Tag Archive : Humanist

/ Humanist

Starter ritualet. Nogle gange når vi kun igennem stadiet med høflighedsfraserne og basisinformationerne: navn, hvor man kommer fra og hvor man bor.

Alle steder i verden hvor mennesker mødes er der dette faste ritual med udveksling af informationer. Der er forskellige variationer over temaet. Nogle gange giver man hånd, andre gange lægger man hånden på hjertet og bukker let – andre steder samler man hænderne foran brystet og siger Namaste. Uanset variation handler det altid om at være imødekommende, nysgerrig og vise respekt.

En af utallige lokale der vil have taget selfie med hende den blonde blåøjede dansker

Næste fase er udveksling af mere detaljerede informationer – uanset om du sidder til middagsselskab i Danmark eller tager toget fra Moskva til Beijing. Uanset om du møder andre turister eller besøger lokale indbyggere. Det er altid de samme spørgsmål der bliver stillet. Hvad er dit arbejde? Er du gift? Har du børn? Hvor gammel er du? Hvor kommer du fra? Hvor skal du hen?

Når man rejser – især langt væk – tilføjes yderligere spørgsmål om ens kulturelle baggrund og land:  Hvor stort er Danmark, antal indbyggere, religion, kultur, hvorfor er vi så rige, hvordan kan det være at vi er verdens lykkeligste land, er højreekstremisterne også på fremmarch hos jer. Samtalen kan føre mange steder hen, og nogle gange fører det til længerevarende filosofiske eller politiske diskussioner.

Der er forskel på om dem man møder er andre rejsende eller om det er lokale.

Som rejsende udenfor de sædvanlige turistdestinationer er der en tendens til, at vi skaber et sammenhold – vores eget lille fællesskab. På togturen fra Moskva til Beijing mødte jeg flere af de samme mennesker undervejs. Man nikker venligt og anerkender at man har genkendt dem – ikke at man behøver at tale med hinanden, men vi ved at de andre er der.

I Delhi mødte jeg Shruti & Pulkit
2 unge humanister der var rejst 6 timer sammen med deres far for at hilse på mig

Genkendelsesnikket bruges fordi vi alle har en del af de samme oplevelser og ikke mindst udfordringer. Nogle gange falder man i snak, som når internettet i praksis er umuligt at bruge i Beijing vi brokker os i fælleskab – Nancy & jeg. Hun viser sig at være fra Minneapolis – Prince’s fødeby og på min bucket list (ja jeg har været fan siden jeg var ganske ung 😉). Jeg får hendes e-mail og lover at kontakte hende, når jeg en dag kommer for at besøge Paisley Park.

Mange udveksler e-mails m.m., men de færreste bruger dem. Det er en del af ritualet at udveksle kontaktinformationer, hvis man har tilbragt mere end 2 dage i hinandens selskab. Det er ikke helt almindelige turister der vælger at tage den transsibiriske jernbane. Jeg møder en gruppe af svensktalende finske kvinder, som alle er over halvfjerds (det vil jeg også når jeg når den alder 😊). Der er det unge tyske par jeg delte kupe med en enkelt nat, som vil rejse verden rundt i 1 år (det nåede jeg aldrig selv da jeg var ung).

Tony, Janet & John i
vores egen lille pub

John og Janet fra London har rejst i hele verden i mange år – de tager den samme rute mellem Moskva og Beijing, men forlænger med ekstra dage i Gobi ørkenen i Mongoliet. Tony fra London har solgt alt ligesom mig og rejser verden rundt i mindst 1 år. Vi nåede at etablere vores helt eget aftenritual og omdannede restaurantvognen til en britisk pub inden vores veje skiltes igen.

Vi mødes alle sammen i korte øjeblikke hvor vi udveksler rejseerfaringer og livserfaringer – ikke så meget livshistorier, for de synes ikke helt så vigtige der midt ude i ingenting. Hvad man arbejder med, er ligegyldigt – i stedet snakker vi om vores erfaringer og overraskende nok tit og ofte storpolitik.

