CANADA NEPAL GENDER IN ORGANIZATIONS

Section VI: References

Reference #10: Gender Allies

| Nature of the allies work |Working Principles /Operational Guideline of "Gender Allies"|

Working Agenda of Gender Allies
Gender Allies identified its scope and limitations to work for gender equality. Normally bi-monthly meeting was organized to identify and prepare plan of action. The first meeting was considered very important because it explored and determined many things, such as-

focus areas
working principles
code of conduct
gender issues in the district
division of roles and responsibilities among allies members
strategy for mass mobilization
strategy for publicizing gender issues using press or other media
key activities of the allies, i.e. Publication, important days celebration, district policy research, regular press conference etc.

All the above agendas as well as other additional agendas were explored in regular bi-monthly meetings and implemented throughout the year. Of course, allies itself do not work but allies members are supposed to respond on the issues. Some of the issues that allies members can not alone address are brought to the attention of the concerned agency. Other pressure activities to bring public or government attention are planned to be done collectively or individually. The major task was to fuel the voice of the victims whose constitutional rights are violated on the basis of gender.

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Finally, the nature of the allies work is as follows:

1. Awareness: Allies start dialogue on gender in the local community. It helps general people to overcome the gender myths. They start examining many social traditions and rigid cultures through the gender lens and explore the irrelevancy of those in the modern society. For example, chhaupadi in Dadeldhura, dhan khane in Doti, domestic violence in Surkhet, child marriage in Bara and boksi in Mahottari were brought in general discussion and people found these as an unnecessary practice of the society.

Similarly, allies brings national commitments and international consensus on gender equality out in the open for the people. These help people to modify their cultural thoughts and enlist them toward making the society more equitable from a gender point of view.
2. Research and Promotion: Allies research new gender aspects of society or gender elements of the social factor. It uses scientific method to explore new factors in the established way of thinking. It always challenges the status quo and promotes new information and a changed path of society. Allies publish new IEC materials with new messages on gender which creates enthusiasm in general people.

3. Policy Advocacy: Gender Audit is a good tool to do policy advocacy at district level. Published gender audit reports point out the gender gaps in government and non-government organizations, and in their programming. These assessments and findings suggest both GOs and NGOs need to either make new gender policy or implement the central government gender policy effectively in the district level programming. The report summary encourages many organizations to form gender implementation units in their own structure. It also encourages them to prepare gender sensitive human resources for their own organization. This process of facilitation indirectly creates gender demand articulation ultimately in the district.

4. Advocacy and Justice for Victims: Domestic violence was not considered as violence in previous days of Nepalese society. Many social beliefs are still based on unscientific reasons that seemingly refuse the women's right. Women who are blamed and tortured for so called witching and many other things, are not getting justice from anywhere. Discussion and pressure for gender justice compel government and social authority to give justice to the victim. This discourages impunity which has endured for a long time in rural Nepal.

5. Building of Gender Community: Allies and its activities connect people one to one to act collectively for a greater cause. This actually enlarges the gender insight into the impact area. It helps to create a gender environment and ultimately discourages people to do crimes against women.

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Working Principles /Operational Guideline of "Gender Allies"

Gender Allies doesn't work as an organization. It is a coalition. It makes operational guidelines itself which are very flexible. Allies changes guidelines from time to time with the consensus of all members according to the need. Allies is always guided with its vision. Operational guidelines are only a means and don't bind the members to follow it. It identifies its scope and limitations itself to work for gender equality.
Allies determines some of the key methods to operate it. Those are meeting frequency, concern areas, working principle, code of conduct, gender issues in the district, division of roles and responsibilities, strategy for mass mobilization and publicizing gender issues and key activities. PNGOs provide documentation and other logistic support.
Gender Allies is an informal group of likeminded people which has not any determined working pattern. It tries to create a gender momentum in the district through dialogue, discussion and pressure activities. It doesn't need any funding to be in operation.
Likeminded people can come and go from the group at any time. A group of likeminded people has the ultimate goal to create a gender environment in the district. There are individuals in the group from many sectors of life with equal value. S/he is not tied with any dogma or principal and is free to keep different opinions, and to express and follow their own thinking.
Allies only needs blessing and recognition of legal authority, not registration or affiliation. It doesn't need any office, budget, personnel and physical assets to be in operation. Nominal and ad-hoc provision is made for contact center in any group member office. A coordinator is nominated to communicate and coordinate the group. Both responsibilities of contact center and coordinator are rotated among the group members in each certain period.
There are minor rules and regulations in the group; those are under the individual, not above them. Group members are always free to dissolve the rules and regulations. Code of conduct or operational plan is made but these are changeable according to time and context.

CNGO support areas for Allies
CNGO provided nominal support to strengthen the allies. Most of the time, the allies planned activities and they collected support themselves. CNGO core support areas to the district allies are:

Paid staff for one year to facilitate the allies formation process,
Coaching and backstopping support by CNGO staff and
Paid staff for one year to facilitate the allies formation process,
Minor financial support to publish promotion materials and conducting training workshops.

Lessons learned

External support in the initial phase of Gender Allies initiative strengthens and validates local effort. But local ownership and involvement is more important to initiate the formation process of allies.
Content is more important than the management aspect of the allies. Informal forum creates greater impact of social issues in local community. The "issue" gender is above all the driving energy.
The factor that can help the sustainability of gender allies is internalization of spirit of allies in the member organizations. Transformation only comes in some committed people who have passed through the gender movement.

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