Africa Vision 42

Africa Vision 42

November 24, 2008

A future and present leader.

Yesterday I had dinner with a Sudanese friend Ibrahim Musa Adam. He fled his home region a long time ago and is a fixer, translator, humanitarian, activist and most of all he is a humble and great guy. Over the last years he has worked for or with Aegis Trust, Waging Peace, The Greatest Good and several other NGO’s and groups. He is full of ideas and as we sat and laughed the evening away several topics popped up. When I asked him his 2 most important findings in the camps and in Darfur he said that the single most important thing is secondary education. If that does not come many refugees want to learn how to fight to solve the conflict in Darfur. It has been 5 years and an age group is losing time and opportunity to progress and learn.

He must meet Mr. Guru and Mr. Corporate Tree. They have come down to Chad to learn about the needs in the refugee camps and the surrounding areas. Their first thought was about starting secondary education in a refuge camp. Time and time again education pops up on list of things that will help in reconciliation, in keeping hope, in believing in a future, in creating a destiny. Why it has to take nearly 5 years to start up a secondary school goes beyond me. And believe it or not as I write this Mr. Tree calls. They call to touch base and share the excitement of visiting a camp for the first time. I miss my buddies. I have been aptly named Mr. Brahma chicken, the biggest chicken around. Smiles around. I am sure it will be one inspired meeting next Friday.

Mr. Ibrahim is filling out his application for a scholarship in Washington D.C. at George Washington University. It is a Banaa scholarship and I had the good fortune to meet two of the founding members of the organization while at the STAND (Students Action Now Darfur) National Conference in Washington only some months ago. The dream of that organization has to do with offering people from all over Sudan an opportunity to study reconciliation and conflict resolution. Ibrahim is one of the current leaders that deserves a place in my eyes. As he is sitting across the desk he is writing a 150-word entry on the story of a boy with terrible burn wounds for which he managed to find sponsors to have major reconstructive surgery done in South Africa. Then he will sweat on a 250-word essay on the future of Sudan.

At lunch we bumped into a Ghanaian friend. His country has been an example for many other African nations. Asked why he said first of all the first president Nkrumah a true visionary. One of his first steps was to abolish the name of the tribe in the name of people. After all are Ghanaians first not tribe members of X and Y. Then he focused on developing the part of the country that was left behind before independence. One of the main steps was opening primary and secondary schools. But also universities and vocational schools were founded or expanded.

What a contrast with Sudan / Darfur. In Darfur it was in the 60’s only that the first secondary school was opened. And racism has been an unofficial part of the workings of the government since independence. Exclusion of fellow Muslims in Darfur and the Eastern part of the country, animist/Christians in the South and Centre, exploitation and suppression to the ‘superior’ riverine Arab culture. Religion abused, the religion of brother and sisterhood corrupted to the difference of people on the basis of skin color or perceived African-ness versus Arab-ness.

At lunch we also talked about the use of aircrafts to bomb the refugee camps of Kalma and Hamidia in Zaleingi in November 2007. NGO’s were forced to leave and the silver birds fly in to release their firework. There are degrees of cowardice and this reaches the top of the pile. Now for all diplomacy and silent work of humanitarians were has it lead to? There is a repeating pattern of an abusive pattern of a bully getting away with mass murder, rape as a weapon of wart, mass destruction, aerial bombardment of civilian places, malnutrition as a weapon of war, arming of proxy fighters, avoiding international criminal justice, flaunting international regulations and on and on.

The African troops may roll into Sudan soon, but to protect what? Darfuri business people are voting with there feet setting up shop in the South of Sudan or Kordofan. And again there is the issue of mandate and the political courage to stand up to the playground bully. And then there is the economical interest of the Security Council members. Darfuri’s have shown tremendous resilience, dignity and humor despite the toothless responses of the International, African brothers and sisters.

I hope that people like my friend Ibrahim keep their golden smiles and vision for a peaceful Sudan.

Namaskar,

Ashis

Africa Vision 41

Africa Vision 41

November 24, 2008

Be the change you want to see in the world.
-Mahatma Gandhi-

So what do I want to see in the world?

That a person treats others as he wishes to be treated himself.

That eyes are used to see not just to look.

That ears are used to hear not just to listen.

That the heart pounds with compassion for all.

That the unlovable is loved.

That there is no end to learning.

That there is no end to loving.

That all are part of One.

That to serve is to rule.

That we balance the edge.

That we listen to the Inner Child.

That we embrace every moment.

That now is the moment.

That change is now.

That obstacles are opportunities.