Man kan ikke undgå at tale Brexit med enhver brite på vejen – alle jeg har mødt udenfor Europa er imod Brexit. Der er på en eller anden måde sammenhæng mellem dem, der rejser for de særlige oplevelser og deres politiske holdninger. Jeg har endnu til gode at møde en Trump tilhænger på mine rejser – amerikanerne jeg møder er nærmest flove over at være amerikanere.

På den guidede tur gennem den forbudte by mødtes brasilianeren og amerikaneren og jeg og snakkede om, hvad det dog var der foregik i deres lande. På den guidede tur til den kinesiske mur udvekslede israelerne og italienerne erfaringer om hver deres politiske cirkus.

Min guide og vores chauffør i Mongoliet.

Og så er der de lokale man møder undervejs. Min rejse er en kombination af turistture og besøge lokale kontakter. Det er ikke så ofte at man kommer tæt på guiderne og chaufførerne, men der er undtagelse – fx min guide i Mongoliet (beskrevet i tidligere blog indlæg). Det møde gjorde et stort indtryk på mig.

I de fleste af de lande jeg har rejst i har jeg mødtes med humanister og andre ikke-troende for at snakke med dem om deres livshistorier til min podcast Babelfish. Det er de færreste jeg kendte på forhånd, men alle sammen har taget imod mig med åbne arme. Nogle steder har de endda inviteret mig hjem og bo hos dem selv, som da jeg boede hos Harrison i Nairobi, Kenya. Lige nu har jeg boet 3 dage hos Narendra og hans kone Asha i Mangalore, Indien.

Uanset hvor jeg har været har de arrangeret middage eller sammenkomster, så jeg har kunne møde så mange som muligt. Det giver et helt andet indblik i det enkelte land, fordi man får andre historie end dem, der fremstilles i medierne. Igennem det sidste år har jeg interviewet mere end 60 mennesker og mødt mindst lige så mange, hvis historier jeg ikke har dokumenteret.

Hygge med humanister i Manila

Endelig er der de semi-lokale, som enten er migreret til landet eller besøger det ofte. I Tokyo mødte jeg amerikanske Robert, der har boet i Japan i mange år. I Pokhara mødte jeg danske Peter, der har besøgt Nepal gennem de sidste 20 år. De semi-lokale kan nogle gange give en mere objektiv og nuanceret beskrivelse af kulturen i landet.

Jeg har mødt hundredvis af mennesker på mine rejser – alle med hver deres unikke historie og indblik i deres del af verden. Det er kun en dråbe i havet set i forhold til de milliarder af mennesker, som vi er på jorden. Men det er en kæmpe oplevelse hver gang man møder et nyt menneske.

Goodbye Ghana

2019-07-13 | Denmark, Ghana, Long read | No Comments

The Gate of No Return, Cape Coast

I just left Ghana after a visit which seemed too short. It was my first trip back to western Africa since Sofie & I visited Mali 14 years ago. Back then Mali was a peaceful country and we travelled with Sofie’s friend Martha, her brother Simon, her mom Dorthe and her dad David (who is born in Mali).

It was a family visit, but Sofie and I took a road trip to Timbuktu. The first of many trips to far away fairy-tale places (at least for us Danes 😊). Our drivers name was Baloo and our guide in Timbuktu was Tuareg (one of the blue men) with the name Muhammed Ali. I kid you not it was their names. Internal conflict now makes it impossible to visit and the UNESCO world heritage sites we visited back then is ruined by rebels.

The food is good – here jollof

Ghana is the opposite – it’s peaceful and compared to other African countries wealthy. Like all the other countries Ghana is very religious, but the humanist organisation is growing. Roslyn who recently was elected to the board of Humanists International helped me settling in, showed me the beach and took me to a pub, where I experienced the football frenzy – Ghana fighting for a place in the quarter finals of the African Cup. Unfortunately, they lost so we didn’t party all night (good for me).

With Ros on the beach

At Roslyn’s house a met some of the other humanists. I interviewed her, Roslyn’s husband Michael who is also president of the humanists in Ghana and Ato & Anim. They are trying to create a safe space for non-believers, since they are stigmatised. It was so nice meeting them and discuss humanism, human rights and much more.

Danish history is intertwined with Ghanaian history. We don’t talk about it much in Denmark, but we also participated in the slave trade from Afrika to Amerika. We had a few islands in the Caribbean with plantations and some slave forts along the Ghana coast. I visited one of them Christiansborg in Accra with Michael who took me on a road trip from Accra to Cape Coast to Kumasi and back.

