Sometimes, believe it or not, when I’m doing the Saturday hoovering – I get distracted. Yes, I know it’s hard to believe since all of you reading this will be saying: but hoovering is such great fun!

Well, todays’ distraction was my journal from 1990 when as a family, we were on Africa Orientation in Cameroon and spent three weeks in the village of Kishong. There we were , totally immersed and learning how to live and cope in African culture.

Kishong village, NW Cameroon

But that’s not what this blog is about… perhaps some other time. Several colleagues have blogged recently on dealing with culture and fitting in – or not!

First there was Clarke and Alison in Cameroon, still adjusting to being Norn Irn in Yaounde.

Have little children ever stared at you while you walk down the street? Since arriving in Cameroon, it’s an experience we have come to treat as normal. By their very nature, children are inquisitive and open to new experiences and they are good at spotting anything that does not fit what they know. Our white faces fit into the ’strange, different’ category very well.

So, we could be walking down the street past some playing children and we hear a faint call of “Les Blancs”. For a minute or two I can feel like the Pied Piper, until the novelty wears off for them and they return to their games. If we walk past children who are coming home from school we will often get a “Good morning” out of them (regardless of the time of day). Of course, it’s only polite to return their greeting – which is met with beaming smiles. We imagine the scene in school. On Day 1 it’s “Now class, remember if you meet any English-speakers, you practice with them!” On Day 2 it’s “Miss, Miss, please, Miss!! We were speaking to some British people on the way to work…”

But Clarke and Alison are not simply observing what is happening to them and how they are feeling about it – they are also applying it cross-culturally for their readers back home in N. Ireland where the number of people of other nationalities and languages has recently been increasing rapidly.

Ok, there are some amusing incidents with money changers, street vendors and taxi journeys…

Likewise in a taxi, I feel like an outsider. Something inside me wants to join in the banter about the football but I can’t (how do you say “Of course yer man handled the ball, the referee needs glasses”?). When the other passengers joke about the crazy driver in the other lane who nearly got us all killed, or about the guy blocking the road because the policeman stopped him and he’s just taking a huff and not pulling over, or the billboard that a lorry flattened…. I have to listen and guess what is being said. Indeed, I’m guessing the stories are about the football,, crazy driver, the huffing taxi-driver with a bad tyre and the lorry. They could just as well be discussing the price of eggs.

But Clarke and Alison are also challenging us back home!

The question is, will I remember this when I return to Coleraine? Will I remember that the random Polish guy asking for directions would probably be delighted if someone actually took him to the Post Office that is only two minutes’ walk away? Or will I walk off, knowing he probably didn’t understand “Over the bridge, past Heatons, and Bishop’s, past the town hall, keep right, turn at Moores’ and it’s beside the Presbyterian Church.” Would he be more delighted still if I took him there past the Polish-owned delicatessen?

What about you? You might sit beside someone in college who would love it if you simply made sure they were on the right page. There might be a person beside you in church who would be glad for you to produce a bilingual Bible. There might be someone walking down the street who doesn’t want to be stared at or have his cultural naivety taken advantage of.

There might simply be someone who, for the sake of two minutes of your time, would be delighted for you to treat them like a fellow human being and not a curiosity.

You can read all of this excellent blog here

And if you are reading this in Coleraine or Belfast or anywhere in N. Ireland you might want to check out this one day event World on Our Doorstep organised by Mission Agencies Partnership MAP

I’ve decided this is quite long enough, but I will continue this mini-series over the next wee while.

Yesterday Flo and I went to a gala fundraiser for the Musee de Rois in Douala. It was spectacular. Was a full gala with traditional dancers, music, singing, food, wine, etc. Yannik Noah was the celebrity guest. I didn’t know it but he has been voted most liked person in France for the past 4 years in a row. The Sultan of Bamoun (a tribe in Cameroon) was also there. He arrived with an entourage of about 30 people. His arrival was proceeded by the arrival of his wives. I counted about 15.  The youngest one, who looked about 16, sat closest to him on his right hand side.  He wore sunglasses the entire time and sat in a giant brown LazyBoy in the center of the podium.  I wondered if the LazyBoy traveled with him or was supplied by the hosts.

Prior to that I hung out with the director of the American School of Douala and some of his friends. He had an informal happy hour at his house. Each person was from a different country. Was really fun.

John, an American guy working for an Indian company here whom I met at the Hotel Akwa Palace, and I have been on a quest to find beer for under $1. Yesterday we pretty much succeeded. We had 2 giant beers in the secret restaurant for the merchants at the artisan market for FCFA 1300. Which is about $3 but the beers were huge, so we are considering the quest a success. Then we went to Paradise and had great pizza and beers by the pool for FCFA 2000 each.

I’ve been taking Capoeira classes for a few weeks now. Really fun sport. The instructor is Cameroonian and was the world Tae Kwan Do champion for a few years. He’s a great instructor. It’s really funny because in the US people get multi-antibiotic resistant staph infections (MRSAs) from gym mats and in the US they clean the mats after every class. The mats in the gym here (Club Kamakaze) have never been cleaned and the gym is not air conditioned. So you have these warm, moist mats that never get cleaned. I think the people here are just more hearty. But then again, the life expectancy here is 50.  (Source: World Bank, World Development Indicators, 2007) I’ve got 10 years to go. Maybe that’s why they like to enjoy life here. You never get old enough to die from heart disease, cirrhosis, or cancer.

T’was the night before Tabaski and all the through the house, not a creature was stirring… except for a sheep!

