GLOBALIST The Yale
Fall 2009 / Vol. 10, Issue 1
Translating
TANZANIA
Small Island States in Rising Seas 6 Tajikistan’s Underpaid Doctors 11 An Innovative Academy in Ghana 34
The Yale Institution for Social and Policy Studies The Yale University Interdisciplinary Center for Bioethics The Program in Agrarian Studies Ethics, Politics, and Economics as an Undergraduate Major The Interdisciplinary Introduction to Statistics Program Center for the Study of American Politics
The Yale Institution for Social and Policy Studies (ISPS) strives to facilitate interdisciplinary inquiry in the social sciences and research into important public policy.
An Undergraduate Magazine of International Affairs Fall 2009 / Vol. 10, Issue 1
Editor-in-Chief Alex Soble Managing Editors Jeffrey Kaiser, Rishabh Khosla, Emma SokoloffRubin, Ali Weiner Associate Editors Rae Ellen Bichell, Raphaella Friedman, Uzra Khan, Alexander Klein, Angela Ramirez
GLOBALIST
DEAR
G LOBALIST The Yale
T
READERS,
his May, nineteen Globalist writers and staff members traveled to Tanzania, a country that for centuries has served for foreigners as a gateway to East Africa. Traders from Arabia, Persia, and India have visited the country now known as Tanzania for more
than a millennium. Throughout the 17th century, Portuguese imperialists and Omani sultans fought for control of Zanzibar and its lucrative trade. The 19th century saw massive immigration from the Subcontinent under the British; the 20th, the arrival of Western mass tourism and extractive industries. Tanzania, in short, has been a site of globalization since well before the word was even coined. Articles featured in this issue examine relationships between Tanzania and other countries
Copy Editor Rachel Wolf
(China), regional bodies (the East African Community), and trans-national institutions (the In-
Online Editor Catherine Osborn Production & Design Editor Christina Lin Executive Director Alice Walton Publisher Courtney Fukuda
ternational Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda). Some approach interchange between Tanzania and the West on a cultural level, through the lens of social phenomena like bongo flava, a popular genre of Swahili hip hop which blends local and Western influence. Rae Ellen Bichell, accompanied by two other Globalist writers, traveled from Arusha to the shores of Lake Eyasi in order write this issue’s main article. “Taking Shots” documents the destructive effects of the influx of Western tourists on the way of life of the Hadza, Africa’s last full-time hunter gatherers. Beyond the Tanzania section, you will find student-reported articles on topics from Tajikistan’s broken healthcare system to the treatment of female immigrants to Hong Kong. This Globalist reporting trip would not have been possible without the generosity of Master
Director of Development George Bogden
Harvey Goldblatt and Pierson College. We also thank the Yale Chaplain’s Office, Trumbull Col-
Events Coordinator Joanna Cornell
Institution for Social and Policy Studies and the MacMillan Center is what allows us to main-
Assistant Events Coordinator Joseph Bolognese Editors-at-Large Catherine Cheney, Amila Golic Business Mentors Gemma Bloemen, Brad Schecter, Amira Valliani Editors Emeritus Maria Blackwood, Jesse Marks, Pete Martin, Emma Vawter
lege, and Timothy Dwight College for their support. The continuing sponsorship of the Yale tain our commitment to publishing top-quality student journalism on a quarterly print basis. Even with these sources of support, in these difficult economic times the task of funding a magazine like the Globalist is not an easy one. Please consider becoming a Globalist subscriber: Year-long subscriptions can be purchased online at tyglobalist.org. If you would like to support the Globalist by making a donation, please contact our Executive Director, Alice Walton, at alice.walton@yale.edu. It is an enormous honor to present the first issue of The Yale Globalist’s decennial year. Translating Tanzania is the product of an extraordinary effort on the part of our talented writers, editorial and design staff, and business team. I hope you enjoy the articles within and invite you to follow us throughout the year, both in print and online at tyglobalist.org.
This magazine is published by students of Yale College. Yale University is not responsible for its contents.
Sincerely,
Interested in subscribing to the Globalist? Please email subscriptions@tyglobalist.org for more information.
Alex Soble Editor-in-Chief, The Yale Globalist
ON THE COVER
Students at an Islamic school (madrasah) in Zanzibar, Tanzania. (Martin/TYG)
Journalism Advisory Board Steven Brill, Yale Dept. of English Nayan Chanda, Director of Publications, MacMillan Center Daniel Kurtz-Phelan, Foreign Affairs
Pictures from CreativeCommons used under Attribution Noncommercial license. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/3.0/
Jef McAllister, Time Magazine Nathaniel Rich, The Paris Review Fred Strebeigh, Yale Dept. of English
Academic Advisory Board Harvey Goldblatt, Professor of Medieval Slavic Literature, Master of Pierson College Donald Green, Director, Institution for Social and Policy Studies Charles Hill, Yale Diplomat-in-Residence Ian Shapiro, Director, MacMillan Center Ernesto Zedillo, Director, Yale Center for the Study of Globalization
CONTENTS Fall 200 9 / Vo l . 1 0 , I s s u e 1
FOCUS: Tanzania
TakingShots
20 16
In the Tanzanian desert, tourism pays the bar tab for some of Africa’s last hunter-gatherers. By Rae Ellen Bichell
We Sing What We See A genre of Swahili rap unique to Tanzania, bongo flava has emerged as a powerful force of social change and cultural preservation in a globalizing world. By Raphaella Friedman, Emma Sokoloff-Rubin, and Rebecca Distler
18 An Equal Playing Field?
A newly constructed National Stadium in Tanzania’s biggest city, Dar es Salaam, casts a spotlight on the ChineseTanzanian bilateral relationship. By Monish Shah
26
The Cost of Closure In Arusha, Tanzania, the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda reaches the end of its mandate and triggers fierce debate over post-genocide justice. By Alex Soble and Ali Weiner
Bichell/TYG
30
Tracing the Brain Drain to its Roots Westernization in Tanzania’s education system impacts the country’s economy and its psyche. By Rebecca Trupin
Integration in 32 Impeding East Africa As the region works toward labor mobility, Tanzania flounders for data and stonewalls regional policy. By Rachel Wolf
The Yale Globalist is a member of Global21, a network of student-run international affairs magazines at premier universities around the world.
Visit our website at www.tyglobalist.org for additional reporting, online exclusives, and blogs by Globalist writers.
POLITICS & ECONOMY 6 | Fighting to Stay Above the Sea U.N. ambassadors from the Alliance of Small Island States battle to save their countries from climate change. By Jesse Marks
9 | Europe’s Big, Boring Election With little fanfare, Europeans choose their representatives in Brussels. By Andrew Feldman
11 | A Hospital by the Vegetable Garden Underpaid doctors in Tajikistan make a living through bribes, gifts, and home-grown produce. By Mari Michener Oye
13 | The Setting of the Spanish Sun 11
Spain’s economic crisis takes down construction, shakes up working professionals, and falls hard on immigrants. By Ramon Gonzalez
CULTURE 33 | Saying Au Revoir to the Old Joie de Vivre During the global economic crisis, the leisurely French pace of life faces changes and challenges. By Sandy Zhu
34 | A Goal for Africa The Right to Dream Academy scores opportunities for Ghanaian students on and off the field. By Nathaniel Sobel 34
PERSPECTIVES 36 | “I am a Seed of Peace” At a summer program in Maine, children of conflict sing out a new harmony. By Micah Hendler
37 | An Illusion of Prosperity Female immigrants come to Hong Kong from the mainland and Southeast Asia hoping to share in the region’s wealth but do not and cannot. By Alexandra Rose 37
38-39
A Picture Perspective:
The Roof of the World An artist’s view of the Himalayas. By Anna Kellar Kellar/TYG
6 POLITICS & ECONOMY summer 2009
Fighting to Stay Above the Sea U.N. ambassadors from the Alliance of Small Island States battle to save their countries from climate change. By Jesse Marks
A
hmed Khaleel, the Maldives ambassador to the United Na-
New York, “are on the frontline of climate change.” As he explained,
tions in New York, has spent a long time away from home.
the highest point in any of the country’s 1190 small coral islands is
Since arriving at the New York mission in 1984 as the third
2.4 meters above sea level, and most of the land is more than a meter
secretary, he has watched from afar as his country’s population more
below that. This is a frightening statistic given that the ocean has
than doubled to 375,000, as his once-dictatorial government fought off
been rising between four to eight millimeters each year, according to
two coup attempts, and as his people finally enjoyed their first free
the Australian government’s respected Seaframe monitoring project.
and open democratic election in 2008.
“If things keep moving at the same rate, 30 years down the line there
Khaleel has remained at his post in New York, providing the Maldivian people with a dependable international voice even as the coun-
may not be any more Maldives,” Khaleel said defeatedly.
try’s domestic politics descended into chaos. He has accomplished
Following the Debate
a lot, but this career diplomat knows he has yet to solve the most
According to the scientific community, there is little doubt that car-
important challenge of his career, an issue that threatens the very
bon emissions are responsible for the Maldives’ problems. The In-
existence of the nation he has worked tirelessly to represent.
tergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), a U.N.-mandated
“The Maldives,” he said from his office near the U.N. building in
coalition of more than 2,500 scientific experts from 130 countries, has reported that human emissions of carbon are causing the earth
left: Ice off the coast of Greenland. Climate change, and the subsequent melting of the ice caps, threatens to drown small island states. (Flickr/CreativeCommons) right: With a population of just over 100,000, Male, the capital of the Maldives, sits less than a meter above sea-level. (Wikimedia/CreativeCommons)
to warm an unprecedented 0.2 degrees Celsius per decade. Though skeptics argue that carbon emissions have nothing to do with this phenomenon, Barry Brooks, director of the Research Institute for Climate Change and Stability at the University of Adelaide, calls that
POLITICS & ECONOMY 7 the yale globalist
position “illegitimate” and says “it would be very difficult to find an alternative explanation for this type of warming.” Human-induced warming causes a host of other problems. Most worrisome is that rising temperatures are melting the polar ice caps, which hold more than 80 percent of the world’s fresh water. Already, the sheer volume of this new water has raised the sea level by several centimeters. If current trends continue, the ocean will rise by well over a meter before the end of this century. This is a problem that small island states like Khaleel’s have done little to cause. Combined, the world’s small island developing states account for less than one percent of global carbon emissions. But failure to control global warming will literally cause their destruction. To Khaleel and his counterparts, therefore, the battle against climate change is a fight for survival. Ronny Jumeau, ambassador of Seychelles, was appointed to the U.N. in 2007 with the sole mandate of joining that fight. Jumeau had been the Seychelles’s Minister of the Environment since 2000 and was leading his government’s efforts to mitigate the effects of climate change and to represent his country at a conference at the U.N. Environment Programme’s headquarters in Nairobi, Kenya. In 2006, however, debate began to heat up at the U.N., and Jumeau’s president, James Michell, wanted him to take the lead. The ambassador recalled his president’s advice after he received his appointment: “Look, Ronny, the debate on climate change and environment has shifted from Nairobi to New York. It’s in the U.N. Follow the debate.” And so he did. “When I presented my credentials to both President Bush and Kofi Annan, they asked what my priorities are. My response: climate change, climate change, climate change.” Jumeau’s voice dropped to
As the earth grows warmer, and the sea levels rise, many small island states face the prospect of being swept beneath the sea. At the U.N., their ambassadors have banded together, through the Alliance of Small Island States (AOSIS) to fight this existential threat. (Marks/TYG)
a whisper as he continued, “Climate change is not just another prob-
which ripped roofs off of newly repaired houses and caused millions
lem for us. We’re talking in many cases about countries being wiped
more in damages.
off the face of the earth, literally disappearing beneath the oceans. So
Two hurricanes in two years? Many in Grenada believe something
for us, the debate is emotional.”
is not right.
More Than Just the Oceans
From a Gravedigger to a President
Though the oceans are rising at an alarming rate, this may not be
With climate change destroying their countries, diplomats from small
the most immediate problem for many small island states. Between
island states have their hands full at the U.N. Convincing the world’s
drought, erosion, crop failure, “king tides,” unprecedented storms,
powers to simultaneously cut emissions and provide assistance for
and the destruction of coral reefs essential to vital tourism and fish-
the crisis’ most immediate victims is, by all accounts, a gargantuan
ing industries, these tiny states face a host of climate-change related
task. Add the fact that many small island nations maintain U.N. mis-
crises.
sions of no more than one diplomat and one or two secretaries, and
On September 7, 2004, for instance, climate change hit the Carib-
the task seems impossible.
bean paradise of Grenada in full force. The island, which is not part
But, as Jumeau pointed out, he can do nothing but work with what
of the hurricane belt, was in the midst of a 41-year hurricane-free
little help he has since his country simply cannot spare anyone else to
spell. Hermoine St. Bernard, administrative assistant of a church in
assist him. “In a country of 80,000 people, you have to find everybody
the capital city, was in Grenada on the day Hurricane Ivan put an end
from a gravedigger to a president. So every scientist of your own na-
to that era of serenity. “It happened during the day, and I remem-
tionality that you use to project the effects of climate change over the
ber we could hear it coming for hours. It was like a big freight train.
next century is one guy less that is working on disease, education, or
People say you can’t see the wind, but it was so strong, I swear you
any of the other problems we have to deal with.”
could see it, destroying homes, schools, churches, everything.” The
Sitting across the negotiation table from the larger delegations
hurricane damaged or destroyed 90 percent of the country’s houses,
of industrialized countries, Jumeau is at an obvious disadvantage:
leaving 60,000 homeless and putting the nation into debt that neared
“All these big countries have experts on every issue you can think of.
125 percent of GDP. But the devastation was not over when the winds
How much gas is coming out of the back side of a cow, they’ll have a
abated. The next year, the island was rocked by Hurricane Emily,
scientist look just at that.” Jumeau, for his part, doesn’t even have a
8 POLITICS & ECONOMY Fall 2009
second diplomat.
tation projects and sharing strategies to navigate upcoming confer-
During a three-hour interview one Friday afternoon, Jumeau ex-
ences. The leadership “bureau,” a three-member committee of rep-
cused himself several times to answer calls from his president and
resentatives elected from each of AOSIS’s regional subgroups meets
foreign minister. Each time, his voice was urgent. After the third con-
weekly. Of that bureau, two are vice-chairs, while one is elected to
versation, he excused himself and moved to his computer. Clearly
serve as council chairperson. Chairmanship is more than just an hon-
upset, he explained that a pirate attack had occurred in the country’s
orary title — because AOSIS lacks a formal structure, the entire Alli-
waters, and, as Seychelles’s only New York diplomat, it was his job to
ance must be managed through that country’s U.N. mission.
send a formal complaint to the U.N. Security Council. As he typed, he remarked bitterly, “We are a country of 80,000 people with national
Loyalty and Commitment
waters the size of Germany, Luxembourg, and Belgium combined.
The key to the Alliance is that its 43-nation membership brings 43
What the hell do you think our navy is? Climate change is an infi-
different skill sets to the table. For example, Williams hands off most
nitely bigger problem, but we can’t even defend ourselves against a
speechwriting work to different colleagues, depending on their ex-
boatload of pirates.”
pertise. For sustainable agriculture issues, she turns to the Jamaican diplomat. Williams also lists Barbados, Marshall Islands, and Sey-
An Alliance is Formed
chelles as key members.
Climate change is not a new focus for small island states. In fact, it
Williams especially appreciates the advice of the Alliance’s vice-
was the Maldives who first brought international attention to the is-
chairs and finds it convenient that the Solomon Islands Mission,
sue on October 19, 1987. On that day, the country’s then-dictator Mau-
which serves as the vice-chair from the Pacific, is only 20 feet from
moon Abdul Gayoom gave a dramatic speech to the United Nations
her own office. Since becoming Grenada’s ambassador in February,
General Assembly. Now known as the “Death of a Nation” speech, it
Williams has been meeting with Colin Beck of the Solomon Islands
was the first time a head of state had publicly recognized the issue’s
and Alírio Vicente Silva of Cape Verde on a weekly basis: “We meet
urgency. Three years later, the IPCC published its first assessment
around breakfast, I provide food. We get to eat, strategize and plan,
on climate change, which got a great deal of attention in the scien-
all before ten o’clock.”
tific community, but far less from the world’s leaders. The developed
Convincing the world’s powers to simultaneously cut emissions and provide assistance for the crisis’ most immediate victims is, by all accounts, a gargantuan task.
