Getting Serious

Hi everyone! I have been a little M.I.A. because the last week has been relatively hectic. The overall tone of the trip has shifted from my peers and I being bright-eyed tourists to students once again.

Last week we began a series of lectures that took place from Monday through Wednesday. These lectures were primarily conducted by University of Botswana faculty and/or UB affiliates. One of the affiliates, a Motswana woman by the name of Tumie, gave a presentation on the role of peer education in regards to the HIV/AIDS situation in Botswana. While she is no older than 25, it is clear the esteem that the professors have for her. She has been a peer educator for HIV/AIDS prevention education since the age of 13, and today sits on many international committees. Surprisingly, she has struggled to find work in Botswana, but evidentially finding a job is difficult here apart from diamond mining, which seems to be Botswana's one cash crop.

I have noticed that it is not uncommon for many Batswana to move abroad because of a lack of funds and/or job opportunities. Many faculty members have spouses and children that live abroad including our program coordinator in Botswana, Lucky. Lucky (and yes, this is her real name) actually attended Ohio University and received her master's and PhD degrees in counseling. Her husband and children now reside in Chillicothe, Ohio. I can't seem to get all the details why, but it's intriguing.

Tumie is now in a tough spot where if she is unable to find work here, she knows her chances are greater in the States, so she might uproot her newborn baby and husband to seek employment. Ironically, Botswana is considered a rather economically prosperous country, and there is a ton of diversity here. Two of my peers, George and Mary, are Kenyan and they took us over the weekend to a Kenyan festival. It feels so random to be treated with such warmth and hospitality by Kenyans when we are actually in Botswana, and to be honest, most of the natives have been anything but hospitable. While Botswana has given refuge to many foreigners and Western civilization seems to be widely accepted here, there still seems to be an understandable resentment towards anyone who is not Batswana.

Anyway, much of our lectures last week dealt with statistics. While I won't bore you too much with all of this data, one thing that I did find to be interesting was the lack of attention to inmates in the prison systems here. Many inmates go into these prisons HIV- and come out HIV+, yet the prison system seems to make no efforts to promote safe sex. Granted, prisons everywhere have this problem, but in a country whose HIV/AIDS prevalence is 40% of the population, you would think this might raise a few red flags.

Apparently the controversy behind this taboo subject stems from homosexuality. Homosexuality is not recognized in Botswana. Even Tumie during her presentation had no idea how to label homosexuals because it is just not in their vocabulary. I was under the impression when I came here that homosexuality was illegal, which we found out from a legal and ethical firm called BONELA that this assumption was untrue. While homosexual "acts" are unlawful, to admit that you are gay in Botswana is not a crime. Still, this unspoken issue has been overlooked in the prison systems in addition to attributing any statistics towards the gay community.

Reviewing HIV/AIDS populations in Botswana is much different than in the United States. In the U.S., it has been my experience that the stereotypes that exist about people with HIV/AIDS are that either African Americans or the Gay community are the populations at "fault." Just as we need to dispel these myths in the United States, Botswana has similar issues. More than two thirds of the HIV/AIDS population here are women, and for every one man infected with HIV/AIDS, three women contract the virus as well. Understandably, there has been a lot of female empowerment and education, but where the efforts are truly lacking is with men. It's like the old saying goes, "It takes two to tango," and while women DO need education and empowerment (particularly in such a patriarchal society), men need just as much.

In addition to the lectures that we had last week, we also took Setswana lessons. Unfortunately, I did not make it to Thursday or Friday's classes because I ended up getting bronchitis. Boo! I generally have a pretty depressed immune system and I really didn't take many preventative measures apart from immunizations in terms of my health. It comes as no surprise though that traveling, being in a tight group of people, being in a new country and climate with all new allergies that this would happen. It just ended up hindering my weekend a lot, and from Thursday until Sunday, I was pretty much laid up in bed.

Yesterday was my first day at an organization; the main reason that we have come to Botswana. Before I came here I was truly under the impression that I would be working with the children's orphanage (SOS), but the more I thought about it, the less I was appealed by it. It seemed as though the time I would spend there would be a glorified babysitting job, and while the children are beautiful and vibrant, this is not the reason that I came here.

I am working with my good friend Stephanie at a counseling firm called Lifeline Botswana. Lifeline Botswana is a part of the Southern Africa division of Lifeline, which includes Botswana, Namibia, and South Africa. That division is associated with Lifeline International, which houses offices globally.

Each office is its own entity and responsible for its own funding. I guess that the benefits of sharing the company name are recognition and the fact that the offices are provided with training materials. Steph and I were both pretty excited that the counseling theories they adhere to are a person-centered approach. This probably won't make much sense to anyone who isn't in counseling education, but it fits in with Stephanie's and my personal styles.

Ironically, the first thing that we did yesterday was sit on a group counseling session with a woman who led the group using anything but a person-centered approach. She was totally confrontational, short-tempered, yet totally effective. Counselors would say she definitely operates under a Gestalt orientation.

The group was comprised of nine women who are there for counseling training, although this two month training session includes a month of counseling for them, operated on a personal growth model. The women's last group therapy session is on Thursday, and as a special treat, the group leader is incorporating dance therapy, which Stephanie and I are also expected to participate. Should be a lot of fun!

Steph and I are both excited for our time with Lifeline Botswana, but we're also totally overwhelmed. This company has experienced some harsh changes and obstacles in the last year including burglary (15 computers stolen with most of their information and no insurance), budget cuts, the implementation of a new director, and hardly any funds. This operation is sinking and quickly! There are only three women and several volunteers that run this operation and they receive no government funding or help from other Lifeline affiliations. Steph and I have come into this operation at a very vulnerable time, and I think they are expecting us to perform miracles. While Steph has had experience in non-profits, Vicky (the new director) wants us to look at almost every facet of the company and ways in which to improve it. Yikes!

Steph and I have modified our roles there and told Vicky what is realistic. While we are making sincere efforts, there is truly only so much we can do in three weeks. One cool thing that I am trying to implement is a wellness program for the workers and volunteers. The last week at the organization, I will be leading a breathing techniques and yoga class and I am hoping this effort continues after my time here. Self care is so important for anyone, but particularly counselors who undergo so much stress and dealing with other people's hardships.

I will keep you all posted on what's going on. For now though, all my love from Gaborone. I miss you all so much, and while I love my time here, I am excited to get home.
Mark :)