Self Defense: She is 'No less'
Girl children have the right to a safe, educated, and healthy life during their critical formative years and as they mature into young women. When girl children are nurtured and cared for, they have the potential to change the world – both as the empowered girls of today and as the workers, mothers, entrepreneurs, mentors, heads of households, and political leaders of tomorrow. Girls are breaking boundaries and barriers imposed by stereotypes and exclusion. As leaders today, they are creating a world that is relevant not just for them, but for future generations too.
World Vision India has been continually working to create safe environments for girl children, enabling them to reach their full potential. Below is an example of a World Vision India initiative that helped empower the girl children of Guwahati.
Five years ago, Purobi, the mother of Richa (17) and Prithima (19), was busy stitching clothes on her tailoring machine. Her thin, wrinkled fingers swiftly ran a piece of cloth through the machine, her only focus being to earn a few extra rupees to help feed her family of four. Just then, World Vision India’s Community Development Facilitator, Anjan, called out her name from the entrance of their home. “We’re organising a 12-day camp to train young girls in self-defence. Would you like to send your daughters?” he asked. A blissful smile spread across Purobi’s face as she quickly nodded in agreement.
Forty girls from the surrounding communities were trained in Korean Karate, also known as Tae Kwon Do. The aim of the programme was to empower young girls to become confident and strong, unafraid of any form of attack in society. For Richa and Prithima, this was incredibly significant and life-changing.
“Self-defence has emboldened me to become fearless. I used to think that boys or men were stronger than me. I feared I could be attacked. Now, I think differently. I believe I can easily defeat anyone who fights against me or tries to harm me,” says a confident Prithima. Not just Richa and Prithima, but after the camp, 20 other girls were motivated by the duo and also learned self-defence.
World Vision India has run similar self-defence training programmes in various parts of the country, especially in areas where crime rates against women are on the rise. Thousands of girls from poor and vulnerable communities have been trained in self-defence, helping them shift from fear to fearlessness, ready to confront those who mistreat and attack them. This year, the Indian government has directed all states in the country to avail funding for self-defence training under an Integrated Scheme for School Education. Self-defence training will now be offered to girls in classes 6 to 12 in government schools.
Learning self-defence helped the two sisters pursue their higher education, become sport champions and above all, become confident and fearless. Purobi notes that girls from their community have all become bold. She says with pride, “I see my daughters as equal to men, they are no less!”
Labels: #childwellbeing #fearless #women #worldvision #selfdefense #karate #confidence #girlchild #nationalgirlchildday #selfdefence #worldvisionindia #worldvision
Kiran's Inspiring Journey to Canada
Kiran's story is pure inspiration! Growing up in Kolkata she juggled family and studies. “Having to raise three children wasn’t easy for my parents, but World Vision India supported my education and helped me discover my passion for social issues.” World Vision India’s Snehadeep community project and Play for Peace programme, conducted workshops on life skills, street plays, and puppet shows which became platforms for her to find her voice.