Khaleel also appreciates his close proximity to the other ambassadors. Pointing out that eight of the nine countries which share his suite are members of AOSIS, Khaleel remarked, “I can walk into any of these missions. We don’t have to make appointments with them because we are right next door and we have such small missions. So you meet every day, and you get to understand each other. We coordinate a lot, and that is our success.” According to Khaleel, this close coordination translates into strong diplomacy at the U.N. “Sticking
world was not interested in paying real attention to an issue that
together and speaking in one voice. It has been working well, and
seemed so amorphous, even though small island states and scientists
we’ll make sure it continues that way.”
alike emphasized its urgency.
This close relationship seems to extend outside the realm of diplo-
It was within this context that, during the 1990 Second World
macy. When asked if AOSIS ambassadors ever met in their free time,
Climate Conference in Geneva, the Alliance of Small Island States
Khaleel broke into a wide smile, “Yeah! We have so many receptions
(AOSIS) was officially formed. The hope was that, by speaking with
and social functions. And we all have something in common because
a unified voice on common issues like climate change and by pooling
we’re islanders and the island lifestyle is there in all of us. The bond
diplomatic and scientific resources, the Alliance could finally make
that you create, the friendships that you forge are all very important
the concerns of small island states heard in the international com-
to us.”
munity.
Beck echoed Khaleel’s enthusiasm, adding, “When a new ambas-
AOSIS is, by all accounts, an unconventional organization. More
sador arrives, he introduces himself to his fellow islanders, and if
an ad-hoc grouping than a formal body, it has no charter, no formal
there is someone who can guide him through the forests of the U.N.
budget, and no secretariat. According to Dr. Dessima Williams, Gre-
system, he’ll find him in AOSIS.” The Alliance, says Beck, is like a
nada’s U.N. ambassador and the current chair of the Alliance, the
family. “You say goodbye to one member and welcome another.”
group’s heads of state generally meet by “piggybacking on other con-
Williams, who is one of the most junior ambassadors in the Al-
ferences,” while scientists coordinate primarily by way of an “inter-
liance and who relied heavily on her fellow diplomats while getting
net operation,” sharing facts and data remotely, meeting in person
acclimated to her new position, smiled as she said, “The U.N. is big.
only at global conferences. This leaves it up to the U.N. ambassadors
There are many groupings, but this one is special.”
in New York to take advantage of their close proximity to do most of the work, passing along any news to their heads of state and scientific experts. The ambassadors meet formally about once every two months, updating each other on the status of different environmental adap-
To learn how this small team has brought its fight for survival to the U.N., follow Part Two of this story at tyglobalist.org/index.php/aosis.html. Jesse Marks is a junior Economics and International Studies major in Berkeley College.
POLITICS & ECONOMY 9 the yale globalist
Europe’s Big, Boring Election With little fanfare, Europeans choose their representatives in Brussels. By Andrew Feldman
“I
live near Heathrow airport, and I’m worried about the planned expansion,” explained a concerned development-
A polling station near Covent Garden, London, stands empty on the day of Europe’s continent-wide election. (Feldman/TYG)
conscious voter. “What are your positions on that?”
“The Conservative party claims to be a non-racial party, but your
In the last 30 years, the Parliament has changed remarkably.
mayor just canceled African Liberation Day celebrations,” protested
Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) have fought hard to
an upset African-British man.
gain more power for the body, a development which has led members
Candidates for the European Parliament were taking some heat
to take their jobs more seriously. MEPs are now selected democrati-
in Committee Room 14 of Britain’s House of Commons. But the ques-
cally based on proportional representation, just as governments are
tions being asked, though important, were not at all related to the
chosen in most EU member states. The Parliament now wields power
European Union (EU) or its powers. And so while these exchanges
almost equal to that of the EU’s other legislative body, the Council of
might look like evidence of EU democracy in action, their outward
Ministers composed of a representative from the government of each
appearance belies a less straightforward reality.
member state.
A Democratic Evolution
islative body, turnout in parliamentary elections has been steadily
For the first 20 years following its inception in 1952, the EU’s precur-
decreasing, from 63 percent in 1979 to just over 43 percent in elec-
sor organizations had no directly elected institutions. In an effort to
tions this past June, according to the Parliament’s official election
combat perceptions that it was too removed from ordinary citizens,
statistics.
Yet as the European Parliament has been evolving into a true leg-
the EU’s appointed advisory body was renamed the European Parliament, and in 1979 the first direct elections were held to choose its
Talk to Me
members.
The EU was determined to catch the attention of the public in advance
10 POLITICS & ECONOMY Fall 2009
of the June 2009 elections. In the months before the voting, large EU-
This means that MEPs do not have to give much thought to election
sponsored advertisements plastered across European subways and
results when deciding how to vote in Parliament, and consequently
billboards prodded voters to think about the issues facing the EU:
policy outcomes are only weakly linked to the elections.
“What kind of borders do we want?” asked one poster contrasting
But Hix, a professor at the London School of Economics, believes
images of a low hedge and a stone wall. “How should we produce our
that the framework for a European democracy exists. “The treaties
energy?” prompted one with symbols representing different types
put everything in place already,” he explained in his London office.
of energy. If not for the seriousness of issues at stake, these efforts
“Everything that needs to change is behavioral.” He believes that if
would be laughable for their failure to stir even moderate voter inter-
the party that wins the elections received disproportional power in
est, let alone increase turnout.
the Parliament, and if the elections had significant influence on the
The EU explained to voters, with a hint of exasperation, that it wanted voters’ input. They responded on Election Day by staying home in record numbers. The frustration with the lack of interest was palpable. Newspa-
makeup of the EU’s executive branch, the elections would become
pers ran mournful editorials by EU insiders, but few covered debates
more significant and would force parties to educate voters on the im-
about EU-related issues seriously. In the final weeks before the elec-
portance of the EU in their daily lives.
tions, MEPs conceded that, despite their efforts, things had changed little from the previous election in 2004.
As evidence, Hix cited the recent legislation on the telecoms industry, which was partway through the parliament when the past
And so, at election time the EU and its citizens found themselves
session ended. The package dealt with potentially explosive rules on
in a reversal of the usual roles played by democratic governments
when Internet access could be denied to those suspect of piracy, but
and voters. The EU explained to voters, with a hint of exasperation,
it only received limited attention in the media. Hix pointed out that if
that it wanted their input. Voters responded on Election Day by stay-
this had been examined at a national level, as it was in France, there
ing home in record numbers.
could have been a large public debate. “Would there be media cover-
What Are They Thinking?
age of this? Would there be lobbying? Of course there would be!”
Some MEPs acknowledge that the European Parliament has failed to
The Road Ahead
live up to democratic expectations. John Purvis, a retiring Conser-
The EU is fond of claiming that these past elections were the largest
vative MEP, explained to the Globalist, “It’s perfectly democratic in
example of transnational democracy ever, but that’s not quite true.
design, but it’s debatable whether turnout and lack of interest make
Truly democratic elections foster public debate, educate voters about
it democratic in practice.” Others MEPs defend the Parliament, prais-
key issues, and legitimize the political system. And the European
ing its transparency relative to the secretive Council, or pointing to
Parliament elections did none of those three things.
the radical change the EP has undergone in the last two decades.
While the reigning political elite does not seem to particularly at-
What most MEPs seemed to agree on is the public ignorance
tached to the status quo, and indeed expresses openness to reform, it
about the workings of the Parliament and the EU. “It’s a problem that
lacks a sense of urgency. Nobody feels that the legitimacy of the Par-
people really just don’t understand the system,” said Fiona Hall, a
liament or the Union as a whole has been called into question. And as
British Liberal Democrat MEP.
long as this is the case, there is no reason to expect a push for reform.
And that ignorance was apparent in conversations with voters
Those like Hix are right about the potential for democratic politics
across England. Lack of public knowledge about politics is not unique
within the current EU framework. But it will take more than cosmetic
to the EU, but its extent is somewhat astounding. Even politically-
changes to achieve that goal. Meaningful reforms that make the EU
aware voters struggled to recall basics facts about the functioning
more democratic, and thus more political, will face complaints that
of the European Parliament. And a significant number of voters had
the EU is leaving behind its glory days as an apolitical body dedicated
simply never heard of the body that is supposed to be voting on their
to the common good. But those days are numbered anyway, as the
behalf.
EU must grapple with important but inherently political issues such
A New Way Forward?
as immigration and foreign affairs if it wishes to remain relevant to European affairs. Given that the history of the EU is largely a history
While many MEPs lauded the European Parliament’s more democrat-
of leaders constantly forced to reinvent the European project, maybe
ic features, the leading scholarly consensus is that the EU is facing a
that’s not such a terrible thing.
challenge of democracy: the “democratic deficit.” One of the world’s leading EU scholars has some ideas on how to fix the situation. “There is no battle for control of political power and the policy agenda at the European level,” wrote Professor Simon Hix in his most recent book, What’s Wrong with the EU and How to Fix It. Voters vote in EP elections based on whether they like their current government rather than on European issues such as EU immigration policy.
Andrew Feldman is a junior Political Science major. His research was funded in part by grants from the Council of Masters and the Yale Program in European Union Studies.
POLITICS & ECONOMY 11 the yale globalist
A Hospital by the Vegetable Garden Underpaid doctors in Tajikistan make a living through bribes, gifts, and home-grown produce.
A child grabs Dr. Ilhom Garfurov’s stethoscope in Turoj-Bagh. (Oye/TYG) Russia, Canada, or even neighboring Afghanistan, where the pay is better. Others take multiple jobs, or quit the profession entirely to drive buses, work on the family farm, or sell shoes in the bazaar. Yet their skills are badly needed in Tajikistan, where preventable diseases like diarrhea and respiratory infections are the leading killers of children under five. With support from the World Health Organization, reform efforts are underway in a few pilot districts. Although health indicators in
By Mari Michener Oye
these areas are improving, change comes slowly—and it is hindered
“N
jikistan’s medical schools, hospitals, or higher levels of government.
ation’s Health is the Wealth of the State,” reads a ban-
at every step by the insidious presence of corruption, whether in Ta-
ner on Tajikistan’s Ministry of Health website. The site
The Anatomy of a Crisis
features photographs of Emomali Rakhmon, the Cen-
Ibn Sina University in Tajikistan’s capital, Dushanbe, is named for
tral Asian country’s president, standing beside small children and
a tenth-century physician and philosopher famed for his studies of
nurses in trim white coats.
anatomy. Today, however, students there can pass anatomy class by
Yet in Tajikistan, the poorest country of the former Soviet Union,
handing in an exam book with crisp somoni notes between the pages.
health often depends on wealth. Most doctors are employed by the
For an important test or a thesis, professors demand the equivalent
state, but the government salaries they receive are pitifully inade-
of $500, as much as many Tajiks earn in a year.
quate: around $10 to $30 per month. To make a living, doctors charge
“No one wants to study. Everyone wants to just pay for exams,”
their patients out-of-pocket, under-the-table fees for care. Sometimes
said Dalida Alieva, a third-year cosmetology student. “If the family
these “tips” or “gifts” are reasonable. Sometimes they border on ex-
is rich, then they can pay.” The problems at the medical school are
tortion.
symptomatic of a growing divide between Tajikistan’s Mercedes-
“Doctors are not surviving on their salaries. They are like hunters, sitting and waiting for patients,” said a former surgeon who asked to
driving elite class and the rest of the population, 60 percent of which lives below the poverty line.
remain anonymous in order to speak more freely. “In this country,
“This is going to come back to haunt Tajikistan in a few years,”
you will be an honest doctor and you will die from hunger. Or you
said Frank Johansen, a political officer working on anti-corruption
will be a crap doctor, and you will take bribes, and you will survive.”
initiatives with the Organization for Security and Co-operation in
Frustrated by the situation in Tajikistan, many doctors leave for
Europe (OSCE). “The families care about having the diploma on the
12 POLITICS & ECONOMY Fall 2009
wall, or they need it so their uncle can get them a government job. They don’t care about learning, about the education.” The attitudes formed in medical school can set the stage for malpractice later on.
Other Mercy Corps programs focus on preventing malnutrition and waterborne diseases by training volunteers, who in turn pass on the information to friends and neighbors in twice-weekly seminars. Women are desperately eager for the information. “My son died
While working for the OSCE in northern Tajikistan, Johansen
three years ago from diarrhea and a fever,” said Oimhon Halimova,
heard of one family whose newborn baby was placed in intensive care
one of about 20 women learning how to mix oral rehydration salts at
for three days. The hospital denied them permission to see their child
a Mercy Corps training seminar in the Rasht Valley. Halimova said
and charged them for expensive procedures and medicines. On the
she wished the seminars had been available three years ago, in time
third day a nurse pulled them aside and told them not to bother pay-
for her to treat her son.
ing anymore. The baby had been stillborn. Such stories, although shocking, are not rare.
Spare Change or Behavior Change?
“I saw it,” the former surgeon testified. “An Afghan migrant
While Mercy Corps focuses on educating the population and support-
brought in his child, a girl, who had eaten something bad and was
ing local health workers, the government is slowly implementing a
throwing up. The doctors kept this child for five days and charged a
larger program of reform in eight target districts. The program, paid
lot of money even though she was okay on the next day.”
for entirely by international donors, aims to raise the quality of care,
While some doctors in Tajikistan cheat their patients, others end up subsidizing care for poor families, working for free when they know the patient cannot afford to pay.
streamline payment, and eliminate bribes from the system. “We are working hard to change the way health care is financed, to move from a system where hospitals are reimbursed on the basis
Suraya Abdulhamidova, a soft-spoken woman in her forties, re-
of beds occupied to an evidence-based system which reimburses on
fused to take side payments while working as a government doctor.
the basis of actual diagnosis,” said Tracey Jacobson, U.S. ambassa-
She was forced to work night shifts at multiple jobs in order to pro-
dor to Tajikistan. “Also, we need to work to raise salaries for health
vide for her three children. “It’s not my way to take money from peo-
care workers and to eliminate the mentality of ‘unofficial payments’
ple,” Abdulhamidova said. Although she eventually quit her position
for medical services.”
as a state doctor to earn a higher wage at the U.S. Embassy health
Results so far have been mixed. In theory, patients in pilot areas
clinic, she still takes care of her neighbors for free. “There is a feel-
pay for their care at a hospital cashier, with the price clearly posted
ing that I am a Muslim, I have to help,” Abdulhamidova said. “It’s the
and government subsidies available for orphans, veterans, and the el-
traditional hospitality.”
derly or chronically infirm. In practice, patients tell stories of paying
In the village of Turoj-Bagh, an hour’s drive into the mountains
the cashier for service at the posted rate, then also having to pay the
west of Dushanbe, that traditional Tajik hospitality was on full dis-
doctor, the nurse, and the lab worker a little something on the side.
play as Dr. Ilhom Garfurov and his wife, the village nurse, showed a
Though some doctors have seen their salaries go up, others have not
monitoring team from the international NGO Mercy Corps around
— and they still ask patients for extra money.
the hospital where they have worked for 25 years.