It’s estimated Denmark was responsible for 100.000 slaves being brought across the ocean over 130 years. Local tribes delivered slaves to the Europeans – amongst them the Ashanti kingdom which still exists. Slaves was rounded up from todays Mali, Burkina Faso and other countries. Then they were sent marching towards Cape Coast which is several hundred kilometres – barefoot in shackles, many of them dying on the way.

Place for the Homecoming ceremony

Today decedents from the slaves seek their roots and a lot of them visit Ghana. Every year there is remembrance of the slave trade. A homecoming ceremony is held for those visiting for the first time.

Ghana is a beautiful country. People are so nice and friendly – we had a lot of laughs. I leave with a lot of good experiences – a lot wiser regarding my own country’s history and new friends I will surely miss.

Some facts:

Ghana (Denmark)

Population:   30.4 mio. (5.8 mio.)

Area:   239.000 km2 (43.000 km2)

Density: 128/km2 (133/km2)

Life expectancy: 63 years (80 years)

The final episode of Babelfish season 1 has been published. The podcast will be on holiday until August. So far 30 interviews with non-believers from 7 countries in the eastern and southern parts of Africa have been produced.

I have talked to humanists, atheists and freethinkers from Uganda, Rwanda, Kenya, Tanzania, Malawi, Botswana and South Africa. All of them had fascinating stories to tell about their life and the challenges they face.

Many of them grew up in religious families with no room for critical thinking, questions and discussions about belief. Growing up most of them have felt alone, thinking they were the only ones doubting the existence of God.

Now they are building communities for non-believers in their countries. In some countries humanist schools are formed, educating the kids in science and critical thinking. Other humanist schools are supporting single moms. Humanitarian projects are being run by non-believers.

In some of the countries the communities are very small with almost no resources. But in all countries non-believers are having metups, debates and social events in order to grow the small communities.

Everywhere I went non-believers are discriminated and stigmatised. Not due to legislation since the constitutions are based on human rights, but due to the religious society. Some have experienced to be shunned from their families, some have been fired. In some cases, there has been violent reactions to non-believers fight for human rights.

Sometimes it looks like an uphill battle to change the society’s view of non-believers. But everywhere I went I met amazing people full of energy and optimism. They keep up the good work and I am sure they will change the world.

It’s been quite a journey for me as well. A year ago, I started the planning – a bit scared, nervous and excited. I have had doubts many times, thinking this was crazy – thinking I wasn’t able to do this. But I did – and I will continue.

Season 1 has been finalised. Tomorrow I’ll fly to Ghana to meet another group of amazing non-believers. The interviews will be part of season 2 which will begin in August.

Next step is to cover the rest of the world. I am actively seeking funding and sponsors for a tour around the world. The tour will start by the end of August.

You can also support the project by donating money through Patreon – or for the Danish audience through 10er.dk.

Have a nice summer

Goodbye Portugal

2019-04-22 | Long read, Portugal | 1 Comment

Streets of Lisbon

It wasn’t part of my plan to visit Portugal this year. I want to do a Europe tour at some point visiting all the European countries. I want to wait interviewing non-believers in this part of the world where is seems to be easier than in other parts. But since I was in the neighbourhood, I decided to tour Portugal and Spain after the nomad cruise.

Portugal is beautiful, the green mountains, the olive trees, the ocean and the cliffs. The characteristic pavement of white and black stones in the cities and the architecture. Until the 70’ies the country was a catholic dictatorship and has suffered many financial crises since. They are only just recovering from the latest crisis – there are many beautiful old buildings who looks like they are falling apart. At the same time there is lots of restoration going on.

Streetart in Lisbon

I was so tired after the nomad cruise I needed to take it easy and not do much sightseeing while I spend a couple of days in Lisbon. I just did a walking tour with the other nomads to get a brief insight to the story of the city.

