Mohammad Rafi

FAREWELL FREIRE?
CONSCIENTISATION IN EARLY
TWENTY-FIRST CENTURY
BANGLADESH

Introduction

It was just after the 1960s that the number of non-govemmental organisations
(NGOs) multiplied and that their focus moved progressively to development
activities in the Third World. In the 1970s, the NGOs, after being influenced
predominantly by Schumacher (1973), viewed development as a process starting
not from material inputs but rather with people and their education, organisation,
and discipline. Concomitantly, as the NGOs engaged in self-help activities, they
came to the realisation that there was a limit to how far development activities
by the poor but govemed by the vested interests of the political and economic
elite would become effective. In addition, regardless of their belief in the liberal
democratic notion of pluralism or the radical formulation, the NGOs observed
that the grass roots organisations formed by the disadvantaged for their
development were facing resistance from oppressive social forces. In response
to these observations, development was increasingly viewed by the NGOs as a
process of liberating the poor both from physical oppressors and from their own
feehngs of resignation towards their poverty (Clark 1991).

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 As a strategy in liberating the poor, the NGOs unanimously recommended
that the poorthat is, the disadvantagedshould be stimulated to take up
group action against the resisting forces. Freire's idea of "conscientising" the
poor appeared to be quite useful in achieving the objective. Conscientisation is
a self- but collectively reflected critical awareness: "an initial step in the
process of identifying and ultimately challenging the social and political
structure that oppress them [i.e., the disadvantaged]" (Edwards and Hulme
1992: 24). It is also a process that not only improves the living standard of the
poor, but also helps the poor to perceive their exploitation and realise the
opportunities they have for overcoming such exploitation through mass
organisation.

This paper evaluates the conscientisation effort undertaken by the

Bangladesh Rural Advantaged Committee (BRAC) in the development of the
poor over the years. BRAC is probably now the largest NGO in the world
(Smillie and Hailey 2001). A discussion of the conscientisation programme of
an NGO will be here preceded by one on Freire's model of conscientisation.

Freire's Model of Conscientisation

Freire basically viewed society as divided into two groupsoppressor and

oppressed. Oppressors, acting in their own interest, dominate the oppressed
economically, socially and politically. This domination is carried out by
keeping the oppressed submerged in a situation in which they are not "equipped
to know and respond to the concrete realities of their world" (Schaull in Freire
1970: 11). This social situation, that is, the culture of silence in which the
oppressed are kept ignorant and lethargic such that they do not protest against
their oppression, is facilitated through an educational process that Freire refers
to as the "banking process" of education. In this process, the teacher provides
students with the subject to be taught and, in turn, students memorise the same
mechanically. Consequently, the students view the reality in fragmentation,
being denied the total picture of their oppressed situation.

Freire sought the liberation of the oppressed from the culture of silence in
the educational processin liberating education or problem-solving education.
Under this educational process a theme (an issue or problem) is discussed
systematically first by decoding the theme by its 'syllables' and then discussing
each of the syllables in turn. The content of education (i.e. themes or issues) is
sought in the realities mediating students in the world. Accordingly, "the
investigation of thematics involves the investigation ofthe people's thinking
thinking which occurs only in and among men together seeking out reality"
(Freire 1970: 100).

In order to avoid contradiction and authoritarianism in the classroom a

dialogue is established between teacher (co-ordinator) and students (learners).

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42
The teacher is not merely the one who teaches, but is also being taught in
dialogue with the students. Thus both teacher and students combine their
cognition on the subject selected for leaming.

In order to initiate dialogue the teacher presents a theme to the students that
in fact is received as a problem from the students. The process of searching for
the meaningful theme includes a concem for the links between the themes, the
posing of these themes as problems, and viewing the themes in their
historical-cultural context. Thus, teacher and students together decode the
theme by describing and analysing it. The process facilitates the discovery of
interaction among the parts of a disjointed whole. As thought on various
dimensions related to the coded situation emerges, it begins to acquire meaning
to the students.

As students start decoding their existing situation by selecting it as a theme,

in order to probe into the causes of their existing situation, they become
involved in a dialogue among themselves. This leads them to a cognitive
operation involving critical interpretation of the root causes behind their being
in the oppressed situation from a different perspective. The outcome of this
exercise stimulates them to transform their situation.

Freire suggested that this exercise leading to action should be a continuous

process to find out the impediments in the way of the smooth operation of the
desired situation. It should be continuous because in the course of time there
might arise a need to change the situation once considered desirable. The
critical analysis of a situation to identify and shootout mistakes and failures in
the effort to bring change, on the one hand, ensures success in bringing the
change to the situation and, on the other, paves the way for further action; this
is referred to as the action-reflection-action process, that is, 'praxis.'

