As a Muzungoe alone you get nowhere

12 February 2009

Hello, everyone,

My last report dates back to 2008, so it is high time we all knew all the ins and outs of Uganda in the sunshine.

I hope that all my Christmas cards have arrived well and that everyone has had a good turn of the year. December was a busy month here in Uganda. Everybody is preparing for Christmas and that means a lot of food and new clothes. I’m not a big fan of Christmas myself because of all the hassle and stress. My friend Astrid came over for Christmas and we crammed ourselves on the boda boda (local mopeds) with the whole family and went to Rosah’s grandmother. Rosah’s grandmother had cooked a delicious meal and we played it with presents for their unknown dice game. They went crazy when they finally got to the presents they wanted but had to move to the next town. It was hilarious to see that at the end of the game Saige went crazy because he had won a wax sponge, he was so happy with it. Yes here no x-boxes or other crazy thing for Christmas, just because there is no electricity and because people here still appreciate the little one. I don’t want to say that I didn’t like my stereo motors as a present but I like it that it’s not all that materialistic here yet although I regularly get declarations of love from many Ugandan men, not because I am so handsome but mainly because they think I have bins full of money.

I am very proud of our Frank. He was the best of his class and that is very important here in Uganda. The last few months he was regularly threatened by a teacher that if he came to group 3 he would kill him. Yes yes that is how it goes here….. Of course I complain to the headmaster but the teacher denies everything and the threatening only got worse until one day Frank came home crying beaten blue. A very thick ear and stretch marks on his back. I went to school furiously and it was acknowledged that this was pure abuse. The teacher stood there in lovely denial and said that he had only beaten his buttocks, well then he doesn’t know where they are. He asked for forgiveness, well, I am sorry for the forgiveness but they don’t fire him anyway. That guy will kill another child in his anger. Frank didn’t want to go to school anymore but with a lot of pain and trouble he finished the term, and how………The best of the class, I couldn’t believe it. Frank, whom I had picked out of the hospital two years ago like a bunch of misery, with a huge smile, in front of the whole school, received his present (plate and cup) and had made it clear to everyone that he could take on the world. The past week we had some time together and he told his whole story. I had never heard from his mouth how he was burned but now he is more open and when I heard his story I was only more proud, he dares to talk about the events and that is quite a step forward. I’m sure this boy has a lot on his mind and can’t tell you often enough how much we love him and that we are very proud of him (of course he doesn’t like it because he is puberty, no more kisses before going to bed).

With the organisation and my work permit, it is a great tragedy. Yes yes, you come here to help, but it seems as if they don’t want the help, in the end you’re only good for the money you can make and then be wasted by this whole corrupt mess here. The worries about that work permit are only going to get worse now that my ticket is for April. Last year I was roaring at immigration at the airport because I was not allowed to pass. I am dependent on all these people here because only as a Musuengoe you get nowhere. It is a big corrupt gang and I am so fed up with it. It is extremely demoralising and stressful. I want to take care of these children, legally, I want to live in this country, legally….. that is so much to ask. In principle I do what the government should do, but yes, the government here is just nepotism. It drives me crazy and so I decided to leave the organisation. My co-founders let me down and threaten people of a higher hand to not give me the signatures I need to get my work permit. It’s such a huge relief now that I’ve decided. The doctor from whom I have the children had offered to come and support his well-organised organisation some time ago and that attracts me much more because many more doors open for me. Then I can finally do what I want, help people and children. Of course I am doing this now on a small scale, but it would be great if I could extend this to a childcare centre for abused and rejected children. There are plenty of volunteers who want to come and help and support it financially, but I can’t do that now because our own organisation is unreliable and isn’t running because I am the only one who really works there and puts money into it.

Of course I was naive to just start that organisation but at that time that was my only way to get a work permit and stay with the children. Very stupid, but you learn from your mistakes and believe me I have certainly learned from them. It’s just so annoying that I can’t trust anyone here, which makes me feel unsafe. Only a week ago I was worried about an appointment with one of those senior officers, not sleeping and eating, because this man had to sign my work permit. When I get there, one of the co-founders appears to have been talking about me (I’m on television in the Netherlands and I receive boxes full of money which, unfortunately for him, I don’t put in the joint bank account). So the high man doesn’t want to sign, but first he wants to talk to the two of us. Well, we all agreed for the following week. I slept all the way in the city because when it rains I don’t get anywhere, I was waiting there on time…… and of course the big shot comes too late (standard here) with the message that his programme has changed but that he will call me in a fortnight’ time (he doesn’t even have my phone number) and the other co-founder who messes everything up, is jealous and is after the money, is sitting with his big ass in the capital. Savage and sad but yes I couldn’t stand there roaring and I had Frank and Babirye with me and yes you can’t saddle them with your own suffering. These things happen too often and I get scared, angry, sad and unmotivated and I miss someone who understands me and who really helps me.