I interviewed 2 non-believers from the secular society (http://www.laicidade.org/) Ricardo and Rodrigo. Portugal is very religious, and the catholic church still has a huge impact on government and every day life. This even though the Portuguese constitution has been secular since 1911. The secular organization is not just for non-believers, members are of all faiths. The primary goal is to implement secularism in Portugal. There are still many issues in everyday life. Non-believers don’t face server challenges like in the African countries I have visited, but people think they are a bit strange.

Ecumenical Temple

I also visited the ADFP which is a foundation in Coimbra. It’s founded more than 30 years ago and is based on humanity and helps disabled people, foster kids and others. It owns a natural park, a hotel and a few years back they build an ecumenical temple on the top of a mountain.

The temple is dedicated to peace and to remember the victims of fundamentalism. It is for both believers and non-believers – I find it a bit strange to call it a temple, since it then sounds like a religious place. I understand why they have built even though I would have preferred something more secular.


Cromeleque dos Alemenedres

From Coimbra I rented a car and drove down south through the mountains and landscapes. For once I was on my own – no driver, no public transport. I decided to take a detour, going back in time finding the megaliths (Cromeleque dos Alemenedres) outside Evora. They are thousands of years of old and are amazing. They rest on a mountain top with a beautiful view. There are several megaliths and monoliths in the area. They are breathtaking – incredible they were able to build them back then.

I also visited a former colleague Paul Gerner and his wife Ewa in Lagos in Algarve. We haven’t seen each other for years, but it was just like the old days – nice relaxing and cosy. Paul has been visiting Portugal for more than 30 years. He told me the economy is improving, a lot of investments are being done and many Europeans are moving here with their savings. So, it looks good for the future – and hopefully some of these old amazing buildings can be restored.

Some facts:

Portugal (Denmark)

Population:   10.2 mio. (5.8 mio.)

Area:   92.000 km2 (43.000 km2)

Density: 111/km2 (133/km2)

Life expectancy: 79 years (80 years)

The humanist society

2019-04-02 | Denmark, Short read | 1 Comment

Happy Human

My life stance is humanism and my values are based on human rights. This means I belong to a minority in this world since most people are religious. I have not really considered myself being part of a minority before I started my travels and talked to other non-believers.

But we are a minority. In Denmark approximately 1.500 people are members of the Danish Humanist Society and approximately 800 people are members of the Atheist Association – Denmark has 5.8 million citizens. So we are a minority in Denmark even though the country is considered to be one of the least religious in the world.

I’ve been a member of the Danish Humanist Society since it was founded almost 11 years ago. Since then the society has fought to be acknowledged as a life stance organisation to acquire the same rights as faith communities. We are not there yet but hopefully we will get there within a year or two.

I have been active in the society in some years now. It was my involvement in the international work which gave me the idea to Babelfish – it was meeting all the other humanist struggling to get recognised who sparked the idea. Even though I travel I am still active in the political work – you just need your laptop and your phone, and you can work all over the globe.

I have also been involved in planning a lot of events culminating in our 10-year anniversary celebration last year. 2018 was a busy year with a record high number of ceremonies held and a lot of events. Last weekend we had our general assembly where our President Lone Ree Milkaer again was amazed on how far we have gotten and what we manage to do with very few resources.

At the general assembly I was re-elected for the board and will also continue as vice president the next year 😊

Home sweet home

2019-03-14 | Denmark, Long read | No Comments

I haven’t been active on my blog the last week. My writing routine is a bit off after I came home. I’m still trying to adjust to everyday life – it is especially hard to get used to the cold weather and the rain. I’ve been freezing, some days just wanted to stay under my blanket binging Netflix. It is no surprise that many people suffer from winter depressions here in the north.

I’ve been bust processing all my experiences, catching up with everybody and at the same time plan my next trip. My plans are in progress and I’ll hopefully leave Denmark in 3 weeks. At the same time, I am meeting a lot of new people and hope I can corporate with some of them in the future. interesting times 😊

I & Maja aka minnie_mouseling

I met one new friend through Instagram. The fun part is that she lives in Copenhagen, she is an atheist and has made atheist jewellery for some years. I had never heard about her before and we live a few kilometres apart from each other. She found me and yesterday we met for coffee and talked for hours about humanism, atheism and our common goals. She has a lot of followers in the US where it can be (in some parts of the country) just as difficult to come out as a non-believer as in Africa.

