The 6-hour journey from Nairobi to Mombasa consisted of me, Becky - the Legal Officer of CHAK, Anne - the CHAK Communications Officer, and the driver (who refused to drive at what I would consider a "reasonable" pace). Along the way, I enjoyed the fresh air and scenery of tea plantations, maize farms, and rice paddies!
These are tea plants.
This is where rice is grown.
When we arrived in Maua, we found out that the hotel we were supposed to stay in was booked. We ended up staying at another place called "The Beehive," where we enjoyed a delicious meal and watched the World Cup Finals. Unfortunately, since "The Beehive" also acts a club for the local Meru people, no one got much sleep...
This was the new hotel that we stayed at - much quieter. It was also much darker (since the power was out in town for 2 days straight)!
The view from the new hotel. Notice that this hillside is being farmed - it's a tea farm!
Our first full day of activity consisted of training local leaders from the community on human rights and alternative dispute mechanisms to enable them to better respond to issues that arise for people living with HIV/AIDS. There were local chiefs and assistant chiefs, pastors and other religious leaders, village elders, and chairpersons from several organizations present. After a series of introductory remarks from Joel Mwirichia, Adherence Counselor and Community Mobilizer; Stephen Gitonga, Head of MTC Palliative Care Unit; the CEO of Maua Methodist Hospital; and the CHAK personnel, the training finally began! They were briefly informed about the history of human rights and the type of rights that all human are entitled to. Then, the afternoon session was facilitated by Eland Njoroge of the Legal Resource Foundation, who spoke about alternative methods of resolving conflicts in the Meru community.
Maua Methodist Hospital Church where all of the trainings took place.
Maua Methodist Hospital
Joel, an Adherence Counselor at the Hospital and an effective community mobilizer, welcome all of the local leaders.
Stephen giving his introductory remarks.
The CEO of Maua Methodist Hospital.
Some of the local leaders present for the training. Notice how many women there are...
Myself, our driver, and others being trained.
Njoroge leads an interactive activity, which has the local leaders playing different members of society to show the imbalance in the distribution of wealth and resources in Kenya.
Myself and the other workshop participants observing the activity.
Day 2 - Training of People Living with HIV/AIDS (PLWHAs)
The second action-packed day consisted of training several PLWHAs from within the community. Most of the people selected were leaders within their respective support groups. The itenirary was very similar to that of the previous day: introductions, expectations, the history of human rights, and the rights that they are all entitled to. Then, after a very hearty lunch, participants were invited to work in small groups and present their own analyses on rights violated in different scenarios. This session was primarily in Swahili, so I spent a lot of time taking pictures!
One client is presenting what she has learned from the human rights training.
Clients participating in the workshop.
This client was attending her 3rd training session and was sharing what she has learned.
A client presents her group's findings.
Clients engaged in the training session.
Becky, the CHAK Legal Officer, leading a fun energizer!
Day 3 - Training of Healthcare Workers
The third day of training was the most exciting for me. While the evaluation thus far has demonstrated to me that human rights training greatly impacts PLWHAs, I have providing healthcare workers with legal guidelines is very beneficial. After the round of introductions, the workers gave their expectations...and they had several! They were very engaged in the entire day's session (most of which was in English - yay!) and expressed their gratitude for learning what their legal responsibilities are as well as how they can assist patients whose problems span beyond the realm of health. I also had the opportunity to refresh my own knowledge on human rights as well as learn a lot about Kenyan law on HIV/AIDS, marriages, and succession.
Becky and Anne (left to right)
Me and this cute Meru lady who served us lunch - my favorite part of the day! This is the food she gave me when I told her I only wanted "a little."
Health workers from Maua Methodist Hospital and other facilities in the area.
Becky orchestrating the workshop.
Group work during the workshop.
Several healthcare workers listen to the presentations of fellow participants.
One healthcare worker presents the human rights violations found in the scenario they were provided.
Day 4 - Legal Clinic in the Community
On Thursday, we had a different type of training experience. We traveled 30 minutes to a local Methodist church where the Maua Medical Hospital administers antiretroviral treatment to PLWHAs in the community periodically. In conjunction with the medical clinic, Njoroge (who presented on Monday) and two other lawyers from the region gave a brief training session on the rights that these patients have even with their HIV status. Then, each client had the opportunity to sit with a lawyer and discuss the issues that they were having. Most of the cases were referred to a local leader, but the pro-bono lawyers - Kimathi and Kitheka - will follow up with a few of the cases in court.
A health worker from Maua Methodist hospital setting up the medical clinic.
Kimathi, Kitheka, and Becky giving legal advice to several clients from the community.
Kitheka, Becky, Kimathi, and Njoroge (from left to right)
Clients receiving information.
Clients (still) receiving information.
Kimathi documents the rights abuses that one patient faces.
Becky sits with another client who wants her story heard.
Another victim of human rights abuses seeks legal redress.
Day 5 - Meeting with Commercial Sex Workers
One of the major reasons I wanted to attend this week-long training session was because of the project involving commercial sex workers (CSWs). In addition to human rights training, CHAK places a great emphasis on economic empowerment believing this is a major tool to encourage behavioral changes. Several CSWs living with HIV/AIDS formed a support group and began a "merry-go-round" service, where each took turns donating money to those in need in the group. Then, CHAK provided a seed fund of 100,000 Kenyan shillings (US$1200), which was loaned in equal amounts to the group's 13 members. The members are expected to make monthly payments with interest, completely paying back the loan within 1 year of receiving the funds (this July!).
One of the biggest successes of the this program has been the options for livelihood that it has provided its beneficiaries. One woman was able to leave the sex worker industry permanently because of the income generated by the business she started with the loan. A few of the recipients have been able to completely pay back the loan with interest, while others have not been as successful with their businesses and consequently have been unable to make their monthly payments. Another benefit of the program is that even though several of the participants have not left the sex work industry, they have the ability of protecting themselves and their families more. For example, some clients described that they no longer accept clients who refuse to use protection, which protects them from spreading HIV or contracting other sexually-transmitted diseases. This is one area that might be worth future investigation...
The clients perform a skit about HIV/AIDS and stigma.
The skit concludes with song and dance.
CHWs share their experiences since receiving their loans.
The children look so cute here, but they did not want to sit through the 2 hour session!
Becky and the rest of the clients.
No comments:
Post a Comment