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| http://whatstrending.com/news/18953-earthquake-devastates-nepal |
It is believed that this week the death toll from Saturday’s tragic
earthquake in Nepal will rise to up to 4000 people. Natural disasters are often
catastrophic, particularly in their inevitability, scale and lack of
accountability. Despite evidence that environmental problems such as climate
change increase the possibility and magnitude of natural disasters there is no
one to blame for these lost lives. From existing research there is evidence
that gendered dynamics play out at all levels of natural disaster analysis:
risk vulnerability, response and reconstruction. Despite there being little
research into the area speculation and some research suggests that in the first
place, due to the gendered division of labour, women are more likely to suffer fatal ramifications of earthquakes: due
to gender roles they tend to be inside houses and built structures that
collapse as opposed to being out in the open. Following earthquakes or natural
disasters that destroy suitable shelter, women face severe problems surrounding
gender norms of privacy. For example a WHO report linked
significant increase in infections in girls who couldn’t hang their menstrual
rags anywhere private without shelter or women who lost clothes simply unable
to go out in public post-disaster. Death in itself may cause significant
upheaval of gender norms: if one or other of a parent is lost in these
disasters whereby if a mother is lost a father will have to take on the caring
duties whilst if a father is lost a mother will have to become the breadwinner.
Aid collection is similarly gendered in that the image of a suffering women is
considered to be substantially more emotive than one of a man.
Most of these speculations are just that in that there is no
concrete evidence to suggest gender plays an integral role in natural
disasters. Therefore, rather than considering causes or gendered dynamics in
the disaster it is more practical to assess how the reconstruction of Nepal’s
devastated towns and livelihoods should be gender mainstreamed and aware of
varying gendered factors. For example, women are often more vulnerable and less
likely to be provided with significant aid to provide for their children in
these situations. Similarly, reconstruction should be an equal affair where
gender-equal bodies make decisions so as to represent varying interests. Where
men may consider sanitary facilities or shelter less of a priority in
reconstruction women may place these issues at high priority given the socially
constructed privacy requirements or the biological need for sanitation
facilities. In this way natural disasters might allow women to transcend their
gender roles and take leadership roles in recovery and reconstruction. Nevertheless,
in times of crisis gendered requirements or needs are often disregarded as a
luxury not affordable. Natural disasters also result in displaced families and
refugees where women will be once again less likely to receive adequate support
or fair distribution of food and water given their ubiquitous perceived
responsibility to also care for children. This may often lead to women going
without in order to provide for their children. The tragedy in Nepal is one in
a long line of catastrophic natural disasters that leave states destroyed and in
extreme poverty. Whilst this form of destruction may not be gendered, poverty
and reconstruction absolutely are and it is fundamental that aid agencies are
aware of this.
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