A woman from Kenya, Jaqi Jb W, has begun the debate on the social media by posting her photo with a sanitary napkin packet citing that “SANITARY PADS should be FREE condoms should be sold. Sex is a choice whereas menstruation ISN'T ...lots of girls are suffering out there because they can't afford pads. Please help me campaign this issue by sharing this post #Jointhecampaign #keepthegirlsinschool”
Thousands of people have liked it and by now, around 21,783 peoples have shared it on the facebook until now.
Where many people are applauding and supporting her initiative, there are people who are criticizing her for comparing the necessity of sanitary napkins with the condoms.
It is a fact that many countries have a free condoms program to encourage the use of condoms to prevent HIV/AIDS. However, there is no program for the free sanitary napkins when 70 % of all reproductive diseases are caused by poor menstrual hygiene.
Before Jaqi Jb W, a man from Coimbatore-India, Arunachalam Muruganantham has dedicated a huge portion of his life to developing a machine that can produce low-cost sanitary pads for generating awareness about traditional unhygienic practices around menstruation in rural India.
In 2014, TIME magazine placed him in its list of 100 Most Influential People in the World. In 2016, he was awarded Padma Shri by Government of India.
For many, buying sanitary pads is as easy as buying bread and milk. But, sanitary pads are an unaffordable luxury for countless girls and women in many parts of the world. They are at a permanent disadvantage as they are forced to stay at home, as they are unable to afford this basic necessity.
Sanitary pads are sold at a rate of 40 times the cost of the main ingredient – cotton and less percentage of women can afford to buy sanitary pads. The rest of them who are in resource-poor settings, improvise makeshift pads from old clothes, rags, newspapers, bits of mattress, and other readily available materials.
A great initiative Jaqi Jb W, we support your cause!!
** © winnerhands.com
