Minister Do Nothing

Before this entry I should issue a classic disclaimer. The views represented in this blog are my own and do not represent those of the American Bar Association or the United States Government. No one in either camp suggested I write that, but somehow I felt like I should.

As an American coming to a developing country to "help" with a project, I wanted to be very conscious about not coming across as condescending or a know-it-all. I really wasn't worried that much about either, especially the know-it-all part, since I knew NOTHING about working with child soldiers until I got here. But nevertheless, I have been really trying to keep an open mind and rid myself of preconceived notions about how things are here. I've been keeping it up pretty well even though I hear stories daily, from locals and ex-pats alike, about the rampant corruption, the lack of effort on the part of the government to do much of anything, and the of formal government as a thinly veiled political party operation, etc. etc.

Still, I thought, there must be some government officials that are working hard and doing good work. So, going into our meeting with a government official working on the demobilization of former soldiers I was thinking positive thoughts. The government set up a formal agency for demobilization, reinsertion, and reintegration through funding by the UNICEF and the World Bank among others. The agency, in conjunction with some non-governmental organizations, demobilized almost 3,000 former child soldiers (in addition to adults). The program was also supposed to reunite the youth with family members and provide medical, psychosocial, and vocational services to reintegrate them into the community. Most folks agree that the reunification with parents and extended family was a success but the reintegration, well . . . not so much.

We decided we should meet with an official in the demobilization bureau so they knew about our project and we could find out what they were working on. We entered a nondescript office building in downtown Bujumbura and were directed to the fourth floor. We were ushered into a dark, highly air-conditioned office for our meeting.

The government official we encountered was slovenly dressed and not overly friendly. Fatima and I introduced ourselves, shared a little bit about the project, and asked what the government was working on now in the area of child soldiers. The official immediately announced that he knew very little as he was new to the job. He said he needed to call the individual who worked specifically with child soldiers. We said that would be great and he grabbed the phone. We heard him say, "Oh, he's out sick today. O.K." He apologized and then attempted to explain their ongoing work with child soldiers.

As best as I could translate he said something to the effect of "Yeah, there were some kid soldiers. Now there back with their families. Some got jobs. I suppose some are married. Maybe some job training. Yeah . . . that sort of thing." That concluded the report. He asked if we had questions. Fatima, putting on a brave face, asked what the government was working on in terms of preventing re-recruitment of former child soldiers in the face of an upcoming election and fighting in the eastern part of the Congo. He said they had a plan going but really couldn't share a lot of the details. And that, concluded the meeting.

Fatima asked if I had any final questions. As politely as I could, I said, "Is it possible for us to meet with the gentleman who works with child soldiers when he returns to the office?" The official said, "No, I've fully explained the situation and told you all you need to know." We gave our official "Merci Beaucoups" and headed for the door.

As we got out of earshot and headed down the stairs, Fatima shot me an exasperated look and asked what I thought of the meeting. I replied, "Totally Useless." Fatima laughed and said, "Now you have seen first hand how it is here. Now you know why it is non-governmental organizations who do all the work." We both decided that he was such the cliche of the lame government bureaucrat that it was almost comical. Almost, except for the high stakes and important nature of his job.

A few nights later at a dinner with two well-connected ex-pats (an American and a Canadian) I learned the back story. In the official's defense, he really had just been on the job eight days because his predecessor was sacked for receiving kick-backs in a some sort of corruption scandal and after doing what most everyone acknowledges was a horrible job! Also, it turns out that the entire Demobilization, Reinsertion, and Reintegration agency is closing at the end of December. So, eight days in and 15 days away from closing it was a little easier to understand the nonchalant attitude. Still the agency is closing its doors leaving much of the work undone (after two fully-funded phases) and with major world funders extremely unhappy about all the money they have forked over with mixed results.

As it turns out, in light of all this, our project is very timely. Either there may be a third phase of the demobilization effort that the project can be an "official" part of or there will be no third phase and a real need for follow-up with youth and young adults that have not received services. Needless to say, my learning curve has been steep and month is seeming like a REALLY short time to understand the politics and grasp the complexity of the situation.