Elections

The incumbent President, Museveni, was announced on Sunday to have won the elections. So there has been amped up soldier patrol. At the market today there were soldiers present and riot officers patroling the streets. I think this is just a precautionary measure. Saturday I was on a Boda Boda going to work and the President's helicopter was landing. It wasn't more than 50ft over head.

Yesterday, Leah, Emily, Blessed and I went to Divine Orphanage in Kitala. Kitala is about half-way in between Kampala and Entebbe. We took a public taxi and walked down a dirt road past a witchcraft shrine that was for many Gods. When we arrived we first looked at the new building being constructed. This would house more children. Then we walked past the Secondary School to Molly's own compound and house. Molly and Aggie (she is only one of two volunteers/staff, who has known Molly since she was a child) gave us a tour of the living quarters for the boys and girls. There are three-four bunk beds in each room where two-three children share a bed. It is very tight quarters. Then there is only one toilet per house for all those children. The childrens ages range from 3-13. The Secondary schoolers help take care of the younger ones and teach them respopnsibility. Then we went on to the playroom and school.

The minute we walked in all the children wanted to touch us and hold our hands. They know very little English, but are learning in the adjacent classroom. All school children in Uganda are taught in English. They want to touch Mzungu hair and hands. They don't want to leave our sides becasue they will tell everyone that they met and touched the Mzungu. We played outside with them and entertained them until nap time.

The orphanage is run by Molly Tabaro. She worked at TASO, which is an HIV/AIDS center, for a little while when she encountered these children being mistreated by their parents. Her heart went out to these children and was trying to figure out a way to help these children survive. She witnessed the paper and stick shelters which were only for sleeping. Molly asked TASO for an advance so she could build one of the families a larger house that had a roof. TASO agreed and Molly helped this one family. However, there were more children to help. So Molly started Divine Orphanage and Secondary School. She has 53 chidlren there with her now. She usess her own money and home to support these children. Most of the children come from the shores of Lake Victoria and some from the same landing site as Moses who is at AcaciaTree.

Molly found Moses at a landing site off of Lake Victoria. At first she thought he was a kitten, but she heard a faint gasp of breath and went in for a closer look. She discovered a baby so thin and malnourished that she thought he wasn't going to make it. So she sought after the mother who was collecting food, and asked when was the last time she had fed him. The mother had only fed Moses in the evening after returning from foraging and to give him a pancake (Ugandan pancakes are dense and bread like). Molly found this unacceptable and took Moses and his mother to the Police so she could get an order to take care of Moses. The Police agreed and Molly took him home. Moses was severly malnourshed and had respiratory problems. This gave Molly concern and she thought that he would not make it through the night. He did and after a little while in Molly's care she thought it best to bring him to AcaciaTree where Robin specializes in malnourished infants.

Moses has gained weight and now has chubby legs and arms. He cannot walk yet, but we have been doing exercises with him. He has been at AcaciaTree for six months now and is ready to move on. We cannot get him adopted yet because there needs to be signatures from both parents (who we cannot find) and a judge has to agree. So he needs to be placed somewhere else.

Molly has also told us that some of the girls that she has come to care for have been raped by their fathers or other men who were entrusted to care for them. This seems to happen frequently here. Robin also had a girl who had been raped by her mothers boyfriend.

If you would like to contact Molly or send her anything you can trust this is not a corrupt organization and all monies or gifts go straight to the care of the children.

Molly Tabaro S.P.
Director
Divine Orphanage and Secondary School
P.O. BOX 55 Baita Ebb, Uganda

Email: mollyorphanage@yahoo.com.uk

Internet has not been working

So this past week has been terrible for internet. Since Presidential elections were this week there has been less power, water, network and internet connection. Museveni is going to win. He has 67% of the vote so far. Today they should announce the winner.

Robin's family (Mother, Father, and Brother) all came from Texas on Tuesday night. So it is a full house at Robin's. Yesterday, Emily, Leah, Nicky, and I went to 4 points for Indian. Which was so delicious! Although medium spice has the same hotness as mild. Funny how that works. Although, I have found in Uganda it all has the same heat level no matter how hot you want it. We also went to the pool and I burned.

I haven't gotten very much done this week. Desire, she is another one of the mama's at AcaciaTree, went home to Kabale to vote. It has been a little hectic without her, but we have managed.

Jonathan hasn't been doing so well on his ARV's. He is throwing up most of his food after taking his medication. So Robin bought some anti-nausea mediaction to see if it would help.

What a day!