Praxis is a methodology to reverse past processes through dialectics. A

society may have multiple praxes. The people's praxis is a process of building
peoples' power tor development as an altemative to the existing dominant
power, for example, elite praxis. The people's praxis can be achieved by
releasing the creative energies of the disadvantaged/marginalised, that is,
through mobilising them, along with local resources and knowledge, for an all-
round development of their lives.

Conscientisation in BRAC

BRAC strives to bring the poor into the mainstream of development by

alleviating their poverty and by empowering them. The organisation evolved
over time in its eftbrt to become more effective in achieving these objectives. It
started as a relief organisation in 1972 but shortly thereafter, in order to have a
sustainable impact, adopted the community development approach. Finding the
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43
outcome of the approach unsatisfactory, it adopted the target group approach to
development in 1978.

Households owning less than half-an-acre of land and having at least one of
its members selling manual labour for not less than 100 days a year, are targeted
for development. As a first step to their development, BRAC mobilises a
member from each of these households to form a village organisation (VO).
The VOs as a catalyst in poverty alleviation and empowerment of the members
steer up two important processes within the membersinstitution-building and
credit operation. Currently, a VO consists of 35-45 female members and has
three committees to conduct its activities: a Management Committee, a Social
Action Committee, and a Law Implementation Committee. The VOs follow the
functioning procedures that have been detailed in RDP Operations Manual
(BRAC 1995).

It is the strategy of BRAC that all development activities be organised

around VOs and through it resources and power will be mobilised. The target
group, through a VO, plans, initiates, manages, and controls group activities,
both in social and economic domains. BRAC, on the other hand, provides
support through training, credit and logistical assistance to the VO.

In the mid-1970s BRAC was very much inspired by the "liberating

education" of Freire and the "dependency theories" of Andre Gundar Frank
(Chowdhury 1989). In response to these influences, BRAC believed that unless
the deprived realise that they belong to an exploited group and must do
something for their own betterment, all economic inputs given to them would
be misappropriated or siphoned off by the better-off sections within the society.
It further believed that once the poor become conscious of the basic causes of
their poverty and the process of their exploitation, they would be able to unite
and take part in programmes for their uplifting. It was felt that the poor should
be made aware of their own interest and should be motivated so that they
participate in establishing social justice and fair treatmentsomething that
could best be done through VOs. Thus, BRAC adopted the policy that the
members should be systematically conscientised at the very outset when they
form their VO (Chowdhury 1989). Accordingly, from 1978 onwards BRAC
made a deliberate effort to conscientise VO members through its Functional
Education programme.

Past Programmes on Conscientisation

The conscientisation effort of BRAC in the past can be divided into two major
activitiesvillage meetings organised to form a VO, and Functional Education
offered to members after the organisation was formed.

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 The village meeting included discussion on existing social structure of the
village, modes of exploitation of which they were victims, and the measures
that they could take to free themselves from such exploitation. It was believed
that awareness resulting from the discussion in the meeting would prompt the
attendees to take actions that in tum would lead to their development.

Functional Education intended to conscientise VO members through a two-

step processbasic conscientisation and awareness-building, and literacy. The
first step intended to make members conscious of the root causes of their
problems and develop self-initiative and power to seek solutions to the
problems in them. Functional Education revolved around village problems
through a dialogue, where problems were presented, discussed and analysed in
each session. In keeping with Freire's model of conscientisation, the leaming
method was expected to be participatory, in which the class would encourage
students to reflect on and analyse their own problems through two-way
communication. That is, the communication would be characterised by group
discussion among the members (students), and the teacher from time to time
would introduce ideas or information into the discussion whenever considered
necessary. The second step of the Functional Education course provided
literacy to the members.

Each step had on average 30 sessions, each session being two hours long.
The first step was the required portion of the Functional Education, whereas the
latter, that is, the literacy component, was optional. The villagers with a high
school certificate were selected as facilitators/teachers of these courses. They
were first trained on how to conduct the Functional Education course and were
supplied with leaming materials and detailed guidelines to be followed in the
courses.

Although there ai'e studies indicating positive outcomes of conscientisation

efforts by NGOs including BRAC (e.g. Streefland et al. 1986; Hashemi 1995),
a good number of the studies pointed out the problems of implementing Freire's
model of conscientisation in Bangladesh.

Every syllable/particle of a word in Bangla does not have a meaning.

Therefore, decoding a word picked up for dialogue in the sessions was not
possible or could not be done conveniently in some instances (Nandi 1997).
Such a situation occasionally created an obstacle in the smooth flow of dialogue
in the session.