That opportunities are stepping stones.

That meditation every day is like an apple.

It keeps the doctor away.

Hug 6 people a day. (Add a tree)

Practice random acts of kindness.

Write daily appreciations
Be grateful.

Respect your self

Be your self

Be!

Be the change you want to see in the world.

Namaskar,

Ashis

Africa Vision 40

Africa Vision 40

November 24, 2008

On the move

I will fly around the world for the second time in my life. The attempt is to tour India, the USA and the Netherlands in roughly 80 days. India to charge up, focus and meditate, ride down the mountains, meet the family and my parents, eat, buy clothes and trinkets, perhaps a painting as well. The last couple of years I go once a year and try to visit Rishikesh, Kolkata, New Delhi and Mumbai.

Then the USA for a third tour on the current state of Sudan and Chad adding to the awareness raising this time a fund raising component. I am happy about it. Not that the conflicts in Sudan and Chad are still ongoing but that I am going back to the USA. Last two times were brilliant. I met people from all walks of lives, of all ages with a common value the heart to care for people across the ocean in a different continent. It will be interesting to see if there is any change now that the big bear, the stock market crash is knocking on the door. I believe however that people will still have the same interest. Even with a presidential election coming up.

Final stop the Netherlands. Lots of babies to hug. Some newborns, some new houses and a lot of friends and family. Fundraising should be possible in Holland as well. See what the Dutch can shell out.

It is seemingly impossible to finish any work here. The electrical current in the house has not been working for three days. As a consequence I do not have water and to make things even better the generator, which is used in the office just decided to come to a grinding halt with a nice explosion. Nobody hurt, just no electricity and 1 hour 45 minutes left on the Mac battery. O, the reason for the power outage is a strike against weapon sales in Darfur. People will be lining up to demonstrate against the violence in Sudan. But opening their eyes to what is happening in Chad?

The Chadians who dare to speak out will always come with the same story. Chad was never a rich country but also not the poorest of poor. For the last 20 years there has been a steady decline to the bottom of the heap. Most say the poisonous cup is not empty yet and it must be swallowed whole before a change for the better may come. Yet that change will come. In many African countries there has been a change for the better and there is no reason to believe that eventually Chad will join the path of the democracies aiming for the future. Oil seemed to give an opportunity for making Chad a better place. But the revenues from the oil are not spent in the areas it is needed most.

I have talked before about our medical faculty. Perhaps some photos of the library will show 17 years of lack of investment and that is just one example. Children are being taught in straw huts without books across the country. Roads are being constructed to the areas we can find petrol, the rest of the country has been without and can stay without?

Namaskar, Ashis

Africa Vision 39

Africa Vision 39

November 22, 2008

Abundance of thoughts

Percolating thoughts dribbling through the mind.
I came, I saw, I hatched an egg?
Introspection on the why of mankind.
Surely not here to neg!

Questions asked about living the core.
With which there is no need for more.
What answers that quest?
The path to the inner child answers best.

Leave behind the fear of the unknown,
Bask in the glory of exploration.
Enjoy the sound of a giggle around
The sight of smiles abound.

Where the child goes there is the desire to know,
To play, to seek the edge.
Knowing and feeling that all are one
People equals mischief and fun.

Somehow when we grow rules impede
Behavior is expected.
Why is abolished.
Darkness enters
Fear of the heart
Loss of innocence and joy.

But then you turn the focus inward.

Enlighted souls are deemed to have an inner light
We all have the potential
Less is more
In scarcity abundance
Be the change you want to see in the world

Be the inner child
Come out of the hiding
Be the child
Be

Or be a bumblebee

Namaskar
Ashis

Africa Vision 38

Africa Vision 38

January 22, 2008

Abundance of water

My next-door neighbor forgot to close his tap. As a result his apartment flooded as did his down stair neighbor’s. Two carpets and two couches are waterlogged. Waiting for the dry cleaner. Also for 24 hours the water overflow ran down a hose creating a waterfall for the courtyard kids to play in. The kids had a ball, but the owners of the shop downstairs must be fuming. To show his power the son in law of the owner of the building came to tell me that from now on the gate would be closed at 21.00 and that any later arrival would be unacceptable. As we say in the Netherlands: ‘The soup is never eaten as hot as it is served’ I just called in my magic genie Faizal to sort out my small issue.

