World Menstrual Hygiene Day , 28th may
28th May was chosen to commemorate menstrual
hygiene day symbolically because most women bleed for 5 days and have a circle
of 28 days. Each year we join the rest of the world to speak to menstrual
matters, projecting its urgency, unveiling its implication for a holistic
campaign against the stigmatisation of menstruation by the contemporary
society.
In the world as we know it today, that certain time of the month sends
convulsing shocks of pain to women worldwide, both physically and emotionally,
and sends men running for the hills. It’s hard to imagine a time when
menstruation wasn’t such a taboo. Yet, our ancestors saw it as a powerful
natural process. In most ancient myths and religions, throughout the world
dating back hundreds of thousands of years, the power of rebirth had always
been a blessing of the Feminine Womb. In fact ancients had a whole ritual to
celebrate and honour the “cycle of life and death” Without this process, none
of us would have come into existence. We are then sons and daughters of
menstruation.
How important is this day? First and foremost it’s
a day to pass a strong reminder to all girls and women that menstruation is a
natural process that needs no justification, no shame, fear, no limitations
There has been a derogatory
image ascribed to menstruation in modern society Despite the fact that menstruation
is a healthy biological process, it's approached with hesitance and
misinformation because of deeply rooted cultural taboos surrounding
menstruation. In some tradition, women face restrictive taboos relative to
menstrual, such as being denied entry to kitchen, sleep on beds and touch male
members. . In the Muslim religion, women in their menstrual
state are considered to be spiritually unclean. This applies same to the Jewish
tradition, where women in their periods are rejected from spearheading or
taking part in religious rituals. This physiological victimization and avoidance
render women ashamed and feel inferior and less human.
Inadequate menstrual hygiene management is connected
with several problems that females face, in particular in developing countries.
The current silence about menstruation limits women and adolescent girls access
to relevant and important information about their bodies directly affecting their health, education, dignity and human
rights .
Menstration is closely interwoven with SDGs. Worldwide, one in three
women does not have access to a gender sensitive infrastructure SDG 9. In many
parts of Africa, girls can miss up to 5 days of school a month or drop out
entirely due to insufficient access to clean water, sanitation and hygiene
facilities and menstrual hygiene products.SDG 6.Sometimes these girls are sent
off to early marriages once they begin menstruating.This only increases gender
inequality. Early and unwanted pregnancies only makes the situation worse SDG
5. Improving access to clean water facilities can actually increase girls
attendance at school,improve health considering the numerous health hazards
linked to poor menstrual hygiene and especially lack of clean water SDG 4.
Menstrual waste disposal like most waste is another challenge especially in
Africa adding to environmental degradation and its impact on climate change SDG
13,affecting life and health on land SDG 15,contaminating aquatic life
resulting in depletion of aquatic resources,low carbon dioxide absortion SDG
14. Where women's output is limited due to menstrual related issues like poor
health,undereducation,the economy of that population can only be fragilised
leading to more underdevelopment,hunger and poverty SDG 1,2,8.
- -We
speak to the challenges and hardship many young girls face during menstruation
- - highlight the positive and innovative
solutions being taken to address these challenges.
-
- engage in policy dialogue and actively
advocate for the integration of menstrual hygiene management into global,
national and local policies, programmes and projects.
- -
engage
in social media campaign awareness to help restore dignities of women
