Riches Among Shambles, or is it Shambles Among Riches?



Wentworth Hospital



How’s Work? 

We have not worked for 7 weeks now.  No one at the Health Professionals Council of South Africa or the non-profit organization that recruited us, Africa Health Placement, can tell us the reason our application has not been processed.  It has been a disappointing and frustrating process for us as well as our hospital.  The hospital has been waiting for us to start work since September because it is very short-staffed.  We have already been approved by our hospital, the embassy, and health department months ago. Even though the doctors on the committee of the HPCSA approved us to work in October, we have not been registered because there is a breakdown in the system on the administrator level so our papers have been repeatedly lost and not processed.   All the doctors here have their own horror stories concerning their interactions with the HPCSA. We initially chose to come to South Africa because Africa Health Placements marketed themselves as a mission-driven organization that would assist us in the application process.  As of this coming January, it will have been one year since we started this endeavor.  Please keep us in mind in your prayers. 

How’s the house?   

Day 1

Day 3

 

Day 12

After patiently waiting for over 3 weeks for them to start work on our house and then another 2.5 weeks of living in a construction zone, I can safely say that our house is significantly nicer, much more liveable, and there are no leaks! They replaced the old, broken linoleum with light peach tiles in the kitchen, shower room, and toilet room.  Our kitchen cabinets were painted white and they put in a new cabinet under the sink.  They also painted the kitchen and hallway a light yellow.  They completely gutted the shower room and put in new white tiles, shower door, window, sink, and medicine cabinet.  They also installed a new toilet.  Since the country is at a standstill now due to the Christmas holidays, they will return in the beginning of January to put the finishing touches on the house and start work on the wall around our yard.

The Good, the Bad and the Ugly

Race/ethnicity, crime, and poverty, all intertwined, affect the daily lives of South Africans.  There are very clear distinctions between the blacks, whites, coloured (people who are part black and part white) and Indians.  These groups for the most part do not associate with one another.  Most of the people here are a shade of medium to dark brown and sometimes I cannot tell if someone is black, coloured or Indian.  Even within the same race, the blacks and whites have strong prejudices.  For example, there are clear divisions between the black people of Xhosa and Zulu background or white people of Dutch or English descent.  (One black African thought Akbar was white, which illustrates that sometimes the color of a person may not be so obvious, rather more relative.  And these superficial differences do not reflect who the person is or his or her life experiences.) Sadly, these arbitrary skin colors, and the cultures and social constructs that go along with them form the crux of many conflicts within this country.

Although in the US and other countries people of mixed descent are considered “exotic” or “more beautiful,” in South Africa the coloured are considered “lowly” people who get drunk and commit crimes.  The areas they live in are considered more dangerous and poor.  Even the coloured people who have white skin and blonde hair are not considered equal to their white or black counterparts.

Crime, especially violent crime, is prevalent here.  Everyday the papers have horrible stories of murders, rapes, shoot outs, stabbings, home invasions, drug smugglings, and more. People are robbed, injured and killed for their cell phones or just 75 cents!  These crimes occur irrespective of neighborhood.  As a result, wealthier homes have big dogs in the yard, burglar bars around the windows and doors, alarms systems, and razor wires and electric fences on the walls.  Many people used to carry handguns, but the government is encouraging people who have them legally to turn them in.  Like in the States, it is difficult to control those who have illegal weapons.  One man told us it is no longer worth it to carry a handgun for protection because you can be put in jail and fined even if you use it for self-defense.

Despite the seemingly “bad” things in this country, there are many people fighting to make this country better.  The doctors at our public hospital get paid far less than the doctors in the private sector to work far more, in worse conditions, with less resources, and with sicker patients because they are passionate about helping the very sick and poor and teaching the next generation of family medicine residents.  There are also many people who, for better or worse, do not trust the police and the country’s judicial system, so when they see a crime committed, will take it upon themselves to chase down the criminal and institute their own justice.

We have been graciously blessed by the people at the hospital and church because they have been exceptionally kind, hospitable, generous and encouraging.  They drive us out shopping, to the beach, church, movies, etc several times a week.  They make it a point to make sure that we are always entertained and overfed with lots and lots of curry, alcohol, and sweets. One friend has given us his television and fan and another couple cooks and gives us food to take home several times a week.  Since our house was under construction for almost 3 weeks, people have shared their toilets and showers with us also.  It is encouraging to know that despite all the racism, crime and poverty in this country, there are still genuinely good people.

 

Moses Mahbida Stadium
(Taken from plusmood.com)



Since we arrived, people have mostly taken us out to the very nice parts of Durban.  They take us to the nice beach that was redone for the World Cup or the nice shopping mall that is the biggest mall in the Southern Hemisphere.  If I was randomly dropped from a plane on to one of these places, I would think I was in a first world country, like the US or Australia.  I think for the South Africans, it is a way to show off their country, to show us that their country is modern, wealthy, and respectable. However, the places we have visited most of the last month do not represent most of Durban or the country.  While driving, it has been very jarring for me to see a hillside of dilapidated shanty houses across from a hill of mansions and below a huge, modern mall. 



(Taken from ellenschnier.wordpress.com)

  Wentworth, the neighborhood where we live in Durban, is similar to Compton, but it is not home to the poorest of the poor.  It is considered a “bad” or unsafe neighborhood, but people here live in small, run-down houses or flats with electricity, running water and paved roads.  A level below where we live are ‘townships’--expansive, maze-like areas with narrow, bumpy roads, full of small, poorly built, single-room government-subsidized housing.  Sometimes half a dozen or more people can live in a little house that is less than 500 sq feet.



(Taken from ncccusa.org)

  A step down from the townships are the shantytowns, which are comprised of crooked, make-shift shacks, less than 200 sq feet, built of scrap metal, cloth and wood pieces nailed together.  These homes are erected by people from rural areas or poorer African countries who come to the city looking for jobs and a better life.These homes do not have organized plumbing or electricity.  They are built pretty much right on top of each other, connected only by foot paths.  This becomes a danger and health hazard because it facilitates the easy spread of fires from the cook fires as well as tuberculosis from poor ventilation.



Poverty is never easy to see and its existence is never easy to explain.  Intertwined with the complex history and racial dynamics in this country, part of the poverty can be explained by the nearly 50% unemployment rate and 40% HIV/AIDS rate in some areas.  South Africa is a country that has made huge strides since its break from Apartheid over 15 years ago, but she still has a long way to go.  It is a country blessed with an abundance of natural resources and wealth and only time will tell where its leaders will take her.

 



South African Fact:

A popular South African fast food is the bunny chow, aka bunny, created by the Indian community in Durban. It consists of a hollowed out loaf of bread filled with curry that people eat with their fingers.

(Taken from laraferroni.com)