“We should maybe have calculated better about the salary of the
The hospital has a dirt floor and mud walls decorated with posters
doctor,” said Ilhom Bandaev, head of international affairs in the sec-
of President Rakhmon and health information flyers from UNICEF.
tion of the Ministry of Health tasked with reform. “That is bad, be-
Young women with babies and toddlers in their arms wait to be seen
cause we know that if we do not improve the level of payment we do
On the third day a nurse pulled them aside and told them not to bother paying anymore. The baby had been stillborn.
not have result,” he said. “We know about this problem.” With the current economic crisis, though, the Ministry of Health has no plans to raise doctors’ salaries or to expand the pilot programs to new districts next year. The problem is partly one of resources and partly one of priorities. According to a 2008 International Crisis Group report, the gov-
in the daylily patch outside. Dr. Garfurov is also responsible for the
ernment of Tajikistan spent a grand total of $75 million per year on
area around his village, and he travels miles by donkey or four-wheel-
health care in 2008. In contrast, the many-columned Presidential Pal-
drive to make house calls. This is the kind of post most young gradu-
ace of Nations in Dushanbe cost $300 million dollars to build, includ-
ates of the medical school hope to avoid.
ing $52 million for the furniture alone.
“The government salary is nothing,” Garfurov said. “I serve be-
In comparison to these numbers, the fees charged by underpaid
cause I am a patriot. The main income is from the garden.” He ges-
doctors seem insignificant. Many do not abuse the system, but until
tured toward the grape vines and apple trees growing on the steep
financial incentives for doctors line up with good medical practice,
slope in front of his house, just down the road from the little hospital.
patients, especially the poor, will remain vulnerable.
Turoj-Bagh is lucky to have a doctor at all. In rural mountainous areas, the nearest hospital is often miles away. Snow-covered roads make travel difficult in winter. In 85 areas, Village Development Councils established with help from Mercy Corps have set up ambulance transport systems and pools of emergency funds for the community.
Mari Michener Oye is a junior Political Science major in Timothy Dwight College. This summer she interned with Mercy Corps in Tajikistan. Her research for this article was supported by a Frank M. Patterson Grant in Political Science and by the Coca-Cola World Fund at Yale.
POLITICS & ECONOMY 13 the yale globalist
The Setting of the Spanish Sun Spain’s economic crisis takes down construction, shakes up working professionals, and falls hard on immigrants. By Ramon Gonzalez
“S
ALE!” The subways of Bilbao, Spain, are dotted with ad-
but large recovery,” explained Professor José Ramón Canedo of the
vertisements for a department store called Park Avenue,
University of Deusto with a morbid excitement about economic cri-
promising discounts of up to 90 percent. These rebates
ses that only professors can muster. “In Spain they say it’s a crisis
jump out even amidst the recent recalibrations of economic despera-
in L. We fall straight and then…” He mimed the flattening of a heart-
tion. The transformation of the store’s name from marker of material
rate monitor, putting a flourish on the point with a steady “beep.”
wealth to symptom of financial disaster encapsulates the incredible,
The bad news, though, is dispiritingly alive: Investment in real estate
and now awful, economic interdependence of recent years as fire
fell 12.4 percent in the past year, and youth unemployment stands at
sales spread from Park Avenue banks to the store Park Avenue.
35.7 percent, according to the Instituto Nacional de Estadística. The
It’s a common story, but Spain represents its distilled form: a country that grew for years fueled by construction, cheap labor, and massive population movement. Spaniards moved from the country-
unemployment rate in construction, Professor Canedo said, “is a full drama.”
side to the cities, Northern Europeans visited to forget work, and le-
Construction Falling
gions of immigrants came to find some. The foam party has ended,
Marisol Esteban is one of many who have suffered on this stage.
and the bubbles are bursting as a weary Spain staggers into a terrible
Along with her son and son-in-law, she ran a ten-man construction
reckoning. Although historically high, unemployment has now shot
outfit that subcontracted for government road construction. Now she
up to 18 percent, double the European Union average, and everyone
sits at home out of work, lamenting that “our problem wasn’t find-
from experts to ex-workers acknowledges that it will punch through
ing work, it was getting paid.” Esteban’s firm, as standard practice,
20 percent soon.
was paid on completion. But when the larger firm that contracted
“In the United States they say the crisis is U-shaped. Sharp fall,
Spain’s economic crisis has cast a shadow over the country’s future prospects. (Courtesy Antonio Goya)
the work defaulted, she was forced to the do the same on the loans she had taken out to finish the projects. Concerned about the disappearance of the money that the town owed the contractor, she put
14 POLITICS & ECONOMY Fall 2009
An influx of immigrants has changed Spain, but rising unemployment has holstered immigrants’ shot at success. (Courtesy Guille Casas)
ter his education hints at an uncomfortable truth: Economist Gabriel Calzada calculated that government support for clean energy subsides has cost the economy 110,000 jobs and that every $1.4 million in
the matter in the hands of lawyers. This is not a sign of confidence in
subsidies produces only one wind energy job.
their ability but rather comes accompanied by shrugging shoulders,
As he discusses his own experiences with Spain’s job market, Ex-
a leftward roll of the head and eyes, and the sigh of the country that
taniz ticks off the local damage. One friend works at a car dealership
brought us que sera, sera.
that has let nine people go; another sells construction materials and
Esteban blames the banks. Because of debts and defaults, she re-
has noticed a huge slowdown. “IBM has been firing two people a day,”
marked with bewildered bitterness, “Banks now own half of Spain,
Extaniz said. “There’s just a terrible insecurity… Everybody’s just
but I’m not sure what they will do with all of it.” She painted a grim
waiting. People who have money don’t want to spend it, and those
picture of businesses choked off by dominoes of debt, delinquency,
who want to can’t.”
and default. “I know companies that have jobs till 2012, but they have no access to capital for their projects so they have to close down and
The Professional Class
throw their workers to the streets.”
A slight distance can be heard when members of the Spanish profes-
For many workers, especially the predominantly immigrant labor-
sional class talk about the crisis. Tirso, who asked that his last name
ers in construction, these streets now lead out of Spain. Outside of
not be used when commenting on his firm’s business, had just flown
her family, all of the workers in Esteban’s firm were foreigners who
back from the Canary Islands where he used to do a lot of work as an
have now journeyed back home to Morocco and South America, en-
architect specializing in residential property. Now the flights are less
couraged by a government policy that gives them their unemploy-
frequent. When asked how business was going, he grinned know-
ment benefits in a lump sum if they leave the country for three years.
ingly and shook his right hand up and down.
“My son-in-law got a job this week working with construction
The signs of economic trouble are hard to miss. In some neighbor-
equipment,” said Esteban. He used to supervise construction. Transi-
hoods, “For Sale” signs hang in every lobby, stores advertise large
tioning from the post of jefe to a spot behind the jackhammer, it helps
discounts, and occasionally stalled projects puncture the skyline like
to be a jack of all trades and also to have friends, through whom he
the stale, half-empty beers of the morning’s regrets. The party was
got the job. Esteban’s son, Iñigo Extaniz, just received a three-month
wilder along the Mediterranean coast and in the market for vacation
contract to work at an oil refinery, also through friends. During his
properties. Esteban described a recent visit to Tenerife in the Ca-
nine months off work, he took courses in economics and renewable
nary Islands: “There were mountains of concrete shells of unfinished
energy, a sector that has grown spectacularly in Spain in recent
buildings. A catastrophe.” While news about the crisis flows con-
years. Wind turbines account for 10 percent of Spain’s energy and
stantly across the airwaves and printing presses, its effects on daily
for wry and self-deprecating jokes about Quixotism, what Miguel de
life appear hidden. For wealthy workers, the crisis exists more as an
Unamuno called Spain’s one true religion. Extaniz’s employment af-
abstract curiosity, far from the personal nightmare that it is to many
POLITICS & ECONOMY 15 the yale globalist
others; for them, the crisis is a point of discussion, not desperation.
becomes a home for many immigrants. Roadouan, 26, described his
In July, conversation centered around plans for August vacations and
difficulties on arrival: “I slept in the street; it took so long to get the
opprobrium of Real Madrid’s record-breaking signing of soccer play-
metro ticket and find a social work site. It’s better now; I know peo-
er Cristiano Ronaldo, not the country’s turbulent economic condition.
ple.” Khadir, a middle-aged Moroccan man, told a story of life on the
But the absence of woe among the professional classes should
streets for two months with barely anything to eat; even now, months
not be taken as a vote of confidence. One family from the corporate
later, he lives in an old, abandoned house with some friends. His
world — the father, a major auto industry executive; the sons, lawyers
simple phrases and wry grin belied the intensity of the suffering he
and investment analysts — expressed a unanimous and deep skepti-
described.
cism of government reassurances over lunch. Few were persuaded
The crisis has deferred any dreams of a fresh start. “Without a
when Prime Minster Zapatero recently told El Pais: "The worst has
contract for employment you can’t get a residence card, but without
passed. We will start to grow in the first quarter of 2010." Zapatero
a residence card you can’t get a job,” Khadir noted grimly. Now some
contradicted forecasts from the International Monetary Fund and the
companies are starting to offer pre-contracts to square this circle, but
Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, as well as
the practice is not widespread and contracts remain elusive. A few
those of his own economic ministry. When asked whether Spain was
low-skill jobs exist outside of this vicious loop, but they are difficult
witnessing the green shoots of recovery, the table snickered. “The
and occasionally even dangerous to get. Radouan declared that there
only people saying that,” said the lawyer, “are smoking the leaves.”
has been no work in 2009, and by way of explanation and without any
Down and Out The twin pillars of construction and tourism that drove 15 years of
note of complaint, said that “many people without papers are looking for jobs.” They wait, fed on meager government welfare and unfulfilled dreams.
furious growth have collapsed, yanking the Spanish economy into
“I want to return home,” insisted Yacine, also from Morocco, “but
a tailspin that has dealt particular damage to the millions of immi-
can’t without money. When I left, my family and village were very
grants — the most any country has received in recent years except
poor. They think I’m their salvation. Then you see the reality of life
the United States — who flooded and considerably built up Spain’s
without work, and you just can’t go back to face their disappoint-
shores.
ment.” Yacine spoke in a crisp British accent that flowed on near
In the San Francisco area of Bilbao, historically the home of its
flawless English little practiced during his six years in Italy. He also
poor, immigrant, and drug-addled, the languid streets reveal a com-
speaks French, Arabic, and Spanish. How can such an educated man,
munity wracked by unemployment. Recently unemployed men lured
now struggling around Spain “without money, without work,” ex-
to Bilbao from all over Spain by reports of expansive social services
plain his failures to his family? Witnessing the individual excellence
and the hope of a new start now linger in overlapping purgatories
that lingers without real hope, growing older, growing poorer, leaves
of immigration and unemployment, stuck between a crisis and a far-
any observer at a loss.
away place. Old Portuguese ladies shuffle past milling throngs of young Arab men, specialized stores cater to the foods and fashions
Uncertain Ends
of home, wherever it may be, and venders advertise telephone cards
“The government has said: ‘Don’t worry, we will get out of this crisis.’
to every country south of Gibraltar. Suburban moms preach careful
Fine, a Noble Prize for them. But the question is when? And how?”
warnings to their children to avoid the streets. NGOs and social work-
asked Professor Canedo. Government stimulus has been bandied
ers have taken root for the same reasons.
about, and mutterings about changing Spain’s model of tourism to
Against the hum of computers, Leire Casas, a worker at Proyecto
greater value-added services are mentioned. But because of the
Konekta, explained the group’s efforts to provide computer access to
depth and simultaneity of Spain’s problems, her best hopes lie simply
poor immigrants, both for personal use — communicating with home,
in the passage of time to erase national mistakes.
reading old newspapers, and looking for work — and for learning new
As the heart of the economy stops, daily life continues. Ktkorki-
skills. At 2:30 in the afternoon, the center was full of men clicking,
nenkin Bat, another social work center in the San Francisco neigh-
listening, and watching. Occasional words to neighbors gave off an
borhood, offers six-month classes with field trips — my interview
air of grown familiarity. “Women,” Casas explained, “have an easier
there was cut short because students were heading off to the Gug-
time finding jobs, especially in domestic work.”
genheim Museum. As Marisol Esteban, struggling businesswoman
It is no easier for immigrants to find housing. Renting is a rare
and mother, raved against the passivity of Spaniards and spoke of
phenomenon in Spain, and immigrants have a particularly tough
her hope for some protests, she dashed on some perfume to go meet
time because they often have “no history and owners don’t have
a friend. “Year by year without work we wait,” Yacine said. “We pray
confidence in them.” Because of this, individuals in the barrio sublet
to the gods that things change.” From all around Spain, the pleas and
overcrowded apartments. “Sometimes up to twelve men live in the
the prayers go up quietly. They will need the miracles.
same apartment,” Casis said. Whereas the inter-generational family support and house-ownership of middle-class Spaniards mask the effects of unemployment, the greater crowding in poor, immigrant areas forces them out onto the street. During the struggles of their first months in Bilbao, even the street
Ramon Gonzalez is a sophomore Economics major in Branford College.
16 FOCUS: Tanzania Fall 2009
We Sing What We See A genre of Swahili rap unique to Tanzania, bongo flava has emerged as a powerful force of social change and cultural preservation in a globalizing world. By Raphaella Friedman, Emma Sokoloff-Rubin and Rebecca Distler
X
-Plastaz begins his music video barefoot on the slopes of a 9,700-foot-high volcano named Ol Doinyo Lengai (“Mountain of God” in the Maasai language). He stands alone, his
red cloth robe stark against the snow. The scene cuts to the narrow streets of a gritty urban neighborhood in Arusha, where this popular Tanzanian musician raps in jeans and a white t-shirt, surrounded by teenagers who smoke and glare at the camera. Depicted throughout as a man with a message, he describes the problems facing many young Tanzanians and praises their resourcefulness: “Those whom you’d depend on until the end will let you drown / You’re not educated, don’t have any special talent / But strength, tongue, frugality you have…” Blending traditional symbols with a modern art form and tough political realities with eloquent lyricism, X-Plastaz’s work draws on one of Tanzania’s most popular and outspoken forms of music: a genre of Swahili rap known as bongo flava. Until bongo flava emerged in the early 1990s, the music on Tanzanian radio stations came from outside the country. The images and messages put forth by Western hip-hop were foreign even to those who understood the lyrics, and Congolese music, also popular at the time, focused on a different set of issues from those Tanzanian listeners faced at home. The first bongo flava musicians began creating their own music in their homes or in small studios, starting a tradition of rapping in Swahili that continues today. The word “bongo” means brains, without which, the artists sing, locals could not survive the streets of Dar es Salaam. While the rhythms of bongo flava closely resemble those of the hip-hop it has begun to replace, the lyrics come directly from the daily lives of a growing number of musicians and fans. At first, Tanzania’s then-socialist government banned bongo flava songs from the radio. As the country transitioned from a socialist to
Bongo flava hip-hop group Knuckle to Knuckle performs in front of a mixed crowd ranging from locals to French tourists, all gathered on the lawn at Via Via’s Cultural Café. (Friedman/TYG)
a capitalist economy, Tanzanian musical culture liberalized as well. Bongo flava is a constant on radio stations, in clubs, and in the street.
digenous Issues as partners. Outside the studio’s windows, passersby
Even government programs and international NGOs now use bon-
range from tall Maasai men to women in burqas selling fruits and
go flava cassette tapes and CDs to spread messages about politics,
vegetables.
health, and education throughout the country.
The studio is little more than a lone microphone and a desk with an old computer and speakers. But it is a place away from the clamor
The Studio
of Arusha’s daily traffic where Gilbarth and other young musicians
“Here is the real hip-hop,” insisted Gilbarth, a hip-hop artist known
can lay the music tracks that have earned them names in their com-
as GMG, as he surveyed a tiny room in Arusha where musicians in
munities. Aang Serian’s efforts to empower youth and preserve the
their 20s and 30s produce their own music and work with local teen-
various elements of Tanzanian identity show through their music,
agers to do the same. The studio Aang Serian, which means “house of
putting a unique spin on the worldwide hip-hop phenomenon by in-
peace” in the Maasai language, has gained international recognition
corporating tribal chants and instruments like the marimba. Despite
since it started in 1998, and today counts the United Nations Develop-
the modest equipment and the paint peeling off the walls, nothing is
ment Programme and the United Nations Permanent Forum on In-
off limits for Aang Serian. Their artists rap about issues like the envi-
FOCUS: Tanzania 17 the yale globalist
ronment, HIV/AIDS, corruption in politics, and the loss of tribal identity. "The hip-hop music emerging from Tanzania is a form of ethnography,” noted Rutta, another member of the organization. “When we used to meet in Kisenge, almost every week we would be burying someone we knew who was a victim of HIV/AIDS.” The young musicians have a clear purpose in mind: “We sing what we see.”