Mr. Tree, Mr. Forest and Mr. Brahma rooster had the good fortune to bump into one another again. Their fixer left them in a fix. Paper work to travel delayed, plane tickets to Abeche not arranged. Somehow Mr. Mubarak (the fixer) must have thought that in my spare time I double as a fixer. Well eventually we did trace down Mr. Mubarak mid air to find out he did not arrange anything. So some phone calls left and right and around 16.30 we stumbled into the right place to make plane reservations to Abeche. Just two days extra in N’Djamena for them. Well I mentioned before that the Arc de Zoe has had its impact on the travel, permits of all foreigners working or traveling in Chad. Thanks again bunch of bungling bums from France.

So I had the ultimate chance to be immersed in the business model for the future. The community based value added model. Instead of adding money the model is based on adding value to a service or an article. An example of that would be a company selling water and the entire profit going to clean water projects around the world. A consumer can decide to buy corporate Coca Cola water or water with an ideal. Pricing would be the same but no hoarding of money by fat cats but direct return to where the needs are.

It is great to jam about building model houses for refugees in such a way that skills are transferred, that the houses will be sustainable, have solar energy, water filtration and rain water catchment systems, a green house, solar powered heating/cooking and potentially even a lap top. It may seem far-fetched but the vision of visionary may be the dream of many or the impossibility of some or the reality of now. What may be considered fancy or high-end technology is not always so high tech.

While we were at UNHCR Ann took the time to have a discussion with us. She is responsible for all external contacts and has seen hundreds of groups and individuals pass bye. She made several great observations. If the mission’s goal was to look at education it should be secondary education or vocational education (masonry, carpentry etcetera). There should be a component for the host population as well, because often they are not much better off than the refugees and in fact they may be worst of in certain ways. The local community and the refugees should collaborate and it should be researched if this business model can be applied in different countries around the world.
Today I will take them to the hospital. I still have some classes to plan and some people to meet there of which news will come later.

Namaskar

Ashis

Africa Vision 37

Africa Vision 37

January 19, 2008

World abundance.

For the second time in two weeks there has been a problem with leaks coming from my apartment. This time with a lot of noise the down stair neighbors threatened to have me chucked in jail for water drops spoiling their previous stock. So with un-Chadian speed we got two guys in to check the pipes and cement my kitchen floor again. For the last month I have been waiting for a qualified technician to replace the lock in the door. Alas! To no avail. The television in my living room is I use as an extra area to dump my clothes. I just wished these professional also did doors, satellite hook ups and even the purchasing of a laundry iron. Charcoal, the electrical ones tend to blow all the fuses.

Joshua Tree a corporate humanitarian with the frame of a defensive line backer decided to explore my kitchen last night. Given it was dark due to a power cut he never realized he entered a sinking pit of setting cement. It took two buffalos to pull out the foot size 10.5 hero of the night. He likes to talk at 200 miles about a host of topics and I like the Hulk. He and Jeremiah are friends who have come to Chad with Gabriel (but two days later) and there are in Africa for the first time. There idea is to help set up a secondary school in a refugee camp by the refugees themselves. One or the most important driving force for them is gratitude. Doing the things you love and finding/hiring the best of people possible that can do the things that you are not an expert. All you need to arrange is a minimum cash flow. Hearing from two guys who implemented gratitude in their business, who see Gandhi, Einstein, Galileo, Copernicus as inspiration parts of their life story was great.

Motto: live in the present. As if I heard myself talking. It was a pleasant surprise to hear that both of them do the same type of meditation (holosync, the Divine and the Immersion) as I do. It helps me focus a lot.

And focus was one of the revolving themes we discussed yesterday and I am sure we will re-enter the same discussion today. Clearly one can identify one thousand different needs in Chad of which a hundred may even be urgent. However to address an issue there can be maximum of impact by digging deep into one or limited topics.

We ended up in the Carnivore for dinner, jazz and some lighter discussion. I went home buzzed with ideas and challenged in positive way. What is the single most important thing in my life with which the maximum of impact to make the world a better place can be made?

Today I want to introduce them to Ruben my Chadian American friend working on English classes and an English library in the neighborhood of Moursale. Should bring in some nice dynamics to hear them talk about the different aspects of organizing educational. And I will take my friend Faizal as well. It is good to see others exchange vision and experience in organizing grass root humanitarian interventions.

It will be a pleasant afternoon I am sure. Twisting by the pool in the Meridian always is. My body yearns for a swim and my mind for sparkling debate. I cannot wait until the afternoon comes.

Namaskar

Ashis

Africa Vision 36

Africa Vision 36

N’Djamena, January 15, 2008

Stop genocide now is in the country.

