Time really has gone by fast!

Posted by Gayle on November 17th, 2009

It’s only four more weeks to go before my placement ends. Time really has gone by fast! I have been feeling homesick but I am having an incredible time and am fortunate enough to have this opportunity to come, learn and experience so much. I am also super lucky to continue travelling once my placement ends. Since my plane flies through Paris, Kenny and I will meet there and we’ll spend a few days together sitting in cafes drinking coffee and wine, eating pastries and cheese and wandering the streets and galleries. Then we head off to Berlin to stay with his friends for Christmas. Kenny lived in Berlin for a year before I met him and has always fondly talked about the city so I’m really looking forward to finally experiencing it and meeting his friends. I asked him to pack my winter coat and boots in his suitcase!

It has been very busy since my last report. General elections were held in Botswana on October 16th. Besides complaints of long waits in voting lines, the elections were peaceful and people celebrated all weekend long with fireworks and parties. It was the 10th general elections held since Botswana’s independence in 1966. Botswana’s parliament has 61 seats, of which there are 57 constituencies, each electing a single MP. Unfortunately only two women were elected. A few weeks ago SADC Ministers Responsible for Gender Affairs approved the Regional Strategy of 50/50 representation in political and decision-making positions by 2015. Botswana still has a long way to go before achieving this target. President Ian Khama of the Botswana Democratic Party (BDP) was re-elected. The BDP has won every election in Botswana since independence. His father, Sir Seretse Khama, was the country’s first President from 1966 to 1980. I am reading a really interesting book called the Colour Bar by Susan Williams about Seretse Khama’s relationship with his wife, Ruth Williams. It details the racism and conflicts that erupted from their inter-racial marriage and the difficulties they had to overcome. It’s a remarkable love story.

As most of you are aware, the month of October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month. My roommate, Julia, has her volunteer placement at the Cancer Association of Botswana (CAB). October was a very busy month for her as every weekend she had events, talks and fundraisers to organize. It was great to attend some of these events where I had the privilege of showing my support by volunteering and helping out. One was a Stiletto Walk (I did not wear stilettos!) and the other was a Fundraiser with singers from Botswana. One singer, Ona Gabasiane (stage name Punah), is also a WUSC (World University Service of Canada) staff person and is known as Botswana’s biggest and best loved jazz singer. It was fun to see her perform jazz standards and traditional Setswana songs with all her backup singers and dancers. It was also great because a significant amount of money was raised for CAB. A critical issue in Botswana is that many people are not diagnosed until the late stages of cancer. Early detection is paramount yet many people are not diagnosed until stages three and four since clinics in rural areas do not have the proper facilities or equipment and health workers do not have the proper training. Julia is working on a project proposal that will train nurses in health clinics in early detection and treatment.

At the end of October the SADC Gender Unit organized its Annual Ministerial Meetings for Ministers Responsible for Gender and Women’s Affairs in Johannesburg, South Africa. It was a lot of hard work and long hours. The Gender Unit administrator, Patricia, another administrator from SADC who came to help, Pricilla and I did a lot of work organizing behind the scenes to prepare, update and finalize documents as the meeting was in progress. But I was also able to sit in on a lot of the proceedings and it was interesting to witness. Senior delegates met on October 27 and 28th to review and finalize Strategies and Tools, and then Ministers arrived on the 29th to review and approve the documents. The meeting was attended by Ministers and representatives from Angola, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Lesotho, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, South Africa, Swaziland, Tanzania, Zambia and Zimbabwe. The meeting was also attended by partners from the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA), the United Nations Development Fund (UNDP) and the Southern African Research and Documentation Centre (SARDC). It was officially opened by Minister Marie Ange Lukiana Mufwankolo, Ministre de la condition féminine, from the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). After her remarks the DRC delegates handed out colourful fabric as gifts and we called out ululations (sounds made by moving the tongue rapidly from left to right in the mouth) to thank them.