The invisible pink unicorn

Her name is Maja but known as minnie_mouseling on Instagram. Maja has created a beautiful invisible pink unicorn pendant for atheists to wear and has the motto: put a friendly face on atheism. The invisible pink unicorn is an international symbol for atheism. Check out her webpage and follow her on Instagram.

Last week was International Women’s Day and I spent a lot of energy being frustrated about the media coverage. In Denmark the media prefer to ridicule feminism instead of focussing on the issues and challenges we still face.

We do not have gender equality in Denmark – a report from Amnesty international highlighted this in a report on how rape survivors are being treated by the authorities. It is devastating to read how the survivors are blamed, victim blaming is the norm both by authorities and in the public eye.

But the media wanted to cover a non-existing conflict regarding gender neutral traffic lights. A story created by a journalist who months back also created a non-existing conflict about a song.

Saturday night dinner

So I was mad most of Friday – fortunately we (Humanistisk Samfund) was hosting the annual Nordic Humanist meeting the whole weekend – they managed to make me happy again. It is always a pleasure meeting our friends in the Nordics – from Iceland, Finland, Norway and Sweden.

We talked, shared experiences and made plans. During the weekend we also had a visit from the Norwegian ambassador in Denmark Aud Kolberg talking about Nordic identity, and a Danish scientist Josephine Valentin talked about SKAM (the tv-series) and Nordic identity. Great weekend.

I’m also adjusting to the day-to-day tasks – getting used to grocery shopping, doing the dishes, cleaning the apartment, visiting the doctor and the dentist. I still need to get a haircut. All the tedious tasks you have to do – it’s tough to adjust 😉

Goodbye Namibia – goodbye Africa

2019-03-03 | Namibia | No Comments

Etosha National Park

Today I am leaving Namibia. The only country where I haven’t interviewed any humanists. So far, I know the country doesn’t have any humanist or atheist organisations – or at least no organisations are members of Humanists International.

I decided to visit anyway – purely for recreational reasons. So, I have been on holiday the last week, experiencing Namibia. A fascinating country almost twenty times the size of Denmark, but the population is half the size of Denmark. It is the least dense country in Africa with only 3 people per square kilometre – In the whole world only Mongolia is less dense (2 people per square kilometre).

Namibia has is all, in great amount. Savanna, desert, ocean, mountains etc. And everything is big – the national parks goes on forever, you drive for hours through each park in search for animals. For the first time ever, I have been part of a tourist group with people I didn’t know beforehand. I’m used to be the only one or travelling with Sofie.

It’s been interesting travelling with other tourists, even though it means you don’t get as close to the guide or the locals. You meet people from all over the world who are interested in the same things as you – to see some animals up close and spend time in a 40-degree desert after hours and hours of driving. Canadians, Americans, Namibians, British, South African and French – the latter has spent the last 8 years sailing around the world in their own boat (impressive).

Cheetah in Solitaire

The wild life is amazing – I saw my first leopard (2 actually) and my first cheetahs. Black rhinos, elephants, zebras, Oryx’s and many other animals. It is much drier here than in the other countries I have visited – Namibia is dry, but also feels the consequences of the climate changes.

There has never been much water in this dry land – maybe one of the reasons for the small population – but it is getting worse. They change salt water to drinking water to cover the need. And everybody is asked to save water wherever we go. On the positive side the water is clean enough for me to drink – I don’t need to bye water all the time.

The most overwhelming experience was the Namibian Desert – especially the orange sand dunes. This is the oldest desert in the world. The sun is relentless, the wildlife is well hidden – but there are some. We managed to come across the mountain zebra, many oryx’s, jackals and other animals.

Dune no 45

Some from the group climbed the Crazy Dune – aka Big Daddy – it is 325 meters tall. You must get up at 5 o’clock in the morning or else it will get to hot to climb. I didn’t get up there but walked to Deadveil to look at a dried-out flood pan with trees which have been dead for 800 years – a fascinating place.

We had a nice view of all the ‘crazy’ people climbing the dune while the sand got hotter and hotter. Soon we could all feel the hot sand burning through the bottom of our shoes – and it was only 11 o’clock. The temperatures were reaching 40 degrees at noon.

