A Kenyan proverb that I think summarizes well the political conflict occurring in Mozambique.
On Tuesday, FREELIMO, the political group controlling the government in Mozambique surrounded a RENAMO (another political party) base in the Gorongosa Mountains (Satinjura) in Sofala Province. This siege resulted in RENAMO fleeing to another town, Maringue, where the RENAMO soldiers successfully took control of the local police station. RENAMO claims FREELIMO was attempting to not just take their base, but also assassinate their leader, Afonso Dhlakama. RENAMO then announced later that day, that they were officially ending the Peace Accord signed 21 years ago that ended the Mozambican Civil War (1975-1992).
Renamo spokesman, Fernando Mazanga, told Reuters news agency, "Peace is over in the country... The responsibility lies with the Frelimo government because they didn't want to listen to Renamo's grievances,”
Unfortunately this was not the first instance of political violence to occur this year. Tensions between the two groups have increased significantly since last year when Dhlakama left Maputo, and moved to Gorongosa to live with the supposed, couple hundred, RENAMO soldiers who were living at the base camp, in the mountains there in the. In April and July small skirmishes led to at least 11 civilian deaths. And since the raid on Tuesday there has been reports of violence in other towns in Sofala province (including a rumor that 3 civilians were killed in a random car attack by rebels). So although peace remains in most areas of the country the overall situation is tense and people are scared, and there is talk of the war.
Mozambique’s 17-year civil war resulted in over a million deaths, and although it ended two decades ago the results of the war are still clear in many communities. My students for example, are too young to have lived during their war, but many of the parents survived the years of conflict, and as a result were not educated. Entire communities exist today in areas that were ravaged by years of fighting; a friend of mine living in a small town in the north claims that his village did not exist until after the peace accord, and that today, people are still incredibly suspicious of outsiders because of their horrible experiences from frequent raids during the war.
I am not sure what will happen in Mozambique, most sources (international reporters, the US embassy and our PC staff) believe RENAMO is too weak to start another war; they lack foot soldiers and overall support throughout the country, but if they continue to provoke small-scale acts of violence, it is innocent civilians that continue to suffer. The fear they have evoked in communities in Sofala, such as Muxungue (where shootings took place a few months ago) or Maringue, (where soldiers took the police station) is real and people are suffering. This outlash from RENAMO is the result of months of failed/stalled peace talks, and years of feelings of exclusion from political power and benefits in Mozambique’s growing economy.
Like the Kenyan proverb summarizes so well; this conflict is the result of poltical tension between two groups in Mozambique, but the individuals who bear the brunt of suffering are innocent civilians. Mozambique is an incredibly poor country, it ranks 185 out of 187 countries on the Human Development Index, and although issues of corruption, HIV/AIDS and inequality are rampant here, the culture is incredibly welcoming and friendly, and in these past twelve months I have felt completely safe. I really hope that situation does not change. I also do not think that this violence will lead to a war, but violence is violence no matter how large or small the casualty pool is and I really hope that the country that I have come to call home, is able to find a way to peace.
Estamos juntos Mocambique!
Thursday, October 24, 2013
Saturday, October 12, 2013
English Club!
Here is a story.
On Monday afternoon one of the students from my English theatre group showed up at my house and asked for help with a class presentation. Usually when a student comes to ask for help and I get out a text book we just read through the answers and they leave, happy with what they’ve “learned.” Well this day was different. This student, Bon-Bons, not only wanted to read about his topic (types of agriculture in Mozambique) he wanted help understanding it, and then wanted to create a speech for his presentation. Using most of the information from my book we talked about this topic, came up with relevant, local examples and Bon-Bons practiced his speech. After all this was done I expected him to say thanks and rush on home, but no, that didn’t happen. Instead Bon-Bons decided to flip through my textbook and proceeded to read out loud random sections of text; reading first in English, then translating into Portuguese to make sure he understood everything. After this, we’d go through the reading comprehension questions together. As a side note, before Bon-Bons showed up (randomly) at my house I was tutoring another student for 2 hours. Well Bon-Bons stayed for 3 hours and then finally decided it was time to go home, but he said he’d be back the next day.
The next day, Bon-Bons did come back, and he brought a few friends. This group of 3 or 4 students returned each afternoon this week and together we practiced English for 3-4 hours. What amazed me the most was not just that these students wanted to practice, but that even by 7 PM (when its dark out and most people are eating dinner) these guys wanted to keep practicing. It was me asking them if they wanted water, a snack or to take a break. They never got tired or wanted to give up, they were just so excited to be speaking English.