Why did I listen to the receptionist at the Meridian? I was quite sure Gabriel and his friends were staying there but the lady informed me there was no Mr. Gabriel in the hotel. Later I found out through another friend that he has been in the hotel since yesterday. Well tomorrow morning I will call him. Time flies when you are having fun and it does seem only weeks ago I was playing with him and his family soccer on the beach. Perhaps we can play again with Gabo on the beach soon. Gabo is his young son and he made a very nice gesture this time around. To several of the refugees in the camps in Chad he presented his favorite toys. What an adorable guy he is.

Talking with Gabriel and Katie-Jay is like a homecoming. They are similar spirited people taking the problems of the world head on. Or heart-on! Their organization does several things amongst which the following:

1. Field visits to the refugee camps in Chad
2. Camp Darfur in the USA

About the first there are several things that happen during a visit. First of all there is a live blog online. Where 5-8 minutes video-blogs are posted every day. It is about the journey but mostly about the refugees in the camp. Free rolling filming of the life of refugees in the camps. Inter-activity is the keyword and in that category follows the following. The installation in the refugee camps of kits of laptops, satellite phones, software and web cam to make it possible for the refugees to interact directly with peers in the USA. This month the first kit should be operational. I hope that a long distance friendship between the kids in the camps and the kids in the refugee camps can develop.

To assure there is more attention to the field visits several celebrities have lined up to join hands. I believe in March Macy Gray will be hopping around in Chad and one or two NBA basketball stars have visited as well. There interest is to help provide secondary schools in the refugee camp.

Camp Darfur is a collection of tents, photos, videos and mostly two to six activists traveling around the USA to bring attention to the plight of genocide in the world. When I was in the USA I had the good fortune to attend one. It is in the interaction with young and old that these camps become very interesting. There are misconceptions about how little one person can do about the situation is a country far away. I would argue the contrary every person can make a huge difference. There is an opportunity right now to build a coalition, a caucus against genocide in the world today. No more toothless resolutions by the UN but a grass root citizen driven movement to implement strict rules and regulations against perpetrators of genocide but more importantly prevention of genocide. Including the mandate to implement these rules and regulations.

Talk the talk and walk the walk.

There is a lot of hope in my mind a spiritual or humanitarian or human awakening that as humanity we can progress beyond violence and anger. First on a personal level then on a group level and finally on the global level.

No guts no glory. Why let the bullies in the world dominate the world. Why not let the kids and the elders rule?

Love is all we need.
Not a cliché but a profound truth.

I am off to meet two more team members of stop genocide now.

Catch you later

Peace,

Ashis

www.stopgenocidenow.org

Africa Vision 35

Africa Vision 35

N’Djamena, January 9, 2008

Drunk as a truck.

The 16 year old rolling in on a motorbike between two friends is bleeding profusely from his eyelid. As he is carried into the examination room he needs to be constrained by 4 men as he is rolling all over the place. Spitting left and right and so drunk whenever he tries to sit up he comes crashing down. In between moans he is about to die and ready to be received in paradise he is able to tell us he was out drinking with three buddies and then got onto a bicycle to crash head first onto the road. His buddies were more or less ok but our youngster needs suturing under anesthetic otherwise he will not need to buy a Halloween suit he will look the part.

Luckily for him his family was forgiving (at least in the hospital). But after he spat at our nurse for the fifth time I called it a day. Our friend was to be carried to a isolated room, left guarded by 2 relatives, sleeping on a mat because he would fall out of a bed. The next day he could be operated.

Drinking is or has become a big part of life here in Bebedja. In the weekends and festive days but as the case shows also on a Wednesday. And it is not restricted to adults. Local beer drunk from a bucket with a straw is a good way to get plastered for very limited money by all ages. One of the nicest building in the village is a newly constructed bar dancing.

Dr Gusto is getting a well deserved rest in the afternoons as I do the afternoon, evening and night rounds. Today it seemed very calm in the hospital and one of the nurses told me that as people spent all their money during the festive season. For an admission to the hospital there is limited cash so many patients await their pay slip at the end of the month.

Another group of patients in the hospital are those with burn wounds. Right now we have two with burn wounds up to 40% of the body. Last night one of them woke up a relative sleeping in the room. It seemed someone was urinating in the room. But in fact her burn wound had burst open and likely an artery or a vein had burst. At least a liter of blood was scattered on the floor. And then the next morning you need all your negotiating skills to assure that one of the family members will give blood. Her haemaglobin had dropped to dangerous low levels. And then she had another bleed. At last a relative stepped up and offered to be a donor. As her bandage was changed I could not but feel how much pain the lady must be going through. She is an epileptic and had fallen into the fire while convulsing.

