Women and Goats

"A son will always be a son, they say. But a girl is like a goat. Good as long as she gives you milk and butter. But not worth crying over when it's time to make a stew."

This is a quote from a book that I recently finished reading. The book is Sold by Patricia McCormick. It has gotten quite a bit of publicity since it came out because it is an adolescent book that tells the story of a young girl in Nepal who is sold by her stepfather to work in a brothel in the red light district of Calcutta. The author spent a lot of time studying the topic and interviewing people in Nepal and India before writing the book. I would definitely recommend that you read it. I guess it just paints a picture of what we talked about so many times last year when I would talk to you all about trafficking in India, and other such topics!

This is a blog entry with a purpose. I have decided that since I don't really get the opportunity to share things like this with you anymore, there are a few things that I thought you might like to know about that are happening worldwide that have to do with women. Just a couple of little updates to keep everyone up on the current news.

Pakistan: Pakistan has taken a step in the right direction in trying to amend it hudood laws. These are the infamous laws that deal with rape in Pakistan. Currently, a woman must have four witnesses before a man can be convicted of raping her. If these witnesses cannot be found, the woman can be found guilty of adultery and suffer the consequences of that. The new revision of the laws allows rape to be taken into the criminal court (not just religious court) where the punishment can be decided by a judge. It also reduces the punishment for adultery to 5 years in prison or a $165 fine. Mind you, these revisions still need to be approved by the legislators. Many Muslim policy-makers walked out because they were so upset at these changes. On the other had, many groups are upset that the laws are not being totally eradicated instead of just reformed. Either way, at least it is something! I hope that it shows some positive movement in the right direction. Here is a link to a BBC article on the subject if you are at all interested (which I hope you are!), http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/south_asia/6153994.stm

The next piece of information is regarding the company Nestle. I actually saw a little article about this in the BYU Political Review, which I thought was so great (written by a guy, no less)! In LDCs (lesser-developed countries) around the world, Nestle has been running huge marketing campaigns regarding its breast milk substitutes. Apparently, women's increased us of these breast-milk substitutes are causing increased infant deaths. In these countries, the only water available for women to mix into these substitutes is incredibly unhealthy and causes more disease and death. Through these add campaigns, women are led to believe that formula is healthier than breastmilk. The problem is that formula is so expensive that women dilute it more than they are supposed to and so the babies do not get the nutrients that they need, anyway. Also, the families tend to suffer because they have to spend so much money on formula that they can't afford as much food for the rest of the family. In some countries, Nestle provides a free gift package of 4 days of formula for new mothers that they use in the hospital. Apparently, by the time they get home, these mothers can no longer breastfeed, and, not knowing how to induce lactation again, they end up being compelled to buy formula that they can't afford.

Anyways, ladies, I just wanted to give you some food for thought. Feel free to read up on any of it if you are so inclined. I love you ladies and am excited that we will be reunited in about a month!