"My Dear, This is Congo!"

During my time here so far in Congo, I have experienced a number of things that are different from life in the US.  Kalongo’s most frequent saying since we have been here is “My dear, this is Congo.” This phrase is used to describe the differences between Congo and many other countries.  Here are some examples:

- Roads: The roads are not developed and many are not paved.  Before heading out to the villages I always take Dramamine to avoid getting nauseous because the roads are so bumpy.  I have heard recently that NPR reported that Congo has the worst roads.

- Cell phones: Many people in Bunia have at least 2 SIM cards with different phone numbers from different cell phone providers.  This is because the networks are often not working (despite the fact that your phone shows that you have a strong signal).  If one network is not working, you can switch your SIM card and use your phone on the other network.

- Electricity: The power/ electricity in the house can go out at anytime.  There is a big market for flashlights and generators in Bunia.  Households are charged the same amount of money for electricity service each month regardless of how much electricity they use.  I have a habit of turning off the lights when I am not using them but I have been told by our host family that it is not necessary to do this but I still do.

- Water: The water in the house can also go out at anytime.  When it comes water and electricity here it is like the movie “Friday”, we never have 2 things that match.  We may have water but no electricity; we may have electricity but no water.  If we are lucky we will have both but that does not happen too often.  Today the water was off in the house all day and we ran out of water all together.  We keep 3 large containers filled with water in the house for the days when the water is off but today, we ran out of water in those containers as well.  I went with the girls to a neighbor’s house 2 doors down to get water.  Since our house is higher up on the hill than the neighbor’s house, they have water when we may not.  Still have not really figured out how that works but we were able to get water from them so it was all good.

- Government: There is a land issue between 2 tribes and the government was asked back in June to come settle the dispute.  The communities were told that someone will come out after the elections (after January) to solve the dispute.  Meanwhile, the government has sent poorly paid soldiers with lots of extra time on their hands to the area to help prevent a conflict from occurring.

- Military: We were going to spend 3 days in the villages, spending the night there but have had to change our plans.  We were advised not to stay because it may not be safe due to the military presence in the village.  This is ironic because the military was sent there to help protect the village and keep it safe.

- Drivers’ License: You can apply for a driver’s license without taking a test and be qualified to drive anything from a moped to an 18 wheeler!

- Elections: Elections were held this past Monday.  Most of the campaigning I have seen involved groups of people riding around with flags on the backs of their cars and motorcycles with blaring music and megaphones.  The current President has a monopoly on the campaigning.  I was watching TV and asked Akiki why there were no other candidates being presented as running for the elections.  She told me that the channel we were watching was the current president’s channel so it was all about him.  Elections results should be announced next week so we are continuing to pray for a peaceful election period.

- Taxes: If you want to buy a car that costs $9,000 you would end up paying $13,000 due to the high taxes in Congo!

- Food Prices: A box of cereal costs $7.00-$9.00 and that is the regular price, not the mzungu price.

- Resources: The Congo is full of fertile soil for planting various crops yet rice is imported from China.

- Postal Service:  We have a post office box in Uganda because that is the closest place to send and receive mail (and by closest I mean a 5 hour car ride and a 2 hour boat ride).  Additionally we have been waiting over 6 weeks for a shipment of sports equipment from the US.  We have been tracking it and went from Florida to Belgium to Nigeria to Gabon and now we think it is somewhere in Congo but not really sure.  We also have no idea when we may receive this shipment.

Some other facts about Congo: In the most recent United Nations Development Program report, Congo was rated as the worst country in terms of the Human Development Index.  It ranked 187 out of 187 countries.  In terms of good governance Congo is rated the 4th worst just ahead of countries such as Somalia which currently does not even have a government.  Here the gross national income for a year is about $280 which is less than $1 per day!  Kalongo has told us that Congo is about 50 years behind its neighbors such as Uganda.

Despite these facts, I see hope in the Congolese people.  For me, it is mostly portrayed in the faces and the smiles of the people we meet.  When we go out to the villages and meet with our committees we are greeted by the hope on the faces of the children and the community members.  Their smiles are very charismatic and contagious.  There is a long road ahead but I do believe that change can occur.  This is evidenced by small changes we are witnessing already such as the site of over 100 men working hard on the field in Vilo to create a place where the community can play soccer.  It was also evident when I came back to Vilo this past week after my impromptu peace education session with the kids and they still remembered “cheka and furahi” from the happy faces that I drew the previous week.  This week I introduced “salama” which means peace and drew peace signs for them.  I even got a little girl in the community to stop calling me “mzungu” and just call me Selina! I know these are all small steps in the grand scheme of things but it is all a step in the right direction.
 
