Right to menstrual management: how to ensure that periods are not another factor of inequality

In the International Menstrual Hygiene Day, which is commemorated on May 28, organizations around the world are carrying out awareness raising so that menstruation is not another factor of inequality. For this reason, institutions across the country are working to break the stigma that surrounds a natural event, but which remains a taboo subject.

While most people know what is menstruation, there is little circulation of scientific information and real knowledge on the subject, mostly on its impact. Information makes education and it is also a right that the State must guarantee to society. But it is difficult to think of guaranteeing the rights of menstruating people if the state does not play an active role in the generation, production and dissemination of relevant information, as well as in the containment and provision of resources for those who need them.

Therefore, it is necessary to talk about menstruation and menstrual management as a right. It also includes: the health consequences that the prolonged use of containments such as sanitary napkins and tampons can have on health, the impact on the environment by cutting trees for the manufacture of these products and socio-cultural barriers that have a direct impact on the lives of women and people who are menstruating. “I grew up in a culture where menstruation is taboo and girls and women are considered ‘unclean’ they would laugh at me if I couldn’t join my school swimming class because of my period. “, she says. Loretta Wong, Deputy Global Director of Advocacy for AHF (AIDS Healthcare Foundation), the world’s largest AIDS organization.

“When we talk about menstrual management, we refer to everything the menstruating person needs: from items to contain bleeding such as sanitary napkins and tampons, clean water and adequate sanitation, to access to information to promote knowledge. Unfortunately, in our country and around the world, many menstruating people lack the knowledge and resources to manage their period. generates inequalities and puts many menstruating people in dangerous situations ”, clarifies Natalia Haag, director of HIV testing and prevention AHF Argentina.

In addition, there is another determining factor: access to menstrual restraint devices. According to a survey conducted by Women’s Economics (EF), an Argentinian organization that seeks to make gender inequality visible, the estimated cost of managing menstruation with sanitary napkins and tampons over the past year was between 2,900 and 3,800. This cost falls on menstruating people and generates an economic impact, and also physically and emotionally, because not all menstruating people can afford this expense.

An example of how lack of access to menstrual containment items affects: absenteeism in education and work. In the first case, there is not only an impact on the level of learning, but also on the emotional level because educational establishments often function as confinement spaces and as providers of resources for people in more vulnerable situations. On the other hand, in the workplace menstrual management is not considered a reason for absenteeism, with which economic losses are generated for the worker, in addition to the discomfort that can even end in the loss of a job.

Faced with this situation, and so that menstruation does not continue to be a cause of inequality, Non-profit organizations in Argentina are working hard to have menstrual health promotion declared of national interest and to promote laws that favor the creation of the national program for the promotion of menstrual health. Research establish as public policy the free delivery of menstrual management items in an accessible and efficient manner for anyone who requests it and for the state to play an active role in assisting menstruation. In addition, work is underway to remove VAT on menstrual containment products.

In this sense, there are many institutions across the country which, through their work, have made significant progress in 2020. Although there is still no law regulating menstrual management at the national level, several bills have been introduced. (national, provincial and local in scope) who defend the rights of people who are menstruating. It is estimated that there are over 16 and there will be more presentations in the coming months. There are even places that have already started implementing free delivery of containment items such as the Municipality of Morón, Municipality of San Rafael (Mendoza) and the City of Santa Fe.

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