Opinions on an opinion

There was a long editorial in the NYTimes today suggesting that creating a trade agreement in East Africa will create peace in the Congo. I think that's a lovely thought, but I'm skeptical. And it's not that I know a lot about the situation, and perhaps a trade agreement will help. But I'm particularly dubious that having the U.S. negotiate such a trade agreement will make any difference.

It seems rather infantilizing, suggesting that Daddy needs to step in and negotiate among the different parties. These are, you know, sovereign countries in their own right and if they want a trade agreement, they can negotiate it amongst themselves. If anything, I would suggest that the new administration say they are ready to help if asked, but will not create plans and programs for East Africa. My two cents.

Violence in Nigeria

I find it very strange that I only learned today that over 300 people have been killed in post-election, sectarian riots in Jos, Nigeria. And that I learned about it sideways through an Anglican blog, which was noting the silence of the Archbishop there.

I can believe that I haven't been paying enough attention; I know that full well. It's just particularly strange that this happened at the same time as the siege in Mumbai, in which (and not to belittle this at all) about 200 people died.

I'm not saying one is worse than the other because there's greater carnage. I'm just struck by the fact that there was constant radio and TV coverage of the one and (in my media exposure) silence on the other. To me, that painfully suggests that deaths in Africa are not news.

Please pray for Nigeria, and India, and all places torn by violence or strife.

China in Africa

I hope at some point to post a slightly more knowledgeable entry on China's relationship with Sudan, one of the very touchy issues with the Beijing Olympics. In the meantime, though, I encourage you to read this very interesting article from "The Root" (which I think is affiliated with the Washington Post) that offers an intriguing look at why China is so warmly welcomed by most African nations. A former US ambassador to two African nations, David Shinn, summarizes it thusly: "One, they take greater business risk, and two, they don't attach the political conditions that the West tends to impose."

The article concludes, "If the West wants to push back China's undemocratic influence across Africa, it will have to match China's economic commitments on the continent. There are 900 million African faces waiting to greet the future as it approaches—from east or west."

A complicated situation of which I know only a smidgen. Read the article and tell me what you think.

Perhaps there are other issues in Africa?

This morning, thanks once again to "The Lead," I found another African website of note: the African Monitor, "African voices for Africa's development." Archbishop Njongo Ndungane, the former Archbishop of Cape Town, is a regular contributor (some readers may remember that Archbishop Ndungane visited the Diocese of California at the time of our convention last year). Why, astonishingly, he seems to be more interested in issues of hunger, poverty and disease than with human sexuality.

That's one thing, upon reflection, that I noticed about the Top 50 list: where were the people who were making a difference in, oh, I don't know, alleviating suffering. It would be kinda nice if the Anglican Communion were notable for that.

At any rate, Archbishop Ndungane has a thoughtful piece about the recent G8 summit, which points out in its own way how issues of hunger, poverty, and disease get highjacked by sexier concerns. Ndungane reports that the G8 countries are way under target in meeting promised levels of aid; at current levels, they will fall an estimated $40 billion dollars under their target. Ndungane writes, "Notably, collectively, the G8 has delivered just $3 billion of the $25 billion that was pledged to Africa in 2005."

He goes on to say,

Africa’s problems were eclipsed by the Zimbabwe issue. There is nothing wrong about focusing attention on Zimbabwe- there is certainly a need to be concerned. However, to allow one country’s problems to take precedence over the rest of the continent, given the gravity of problems in Africa and the vastness of the continent was a big disappointment.

***

Archbishop Ndungane was not in the Telegraph's Top 50. I have no idea whether that's a correct assessment or not. But I do think allowing the issue of sexuality to overshadow everything else of interest and importance to Anglicans in the Anglican communion is, ultimately, a disappointment.

Polygamy and homosexuality...discuss

A brief note.

Last Friday, July 1, there was a press conference at All Soul's, London, held by various leading lights of GAFCON, now FOCA (Fellowship of Confessing Anglicans). I was struck by this portmanteau question during the panel discussion:

"Q: Would the panel unequivocally condemn violence against lesbian and gay people, and how do you handle issues of polygamy in African culture."

(courtesy of notes from "The Ugley Vicar.")