Last night we tossed and turned as the mournful wails of sheep danced in our heads.  We tried not to count of the number of head that traversed our dreams – we are, after all, trying to get accustomed to our new surroundings.

No, we do not live next to a livestock market.  But yes, we do have sheep next door!  Actually, it would be more accurate to say that baahhs are coming from every “next door”.

You see, today is the holy day of Tabaski or Eid al-Adha.  Here it’s known as fête des moutons and all our Muslim neighbours have bought themselves a sheep or two to slaughter and share with their friends and family.  This marks the willingness of Abraham to sacrifice his son to show his commitment to God.

Our day dawned at 6:30 and we began a pilgrimage, following the sounds of the flock to their source – Maroua’s special Tabaski sheep market.  As we approached, the bleating intensified and flowed towards us as motorcycle-riding sheep appeared out of the haze that hovered over the early-morning streets.

Motorcycle-riding sheep?  Wait a second…  Is that legal?  I’ll have to ask my friend the region’s transportation delegate about that one…

But first, back to our moutons.

With so few cars on the roads of Maroua, motos carry all sorts of cargo – live sheep include.  How, you ask?  It’s easy!

First position the driver and then the passenger.  Next, a third person lifts the bellyaching bleater – belly up – onto the passenger’s lap.  Stop there?  Nah.  Because fête des moutons lasts three days, one sheep is rarely enough.  Therefore, a second animal joins the musical ride – this time belly down and facing the opposite direction.

Voila!  Packed and ready to go!

Having witnessed this for ourselves, the pandemonium of the market made a bit more sense.  The panicked calls of sheep blended into a hum of human voices all heading towards the city’s largest mosque.  Once again, we trusted our sense of hearing and followed the din through Maroua’s unpaved backroads.

Human rivulets merged into streams and streams became rivers.  Presumably the flow eventually reached the mosque. For us it remained hidden beyond a wall of trees far ahead.  Instead, we stopped amidst a sea of the faithful who diligently laid out their prayer mats facing towards Mecca.

Calmly, quietly and with serene beauty, all 50,000 of Maroua’s Muslims completed their religious devotions.  Not so calmly – nor so quietly – they all boarded their motos and belched their way home amidst less-than-beauteous clouds of exhaust.

Time to cook the moutons!

Following our noses this time, we gradually made our way to gorge on the sacrificial flesh.  Boubakari, the coordinateur of the organization we both work at – RESAEC – graciously invited us to share the feast with him and his family.

Indeed, the honour was all ours – and many tender morsels of mouton passed our lips.

• Nagaland Political Conflict [DNA]
• Cyprus: The Conflict Continues [Haaretz.com]
• Bawku, Ghana: Conflict looms [Peace FM Online]
• Ex- Minister- resolution needed in Cameroon-Nigeria Oil-fueled Bakassi conflict [lexpressplus.com]

The Muppets give their own, inimitable take on the Queen classic. Not a lot you can say about this, except perhaps that it’s everything you’d expect and more. So put it on fullscreen and turn up the volume …

Probably the year’s top viral video …

———————-

Strange Random Language Fact:
You won’t find a “6″ in Cameroon phone numbers–the native language has no sound for “x.”

Yaounde RESPECT Club

• Since January 2005, a group of 8 urban Burundese refugees ages 13 to 18 years has correspond with the Bourg Madame High School Solidarity Club in the South West of France.

• The members of the Club come from several high schools in the city of Yaounde.

I remember my dad telling me about his reaction to AADBs first project ‘Cadeaux for kids‘ when we gave Christmas presents and food to orphaned and other families in Bangou and Bangangte. The gifts seemed kind of trivial; pens, oil for cooking, a t-shirt, but the families generosity was disproportionally bigger.

You can see they joy and appreciation for such a little act of kindness. My dad reminded me about how when they would give us presents for Christmas, race cars, Xbox, designer clothes, hundreds of dollars in cash, we acted slighty more excited than if I had found 50 cents on the street. The joy of giving, and receiving, had somehow been lost.

Those simple things like genuine excitement and appreciation, generosity, kindness, really are gifts from God and despite all the giving we do on Christmas, don’t forget to appreciate it, and enjoy it. That’s the spirit of Christmas and two years ago I had to go all the way to Cameroon to remember that.

Merry Christmas!

I found it difficult remembering and learning bits of the language but was touched to see the joy in the peoples’ faces when I spoke their language.  It made me think, if this is how excited they get when I simply say ‘hello, how are you?’ how much more of an impact would it have when they can hear and read the word of God in their mother tongue!

I had the privilege of staying with Vincent and Delphine and their family for the weekend.  I was nervous about this weekend but God truly met every need I had.  Through the smell, the smoky kitchen, the creatures scurrying around my feet and not being able to speak their language, He provided an overwhelming strength making me feel more at home in a mud hut in the middle of nowhere than I have ever felt in any student accommodation.

Bible translation can be a long and frustrating process.  I understand now that it was much more than words on a page.  It’s bringing belonging into His Kingdom and life into a community.

In case you are thinking of purchasing the new global version of Amazon’s Kindle for Christmas, be aware that there are still quite a few places that the global version will NOT work.  I was disappointed to find that the new version still will not work in my country.

Apparently the new global version will only work in SOME countries.   I thought it would be helpful to most expats to have a complete list of which countries it will, or will not work in (below).

It’s also interesting to note the PATTERN of groups of countries where the Kindle doesn’t work–some countries probably lack satellite coverage or delivery systems, while others probably don’t WANT readers to be able to download whatever they want by satellite.

STARRED (*) countries marked below indicate that Kindle needs to be ordered from a SPECIAL PAGE on the Amazon site.

