An update on the chipkali situation:


I make it a point to spray my room as well as the area outside my room with 'the chipkali spray' every evening. I have even placed a folded towel underneath my door.
Hey, at least i'm trying!

Paul Collier- 4 ways to improve the lives of the "bottom billion."



*** The question isn't how can we be optimistic but how can we give credible hope to those "bottom billion" individuals. This is a major challenge to development today.



*There are two ways to approach development:

1) Compassion: Allows us to get ourselves started.

2) Enlightened self interest: Allows us to get serious.



*The key to development today is to strengthen governance in those countries were the 'bottom billion' reside.



*We once thought that democracy would improve governance. Today, democracies make more of a mess than autocracies. Democracy is composed of two entities:

1) Electoral competition: How you get power.

2) Checks and balances: How you use that power.

Developing countries need more of 'checks and balances' but unfortunetely, what is happening most often are electoral competitions.



*There must be a need and trend towards informed societies otherwise politicians will have their way and propose mere guestures, things that look good but dont really work.

One day an eagle rose up from a craggy perch,
Stretched wide his wings and feathers in search of food.
Admiring his graceful feathers, he grew proud and boasted loud,
'Today, the world entire lies beneath my winds!
When I soar o'er the ocean, I can see with eagle eye
Even a tiny hair, deep at the bottom of the sea!
And if, on land a gnat should move along a twig,
I catch that movement too, sharp within my sight!
In all the world, who can fly as well as I?
Vultures, condors, Simurghs, who?'
Suddenly, from a hidden spot, an arrow arched up high,
An arrow of disaster hurling straight to find its mark.
That searing, tearing arrow struck deep withtin the eagle's wing.
And broungt him crashing down from high to low.
Tumbled down that helpless bird, and landed, flipping like a fish.
And, disbelieving, opened wide his eyes from right to left.
Only when he spied the arrow's eagle feather did he comprehend at last;
'How can I complain?' he cried, 'What comes from us, returns to us!'
O Khusraw! Cast all your arrogance and pride aside,
You see what befell that eagle full of boasts!

-Nasir Khusraw as translated by Alice C. Hunsberger from The Ruby of Badakhshan

As explained by the author, "the poem warns us of excessive pride in our accomplishments and posessions". Pride and arrogance forgets the Creator who created the creation. Instead, one should approach accomplishments with humility and a sense of thankfulness.
Another hallmark feature of this popular persian poetry is the line 'What comes from us, returns to us!' This phrase teaches us the importance of personal responsiblity for one's actions and disasters. "If we are the doers of our acts, then we are responsible for them," as stated by A.H.

If we are ultimately responsible for our own actions then who is responsible for the actions of those that leave young children father- and mother-less? Who is responsible for the waste and filth? Who is responsible for sending kids to school? Who is responsible for providing equitable health care to all regardless of age, class, gender, religion and ethnicity? It is easy to point fingers at government officals and past regimes but it is harder to point the finger at our own direction...

Have you ever been afraid of something so much that it consumes your whole being? So much so that you cannot eat or sleep? I have a fear….but you will laugh if I tell you what I am afraid of. This I am sure of. I am scared to death of Chipkalis to the point that I think I have a phobia! Interestingly, when contemplating my move to Karachi some six months back F.A had said, “You know you will have to deal with chipkalis in Pakistan all the time?” And I said, “Oh whatever! I can deal with anything!” I should have kept my mouth shut….

Chipkalis are small house lizards in colors of orange, green, light green or orangy-green. They come out at night, mostly during humid conditions, and like to roam around bright lights. They usually climb on walls or hang out on the ceiling. Apparently they are useful to have in your home because they eat small ants, bugs and even mosquitoes. N.A informed me Imam Sultan Mohammad Shah has said that chipkalis are “lucky.” Unfortunately, I do have any reference for this….

Outside the women’s residency, there are chipkalis hanging out on the walls at night. I time myself when entering my room so no chipkalis can enter. If I have to get to the other side of the hallway and there are chipkalis on the ceiling along the way, I run! While in my room, I periodically scan every corner and all the walls. You can say I am slightly paranoid…

Since I have been in Karachi (two months now), I have had to deal with Chipkalis 5 times while my fellow women’s residency neighbor, K.M, has never had a chipkalis in her room since the 6 months she has been here. My other neighbours do not have to deal with this 'problem' either.

I have always believed that if you are meant to learn a lesson in life, that same situation will present itself over and over again until you actually learn that lesson. In my opinion, I have had many encounters with chipkalis compared to my neighbours is because I have to learn a lesson. My lesson is to overcome this fear I have of chipkalis because in the end, I should not be afraid of anything but God (Allah). And this fear is so ridiculous because a chipkali is actually scared of humans and hence, will never do anything to harm them. So what is wrong with me?!

Let me describe to you what transpired during my dealings with the dreaded chipkali(s).