The Factory In Dar es Salaam, a 10-hour bus ride away, GMC Records factory produces bongo flava cassette tapes, CDs, and videotapes to sell in stores and outdoor markets throughout the country. Because of the genre’s immense popularity, GMC Records now produces music created in Tanzania almost exclusively. “Fifteen years ago, I would have given you the name of five or 10 bongo flava artists,” said Zahir Shivji, the owner of the GMC production factory, his voice barely audible amid the whirring machines cranking cassette tapes out onto a conveyor belt. Now, he says, he can name more than 100 bongo flava artists. On the first floor of the GMC Records factory, Zayn Khakoo, a young video editor born in Dar and trained in India, edits fledgling music videos in front of a wide-screen, state-of-the-art Macintosh
Eddie, an integral member of the NGO Aang Serian, shows off his studio. Here, young artists fuse the dual influences of international hip hop and tribal identity to create head swaying, fist pumping, politically conscious bongo flava tracks. (Friedman/TYG)
computer. The glow of the screen reveals a music video of a man in hip clothing serenading his girlfriend on a docked boat, wishing aloud that he could give her fine gifts though he has no money. The video is a departure from the heavy political focus of artists in Arusha, yet in its focus on love and money, this video also addresses issues that Tanzanians deal with every day. The range of clothing in bongo flava videos — everything from traditional garb to trendy American outfits — reflects the multiplicity of cultures that intersect in this musical genre. GMC’s music video may well be marketed in Rwanda, Uganda, and other East African countries as well as in Dar. Yet bongo flava artists always rap in Swahili, the national language of Tanzania. Bongo flava musicians view their art as an exciting example of Tanzania’s role on the world stage and hope that their music will help protect a sense of Tanzanian national identity in the face of increasing globalization.
The Street Once critical of bongo flava for being “too western,” the government now incorporates songs about violence, drug use, and HIV/AIDs into public health campaigns. Through radio, cassette tapes, and CDs, the music gets back to the same kinds of narrow streets and varied realities in which it was made. Rather than ban bongo flava songs from the radio, the government has recognized the music’s potential to resonate with people on the ground. Non-governmental organizations also use this tactic, or, in some
The Stage Nestled between a wildlife conservatory and the International Criminal Tribunal of Rwanda, Via Via’s is a cozy expatriate café renowned in Arusha for its weekly musical lineup. While nearly invisible to passersby, every Thursday night the white-walled building overflows with patrons eager to hear the café’s medley of performers. As cultural coordinator of Via Via’s, Aziz, a self-assured young man with dreadlocks and effortless charm, has the job of selecting the talent that performs each week. The challenge, he said, is finding balance. “You have Westerners wanting to hear local music, and locals wanting to hear Western music,” he said. This means that in a single night, you might find the traditional dance and song of a rural tribe, followed by a breakdancing crew, topped off by an energetic performance from Knuckle to Knuckle, a well-known rap group from Arusha. This site of cultural innovation is a place where the challenge of balancing varied cultures and experiences is most evident. As bongo flava gains popularity across East Africa and beyond, artists who began by singing about their own communities — singing about what they see — may face increasing pressure to look outwards as well. These artists will have the opportunity to pioneer a model of music built from the ground up, so long as looking beyond national borders doesn’t blind them to the place from which they’ve come.
cases, pioneer it: Emily Churchman, director of SIC Change, an NGO that runs HIV/AIDS testing and education programs in rural villages, knows that “setting up speakers is a great way to draw a crowd.” She hires a local disc jockey who will “drive down any road” to blast bongo flava on HIV/AIDs clinic days. In Churchman’s view, when people produce, perform, and even listen to this music, they are actively engaging with local issues, rather than “pretending that the problems aren’t here.”
Raphaella Friedman is a sophomore History and Political Science major in Trumbull College. Emma Sokoloff-Rubin is a junior History major in Timothy Dwight College. Rebecca Distler is a sophomore Political Science major in Davenport College.
18 FOCUS: Tanzania Fall 2009
An Equal Playing Field? A newly constructed National Stadium in Tanzania’s biggest city, Dar es Salaam, casts a spotlight on the Chinese-Tanzanian bilateral relationship. By Monish Shah
B
eyond the security point manned by Chinese personnel, an
attached. Sahr Johnny, Sierra Leone’s ambassador to Beijing, was
enormous concrete stadium topped by an imposing steel-lat-
quoted by AllAfrica.com as saying: “If a G8 country had wanted to
tice roof towers over an otherwise rundown and dusty Dar es
rebuild our stadium, we’d still be holding meetings.”
Salaam neighborhood. Habibu Mbonde, the location commander for
China’s resource rush serves purposes beyond the political or
the Uhuru stadium, proudly holds out his hands and, face beaming
strategic. It pays remarkable dividends to its private sector, partic-
with happiness, proclaims: “This is our national stadium.”
ularly to the construction industry. Africa is an important growth
The source of Mbonde’s pride makes an especially impressive
market for China’s overseas contracting business, which has posted
sight when juxtaposed with the former national stadium, which sits
strong year-on-year growth of 15 percent during the last four years,
in its shadow. The Uhuru Stadium, with its mere 20,000 seats, is now
reaching $50 billion in 2010.
used only for local games.
Early in the nations’ bilateral relationship, Tanzania was widely
The new stadium is world-class, boasting an extendable roof, an
thought to be the main beneficiary, receiving infrastructural, techno-
electronic scoreboard, 114 closed-circuit television cameras and a
logical, medical, and military aid. Now, China seems to be benefiting,
posh VIP lounge. It cost $56 million to build, of which the Chinese gov-
gaining African market access for its consumer goods, construction
ernment contributed $33.4 million. The stadium is only the first piece
contracts, and natural resources.
in a planned sports complex that will include a new national indoor
Ashurst points out that African states will need to play their cards
stadium, swimming pool, and gym. The current indoor stadium is in
shrewdly: “The question for African states is how to respond and
an advanced state of disrepair, reflecting the inability of Tanzania to
manage the Chinese expansion in Africa. It will be the fault of Africa
maintain a sports infrastructure on its own.
if this expansion is not managed, not that of the Chinese.”
To build the stadium, the Beijing Engineering and Construction Group imported raw materials, machines, pipe work, and scaffolding
Historic Sino-Tanzanian Friendship
from China. To Tanzanians like Habibu Mbonde, the Chinese involve-
The history of Chinese involvement in Africa goes back to the 1960s
ment is less important than the high-tech sports arena itself: “Ordi-
and 1970s, and from the beginning has been based on ideals of South-
nary Tanzanians like me have not seen anything like this. It does not
South cooperation in development. After decolonization, China pro-
matter to me who built it.”
vided significant aid in various forms to new African states.
China’s “Stadium Diplomacy”
first countries to recognize the United Republic of Tanzania, formed
Tanzania’s stadium is not a standalone development but part of a
on April 26, 1964, and was the first to open an embassy there. In re-
much broader trend of Chinese “stadium diplomacy” in Africa. The
turn, Tanzania endorsed the One China policy, recognizing China’s
Chinese have built or are in the process of building stadiums across
claim over Taiwan, and also backed China’s effort to rejoin the UN
a veritable A to Z of African states, including Angola, Benin, Camer-
in 1971. As significant an investment as the National Stadium is, it
oon, Central African Republic, Congo-Brazzaville, Djibouti, the Gam-
remains second to the historic 1800-km-long $450 million TAZARA
bia, Liberia, Mali, Mauritius, Mozambique, Niger, Guinea, Senegal,
Railway, completed in 1975, which connects Tanzania with Zambia.
Nowhere was this truer than in Tanzania. China was one of the
Sierra Leone, Togo, Uganda, and Zimbabwe.
Yet Tanzania has failed to maintain this once cutting-edge rail sys-
This unique brand of diplomacy builds goodwill with African
tem. Last year the Tanzanian newspaper ThisDay warned that the
states and is a subset of a much broader and more sophisticated geo-
railway was “on the verge of collapse.” Workers had been left un-
political strategy for China. Mark Ashurst, director of the London-
paid for three months and locomotives had fallen out of service. The
based Africa Research Institute explained: “China is building infra-
Lonely Planet guide to Tanzania warns would-be TAZARA travelers
structure and making trade deals in exchange for natural resources
that “breakdowns and long delays — up to 12 hours or more — are
and market access.”
common.”
Many of these countries are rich sources of the natural resources
That same year, as Beijing proudly hosted the 2008 Olympics, the
that China requires to fuel its breakneck economic growth. For ex-
Beijing Organizing Committee for the Olympic Games named Dar es
ample, China receives timber and uranium from the Central African
Salaam as the only African pit stop in one of the 53 African countries
Republic; copper from Zambia; oil from Angola; and bauxite, the most
for the symbolic Olympic torch rally. The route of the torch relay was
important aluminum ore, from Guinea.
carefully planned to include the landmark TAZARA railway and to
China is often ready to make diplomatic overtures without strings
end at the newly constructed National Stadium.
FOCUS: Tanzania 19 the yale globalist
Tanzania’s new National Stadium. (Martin/TYG) Unlike other places where the torch rally for the 2008 Beijing Olympics was marked by fervent anti-Chinese demonstrations, in Dar es Salaam, an estimated 1000 people turned out to cheer and show their support. Ashurst explained that unlike in other African countries, such as Zambia and Lesotho, where anti-Chinese sentiments have erupted with opposition politicians running on anti-China platforms for various reasons such as job losses, unsafe mining operations, an influx of cheap goods, or fears of neocolonialism, Tanzania’s citizens are largely positive towards China. “It is a symbol of Tanzanian nationalism to look favorably on China. [Tanzanian founding father Julius] Nyerere is viewed as a father figure in Tanzania with a cherished legacy not to be criticized.” As Tanzania’s first president, Nyerere visited China 13 times — a record for any African leader — and famously described relations with the Asian giant as “a friendship between the most unequal equals.” His policy of ujamaa, which involved collective farming, was influenced by Maoist economic philosophy. On his trip to inaugurate the National Stadium, Chinese President Hu Jintao re-affirmed China’s commitment to Tanzania, announcing a generous aid package of almost $22 million despite the economic recession as a sign of the “traditional friendship” and “exemplary relationship of sincerity, solidarity, and cooperation between two developing countries.” Ashurst remarked: “This stadium can be seen as a symbol of the historic ties between China and Tanzania but also very much a symbol of the new commercial ambitions of the Chinese in Africa.” He
added, “It would be a mistake to see this stadium as a philanthropic project. It is entirely rational from the Chinese perspective.” While “Tanzania’s natural reserves are not sufficient to determine geopolitical priorities for China, Tanzania’s strategic relevance to China is its location. The presence of a port at Dar es Salaam makes it a gateway to East and Central Africa, for example, making it possible to access copper and cobalt from the Democratic Republic of Congo.”
People-to-People Ties While China has left an indelible footprint on Tanzania’s nationhood through strong official ties, people-to-people ties remain weak. China sent hundreds of engineers and laborers to Tanzania to work on TAZARA from 1970 to 1975. The boast among the huge corps of Chinese engineers working in Tanzania was “Not One Baby,” referring to a determination not to father any babies with Tanzanian women. Chinese resistance to integrating with Tanzanians has not lessened with time. The TAZARA engineers constituted the second of three phases of Chinese migration to Tanzania. Even with the arrival of a third wave of merchants and entrepreneurs in the 1990s, Ashurst remarked: “There is still a long way to go towards integration.” Leaving the National Stadium, Mbonde turned to talk about relations with his Chinese counterparts. He said, “I am about 40 percent happy with the Chinese. I thank them for building the stadium, but the local Chinese employees have been here for about two years now. We are still not friends.” Monish Shah is a sophomore in Morse College.
20 FOCUS: Tanzania Fall 2009
TakingShots In the Tanzanian desert, tourism pays the bar tab for some of Africa’s last hunter-gatherers. By Rae Ellen Bichell
Hadza children, aged 9, 10, and 15, respectively, pour vodka into shot glasses improvised from laundry detergent caps. (Bichell/TYG)
A
s we rounded a dry riverbed, the view from the mountain above the Tanzanian village of Mangola Gorofani yielded nothing but desert brush, mud huts, and several brightly painted houses down below. An arrow or two shot toward us, cracking the ground nearby. Our guide yelled something in a click language, and the arrows stopped for long enough for us to get out of the way. The 975 Hadza tribespeople who live in Tanzania’s Rift Valley, where the an-
cestors of modern humans originated 7 million years ago, are among the last hunter-gatherers on the African continent. To the rest of Tanzania, they are barbarians. Eighteen-year-old Hamis Said from Arusha shook his head as he described the primitive condition of the Hadza. “They wear skins and run around in the forest,” he said. Upon mention of the Hadza, the response of one Dar es Salaam resident was to laugh. “They are still living in the Stone Age. They are, you know…” His voice trailed off as he gestured toward an imaginary loincloth around his waist.
FOCUS: Tanzania 21 the yale globalist
left: Hadza women and men perform the epheme dance — formerly performed only at night, with the genders strictly segregated — as tourists look on. (Ramirez/TYG) right: Hadza men practice their aim by taking shots at a small rock. As safaris and farming have encroached on their land, diminishing the stock of large game, these hunters are becoming used to bringing home smaller and smaller animals. (Ramirez/TYG) the continent, incorporating or displacing hunter-gatherer tribes in a wave of agricultural assimilation. Other hunter-gatherers like the Urban Tanzanians generally know little about the Hadza but imagine them to be scantily clad, baboon-eating bushmen armed with poisoned arrows. The Hadza also have another reputation, one that is growing along with the number of tourists that comes to visit each year. According to Tanzanian journalists, travel agents, and even human rights activists, they are increasingly becoming drunkards. Many Hadza still follow a way of life based on ancient traditions. Since the Stone Age, Hadza men have set out each morning into the desert bush with bows and arrows in hand, hoping to bring back anything from birds and bush babies to the prized but now rare buffalo and giraffe. These traditions, however, are on their way out. In recent years, a wave of tourist visitors have brought cash to the Hadza, and cash has brought with it alcohol. In the past decade, drink has become a part of Hadza culture, replacing even the most basic subsistence activities like hunting and gathering and spurring new additions to the typical Hadza schedule. These days, a group of Hadza near Mangola Gorofani can be seen squatting around a bucket of beer at noon. In the afternoon, they pack onto wooden benches in the mud and thatch hut that serves hard liquor in the village. At night, they sit on the matching green couches that clutter a one-room hotel-bar, the light from oil lamps casting shadows on their beads and weapons.