Contrary to the lessons being dialogical and participatory as Freire

proposed, those in Functional Education in most cases were highly pedagogical
and didactic (Montgomery, Bhattacharya and Hulme 1996). The lessons were
highly structured and contained passive experiences. Such a standardised
course applied to all VOs throughout the country and so was not very relevant
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45
to many members in the course; besides, members were not always in
agreement with what was being discussed in the class (Montgomery,
Bhattacharya and Hulme 1996; Khan and Stewart 1992). Despite a
participatory and awareness-raising rhetoric, the Functional Education course
had a teacher-pupil mode of interaction (Hashemi 1995)a relationship Freire
strongly condemned as being an obstacle to the free flow of dialogue in the
session. Besides, the facilitators were not always articulate, and so ineffective
in disseminating the course message among the participants.

Because of time constraints, illness, or lack of motivation it was quite

difficult at times for the members, particularly the older ones, to attend all the
Functional Education sessions. As a result many students missed sessions
frequently or dropped out from the course altogether (Ahmed 2001). In the mid-
1980s in many BRAC areas, fewer than half the members were actually
completing the course (Lovel 1991). But, as per BRAC policy at that time, most
of the members of a VO had to complete all sixty lessons of Functional
Education before the VO could be recognised as an official group and a loan
could be extended to its members. Thus the long duration of the course resulting
in dropout and irregular attendance of the members caused unnecessary delay
in meeting this condition for obtaining loans by the members.

The outcome of conscientisation, whether demanding social, economic or

political justice with or without changing the system, was a direct challenge to
the status quo serving the power structure in the village. The prevailing power
group saw this as a threat to their long-standing domination and in their
enjoyment of privilege within the village. Within a short while the effort to
emancipate members through Functional Education was resisted by the elite
constituting the village power structure (Hashemi 1995). As govemment
functionaries were dependent on the elite for mnning the day-to-day affairs in
the village, these functionaries were not prepared to see the ruling power-
stmcture become agitated on account of the NGO's activities. Moreover, the
Govemment was not committed to stmctural transformation in the village
(Hashemi 1995). As a result, the Govemment was not comfortable with the
conscientisation programme of the NGOs.

Because of these problems, most NGOs with conscientisation programmes

in the late 1980s abandoned this approach. Instead, they adopted micro-finance-
based, growth-oriented programmes. At this juncture, BRAC, although
emphasising the promotion of credit-based economic improvements in the lives
of the poor, did not undermine the importance of conscientisation in the process
of development. It continued with the holistic approach to development by
making social development interventions, social mobilisation and
conscientisation efforts mn hand-in-hand with its micro-credit interventions.

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Present Model of Conscientisation

In the light of the problems faced by Functional Education, BRAC adopted a

new model for conscientisation which in some ways was similar to Freire's
approach but in others was different. As before, the members remained the
subject of conscientisation. Three central elements can be identified in the
present model of conscientisation:

Awareness: This is the critical understanding by the members

about the factors responsible for their conditions, through self-
enquiry and analysis. It is a logical outcome of the process in an
exploration of ways and means to create change.

Organisation: This is the facilitating instrument, that is, the VO,

which is changed through group effort. It is an organic entity
created, shaped and designed as decided by the members, and is
also managed and operated collectively by them.

Self-reliant actions: This is the assertive element in organised

groups' initiatives for constructive activities, as decided by the
members ofthe organisation. Such action often provides resource-
based and -enhanced capacities to launch constructive activities.
These activities are rooted in the awareness and consciousness of
the members.

In keeping with Freire, it was believed that all members had creativity, dignity
and strength of mind no matter how and where they were situated. These
attitudes about the self can be awakened by an appropriate stimulation. Some
initial stimulation is often required to set these attitudes in motion by using a
'problem-posing approach.' The stimulation is achieved through animated
discussion consisting of three overlapping elements related to assistance:

Initial conscientisation: Stimulating members so that they may

critically reflect on their social reality through a process of self-
inquiry and analysis. The process enables them to perceive
possibilities of changing a situation by their own collective action.

Enhancing members' knowledge: This is accomplished through

two processes. First, by assisting members to systematise their
experiences, to recover viable elements in their historical tradition
and culture which enhance their dignity and power. Second, by
bringing relevant new knowledge to them. The knowledge, for
example may involve:

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 1. people's legitimate rights;

2. wider social contexts and macro-processes which have a

relevance to the members' life situations; and

3 . technologies which can be synthesised with members' existing

knowledge and can be creatively adapted to improve their
condition.

Facilitation: Assistance provided to VOs to make a transition to

praxisbreaking practical barriers to action. Facilitation is
indispensable to assist the members to develop the capacity to
make the sustained action for change.