Situation #1: I am in my room at the AKU guesthouse watching television and surfing on the net when I suddenly notice a small lizard type “thing” on my ceiling. I automatically knew that that was a chipkali. I ran out of my room, screaming for the guesthouse caretaker. While he was trying to locate the chipkali, (btw, they run like nobody’s business!) I sat in the corner crying. The care taker only managed to cut the chipakali’s tail but the chipkali itself hid somewhere in my room. That night I cried, not wanting to live in Karachi anymore. That night, I refused to sleep in my room. I managed to make the caretaker let me sleep in an empty room that night.

Situation #2: The next night I am watching television in my room when I notice the same chipkali climbing my wall. I know this was the same chipkali as last nights’ because it had no tail….Again I run out the room and scream for the caretaker. Again, I’m crying uncontrollably. Thankfully, the caretaker killed the chipkali. You may think I’m evil for wanting the chipkali dead, but try to step into my shoes.

Situation #3: Now I’m in my room at the women’s residency when I notice a chipkali on my ceiling. I panic, I cry, I lose control. I call downstairs to the reception and ask them to please send someone to my room to get this chipkali out. It takes them 15 minutes to get to my room but it seemed like a lifetime. All the while I am standing at a corner in my room crying…waiting for someone to come…watching the chipkali slirher across….my heart pounding uncontrollably… Again, the man does not get the chipkali and it hid somewhere in my room. I did not eat and neither did I sleep that night. I had the light on the whole night, constantly scanning my walls and ceiling. I had my whole room fumigated the next day. I even placed egg shells at every corner of my room because I was told chipkalis do not like egg shells.

Situation #4: I see a Chipkali run across my floor as I enter my room last night. These egg shells are useless. Instead of panicking and crying, I grab my shoe and aim at the chipkali. The chipkali escapes yet again. I scanned my room over and over again but could not find it. How did I sleep last night considering the fact that the chipkali was still hiding in my room? Pretty well. I even slept with my light off and ate my dinner properly. I did not cry once! Have I overcome this fear?

Situation #5: Another chipkali is identified. The fumigator is called right away and the chipkali is killed after a little fight. As soon as the fumigator leaves, a SECOND CHIPKALI OF THE NIGHT passes right by my feet. I panic! I grabbed a broom and struck it. I think this chipkali had already been hurt because it was not moving fast at all. As I was about to kill the chipkali, I could see it's eyes staring at me. It was as if he/she knew its’ fate and was begging me to not do it. I actually felt horrible…said sorry….and killed it…As much as I am fearful of chipkalis, I still feel horrible.

I am living in a world of contradictions and this has gotten me feeling confused and frustrated….

How can some men ask of their women to be veiled without the slightest understanding as to the significance behind the veil, while these same men physically, sexually and emotionally abuse other women?

How can there be so much poverty that little children are begging for money, while others use these same children to generate their income?

Why is it that when you genuinely smile at someone and are friendly with them then they feel this is permission for them to step out of line?

I feel like I am constantly being starred at, by both men and women, for reasons unbeknownst to me. “Do I have something on my face?” “Did I not fix my kurti after coming out of the washroom?” “Am I showing skin?” These thoughts run across my mind continuously. Their staring makes me extremely uncomfortable that I do not leave the house either without a shawl or a dupatta to veil myself. Inside restaurants, within the women’s residency or in other people’s houses I do not feel the need to cover myself. As soon as you enter outside of those domains, all eyes are on you. I have never felt the need to “hide” myself in Canada or anywhere else.

I am the type of person who likes to smile as I pass by individuals on the street. But I find that as soon as I smile at someone, some people assume that I either want something or that it is ok for them to act “fresh.” Can’t a person smile just because? And when I walk with a stern look on my face, I feel like I am not being myself. I feel horrible and dirty. I have been told that in Karachi, one has to exchange a dirty look for a dirty look, stare at the person who is staring at you and frown when you are bring frowned upon. But what if you are not that person they are asking you to be? So what is a person to do? It is as if opposite forces are pulling me from either direction. Don’t make me be someone I am not!!

There was a man who enjoyed gardening with a passion. Every year, he would enter his garden into a contest and every year he would win. One day, a man approached this gardener and asked, “What is your secret?! What do you use to grow such beautiful plants and flowers?” The gardener replied, “Well, when I go out to buy my seeds I also buy for my neighbors.” The man exclaimed, “What! I don’t understand! Why would you buy seeds for your neighbors?! We are living in a competitive world; you must look out for yourself first and then others. Why would you share your secret with your neighbors who also join this contest?” The gardener explained, “My dear friend, when I buy seeds for my neighbors and they grow beautiful plants and flowers then I too benefit. When my neighbor’s flowers pollinate, bees pick up the pollen from his garden and transfers it to my flowers. Just like when my flowers pollinate, the bees transfer the pollen from my flowers to my neighbor’s flowers. This is called cross-fertilization or pollination and the main purpose for this is to reproduce. So if either one of us plants with bad seeds then the other one suffers as well.”