(These two pictures are from the slums in Kampala)

Today was pretty good! I had to pick the girls from on Boda Boda. That was pretty fun, especially with Rayah talking the whole way home. Speaking of Boda Boda's I was on my way home from getting take-away and a Boda Boda clipped my arm. A taxi (public transport van) was coming to the shoulder where I was walking and clipped the Boda Boda who clipped my arm and he fell. I am fine, but my arm is a little sore. However, the boda guy was scrapped up and his Boda had a few bits come off. He said he was alright. All the people who were witness to the crash was telling me sorry for the stupid taxi. I was trying to tell them to take care of the Boda guy.

(This is the new baby John Mark, whose mother wanted to abandon).

Anyway, I got matooke and gnut sauce from a take-away restaurant near Kitoro Taxi park. I was going to get some corn on the cob that had been roasted over coals, but I needed a bit more for dinner. I am going to start eating more take-away and street food because it is so much cheaper than eating at the hostel. The hostel has put a Mzungu price on all the food. The matooke and gnuts from Take-away was only 3,000ush when the hostel charges 7,000 for the same meal.

(This is Blessed's son Paul, Jonathan-he has HIV and Down Syndrome, and Moses-with fingers
in mouth)

I drove today!!!

Today I drove on the opposite side of the road!!! There really aren't any rules to follow (I guess I should say they aren't really enforced). It wasn't very scary but a little confusing.

On another note, Robin went for a meeting at the Ministry Health in Kampala. She was given books on the guidelines Uganda wants her to follow for the Malnutrition program. I also need to write a memorandum and update Acacia Tree's project profile, so Robin can give it to the MH and they will give her more material and pamphlets to use and hand out. If we become a malnutrition center recognized by the Ministry of Health then there is a possibilty that we could get free Plumpy Nut to hand out in the community and for our own use.

Other than that, elections are coming up and for the most part are supposed to be peacful but one can never know.

Busy Week

This has been a busy week. It is the first week Robin's girls are back in school, two new volunteers came two days ago, and we got a new baby.

Blessed has been sick most of the week, which sounds like an upper respiratory infection, and needs to rest. So I made my first lunch all by myself. It consisted of home made tortillas, ground beef, rice, passion fruit juice and cabbage with dressing. Everything I made from scratch, even the juice.

Then the two girls, one from Minnesota and the other from Sweden, arrived. They jumped right in. Now there are more people than babies.

Yesterday, happened very fast. When things happen they happen all at once. A young 15 year old mother was sitting outside Robin's compound. Robin had asked her if she needed assistance, but the girl answered no. So Robin sent Blessed and the girl and Blessed talked for a bit. Then her baby was brought in the house and the Local Chair woman was called to handle the sitaution. The teenager had been having a hard time caring for the child although it was not malnourished. She wants Acacia Tree to take it and adopt the boy out. The chair woman, who is sort of a social worker in a way, handles everything from land disputes between land owners and mothers wanting to give their child away. The LC knows Robin's work well and tried to get the story from the girl on who the father is and why she wants to give the child up. The girl was threatened with police if she was found to be lyign to us about the situation.

The next thing I know I was going with Blessed, the LC, the mother and baby on the back of a boda boda to her village on Lake Victoria. We arrived and the village descended on us to tell us what her story was and the hard times she has faced in the month since her delivery. However, the mother did not have the chart of immunization or health card so we waited and she still could not find it. So we left her and the baby in the village so she could return to Robin's the next day with the card.

We took boda bodas to the market where we were to find a woman who was a bit crazy. She lived in the market in a shack that was no wider than my outstreached arms. She and her baby did not sleep there but rather on a slab of concrete infront of a shop. The LC, Blessed, and I went to the Kitoro police post for the market to get them involved since anything could happen. Blessed stayed back with me and I quickly became a distraction and not helpful to the situation. I saw the baby from a distance but left the market just incase. Blessed came back a little bit after I arrived back at Robin's. The baby girl is very tiny amd malnourished. The mother had tried to straighten the baby's hair with a chemical straightner. The mother also doesn't want anyone to take the child, but for the well being of the child she may not have a choice. So we did not ge the child, but the police or the LC of the market might have to steal the child at night and bring the child to us. This sounds horrible but that is what the police suggested. The mother also should not know where Robin lives since there is a chance that the woman could come and attack the compound.

Then last night the teenage mother returned with her son and now Robin has John Mark in her care. He is a very healthy baby, but was going to be dumped in a known baby dumping ground if help was not available to her. She loves her son very much but saw no other alternative.

This was a very good experience for me. I really got to see how Blessed handles these sitauations and the protocol. I also saw that Muzungu's should not be involved in obtaining the babies because this can further antagonize the situation.