Investigation and analysis of the social realities carried out by the members
themselves provides an intellectual base to support whatever actions they
decide to take to change their reality. Thus, action is rooted in members' own
intellectual inquiries and findings.

There is a cadre of animators who stimulate and assist members to undertake

actions. The animators have already gone through a process of sensitisation and
leaming, and are committed to any possible change for the VO. These
animators may be extemal or internal to the VO. The extemal animators with
their formal education and wider knowledge of social contexts work as resource
persons around practical problems faced by the members. BRAC staff is an
example of such a type of animator. Intemal animators are members of VO with
the desire and the skills to undertake animation work within their VO, for
example. Law Implementation Committee members.

Present Programmes on Conscientisation

The conscientisation of members mainly undertaken under the aegis of the social
development programme of BRAC includes five major activities. These are:

Village meeting: This conscientisation activity is the same as done

in the past; discussed earlier.

Recitation of 18 promises: The VO members recite a set of 18

promises at the beginning of VO weekly meetings. The recitation
aware VO members of number of problems that they usually face
in the village.

Gram Shoba: This is a forum held once a month for members and
their spouses. The BRAC staff facilitates this meeting. In the forum
participants discuss their social problems (e.g., violence against

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48
 women) within their locality and decide on their solutions. In
addition, they leam about practices which are likely to benefit them,
for example, health care, application of high yielding variety seeds.

Popular Theatre: This is perfonnance art for communicating

awareness-raising messages combined with entertainment. The
theatre has the alchemy to arouse, enliven and inspire the poor. The
stmggle for survival of the mral poor is the thematic source for this
theatre. The objective of the theatre is to educate people against
illegal and exploitative practices in the society. The theatre identifies
and exposes the forces that constrain the development of the poor.
The members conducting the theatres are open to everyone's
participation and are performed in a suitable location in the village.

Human Rights and Legal Education (HRLE): Unlike other kinds,

this is a special kind of training designed for conscientisation and
action. The focus of the programme is to empower the mral poor
through human rights and legal education. The purpose of the
programme is to increase member's knowledge on law, and their
willingness to take up and act on their legal responsibilities.

Each of these activities does not necessarily have all the elements of social
praxis. For example, recitation of 18 promises conscientises members
conceming selected problems whereas the HRLE programme in addition to
conscientisation leads them to action for their solution. Similarly, the activities
are not equally participatory, particularly in the selection of the theme for
conscientisation. In popular theatre the participants decide the theme to be
staged but village meeting deals with the pre-selected issues on which the
participants are conscientised. No matter what the scopes of these activities are,
they complement each other in the conscientisation of the members. The
following section discusses HRLE in further detail in the context of the praxis
that goes on within the VO.

Human Rights and Legal Education

BRAC has observed that the overwhelming numbers of the mral poor are
unaware of their legal rights and that this ignorance has allowed others to
exploit themin particular, the women. The enormity of the problem prompted
BRAC to address the injustice done on the poor; thus in 1989 introduced the
Human Rights and Legal Education (HRLE) programme. It was believed that
legal awareness among the members would help them to protect themselves
from illegal, unfair, or discriminatory practices. By the end of 20(X) BRAC
offered HRLE to 1.7 million members (BRAC 2001). The expansion of the
HRLE programme was done simultaneously with de-emphasising Functional
Education by gradually cutting short the duration of the course.
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49
 The HRLE course curriculum is tuned to the need of the poor in the village.
In order to discover the most pressing problems (including situations that might
lead to problems) of the poor, focus group discussions were extensively
conducted throughout the country. Based on the findings of these discussions,
22 problems considered to be most relevant to the poor were singled out.
Thereafter laws relevant to these problems were identified. Thus HRLE training
curriculum covers 22 laws of Bangladesh grouped under four titles: Citizen's
Right Protection Law, Muslim/Hindu Family Law, Inheritance Law and Land
Law (see Appendix 1). The problems identified are subject to change as
considered necessary with the changing condition.

HRLE training is conducted by a Shebika. She is a villager eligible to be a VO

member having more education than the members. After receiving a special
training to conduct a HRLE course, Shebikas offer the course to VO members in
villages in surrounding areas at a minimum charge. A HRLE course with a
maximum of 25 trainees runs for 28 days having two-hour sessions per day. The
course is conducted based on a set module. On the fourteenth day of the training,
the Programme Co-ordinator of BRAC forms a three-member Law
Implementation Committee from among the trainees. The trainees observed to
have a better understanding of the course as compared to other participants are
selected for the committee. The function of the committee is to expedite the
implementation of the law for the VO members in their locality (BRAC 1995).