The Global Kindle version DOES work in (as of Dec. 2009):

Aland Islands, Albania, American Samoa, Andorra, Angola, Anguilla, Antigua and Barbuda, Armenia, Aruba, Australia*, Austria, Bahamas, Barbados, Belarus, Belgium, Belize, Benin, Bermuda, Bhutan, Bolivia, Boznia and Herzegovina, Botswana, Brazil, Bulgaria, Burundi, Cambodia, Canada, Cape Verde, Cayman Islands, Central African Republic, Colombia, Comoros, Congo, Cook Islands, Costa Rica, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Cote d’Ivoire, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Denmark, Dominica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Equatorial Guinea, Estonia, Ethiopia, Falkland Islands, Faroe Islands, Federated States of Micronesia, Fiji, Finland, France, French Guiana, French Polynesia, Gabon, Georgia, Germany, Ghana, Gibraltar, Greece, Greenland, Grenada, Guadeloupe, Guam, Guatemala, Guernsey, Guinea-Bissau, Guyana, Haiti, Holy See, Honduras, Hong Kong, Hungary, Iceland, India, Ireland, Italy, Jamaica, Japan, Jersey, Kenya, Kiribati, Lao People’s Democratic Republic, Latvia, Liberia, Leichtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Macao, Macedonia, Madagascar, Malawi, Malta, Marshall Islands, Martinique, Mauritius, Mayotte, Mexico, Moldovia, Monaco, Mongolia, Montenegro, Montserrat, Mozembique, Myanmar, Namibia, Nauru, Nepal, Netherlands, New Caledonia, Nicaragua, Niue, Norfolk Island, Northern Mariana Islands, Norway, Palau, Panama, Papua New Guinea, Paraguay, Peru, Philippines, Poland, Puerto Rico, Romania, Russia, Rwanda, Réunion, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Samoa, San Marino, Sao Tome and Principe, Serbia, Seychelles, Slovakia, Slovenia, Solomon Islands, South Africa, Spain, Sri Lanka,  Suriname, Swaziland, Sweden, Switzerland, Taiwan, Tanzania, Timor-Leste, Togo, Tonga, Trinidad and Tobago, Turks and Caicos Islands, Tuvalu, Uganda, Ukraine, United Kingdom, Uruguay, Vanuatu, Venezuela, Viet Nam, Virgin Islands – British, Virgin Islands – U.S.,  Wallis and Futuna, Zambia, Zimbabwe.

The Global Kindle version does NOT work in (as of Dec. 2009) the following countries:

Afghanistan, Algeria, Antarctica, Argentina, Azerbaijan, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Bouvet Island, British Indian Ocean Territory, Brunei Darussalam, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Chile, Chad, China, Christmas Island, Cocos (Keeling) Islands, Cuba, Djibouti, Egypt, Eritrea, French Southern Territories, Gambia, Guinea, Heard Island and McDonald Islands, Indonesia, Iran, Iraq, Isle of Man, Israel, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Korea – Democratic People’s Republic of, Korea – Republic of, Kuwait, Kyrgyzstan, Lebanon, Lesotho, Libya, Malaysia, Maldives, Mali, Mauritania, Morocco (including the Western Sahara), New Zealand, Niger, Nigeria, Oman, Pakistan, Palestinian Territories, Pitcairn, Qatar, Saint Barthelemy, Saint Helena, Saint Martin, Saint Pierre and Miquelon, Saudi Arabia, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Singapore, Somalia, South Georgia and the Sandwich Islands, Sudan, Svalbard and Jan Mayan, Syrian Arab Republic, Tajikistan, Thailand, Tokelau, Tunisia, Turkey, Turkmenistan, United Arab Emirates, United States Minor Outlying Islands, Uzbekistan,  Yemen.

It was touching to see the children so excited about holding a piece of card with their own language on it and knowing what it said.

Nature and Animal Conservation

 

     Preserving species and their habitats is important for ecosystems to self-sustain themselves. Yet, the pressures to destroy habitat for logging, illegal hunting, and other challenges are making conservation a struggle.

Visit : http://www.globalissues.org/article/1…

 What is Biodiversity ?

 

    The variety of life on Earth, its biological diversity is commonly referred to as biodiversity. The number of species of plants, animals, and microorganisms, the enormous diversity of genes in these species, the different ecosystems on the planet, such as deserts, rainforests and coral reefs are all part of a biologically diverse Earth.

   

    Appropriate conservation and sustainable development strategies attempt to recognize this as being integral to any approach. Almost all cultures have in some way or form recognized the importance that nature, and its biological diversity has had upon them and the need to maintain it. Yet, power, greed and politics have affected the precarious balance.

Does it really matter if there arent so many species?

Biodiversity boosts ecosystem productivity where each species, no matter how small, all have an important role to play.

For example, a larger number of plant species means a greater variety of crops; greater species diversity ensures natural sustainability for all life forms; and healthy ecosystems can better withstand and recover from a variety of disasters.

And so, while we dominate this planet, we still need to preserve the diversity in wildlife.

Who Cares?

  Biodiversity boosts ecosystem productivity where each species, no matter how small, all have an important role to play. For example, a larger number of plant species means a greater variety of crops; greater species diversity ensures natural sustainability for all life forms; and healthy ecosystems can better withstand and recover from a variety of disasters.

And so, while we dominate this planet, we still need to preserve the diversity in wildlife.

Loss of Biodiversity and Extinctions

It is feared that human activity is causing massive extinctions. From various animal species, forests and the ecosystems that forests support, marine life. The costs associated with deteriorating or vanishing ecosystems will be high. However, sustainable development and consumption would help avert ecological problems.

