Convergence

During the jury, panel members pointed out some serious semiotic problems with the visualization of the concepts. I now brought my focus onto developing the content, and simultaneously began working on refinement of the illustration concepts. At this juncture, I had the good fortune of meeting a bold young activist Miss Ketki Doshi of FACSE (Forum Against Child Sexual Exploitation), who has been not only actively dealing with cases of CSA, but also dedicating herself to building knowledge and spreading awareness on the subject. Interaction with her not only validated my selected approach(communicating to parents), but also did away with some of my presumptions. In conversation with Ketki, some of the salient points that emerged were:
1. Communication must be clear and unpretentious. No beating around the bush
2. The core issue is lack of awareness in society.
3. Only targeting mothers (or even keeping it limited to parents), may not work in all cases. The communication must be flexible for the understanding of any caregiver.
4. The illustrations are grossly unclear.
5. In the model of the campaign, Medical Practitioners and Hospitals was an important link that was overlooked. She emphasized the importance of their role in this issue.
6. PREVENTIVE EDUCATION + AWARENESS RAISING + KNOWLEDGE BUILDING
are the key points to be addressed while dealing with this subject.

With these insights, I also looked at the system within which my communication aims to work

More divergence

Divergence

Jury Feedback

Following my jury presentation for the 2nd Semester, I got precious feedback which I put down in points as under:

1. Too engrossed in information collection, not looking at the larger picture.

2. Challenge is to pin point the graphic design problem.

3. Presentation should be crisper.

some warm feedback was :

1. Clarity of subject.

2. Quality involvement.

Semester 3

My last meeting with the project guide Mr. Tarun Deep Girdher, dated 15th June 2010, was about fine tuning the communication need, target audience, approaches and systems. I had established a hypothetical scenario where a campaign would be undertaken by the Ministry of Women & Child Development in collaboration with two other organizations. (Here I have considered Childline as one, for its excellent network, database and field workers across India and UNICEF as the other, for technical support and funds).

In the hypothesized scenario, one of the four communication needs is Awareness among parents and children.

I identified 2 basic problems to be addressed in India regarding this need:

A. The acknowledgement of CSA as an issue in the society - starting at home with parents

B. The need to create possibilities for quality interaction between Parent and child thereby facilitating a foundation of trust.

With this as a communication need, I went on to define my target group and target audience.

The hypothesized scenario entails the entire age range for a child from 2 to 17 years of age as defined by law. In general understanding, child development is divided in 4 stages: 2 to 5 (period of intense learning, development, change), 6 to 9 (period of stabilization, personality development), 10 to 13 (adolescence, confusion about self identity), and 14 to 17 (building self identity, redefining roles with relationships). The aim of the project for founding a relationship based on trust between parent and child would be suited to the first two age groups, which I narrowed down on for this project. Also, after entering adolescence, domain of awareness would be expanded to include sex education.

The concept of "safe" and "unsafe" touches would be best ingrained in the child at the stage between 2 to 5 years. Their parents deal with the child's basic developmental issues related to language, social behaviour etc. The age group from 6 to 9 years is the period when parent-child interaction becomes lower as the child becomes gradually independent. This can be an opportunity to make efforts for quality interaction between mother and child and develop a deep understanding and trust.

Target audience would ideally be both the parents. But due to the special closeness that a mother enjoys with the child (especially so in the Indian sub-continent), my target audience therefore was the mothers. The age group would be 30 - 40 years - working and no-working women.

During my discussion with my guide Tarun, he strongly underlined the significance of designing a 'system' for communication with a holistic approach. Tarun gave a very important direction that one cannot be given all the information at once. A system must be formulated for the information to be organized and disseminated strategically.

I was looking at developing a folded brochure educating parents. This we put under a microscope and the questions raised were: "what would be the medium of distribution?", "how much would it say?", "what else can you provide with it?" and so on.

Schools (Parent Teacher Association), print media, outdoor media, packaging of FMCG products, direct mail etc. were some of the channels I had in my mind. I realized that a communication solution can only be zeroed in on, by considering all factors simultaneously - psychological, socio-cultural, logistical, financial, technical, and so on.