HRLE is different from conventional training in two important ways. It is

not only characterised by two-way communication between trainer and
trainees, but also used a number of participatory training techniques. The
techniques include lecture-cum-discussion, group discussion, role-play,
practical experience sharing, brainstorming, demonstration, and practical
juggling of the thought process. The conscientisation that is generated due to
the application of these techniques can be divided into two parts. First, it
convinces the trainees that the issues, that is, the themes incorporated in the
HRLE course, are a problem common to them. Problematisation of reality
builds up a critical awareness in the participants. In turn, it creates an impulse
in them to look for the cause and possible solutions to the problem. The process
gives an intellectual base to the understanding ofthe problem. Second, it makes
them think about the pragmatic solution to the problems and the legal
procedures available to handle them.

Figure 1 presents the steps in HRLE-related praxis that goes on in the village
as the members face problems. There are several actors contributing to different
stages of the process. The process is participatory and moves in a set module.
At the last step of the module, each level of the process is evaluated to improve
the system and thus keep it both effective and appropriate to the changing
conditions within the society.

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Major steps in praxis
Identification of problems
for conscientisation
Formulation of HRLE
curriculum
Conscientisation of VC
members
Awareness building
Development of knowledge
Development of skill
Development of attitude
Facilitation and action
By VO members in response
to problems considered in
training
Facilitation and reaction
Change in behaviour of VO
members in response to the
situation created due to prior
action by members
Evaluation of action and
reaction
Major actors in praxis
BRAC researchers and
programme staff
Training and programme
staff
Animators (external)
Training by Shebika and
orientation by BRAC programme
staff
Animation
External: Shebika, BRAC staff
Intemal: Law Implementation
Committee members
Animators
External: Shebika, BRAC staff
Intemal: Law Implementation
Committee members
VC members
BRAC staff and researchers
Figure 1: Praxis in relation to HRLE
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51
Impact Assessment of HRLE

A study was conducted on the impact of HRLE in the recent past (Rafi et al.
1997). The study observed two groups of VO members with and without HRLE
(each group having 75 members) and 50 non-members from a village without
any NGO presence. The groups represented three different villages. The study
also observed an HRLE training session. The level of legal knowledge of
members prior to HRLE was identical to that of non-members. At the end of the
training, trainees' knowledge of HRLE materials had increased from 39 percent
to 81 percent. The assessment was done based on a test from the HRLE
curriculum. All the trainees at the end of the course were more conscious and
had a better understanding of the problems covered in the training, and were
assertive enough to apply the training they received to the practical situation,
thus manifesting the formation of a positive attitude to the application of their
leaming.

Some 61 percent of the members with training, 12 percent of the members

without training, and 4 percent of the villagers from 9 non-BRAC village
conducted legal actions within a span of three years prior to 1996. Some of
these actions were taken jointly. Of total legal actions conducted during the
same period (70), 84 percent were by the members with legal education (LE),
13 percent by members without LE and 4 percent by villagers from a non-
BRAC village. About 77 percent of the situations that members with LE
encountered, where legal actions could have been taken, were actually taken.

Discussion and Conclusion

Five changes eoneemed with leaming and actions based on leaming from the
training can be identified (Phillips 1991; Bramley 1991; Bhatnagar 1987).
These are:

Change in level of knowledgean acquisition with facts or

principles from participation in the training.

Change in level of skillan ability to perform a task developed

from the training. The task is directed towards a particular goal or
centred on a specific activity.

Change in attitudea tendency or a predisposition to behave in a

certain way in a particular situation in relation to knowledge and
skill acquired in the training.

Change in behavioura response or reaction of a trained in relation

to knowledge and skill acquired, including physical reactions,
motivations, verbal statements and subjective expressions.
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 Changes in community/villageThe change in social
relationship and their institutionalisation in the community/
village resulting from the change in the behaviour of its members
as because of training.

These changes are directly or indirectly linked with each other. The
existence of knowledge is a prior condition for acquiring skill, that is, ability
to perform. Attitude, as an expression of a value or a belief, is related to the
knowledge and/or the skills; that is, the presence of knowledge/skill leads to
the change in the attitude because attitude is a primary determinant of a
person's response to an objective or action (Ajzen and Fishbein 1980; White
and Stolzenberg 1976; Spitze and Spaeth 1976). In this context, as observed,
it might be mentioned that when more than one role prescribed by social
norms might be taken against a situation, it was likely that an actor would
select the one that best suited his/her attitude, provided there existed no
constraining factor(s) which would force the actor to choose one against
his/her will (Ajzen and Fishbein 1977; 1980). The observation indicates that
the change in the attitude may not necessarily be followed by a change in the
behaviour due to constraining factors forcing an actor to take action against
his/her will; a positive correlation between the changes in the attitude and
change in the behaviour is most likely. In the case of a link between behaviour
and organisation, it may be mentioned that the collective change in the
behaviour of the members in an organisation leads to the change in its
characteristics.