“There is not doubt that a small group of concerned citizens can change the world.  Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has.” – Margaret Meade

A Lesson in Peace (blog #8)

This week we held our first peace education session with our committee in the Vilo community.  It was held at the end to a great day in the community where we participated in a community work day, visited the schools and Scott and Stephen played in a soccer match.  The whole day was great but I think the best part for me was the time I spent with the kids before the peace education session began. 

I was in the community meeting room preparing for the session and as usual kids kept coming in and out of the building.  There is a group of young kids between the ages of 3-7 that follow us around the community most of the time we are there.  They are not yet in school, so they are usually outside playing when we pull up and seem to stick around until we leave.  They watched as I put chart paper with various words and drawings on the wall and prepared notebooks for the participants of the workshop.  I placed sticky notes on the notebooks and the kids just kept watching me so I decided to give them each a sticky note.  I drew a smiley face J on the sticky note and gave it to them and although they seemed happy, they did not really know what it was.  I explained that the face was a smiley face as best as I could in Kiswahili saying, “cheka and furahi” (laughing and happy).  Each child gave me the biggest, charismatic smile as I handed them their sticky notes.  Before I realized it, I had given about 20 kids sticky notes with smiley faces and more kept coming.  I showed the kids that the notes would stick on things like wood and I explained that they could take them home and stick them on something (again in the best way I could in Kiswahili).  I also started asking the kids, “ni nini? (what’s this?)” and they would respond, "cheka, furahi”. 

After a while the kids left and we began our peace education session with the committee.  When we walked out of the meeting, I looked across the street and saw these bright green squares on the walls and windows of a house.  Turns out the kids had posted their smiley face sticky notes there.  I asked a couple of the kids where their sticky notes were and they smiled brightly and pointed to the building across the street.  It was truly a special moment that made me feel good inside.  That day, not only did I facilitate a peace education session with the adults but I also had an impromptu peace education session with the kids.  The kids in turn spread smiles across the community.  Coming out of the meeting and seeing those sticky notes on the building was the perfect ending to a perfect day J!  

From Mzungu to Rafiki (Blog #7)

The first time I met Solomon, he screamed and cried at the sight of me because I was a mzungu (for the purpose of this story, I will be a mzungu… for now J ).  Solomon is a 2 ½ year old boy that lives in Bogoro, one of the villages in which we are working.  His mom’s name is Charlye and I met them through Miriam and Rutha who also live in Bogoro. 

Today Solomon smiles and is excited to see me.  It is amazing to see a child that was frightened by the thought of me and who would not come near me with a 10 foot pole, now come up and give me a hug.  He went from telling me bye to get rid of me to not wanting me to leave.  This relationship, however, this took some time and some convincing.  After a couple of visits Charlye convinced Solomon that I was not a mzungu and she compared my skin to his, saying, “Look she is brown like you.”  She also helped by modeling behavior for him.  She shook my hand and laughed and talked with me.  Each time I would visit, Solomon became more comfortable with me and moved closer and closer, after the initial shock wore off.  Eventually he touched my skin and saw that it was like his and he even held my hand.  To him, I am no longer a mzungu, I am a rafiki (friend).

Next step was to build a relationship between Solomon and Scott and Stephen.  I was able to use my newly developed relationship with him (and the fact that Scott had a hammock and a soccer ball) as a bridge to connect them.  When Scott first walked in the local shop with me Solomon greeted me and then started crying when he saw Scott.  I showed him that Scott was my rafiki and that there was nothing to be afraid of.  He calmed down as far as crying but would not come near Scott.  Then the magic happened!  Scott pulled out the hammock.  His hammock has been a big hit with the kids in Bogoro.  I told Solomon to come with me and he trusted me and came.  I showed him the hammock and Scott demonstrated how you lay in it.  There was a sparkle in his eyes as he watched, yet still from a distance.  He let me pick him up and I put him in the hammock but he was scared so I got in with him.  His frown quickly turned to a smile as we glided back and forth in the hammock.  He also enjoyed having pictures taken of him and wanted to see them on the camera.  What really put the icing on the cake though, was the soccer ball.  As soon as Scott pulled out the soccer ball it was all over.  Solomon had a new best friend.  He quickly joined Scott and 2 other boys in kicking around the ball.  He got so excited and clapped every time he kicked the ball.  Now when I see Solomon he asks me where the mzungu is (aka Scott) and of course he wants to play soccer. 

Whether I am working in a small village in Congo or working in a school in Atlanta, relationships have been one of the most important aspects of my job.  For our projects here in Congo, they are essential.  We cannot succeed without building and strengthening relationships within the communities.  That includes our relationships with each other as co-workers and friends, our relationships with village chiefs and pastors, our relationships with parents, teachers, coaches, leaders and even our relationships with little 2 year old boys like Solomon.  These relationships are the heart of our work and I am blessed to be able to foster the relationships with the people I have met so far.