Learning in ARI 2. Gender in the Community Development

Mother is a manifestation of God's presence in this world. She is gentle but extremely powerful. She is punishing but she is educating. She sacrificed but she does not lose herself.

 by Eunike Widhi Wardhani-Indonesia-ARI 2014

Another my biggest learning I got from Rural Community Study Tour Group A in Okitama Yamagata. As a representative of my community, I am also accompanying several women groups in Central Java to participate in their village development. I am very grateful finally I met someone special who is a good example of leader.

For complete impression, I just want to describe her story about gender equity in community development by doing organic farming.

This is the story....

Background

I am searching so long to learn a real women right movement in rural community, and I am very happy to meet one special woman among many great rural leaders. She is our host family in group A who has very strong spirit and never give up to reach her dream to raise women right up to be equal with men, our mother, Misako Watanabe (60 years old).
Somehow the story that flows from her was able to overcome my sleepiness that night, when I felt very tired all that day. It's really remarkable. The character of a true leader is shown in her speech straightforward, but at the same time humble, and also honest but very touching. I did not get time to ask her personally but during 2.5 hours her sharing truly effected and inspired me. I admired her.

Organic Farming

Misako married when she was 23 years old. According to Japanese rural culture, after married, a woman have to follow her husband and lived in her husband family’s house. Before getting married Misako only involved in harvesting vegetables in her family garden, she doesn’t have enough knowledge about field management. But after married, she was given the responsibility to manage the whole family farm. “My best teacher is actually my grandfather-in-law. He taught me about farming : how to make seedling, hot beds, making compost, sowing, transplanting and apply organic fertilizer. “The teaching from my grandfather-in-law gave to me was only one way, that is what people now refer to as Organic Farming” she said.

But after grandfather in-law passed away, her parents in law applied chemical fertilizer and pesticide in their farm. "In the division of roles in the family, I managed vegetables with father and mother-in-law, while my husband was managing paddy field with organic way" she said. “One day my parents in-laws asked me to apply chemical fertilizers and pesticides on our vegetables, I doubt then I asked my husband, and my husband says: No, don’t apply, it's not organic”. Parents in-law was angry. Misako should obey the parents in law rule as a fellow at the vegetables section, but she ignored them. She said “I follow my husband decision because I knew he is right”.

Maybe because she has a strong willingness to know, she tried to learn more about Organic Farming from her husband. She said "My husband got a lot of chance to improve his knowledge about Organic Farming, but as a woman I never have time for it”. I asked him to share his organic farming knowledge, and we thought together how to develop women related with food, because women had important role in food management. After 3 years they made farmers wife activities within her husband farmer group meeting in their free time after lunch and dishwashing. They discussed about organic farming, natural cosmetic and food issue. At first time there were 30 members of farmers wife, then decrease became 10 people and finally only 3 people until now. Many difficulties in Organic Farming movement. Many neighbors insulted her. Only consumers who support her because they understood about safety food and the dangers of chemical inputs in agriculture.

She was struggling to pass many difficulties. When there were many small holes at the soybean, it dropped the price down, directly. Another experience is also 10 kg of Zuchini were valued only 100 yen. She and her husband tried to check again, maybe they are wrong counting, but there is not, their products are valued very cheap. She does not give up, she wants to meet her customers, whether they were satisfied or not to her products. She said: “Nowadays many people speak about safety food and food security, but at that time no one spoke it like now. My product are different, that is organic, people have to know it and I must  explain about my product”. It’s not easy to get trust from consumers. Many members give up.

International activities but local movement

That time she got sick for 1 month in the hospital. Her husband advised her to stop being a farmer and worked in the city. She does not want, because the spirit of organic agriculture already penetrated her soul.

At the time “helicopter chemical” for pesticides began to be applied every morning exactly time when the kids was going to school. She’s very sad. “To protect my own children, maybe I can take them by car so they are safe, but I think of the other children, they are new generations who need safety and good health” she said.

We knew that chemical toxics in pesticides are very harmful to humans especially children. Misako cannot keep silent, she made a big tarp post and she plug in surround her paddy fields, in the tarp that she wrote: "STOP CHEMICAL PESTICIDES TO FIELDS, REMEMBER CHILDREN". The article made many farmers around got angry, and they complain through her husband: "What did your wife does?”. She’s very sad, nobody understand her, she felt alone  that time. "My husband asked me to remove the post, in that day after. I was angry in my heart but I understood my husband’s feeling, without waiting for day after, that night while raining I ran to the field and I removed the posts while crying” she said with remembering that past.

But she still was not give up, she approached school teachers to announce to all students to use a mask and a hat to school every day. It was in some other areas, many cases of children illness after contact with chemical pesticide sprays. People who are not farmers did not know, but farmers knew that it is due to the chemical pesticide application. It’s very hard to stop "chemical helicopter", it can be understood because it helpful  the work of farmers, moreover they're getting old. Ten years after, the condition began to change. Many peasant communities began to dare to say stop "helicopter chemistry".

Tei Kei system then became famous. There was an invitation to be a speaker on Tei Kei abroad. Her husband (Tsutomu San) was very busy with 350 chickens and 8 cows. He could not leave the fields and livestock. Finally he said to me: "You must leave". Then Misako went there and she shared the experience of Tei-Kei as well as organic farming for 17 days in some countries: Egypt, Hungary, Austria, France, Czech and UK.

In Austria she met a woman who has the same experiences as her about how organic farming campaign struggles. She said: “I was thrilled, somebody in different place was same with me, I’m not alone”. It turns out I was not alone. It was a very treasure experience in my life, when I was 38 years old”. In 1990 she was invited again for sharing the same thing in several other countries: Poland, the Soviet Union (at that time). She also learned from them: no smell at the pig pen because pig pen was covered by wheat straw. “Good lesson for me, they do not know Japanese and do not know me before, but they opened their homes and their hearts to me”.

Bank Account

In the last part, she talked about a very important thing : “I am lucky because my husband is very understanding. When I get married, I do not have freedom of money. Despite my hard work, no holiday and all the results I gave to my parents in-laws. One time I asked permission to my husband to create my own bank account that I will fill it by money from my toil, separately accounts from his family. Unexpectedly, he was very supportive of it.

Since I had my own bank account, the results are very different. I was motivated because I know how much money I got, how much I earn it, and I spend it. Then I also enjoyed my life as a woman, as a wife with happiness, I took holiday for visiting several countries. I am very happy and I started to motivate the wives in our community that: women in rural areas should be able to stand on their own feet.

One by one she achieved her dream and stay humble and focused and straight at the goal from the beginning, never turn the bow. She educates women in her communities to make positive steps without fear. One interesting thing is as a brave woman, independent and she can go flew to where and whenever she wants, but Misako still put herself as a good mother and wife who respect her husband in each decision and step she chose.
Barriers for the sake of obstacles cleared, although chemical helicopters still running on ​​fields, we cannot say that her struggle was failed. The condition show the reality how struggle a leaders taking care their movement such as Misako Watanabe that good movement is never end.