In conformity with this theoretical discourse, HRLE is likely to bring

changes both in knowledge and action levels. By now 44 percent (1.68 million
people) of the VOs have been offered HRLE in approximately 26 percent
(22,515) of the villages throughout Bangladesh. A VO with 45 members,
covering 26 percent of the target group households (i.e. 176 households) in a
standard village suggests that there will be a considerable impact of the training
in the village community. These households not only have the capability to
conduct HRLE-related actions for themselves, but also are in a position to
extend legal help to others within their community, indicating that a
transformation at the community level in favour of the poor is likely.

The HRLE, although adopted as a replacement of Functional Education, is

not without limitations. Some of these are linked to the nature of
conscientisation as conceptualised by HRLE, and others to the application of
the knowledge in a real situation.

HRLE is offered with the assumption that the poor are likely to face certain
problems in their life, thus it is intended to prepare them to combat these
problems successfully. These problems affect certain families or certain
members within a village. Since the problems do not occur to a substantial

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53
portion of the villagers at the same time, a conscientisation craving for
collective action and a permanent solution of the problems does not develop
among the members. In some cases, when a member or her family encounters
a problem, the victim alone handles the situation, but in other instances
members of the VO collectively handle the situation. With the solution of the
problem further action is not required until another arises. During this period
conscientisation related to the problem remains dormant within the members.
Since the problems do not occur to a substantial portion of the village at the
same time, a conscientisation craving for collective action in the major portion
of the villagers that would lead to a permanent solution to the problem does not
develop among the members.

HRLE sorts out the solution to the problem within the existing social setup.
It does not ask for or encourage change in the existing social system. Thus, in
the case of a problem where the solution is rooted in changing the system, the
proposed solution to the problem by HRLE falls short of a permanent one.

In instances where members with HRLE extended legal help, the persons
who received help in most cases were also members and attended HRLE.
Besides, the members without training and the villagers from non-BRAC
villages who conducted legal actions received knowledge for such action from
sources other than members with training. These observations indicate that
HRLE failed to make much impact on the community due to diffusion of
leaming from trained to untrained persons.

So long as the application of HRLE-related knowledge remained confined

to the solution of problems within the members' family, the application tumed
out successful. In contrast, when the application was beyond their own family
and particularly in those from higher socioeconomic groups, there was a
tendency to shy away from the application of HRLE knowledge by the
members, or the attempted application tumed out unsuccessful.

The main obstacles in the implementation of HRLE were the lack of

influence of the poor as against the elite of the village (Rafi et al. 1997). It
appeared that the successful implementation of HRLE in many cases, in their
ultimate analysis, was a question of political and social power dynamics. The
VO as a whole, or the Law Implementation Committee, was not effective
enough in implementing the HRLE-related knowledge by playing a role in the
power dynamics of the village.

HRLE did not diffuse effectively in the village. The majority of the target
group was not conscientised. The limited strength of the conscientised members
was not sufficient to fight against an elite who controlled the power stmcture.
Functional Education was not free of the same weakness as it also remained
confined within the VO.

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 The fight against the elite and changes in the power structure requires a
larger power. In context, conscientisation should be targeted to all in the
community; if not, at least to all belonging to the target group. Of course,
popular theatre is addressed to all in the community, and can thus create
awareness among everyone within it; but it does not have a facilitation
component to help the poor organise for a group action. In response to this lack,
it is expected that there should be a better co-ordination between popular theatre
and HRLE for conscientisation and action; in this process, one should
complement the other. First, the whole community should be conscientised
through popular theatre conceming the problems present for a substantial
section of the community. Second, HRLE will than further conscientise the
members on the problems and show them the ways to their solution. Finally, the
members along with the rest in the community will take action to solve the
problems. The VOs, because of better understanding due to participation m
HRLE, should take the animator's role to further conscientise the villagers and
take the lead in the action for the solution of the problem.

The complementarity of popular theatre and HRLE to each other on the one
hand is likely to make the conscientisation effort less expensive, and on the
other will do the same to a larger section of the community within a shorter
period of time. Under this approach, non-members will be conscientised, and
the VOs will draw the support of non-members during an action. This support
on the one hand will provide greater strength for action and on the other will
minimise the chances of retaliation on members by the vested group affected by
the action.