Etosha pan

This country was definitely worth a visit. It was a so-called protectorate of South Africa until 1990 – or the real story is that South Africa didn’t follow the agreements made in the UN, so they took power over Namibia and treated it as a protectorate and even implemented apartheid rules. It took 35 years before Namibia finally got its independence.

When I leave Namibia – I also leave Africa heading home to Denmark. It has been an amazing trip, and an experience of a lifetime – I have been away for 10 weeks, 2½ months. This was a test run. I wanted to find out whether I can travel a long time on my own. I can. I do not have any problems travelling alone – I met a lot of people on the way. I talk to locals, I talk to tourists – and I meet humanists, atheists and non-believers.

They are the heroes of Africa today. They are fighting for human rights and humanism. They are fighting for their life stance in a part of the world where they are the odd one out. Their stories deserve to be told – and to be heard.

When I arrive in Denmark, I will start planning my next steps. I want to visit several countries in Africa north of Equator. I would also like to cover some countries in the Middle East. I hope to be on the road again in April, but I will continue blogging about my experiences from Africa.

Some facts:

Namibia (Denmark)

Population:   2.6 mio. (5.8 mio.)

Area:   825.000 km2 (43.000 km2)

Density: 3/km2 (133/km2)

Life expectancy: 64 years (80 years)

Table Mountain seen from Robben Island

Arriving in Cape Town almost feels like coming home. It’s extremely European and according to locals very different from the rest of the country – which means I haven’t really gotten the full experience of this country. I’ve spent two weeks here in Cape Town and haven’t seen half of the sights. After travelling for two months I needed to spend some time relaxing and processing all my experiences.

All of us of course know one the greatest humanists Nelson Mandela. You can’t visit Cape Town without visiting Robben Island where Mandela spent so many years as a political prisoner. I clearly remember the apartheid regime from when I was young, and it was a fantastic day when he was released.

Our guide at Robben Island

Robben Island is a desolate place, flat with not much vegetation. The guides on the island is former political prisoners. Our guide spent 10 years here and he told about torture, famine and the humiliating treatment by the apartheid regime. Since the regime ended improvements have been made but there is still a long way to go.

The difference between rich and poor are still huge, even more than I have seen in other countries. The different governments have only managed to lift a fraction of the poor out of poverty. And like under apartheid it is primarily black people who are poor, lack education and are unemployed. Unemployment rate is approximately 25%.

At first sight Cape Town looks like a wealthy city, but then you begin to see all the beggars. There are so many beggars, none of them are kids though like in some of the other countries. I’m not sure why.

The humanists I met are concentrated around Cape Town. They told me this country is just as religious as the other African countries, but it is easier to be a non-believer in South Africa. Or it depends on which parts of the country you are in. In some areas, rural areas, you would never say out loud you don’t believe. While in others it would not be an issue, like in urban areas.

The cultural diversity is extreme. One example I got from one of the humanists illustrates this very well. South Africa has a secular progressive constitution and homosexuals has equals rights, same sex marriages has been legal for many years. But while kids can be raised by homosexual parents without facing any challenges in their daily lives, just 20 kilometres away lesbians get mass raped as punishment.

On top of this there is infrastructure challenges. Everywhere you go there is posters asking to save water. The power plants cannot deliver enough electricity during peaks times, which means they will cut the power in designated areas for a couple of hours at a time – this is called load shedding.

Despite all the challenges I like this city – just the daily view of the mountains, Table Mountains, with the clouds makes me feel good. When you are used to only the flat land in Denmark mountains are mesmerising. Even though I am afraid of heights, well to put it another way I am afraid of heights when I’m around cliffs and trees. I bungy jump and want to skydive but I will not climb a mountain.

Happy Feet 🙂

And being used to have the ocean nearby I’ve been happy to be close to the water again. I have enjoyed the waves which are like at Vesterhavet back home, the cliffs which looks like Bornholm only a thousand times bigger. I’ve had my first encounter with wild penguins and seals.

It’s the first time I’ve been this long in one place. On one hand it has been nice to be able to empty the suitcase and hang my clothes in the closet. It’s been nice getting to know my maid Jeanette and the people in the reception & the restaurant. But on the other hand, I know I’ve missed out on so much. I could have explored the country even more if I had spent maybe a week travelling up the coast.