Now, two weeks later, of course, I haven’t heard from Mr. Hoge Pief, but I do have the prospect of a work permit and help. I’m very sorry that I can’t make this organisation a great success, but I choose for myself and I achieve my goals anyway, because that’s what I am Kim for.

Lately we have been warned a lot in the village about child sacrifice. It seems that if you want happiness you have to sacrifice a child (sometimes your own child). There are regular rumours that when people build a hotel and a large building they sacrifice a child and hide the head in the building. Unfortunately, this is reality here, horrible as it sounds. The other day someone (it is the men, the women here have nothing to say) killed his twins for 6000 euros. Apparently money is more important and if you have 10 children you can easily miss two. Because a new city is being built near us by the Chinese (a kind of Dubai in Uganda, yes the miracles are not out of the world yet) the child sacrifice comes very close. If a child is circumcised or has other scars (e.g. holes in the ears) it is not suitable for sacrifice. So we went with Babirye to the hairdresser where they pierced holes and now my daughter has two beautiful bells in her ears which reduces the risk. They have nothing to gain from Frank who has had his portion of abuse, we have to be careful with Saige. He is a beautiful little man and nobody can see that the poor treasure has been hung on his dick. So none of the kids are on the street alone anymore for an errand and at home before dark. It won’t be such a speed but only recently a boy had disappeared from the hill close to my house so I have to take precautions anyway.

Then some animal news. Our goat Gulu Gulu has produced two beautiful dark brown goats (yes that’s how they say it’s like a dairy here. Women don’t give birth no they produce children) The cat now has four cubs (I think that was already known) they are still on sale. The chickens do lay eggs but the babies don’t survive and recently we also have five pigs. Last week I found our dog George dead in the living room. I never let that animal in but it had rained so much and he was so wet. I went out at 3 o’clock and the boys came home at 5 o’clock. Well it was a big poop and bloodbath. It was horrible to see our dear George like that. He was probably poisoned, yes people do crazy things here.

Talking about crazy things you knew that:

* Of the mosquito nets that Unicef distributes free of charge there are handy villagers who
make fine (cheap) wedding dresses out of this.
* You can easily seat 8 to 10 people in the backseat of a passenger car.
can cram and the driver also wants to share his seat with you. So we with 9 to 13
sitting in a passenger car.
* The police won’t mind if you give him a little extra.
* We then hurry on the road again at 120km per hour.
* I’m always glad to have survived such a ride
* That such a ride only costs 1 euro
* This is always cheaper than a fairground attraction or the Efteling
* The bigger the ass, the better
* I am still trying to keep mine as small as possible
* I don’t understand how they can get such a mega ass in those overly tight trousers
pop it in
* The men all look out for a woman with a super ass
* So my ass gets very little attention
* The women are very proud of their mega backsides
* We still have a lot to learn from it in the Netherlands
* We’re turning it into a big rubbish dump here
* The Ugandesen without shame all plastic materials delicious from the van on
street throwing
* I neatly put all my junk in my bag
* People then look at me very strangely
* I’ve never seen a wastebasket on the street here before
* It’s such a waste of beautiful nature
* I am in FLAIR number 12
* All of you who have to buy!
* I’m a little proud of that
* That I am on the website of woman of the world
* With a story that is not quite right
* I hope that many of you have voted
* I’m going to laugh very hard if I win
* I will certainly let you know
* You all need to keep your fingers crossed for my work permit
* Because then I can come and drink a cup of tea with everyone in April

Well, I think that was it for a while. I wish everyone another very loving New Year and hope to see you all in April. The chains sale is still going on and I am looking for what people want to sell them on Queensday on a rug on the street…………..Let me know if there is any interest.
A big kiss for all
Kim