A life Can Be Replaced by Another life only!
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Girl Child Compensation in South Sudan From Social Norms
Perspectives
Overview
Facts and Factors
Diagnosing Girl Child Compensation
What exist and what has been done
What to change and How- using Social Norms Perspectives
-Shanti Risal Kaphle
Child Protection Specialist, UNICEF
UPENN, 12 July 2013
South Sudan: Brief Profile
• Newest country in the
world- 2 years old now!
• Literacy of adults estimated
to be at 27%
• (51%) of the population is
below the age of eighteen
• 83% of the population is
rural
Eastern Equatoria: Brief Over view
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Total Population of the State is 0.91 million;
Half (52%) of the population is below the age of eighteen;
91% of the population is rural; 19% of the adult population is literate;
50% of the population live below the poverty Line ;
86% of households depend on farming or animal husbandry as their primary source of
livelihood
Girl Child Compensation Some
Facts & Factors: Story of Grace
• Grace a 11 years old who was given as
compensation when her uncle killed a
member of another tribe in a cattle raid,
• The victim’s family demanded
compensation—the traditional solution of
‘blood money’.
• Grace was given to the victim’s wife who
beat her near to death.
• She ran away and walked 6 kilometers to
town for medical treatment and reported
the abuse.
• Now she is under foster care & goes to
school (supported by UNICEF) under
protection of the Ministry
• She still fears that the victim’s family will
discover her and take her back.
There are many
girls like Graceit is practiced
in all areas of
the State
Girl Child Compensation Some Facts & Factors
Facts:
• The number of girls victimized by this custom is not known. However, every year at
least 10 cases are reported
• In 2012, the Customary Courts in three different Payams ( like district) resolved
nine cases out of 14 reported with support of Community based CP Units ( UNICEF
supported)
• No Empirical studies or surveys done to understand real magnitude of the practice,
though practiced in all areas of the State.
Factors Perpetuating the Practice:
• Systemic deficiency :
 Conflict between customary and formal system
 Child Act 2008 in place but limited implementation to date,
 Most of Customary Chiefs are unaware of the formal law
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Social deficiency:
 cultural practice- believed by people
 social belief and expectations- girls are property, should obey the decision, give birth, lost life must be
replaced
Economic factors: dowry, labor, poverty
Implications on girls
•
Denied Child Rights - no opportunity to education and development, treated as
slave and are sex object
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Forced to pay for the “sins” of her family: the real victim of this ancient custom is
not the aggrieved family, but the girl - bears the stigma of shame for the rest of
her life and has no status,
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Separation from family: leave their families at an early age to live with the new
family (victims’) amongst strangers and in new surroundings- psychosocial stress.
•
Suffers abuse, violence and exploitations: the psychological shock is compounded
by multiple forms of GBV including child/ forced marriage
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Loaded with work and the new responsibility: expected to give birth and
replenish the lost life and to contribute to her family and to the new family dowry
Diagnosing from Social Norms Perspectives
Social Norm supporting the practice
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Most families see that other families
in their communities also give their
girl as compensation (empirical
expectation)
•
Girls ought to comply with the
decision of elders ( empirical
expectation)
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They believe that other families
think that they ought to give their
girl as compensation and if they
deviate they will be punished
(Normative expectation)
•
Most people see that disrespect to
elder’s decision ( by girl or family)
are punished/sanctioned (sanctionnorm- to comply with the decision)
•
Supporting Belief
Most people believe that since her family
member ( father, brother, or uncle) has
killed some one, she should contribute to
pay the price ( personal and normative
belief)
• Most people think that girl should give birth
and replenish the lost life ( personal &
normative belief)
• Girl is paying the price for guilt of someone
from her family so any violence against her
is normal ( factual belief)
• Many people believe that girl as
compensation is given to defuse the tension
and to keep the peace in the community
(personal & normative belief)
• Girls and women should not interfere in
decision making (personal normative belief)
• Deviant behavior
should be punished
• Decision of the
elders should be
obeyed and
respected- girls,
family
• Victim's grief should
be repaired/
replenished by
compensation
• Girls and women
should not interfere
in decison
• Girls should give
birth and replenish
the lost life
Social Norms
• The Interim Constitution
guarantees rights of children
• The Child Act, 08 prohibits
use of harmful practices but
no explicit provison banning
such practice
• No particular sanction inferred sanction of
maximum 7 years
imprisonment for violation
of rights
• Limited knowledge of the
law
• Penal Code, Compensation
as “Blood Money” is
permitted.
• Draft State Constituion has a
provision banning the
practice- not approved yet.
• Tension causes disrespect ,
are disobeyed as they are
not close to people’s
expectations-
Moral Norms
Legal Norm
Legal, Moral and Social Norms
Tension or Harmony?