 

  

November 25 is the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women. The white ribbon has become the symbol for the day.

Click on the picture to join the Community

The river through Maroua, or what is left of it anyway

A couple weeks in, we are learning to get around Maroua, see how things work and where to get the best food, household goods and best of all, who will give us a fair price!

Maroua is split by a river that, although the rainy season has just ended, looks more like a barren, dried up wasteland.  All the characteristics of this river remain – the tortuous banks, the red and the green bridges on either end, and locals using the remaining small pockets of water for washing.

The interesting things about water.  Sunday before last, and again last Sunday, the power was off from 7am until about 5-ish.  This was a planned power interruption for the entire city – meaning that without power, water was shut off too.  Neither of those two “outages” slowed anything down.  It was business as usual.  Try that in North America!

Cars are rare.  Motos fill the streets.  Add on the bicycles, wandering fruit merchants with their wooden carts, hordes of

Traffic at the roundabout

pedestrians, sometimes a few runaway goats or chickens and you have a busy, hopping town.  It costs 100 CFAs to get pretty much anywhere in town during the day by mototaxi, although admittedly, it’s not that far to get on foot if one doesn’t mind the intense sun beating down on you.

By now we have established a nice route to the office (Caroline’s full-time place, and Greg’s 1/3 time place).  Although we can pick different streets to reach the same point, we’ve tended to prefer the route that takes us past one of the mosques where a group of old men sit in shade most of the day.  We’ve greeted them with “Bonjour!” and now with “Jam na! Jam bandu na?” and they seemed to be tickled pink with our efforts.  We’ll keep practicing.

The market is now holding a tad fewer mysteries but is still a marvel.  We have a favourite tomato seller – an older gentleman who has a smile bigger than anything you could imagine.  The gentleman who runs

One of the main arteries in town near the market

the blue boulangerie across from the mattress sellers is also quite friendly.  A few of the “alimentation” (grocery stores) operators are increasingly recognizing us – and having a wonderful time watching us try to respond in Fulfulde.  One even tried to get us to guess how much to pay for our groceries in Fulfulde – but the “money math” is just too complicated for now.

Soon we will be strangers no more… still very strange, but not quite strangers.

This cigar was recommended to me by my local tobacconist, Cigary International (great shop).  It is the 6.25 x 52 box press El Toro; with a Cameroon wrapper, a Dominican and Brazilian filler, and a Nicaraguan binder.  The cigar looks great, it is a nice oily cigar with minimal veins.  Additionally, the band is very nice looking.

Prelight: I could smell a very nice creamy, earthy, woodiness.  The prelight draw was nicely firm for a box pressed cigar, which was spot on.

As I was lighting the cigar I thought that, ”man, what a good burn”.  The burn edge was like a straight edge, perfect.   Then I took my first draw and I got something I wasn’t expecting, smoothness with medium strength.  There were loads of smooth woodiness (I was transported back to Colorado and my past back packing trips) with a slight hint of nuttiness.   It was such a good taste I started “smoking it hot”.  What a horrible mistake.  The cigar turned very, very quickly to a leathery/bittery taste.  Really not good.  I thought the cigars taste might have turned, but when I let it rest for a bit the woodiness with slight nuttiness came back.  Awesome.  Ok, retro-hale time.  Then BAM, intense flavors of spice and cinnamon.  Fantastic, good “Nicaraguan” tastes.  This is turning out to be a great smoke.

1 inch in and the ash is looking good, 75% white and 25% black, a nice whitish pepper.  It should be noted that this cigar doesn’t produce a lot of smoke, but the burn was still straight and true.  Going with my very slow method I started to notice nice cedar with a slight floral note along with the woody/nuttiness.  Between 1 and 2 inches in I forgot to go slow and, sure enough, it started turning bitter.  However, as soon as I let it rest a while all the wonderful flavors came back.

1/2 through the cigar and I decided to retro-hale again.  This time there was still a nice spice, but the cinnamon had been replaced by a honey note.

2/3rd through the cigar and I tried to remove the band.  This proved very difficult and I slightly damaged the wrapper as I was trying to remove the band.  Bummer.  The flavors stayed constant throughout the damaged area.  It was time for another retro-hale and this time the spice was more intense with a nice grassy notes.  It should be noted that the flavors have been very intense throughout, but no one flavor overpowers the other.  Additionally, the strength has been medium throughout.

There have been no relights even though I was smoking this cigar very, very slowly.  Which is what I would recommend, as I have mentioned before, as the cigar goes bitter pretty quickly.

2 inches left and something totally unexpected happened.  The tasting notes have turned to notes of; burnt toast, grass/wheat, and anise.  I was really taken a back.  For a cigar that I thought would be straight forward, I couldn’t have been further from the truth.

I would give this cigar a rating of 8.5.  It was a fully bodied complex cigar with a medium strength.  Really a great smoke.  I highly recommend.  The cigar runs about $7, depending on location.

der Baron

Amazon's Global Kindle Reader

I heard that Amazon now has a global version of Kindle. I was disappointed to find this morning that the new version still will not work in my country.

Since I’ve wanted one for some time, but have been waiting until they got a version that would work in my country, I checked out their website this morning, only to be disappointed again. Apparently the new global version will only work in SOME countries.

In case you are thinking of purchasing the new Global Kindle for a Christmas gift this year, since the new version will only work in SOME countries, I thought it would be helpful to most expats to have a complete list of which countries it will, or will not work in.