Good things also happen. An eight year old who had fallen into a waterwell 15 meters deep and then went in to a coma woke up today and he wants to drink and eat. Kids have such a capacity to rebound it is a pleasure to see. And then the young lady, HIV positive and the echo revealed she was pregnant of twins. As there are antiretroviral drugs she will start with the medication this week.

Bebedja always remains a good place to reflect. At 21.00 electricity is switched off. I have a great place to drink a fruit juice every evening. The nurses are fun to work with and I hope to start with some small trainings maybe even this time and otherwise the next visit. And my little bungalow is visited in the morning by my two neighbors goats.

Peace,

Ashis

Africa Vision 34

Africa Vision 34

N’Djamena, January 9, 2008

Back to Bebedja

In a wink of an eye we were in Mondou. Racing across the smooth road from Ndjamena I managed to sleep nearly all the way. Lady fortune decide to intervene and we spent 3 hours in a garage for Toyota old timers well at least we have a new cooling fan in the motor of the car now and I managed to plunge through Robert Fisk’s ‘The great war for civilization.’ If not to read it can double as a pillow. I went for a bike road across the neighborhood and now know how it must feel to win a stage in the `tour de France. From all nook and corners people popped up to watch the nasara (white man) rides a bike. There are plenty of nasar in Mondou but I guess most of them use a 4 x 4 or a donkey.

The first patient I saw this morning after the morning rounds was a 3-year old boy. As the nurse had taken a finger prick to establish the blood group and I put the stethoscope to the chest to listen to the heart there were no beats. No breathing movements, nor response of the pupils. The child had died. In the hospital we are very restricted in reanimation. Partly because of lack of materials or capacity to treat for example with a ventilator. Partly because patients are presented in such a late stage that the outcome would not be good. In this case the mother waited for a month to come to the hospital while the child had fevers and had not eaten for over a week. It is not always easy but it is as it is.

The burn patient I talked about earlier in the blog has slumbered into a deep coma. After 5 weeks of treatment the pain and the infections have become to much to bear and the family wants to take her home so she can die in peace in her own environment. The two nomadic kids with bullets left the hospital after several days doing well. Right now we are entering the period of meningitis and the first choice medicine ceftriaxone is out of stock. So far there are three cases in two weeks. One child brought in today may be having meningitis as well.

The hospital has received two state of the art echo-graphy machines. One will be placed at the delivery ward so pregnant ladies and those who have gone through a miscarriage do not have to be hauled all through the building. The old one has gone to the out patient department. So a quick echography can be done (that is off course only true if the solar panels are lit). I sped my morning going through all the goodies these new machines can deliver.

Our surgeon is still missing in action and the state doctor pops up or not depending on his blood sugar and/or his mood. Apparently there are some American social scientists working on HIV in Bebedja. I hope to meet them later today or tomorrow. The work art John’s Hopkins a nice public health school. As my fellow doctor Gusto has been all call all the last month he was quite happy to see me. Finally a day not on call. I guess most doctors working in Africa know that feeling. The work just never stops and if you want you can go on and on. We even managed to discuss a bit about telemedicine. There is a prospect of having Internet at the hospital so images and case history can be shared with experts worldwide. We also went into a potential area of our mutual interest: leishmaniasis. I think I might have found leishmaniasis skin test good to do some diagnosis here. And then we talked about potentially the biggest menace in the area HIV. We are thinking about a workshop for the nurses on the social aspects of the disease. The mixture of bars, money, poverty, lack of education, youth, curious believes is a good feeding ground for a HIV outbreak.

Peace,

Ashis

Africa Vision 33

Africa Vision 33

N’Djamena, January 8, 2008

The greatest Good

My buddies Victoria, Dawn and Ceasar made it back to N Djamena just on time to catch their flight, They had visited the refugee camps in the East run by IMC and it was good to hear their perspective on the medical care in the camps. Eye care is key in their assessment of the camps. There are so many young and old people suffering from eye disease it is hard to see where to start the work. A thing that caught their attention were the young kids hanging around the camp. There is no secundary school in most camps in Chad (11/12) but for the camp of Oure Cassoni near Bahai. And then there was a feeling of loss of hope. Refugees with infected wounds staying in their houses because there was no treatment available. I have not been to these camps but I can imagine that at a certain point in time there is a loss of believe in a solution of the core issues.

Four years now and a whole batch of children has never been to Sudan. Born refugee! While the world is well aware of what happens. Darfur has been a conflict with a lot of media coverage. Political initiatives are also numerous. The root cause of the conflict a murderous regime that has been in power for over 19 years however has never been addressed properly.

