Blood shed

Well this definitely won't be my fondest blog-post, but it is a reality here in Ghana, so I thought to best portray life as it actually unfolds here.

If you have do have a weak stomach though, just skip this blog---

I arrived to work on Monday with my 2 roommates to a horrific scene.

There was a terrible car accident at the intersection where our office is located in Osu, so the tro-tro (similar to SA's 'taxi's') dropping us off, had to stop at that intersection b/c they couldn't even get by. There was a huge crowd of people, the police, a tow truck and the vehicle's involved were in such bad shape-- I was sure there were no survivors.

Then I found out what happened...

Early Monday morning, 4 robbers targeted a 21-year-old female student from the University of Ghana located here in Accra (near where I live in East Legon) and snatched her purse at 5am when she was getting out of a hired taxi. The 'good samaritan taxi driver' who witnessed the innocent student being robbed from his taxi chased the 4 robbers, who then robbed another taxi driver at gun-point in order for him to give up his taxi to them.
Obviously, he obliged and the chase was on.

The good samaritan taxi driver was shouting out his window at passersby, that the vehicle ahead of him was in fact stolen and robbers were driving it.

Apparently here in Ghana, there is this unwritten code that Ghanaians will do anything and everything to take the law/fate into their own hands to punish menaces of their society-- which I was unaware of?

So the taxi that the robbers were driving, collided with an innocent man's car on his way to work (if he is still alive, he must have sustained some serious, life-threatening injuries). This obviously stopped the robbers from this crazy pursuit, and when they went to run out of the vehicle, a mob of Ghanaian's from the community where I work in Osu, grabbed 3 of them (the 4th one successfully got away with her purse b/c he was wielding a gun, sending off gun shots to warn the Ghanaian mob surrounding him, that he would kill them if they dared pursuing him) and started lynching them.

They killed the 3 robbers by stripping them naked first to shame them, then using stones and machete's to beat them to death and lighting them afire with gas-filled tires afterward.

The blood from 1 of the deceased remains stained on the pavement by work (we haven't had rain in this hot, hot humidity).

My roommates and I were passing by the scene around 9am when police were working tirelessly to disperse the crowd so they could begin their investigation.

When I asked my boss if the police will go after those who lynched the 3, he said to me absurdly, "How can you ask that? Would you want them to approach you to rob you? If they hadn't been killed this morning, they would have simply continued robbing and killing innocent people. It is best they are dead".

I just gulped and walked away bewildered.

Yes, it is wonderful Ghanaian's are so protective of humanity and willing to punish wrongdoer's, but to what extent?

Anyway, I am still reeling from the whole incident as it is front page news here on the Daily Graphic newspaper- photo's included.

And for those wondering, no--- this is not one of my crazy, doxycycline-induced (malaria prophylaxis) dreams! This actually happened on Monday and the tragedy of it all still haunts me as I type this.

'Shaggy' in Ghana?!

Yes, you read that right!
I was at a Shaggy concert last night here in Accra!! Whoda thunk?!

I met a Ghanaian friend, Koffie at one of the beaches here when we arrived in July, then at a different beach again, so we all (his friends, me and my roomates) decided to go to this event yesterday! He invited us to what he called a 'funfare' at TradeFair.
Little did we know that here in Ghana, Joy FM hosts an Old Skull Reunion annually for anyone who's ever attended any high school here in Accra! You can imagine how many people were there, from all different ages! It was crazy!

A mock CNN correspondent came up and 'interviewed' us along with another media outlet (legit I think?), people were running around naked, everyone was dancing to 'high-life' (equivalent to the type of music we call 'oldskool') and so carefree... really, it was lovely.

So we wasted away the afternoon there at the high-life stage (and of course observing the chaos surrounding us!) with many approaching us 3 whites, asking which high school we attended. As a joke, Koffie told us to say we attended 'Vandals High School'. Little did we realize, this is an all-boys high school as we innocently, yet proudly said "we attended Vandals"! We were quite the laughing-stock for awhile there. Then we ate some local food and went down to the stage where Shaggy was performing. He came on-- hours later and it started raining!!
Once the rain subsided, the sound system was done for, so all his good songs were choppy. Boo.
Good times had by all though.

The more time I spend here in Ghana, the more I am looking for ways to slow down 'time'.

I had a typical work-week... me still navigating (aimlessly) my way in my role as 'Program Officer'. I did manage to go to the Ghana AIDS Commission with my boss, which was nothing compared to SA's. But it's expected as HIV/AIDS isn't the issue it is down south here.