During the meeting the Ministers approved the Regional Strategy for Achieving the 50/50 Target of Women Representation in Politics and Decision Making Positions by 2015. They supported the Ten year Regional Strategic Plan of Action on Trafficking in Persons, especially Women and Children. Ministers also approved the Draft Monitoring Tool for the SADC Protocol on Gender and Development for use by SADC Member States in tracking the implementation of the Protocol. During the meeting the Ministers congratulated Malawi on signing the Protocol on Gender and Development on the 19th October 2009 and thanked Namibia and Zimbabwe for ratifying this SADC Protocol on the 7th October 2009 and 22nd October 2009. To date, Botswana and Mauritius are the only SADC countries remaining to sign the Protocol and they were urged by other Member States to sign as a matter of urgency to ensure that the instrument enters into force.

For the closing of the Meeting, the Ministry of Women, Youth, Children and People with Disabilities and the Department of International Relations of South Africa hosted a book launch, dinner and dance. The two books launched were SADC Gender Monitor and Wheels of Change. The SADC Gender Monitor is a biennial production by SADC Gender Unit and the Southern African Research and Documentation Centre (SARDC). This book indicates the efforts made to improve the status of women as well as the challenges and opportunities to achieving gender equality in SADC Member States. The second book, Wheels of Change, profiles a number of men and women in the SADC region who are tirelessly promoting gender equality and women’s empowerment. The evening was also a great opportunity to spend some time with my boss, Magdeline and co-worker, Elizabeth on a social level. I even learned some new dance moves! Unfortunately, I did not get the opportunity to see much of Johannesburg but I would like to come back one day and explore it more. Besides being the crime capital of the world and its turbulent history regarding apartheid, there is a rich culture that I would like to learn more about.

On the weekend I returned from Johannesburg, Julia, Kadimo, Farida, Eric, Kate, Katie (some friends and WUSC volunteers) and I went hiking around a gorge called the Mmamotshwane Gorge. We drove crammed in the back of a pick-up truck (this is quite a common mode of transportation here) to a village. We were greeted by Israel, the gentleman who would be our guide and a whole group of kids wearing party hats. The gorge is the largest of seven in the area. It has a rare species of ferns (or Bofitlha trees as they are locally known). Bahurutshe settled in the area in the 1850s and they have continually used the gorge as a permanent supply of water for domestic use and for their animals. Traditional doctors and herbalists also harvest medicinal plants from the gorge. The area around the gorge is beautiful and lush and is known as a spiritual place. We were asked to be gone by 4:00pm so the Ancestors would not get angry. As we walked we saw scattered pots and kettles left by people who wanted to give offerings. There are many spiritual myths about places in Botswana. Some hills no one goes to because it is believed that if you go up you will never return. These myths are deep rooted in the Botswana culture and people that don’t even really believe them still don’t take their chances. Around the gorge were a number of trees we were instructed not to touch because your skin would become extremely itchy. If we did touch one, we were supposed to say “Stwa stwa” to prevent the itching. On our way down from the gorge we saw people up in trees picking marula, a fruit that is commonly sold at markets and they shared some with us. It’s the size of a cherry but orange and the texture is pulpy but not a lot of flavour.

This past weekend we went on another hike up Kgale Hill. This hill is right on the edge of the city and you can see all of Gaborone from the top. We had to get up at 5:00am so we could finish the hike before it got too hot (most days now get up to 40 degrees celsius). It’s a ritual for many people to hike it every weekend and we met one man on the way up who climbs it every day. I was a little nervous to go because baboons like to hang out on the hill but fortunately I didn’t see any!
In Botswana there are many arts and crafts. This country is most well known for making the most beautiful baskets in all of Africa. The baskets are made from palm, which are cut and boiled in natural earth-tone colours. The lemao (in Setswana) is the main instrument used to make the baskets. This is a sharpened piece of thick wire, which is used to pierce the tight coil and insert and then wrap the palm. Many traditional basket designs are representations of animals and nature. Traditionally, baskets had many practical uses, such as storing seeds, grains and transporting food. The shapes of the baskets vary according to its function.
I plan to attend an art show at the Botswana Craft Market next weekend where a group of women are showing their quilts, most reflecting African daily life. I’m also hoping to go to the African Mall downtown to pick up some traditional fabrics that many women make clothing out of so I can make my own quilt when I come back to Canada. The San (indigenous peoples of Africa) create amazing work. They make jewellery made from ostrich shells. The colours of the shells are stark white and look quite stunning. There are also various San groups around Botswana that make contemporary paintings which remind me of folk art and contemporary aboriginal art from Canada. It is very colourful and beautiful (Kenny and I are buying a print from a Kuru artist).