A typical afternoon with these students consists of some general grammar practice (I asked their teachers what grammar I should review with them for their finals) followed by a session where each student reads a passage out loud (first in English, then self-translated into Portuguese) and finally, my favorite part of the lesson, when one student acts as the teacher and asks the others random questions. On Friday, I was supposed to have a late night meeting at school so we met at school to practice (and I assumed when my meeting started I could leave them with my books at school to continue their lessons). Well, when I returned from my meeting I found one of them writing notes on the board and the others anxiously participating in the lesson…and words cannot begin to describe how happy it made me.
Yes these are all great students, they are the ones who usually participate in lessons and at least one of them is the class chefe de turma, but being labeled as a leader doesn’t do justice to their overall personality and ability. They are quick and anxious learners. It’s amazing how much they remember from day to day and how excited they are to continue to learn. One of the students, Joe, stuttered with just about every word he said on Monday, and by Friday he was speaking in sentences—yes I know not every student progresses this quickly but its amazing to see how much they progress when they practice and are pushed a little. And they have so many questions! These vary from ‘madaam, what is the difference between love and beloved, or how would I say make in the past tense (made), to what is this (points to his elbow)” they are just so curious! Yesterday, at 7:30 PM I literally had to kick them out of the classroom because I, after 4 1/2 hours of English was beat and wanted to go home and cook dinner…and even though today is a Saturday they asked if we could meet to practice.
I have no idea where this new enthusiasm for learning English came from but I’m going to do everything I can to keep it going. The students keep telling me how next year, we will meet like a real English club and today I told them that they already were an English club. I should also explain that finding students who are this excited about learning is kind of rare. It’s not that students here don’t care about school, because they do, but school is not the first priority. I remember growing up in America and it seemed since first or second grade (when I got my first college regalia, a Muhlenberg College sweatshirt) I knew that I would continue my education…and then I was continually encourage or pushed to do my best in school so I could go to university and eventually find a good job. Well, here in Mozambique things are a bit different; students come to school everyday in their uniforms, take notes and sometimes participate but they have many other responsibilities (working on their family farms or in the market, supporting younger siblings, or paying rent for their school housing). Put simply, school is not the first priority, and it’s impossible for it to be the first priority. So for me to find a group of students; wait, I should correct myself-for a group of students to seek me out to practice their English for an extra 15 to 20 hours a week (3 to 4 hours every afternoon) is kind of amazing, and I am going to do everything I can to keep them interested!
So, that’s my story, sorry it is kind of long but I’m just so excited. If you had talked to me a month ago I would have told you that (for the first time since arriving in Mozambique) I wanted to go home. I was so frustrated with trying to start projects, I was so bored with my lack of work, and the cultural norms were driving me insane. I missed my friends and family, and I wanted nothing more than to go back to America and find a job with real hours, a real job description and a salary. Well, fast-forward to now, and I am happy. Don’t worry mom and dad I’m still coming home next year but I can finally say confidently that I am happy to be here, I understand my job and what I need to do and, I finally feel like I belong here in my community.
And it’s a pretty wonderful feeling.
Bon-Bons acting as the teacher and writing sentences on the board with words the students found "confusing" or that sounds the same.
On Monday afternoon one of the students from my English theatre group showed up at my house and asked for help with a class presentation. Usually when a student comes to ask for help and I get out a text book we just read through the answers and they leave, happy with what they’ve “learned.” Well this day was different. This student, Bon-Bons, not only wanted to read about his topic (types of agriculture in Mozambique) he wanted help understanding it, and then wanted to create a speech for his presentation. Using most of the information from my book we talked about this topic, came up with relevant, local examples and Bon-Bons practiced his speech. After all this was done I expected him to say thanks and rush on home, but no, that didn’t happen. Instead Bon-Bons decided to flip through my textbook and proceeded to read out loud random sections of text; reading first in English, then translating into Portuguese to make sure he understood everything. After this, we’d go through the reading comprehension questions together. As a side note, before Bon-Bons showed up (randomly) at my house I was tutoring another student for 2 hours. Well Bon-Bons stayed for 3 hours and then finally decided it was time to go home, but he said he’d be back the next day.
The next day, Bon-Bons did come back, and he brought a few friends. This group of 3 or 4 students returned each afternoon this week and together we practiced English for 3-4 hours. What amazed me the most was not just that these students wanted to practice, but that even by 7 PM (when its dark out and most people are eating dinner) these guys wanted to keep practicing. It was me asking them if they wanted water, a snack or to take a break. They never got tired or wanted to give up, they were just so excited to be speaking English.
A typical afternoon with these students consists of some general grammar practice (I asked their teachers what grammar I should review with them for their finals) followed by a session where each student reads a passage out loud (first in English, then self-translated into Portuguese) and finally, my favorite part of the lesson, when one student acts as the teacher and asks the others random questions. On Friday, I was supposed to have a late night meeting at school so we met at school to practice (and I assumed when my meeting started I could leave them with my books at school to continue their lessons). Well, when I returned from my meeting I found one of them writing notes on the board and the others anxiously participating in the lesson…and words cannot begin to describe how happy it made me.