Social Norms Vs
Legal Norms
weakens it coz it is
not beneficial
collectively- G.
Mackie
• Social norm is for peace,
economic gain, and justice
in the community
• It is law of the community –
should be respected
• Girl should contribute to
community peace &
harmony.
• Compensation is for
controlling deviant
behaviors
• Girls are means of
reproduction of many
children who can earn for
the family , will bring a
handsome dowry
• A lost life can be only
replaced by another life
• Perpetrator must pay for
the killed life by giving a girl
What Exists- what has been done so far
• Knowledge, Attitudes and Practice Study carried out in 2008- no specific
behavior analysis (KAP- limited information)
• Child Act 2008 - limited implementation, most of Customary Chiefs are
unaware of the formal law (lack of knowledge)
• Communication Strategy to Reduce Child Marriages and Enhancing
Protection of Girls developed in 2011 - no specific action
• Strategies are focused on advocacy & institutional support for a protective
environment & strengthening of community based child protection
mechanism- no focus to change social norms.
• Capacity development efforts for child sensitive justice (including training
of customary courts) - somehow helping to bring the formal norms close
to the community – not adequate though.
What Exists- what has been done so far…
• Factors perpetuating the harmful norms not addressed enough in tandem
with protection of children and respect to rights of children(promotion of
higher value)
• Correlation between girl child compensation and gender based violence is
not well analyzed (culture of silence)
• Violation of girl’s rights, abuse and exploitation is accepted (normative and
empirical expectation) as she is paying the price for her family member’s
guilt.
• Practice implicitly condones/ permits gender based violence and is not
talked and discussed (silence is keeping the schema as what good girls
should do)
• Conflict of customary norm and legal norm has not been addressed yet
What to Change and How?!
1. Finding alternatives for compensation:
 Emphasize on shifting social norms related to peace and harmony and sexual violence
through promoting social script that
“using girls as object for keeping peace is not an acceptable behavior”.
 Alternative means of conflict resolution to be encouraged with reward and sanction attached
to it that are found by the community.
 Support customary courts to negotiate alternative solution for compensation
 Encourage conflicting parties to use the statutory law and courts on the basis of conflict of
jurisdiction.
2. Promote positive and higher values for protection of rights of children to change the schema
into that:
“Families should protect their children from violence, abuse and exploitation and respect their
rights; it is the duty of families, community, chiefs, and elders”.
“Giving away girls for peace and to replace the lost life is not a longer term solution, community should
value the life of the girls as well by finding alternative solutions”
What to Change and How…
3. Setting the Core and relevant Network:
a.
b.
c.
d.
e.
Identify the core group and relevant reference groups & initiate dialogue with, train,
mentor for organized diffusion of information and change.
Customary Court Chief as part of the core group.
Use of the existing community based child protection mechanism ( 30 Units in 5
Counties and 20 Payams and 40 Bomas)
Work with other relevant reference groups and networks
Awareness raising of key actors ( using vignette, Media, drama, market rallies, schools
etc)
4. Harmonization of formal and customary norms (Bogota experience)
– making the statutory legal system more accessible, closer, and friendly to communities
especially to the rural population.
– use of social norms perspective to strengthen formal and informal systems while
simultaneously engaging the community in reflective & deliberate discussions around
the practice ( rights of children, legal process)
– integration into the broader strategy and programmatic intervention on gender based
violence, rule of law, justice for children and advocacy for protection, respect, and
fulfillment of rights of children ( for amplification); include in Pilot Research on GBV for
Advancing Social Norms
5. Coordination Of Action for Changing Social Norm
Create community core
group
• Customary Court Chief: strengthen, mentor with negotiation and mediation skill to find
alternatives for compensation that is fair, justifiable, acceptable to both parties ;
• educate them on the Child Act 08, impacts of harmful traditional practice ; and the child
sensitive justice using Strategy for JFC
• Community Groups- Relevant Reference Groups, use existing CBCP units for identification
and strengthening of Reference groups
Engage Community in • Value deliberation : promoting rights of children and protection of girls:
dialogue through relevant • Awareness raising and monitoring
Network
Adopting new Social
Norm
Organized diffusion
through community and
social Network
Sustain Changed Norm
• Public declaration of alternative mode of compensation with sanctions for deviant which is
in line with formal norms:
• Publicize positives and amplify
• Let people know the change which is more amicable and respects the rights of children
• Empowerment- for information, skills and amplify positives
• Celebrate and expand,
• Use of media as interactive forum for discussion
• Harmonization with legal norms: customary chief use more legal norms based on the
Child Act , justice for children and child rights;
• Community and families value and respect rights of children (boys and girls) and stop
giving girls as compensation.
• Change in expectations- empirical and normative
Publicity, participation and Trust: hope for Change!!
Thank you for your attention
Shanti Risal Kaphle,
UPenn, 12 July 2013