I was also asked to explore more ideas about my end deliverable. I did also feel that I could come up with something more innovative than a folded brochure.

Concept 5

Some wordplay

Concept - 5

Concept - 4

Concept - 3 - Other explorations

Concept - Stage 2

Concept Generation - Creating Identity for campaign

As this campaign would run nationwide, I needed a symbol that could be commonly understood by and accepted by people across languages, cultures and religions. After exploring several ideas, I came up with this basic concept of a flower and a petal breaking away.

Though its not really up to the mark, I decided to explore this concept.

Getting the hand right....

Should I show the nails to show that the hand is facing away from the viewer.

Should the hand be angled at the wrist? Or would that mean or show something else?

Hand looking more baby-like.

The line coming from the fore-finger extended behind the thumb to show the facing of the hand.


What would be the difference in meanings when hand faces either towards or away from the user? Or would it make so much difference to the effectiveness of the logo?

Redefined Brief

Having studied the topic till this stage, I can say that, the three factors - Prevention, Action and Healing have to be addressed together or in certain combination if we truly desire to see a change. Hence I tried to hypothesize a system and identify the opportunities for Graphic Design opportunities.

Hypothesis –

The Ministry of Women and Child Development, in association with Childline India Foundation and UNICEF, aims to undertake a dedicated national campaign for protecting children against sexual abuse. The campaign would be executed at the state level in each of the states by the State Department of Women and Child Development, Childline Centres, UNICEF office with local governing bodies, juvenile justice board, child welfare committees, social and non-governmental organizations, special children’s institutions, media, etc.

The overall campaign spans three years. The core objects of the campaign are to identify inadequacies in laws related to penalizing sexual offences against children, to make the Indian judiciary child-friendly and to propose a draft for ‘Child Sexual Abuse (Prevention) Act of India’. The campaign involves collaboration and co-management, where the primary responsibility is of the government, but support is elicited from and provided by non governmental organizations. The plan also focuses on public awareness and participation and a close collaboration with and among stakeholders.

The campaign has a two-fold agenda: (1)Effective implementation of existing laws, policies

(2)Demanding relevant amendments to legal provisions.

Communication Need – Under the first aim i.e. effective implementation of existing laws and policies, there is a communication need for : (i) Training of trainers : NGO volunteers, DWCD officials, (ii) Sensitizing stakeholders : CWC and JJB officials, elected representatives and government officials at the city level, NGOs, Child Institutions. (iii) Public awareness : publicizing the campaign, and sensitizing people on a mass scale (iv) Public participation workshops (v) Awareness and sensitization of Parents and children.

Target Audience.

As the campaign deals with social change associated with perception and system level change in approach to issue of CSA, to start with I have chosen middle and higher income group people as

my target audience, they being literate, economically privileged and having better means of accessibility to support systems.

Scope of Work.

Suggestive identity design for the campaign.

Suggestive media

End Deliverable.

Not defined

IV. Synthesis 2

Child Sexual Abuse can basically be addressed in three different situations: one- where child is under parental care (except children of prostitutes), two- Institutional care (Orphans, Mentally handicapped, etc.), three- Destitute, Street Children, Employed/Confined Children for labour exploitation.

It is, I felt, better to start with where there is 'care' - that is children under parental care. There may be two approaches: one- talking to children directly (requires a very sensitized approach), and two- talking to parents.

Wordplay - educated parents

Adapting this popular Gujarati children's rhyme to convey the message to children - SAFE AND UNSAFE TOUCHES - Identifying special parts of their body and understanding their rights.

IV. Synthesis 1

Victimizing the victim - The Patriachal approach

Will anyone believe me?

Uncle said its a secret!

The definition of Child Sexual Abuse includes the phrase - Sexual activity without the child's "informed" "consent"

The neighbourhood rickshawalla would be handed over to the police.

But Uncle Sudhir................. well he is an old family friend, a thorough gentleman and wellwisher

Our daughter must be making thngs up... God knows where these ideas have started creeping into her head nowadays!