Yes these are all great students, they are the ones who usually participate in lessons and at least one of them is the class chefe de turma, but being labeled as a leader doesn’t do justice to their overall personality and ability. They are quick and anxious learners. It’s amazing how much they remember from day to day and how excited they are to continue to learn. One of the students, Joe, stuttered with just about every word he said on Monday, and by Friday he was speaking in sentences—yes I know not every student progresses this quickly but its amazing to see how much they progress when they practice and are pushed a little. And they have so many questions! These vary from ‘madaam, what is the difference between love and beloved, or how would I say make in the past tense (made), to what is this (points to his elbow)” they are just so curious! Yesterday, at 7:30 PM I literally had to kick them out of the classroom because I, after 4 1/2 hours of English was beat and wanted to go home and cook dinner…and even though today is a Saturday they asked if we could meet to practice.
I have no idea where this new enthusiasm for learning English came from but I’m going to do everything I can to keep it going. The students keep telling me how next year, we will meet like a real English club and today I told them that they already were an English club. I should also explain that finding students who are this excited about learning is kind of rare. It’s not that students here don’t care about school, because they do, but school is not the first priority. I remember growing up in America and it seemed since first or second grade (when I got my first college regalia, a Muhlenberg College sweatshirt) I knew that I would continue my education…and then I was continually encourage or pushed to do my best in school so I could go to university and eventually find a good job. Well, here in Mozambique things are a bit different; students come to school everyday in their uniforms, take notes and sometimes participate but they have many other responsibilities (working on their family farms or in the market, supporting younger siblings, or paying rent for their school housing). Put simply, school is not the first priority, and it’s impossible for it to be the first priority. So for me to find a group of students; wait, I should correct myself-for a group of students to seek me out to practice their English for an extra 15 to 20 hours a week (3 to 4 hours every afternoon) is kind of amazing, and I am going to do everything I can to keep them interested!
So, that’s my story, sorry it is kind of long but I’m just so excited. If you had talked to me a month ago I would have told you that (for the first time since arriving in Mozambique) I wanted to go home. I was so frustrated with trying to start projects, I was so bored with my lack of work, and the cultural norms were driving me insane. I missed my friends and family, and I wanted nothing more than to go back to America and find a job with real hours, a real job description and a salary. Well, fast-forward to now, and I am happy. Don’t worry mom and dad I’m still coming home next year but I can finally say confidently that I am happy to be here, I understand my job and what I need to do and, I finally feel like I belong here in my community.
And it’s a pretty wonderful feeling.
Bon-Bons acting as the teacher and writing sentences on the board with words the students found "confusing" or that sounds the same.
Sunday, October 6, 2013
Holidays & English Theatre
Holidays and English Theatre
There are so many national holidays here I honestly can’t keep track of them anymore. Whenever there is a holiday though many students travel back to their villages (usually just a couple kilometers/days travel away) and skip school for the entire week. This of course is really frustrating but I’ve come to learn that I just cannot teach any new material on weeks when there is a holiday.
Aside from students skipping school, a holiday means an entire day (or couple of days) of people day drinking and hanging out. Usually when there’s a holiday I would escape and go to Chimoio to hangout with the other volunteers or I’d spend the entire day cooped up in my house reading a book and hiding from all the drunk people. Well last week, for FADM day I spent my day a little differently. I met my English theatre group at school and they practiced their skit a couple of times, then we walked to the town praza and they performed their piece for the community. Because their play was in English, one of the students also gave an introduction and summary in Portuguese before and after their piece, and it went so well! Even though people couldn’t understand what they were saying, they were very interested. When one person speaks English, people are curious, but when a whole bunch of high school students start acting and speaking in clear English, everyone runs to see what is going on. It was really neat, while my students performed there was a big huddle of people around them trying to listen in and see what was going on. After my students performed, and the little celebration was over everyone left the praza to go visit friends, eat food and likely day drink.
On my walk home I stopped to visit a neighbor, Joanna, who is an incredibly friendly woman who saw me walking one time, and just wanted to be my friend. Now I visit her about once a week just to catch up and sometimes we go to the market together. Well this specific visit turned into a pretty long visit in which I was fed breakfast and coffee and met her husband who was in town for the holiday. After eating and chatting we all watched the Mozambican women’s basketball team play on TV, that was kind of strange, I never watch TV here! After having breakfast with Joanna and her family I wandered home and picked up Amendoim so we could walk around town some more. I spent the rest of my morning visiting neighbors and talking to people. Then I went to a friend’s house and helped her cook this huge feast, which we shared with some of her friends from Zimbabwe. Overall it was a pretty awesome day, it helped me realize that I do have friends in my community. I don’t gossip with them, talk about sports or politics and I certainly don’t drink a beer with them but they’re my friends and they’re pretty wonderful. Oh I also ate some chicken and I didn’t get sick so that was pretty exciting. Talk about integration.