Rehearsed Traditions Five thousand years ago, Bantu farming communities spread across
Khoisan and the Pygmies (another of Tanzania’s earliest indigenous tribes and the genetic relatives of the Hadza) became dependent on Bantu markets, were absorbed into the new population, and eventually lost their land. Somehow, while the rest of the continent went from hunting and gathering to planting and pastoralism, the Hadza escaped the transition culturally unscathed, a relic of early civilization. Now, amid global trends towards urbanization and industrialization, the Hadza are a truly unique people. But like all relics, they have also become an attraction in tourist guidebooks. Much of the Hadza population continues to live the way it has as far back as anyone can remember, the way the Hadza live when there are no tourists in sight. They still sleep under the stars on reed mats, everyone spread around campfires. Fast-forward a few hours until daybreak: Some men prepare to go hunting while others stay behind with the women and children. The Hadza made their debut on the world stage in 2001, when PBS and BBC produced documentaries highlighting the resilience of their ancient practices. Soon after, “there was a marked increase in the seasonal influx of tourists,” said Kirk Miller, a linguist who spent eight months living in the bush with a Hadza group near Lake Eyasi in Northern Tanzania. The documentaries sparked the interest of tourists and researchers, bringing many Hadza communities face-to-face with the rest of the world. For some of them, the arrival of these foreigners provided
22 FOCUS: Tanzania Fall 2009
an alternative to tracking down or digging up scant food sources for hours in the sun. “Hunters have to walk two or three days or even one
A Hadza man drinks beer from a bucket outside one of Mangola Gorofani’s mudthatch huts, which also doubles as a local bar. (Ramirez/TYG)
week to get meat,” said Mariamu Anyawire, a Hadza woman. Now able to sell to tourists, many men have taken to sitting around and
Gorofani sits in a circle stringing colorful seed beads onto fibers har-
waiting for visitors to arrive rather than hunting for wild animals.
vested from plastic bags, plant stalks, and the women’s own cloth-
The Hadza have started to set up camp in places near the villages
ing. Hadza women typically dig for roots and gather berries while
for months at a time, waiting patiently for what they call “touristy
the men hunt game, but adorning tourists has recently become the
people” to appear on the horizon.
top priority. The women make sure that visitors do not leave un-
“If we have money, we can go to the village. If not, we have to hunt,
bedecked, even if it means removing their own necklaces made of
or if people come and give us things, we can buy food for the chil-
porcupine-spine beads and bush-baby tails to place them around the
dren,” said Ankiga Bagaya, a Hadza man from Lake Eyasi. Tourism
necks of eager visitors.
has altered the Hadza diet — hunting and gathering now make up
According to Johannes Kleppe, a German expatriate who has
only half of what the average Hadza consumes — as well as other
lived in the area for 20 years, the introduction of money to a people
traditions.
who “did not assign property values to things until tourists arrived”
Bagaya, who wears a colorful beaded band around his forehead and ripped khaki shorts, switches off between hunting and waiting.
is itself a cultural invasion. But the repercussions of tourism on the Hadza are more than price-tag deep.
On any given day, he trades in his hunter cry — a shrill call that can
The central religious ceremony, the epheme, is supposed to take
reach other Hadza hunters up to three miles away — for tour-guide
place on nights when there is no moon because, according to tradi-
lingo. On our visit, he took on the role of spokesman, narrating every-
tion, the women are not supposed to see the men or even know who
thing going on at the camp and prodding the others to show us how
they are. For the sake of putting on a show for tourists, however, Had-
to start a fire, shoot an arrow, and treat flesh wounds with tree resin
za men and women will jump up in the heat of noon to sing about a
— though none of the activities was necessary at the time.
successful hunt, though the hunters will not return for hours.
The group of women on the mountainside overlooking Mangola
“In the past two or three years, they’ve started performing the
FOCUS: Tanzania 23 the yale globalist
epheme not at the right time and not for the right reason,” said Mill-
hunters’ return. The Hadza typically blend in with their slow-moving
er, the first to compile a dictionary of the Hadza language in 2006.
surroundings; they sit quietly in two gender-segregated circles, talk-
“They’re putting on a fake production for tourists.”
ing occasionally as smoke from the communal pipe blends in with the
In Miller’s view, the effects of tourist attention could cut both
dust billowing by.
ways. “The potential benefit of tourism is that there is now monetary
After we had bought a few souvenir arrows, however, the paced
value in being Hadza, which might possibly help prevent cultural
changed abruptly. A half-dozen men darted from their places in the
loss,” he remarked. Peter Mwenguo, director of the Tanzanian Tour-
shade, where they had been diligently waiting for tourists to arrive,
ist Board, believes fervently in the idea that the influx of money will
and started the brisk 30-minute walk downhill to the village. Their
In the past decade, drink has become a part of Hadza culture, replacing even the most basic subsistence activities like hunting and gathering. leave the Hadza culture unscathed. “It gives money to the grassroots,
shopping list: beer, marijuana, and hard liquor.
to the people. It is a way of giving economic values to the group with-
Alcohol has caused significant damage over the years. According
out destroying cultural values,” he said. However, optimism about the
to Kleppe, it has even been used as a currency, a surprising phenom-
potential of tourism to preserve a dying culture comes easily from
enon given that the community had only a slightly alcoholic drink
someone sitting in leather chair in a fifth-floor office in downtown
made of baobab fruits before eighteenth-century trappers started
Dar es Salaam.
paying local workers a daily salary of 1.5 mugs of beer for their labor.
Mwenguo and the rest of the Tanzanian government will go to
At the first stop on his shopping trip, one man emerged from a
extremes to attract foreign capital to the fledgling nation, including
mud hut with a two-gallon bucket of liquid. Squatting in the shade
pushing their own hunter-gatherers off prime land to make way for
of a thorn tree, we took turns scooping pombe, a thick beer made of
foreign companies. Though the deal fell through, that is precisely
fermented maize, out of the communal bucket into smaller plastic
what occurred in 2000, when the United Arab Emirates siphoned off
containers.
one third of Hadza territory so that the royal family of Abu Dhabi
“It’s useful for hunger. The beer makes us more full, and stronger
could use rifles and jeeps to kill off the very animals that Hadza hunt-
for hunting also,” said Hamisi Ugunda, gritty white foam collecting
ers track for days on foot with bow and arrow.
on his upper lip.
Tourism may account for 17 percent of Tanzania’s GDP. It may
Made by fermenting the water left over from maize porridge,
even be “the engine of the Tanzanian economy,” as Richard Rugim-
pombe does have substantial nutritional value, but the alcohol has
bana, executive secretary of the Tourism Confederation of Tanzania,
more immediate uses. “It helps us forget our problems,” said a
put it. But tourism could prove more harmful than helpful to the Had-
70-year-old grandmother who had walked five miles from her Hadza
za, catapulting the tribe into a modern version of the assimilation
community to join in the festivities, coughing down homemade vodka
most hunter-gatherer communities experienced 50,000 years ago.
from an empty laundry detergent cap. Seated on wooden benches against the straw and mud walls, the
Quenching Hunger and Thirst
Hadza men methodically passed the clear liquid around the room,
Not everything brought by the tourists has been bad. A steady stream
the label torn on the used glass bottle. The elderly woman, Marta,
of cash revenue has allowed the tribe to replace their dwindling food
joined in a discussion with the hunters and the bar owner.
supply with newfound purchasing power at local markets. Access to
According to Miller, Marta “didn’t even know what beer was five
markets has proven a vital necessity for the Hadza since, according
years ago.” Thanks to tourist money, she has frequented bars, even
to Miller, the region’s “exploding population of pastoralists has killed
joining in taking shots of homemade vodka. According to Anyawire,
off most of the wildlife, cut down the berry groves, burned out the
the problem is exacerbated when tourist season rolls around: “Dur-
tubers, and depleted the honey, each 20 percent of the calories in the
ing high season, they drink every day and get very drunk. All of them
traditional Hadza diet.”
— women, children, men.”
The government sees the move toward village markets as a posi-
“It's the alcohol that's messing them up, and it was tourist money
tive step toward civilizing a community considered backward by the
that gave them access to it, since without money they'd have no rea-
rest of the nation. “They have to understand that the world and the
son to be in town or go to market,” said Miller. Now, Kleppe said, tour
environment are changing. Hunting can exist, but hunting alone will
guides sometimes pay the Hadza in “pure,” alcohol laced with insec-
not sustain them,” said Mwenguo.
ticides to render it more potent.
While the revenue made from selling jewelry and arrows to visi-
On top of the unpleasant consequences of downing insecticides,
tors may mean a steady source of meat and cornmeal for the Hadza,
alcohol has had other effects on Hadza health. According to Anyaw-
it also pays for a habit unique to societies with disposable income:
ire, Miller, and Kleppe, it contributes to the spread of tuberculosis
alcoholism.
contracted from sharing drinking bowls in pubs. There have even
The Hadza of Mangola Gorofani sat perched on the side of a des-
been cases of beer prostitution among the women, who smoke and
ert mountain, whiling away the time between tourist visits and the
drink almost as frequently as the men. “Women have sex for beer
24 FOCUS: Tanzania Fall 2009
when they don't have tourist money, often with tour operators, which we fear has introduced AIDS,” Miller said. Despite the fakery and cultural decay it may be causing, the government refuses to see tourism as anything other than beneficial. “Tourism is OK because they are showing their way of life. It also gives them some money,” said Rugimbana, whose job is to maximize tourist visits to Tanzania. “No, it hasn’t changed their way of life. Why would it?” Like many in the government, Rugimbana’s view may be colored by the glint of tourists’ foreign mints. “If you’re white, you’re wealthy, and money speaks,” said Miller, referring to the heightened level of attention and respect that tourists command, particularly from police. Louder, no doubt, than the Hadza’s 10,000-year-old click language.
Uncommon Aggression The traditionally non-confrontational tribe only has only two legends in its oral history in which the Hadza fought another tribe, let alone each other. But introduce alcohol — or rather, beer, marijuana, hard liquor, and more beer, all in one afternoon — to the situation and Kleppe occasionally has to draw out his knives to break up inebri-
The Hadza haggle with foreign visitors over the price of arrows, now more valuable to them as cash-generating souvenir items than as hunting implements. (Bichell/TYG)
ated brawlers. “With pombe, the rate of murder and death amongst the Hadzabe is increasing,” Kleppe said.
criticism from the Hadza themselves. “There is no help from the gov-
The conflict can be sparked by something as trivial as sharing
ernment. Nothing,” said Shakwa Ngetta, a Hadza hunter, taking a
marijuana, according to Anyawire. “They fight for stupid reasons,
swig of pombe from a green cup. “They just say they will help, but
but with bows and arrows, and the people in the village don’t take
they do nothing.”
them to the jail when they fight because they know it is normal for the Hadza,” she said. Still, a handful of Hadza men have been arrest-
Bringing Civilization
ed for murder.
Since Tanzanian independence in 1961, the government has tried
Alcohol — a vice imported from civilized society — is causing ar-
multiple times to “civilize” the Hadza, distributing goats and build-
rows to fly and also deteriorating the tribe’s reputation in the rest of
ing houses in an attempt to make them into herders and farmers. The
Tanzania. Even Alois Sikirami, who works for an organization that
Hadza, however, have little interest in living indoors when they can
lobbies for the rights of indigenous tribes, voiced a typical Tanzanian
sleep under the stars. As for the cattle, “they just ate them,” said Seif
view of the tribe: “The Hadza people are drunkards and smokers.” A
Mangwani of the PINGO Forum, an advocacy group that argues for
bad reputation does not bode well for a tribe that desperately needs
the rights of minority tribes.
national support in defending the very land it sets up camp on.
To many Hadza, pastoralist, agricultural, or urban life — what the
With a burgeoning population of onion farmers continually en-
government considers civilized — simply has no appeal. “We do not
croaching on the Hadza’s land and pastoralists like the Datoga and
know the business of the city. If I go to the city, what will I do? I will
the Iraqw hunting and crowding out their game, the Hadza way of
go to die there,” said one Hadza woman.
life “may not be viable for much longer,” Miller said. “Sooner or later,
Even to those Hadza who live in or who attended secondary school
The government wants them to civilize. Tourists pay them to be primitive. All the while, farmers, investors, and pastoralists absorb their means of subsistence. The Hadza risk losing a chunk of their culture and the continent its last subsistence hunter-gatherers. if you cut down all the berry trees, hunt all the game, and deplete
in Tanzania’s cities, the bush will always be home. “We do not settle
the land, you’re going to hit a tipping point. If we're lucky, the prom-
or farm. It is just not what we do,” said Susanna Zengu, who moved
ise of tourist revenue might prompt the government to provide some
to the city, but who much prefers returning home to the Yaeda Chini
measure of protection.” Unfortunately, a tourism-based economy
Valley.
supporting the Hadza could lead to more of the same alcoholism, violence, and cultural degradation. Mwenguo claims that the government is involved in the Hadza’s cultural preservation, but his words ring hollow in the face of blunt
Anyawire, one of the few Hadza women to complete secondary school, shares Zengu’s view. “I went to school and had to wear trousers, but I prefer my skins,” she said of her traditional animal hide clothing.
FOCUS: Tanzania 25 the yale globalist
Before becoming a tourist attraction, the Hadza were “considered a lower order of human being,” said Miller. Tanzanians, who com-
left: Hamisi Ugunda smokes marijuana from the communal pipe — an ancient tradition that now serves to pass the time during lulls between tourist visits. (Ramirez/TYG)
monly refer to them as tindiga, meaning “swamp people,” still harbor fantastic misconceptions about the Hadza. “Some people think the
culture and the continent its last subsistence hunter-gatherers. Ironi-
Hadzabe have tails like the baboon,” said Anyawire.
cally, the tourists are the ones being shielded from the alcoholism
Now, a Hadza tribesperson can make more in a few hours than
and cultural downfall they propagate with every visit. With an article
the average Tanzanian does in three days, enough to spend on alco-
appearing in National Geographic, another boost of tourism may fi-
holic beverages. But instead of gaining them respect, tourist cash has
nally tilt the scales, initiating a more dramatic version of the BBC
only exacerbated criticism and discrimination of the Hadza. “Tour-
phenomenon in 2001 and ensuring the collapse of Hadza heritage.
ism adds some value for being Hadza, but also breeds resentment,” said Miller.
Still, some harbor faith in the Hadza’s staying power. “People have been predicting the demise of the Hadza for generations, and they're
“We are equal like other people, we are black like other people,
still around. Just give them an area where they can live the way they
but the Tanzanians do not see it this way,” Anyawire said. Neither
want to and leave them alone,” said Miller. As Shakwa Mugulumbi
does anyone else, from the tourists who come to see the last hunter-
said, “We want our own free land. We stay around a lot of different
gatherer tribe in Africa to the government officials who omit them
people, which makes us not free to hunt and do other things. The
from the national census. Even the Hadza themselves view the tribe
other people must go away.”
as a unit distinct from the rest of the country.
Though Mugulumbi was referring to the farmers and villagers
The Hadza may be one of the closest models of the early human
eating away at Hadza resources, perhaps the same could be said of
community, but as long as they continue to attract tourists, they will
tourists: It is time to go away. Time to stop marveling at the hunt-
be treated, as Kleppe pointed out, “like wildlife,” their culture kept
ers’ archery skills and the women’s porcupine spine jewelry; time
intact only enough to draw in foreign capital and their primitive ste-
for foreign bills to stay in tourist pockets instead of funding alcoholic
reotype exaggerated.
escapades that will compound disease, discrimination, and perhaps
A Stone Age society in a rapidly developing country, the Hadza
demise for the Hadza.
are in trouble. “The time of the Hadza is gone, and I think some of
Indeed, once the hunters had exhausted their profit from the day
them are starting to realize this,” Kleppe said. Though some remain
on a dangerous combination of intoxicating substances, it was time to
hopeful that the Hadza can resist cultural deterioration, the combina-
leave. “They will maybe get into fighting later, and we do not want to
tion of buckets of pombe and barrages of tourists to fund their con-
be near for that,” said Anyawire, leading down the desert road, away
sumption has left the tribe in a state of vulnerability.
from where the men still sat taking shots, their eyes bloodshot and
The government wants them to civilize. Tourists pay them to be
their bows leaning idly against the wall.
primitive. All the while, farmers, investors, and pastoralists absorb their means of subsistence. The Hadza risk losing a chunk of their
Rae Ellen Bichell is a sophomore in Davenport College.