STARRED (*) countries marked below indicate that Kindle needs to be ordered from a SPECIAL PAGE on the Amazon site.

The Global Kindle version DOES work in (as of Dec. 2009):

Aland Islands, Albania, American Samoa, Andorra, Angola, Anguilla, Antigua and Barbuda, Armenia, Aruba, Australia*, Austria, Bahamas, Barbados, Belarus, Belgium, Belize, Benin, Bermuda, Bhutan, Bolivia, Boznia and Herzegovina, Botswana, Brazil, Bulgaria, Burundi, Cambodia, Canada, Cape Verde, Cayman Islands, Central African Republic, Colombia, Comoros, Congo, Cook Islands, Costa Rica, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Cote d’Ivoire, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Denmark, Dominica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Equatorial Guinea, Estonia, Ethiopia, Falkland Islands, Faroe Islands, Federated States of Micronesia, Fiji, Finland, France, French Guiana, French Polynesia, Gabon, Georgia, Germany, Ghana, Gibraltar, Greece, Greenland, Grenada, Guadeloupe, Guam, Guatemala, Guernsey, Guinea-Bissau, Guyana, Haiti, Holy See, Honduras, Hong Kong, Hungary, Iceland, India, Ireland, Italy, Jamaica, Japan, Jersey, Kenya, Kiribati, Lao People’s Democratic Republic, Latvia, Liberia, Leichtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Macao, Macedonia, Madagascar, Malawi, Malta, Marshall Islands, Martinique, Mauritius, Mayotte, Mexico, Moldovia, Monaco, Mongolia, Montenegro, Montserrat, Mozembique, Myanmar, Namibia, Nauru, Nepal, Netherlands, New Caledonia, Nicaragua, Niue, Norfolk Island, Northern Mariana Islands, Norway, Palau, Panama, Papua New Guinea, Paraguay, Peru, Philippines, Poland, Puerto Rico, Romania, Russia, Rwanda, Réunion, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Samoa, San Marino, Sao Tome and Principe, Serbia, Seychelles, Slovakia, Slovenia, Solomon Islands, South Africa, Spain, Sri Lanka, Suriname, Swaziland, Sweden, Switzerland, Taiwan, Tanzania, Timor-Leste, Togo, Tonga, Trinidad and Tobago, Turks and Caicos Islands, Tuvalu, Uganda, Ukraine, United Kingdom, Uruguay, Vanuatu, Venezuela, Viet Nam, Virgin Islands – British, Virgin Islands – U.S., Wallis and Futuna, Zambia, Zimbabwe.

The Global Kindle version does NOT work in (as of Dec. 2009):

Afghanistan, Algeria, Antarctica, Argentina, Azerbaijan, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Bouvet Island, British Indian Ocean Territory, Brunei Darussalam, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Chile, Chad, China, Christmas Island, Cocos (Keeling) Islands, Cuba, Djibouti, Egypt, Eritrea, French Southern Territories, Gambia, Guinea, Heard Island and McDonald Islands, Indonesia, Iran, Iraq, Isle of Man, Israel, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Korea – Democratic People’s Republic of, Korea – Republic of, Kuwait, Kyrgyzstan, Lebanon, Lesotho, Libya, Malaysia, Maldives, Mali, Mauritania, Morocco (including the Western Sahara), New Zealand, Niger, Nigeria, Oman, Pakistan, Palestinian Territories, Pitcairn, Qatar, Saint Barthelemy, Saint Helena, Saint Martin, Saint Pierre and Miquelon, Saudi Arabia, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Singapore, Somalia, South Georgia and the Sandwich Islands, Sudan, Svalbard and Jan Mayan, Syrian Arab Republic, Tajikistan, Thailand, Tokelau, Tunisia, Turkey, Turkmenistan, United Arab Emirates, United States Minor Outlying Islands, Uzbekistan, Yemen.

Fishing in Kribi isn’t what it used to be. There are certainly multiple reasons for the decline in fish stock, but everyone here singles out the pipeline as the main culprit.  The pipeline cuts right through the middle of the coastal village of Bume, just south of Kribi, on its way to the marine loading terminal 12 kilometers offshore. The residents of Bumé, who depend entirely on fishing, blame the pipeline for killing their livelihood.

There are two types of fishing in the Kribi area and the pipeline impacted each differently.  The hardest hit are the small, village fisherman — like the residents of Bumé — who put their nets out just offshore.  These fishermen do not have motor power; they paddle their small dugout canoes out to sea and are unable work more than a few kilometers from shore.

They used to catch the fish that lived in the reef just offshore. That reef was blasted away during pipeline construction and the fish have never come back.  Using their traditional fishing methods, local fishermen now pull in only a few kilos of fish at a time.  Sometimes, they pull in nothing at all.

As I mentioned in an earlier post, the initial pipeline plans did not include the destruction of the reef.   As no one from ExxonMobil would speak to me, I could not find out why this, a significant environmental impact, was not not part of any early reviews.  The shallow waters of the coast here are lined with rocky offshore reefs and the Bumé reef was clearly visible.  If any local fishermen had been interviewed, they would have talked about the importance of the reef for local fishing.

Although ExxonMobil documents claim that there were multiple environmental studies and an extensive consultation process prior to pipeline construction, my research (and that of others) shows that consultations were limited and insufficient. There was a lack of frank, detailed communication. Oil company representatives were often accompanied by government officials when visiting villages, a further impediment to any real dialogue.

The marine loading terminal, seen from Bumé.