Moral of the story: If you want good for yourself, both physically and spiritually, then you must want the same for others. Together we can help each other realize our potentials and achieve self-actualization.

The federal government of Pakistan has recently started a Lady Health Workers (LHWs) program in Karachi, which currently employs 100,000 women both in rural and urban areas. This 15 month program consists of training in family planning, basic hygiene, and child health only to name a few. It is designed for women who are interested in providing health services to their communities, while generating some family income. LHWs do not directly receive a salary but they do get a stipend, which helps with the family expenses. Consider this stipend as an incentive for these women. The following are the successes and challenges of this particular program

Successes:
1) Pakistan is a patriarchal society with men dominating the public sphere while women are confined to the private sphere. The state in turn supports patriarchal norms and institutions by restricting women’s mobility outside the private sphere. The initiation of this program has resulted in an unprecedented move, allowing women rights to access the public sphere since they have to make home visits and collaborate with other health care providers.
2) Contribution to household income and hence, poverty management
3) Source of empowerment as women find meaning in their lives through service for others.
4) LHWs from a dominate caste achieves access to greater number of households
5) LHWs gain confidence to teach, learn and to make decisions, which was initially seen as a “mans job”
6) LHWs have access to information and intellectual sources
7) Use of contraceptives for the first time, upon completion of Family Planning course module
8) Establishment of meaningful relationships outside the private sphere and away from family life (i.e. with other women and men as well)
9) Men utilizing family planning techniques and obtaining information from LHWs
10) Establishment of relationships with other community organizations and politics
11) LHWs have gained increased household status and respect, even within their own families
12) New found interest in enterprise and ability to change one’s own situation as well a that of others

Challenges:
1) Only women from a dominate caste gain access to greater number of households-inequality
2) Men are no longer seen as the sole “breadwinner” of their households, creating increased tension between husbands and wives in some households. Also, women are being empowered at the expense of men’s self esteem and their ability to provide for their families. Some men do not feel as useful as they once used to. Think about the cultural norms in a traditional Pakistani society. A change or anything out of the norm would definitely alter a society’s perception and attitude. Change is not always taken positively, especially when is accompanied by strong emotions. This change is devastating for these men because they have always been used to one way of doing things. They have now been exposed to “another way” and not all men are happy with this change.
3) Since the LHWs have approximately 100 households to visit, they have less time to attend to their household responsibilities. Therefore, increased numbers of young women have to pick up on household chores left behind by their mothers, sisters or mother-in-laws. These are very young women who are being asked to give up their schooling and even their childhood. Interviews have shown that since the world load and expectations of these young women are increasing, there is greater amount of tension between mothers and daughters, even hostility.

Even a move in the right direction comes with a cost....

My supervisor and I visited Thatta, a city in Sindh, in order to learn how to use Bailey’s test for cognitive and motor development since we will be using this same model to test our children in our Complementary Feeding study (please see previous journal entry). Bailey’s test is used to assess motor and mental development of children after their first year of life through tasks that involve play and motor function. Once the test is performed and raw scores established, the children are classified into: 1) Exceeds normal development, 2) Normal development, 3) Mild developmental delay, and 4) Severe developmental delay. If a child falls into the last two categories, then they are closely monitored and interventions are set in place. These interventions include educational messages and recommendations as to what the mother and the family can do to help the child develop in a supportive environment.

One of the children we tested was classified as being “mildly delayed.” This particular child was actually premature. I think you can appreciate the connection between premature and low birth weight babies with developmental delays. However, developmental delays do not JUST occur due to these poor birthing outcomes. Factors such as malnutrition, lack of a supportive environment, inappropriate stimulus or lack thereof, inadequate psychosocial support, etc… Interestingly, research shows that these same factors lead to poor pregnancy outcomes.

Majority of mothers here are unable to tend to their children because they have to work long hours in villages in order to contribute to the household income. Here is the sad part; many mothers give their babies a cough syrup early in the morning, which puts the child to sleep for the entire day. The mothers then return in the evening and by then the child is awake. Throughout the day, while the child is asleep, he or she has received not a single drop of breast milk nor has he or she engaged in any sort of play, which has been proven time and time again to improve growth and development of children. This same child has not been exposed to any form of stimuli. Some children are not given cough syrups but are instead left with their other siblings. These siblings are not any older themselves. So basically, these children are left to fend for themselves. They pick up anything from the ground to eat as food and play with stray animals. Go figure that these children suffer from developmental delays! These deficits remain in the later years of life, unless intervened immediately. It is such a sad environment for innocent children to grow up in but no one dares to solve the grassroots of these problems. Mothers that have to leave their children are given no options and no support. And so this vicious cycle continues...