26 FOCUS: Tanzania Fall 2009
The Cost of Closure In Arusha, Tanzania, the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda reaches the end of its mandate and triggers fierce debate over post-genocide justice. By Alex Soble and Ali Weiner
M
ost visitors to Tanzania come to take in the country’s renowned wildlife on safari or to experience traditional Maasai ceremonies. But the steady stream of students, backpackers, and curious travelers who pass daily through the gates of the International Conference Center in Arusha come to observe a very different kind of spectacle: the ongoing trials of the masterminds behind the 1994 Rwandan genocide. A thin sheet of glass separates the accused from the spectators, who, thanks to the simultaneous translation service, can choose to listen to the proceedings in either French or English. When their visit to the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda is over, they are guided out of the courtroom by smartlydressed U.N. employees from a hodgepodge of African countries. It is difficult to imagine that this sprawling complex of courtrooms,
victed will be sent abroad to serve out their sentences; the tourists will no longer stop by the Tribunal on their way to climb nearby Mt. Kilimanjaro; the U.N. employees are already busy looking for their next jobs. But between Rwanda, the country that lost nearly a million lives in a hundred days, and the international court set up to deliver justice in the face of the genocide, a fundamental disagreement remains: What should happen after the Tribunal is gone? The story of the Rwandan genocide is, by now, well known. In the spring and summer of 1994, Hutu extremists carried out a systematized slaughter of ethnic Tutsis and Hutu moderates. The killings were brutally unsophisticated, carried out with machetes, rocks, and fists. In less than a hundred days, almost a million lives were lost. The genocide was the product of careful top-down planning: A clique of high-placed Hutus within the political and military establishment organized everything from the distribution of weapons to radio broadcasts urging on the killers.
buzzing with lawyers, judges, and witnesses from scores of different
The international community did not intervene to end the geno-
countries, will be empty and silent within a year and a half. The con-
cide, although major western powers did quickly evacuate their own citizens. Actually defeating the genocidal regime was a task left to
A courtroom sketch of a trial underway at the ICTR. (Bichell/TYG)
the Rwandan Patriotic Front (RPF), the mainly Tutsi army which had
FOCUS: Tanzania 27 the yale globalist
first invaded Hutu-dominated Rwanda in 1990. After the killings were over, the United Nations established the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR); it located the Tribunal in the peaceful Tanzanian mountain town of Arusha, out of fear that a Rwanda-based court would deliver RPF-sanctioned revenge instead of impartial justice. Rwanda protested vehemently but eventually had to accept the Arusha location as a fait accompli. More than a decade later, the attitude of Rwandan officials towards the Tribunal combines grudging acceptance with sharp criticism. “It showed that the international community felt their negligence, felt a sense of remorse,” admitted Alloys Mutabingwa, who served as Rwanda’s representative at the Tribunal. With his tailored suits and American-made SUV, Mutabingwa is unmistakably a member of the multi-national elite that the Tribunal has brought to Arusha. He is a round-faced, serious man who speaks so softly that he is often difficult to hear in a quiet room. But like many Rwandans, Mutabingwa does not hesitate to fiercely reprimand the court for its glacial pace. “I don’t see why there should be a remainder of cases,” he said. “It has been fifteen years.” The Tribunal has delivered verdicts to only 44 of the 90 highpriority génocidaires that it branded with arrest warrants fifteen
Hassan Bubacar Jallow, Prosecutor of the ICTR, must simultaneously manage evidence-gathering operations in Rwanda, lead the Tribunal’s prosecution efforts in Arusha, and co-ordinate efforts to track fugitives across the African continent. (Weiner/TYG) doing just fine.
years ago. In 1998, the U.N. Security Council called for the Tribunal
In the meantime, other prisoners remain under U.N. watch in
to complete all trial activities by the end of 2008. That deadline was
Arusha. “It’s like a hotel,” said one security officer familiar with the
later pushed back to 2009, and again to December 2010. As the ICTR’s
United Nations Detention Facility in Arusha, Tanzania. Each génoci-
closure date approaches, Rwanda’s government and the Tribunal
daire’s room is outfitted with its own computer, carpeting, and cabi-
disagree fiercely about how to manage the trials’ completion. From
net. The food, according to the official, is better than at the U.N. cafe-
prisoners to fugitives to archives, Rwanda wants to bring everything
teria at the Tribunal. The prisoners share public exercise and library
the ICTR leaves behind within its own borders. But the international
facilities; they socialize frequently. “They talk to each other,” said the
community has other ideas.
security official. “They’re even like family friends.”
Prison Politics
the luxurious living conditions at the United Nations Detention Facil-
A major source of disagreement involves the undecided fate of those
ity. “With the service they are getting, they’re living better than our
Rwandans convicted by the Tribunal. Seven nations, including Rwan-
ministers!” exclaimed one Tanzanian civil servant angrily.
“It’s a slap in the face,” Rwandan Ambassador Mutimura said of
da, have volunteered to host the convicts in their jails but, much to
To prove its readiness to host prisoners, Rwanda has built a spe-
the country’s chagrin, the Tribunal has not transferred a single pris-
cial new prison in Mpanga, located in the south of the country. The
oner to Rwandan jurisdiction. The Rwandan government would much
investment might have been in vain. The ICTR must consider more
rather see those found guilty behind bars at home, where survivors
than just prison conditions when deciding where to transfer convicts.
and perpetrators alike could witness the imprisonment of those in-
“Family members visit the prisoners often, even weekly,” Roland
dividuals who brought so much fear and suffering to their country.
Amoussouga, spokesperson of the ICTR, explained. “In Rwanda, is
Instead, those convicted are serving their sentences in an unlikely
the security of the family assured? Are they going to be poisoned or
assortment of countries. Mali, for example, hosts fifteen. While the
killed, beaten or mistreated?” Due to objections like these, the spe-
As the ICTR’s closure date approaches, Rwanda’s government and the Tribunal disagree fiercely about how to manage the trials’ completion.
cial cells at Mpanga prison remain empty. Instead, Rwanda recently agreed to use them to house convicted war criminals from Sierra Leone.
Location, Location, Location While Rwanda and the Tribunal wrangle over where prisoners
country’s scorching Saharan temperatures may seem ideal for pun-
should be held, 13 of the 90 indicted génocidaires have yet to be found.
ishing convicted war criminals, conditions for prisoners there seem
Most are suspected to be hiding in the dense, inaccessible forests of
strangely lenient. “I don’t think they’re complaining at all,” said Cain-
the Democratic Republic of the Congo; others have used wealth and
nech Lussiaa-Berdou, a defense counselor at the Tribunal. “They go
political connections to ensconce themselves in countries like Kenya
shopping and things like that.” Lussiaa-Berdou was surprised to re-
and Zimbabwe.
ceive a phone call from a convicted client on one such market outing.
Tracking down these fugitives is one of the many responsibili-
“He called me from the post office” to tell Lussia-Berdou that he was
ties of Hassan B. Jallow, Chief Prosecutor of the ICTR. A tall, stately
28 FOCUS: Tanzania Fall 2009
man from the Gambia, Jallow’s commanding presence in even a ca-
to spot physical traces of the war and genocide that tore Rwanda
sual meeting suggests that he would be intimidating in a court room.
apart fifteen years ago. The capital city boasts a brand-new mall; its
“As a prosecutor, you have to do some law, and you have to do some
busy internet cafes are frequented by development workers, NGO
diplomacy,” he said wryly. One department of Jallow’s office makes
representatives, and tourists, as well as Rwandans themselves.
the legal case against those accused of genocide, while his investiga-
Yet Rwanda’s justice system, according to the ICTR, is one sector
tions team, based in Kigali, is charged with collecting both evidence
of the rebuilt country that remains substantially below par. In 2008,
and fugitives. Genocide suspects have gone to great lengths to try to
attempting to alleviate the Tribunal’s case burden, Prosecutor Jallow
throw off Jallow’s team. “We recently found a fake tomb in the DR
petitioned to transfer five cases to Rwanda’s national jurisdiction.
Congo, bearing the name of a fugitive who we know is still on the
The ICTR judges denied his request.
run,” Jallow said with something of a chuckle.
Although Rwanda had abolished capital punishment a year before,
If these fugitives are captured after the Arusha Tribunal is ends
the possibility of life imprisonment in solitary confinement remained
its operations, they will still need to stand trial. “Nobody fixes an ap-
on the books, something that the U.N.-appointed judges could not ac-
pointment with a fugitive,” emphasized Rwandan representative Mu-
cept. They also had “doubt about the ability of the defense to receive
tabingwa. “We never know when they will be arrested, so we have
a fair trial” and “suspected that Rwanda’s judiciary does not have the
to ensure we have the mechanism to try them in place for whenever
necessary protection against political interference,” explained Ro-
they are finally found.” The ICTR’s Amoussouga agrees: “These fugi-
land Amoussouga, ICTR’s spokesperson.
tives can never be allowed to escape justice,” he said. “To surrender, to die, or to stay in clandestinity forever: Those will be their only options.”
“The ICTR claims that in Rwanda there is no justice,” Mutabingwa fired back. “But if you impute bad faith, you have to prove it.” Would a Rwandan court really be able to deliver a verdict of ‘not
To Rwandan officials, there is only once acceptable location for
guilty’ to a high-profile genocide suspect, as the ICTR has done six
the planned residual mechanism. “It is high time the Security Coun-
times? Could witnesses for the defense speak freely, without fearing
cil considered devolving the Tribunal from Arusha to Kigali,” Muta-
violent retribution? Dissenting points of view are dealt with very
bingwa told the Globalist.
harshly in Rwanda; The Economist has written that Rwanda “allows
But the U.N. has interests of its own. Adama Dieng, the registrar
less political space and press freedom at home than Robert Mugabe
of the ICTR, favors “a place for the residual mechanism where the
does in Zimbabwe.” A 2008 law proscribing the vague crime of “geno-
U.N. has an office.” He argues that “Nairobi, a U.N. hub, is the best
cide ideology” has been used to restrict media outlets like the BBC.
place where one could locate the archives and the residual mecha-
Nonetheless, suspects on trial for genocide could soon find them-
nism.” Moving the trials to a U.N. hub keeps down costs, argued Di-
selves taking the stand in a Rwandan court. “I am optimistic,” said
eng. “You will already have security officials, IT experts, all types of
Prosecutor Jallow of the Rwandan efforts to update the country’s
services in place.”
judicial standards. He told the Globalist that his office will soon be
In addition to these concerns, Dieng and others at the U.N. are
“renewing efforts” to transfer cases to Rwanda, “probably towards
uncertain that the indicted would receive a fair trial in Kigali. “There
the end of this year.” Indeed, transferring cases to Rwandan juris-
are concerns about the enforcement of sentences, the protection of
diction is likely the only way the Tribunal could possibly complete
witnesses.”
its caseload on-schedule. The Tribunal’s judges, however, will be the
Whichever city is chosen as the site of the residual mechanism will likely host the ICTR’s archives, which contain thousands of
ultimate arbiters of whether Rwanda’s judiciary is ready to accept such transfers.
documents, as well as countless hours of audio and video records.
Yet Rwandan officials feel that their country has been able to de-
Because of the fugitives that remain at-large, this material is of more
liver justice better than the U.N.-mandated ICTR, and in even more
than merely historical interest. “Imagine a fugitive is arrested in 10
difficult circumstances. While the ICTR limited its caseload to less
years’ time,” said Dieng. “The prosecutor may need evidence that’s
than a hundred, the numbers of suspects tried and convicted in
now confidential.” The U.N. would prefer to house such sensitive evi-
Rwanda so far is enormous. At one point the country’s prisons held
dence in a more neutral location, like Nairobi, rather than Kigali.
over 125,000 people. To cope with this massive population of suspect-
Dieng acknowledges that “there will be a need to have some of the archives to be located in Rwanda — some of the material evidence,
ed killers, the country created a new way to deliver justice, based on a traditional Rwandan method of settling disputes.
like Kalashnikovs, machetes, things to be placed in a museum.” And
Gacaca means “on the grass” in the Kinyarwanda language, and
he hoped that “one day,” all the material will be transferred into
that is exactly where gacaca courts meet. In villages across Rwanda’s
Rwandan hands. However, Dieng insisted “the archives belong to the
mountainous countryside, survivors come face-to-face with those
U.N., not to the Rwandan people, not to anybody else.” The disagree-
who murdered their loved ones. The gacaca courts have dealt with
ment over the archives captures the underlying problem facing the
the problem of justice and reconciliation on a massive scale; over
ICTR: Rwanda does not accept the U.N.’s role as purveyor of justice
12,000 local tribunals have assembled, hearing over 100,000 cases.
for a genocide it did nothing to prevent.
The system has its flaws. According to David Throup, professor of
Rwandan Justice Climbing the broad, steeply sloping streets of Kigali, it is impossible
African studies at George Washington University, “the playing field for the hearing of these cases at a gacaca level, and even at a formal court system, is not level.” Gacaca courts, like the formal Rwandan
FOCUS: Tanzania 29 the yale globalist
rare occurrences. Said Throup: “the impartiality of the judiciary is
The ICTR’s Rwanda compound. The Tribunal’s facilities and employees span across the African continent. (Flickr)
seriously compromised.” However, while the ICTR has proven pain-
an atrocity like genocide, then you better be ready to truly prove it.”
fully slow, inflexible, and bureaucratic, “gacaca cases take hours, a
Rwandan officials admit that the Tribunal has succeeded in some
day or two at the most.” The method is fast, creative, more or less
regards. The ICTR “has erased the possibility of denying the fact of
efficient, and local.
the genocide,” said Mutimura. Against the background of the United
judiciary, are thought to be biased against the accused; acquittals are
Money Well-spent? The cumulative costs of operating the Tribunal passed the $1 billion mark in 2007, averaging more than $25 million for each judgment. One reason for these huge costs is that the United Nations foots the bill for both sides of the trial proceedings. “None of the accused here pay for their own defense,” explained Dunstain Mwaungulu, who stepped down from his post as justice of Malawi’s High Court in order to help the ICTR manage its legal expenses. Each of the accused is given two legal counsels plus three support staff to help prepare their case, said Mwaungulu, as part of what he calls the ICTR’s “luxurious legal aid system.” The lawyers and officials who work at the Tribunal are well aware of the harsh criticisms it faces: that they have worked too slowly, spent too much money, treated suspects and convicts softly, and delivered far too little. But why, they respond, would anyone expect justice to be cheap and easy? “The worse the crime, the more important it is that suspects are tried in as perfect conditions as possible,” argued defense attorney Lussiaa-Berdou. “The integrity of the idea of international justice depends on it. If you want to accuse someone of
Nation’s annual budget of $15 billion, perhaps a few extra billion dollars a decade is not an outrageous sum to pay for an international legal response to the Rwandan genocide. But in Rwanda, a country where the average citizen makes under $3 a day, it represents an enormous amount that could have been spent more effectively and in closer cooperation with the Rwandan government. “We have done well with what we have,” said Mutimura of his administration’s efforts to repair a country torn apart by senseless slaughter. But, as he added, “With more, we would have done better.” For Rwanda’s post-genocide government, the time and money spent by the ICTR over the past fifteen years represents a massive wasted opportunity. The sentences of those who exterminated hundreds of thousands of Rwandans have been disturbingly lenient as well as fantastically expensive. The machinery of the international justice system moves slowly indeed, and for now, Rwandans can only watch as it grinds on. Alex Soble is a senior in Trumbull College majoring in Ethics, Politics, and Economics and South Asian Studies. Ali Weiner is a junior History and Political Science major in Davenport College.
30 FOCUS: Tanzania Fall 2009
Tracing the Brain Drain to its Roots Western bias in Tanzania’s education system impacts the country’s economy and its psyche. By Rebecca Trupin
Students at Jangwani Secondary School. Almost every student here harbors hope of going abroad, and many of those who do leave never return to Tanzania, taking their skills and talent elsewhere. (Trupin/TYG) few teachers are badly educated; their students face a lack of educational resources and a severe lack of institutions of higher learning. Moreover, Tanzania’s government and NGOs mostly ignore a serious problem: that the country’s educational system helps lay the psychological foundation for the brain drain by overvaluing Western lifestyles, resources, and culture, while downplaying or ignoring the value of indigenous knowledge and traditions. As a result, severe “brain drain” (the exodus of the educated elite to Western countries) continues to undermine the economies of Tanzania and other Afri-
E
can countries.
sther Nkya stood in the entrance of her chemistry lab, a long cement-floored room with scarred tables, dusty glass bottles,
A Passion for the West
and rusting faucets. “If you ask any Tanzanian student if they
“It is difficult to tease out the economic issues from cultural issues,”
would like to study abroad they would say yes,” said Nkya, surveying
says Rakesh Rajani of Twaweza, an East Africa-wide initiative that
the room with a grim half-smile. “And if you ask them if they would
seeks to increase citizen access to information and basic services.
like to come back, most would not want to.”
