I’m not sure if it’s being reported in the US, but there is a huge strike going on in Botswana. Thousands of public service workers have been on strike for the past five weeks, demanding a 16% salary increase from the government. All the government owned schools have been shut down (which is most of the schools because the government pays for education) and there are mass shortages of workers throughout the country. A few weeks ago the government gave all workers two weeks to return to work or else they would be dismissed. The two-week mark has passed and the government has submitted court appeal to workers in the health, education, sewage, water, and a few other fields to return to work or else they will be the first to be dismissed. Strikers say they will not give in, and they believe the government must give them the demanded increase. This is the first strike to ever happen and right now people are very concerned for the future of the country. It is impacting all areas of work, including the government clinic I am working at. There are significantly fewer patients coming to the clinic because they fear that the nurses and doctors working there are potential targets for choosing not to strike. However, the strike has not become violent against health workers, and there has been increased protective action. Today the leaders of the union were arrested, which may prove to be a turning point for the strike.
Botswana is a relatively new country, having gained independence in the mid 60’s, and this is the first strike they have ever experienced. It is clear from everyone’s reactions that this is something new and there is a lot of anxiety over how this is going to end. The government hasn’t followed through with their threats of dismissal, which I think might be giving hope to the strikers that there’s a chance of getting what they want. I don’t know much about their politics or economy, but I think 16% is pretty extravagant and it’ll be interesting to see how the government and workers resolve this, especially because resources are being stretched and the economy is already suffering because of the of the decreased demand for diamonds (Botswana’s primary export).
Other than the strike, work is great! As I mentioned, I was relocated to a clinic where I’ve been helping out in the mother-child health room. I finally succeeded in taking blood pressure (I knew how it worked in theory, but I could never hear the beats through the stethoscope) and I learned how to record everything on paper (no computers at the clinic!). Everyone I work with speaks Setswana and at least a little bit of English. The other nurses gave me the Setswana name “Masego” pronounced “Mahseho”, which means “Blessed”. I think they’ve already forgotten my English name, and now I immediately respond to Mahsego. They all get a kick out of my American accent, especially when I try to pronounce Setswana words. Everyone is very friendly at work, and I’m learning a lot about the Botswana culture and day-to-day life. I think the most interesting thing is that the government pays for pretty much everything, including health care and education (all the way through higher degrees, including medical school). I think in Botswana it’s especially important that the government pays for health care because of the extremely high HIV rate (>24%), but working at the clinic has also opened up my eyes to the problems created by free health care. From what I’ve been told by the nurses, and from what I have seen, there are people who seem less inclined to take care of themselves or their medical records/prescriptions because they know they will get new records or prescriptions whenever they need as long as they go to the clinic. One of the nurses noted that given the responsibility of paying for things, people will generally be more careful, if for no other reason than to avoid extra expenses. It’s still only been three days, so I’m sure I will observe and learn much more in order for develop a more informed understanding of how things work down here.
I think my body is finally beginning to adjust to Botswana time, though I will say waking up at 6:15 am every morning is still rough. Kaitlin, Julia and I went on an epic grocery run yesterday so hopefully we’ll have enough food to last us for at least two weeks. After work we come back to the dorms and usually chill until we’re too hungry to handle, and then make dinner. Tonight we’re baking some vegetables and making scrambled eggs. Dinner of champions.
This weekend we are planning to go down to the yacht club to watch the sunset. No one is really sure what to expect from the yacht club, especially because Botswana is a land locked country so the only place for the yachts is the lake. On Sunday we’re going to try to hike to the top of Kgale Hill. We hiked up part of it last Sunday, and I must admit it’s a pretty steep path, but definitely doable if we give ourselves enough time, wear proper clothes, and bring enough water. I also think we’re going spend Saturday at some place where we can get free wireless (still no wireless, still sharing an Ethernet cord). So hopefully I'll be able to post pictures on Saturday! I’m not sure if I’m going to post them here or just post the link to a picassa/flikr account. We’ll see.
Hope everything in the States is going well! I feel like I know so much about what’s going on in Botswana, but pretty much nothing about anything in the US!
