28/08/2016
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“We teach these girls that they don’t have to fight using knives, stones. No, they use the parts of their body that they were born with,” says Alinafe Kambalane, a self-defense teacher with Ujamaa, an organization giving girls the skills they need to defend themselves in a country where sexual violence has reached epidemic levels. Along with one in five girls in Malawi experiencing some kind of sexual violence, cultural norms often make it difficult for girls to get the help they need to end on-going abuse. Through its classes, Ujamaa aims to put the power directly into children's hands like those of 14-year-old Fazani. She was scared by older men who would follow her and harass her on her way to school; “I told my parents about it, but they would ignore me,” she recalls. The training courses have given her a major boost of confidence and taught her techniques such as saying or shouting 'No' when she is harassed -- “I now tell people ‘no’ and that I will tell an adult," Fazani proudly asserts.
While studies have found widespread sexual assault in the African country, the true extent of the situation is masked by girls’ fears about reporting, particularly since they usually know their attackers. "We know that young girls, as they’re walking to school, are inappropriately touched by men, by the taxi drivers, when they’re in school by teachers," says Nankali Maksud of UNICEF Malawi. She adds that it's so commonplace that “young girls see that that’s the norm” and don’t even recognize it as wrong. Even when girls do report abuses, getting adults to intervene is often challenging explains Ujamaa board member Brendan Ross: in a country where forced child marriage is still common, "sexual violence in the Malawian context is a social norm." The result is that girls are badly in need of protection, and since the adults in their lives often aren’t providing it, Ujamaa decided to teach the girls to protect themselves through classes run at schools. And, such training is making a difference: a Stanford study recently found that in schools where these skills were taught, the incidence of reported r**es dropped by half.
While two-thirds of Ujamaa’s students are girls, they also teach boys -- and encourage both girls and boys to stand up for one another when someone needs help. One student 17-year-old Godfrey says, “I saw a man trying to r**e a woman on the way home from school and I screamed ‘no’ and he ran away.” A study of Ujamaa's Kenyan program found that half of the male participants saw a man physically or sexually threaten a girl or women within six months of completing the training; three quarters of the boys were able of successfully intervene to prevent the attack.
And, once girls have the Ujamaa training, they feel empowered to protect themselves -- even if it takes a few pointed reminders that they won’t stand for poor treatment any more. “A lot of boys used to grope me, but I was afraid of them beating me if I said no,” 17-year-old Tiamiga says. She often skipped school to avoid meeting them on her way home. She had to use Ujamaa’s eye-poke technique twice before the boys got the message, but now she can go to school without fear: “[The class] has been really useful and has helped me in my community. People have really seen the change in me.”
To read more about Ujamaa’s classes in Malawi on NewsDeeply, visit http://bit.ly/2aHIJqr -- or check out their website at http://ujamaapamodzi.org/
For a helpful introduction to women's self-defense for teens and adults, check out “Fight Like A Girl... And Win: Defense Decisions for Women” at http://www.amightygirl.com/fight-like-a-girl-and-win
For several fun stories starring Mighty Girl martial artists, we highly recommend "Ninja Red Riding Hood" for ages 4 to 8 (http://www.amightygirl.com/ninja-red-riding-hood) and "Tales of Bunjitsu Bunny” for ages 6 to 8 (http://www.amightygirl.com/tales-of-bunjitsu-bunny)
If you know a girl who has suffered sexual violence or trauma, a new release from the Instant Help Solutions series can provide her with some guidance towards recovery. You can learn more about “The Sexual Trauma Workbook for Teenage Girls” at http://www.amightygirl.com/sexual-trauma-workbook-girls
For stories of girls and women experiencing and overcoming abuse and violence in their lives -- which offer a helpful way to talk to young people about the widespread problem of violence against women -- visit our “Abuse & Violence" book section at http://amgrl.co/1lQzaJG
And, for one of our favorite shirts celebrating the power of girls and women, check out the "Though She Be But Little She Is Fierce" t-shirt -- available in a variety of styles and colors for all ages at http://www.amightygirl.com/fierce-t-shirt
