Listening leads to Action

 By Jenny Cisneros

After reading “Preventing Girl Trafficking Indonesia,” I began to think about how the PD process could help so many other countries in attempting to ameliorate this growing problem. Every time I think I have finally understood the basic foundations of the positive deviance approach, I read another case study and quickly realize there is so much more to learn. As I finished reading the case study, I was amazed, yet not surprised, at how elementary the initial process began. Often times we are led to believe that experts have all the answers, however, positive deviance shows us this notion of collective wisdom that can come from any source. 

A few years ago I attended a lecture hosted by UTEP’s Political Science Department. A panel of speakers from the State Department addressed the issue of human trafficking around the world. They discussed how the State Department ranks countries based on their compliance with U.S. Policy known as, Victims of Trafficking and Violence Protection Act of 2000.  Essentially the goal of the TVPA is the prevention of human trafficking overseas and help protect victims of human trafficking by providing them the necessary help and support. The act ranks countries based on three tiers and each tier is determined through the country’s compliance with the rules outlined in the act. Tier 1 status indicates that the country is compliant with the act’s minimum standards. Tier 2 status indicates that the country is not complying the minimum standards, however, is making progress towards complaisance. Finally tier 3 status are countries who do not comply with TVPA standards and are not making any significant efforts towards a tier 2 status. After reading Dr. Singhal’s study in Indonesia, I began to do a little research on Indonesia. According to the U.S. State Department, Indonesia is at a Tier 2 status. Although, human trafficking continues to be a problem in Indonesia, the government is making more of an effort to reduce the amount of women and children forced into prostitution. The State Department's Human Trafficking 2010 report indicates that in 2010 a significant amount of government funding was allotted to the Ministry of Women’s Empowerment and Child Protection. The Ministry of Women’s Empowerment and Child Protection used their funding towards coordinating awareness meetings and hiring awareness trainers around the country to speak with at risk women and children. 

I was inspired by Dr. Singhal’s Indonesian positive deviance research and I got to thinking how the same methodology could be applied in other countries. By building a solid foundation of trust, Dr. Singhal and Lucia were able to go into a foreign country and instill change without coercion. The comfort and trust that was built with the village of Kedoyo and the Gadungasari people was created through listening. Through the collective wisdom of the deviant families that managed to keep their daughters from being trafficked, the people of these villages were able to come together and work towards a better future. Instead of taking on the role of the expert, Dr. Singhal and Lucia, facilitated the necessary communicative tools to help these people seek a solution to their problems. Change in possible by taking action but before one can act but we must stop and listen. Listening is the first step towards finding a viable solution to any problem.