So the pipeline construction crews came through, blasted away the reef, and left behind a village with no viable source of income. The people of Bumé — poor to begin with — were ruined.   Although the area is dotted with hotels, tourism is still on a fairly small scale here and there’s definitely not enough hotel or restaurant work to employ all the fishermen of a village. Following numerous complaints from residents and NGOs, the fish pond plan was foisted on the residents of Bumé.  After that failed, COTCO eventually put out an artificial reef made of tires.  According to Bumé residents, that structure has already detached from the seabed and risen close to the surface of the water. It does not attract fish. Bume residents claim that the fish, plentiful before the pipeline construction, have not returned in the seven years since construction ended.

Again, I could not verify this information as no officials would speak to me.  But I did see what the fishermen hauled in and it’s very little.  I also spoke with local journalists and environmentalists who have been following the plight of the Kribi fishermen and concur with their claims.

At the port of Kribi, I met with local fishermen who fish on a somewhat larger scale.  They still go out in wooden boats, but they are larger and powered by outboard motors.  These men are out at sea for two to three days at a time.

These boats have just enough room for the fishermen and the ice chests and it’s hard to imagine how the men spend several days out on the water. It was raining the day I was at the port and the seas were choppy.  The fishermen coming in were thoroughly soaked.  It’s a tough life, but when the fishing is good, there’s enough income to sustain a local economy.  The fish they bring to port are packed in ice and are immediately dispatched to buyers who distribute to Douala, Yaounde and beyond.

The fishermen in Kribi also had complaints about the pipeline.  They, too, report that fish stocks are down, although they see the trawlers  (Chinese, Spanish and others) offshore and blame them for depleting stocks with their destructive fishing techniques.  The pipeline poses different problems for these fishermen.  First, there’s a large security perimeter around the marine loading terminal where no boats are allowed, effectively limiting their fishing zone.  Then, even more troubling, is the question of oil pollution.

In January 2007, a small spill occurred at the marine loading terminal.  Unfortunately, COTCO did not release any information about the spill for four days.  Local village leaders were kept in the dark for an additional two days. The Cameroonian government agency responsible for the pipeline made no public statement on the oil spill.  The spill, which began in the middle of the night, was only detected, visually, in the morning, suggesting that the marine terminal facility is lacking sufficient surveillance technology.  At the time of the spill there was no national emergency plan for dealing with spills at the marine loading terminal, despite the fact that this plan is required by law and should have been in place before the marine loading terminal became operational.

Several NGOs released a news statement shortly after the spill that underlined the problems caused by COTCO’s silence.  The public was unable to get any credible information about the actual amount of oil spilled, the cause of the spill or COTCO’s emergency response procedures — especially crucial given the lack of a national plan.  Suspicions and rumors filled the void and added to the general public distrust of COTCO.

Fishermen today say they can often see oil on the water near the terminal.  Is this true? Is this from the marine loading terminal or from passing ships? It is hard to say as no officials will speak and local journalists are thwarted in their efforts to gather credible information.

I was consistently frustrated by COTCO’s unwillingness to speak publicly.  The case of the missing fish is one example of a problem whose causes are likely more complex than one missing reef.  For the public, however, the logic is simple: if COTCO won’t speak, it’s because COTCO has something to hide and therefore, COTCO is to blame.

A roundup of Australian Jewish news … by Garry Fabian in Melbourne

**

Building Connections of Communal Harmony

SYDNEY – Seventeen-year-old Enzo Somosi may not always broadcast his Jewish
identity. But when a special envoy from the NSW  Jewish Board of Deputies (JBD) visited his Coffs Harbour school to give a presentation on the  Holocaust last week, he felt compelled to wear his kippah during the proceedings.

“If anybody asks me, I’ll be honest. It’s not something I hide,” Somosi, the grandson of
Holocaust survivors, he said.  “But I found it  necessary on this occasion to show respect.”

The presentation was part of a whirlwind five-day  tour of NSW’s mid-north coast taken by JBD CEO  Vic Alhadeff and education manager Lynda Ben-Menashe.

The trip was a bridge-building exercise that saw  the pair meet more than 1000 people, including  leaders of the Uniting, Anglican and Assembly of  God churches, MPs, city councillors, Rotary club  members, media personnel and students.

“It’s all about relationships,” Alhadeff said.  “The objective of generating understanding of the  Jewish people ­ who we are, what Judaism is  about, the Holocaust, racism, anti-Semitism and Israel.”

Jewish connections emerged unexpectedly  throughout the tour, he added. Among them was the  admission by a Pentecostal church head that his  great-uncle was former Jewish governor-general Sir Isaac Isaacs.

Another student at a Catholic college revealed  that four of his Jewish grandmother’s eight siblings perished at Auschwitz.

“It was particularly gratifying to note how much  interest there is in the Holocaust and the
lessons that emerge from it,” Alhadeff said.

So far, the response has been positive. “We got  more than we were expecting. The boys were blown  out of the water,” said Mark Harrison, a history  teacher at The Armidale School, an Anglican  boarding school for boys, which was one of the tour stops.

“It was the perfect lead-up to our study of  Germany up to the beginning of World War II. The  presentation had an emotional charge, and the  boys picked up on it. They were really appreciative of them coming to our class.”

*
Jewish School receives $1.5 million government grant

MELBOURNE – Adass Israel School has been awarded a $1.5 million Government grant for
the construction of a hospitality and training centre to be located at the school’s main campus in King Street, Elsternwick a Melbourne southern suburb.

The grant is part of the federal Government’s  multi-billion dollar Trade Training Centres in Schools program.

While all secondary schools were eligible for  grants worth between $500,000 and $1.5 million,  funding approval was based on the needs and application of each school.

