognized injury that is referred to as “shaken babysyndrome” which has devastating effects.

After the training course, the Promoters were quitemoved and said that they themselves had changedconsiderably, and their attitudes were now morepositively inclined towards their children. Theyidentified their previous misconceptions andnegative attitudes and were convinced that theirbehaviour should be modified. They also impartedthe knowledge they had acquired through thistraining to people in their respective villages andwere successful in reaching out to more than 5,000care-givers with these messages.

Disciplining children is a hard task that is oftenfrustrating and anger-provoking, and violence maylead to unhappy consequences for the victim as wellas the perpetuator. However, if the caregivers resortto proper techniques of socializing children, positivepsycho-social growth can be enhanced. SPO made asmall but vital contribution to help bring smiles tothe faces and hearts of the children in Razgir Banda,Kohat.

This collection of case studies from the field reflects SPO’sapproach in helping realize its vision of sustainabledevelopment where the ‘disadvantaged’ participate at alllevels. The diversity of the people involved – women, men,children, groups from all over Pakistan – and their endeavours,strengthens our commitment to facilitate the process ofempowerment.

Ferida SherMember, SPO Board of Directors

and former Chairperson 2000

SPO National CentreH.9, St. 89, G-6/3, Islamabad

Tel: (+92-51) 2272978, 2820426, 2820983 Fax: (+92-51) [email protected] www.spopk.org

HyderabadH. 50, Muslim Housing Society Qasimabad.

Tel: 0221-654725 Fax: 0221-652126 email: [email protected]

MultanH. 20-A, Officer's Colony, Bosan Road.


PeshawarH. 12, Sector D-1, Opp. Tatara Park, Phase-1, Hayatabad.

Tel: 091-811168, 810092 Fax: 091-819837 email: [email protected]

QuettaH. 430-D, Samungli Housing Scheme, Samungli Road.


TurbatSPO-VEP Office, Pasni Road.


D.I.KhanSPO-CBSP Office, Zakori Town, Draban Road.

Tel & Fax: 0961-713231 email: [email protected]

ISBN: 969-8699-00-7 Price Rs. 150

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