The week was also filled with many intermittent giggles... one being when in the midst of my boss seriously explaining his stance on the new discovery of oil here in Ghana, a random bird flew in the office and knocked itself off the walls maybe 10X before crapping on the floor and flying out! I guess you had to be there-- but the look on my boss' face and the whole scenario itself, STILL has me and my roomate cracking up!

I went to church this morning, but unfortunately the sermon and entire mass was in Ga, so I didn't get too much out of it. It was a Presbyterian church near where we are living now til mid-Sept.
Then I will be moving closer to where I work in Osu. Right now I am located in a posh suburb of Accra called, East Legon.

Sorry I haven't more to report on the work-front, but alas I am in Africa doing development work, and this is just the way it goes I've learned. Patience though, is a wonderful sub-lesson in times like these!

I hope my readers are keeping well, I appreciate you dropping by to check out my latest!
Oh-- and if anyone has any tips on how to slow down 'time'- do share!

August 1?

Unbelievable how my time is going by so quickly here in Ghana...
I heard today it was August 1 and was floored! Where have these past 2 weeks gone?!

Since I last wrote, I journeyed to a (polluted) beach called La beach where the smog blurred my sunglasses I can't recall how many times and the waves continuously churned rubbish, plastic bags and even sewage. I just sat on a lounge chair, taking in the beauty (yes, there is plenty here!) of this country I am now living in, and trying to process some of the things I have been a witness to.

I have to say, it is such a refreshing change to be in the company of these wonderful Ghanaian people. I am finding it difficult to stop comparing here to my past experience in South Africa & Zambia. The people here in fact remind me of the kindness and friendly nature of Zambians.
And Ghanaian people make up for what Ghana lacks development-wise.

Everyday, I walk along open gutters, diesel being blown in every direction, heaps of garbage and just dirt on top of more dirt. I am somewhat getting used to my frequent life in the 'dark' (from power outages), my homocidal tendencies when cockroaches the size of a mouse take up residence in my bathroom and drinking from a bag (treated water)-- but at times, I find myself missing the luxuries of home. But I am fortunate to be in good company with my roomates (2 girls from the Ottawa area). We make time go by discussing anything and everything.

Many of you have been writing wanting to know more about my job, but as we have to appreciate here in Africa, I am still patiently waiting to find out myself! In South Africa, it took me a good 1.5 months until I found a niche I could then begin to spread my wings in.

I met with my boss today and he gave me the task of writing a policy to be discussed in the Ghanaian Parliamentary legislative debates on the topic of getting Ghana's elderly involved in a pension plan.
The way the elderly live here is deplorable.

So many of the Ghanaian elderly who fought so hard for this country to gain their own Independence (and this year- 2007 is the anniversary of their 50th year of Independence) from British rule, and the way by which they are being mistreated and forced to live in such poverty makes my heart ache. It is something we as Canadians, will never know the plight of unless you journey to a country such as this.

We learned today of one of the stories that comes from the day Ghana declared themselves an 'Independent' nation....
a young, educated, beautiful young girl was selected to deliver a bouquet of fresh flowers to the President of Ghana some 50 years ago as part of his election campaign.
What no one knew was that a bomb had been planted in the bouquet. An insider from the gov't got word of this and ran up before it detonated and smacked the bouquet away from the President and the young, beautiful, educated girl ended up losing her leg from the blast.

In commemoration of this, Ghana's 50th birthday, a local media outlet went to see this now elderly woman to find out how she is living nowadays after being deemed a hero by saving their then President.

Imagine...
they found her living on the dirt floor of a shack since she never had any children or anyone to look after her. She doesn't have money to cook and she uses a pot in the shack as her toilet. It was atrocious the way this woman-- who literally lost a limb in order to save the President, has to live b/c she is one of the millions of 'forgotten elderly' of Ghana.

Though I have still not yet managed to figure out why/how exactly I ended up here in Ghana on this particular internship (having nothing to do with my interest in HIV/AIDS work), my greatest hope is that I can in some way bring back even a glimmer of light to our elders here, who have been overshadowed by the darkness of age, disrespect and carelessness.

At night, I can't even begin to imagine what I have already been a witness to....

Think about it... if we continue to neglect to care for the elderly-- all their worldly experience, insightful wisdom and unconditional love will cease to exist. What does that say for future generations?