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Tajikistan ? Live Below the Line

by Christian Aid | Christian Aid - UK
Thursday, 3 May 2012 13:31 GMT

* Any views expressed in this opinion piece are those of the author and not of Thomson Reuters Foundation.

Mehrnigor Halimova, 38, single mother of 2 boys, lives in the village Pakhtakor, Vakhsh district, Tajikistan.

Mehrnigor’s husband migrated to Russia to look for work to support his family 15 years ago, but never returned. He settled there with another woman and has two children with her. He rarely sends money to his Tajik family, and when he does, it’s minimal.

Poverty and high unemployment in Tajikistan have forced an estimated one million Tajiks to Russia in search of work - many of them men - leaving behind the women to care for families.   These women are forced to provide for themselves in this traditionally patriarchal society.   They are often deterred from work or even pursuing an education, and frequently face violence.

When Mehrnigor’s husband left, she was at the mercy of her mother-in-law, who decided her fate. Mehrnigor was given the choice of either living at her brother-in-law’s or being homeless. She reluctantly moved in with her brother-in-law, soon becoming a victim of domestic violence.

Yet, with help from Christian Aid partner Ghamkhori, Mehrnigor has been able to escape, and now has her own house and receives her child allowance that her husband’s parents were taking.

Mehrnigor’s house is very basic but it is her own and she no longer has to choose between living with her children on the streets or with her violent brother-in-law.

To earn money Mehrnigor found work on a neighbouring farm.  She works incredibly hard but earns very little.  Earning 60 Somoni a month, which is about 28p a day, she struggles to feed her family. This is the sad reality in Tajikistan, with men leaving for Russia the women work the land and with high unemployment salaries are low.

Two months ago, during the height of winter, her brother lent her a cow. If it were not for his help they would have gone for days without eating. Thanks to the loan, the family has been able feed themselves with milk and yogurt to supplement their diet of bread and sweet tea.

During summer and autumn they grow vegetables in their small garden. Like many rural households they have to grow their own food to survive. However, unpredictable weather ranging from extreme heat to extreme cold, from intense hailstorms to floods and drought are damaging people’s ability to develop agriculture effectively.

Meat rarely appears in the family’s diet and is considered a luxury.  When they do eat meat, it is at wedding parties or during the religious holidays, Qurban and Ramazan. When it comes to fish, seafood and cheese, they are just a dream…

When asked what she would do if someone gave her 7,5 Somoni (£1), Mehrnigor replied: ‘I could buy 4 potatoes, 4 onions, half a cabbage and a little oil. I would make a large pot of our national soup that would feed my whole family for three days in the cold winter months. Or I could buy 1 kilo of sugar with 7,5 Somoni.’

All the projects and partners that Christian Aid supports in Tajikistan aim to empower women socially and economically in order to challenge and change this extreme power imbalance.

 

Join thousands of people across the UK this May (7-11) Living Below the Line for Christian Aid to raise money and awareness of the 1.4 billion people who live below the poverty line every day.

The money you raise through sponsorship will help people like Mehrnigor Halimova in Tajikistan to help themselves out of poverty.

For more information please visit www.livebelowtheline.com/uk-christianaid

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