While we turn our attention to Iran (not for the first time by the way, thank you George W. Bush and thank you sheepish international media, CNN, FOX, IHT and other newspapers).
When Iran was invaded by Iraq in the nineteen eighties, in a gruesome lethal war the USA supported Iraq.
When Iraq used chemical weapons international eyes were closed.
When the US Vincennes shot down an Iranian civil airplane with 290 passengers without any reason Iran was to blame.
I have been reading Bob Fisk’s book and the parallels of history are uncanny and sad.

Geopolitics before anything.
And so I am trying to understand the value of a regime that has fought in the East, West, Center, North and South of Sudan for nearly 20 years.
A regime that uses rape as a common weapon of war.
A regime that uses malnutrition and starvation of civilians lightly.
A regime that bombs bravely with Antonovs from the skies.
A regime that uses proxy fighters to ravage entire provinces, villages and cities.
A regime that is so forked tongued that it cannot even speak truth anymore.
A regime that abuses religion as a reason for war.
A regime that should have been isolated and changed a long time ago.
A regime helping out only their own tribes.

And yet that same regime receives or has received weapons from members of the Security Council.
It flaunts international human right law.
It laughs at the UN, Ban Ki Moon, George Bush, Gordon Brown, Sarkozy and other puppets.
African Union troops are humiliated and killed.
UN troops are delayed and delayed until further notice.
Refugee camps are shelled and attacked.
Refugees are killed and raped under the eyes of peace keepers
While we sit quiet there will soon be an entire generation of youngster who have grown up in a refugee camp. The Lost boys of Sudan will have a sequel Lost Boys 2.

Why can Omer el Bashir get away with all his bogus?
What is his value in geopolitics?
Is he the bully of the playground that gets away with everything?
Or is there a strategic interest in Sudan? Oil, Uranium, Cobalt, water, trees?
I wish I could explain, but I cannot..

The greatest good would be a peaceful transition to benevolent democratic governments in Chad, Sudan and Central African Republic.
To have no children grow up with lack of a school, eye care or threat of rape and death.

Until the day the world musters the courage to say no to dictators around the world be it Burma, Chad or Sudan kids will suffer.

Peace,

Ashis

Africa Vision 32

Africa Vision 32

N’Djamena, January 7, 2008

First university session.

I started working on my classes (4) for the 6th year of medical school a week ago. I was hoping to talk about public health in refugee camps but somehow I did not manage to download the book I needed so I changed my mind and will be talking about a malaria outbreak in Burundi, an influenza outbreak in a senior citizens home in the Netherlands and my passion Leishmaniasis and its public health implications. Teaching is something I love to do and even if I was a bit buzzed about teaching in French, mainly about my poor spelling, it went well. The hours were actually booked by a teacher of computer science & epidemiology and a teacher of Primary Health Care as well. But both kindly rescheduled.

And my instincts were right as long as you show up on time you can always wing a projector. The course organizer whisked away on his scooter and came back with a fine specimen for me. This after a wild goose hunt through the medical faculty putting class representatives of different years on the spot where the mighty machine was. From the tour in the USA I learnt that a doogle is quintessential if you want to work with a Mac. Just love the highlighted apple.

The students here are in 8 different classes with roughly 50 students per year and they have to share 10 computers, a library with less book than I possess and a laboratory without the basics. Yet entry to the medical faculty is highly competitive and coveted. Recently a private medical college popped up. I am hoping to visit that institute soon. My attempt to Socratic teaching was not always understood but next time I will make sure that the classes have a component of group work and problem solving. I managed to download the required book with help from a friend. Now let us hope that Adobe works on my Mac as well. Question and answers led to some extended silences but also to interesting answers. Somehow not all students were aware of the class so about 20 out of 49 showed. Next time the more the merrier.

This morning I will head for Bebedja. At night there (if I have enough electricity during the day) I can prepare well my next 8 hours. It is lovely and quiet over there. And this time I have a car with me so I can do some field visits again. I am finally hoping to start using my video camera.

In the evening I was invited to a family of Bahai (the religion). Together with another physician and believe it or not he is Dutch and a surgeon working for the British Navy. In his spare time he does numerous short missions for the Red Cross and I sat in awe listening to the stories he had to share about working in Rwanda in 1994. Operating on the perpetrators of the genocide and how to deal with it. The story of the Congolese prisoners of war captured by the Chadians in 1999 when they drove a convoy of tanks through Central African Republic to Congo to compete in the battle for the goodies in 1999. Or his up and coming visit to Gaza and his recent stay in Kurdistan He is married to an Iranian who is a Bahai and he met his wife on a mission in Angola.