Some friends, Kadimo and Farida, treated us to an evening of a traditional Botswana food (vegetarian style) and it was delicious. We had a variety of bean and spinach dishes, pap and roasted nuts. For dessert we ate watermelon, which just came into season. Many of the vendors by the side of the road are selling watermelon from the back of their trucks. The meal was also supposed to include mopani (worms) but they are not in season until December when it’s rainy season. We’ll have to see if I’m brave enough to try them before I go!

Most houses in Botswana don’t have washing machines and dryers are not needed because everyone hangs their clothing outside. The heat of the sun can dry clothes in a couple of hours. I haven’t seen any laundry mats so since I’ve been here I have had to wash my clothes by hand in the kitchen sink. This has been a weekly chore that keeps me humble. It is common for people to have live-in housekeepers to do their cooking, cleaning, errands and caring for their children. As part of the living arrangements, WUSC has hired a housekeeper, Rita, to clean our house twice a week, which I still think is a treat but at the same time rather extravagant.

While being in Botswana I have seen many incredible animals and I have loved the experience of seeing them in their natural habitat. But one thing I am having a very difficult time with is the overall treatment of dogs. Dogs are not really pets for most people – only guard dogs used to protect their property. There is a problem with break-ins here in the capital city which is why most people have dogs to guard their houses (At our house there is a big concrete fence with electrical wire on top and the house also has an alarm system). There are many stray dogs wandering the streets and many of them are mangy and underfed. I’ve seen a woman throwing rocks at a dog that was in her garden. There was also one dead dog on the street that was hit by a car. I’ve had to walk by it for over a week and by now it is badly decomposed because of the sun, and from birds and other animals picking at it. This is one part of my experience that I’ve had an extremely difficult time dealing with.

Walking through the city I’m always surprised by the amount of litter and broken glass on the ground. My other roommate, Eric, is working at an environmental organization and a huge challenge for them is to implement recycling and stop littering in Gaborone. Based on a research study most people feel that littering is in fact a positive thing because it creates jobs for people who can pick it up. Some people just smash their beer bottles on the ground when they’re done drinking. There is no incentive to recycle the bottles because there is no bottle refund. A greater issue in Botswana is drunk driving. I was told that more people die from drunk driving in Botswana than HIV/AIDS. The government has tried to implement ways to prevent drinking and driving, like raising the price of booze and closing bars earlier. Many people avoid driving altogether on the weekend after pay day when drunk driving is at its worst.

It took me a couple of months but I no longer feel intimidated walking through the Bus Rank. I’ve actually come to enjoy the liveliness of it – they stare at me but I’m also doing my people watching! You see all different types of people; they’re coming to and from work and school, women carrying bags and buckets on their heads full of food and goods, the other day I saw a man carrying a 21 inch TV on his head. There are so many stalls selling newspapers, music, shoes, candies, cell phone parts, beans and vegetables. Men are getting their hair cut and women are sitting in shady places getting their hair plaited (braided) all the while combis are zooming all around. I’ve enjoyed eating various foods from the vendors and some of the things the vendors yell out to entice you to buy from them, like “beautiful women eat cabbage!” I’ve bought a couple of CDs from a gentleman’s stand since I wanted to remember the sounds of my daily walks through the bus rank.

While walking and taking combis, I love seeing babies on the back of their mothers snuggled in beautiful fabrics. Interestingly, the way most white mothers and black mothers carry their babies is how black and white rhinos got their name. It actually had nothing to do with the rhino’s colour, since the black rhinos and white rhinos are actually grey and look almost identical, except for the shape of their snouts. The colour designation comes from the fact that white mothers carry their babies in the front, hence the name white rhino since the rhino kids walk in front of their mothers. Black mothers carry their babies on their backs so black rhinos were named because their kids follow closely behind their mothers.

With only a few weeks left it will be busy trying to do everything I’d like to do before I go. I’ll send another update soon!

Miss you all!

Hugs,
Gayle

Posted in Botswana, In-Country