A couple hours after I landed, I found myself in a meeting. At one point, there was a lively discussion and everyone started speaking in a quick, rhythmic language I'd never heard before. I started wondering whether there was a common language in Singapore that I wasn't aware of. It sounded to me a bit like Khmer mixed with Russian.
Later on, I found out it had been English. To be fair, I had been really tired. Also, there are little dialectic ticks in the English spoken here that throw me off. The word "la," for one, fills in for "um," "oh," "yes," "well," "really," and awkward pauses. I'm getting better, but a good deal of the time still, I'm not sure what the other person is saying. La.
Tuesday, November 30, 2010
Tuesday, November 23, 2010
Slots
On the Singapore S-Pass (work visa) application, my choices for race are Caucasian, Chinese, Indian, Malay, and Other. For religion, they are Buddhist, Christian, Free Thinking, Hindu, Muslim, Taoist, and Other.
Thursday, June 3, 2010
Americans in the mix
Now, an American lawyer defending an opposition leader accused of genocidal ideology has been arrested. The Rwandan government says Peter Elrinder tried to escape the charges levied against him by swallowing a bunch of pills while in jail. Something doesn't feel right.
Erlinder often defends extremely controversial individuals. He is used to doing that, however, in places where Western principles of rule of law prevail.
Erlinder often defends extremely controversial individuals. He is used to doing that, however, in places where Western principles of rule of law prevail.
Thursday, May 20, 2010
Friday, April 30, 2010
Orderly and oppressive
As Americans, we tend to assume that democracy is the best option. Human rights groups are jumping on the Rwandan government for achieving order through oppression.
Rwanda offers ample evidence that democracy requires ripeness in the form of at least a baseline of education, common values, and economic stability.
Perhaps it's too early in Rwanda's reconstruction to call for democracy. This is a nation carved out and then divided by outside forces. It was the Belgian government that arbitrarily determined who was in the majority (Hutu: fewer than ten cows, dark skinned, medium height) and the minority (Tutsi: more than ten cows, lighter skinned, tall). The situation is imperfect, and people are suffering, but now again is not the time for outsiders to press for their way of doing things.
Rwanda offers ample evidence that democracy requires ripeness in the form of at least a baseline of education, common values, and economic stability.
Perhaps it's too early in Rwanda's reconstruction to call for democracy. This is a nation carved out and then divided by outside forces. It was the Belgian government that arbitrarily determined who was in the majority (Hutu: fewer than ten cows, dark skinned, medium height) and the minority (Tutsi: more than ten cows, lighter skinned, tall). The situation is imperfect, and people are suffering, but now again is not the time for outsiders to press for their way of doing things.
Wednesday, April 28, 2010
Shades of gray
An update to the civil unrest that appeared to be brewing in Rwanda when I last left off: Last week, the government arrested an opposition politician for alleged genocide ideology. The many arrests of Hutu leadership so far signals a clear distrust of allowing the majority back into power.
Is there a point when the suppression of differing ideologies shifts from actions necessary to maintain the peace to actions necessary to maintain power? I'm not sure the answer really matters when we're talking about ideologies differing in terms of "genocide good" versus "genocide bad." But it certainly is not the case that being Hutu translates automatically to one or the other.
There is such thing too as a slow genocide--where silently and slowly, right before our eyes, an entire group of people is stepped on until they are ground into dust.
Is there a point when the suppression of differing ideologies shifts from actions necessary to maintain the peace to actions necessary to maintain power? I'm not sure the answer really matters when we're talking about ideologies differing in terms of "genocide good" versus "genocide bad." But it certainly is not the case that being Hutu translates automatically to one or the other.
There is such thing too as a slow genocide--where silently and slowly, right before our eyes, an entire group of people is stepped on until they are ground into dust.
Monday, March 15, 2010
A way to help
I've gotten some questions about how to support WE-ACTx and the other organizations that I had the chance to work with on this trip.
WE-ACTx is about to throw two major fundraisers, one in San Francisco and the other in Boston. You can attend either event or donate online. Authors Michael Chabon and Ayelet Waldman will host the San Francisco event, and there will be lots of pretty bags made by the women at Ineza for sale, so it should be neat.
Another great organization to give to and that I worked with is CHABHA, which leads a number of associations that work directly with kids in need. One of these associations is Amahoro, which means "peace" in Kinyarwanda, and is managed by an enthusiastic group of young people who were orphaned by HIV/AIDS and themselves beneficiaries. They took me along for a visit to a tiny village called Bumgogo where four hundred children greeted us with songs and a dance before our presentation on legal rights. Many of the kids walk for hours to be there for Amahoro's weekly visit to play games, learn about everything from HIV to nutrition, and talk about their problems. Like many of the aid organizations in Rwanda, Amahoro is billed as a religious organization but in fact provides aid freely and without regard to class, clan, or religion.
In the Bumgogo schoolhouse, another example of Amahoro's thoughtful aid work. These rabbits now belong to some of the poorest families in the village. In some circles in Rwanda, owning livestock (in whatever form) is critical to social standing and acceptance.
WE-ACTx is about to throw two major fundraisers, one in San Francisco and the other in Boston. You can attend either event or donate online. Authors Michael Chabon and Ayelet Waldman will host the San Francisco event, and there will be lots of pretty bags made by the women at Ineza for sale, so it should be neat.
Another great organization to give to and that I worked with is CHABHA, which leads a number of associations that work directly with kids in need. One of these associations is Amahoro, which means "peace" in Kinyarwanda, and is managed by an enthusiastic group of young people who were orphaned by HIV/AIDS and themselves beneficiaries. They took me along for a visit to a tiny village called Bumgogo where four hundred children greeted us with songs and a dance before our presentation on legal rights. Many of the kids walk for hours to be there for Amahoro's weekly visit to play games, learn about everything from HIV to nutrition, and talk about their problems. Like many of the aid organizations in Rwanda, Amahoro is billed as a religious organization but in fact provides aid freely and without regard to class, clan, or religion.
In the Bumgogo schoolhouse, another example of Amahoro's thoughtful aid work. These rabbits now belong to some of the poorest families in the village. In some circles in Rwanda, owning livestock (in whatever form) is critical to social standing and acceptance.
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