The Bahai religion merits more than the paragraph I am writing now and I will come back to it but in brief. It comes from Iran where the followers have been persecuted since the fall of the shah. The diaspora has been dispersed in over 100 countries. One of the main themes in the religion is the acceptance of all religion. The Koran, the bible, the bhagavad gita all sought as inspiratin to the believers The religion was founded around 1850 and the first time I heard of it was when I passed by the teple near New Delhi. Haifa in Israel is a holy place as it is there that the founder of the religion spend a large part of his life.> I will try to learn more about this religion and let you know.

Peace
Ashis

Africa Vision 31

Africa Vision 31

N’Djamena, January 5, 2008

Crime pays

The two dacoits who robbed me are well known figures in this part of time. They spend a lot of their time in jail and in between sentences they create havoc. One is called grand dame and the other Mohammed Walia. After they snatched my phone and money they went on a drinking spree in Kabelaye. It is the home of many Cameroonian girls and of plenty restaurants and bars. Our two bandicoots at one point got into a fight. One smashing his beer bottle and the other using his knife. The reason was that one wanted to sell the phone and the other wanted to keep it. Grand dame has been snapped up and is in jail right now. Mohammed Walia is still slithering through town awaiting arrest. He can slither and slide but for sure he can not hide.

As the left hand washes the right hand I went to see the daughter of my friend police inspector Pap of the special crime unit. She seems to be the victim of some magical incantation. As she returned from church a month ago an elderly lady touched her shoulder and she collapsed to remain in a coma for 2 weeks. Admitted in hospital the doctors went on a shotgun approach. Try anti malaria drugs, when that does not work try antibiotics when that does not work say she has tetanus and nothing can be done. All the time asking for lab exams and computer tomography and what have you not. Unfortunately nobody n the hospital knows how to use the machine so no images can out. What did come out of the pocket of my friend was bundles of money. It is sad to see medicine being used as a money-making industry but also in Chad you can find these practices. Who well go and discuss with a doctor when we are talking health.

The largest scale of criminality remains however the dictator ruling the country. It is amazing to see how much money flows into arms and the army and how little is invested in education, health care and infra structure. These criminal expenditures are justified as a struggle for life for the government, a means to peace in the country. The sad part of the story is that conflict is fought between a very limited number of tribes; Zaghawa, Goran, Tama and some Arab tribes. Numerically they are also a minority in Chad. Because of these bloodthirsty crooks the country needs to go through decline. While neighboring countries mange to climb up the ranks of the Human Development Index Chad remains a happy bottom feeder.

How does the power dynamic work in this country. It is not that complex. The French with a mere 3000 troops in Chad have the final call here. If they so wish there can be regime change or peace. Somehow the current dictatorship is a good marionette of the French. The most recent example are the idiots of Arc de Zoe. They have been convicted to hard labor for 8 to 20 years in Chadian jail by the Chadian Criminal Court . They left after only a few days to without a doubt luxurious cells in France. I wonder if they or the larger political world in France realizes what these people have done to the image and reality of work for humanitarian aid workers in Chad.

The point is at all levels you will find corruption, criminality in Chad. But it is about looking forward seeing those individuals and groups that do want to make a difference in Chad. It cannot be the case that a bunch of war minded criminals rule this nation until the end of time. Even Kenya has had some clashes lately but there is hope always the hope and reassurance that Africa is far better off in many ways than only 20 years ago. Criminality will only pay off in the short term. Long term solutions require harmony and people with vision. I have not seen that many people carrying a gun with that vision.

Namaskar

Ashis

Africa Vision 30

Africa Vision 30

N’Djamena, December 30, 2007

Complacency

This afternoon I had the pleasure to talk for about two hours with police inspector Pop. He is about 6 foot one inch and is built like an ox with a matching deep laugh. He has been around the block and his work involves organized crime in Chad. He never leaves home without Magnum .375 and a bag full of bullets. As he was telling several years ago the street where I am living was off bounds even during daytime. It is the main street but there were so many robbers that even in clear daylight leaving your car was a risk. Over the last years they have managed to clear up a lot of the small criminality. But the big criminality often gets away. Certain people in Chad are beyond the law. They may serve several days for an armed robbery and then be released. After which they go after the policeman who had the nerve to arrest them.

