These pictures have nothing to do with the story... but boy is he handsome! On to the story... What not to do. Tell alot of poor people that you have many gifts for them and in the end; there turns out to be many more people than anticipated. We just saw these past nights a situation that was meant to benefit the people turn really... really bad. A few days ago was a holiday for the Batwa; a minority ethnic group in Burundi. An international organization wanted to do something to help them seeing that they are among the more poorer of the country by giving them clothes and food. As their celebration was over, they all made their way to the office of the organization with anticipation to receive a gift. There were well over 1,000 people surrounding the gate and office as we passed by on our way home that night. It turned out that they ran out of things to give away early in the evening and many many people became angry and began rioting. The police came and tried to keep them under control. Many slept on the road that night outside of the office and others down the road at a field... expecting that in their persistence they would somehow receive something. A lesson to be learned in the end. I would say one of the biggest lessons we have learned here is being VERY specific in our words and promises as we have had to learn from many mistakes ourselves in the past. Also, dealing with people who are hungry, poor and just emotionally distressed we always have to keep in mind to be as sensitive as possible in all situations. Pictured above... Malaki bathing! Isai snapped these while at our friends house in the city. All our love...
No comments:
Post a Comment