Professions popular among students, such as medicine, business, and
Nkya is an A-level Chemistry teacher at Jangwani Secondary
entertainment, tend to enable and encourage study or life abroad. Ac-
School, a government school in the capital city of Dar es Salaam, Tan-
cording to teachers at Jangwani Secondary School, students choose
zania. Students and teachers from throughout the country echo her
these jobs simply because they are well-paying. But Rajani believes
views, acknowledging that Tanzania’s educational system plays a role
that nevertheless, “whenever one makes life choices, part of it is what
in motivating students to leave. This is not only because poverty and
job pays but part of it is what passions one has in life.”
poor management weaken the classroom. It is also because country’s
Godfrey Nyato, a 19-year-old student at Laureate International
FOCUS: Tanzania 31 the yale globalist
School in Dar es Salaam, who dreams of a career in the music busi-
it: “the government is doing a lot in the name of improving educa-
ness, has set his sights on Beverly Hills. “I want to live a rich life-
tion,” things like building more schools and increasing enrollment.
style,” he said. American hip-hop and the accompanying lifestyle
But official efforts seem more concerned with quantity rather than
have captured the imagination of students and youth all over Tanza-
quality of education. Often, more than half of the students in a sev-
nia. Despite Tanzania’s dependence on agriculture, few (particularly
enth-grade class cannot read or write, according to research by the
among the elite) are passionate about careers in farming.
NGO Haki Elimu. The curriculum, based on a British model, contains
Like other traditional careers, farming is not often viewed as mod-
information irrelevant to Tanzania, written in English that is far too
ern or profitable. Tanzania is rich in natural resources, but it is for-
complicated for many teachers, let alone students, to understand. In
eigners who most often reap the benefits. “The Chinese come here
primary school, students are taught in Swahili, the national language
and use our forests and produce low quality things and sell it to us for
of Tanzania. For most students, in secondary school the medium of
a high price,” complained Gervas Zombwe, a former teacher and pro-
instruction switches suddenly to English, regardless of whether or
gram officer with the educational NGO Haki Elimu. Meanwhile, said
not they can understand the language. Students are often punished
Zombwe, following secondary school a typical Tanzanian “leaves his
for speaking Swahili outside of Swahili class. For many students, un-
father’s farm, leaves his land, his forests, and comes to work in town
derstanding and creativity takes second place to the ability to memo-
as a security guard.” A young professional emigrates to the West and
rize English phrases. On top of this, teachers’ insecurity, combined
is “used there like cheap labor, but he’s happy because his mindset
with old-fashioned teaching models from the British colonial system,
has been colonized.” There is a perception, particularly among ur-
restricts the ability to ask questions. According to Rajani, it often
banites, that “Western culture is the best culture from God,” said
feels as if one needs permission to think in class.
Zombwe. A job’s Western image can be valued as highly as its salary.
Curricular weaknesses are not only a factor in brain drain but
“One of the sad things about Tanzanian culture is we have a ten-
also affect the economic and social welfare of the country as a whole.
dency to think that salvation will come from outside,” said Rajani.
The lack of emphasis on individual thinking and dearth of education
Tanzanian youth, from the young professional to the farmer’s boy,
about financial literacy are especially harmful, according to Ane-
are removing themselves from traditional culture and lifestyles. The
Kirstine Bagger, a consultant for Femina Health Information Project,
trend among urban youth is to seek Western-styled modernity, and
a Tanzanian initiative focusing on HIV/AIDS, health and reproduc-
perhaps live abroad, while the trend among rural youth is to become
tion. Among the Tanzanian youths Femina works with, the unem-
modern urban youth.
ployment level is nearly 40 percent, leaving many idle, frustrated,
The Role of the Schools
and with little hope for the future. To cope with the scarcity of jobs in Tanzania, when youth leave school they must “be creative, be en-
“These kids are brain-washed into thinking African things aren’t
trepreneurs” and “take initiative,” said Bagger. “But people are in no
good enough,” fumed one teacher at Laureate International School.
way trained to think like this in the school system.”
While the media is largely responsible for the influx of Western culture, westernization is particularly evident in education. “The more
An Alternate Vision
educated a person is, the weaker the ties with any living culture,”
While the brain drain leaves many reasons for pessimism, there are
said Rajani.
some reasons for optimism as well. According to Bagger, the govern-
The British-based national syllabus teaches little about how to
ment is aware of the need for a program in financial literacy and
make use of Tanzania’s natural resources and even less about the
has encouraged NGOs like Femina to work in its secondary schools.
country’s human resources — indigenous values, knowledge, and
Meanwhile, organizations such as Twaweza and Haki Elimu focus
skills that are quickly disappearing. On the rare occasions when
on educating and empowering communities to hold government ac-
Tanzanians are taught about their cultural heritage, the approach is,
countable for the quality of their children’s education.
in Rajani’s words, “tokenistic” and “fossilized.” To demonstrate his
The psychological roots of the brain drain have a far-reaching
point, Rajani brought up the example of the Village Museum of Dar
impact on Tanzanian society, on those who remain as well as those
es Salaam, where classes come to study Tanzania’s tribal history: In
who are wealthy enough to leave. Thus, all Tanzanian citizens must
effect, the museum “takes a native and puts him in a box for students
stand together to demand a better education from their government.
to go in and gawk,” said Rajani. “If you ask a young person in a sec-
At the moment, there is no real effort to transform the education sys-
ondary school: ‘What about your heritage are you proud of?’ I think
tem, and although people are more cynical, according to Rajani: “The
you’re likely to get a blank face.”
ground is there for change to happen.” But there are still no alternate
A history teacher at an elite private school corroborated Rajani’s
heroes or ideas poised to revolutionize the system. Until a vision for
statement. The tribes are not studied, he said, except in context of
Tanzania’s future is developed, the old, inadequate models will re-
agriculture, trade, kingdoms, and the colonial struggle. After inde-
main in place.
pendence they are barely considered at all.
Quantity over Quality Activists like Zombwe concede that the government has put significant resources into the education system. Or rather, as Zombwe put
Rebecca Trupin is a junior Ethics, Politics and Economics major in Jonathan Edwards College
32 FOCUS: Tanzania Fall 2009
Impeding Integration in East Africa As the region works toward labor mobility, Tanzania flounders for data and stonewalls regional policy. By Rachel Wolf
I
nside halls lined by haphazard stacks of crumbling employment files, the recalcitrance and cluelessness of Tanzania’s govern-
ment threaten to sink regional aspirations to economic integration. Spurred by the successes of European common markets, the East African Community (EAC), which unites Kenya, Uganda, Burundi,
Rwanda, and Tanzania around shared development goals, plans to enact a Common Market Protocol in November. Like the EU’s, the EAC protocol would mandate free movement of goods, labor, services, and capital among member states. The five nations are already preparing for integration’s inevitable complications: In early June, the United Kingdom and EAC held a “migration management” seminar on human trafficking, document fraud, and asylum claims. Focus on these secondary complications assumes that EAC states could handle the direct effects of increased migration. In Tanzania, that assumption may be dangerously charitable. The nation stands unequipped to weather a surge in basic migration.
Greater labor mobility would increase competition for jobs requiring professionalquality English. (Martin/TYG)
If integration does come to this East African nation, its residence
try has fixated on potential remittances from Tanzanians working
permit will be issued on the fifth floor of Hifadhi House, home to the
outside East Africa in nations such as the United Arab Emirates. But
Tanzanian Ministry of Labour, Employment, and Youth Development
even these efforts face the ministry’s utter disorganization. In all its
and a four-foot mountain of folders crowned by an upended swivel
towering piles of crumbling folders, the office does not have any re-
chair. Without hard data, this file-strewn office monitors immigration
cords or information on migrant laborers either inside or outside the
patterns based on common knowledge and general impressions. “So
country. The most recent government data available, a 2002 census
many Kenyans are coming here,” Labour Officer Ikusubisya Kasebele
and labor statistics from 2001, are too old to shape future-looking
said. Hunched over the desk from which he was substituting for a va-
policies. Kasebele said the ministry has relied on information from
cationing director of employment, Kasebele painted bleak prospects
the IOM, which surveys the Tanzanian diaspora through an online
for Tanzanians should the EAC usher in free movement of labor. Ac-
questionnaire.
cording to him and other professionals in the Tanzanian capital of
“We need to do a study,” Kasebele said. “We have a problem of in-
Dar es Salaam, Kenyan migrants’ sharper English-language skills
formation. Last year we were invited to attend a meeting, the Global
give them an edge in the Tanzanian labor market.
Forum on Migration and Development. We needed to submit a report
In a protectionist move, Tanzania has tried to kill a section of the
on what we have done on migration issues.” Unsurprisingly, they
proposed common labor market that would require free issue of resi-
had done nothing. The ministry drew up a scant three-page docu-
dence permits to citizens of other EAC nations. “We want to balance
ment and made plans to pass off the composition of a labor migration
things: movement of labor, movement of goods,” Kasebele said. The
policy “to some lecturers from universities who do studies and have
EAC’s planned free movement of labor promises more upset than bal-
experience with these things,” Kasebele said. That the Ministry of
ance. A wiser ministry might try managing migration rather than
Labour has less experience with labor migration policy than do local
stonewalling to stem its flow, but Tanzania’s Labour Ministry doesn’t
academics bodes poorly.
possess sufficient file cabinets, much less sufficient foresight. Its non-
Whether or not a slapdash policy on remittances will boost the
governmental partners are similarly sidetracked. According to Tan-
Tanzanian economy remains irrelevant to the question of how Tan-
zania Programme Officer Monika Peruffo, the International Organi-
zania will weather greater regional integration. Even if Tanzania suc-
zation for Migration (IOM) also overlooks economic migrants within
ceeds in scuttling a common labor market for East Africa, workers
Tanzania. Inexplicably, no one has focused on the real issue at hand:
will continue to contend with some level of economic migration into
managing migration. A government immigration officer confirmed
the country. Without policies, data, or officials concentrated on the
that Kasebele’s office considers migrants’ applications for residence
issue, the only things Tanzania’s Labour Ministry will be “balancing”
permits, but Kasebele admitted: “We don’t have any procedures or
are stacks of paperwork.
policies about labor migration.” Instead of focusing on migration into Tanzania, the labor minis-
Rachel Wolf is a junior Political Science major in Saybrook College.
CULTURE 33
the yale globalist
Saying Au Revoir to the Old Joie de Vivre During the global economic crisis, the leisurely French pace of life faces changes and challenges. By Sandy Zhu
“I
open my business at three,” Nabil Nad, a Parisian crepemaker, remarked nonchalantly as he spread a thick layer of rich batter onto his hot plate. “Three in the afternoon, of
course. I don’t work mornings,” he clarified as he flipped the golden crepe over in one swift motion. One of Nad’s dreams is to move to New York City to start his own crepe stand. “It’s hard to make money in Paris,” he grumbled. However, when asked if he still expects to start working at 3:00 pm in the Big Apple, he replied, “Yes, of course!” While those who are not self-employed work longer hours than Nad does, their work schedules are still far more relaxed than those of their American counterparts. France’s government regulates the length of the work week in the name of work-life balance, trying hard to ensure that French people can afford time for recreation. For example, any work over 35 hours per week is considered overtime by law. Moreover, President Nicolas Sarkozy introduced fiscal reduction for overtime hours in 2007, which demands that overtime be paid 25 percent higher than the normal hourly rate. According to Lounes Drouère, a graying former high-school teach-
Nabil Nad displays his renowned Nutella crepes. Nad enjoys lax working hours but grumbles about the difficulty of making money in Paris. (Zhu/TYG) even when the economy isn’t hurting.
er who now works for an insurance company, the 35-hour workweek
As a result, many young graduates are trying to find jobs else-
policy has not helped at all, especially during the financial collapse.
where. Marie Alice Migliaerse, a native Parisian who attends Dal-
He said that since his company doesn’t want him to work beyond the
phine University in Paris, would love to seek work in the U.S. “There
35 hours every week, he has to finish more work in the same amount
are more opportunities there,” she said in fluent English. “Many of
of time. He can’t refuse because most companies are trying to lay off
my friends from the grandes écoles have already left.”
workers to cope with the tough economic situation. “I have to work
Some members of the older generation seems to disapprove of
much harder now than I did twenty years ago, and they are still try-
this wave of youth emigration. “Young people are so materialistic
ing to end my contract. This isn’t fair,” Drouère scowled.
nowadays,” complained Marie-Bernard Xieberras, a former French
But as an employed person, Drouère might count himself lucky.
teacher and self-described art lover. “They all want to be millionaires
According to France 24, a French news service, unemployment rates
and they all move to America.” Currently unemployed and living on
have jumped to 8.7 percent, from 7.6 percent a year ago. This wave
her own, the 50-year-old Parisian favors a different way of life: “I don’t
of unemployment has hit young people the hardest. According to
own anything but I don’t care. I have enough to enjoy Paris, that’s all
Michel Depret, manager of Crit Employment Agency in Paris, re-
that matters.”
cent college graduates are leaving school and entering the faltering
While Paris itself may suffice for some, those without jobs — and
French economy with unrealistic expectations. “The young people,
especially the young — pay the heaviest price for France’s work-life
especially those who graduated from the grandes écoles [France’s
balance regulations. In the meantime, said Depret of Crit employ-
elite universities], expect a lot without having enough to offer.”
ment agency, young French people should think about possibilities
In the wake of the economic crisis, Crit, which helps workers find
for creating jobs as well as obtaining them. “I think people should be
temporary employment, has seen at least a 40 increase in the number
more adventurous,” he said from Crit’s storefront in the Paris’s 9th
of job seekers who come through its doors. Depret criticizes policies
district. “We need more entrepreneurs, and not many young gradu-
like the 35-hour work week for dampening the labor market. Because
ates are up for that.”
regulations make it difficult for French firms to lay off workers during difficult financial times, many are reluctant to hire new workers
Sandy Zhu is a sophomore Economics and Mathematics major in Jonathan Edwards College.
