by Santosh Digal

Conditions of unemployment in the slums lead to violence against women at the hands of their husbands. Through job training and spiritual help a group of Dominican sisters from Davo offers an alternative to these women by helping them build and sell products made from recycled material and regain the respect of their husbands and sons.

Manila (AsiaNews) - In the slums of Davao City (Mindanao), 120 women have regained their dignity from handiwork made from rags: pillows, curtains and photo albums. This thanks to a group of Dominican nuns and Catholic volunteers of the Association for Awareness and Defence of Women (Asawa). The purpose of the organization is to protect women and children from family violence, making them self-sufficient.  

Alice Doler, one of 120 women, says: "Becoming an Asawa member gave me a sense of dignity and made me different in the eyes of my family." Alice is the mother of 6 children and for years her family survived on the salary of her husband, a professional driver. After he was made unemployed the woman was subjected to abuse by her husband and also by her older children. "Before starting my work – she adds - my husband's salary was all we had to live on." Selling her products, the woman now earns about 6 euros hours a day, and together with her spouses salary is able to send their children to school.

"In the Philippines women and men have equal rights – says Sister Annabella V. del Castillo, a Dominican nun and director of Asawa - but this does not happen in poor families, where women suffer terrible violence by men". The religious has headed the organization since 2005 and has developed job training courses in recent years along with three sisters and 12 volunteers, offering psychological and spiritual support programs that help women, often little more than girls, to be self-sufficient and contribute to the upkeep of their family. Asawa, in addition to teaching these women helps in the sale of products, to manage household expenses and take care of younger children.

Sister Annabella says: "With our apostolate we want to help a small proportion of poor and unfortunate women of our society through the development of their people and communities." The nun adds that "thanks to the program, they experience the compassion and love of God and through faith in the Lord will be able to overcome the difficulties ahead."

• philippines
• women
• rights
• dignity
• slums
• work
• job
• employment
• abuse
• davos
• maguindanao