Education Minister Julia Gillard said the funding will be used to construct and equip a training  facility at the school, with the new building to  include a kosher hospitality kitchen complete  with cooking, preparation, storage and multi-purpose areas for a training restaurant and general hospitality learning.

With grants worth $387 million available in the second round of the Trade Training Centres in Schools program, applications of almost double this were received.

*
Australian Government denies shift on Mideast Policy

CANBERRA – The federal Government has  denied a shift in Middle East policy, despite
changing Australia’s vote in the United Nations  on a motion on Palestinian self-determination.

A spokesperson for the Department of Foreign  Affairs and Trade (DFAT) said Australia’s UN  voting pattern is strongly based on the country’s  “long-standing support for the Middle East peace process”, including a two-state solution.

Representatives of the Executive Council of  Australian Jewry (ECAJ), the Zionist Federation  of Australia (ZFA) and the Australia/Israel & Jewish Affairs Council (AIJAC)  wrote to the  Prime Minister and Foreign Minister asking for an  explanation about the vote change.

The vote in question was in a committee of the  General Assembly earlier this month. The motion  reaffirms the right of Palestinian people to  self-determination and urges all states to help  the Palestinian people realise this.

While the motion itself is not considered  controversial, preceding statements refer to the
International Court of Justice’s controversial  ruling on Israel’s security barrier; to East
Jerusalem as part of a future Palestinian state;  and to Palestinian relief agencies, which some argue have been found to do more to exacerbate  Palestinian problems than solve them.

In previous years, Australia has abstained on the  vote, but this year the country voted in favour.

The DFAT spokesperson said even thought the motion referenced the International Court of Justice’s ruling, that ruling was only an advisory opinion.

“We will not oppose a resolution in the General  Assembly on the Middle East simply because it  refers to that advisory opinion,” she said,  indicating somewhat of a shift in tack.

The spokesperson added: “As we clearly  demonstrated in our opposition to the Goldstone
resolution, we continue to support Israel’s right  to live in peace within secure and internationally recognised borders.

“Similarly, the Government is committed to the  Palestinians’ right to a state of their own.”

The federal Opposition was swift to criticise the vote shift.

Opposition Leader Malcolm Turnbull said: “It is  deeply regrettable that the Rudd Government is  overturning Australia’s policy of refusing to  support one-sided resolutions against Israel in the UN General Assembly.

“Resolutions at the UN General Assembly that speak only of Palestinian rights to a homeland, yet make no reference to the right of the state  of Israel to exist, are inflammatory and counter-productive.”

The only countries to vote against the motion  were Israel, the Marshall Islands, Micronesia,  Nauru, Palau and the United States. Only  Botswana,  Cameroon, Canada, Tonga and Vanuatu abstained.

According to the letter to Foreign Minister  Stephen Smith from the ECAJ and ZFA, “the
explanation given by Australia for its abstention  in previous years was that while Australia  recognises the right of the Palestinian people to self-determination, the text of the motion  gratuitously ‘tacks on’ other matters, which are far more contentious”.

AIJAC’s letter also expressed disappointment  because the resolutions, while appearing to be  “ostensibly reasonable”, “omit any reference to  Palestinian obligations, and, in so doing,  perpetuate the counter-productive narrative that Israel’s policies are the sole obstacles to peace”.

This latest vote change comes a year after the  Rudd Government instructed Australia’s UN  representative to, for the first time, vote in  favour of resolutions calling for a halt to
settlement activities in the Palestinian  territories and for the Geneva Convention to be
applied in the Palestinian territories.

At the time, Smith said Australia adopts its  approach on a “case-by-case” basis and saw these  votes to correlate with Australia’s support for a two-state solution.

*
Chabad House by the beach
MELBOURNE – It has long been said  that where there is Coca Cola there is Chabad and
now the Mornington Peninsula, a seaside area just  30 minures from Melbourne is no exception.

Chabad of Frankston and Mornington Peninsula will officially open its doors later this month,  providing services to Jews in the area.

“There are a lot of elderly people, quite a few  Russians, Israelis and Aussies, there are young adults, young families and uni students,” Chabad  of Frankston and Mornington Penninsula’s Rebbetzin Rivkah Bondar said..

“Some people have thought they were the only Jews  in the area when there are actually two other families in their street.”

Together with her husband, Rabbi Levi Bondar and their four young children, the family moved  permanently to Frankston, an outer suburb of  Melbourne some 40kms from the CBD,  in July.

In the lead-up to the opening of the Chabad  House, the Bondars ran services during the High  Holy Days. Rabbi Bondar also runs weekly shiurs  and the couple delivers challahs each Friday.

“People are so appreciative and happy to have us  there. They are always offering their help or their houses. It’s nice to be so appreciated,” Rebbetzin Bondar said.

Having established a minyan in Carnegie, which  began in their home with two people and grew to its own premises with more than 200 people, Rabbi  and Rebbetzin Bondar decided they wanted a new challenge.

“We wanted to build a community [somewhere] where  we, as a young, growing family, can live and afford to buy.”

Rebbetzin Bondar said since they made the move, they have received many phone calls from other young families who are keen for a sea change.

Despite the distance to Jewish Melbourne, the Bondar children still attend Yesodei HaTorah in  Elwood for school during the week.

*
Toben Free  but web site to be monitored

ADELAIDE – Fredrick Toben has been  released from jail after serving a three-month
sentence for contempt of court charges stemming  from his denial of the Holocaust.

Toben walked free from South Australia’s Yatala prison early on November 12.