34 CULTURE Fall 2009
A Goal for Africa The Right to Dream Academy scores opportunities for Ghanaian students on and off the field. By Nathaniel Sobel
I
n a bar in Accra in the fall of 1999, David Esch first met Tom Ver-
King Osei Gyan and Daniel Owusu, have signed professional con-
non, an employee of USAID. Vernon, a nineteen-year-old college
tracts with the Fulham Football Club in the English Premier League.
dropout from England, was unemployed, with little more than his
Secondly, as only a few will play in Europe’s top professional
UEFA soccer coaching license and a vague idea about starting a soc-
leagues, each year several boys win full scholarships to elite high
cer academy in Ghana. “I plan to stay in Ghana for five years,” Ver-
schools and universities across the United States and Europe, where
non told Esch that night matter-of-factly. Accustomed to the constant
they dominate on the soccer field and beyond. Chris Downs, head
coming and going of white people in West Africa, Esch could see that
coach of the varsity team at The Hotchkiss School in Lakeville, Con-
Vernon was different: “I could tell he had a sort of long-term dream.”
necticut, explained: “The Right to Dream boys have been role models
Ten years later, Vernon is the founder and director of the thriving
— their optimism, enthusiasm, and resilience have served to inspire
Right to Dream Soccer Academy in Dawu, Ghana. Right to Dream is a
the entire community.” Hotchkiss student Albert “C.K.” Kumah won
residential boarding school that enrolls approximately sixty boys on
one of the school’s most prestigious academic awards, while his fellow
full scholarship, most of whom come from families that are unable to
Right to Dream graduate James Nortey has emerged as the school’s
afford even the nominal fee for public school in Ghana.
premier modern dancer. This fall, twenty Right to Dream boys will be
Vernon started out by organizing soccer practices for boys on a
studying in the United States and Europe.
dust field in Accra on weekends. Quickly realizing the boys’ potential,
The opportunities available for students who stay in Ghana, how-
both in terms of talent and character, he spent the next few years
ever, are just as remarkable as those that await them abroad. Gradu-
struggling to train, teach, house, and feed the boys from his own
ates who stay are invited to continue at the Academy as coaches,
home.
teachers, and administrators. While perhaps less glamorous than
In 2003, Vernon was able to move the boys to the present site of
playing in Europe or studying in America, the boys who stay on are
the Academy. By Western standards, the facilities are rudimentary at
respected every bit as much as those who leave. These boys may
best. The main classroom, a wall-less structure with a tin roof over-
well have the most direct impact on the future of the Academy by
looking the sole soccer field, also serves as the cafeteria. Running
ensuring that each year a new generation of Ghanaians will be able
water is never guaranteed, and each student washes his only soccer
years, I’d like to think “ Inthattwenty-five there will not be a white face at the
uniform by hand each night before bed. At first glance, it would be difficult to imagine that Vernon calls these boys “the most privileged kids in Africa.” In November 2008, ESPN.com ran a story titled “Hungry for a Better Life,” which profiled a student’s admission into the Academy and two students’ graduation from the Academy and matriculation at New England boarding schools. Unfortunately, ESPN’s illustration of
Academy.” —Right to Dream founder Tom Vernon to share in this life-changing opportunity.
the Academy as a one-way ticket out of Ghana was myopic. The Right
Richard Dowden, director of the Royal African Society and author
to Dream Academy is an experiment in education meant to further
of Africa: Altered States, Ordinary Miracles, has written that “only
the development of Ghana, not export its most promising students.
Africans can develop Africa.” Tom Vernon agrees. “In twenty-five
“In the beginning,” Vernon said, “the only career path we knew
years,” he said, “I’d like to think that there will not be a white face
was professional football. Since then, our objectives and goals have
at the Academy. The Academy runs on a model where Africans can
changed. Now, we are educating boys who can contribute to Ghana
eventually create and run their own model.”
in many different ways.” While still training some of the continent’s
Since a significant number of boys do study outside Ghana, a
most talented athletes, the Academy also aims to educate Ghana’s
sense of national pride plays a critical role in the curriculum and
next generation of leaders. “If they put the work in, they have the
ethos of the school in order to ensure that these boys will not be part
possibility of choosing between three opportunities of a lifetime,”
of the “brain drain”: the departure of African professionals for the
Vernon explained.
West that has plagued the continent since the 1960s.
First, there is the professional soccer route, a realistic possibil-
While the oldest Academy graduates are at most twenty years old,
ity for some. In August, the Right to Dream Under-15 team finished
many of the boys who are studying abroad plan to return to Ghana. “I
third in the Nike Premier Cup held in Manchester, England, the most
hope one day to return to help children through football and educa-
competitive youth soccer tournament in the world. To date, two boys,
tion,” said Atobra Ampadu, Academy graduate and junior co-captain
CULTURE 35
the yale globalist
of the varsity team at Hotchkiss. Recently, the role of NGOs in the developing world has come under increased scrutiny. Professor Alan Fowler, co-founder of the International NGO Training and Research Centre, has called the proliferation of NGOs in Africa a “second wave of colonialism.” He argues that some NGOs delegitimize the African state by virtue of their disproportionate influence on politics, policy, and even values. The Academy program, however, consciously embraces a unique blend of Ghanaian and Western values. Lively debates, dance and theater performances, and student-led classes all help incorporate different cultures into the classroom. Even the punishments assigned at the Academy draw on more Ghanaian ideas than Western ones. Last spring, roughly a dozen first and second year boys arrived two days late to the start of the semester. Vernon was not pleased. “Clubs in Europe have stereotypes about African players: that they come late to training and are unreliable. You have to take radical steps to change behaviors that reinforce these stereotypes or you are killing the entire continent,” he said emphatically. To determine the boys’ punishment, Vernon consulted the director of dormitory life, a Ghanaian man who lives with the boys fulltime. Together, they decided that for one week, those boys who were late would be awakened in the middle of the night to run uphill windsprints, and their diets restricted to three bowls of rice a day (less than the standard Academy diet, but still more food than many would eat at home). While these punishments may seem harsh, Vernon explained the
Yaw Yeboah chases the ball during an early-morning training session before class begins at the Academy. (Courtesy Paul Wassell) importance of communicating disapproval in a way that the kids can understand. “At home, if a boy were to mess up, his father would beat the hell out of him,” Vernon said bluntly. “The boys must realize what is acceptable and what is not from Day One.” Ampadu said that these types of physical punishments were not uncommon when he was at the Academy. Choosing his words carefully, he said: “I won’t say it’s good and I won’t say it’s bad. When we were punished, we knew we had to be on our feet.” “Caring but tough” could also serve as an apt metaphor for the approach to Africa outlined by President Obama. In July, thousands of Ghanaians took to their feet and beat djembe drums to greet Obama on his first visit to sub-Saharan Africa since taking office. In his speech in Accra, Obama spoke bluntly of the need to bring an end to corruption and strong-man politics in Africa. He declared: “Aid is not an end in itself. The purpose of foreign assistance must be creating the conditions where it's no longer needed.” As the success of the Right to Dream Academy suggests, the model of an African-run institution for Africans that takes advantage of Western influence has enormous potential in the twenty-first century. How to apply the Right to Dream model on a larger scale is a critical question for the future of African development. Nathaniel Sobel is a sophomore in Berkeley College.
36 PERSPECTIVES Fall 2009
“I am a Seed of Peace” At a summer program in Maine, children of conflict sing out a new harmony. By Micah Hendler
A
17-year-old Palestinian Israeli citizen named Asel
them, then everyone's proud of the same thing.” When
Asleh is shot point blank by an Israeli policeman
they sing together about their common experience as
in an olive grove. He is buried in the green shirt he was
children of conflict, divisions begin to fade. “It unites
wearing when he was killed, emblazoned with a sil-
us all,” affirmed Cameel, a Palestinian Seed. “Music
houette of three people holding hands, leaving behind
involves everyone.”
them three intertwined olive branches. It is the symbol of Seeds of Peace.
“
Everyone has their national anthem, and they’re really proud of it, so if you sing the Seeds of Peace anthem, then everyone’s proud of the same thing.” —Seeds of Peace
participant Elizabeth
Even for those who feel excluded at camp, music can make remarkable progress. Amir, an Arab citi-
Seeds of Peace is an organization that brings teen-
zen of Israel who felt caught in-between the Israeli
agers from conflict regions all over the world to a
and Arab spheres, lashed out by making trouble. But
summer camp in Maine to engage their presupposed
when his peers began to help him synchronize his beat
enemies in political dialogue and see that they laugh,
with their own in a musical ensemble I led, his behav-
cry, and love alike. During my summer as a camper at
ior changed completely. He began to take pride in the
Seeds of Peace in 2004, I was told the story of Asel, one
group's performance as an achievement that belonged
of the most active “Seeds” to have ever graduated the
not only to others, but to him as well.
program, and decided to set his favorite poem to music
It is people's investment in music that makes it pow-
as a tribute. In the summer of 2007, while studying in
erful. Asel Asleh's death meant something completely
Israel, I visited the Asleh family to share the music I
different to his parents, native Palestinians, than it
had written for their son. Though they appreciated my
did to me, who had been inspired by him as a Seed
visit, they showed no reaction to my music whatsoev-
of Peace. Moreover, my choral piece was written in a
er. I left disheartened, but with a new resolve: to figure
musical language they did not understand. But when
out how I could effectively use music for the cause of
music becomes a component of cross-cultural identity
peace.
formation, it can be used to facilitate the expression
My opportunity came this summer as I returned
of that community and empower its members. Even
to Seeds of Peace as a music counselor. Though the
Seeds from Gaza, the region most hard-hit by recent
campers who attend arrive with mutually antagonistic
violence, asked to be taught the Seeds of Peace song,
identities and histories — indeed, they are carefully
because for them, it was a way to show the rest of camp
selected by their governments for their ability to de-
that they were Seeds too.
fend national policy — every camper is welcomed as
As I return to Yale this fall to lead community sings,
a new “Seed of Peace.” As Seeds, the campers can en-
musical gatherings open to Yale students and New Ha-
gage each other in dialogue about the issues that di-
ven residents, I intend to use music to bring a different
vide them, as well as develop friendships in the bunks
group of strangers together. Through music, I hope
and on the sports-fields, without betraying their iden-
that they too will be able to express their creativity
tities back home.
and positive, communal resolve. Maybe they too will
Music is a powerful way that campers express their new identity. From the moment they first arrive, they
start to perform what we all want to hear: the harmony that will lead to a better world.
are welcomed with a vibrant celebration of drumming and dancing, which many instinctively join. At the official beginning of camp, each delegation proudly raises its flag and sings its national anthem at the camp gates; but to finish the ceremony, the Seeds of Peace flag is raised and everyone joins hands to sing “I am a Seed of Peace.” As Elizabeth, an American Seed, put it, “Everyone has their national anthem, and they're really proud of it, so if you sing the Seeds of Peace an-
Micah Hendler is a junior Music and International Studies major in Calhoun College.
PERSPECTIVES 37 the yale globalist
An Illusion of Prosperity Female immigrants come to Hong Kong from the mainland and Southeast Asia hoping to share in the region’s wealth but do not and cannot. By Alexandra Rose
Female immigrants to Hong Kong have been left out as the city speeds eagerly and aggressively forward.
H
ong Kong was a very strange place to spend the
a place where the mismatched expectations of the two
summer of a recession. It is a city deeply obsessed
groups clash.
with conspicuous consumption, perhaps best encapsu-
Mainland women are being imported to fill a role
lated in the Queen’s Road Central Coach store, a build-
— that of the traditional, submissive Chinese wife —
ing wrapped in a multi-story flashing neon version of
that local Hong Kong women, viewed as harder to
its own overlapping “C” logo. Hong Kong’s artfully lit
control and more independent, are expected to have
banking towers and designer shopping complexes are
outgrown. Yale Professor of Anthropology Helen Siu
a large part of what have allowed it to stand as a capi-
suggested that in the case of new and female arrivals,
talist gateway to the East — and a beacon of affluence
male-female gender hierarchies are “combined with
in the minds of poor women from across Asia.
the Hongkongers’ own arrogance towards the main-
Roughly 71 percent of immigrants to Hong Kong
land.” Tradition is projected onto mainland women
from the Chinese mainland in 2004 and 2005 were
by Hong Kong men who believe themselves and Hong
women. Immigration from Southeast Asia, which
Kong women to be more modern. Paradoxically, Hong
comes predominantly from the Philippines but also
Kong is a place where the obsession with modernity
from Thailand, Indonesia, and Sri Lanka, shows even
has, consciously or not, engendered a parallel obses-
more gender imbalance.
sion with tradition.
Abuse of migrant workers is prevalent worldwide,
While dissimilar, Hong Kong’s governing attitudes
but seems particularly and problematically rooted
of splashy consumption and patriarchal Chinese tra-
in Hong Kong. Hong Kong’s proximity to the South-
dition are both principles exclusionary to women, es-
east Asian countries from which domestic workers
pecially to poor and to newly arrived women. Female
are sourced helps to facilitate this immigration, and
immigrants to Hong Kong have been left out as the
its supposed minimum wage attracts more domestic
city speeds eagerly and aggressively forward. Power
workers than other nearby countries like Malaysia
requires inferiority — domestic workers or obedi-
and Singapore. Hong Kong’s exaltation and preoccupa-
ent wives — to exist, and Hong Kong, as a city deeply
tion with wealth also socially justifies the subjugation
concerned with power, both financial and patriarchal,
of these women. To have a domestic helper is a status
needs to take advantage of female immigrants to main-
symbol much like the logos that proudly adorn every-
tain its upward momentum.
thing in the city from buildings to napkins.
As China’s mainland economy continues to grow,
Women from the mainland, the other kind of female
Hong Kong will look less golden by comparison and
immigrant to Hong Kong, occupy an even more compli-
immigration from the mainland will begin to slow.
cated position. Most these women have married Hong
However, migrants from Southeast Asia will continue
Kong men who have gone to the mainland specifically
to arrive in Hong Kong to become servants and domes-
on a trip to find a bride. Many of these cross-border
tic helpers like their predecessors. Hong Kong, forever
families then settle in Tin Shui Wai, a housing project
in need of both an inferior class and an inferior gen-
in the northern New Territories, an outlying area of
der, will always be able to attract newcomers to play
Hong Kong that borders on the mainland city of Shen-
these roles. It is, famously, a beacon of wealth in an
zhen. The place is notorious for having the highest
area of poverty and as such is both irresistible and in-
levels of domestic abuse in the entire Special Admin-
corrigible.
istrative Region. Harmony House, the oldest domestic abuse shelter in Hong Kong, has a special office in Tin Shui Wai because the area is so high-risk. Tin Shui Wai sees so much violence because of its role as point of contact between mainland women and the mucholder Hong Kong men whom they have married. It is
Alexandra Rose is a senior History of Art major in Branford College.
38
A picture perspective
The Roof of the World By Anna Kellar
T
he Himalayas are an idea as much as they are a physical place. For locals, the mountains are sacred: the dwellings of gods and
demons and the source of life-giving water. For explorers they boast of hidden wealth, adventure, and spiritual discovery. Host to both Muslim tribesmen to hippie backpackers, these snowy peaks are full of apparent contradictions. Located at the center of key trade routes and the overlapping edges of great civilizations, the Himalayas remain somehow apart from the mundane lands below. Anna Kellar is a sophomore in Saybrook College.
In the Valleys | Tabo, Gangles: Less than thirty years ago, villages such as Tabo were many days’ journey from the nearest town, connected only by ancient trade routes. After independence, the Indian Army, needing access to its volatile borders, began building some of the world’s most death-defying roads through these valleys. Now a crucial part of life here, they not only facilitate the movement of supplies to the villages but also provide employment. In many villages men are away for much of the year, doing road repair work after the frequent landslides. The women are left to do most of the farming, like these neighbors hoeing a field of peas.
On the Peaks | Tsokar, Ladakh: For Hindus and Buddhists alike, the Himalayas are places of pilgrimage. The Hindu god Shiva kept a summer home on Mount Kailash. There are few peaks that don’t have prayer flags on their summits; one finds Buddhist shrines even in the middle of seemingly barren areas. Ladakh, culturally Tibetan, falls on the Indian side of the border. Its monasteries have escaped the destruction that took place after the Chinese occupation. Monasteries like Thiksey (left) thrive thanks to the flocks of foreign visitors who come seeking a glimpse of a more spiritual way of life. During the summer months, in the central town of Leh tourists far outnumber locals. It remains to be seen whether this influx will be a blessing or curse: For locals, the way of life is changing, and for visitors, the pilgrimage may be starting to lose some of its forbidden charm.
Dreaming | Humayun’s Tomb, Delhi: The Mughal Empire, which ruled India for 300 years, was founded by a band of nomads who stormed down from the Northwestern mountains on horseback in 1526. Babur, the first emperor, never grew accustomed to the heat of the Indian plains, and spent most of his life longing for the snows and orchards of his homeland. In Mughal depictions of the gardens of paradise, the artists painted Kashmiri trees and flowers, believing that the cool green mountains were the closest thing to heaven on earth.
The Foothills | Shimla: The British, too, fled from the Delhi summers to the hill station of Shimla. They ruled one-fifth of the world’s population from this tiny mountain town, a surreal reflection of their best efforts to recreate the look and feel of England in the middle of India. The British saw the Himalayas as a potential buffer against Russian expansion, and worked through the challenges of mapping out its many passes, measuring its summits, and pacifying the local people.