There are some obstacles to conscientisation inherent in the stmcture of

some NGOs and their objectives. In the case of NGOs with an holistic approach
to development, the contradiction may exist between effective performance in
economic or sociopolitical dimensions. In the context of these objectives
Edwards and Hulme remarked:

Large-scale service-provision requires standardized delivery

mechanisms (to reduce unit costs), structures which can handle a
large amount of extemal funding, and systems for speedy, and
often hierarchical, decision-making. On the other hand, effective
performance as an agent of democratization rests on
organizational independence, closeness to the poor, representative
stmctures, and a willingness to spend large amounts of time in
awareness-raising and dialogue. (1992: 7)

While service-delivery, for example the offering of micro-credit, tends to

attract more official funding, there will always be a chance that a rift will grow
between resourceful service-providers and poorly funded social mobilisation
done through conscientisation within the organisation (Pearce 1993). Besides,
Convergence, Volume XXXVI, Number 1, 2003
55
service delivery brings quicker retums over time, thereby lowering the
importance of conscientisation to the organisation.

It is difficult but not impossible to have a mix of service delivery and social
mobilisation in the same organisation. For such a mix, a special attitude on the
part of the organisation is required. First, the organisation should believe that
holistic development is possible only with due consideration given to
conscientisationnecessary for social development and to supplement
developments in other sections, for example economics and health.
Accordingly, there should be a clear-cut conscientisation agenda to be
undertaken by the organisation and that should be implemented with due
seriousness. Second, the organisation and the donors should believe that the
impact of conscientisation is much slower to achieve than the other types of
development. Therefore, both should be prepared to provide the
conscientisation effort the necessary time to produce the desired result.

Conscientisation is a combination of political education, social organisation

and grass roots development. In full conformity with Freire, we believe that
conscientisation not only helps the poor to perceive their exploitation and
realise the opportunities they have for overcoming such exploitation through
mass organisation, but also that it is imperative in improving the living standard
ofthe poor. Thus, contrary to bidding farewell to Freire, NGOs should take his
method as a necessary means for achieving holistic development of the poor. In
response to the problems faced in conscientising the poor through the Freire
model, BRAC came up with an altemative one which was shown here to be
more effective but which has further scope for improvement. Under this model,
the process of conscientisation has been divided into several co-ordinated jobs
undertaken by different interacting parties, importantly without surrendering
the concept of participation of the poor in the processone of the cardinal
principles of Freire.

Mohammad Rafi is Senior Research Socioiogist in the Researoh and Evaiuation Division,
Bangladesh Rurai Advancement Committee. He has pubiished papers on research
methodoiogy, the sociai impact of BRAC, and group dynamics. The author can be
reached at: <rafi.m@brac.net> and <neloy@aittbd. net>.

Appendix 1

Legal Issues Covered by HRLE Training Documents

Citizens' Right and Protection Law

1. Voting rights, freedom of religion and equality of all in the eyes of law.
2. Inhuman punishment.
3. Arrest procedures and duty of a citizen.
4. Right of cirrested and duties of the police.
Convergence, Volume XXXVI, Number 1, 2003
56
Muslim Family Law
1. Marriage and the preconditions of marriage.
2. Dowry.
3. Receipt of divorce notice from husband and reconciliation between couples.
4. Divorce by husband and his remarriage.
5. Divorce by wife.
6. Multiple marriage.
7. Rights of up-keeping children and right of their custody after divorce.

Muslim/Hindu Inheritance Law

1. Main sharer of property
2. Main heirpart 1.
3. Main heirpart 2.
4. Right of orphan grandchildren.
5. Considerations in inheritance.
6. Division of property of a childless deceased among the heirs.

Land Law
Preservation of the ownership of land.
Steps to be taken before and after the purchase of land.
Kheir Khalishi Mortgage and untenanted land.
Lease.
Homestead.

References

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Ajzen, I. and Fishbein, M. 1980. Understanding Attitudes and Predicting Social

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Bangladesh Rural Advantaged Committee (BRAC). 1995. RDP Operations

Manual. Rural Development Program. Dhaka: BRAC.

Bangladesh Rural Advantaged Committee (BRAC). 2001. BRAC at a Glance.

Public Affairs & Communications. Dhaka: BRAC.

Bhatnagar, O.P. 1987. Evaluation Methodology for Training Theory^ and

Practice. New Delhi: Oxford & IBH.

Bramley, P. 1986. Evaluation of Training: A Practical Guide. London: BACIE.

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Chowdhury, A.N. 1989. Let Grassroots Speak: People's Participation, Self-help
Group and NGOs in Bangladesh. Dhaka: The University Press.

Clark, J. 1991. Democratizing Development. Connecticut: Kumarian.