The Adelaide-based Holocaust denier, who spoke at  a 2005 Holocaust denial conference in Iran, can now add Australia to the list of countries including Germany, Austria and the UK, where he has served prison time.

His Adelaide Institute reported on its website that Toben was “unbroken and unrepentant, and appears very refreshed and relaxed after his little holiday”.

The website also stated he was “welcomed home by his friends and supporters who held a celebratory dinner for him on November 12. During his speech on the night, he vowed to continue his work in demolishing the Holocaust lies.”

Toben was taken into custody on August 13 after losing an appeal before the Federal Court, which earlier had ruled that he was in contempt of orders to desist from publishing false and offensive material about the Holocaust and Jews.

At the time of his arrest, Executive Council of Australian Jewry (ECAJ) president Robert Goot described Toben’s activities as “outrageous denial that the Holocaust occurred and that six million Jews had been murdered by the Nazis”.

Goot said ECAJ would “be ­monitoring the website” and would “take such action as we consider appropriate”.

*

The Australian – Polish Connection restoring an icon

MELBOURNE – In a town called Dzierzoniow in Poland, there once was a thriving
Jewish population. In what was once the centre of town, the Reichenbach Synagogue still stands — one of only a handful of shuls that survived both Kristallnacht and the ensuing years.

Once an imposing structure with a glorious past, the Reichenbach Synagogue until recently stood  windowless, its support beams visible and its  facade showing the very signs of its age and struggle to survive.

Fred Moses, an Australian who has taken an  interest in the restoration of the shul after
visiting it, said that “one look at the still  imposing stature of the Reichenbach Synagogue
suffices to imagine its glorious past”.

“But at a closer look, one feels as if there were  a ghostly and sad atmosphere hanging over the whole structure,” he added.

Inspired by its history, Mr Moses is assisting a  foundation committed to restoring the Reichenbach  Synagogue to its glorious past, which before 1937, and again after 1945, was a religious hub.

The Beitenu Chaj — 2004 Foundation, or in English “Our House Lives on 2004″, is led by
Rafael Blau, who lived in Dzierzoniow (then Reichenbach) with his father for five years as a
child, before making aliyah in 1965.

Blau, who now lives in Be’er Sheva in Israel, spends his summer months in Dzierzoniow,
dedicating his full time to the foundation’s  activities in the restoration of the synagogue.

The foundation has begun works to restore the  synagogue, which upon completion will once again serve as a bustling shul and educational centre for the now growing Jewish population in Poland.

In addition to functioning as a religious centre, the Reichenbach Synagogue will also include a museum.

The foundation states as its objective to “make it possible for people from all over the world, Jews and non-Jews, especially young people, to get to know the story of the Jews in Poland, not just in relation to the horrors of the Holocaust,  but also to the ancient, rich heritage of Judaism, related to its contribution to the history, culture and the development of the Polish nation”.

The foundation has, to date, repaired holes in the synagogue roof, replaced windows, missing gutters and downspouts to stop rain and snow from coming in, and erected a fence around the synagogue.

“Much has been done, much is being done, but so much more has got to be done,” Mr Moses said. “It is most definitely an enterprise of great merits, which should be rewarded accordingly.”

Together with a group of others, including foundation vice-president Beata Sauermann, who  lives in the United Kingdom, and John and Maria  Koch from Canada, Blau is seeking further  assistance for the continued restoration project to “bring new life to the synagogue”.

Now in its fifth year, the foundation is obviously making progress, with the Reichenbach
Synagogue hosting its first service in more than 20 years on Rosh Hashanah.

*
Maccabi Tennis shines at top tennis venue

SYDNEY – If you feel like a game of tennis, White City,where international  tennis
tournaments are played,  should be your first port of call.

That’s the message from new Maccabi Tennis Club president Steven Goldberg, who has taken over the Maccabi presidency for the third time, after James Beecher’s three-year tenure ended at the club’s recent annual general meeting.

Maccabi has settled into its new home at the  traditional heartland of NSW tennis after moving from Bondi last year, and while membership  numbers have increased, Goldberg wants to continue to build the club’s profile in the community.

“It’s a fantastic site, it’s just superb. an oasis in the city. There is a tranquillity there,
despite the hustle and bustle of the city,” Goldberg said.

“People should come down and try the facility, whether they want to become members or not. They’re supporting the only Jewish tennis club in Sydney.”

The club’s facilities include six floodlit synthetic courts, as well as a grass court and an
artificial clay court; a clubhouse; on-site  parking; and a streamlined coaching and junior
program under the management of Steve Loeffler, which aligns the coaching with the club, rather than setting its own agenda as an independent business.

The club had to overcome some members’ initial reservations about moving away from Bondi, but membership has since peaked at 185 — although the objective is to tap further into the community to attract younger members, women and players from the North Shore.

“It’s a much better location, a lot more attractive to those on the north . we really look
forward to catering to the whole Jewish community,” Goldberg said.

The club is an interested spectator in the dispute between the White City Tennis Club and
John Alexander, which has made its way to the High Court after the NSW Court of Appeal ruled in favour of White City.

The appeal prevents Alexander from creating his  dream sporting complex, while restoring the White  City Tennis Club as the owner of the property pending Alexander’s appeal. Maccabi awaits the verdict, as it will influence what happens to its clubhouse.

“We don’t mind who our neighbours will be,”  Goldberg clarified. “The plan is to share
facilities when they knock [the clubhouse down  and rebuild it]. Otherwise, we’ll use the
embankment going up to Glenmore Road.”

*
Fabian is Australia bureau chief for San Diego Jewish World.  His email is fabiang@sandiegojewishworld.com