Three days after FADM day I took my students to Chimoio for the provincial English theatre competition. My students didn’t win any big awards; their piece was twice as long as it was supposed to be and they got a little carried away in their partying scenes but they had a really great time. (Some of the other volunteers told me they were really impressed with my groups English speaking skills too!) Initially my students were disappointed not to place in the competition but I reminded them that this was their first year competing and that many of the schools they competed against had been doing this for years. This seemed to lighten their mood a bit, and they are already talking about how much better their skit will be next year! So overall, even with the stress of having students show up hours late everyday for meetings, and completely ignore some of the advice I gave them, and feeling like my colleagues completely abandoned me with this project I think English theatre was a great success. Aside from actually practicing their English, my students got to spend a day in the city, meeting other students and teachers. I also met a teacher who works at the primary school in my village who wants to collaborate on projects next year and is actually reliable and excited about teaching! Oh and they are adamant about finally starting and English club. Cool, I can’t wait for next year!
My english theatre group...the guy on the right (in the tan jacket) is the awesome English teacher, Derrick, who helped me with the group.
Just some acting...
And of course they all wanted a picture with their certificates :)
There are so many national holidays here I honestly can’t keep track of them anymore. Whenever there is a holiday though many students travel back to their villages (usually just a couple kilometers/days travel away) and skip school for the entire week. This of course is really frustrating but I’ve come to learn that I just cannot teach any new material on weeks when there is a holiday.
Aside from students skipping school, a holiday means an entire day (or couple of days) of people day drinking and hanging out. Usually when there’s a holiday I would escape and go to Chimoio to hangout with the other volunteers or I’d spend the entire day cooped up in my house reading a book and hiding from all the drunk people. Well last week, for FADM day I spent my day a little differently. I met my English theatre group at school and they practiced their skit a couple of times, then we walked to the town praza and they performed their piece for the community. Because their play was in English, one of the students also gave an introduction and summary in Portuguese before and after their piece, and it went so well! Even though people couldn’t understand what they were saying, they were very interested. When one person speaks English, people are curious, but when a whole bunch of high school students start acting and speaking in clear English, everyone runs to see what is going on. It was really neat, while my students performed there was a big huddle of people around them trying to listen in and see what was going on. After my students performed, and the little celebration was over everyone left the praza to go visit friends, eat food and likely day drink.
On my walk home I stopped to visit a neighbor, Joanna, who is an incredibly friendly woman who saw me walking one time, and just wanted to be my friend. Now I visit her about once a week just to catch up and sometimes we go to the market together. Well this specific visit turned into a pretty long visit in which I was fed breakfast and coffee and met her husband who was in town for the holiday. After eating and chatting we all watched the Mozambican women’s basketball team play on TV, that was kind of strange, I never watch TV here! After having breakfast with Joanna and her family I wandered home and picked up Amendoim so we could walk around town some more. I spent the rest of my morning visiting neighbors and talking to people. Then I went to a friend’s house and helped her cook this huge feast, which we shared with some of her friends from Zimbabwe. Overall it was a pretty awesome day, it helped me realize that I do have friends in my community. I don’t gossip with them, talk about sports or politics and I certainly don’t drink a beer with them but they’re my friends and they’re pretty wonderful. Oh I also ate some chicken and I didn’t get sick so that was pretty exciting. Talk about integration.
Three days after FADM day I took my students to Chimoio for the provincial English theatre competition. My students didn’t win any big awards; their piece was twice as long as it was supposed to be and they got a little carried away in their partying scenes but they had a really great time. (Some of the other volunteers told me they were really impressed with my groups English speaking skills too!) Initially my students were disappointed not to place in the competition but I reminded them that this was their first year competing and that many of the schools they competed against had been doing this for years. This seemed to lighten their mood a bit, and they are already talking about how much better their skit will be next year! So overall, even with the stress of having students show up hours late everyday for meetings, and completely ignore some of the advice I gave them, and feeling like my colleagues completely abandoned me with this project I think English theatre was a great success. Aside from actually practicing their English, my students got to spend a day in the city, meeting other students and teachers. I also met a teacher who works at the primary school in my village who wants to collaborate on projects next year and is actually reliable and excited about teaching! Oh and they are adamant about finally starting and English club. Cool, I can’t wait for next year!
My english theatre group...the guy on the right (in the tan jacket) is the awesome English teacher, Derrick, who helped me with the group.
Just some acting...
And of course they all wanted a picture with their certificates :)
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