This seems like a typically Western question to me. It's a real slap against Africa, isn't it? The question about violence against gay and lesbian people is very worthwhile (and unfortunately necessary), but why is it instantly followed by a question about polygamy? I would propose it's because tacking on polygamy to any debate is meant to put African speakers on the defensive.

I am constantly amazed at how any critique offered by the African church against Western mores is met with, "Well, yeah, but what about polygamy?" As if any imperfection in one culture means it may offer no rebuke to any other. To which I would like to say, "Pot? Meet kettle."

These two issues are both large enough to warrent their own discussion. I would like to see a moratorium on putting homosexuality and polygamy in the same sentence.

Cleenton or Obama?

A Ugandan man reminded me yesterday morning that tomorrow is the Pennsylvania primaries. I'm glad someone around here is keeping up with international news.

If I get into any extended conversation with a local, inevitably I am asked, "Are you voting for Cleenton or Obama?" Never McCain. There's no particular dislike for Clinton here, as far as I can tell, but there's certainly great enthusiasm for Obama. Though the Provost of the Cathedral worried that he was "too liberal," one man, a total stranger who asked me this question as I sat next to him on a matatu, gave me five when I told him I had voted for Obama.

Important technical information!

I have now been here for four weeks and so I thought it was about time to talk to my folks. After some glitches, we did finally speak live and in person. Mom said that she had an important technical question to ask that someone had asked her. Namely: do I have a shower?

The answer is, yes I do and you can see it here. It's not walled or curtained off from the rest of the bathroom in any way. The switch you see on the wall on the right of the photo is the switch I turn on to heat the water for the shower (there's no other hot water in the apartment), so I even get hot showers! Quite a deal!

Water is still somewhat limited, so I turn the water off at the shower head to lather. Still, it's an incredible luxury and I know it. As is this whole apartment as I grow to realize that most families (of 6 or 8 or 10) live in a place about the size of my bedroom.

At the bank

As I mentioned in the last post, I came up to Ntinda to go to Stanbic Bank, the only bank that takes my ATM card. I withdrew 250,000/=, a little under $150, which should last me over the next couple of weeks unless I go crazy with the luxury items. Last week, I spent 60,000/= on a toaster--a huge indulgence, but I could think of no other way to make toast given the gas cooker that I have, and I had a hankering for toast! (I've been eating a lot of toast to make the expense worth it.)

The thing that hit me is that 250,000/= is the amount that many of the clients I am seeing borrowed to start their businesses, repaid over the course of 6, 8, 12 months. When you see all those zeroes, it seems so huge. It hadn't really occurred to me what a small amount that really is.

mosquito netting

I take my anti-malarial pill every morning and so it doesn’t matter that much, but I still pull the mosquito netting down around my bed every night. Amazing stuff, mosquito netting, as I finally realized the other night that the buzz-buzz was coming from outside of the netting and not in my ear. Mosquito netting! Small enough to keep out mosquitoes! What a beautiful thing!

As a donor to “Nothing but Nets,” a charity that provides mosquito netting to Africa, I was enlightened by this mixed review of mosquito netting—at least as a single solution to the malaria situation here in Uganda. I read the following article by Dr. Dick Stockley (whoever he may be) in “The Eye” magazine, a bimonthly publication for tourists. (You can find it online at www.theeye.co.ug .)

“And now some philosophy. If something works most of the time, but isn’t 100%, is it a good option? The Pakwatch school boy gets bitten every night by 3 or 4 infected mosquitoes, so he always has malaria. This makes him immune, so he may be a bit tired most of the time, and he gets a clinical attack of malaria every now and again when he gets a cold or bad diarrhea due to lowering his immune threshold. Preventing malaria will probably make him healthier, cleverer, and bigger, and has been shown that he is less likely to die from pneumonia and diarrhea as getting rid of his malaria strengthens his immune system. BUT…Now he sleeps under a net. So for a year or 2, or 3, he doesn’t get malaria and he is fitter, bigger and cleverer. Then the system fails. He gets up for a pee in the middle of the night and gets bitten for the first time in 3 years. His immunity has now waned. So he gets a really awful attack of malaria, and without treatment he is going to be like the non-immune mzungu, multi-organ failure and dead in 2 weeks. And as he doesn’t have immunity, or at least a lot less immunity than before, he needs full total treatment, not partial…Just a thought for the health planners—If we are serious about prevention, we had better do it properly or not at all.”