III. Analysis - Visual representation

An effort to model my understanding.

A synchronized approach.

III. Analysis - Legal inadequacies

Enormous complications come into play in India when the truth needs to be told as it is. Due to our innate social hypocrisy, anything that leads to the truth is perceived as a threat by a very large section of the society. Taking a look at serious loopholes in Indian law with regards to sexual offenses against children. (Article 375, 376)

(i) Rape - Penile penetration in a vagina is the only kind which constitutes rape legally. Digital, oral, or object penetration are not considered.

(ii) 'Outraging modesty' - Non penetrative sexual contact with Children - cannot be penalized with the same parameters as applied to adults.

(iii) Sexual assault by a person in position of trust needs to be penalized more severely.

(iv) There is no standardization of process to deal with a child victim in court, which can lead to severe problems to his/her psychology.

(v) Need for fast trials, and a set up for dealing with child protection cases. Cases of sexual offense against child, come up for hearing when child is of a mature/marriageable age.

- Courtesy, Bitter Chocolate.

A lot many factors pointing to the need for a separate law for dealing with Child sexual abuse.

II. Analysis - Psychological and social issues

The issue of Child Sexual abuse is often called ‘difficult’, mainly because of underreporting and social taboo. This owes to the following factors: 90% of cases, perpetrator is known to and is in a position of trust or responsibility with the child i.e. takes advantage of the child’s trust, vulnerability and lack of informed consent.

Children in majority of cases do not disclose incidents of sexual abuse as they are

(i) faced with guilt and shame attached with the secrecy and ‘dirtiness’ of the incident.

(ii) not comfortable with parents on the topic of ‘sex’.

(iii) threatened or coerced by the perpetrator against it.

Parents do not handle disclosure appropriately as they

(i) Do not consult professional counselors thinking that they can make the child put the experience behind it with passage of time

(ii) Do not confront the perpetrator either for the fear of relationship breakdown in cases where relatives or close family friends are involved, or fear from social complexities related to status and/or gender, or fear of legal confrontation or sheer ignorance.

Patriarchal system of family in Indian culture has led to deep seated fear, and many kinds of social and cultural practices around the safety of their girls and their 'virginity'.

It also fails to recognize the vulnerability of boys to child sexual abuse which is equal to that of girls.

Patriarchal system – ‘Masculinity/maleness is a state to be achieved’, ‘Male sexual urge is out of a man’s hand and once aroused he has to do his thing’.

Elders esp. males of family, are to be respected invariably and unconditionally.

A large percentage of child sexual abuse perpetrators are themselves victims of sexual abuse as children i.e. victim becomes ‘perpetuator’.

II. Analysis - India – vulnerability and need for action

India – vulnerability and need for action

Child Sexual Abuse is a globally occurring phenomenon, for which various organizations and nations are taking concrete steps to curb, along with other critical issues of child protection. India however is in a special situation in this regard, owing to the following factors:

1. Nineteen percent of the world's children live in India. India has the largest number of sexually abused children in the world.

2. Sex being a taboo in the Indian culture, discrimination and sexual victimization of women and the social tolerance to the same, has aggravated the problem to a great extent.

3. Due to political instability there is an influx of considerable percentage of refugee children in India.

4. Poverty and migration from rural parts owing to growing employment opportunities in urban areas has created a fertile ground for exploitation of children.

5. There are an increasing number of street children who are in the most vulnerable position for sexual violence.

6. The laws of the nation are inadequate to penalize sexual crimes against children, leading to flourishing of organized sex trade including child sex tourism, child pornography, etc.

7. India is a signatory to the UNCRC (United Nations Child Rights Convention) which makes imperative for the Government to ensure fulfillment of basic rights of children and take effective measures for enforcement of child protection.

I.D Information Collection - Literature Review

1. Bitter Chocolate -Pinki Virani
Kaash! Mujhe kisi ne bataya hota - Kamala Bhasin
Beti Kare Sawaal - Ekalavya Prakashan
Child Sexual Abuse - Gender Resource Centre

My Rights My Responsibilities

Every Right for Every Child
A World Without Tears