RASOANIRINA Beby Euphrasie

I am Rasoanirina Euphrasie. I live in Namoraha Atsimo. Here is my story. I have met big problems because of the violence I suffered from. In the past, I haven’t seen my husband’s salary and my in-laws intruded on my household life.

I am married and we have one child. I am officially married. My husband is fifty. I was only twenty when I married him. Because of this big age difference, my in-laws didn’t trust in me. I didn’t know anything about what my husband owned, about his lands, about his rice field, or anything. It seems that I was just taken to help and take care of him. Actually, a maid gets paid every month, but me, I had to give back everything to him, even the changes when I was sent to buy something. I was suffering! I was worried every day.

Then one friend told me: “There are some solutions at CECJ, go there immediately”. So I went to that centre. The people at the Centre ensured that our talk would be kept secrete. I told them about what I was living in my household. … Then there was a time to enroll twenty people who are experiencing abuse for a training offered by GENDER LINKS. “That is why I have been with GENDER LINKS up to now”.

So I followed that training offered by GENDER LINKS, since 2013. And I found it was good for me, so I did my best to follow all the different levels of training. I truly realized that many topics are interesting during the training in Morondava.

I found all the topics suitable for me. My husband noticed that I was so interested, and there started the trouble, but I explained to him, “I won’t bring you to justice, but I just need training to help me manage my daily life”, so he was convinced and accepted. Then I started to find some income-generating activities. I bought a little pig, I bred it since I like a lot breeding, and that helped in my financial resources.

I started that activity on breeding in 2003. When my pig was big, I sold it and I got funds to become a hawker: I took winnowing baskets from Malaimbandy and I sold them in Morondava. But I didn’t make much progress with it.

From that time, I took training from Gender Links, and I could only find a progress thanks to the training I took because I could understand clearly: the working capital I used was untouchable; the benefits weren’t totally spent, some thrifts were put aside, actually those thrifts I spared were hidden to my husband. I asked a friend working at the Council about a place where I could open a shop, so I got the place where I stay now. It’s rather small but it is located on a road side. It was the first time I dealt with selling. The training I took from Gender Links and my relations with friends who gave me advice and showed me the way to take. I could also learn about incomes and expenses. I could also make the balance for the benefits.

Now, after taking some decisions and using the training I took from Gender Links, I am a free person. I no longer endure the different kinds of abuse. I can give advice to those who are in trouble, and it is not limited, it can be in the community, and so on and so forth … I noticed some obvious change in my daily life thanks to the treasure we got from Gender Links, because I am not the only one who noticed changes, but also my household, my family, my father and mother-in-law. My parents also enjoy the advantages. My child and my husband didn’t use to talk, they hardly share anything, but now they can discuss about my child’s studies. They talk about daily life, football match and it doesn’t end with a quarrel, each can choose his favorite team. Our unique child really likes football. And there is something around it I don’t understand very well. I feel I heard, to my surprise, they talk about a change in our life, because they see we are like wealthy people.

I want to tell you here that my neighbours are astonished. They could see a great change on me. However, I want to note that despite these changes, nothing affected my social relations with the neighbours. We get along well with each other. We sometimes discuss, for example, on “How did you do? Could you give us some advice because we don’t know what to do! And yet we see you are progressing a lot lately. And others ask, “You often go out with a handbag or a purse. Where do you go? Are you back to school? Tell us and don’t keep it secrete.” And that is what we talk about between friends when we meet on the road where we pass days and nights. Then, I had to tell them, “I didn’t go back to school, but I am taking good advice from Gender Links. Actually there is one important change they have noticed in my life, and that is why they talk and ask. We built a brick house, coated with cement. The construction started in 2014 and finished this year 2015.

It is always a pleasure for me to say that there are some lessons I got from all the training I have attended up to now. I got self confidence. When I go, I believe I won’t get lost. I am courageous. I can pay back the credit banks like CECAM and other banks in Morondava. Before getting training, I wouldn’t dare taking loans from those banks because I thought that led to poverty. Now that I get training, I know that I have self confidence and I put into practice the training I took. I went directly to CECAM office. One agent received me and gave me clear explanation about everything I needed to know. I was happy. And now, my ambition is to extend my business in collecting and selling crops. I am already looking for a house where I can put the crops collected: that will be my storehouse. Am I dreaming? After 15 years, I hope there will be a big change, if I am still alive and if I am healthy.

That is a brief story of my life; it is intended to pass on a message to others. Here I come to end, so I would like to express my deepest gratitude to Gender Links trainers for the knowledge they gave. They have come in turn to visit us for two years. I am very happy with what they did. Long live to Gender Links work. And we hope that they will always come back.

Thank you.