He then went on to describe his experience with UN police work in Haiti involving drug trafficking. Two of the big police fish in Haiti were involved themselves in the business. Corruption to the core. Sounds like a familiar theme here.

Dressed in trainers and riding a low rider motorbike imported from the USA he rode of in to the sunlight off to catch hoodlums. A friendly giant who decided not to become a lawyer but a servant in the police force. It reminds me of the police force in the Netherlands. When I worked with them I realized that many officers have a deeply rooted sentiment to serve the people.

I was lured in to complacency today and actually over the last months, weeks and days. I have been slack on security and I guess it was my time to be slapped in the face with a wake up call. A taxi driver I knew asked me if I wanted a ride and I said nope I need some fresh air I would walk the 1-kilometer. And so I just strolled home at 04.00 in the morning from the VIP nightclub.
Two men came up to me. I felt instantly that it was not good. They asked for 100 CFA and in a flash I had taken the keys out of my purple lizard bag and started to run. One of them hung on to my leg and it felt like slapstick. I slammed the other guy in the face and wrestled myself free losing a shoe in process. But as I arrived near the gate of my house I saw a knife in one robber’s hand. For a moment I considered throwing my bag over the gate but logic finally prevailed and I just handed over the bag. As a parting gift the dacoits left me with a Zaghawa knife holder and a dented ego.

The lesson of the day was clear. It is never too late to turn around a series of bad decision. Walking at night, fighting back two robbers, trying to outrun them knowing the gate is closed. The best decisions were to accept the loss of my cherished bag plus the material possession there in and to cherish my life halting the need to be a silly hero. Dead heroes cannot write after all. No writing no fun. Writing this puts a smile on my face. Silly me, then again you live you learn. At least I try to.
My stubborn cocky ego needs to be flattened once in a while.
For all of you who worry about my health and well-being.

I PROMISS

No more strolls.
Taxis only.
Next robbery I will be a good boy and hand over my belongings straight away.

Perhaps the visit to the police bureau will lead to some comedia dell arte. We will see and I will report back on the process of reporting a theft in Chad. There was a reason I met the jolly police inspector today. I did not expect to need his help so fast.

I love being alive after a robbery with only a scratched arm and knee.

Peace to you all,

Ashis

Africa Vision 29

Africa Vision 29

N’Djamena, December 30, 2007

Two ophthalmologists.

In one morning I had the pleasure of talking with 67% of the eye doctors in Chad. The first is a lady doctor called Zeneba who has done her specialization in Senegal. I think I wrote about the fact that there are no specialist training programs for doctors in Chad. Any one who wants to specialize needs to go abroad. As a consequence many do and never return to Chad. The salary for doctors in almost all countries in Africa is better than in Chad. The starting salary is 260 dollars and as all have received a student scholarship of 40 dollars per month for the entire study (as well as free study) there is a requirement to remain working for the public service for at least 5 years. As the compensation the government has allowed doctors to open up private practice. This leads to for example the hospital in Doba to have no doctor after 12 in the morning .

Dr Zeneba however seems dedicated to do some good in Chad. She has started her own NGO working on preventable disease. In ophthalmology there are several preventable conditions. To name a few strabismus (squint eye), trachoma (inflammation of the inner eyelid leading to strictures, or scotch tape eyes and eventually blindness), and vitamin A deficiency (eventually leading to blindness as well). Besides that there are the common problems of cataract. With an intraocular lens that cost no more than 20 dollars a lot of good can be done. She has visited several refugee camps in the Eastern part of Chad and is looking for partners in the West to collaborate with.

It so good to get to know highly motivated young colleagues, not at all jaded going against the odds, swimming against the stream. Too often people take the secure path and in Chad that can also mean going outside of the country as more money is to be made there plus the advantage of countries that are not plunged into civil war.

Dr Djada is the dean of the medical faculty as well as an ophthalmologist. He is also the chair of an organization keen on doing operations in areas where there is never access to doctors let alone eye doctors.

In the afternoon a representative of ophthalmologists without borders came from Kouseri across the border to buy some inter ocular lenses at Faizal’s shop. They have 6 centers in Cameroon of which four are in the Northern part. It would be a nice idea to go and visit. Clearly there is just as much need in Chad in proper eye care. Given the massive amounts of ophthalmologists it remains to be seen if that will happen any time soon.

One of the member s of the greatest good Caesar is interested in troubles of the eye so perhaps I can hook up these individuals with each other. And then there was the ophthalmologist Tim I met in Detroit. Good to put people together and see the outcome.

A merry new year and most of all a healthy one to all of you….Ashis