Success: Nepal Criminalizes Forcing Women into Isolated “Menstruation Huts”

Target: Bidhya Devi Bhandari, President of Nepal

Goal: Support the criminalization of the practice known as chhaupadi, which banishes women from their homes and forces them into isolation during menstruation.

After the deaths of many young women, and thanks in part to petitions like this one at ForceChange, Nepali lawmakers have made it a crime to force women out of their homes and into dangerous conditions of isolation during their periods. The practice is called chhaupadi and is rooted in the belief that women are impure, unclean, or carriers of bad luck when they are bleeding. They are often made to sleep alone in cow sheds, even in the middle of winter, and are banned from touching men, cattle, and certain foods.

The new law states that women who are menstruating or have just given birth cannot be “kept in chhaupadi or treated with any kind of similar discrimination or untouchable and inhuman behavior.” The punishment for the practice is three months in jail and a $30 fine. Although the law is not perfect, it is a positive first step in protecting women, like the teenage girl who died of a snake bite when she was banished to a shed outside her home, or another young girl who was killed in a fire while trying to keep warm during isolation. Sign below to support the criminalization of this dangerous and inhuman practice.

PETITION LETTER:

Dear President Bhandari,

Thank you for protecting the women of Nepal by criminalizing the practice of chhaupadi. Banishing women from their homes and into isolation during menstruation, where they are often exposed to extreme and incredibly dangerous conditions, is cruel and unacceptable.

Multiple young women have died as a result of this practice, while countless others continue to be put through this torture. Although this new law may not be an immediate solution to the problem, it is an important step in defending the rights and the lives of these women. I strongly support the criminalization of banishing menstruating women to isolated huts and treating them as anything less than human beings.

Sincerely,

[Your Name Here]

Photo Credit: Stephen Bugno