Edwards, M. and Hulme, D. 1992. "Scaling-Up the Developmental Impact of

NGOs: Concepts and Experiences." In M. Edwards and D. Hulme, eds. Making
a Difference: NGOs and Development in a Changing World, 13-27. London:
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Freire, P. 1970. Pedagogy of the Oppressed. New York: Seabury.

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Smillie, I. and Hailey, J. 2001. Managing for Change: Leadership, Strategy and
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Adieu Freire ? Prise de conscience du Bangladesh rural au

debut du XXIe siecle

Mohammad Rafi

Au cours des annees 1970, la plupart des ONG des pays en voie de
developpement ont adopte le modele de conscientisation de Freire afin que les
classes desavantagees puissent exercer une action de groupe contre les forces
qui resistaient a leur developpement. Vers la fin des annees 1980, suite a
certaines difficultes, le modele Freire a ete abandonne par les ONG en faveur
de celui de la micro finance base sur des programmes orientes vers la
croissance. C'est alors qu'un petit nombre d'ONG, dont faisait partie le Comite
en faveur du Bangladesh rural (Bangladesh Rural Advantaged Committee ou
BRAC), ont prefere, pour le developpement des classes defavorisees,
promouvoir 1'amelioration d'une economie basee sur le credit, qui n'ebranlerait
pas rimportance de la conscientisation.

Maintenant, le BRAC a adopte un modele de conscientisation qui est en

certains points semblable a celui de Freire. Les trois elements centraux de ce
modele sont la sensibilisation, 1'organisation et l'autonomie. C'est le travail qui
apporte l'autonomie et le travail a trois composantes qui se chevauchent : la
prise de conscience initiate, I'extension de la connaissance et I'assistance. Le
BRAC dispose de plusieurs programmes pour arriver a la conscientisation : les
assemblies de villageois, les gram shoba (assemblies o\x Ton chante), les
theatres populaires, l'education legale et la connaissance des droits de
l'homme. Ces programmes adoptent un eventail de moyens pour arriver a une
prise de conscience. Les plus importants de ces programmes sont ceux qui
concement les Droits de Fhomme et l'apprentissage de la loi. Pour atteindre un
resultat dans ces domaines, une formation est necessaire. Bien que
l'apprentissage des lois et celui lie aux Droits de l'homme semblent efficaces.
Convergence, Volume XXXVI, Number I, 2003
59
les programmes de conscientisation devraient etre mieux coordonnes afin qu'ils
puissent s'appuyer l'un sur l'autre et donner de meilleurs resultats. Le modele
de conscientisation du BRAC peut aussi servir d'exemple a d'autres ONG en
vue de liberer les classes desavantagees.

^Adios a Freire? Concientizacion en el Bangladesh de

principios del siglo XXI
En los afios 1970, la mayoria de las ONGs de los paises en vias de desarroilo
adopto el modelo de Paulo Freire de concientizacion, mediante el cual las
personas pobres actuarian grupalmente contra las fuerzas que impedian su
desarroilo. A causa de numerosos problemas, a fines de la decada de los '80
estas ONGs abandonaron el modelo de Freire para adoptar los programas
basados en la microeconomia, orientados hacia el desarroilo. En esta coyuntura,
un pequeiio niimero de ONGs, incluyendo a BRAC (Bangladesh Rural
Advantaged Committee), enfatizo la promocion de la mejora economica basada
en el credito, y que no socavara la importancia de la concientizacion en el
desarroilo de las personas pobres.
Actualmente el BRAC ha adoptado un modelo de concientizacion similar al
de Freire en algunos aspectos, pero diferente en otras areas. Los tres elementos
centrales en este modelo son la toma de conciencia, la organizacion y la accion
autosuficiente. El estimulo para la accion autosuficiente se logra a traves de la
animacion, la cual consiste en tres elementos superpuestos: toma de conciencia
inicial, aumento del conocimiento, y facilitacion.
BRAC posee di versos programas de concientizacion 'Village Meeting',
'Gram Shoba', 'Teatro Popular', y 'Derechos Humanos y Educacion Legal'.
Estos programas adoptan una variedad de medios para la concientizacion.
Derechos Humanos y Educacion Legal, el mas importante de estos programas,
adopta la capacitacion como un medio para tales efectos. Aunque Derechos
Humanos y Educacion Legal parecieron ser efectivos, los programas de
concientizacion deberian estar mejor coordinados a fin de que pudieran
complementarse entre si para obtener resultados mas efectivos. El modelo de
concientizacion de BRAC puede ser tambien un ejemplo para otra ONG en la
liberacion de las personas pobres.

Convergence, Volume XXXVI, Number 1, 2003

60