Seals on the Waterfront

I would like to come back one day – they have it all – the mountains, the savanna, the desert, the ocean. I want to go whale watching & swimming with seals one day, and searching for a leopard the next, diving with sharks on the third day.

Tomorrow I’ll be flying to Namibia and then there is only one week left before I’m back in Denmark, planning the next steps.

Some facts:

South Africa (Denmark)

Population:   58 mio. (5.8 mio.)

Area:   1.221.000 km2 (43.000 km2)

Density: 48/km2 (133/km2)

Life expectancy: 63 years (80 years)

Goodbye Botswana

2019-02-13 | Botswana | 1 Comment

The Okavanga Delta

It is difficult to comprehend the amount of open spaces in Botswana – the country is the size of France, but France has almost 30 times as many citizens. So much space everywhere.

The Khalihari Desert covers a large part of the country. Together with the Okavanga Delta and Chobe National Park it attracts a lot of tourists – but it is by far the most expensive country I have visited. The parks are covered with air strips where tourists are flown in to stay in luxury lodges. Some cost several thousands of dollars for one night (one night!). A bit out of my league.

Endangered wild dog

The wild life is amazing. Even with my budget I managed to se a lot of animals – even some I haven’t met before, like the pack of wild dogs and the python I met in Moremei Game Reserve. Botswana has thousands of elephants which causes a lot of tension with the local farmers.

Elephants will take down trees, fences and crops on their way. The number of elephants is so high it is a problem. If there is not enough food for them in the parks, they will migrate and ruin farmland. Even though I love elephants I see the problem – some places in the Moremei Game Reserve looked like a graveyard for trees due to the elephants taking most of the trees down or eating the bark of them.

An elephant passed by

Climate changes also has an impact in Botswana. The country is very dry, but I visited during the rainy season and it hardly rained. Newman, my guide in the Okavanga Delta told me the water level should be 2 meters higher at this time of year.

Like in the other countries I have visited the population is growing despite the fact Botswana has one of the highest HIV prevalence rates in the world (estimated 25% of the adult population). More youngsters get an education. But unfortunately, there isn’t enough jobs and unemployment is high even though Botswana is a success story in Africa with high economic growth rates.

Religion plays a vital role in Botswana. Most of the population is christian, but the traditional beliefs still exist including witchcraft. Being a non-believer can be challenging since they are considered to be devil worshippers and without ethics and moral.

There is no humanist organisation in Botswana – not yet. There is a small group of friends, non-believers, who wants to create a humanist organisation.

I met a couple of them while visiting and at this point, they are focusing on being formally registered. Next steps are to make humanist more visible, basically showing the public humanists are good people through charity work.

Like other humanists in this part of the world their biggest challenge is the lack of funding. I hope they succeed.

Some facts:

Botswana (Denmark)

Population:   2.3 mio. (5.8 mio.)

Area:   582.000 km2 (43.000 km2)

Density: 4/km2 (133/km2)

Life expectancy: 63 years (80 years)

Church – Dar es Salaam

What I have realised during my journey is how much religion and, in most countries, also tribes influence everything. Which religion you belong to, which tribe you are a part of influences you everyday life, what school you go to, which job you get, who you can do business with, who you marry, who you vote for.

If you belong to the majority religion and/or tribe you will be better off in many countries. This means it is not the best qualified who gets the job og gets elected, it might not even be the best qualified within your tribe – it all depends on connections and where you belong.

It is also well known that corruption is widespread. Some are trying to fight it, but it is difficult to get rid of and changes are slow.

On top of this people are ready to give all their money to the churches instead of paying for their children’s education, they are ready to pray instead or in addition of relying on doctors to cure diseases. Many people are poor, but they are still willing to give their last dime to their priest.

Kigali, Rwanda

I’ve seen many beautiful buildings while travelling but it is churches, schools and public buildings not peoples houses. Many houses are old, worn down and especially rural areas huts. Think about the amount of money the churches receive from people who could be spending them on improving their own lives.

Especially Pentecostal churches (in Danish ‘Pinsebevægelsen’) is growing in numbers, receiving enormous amounts of money from their followers. So, the priests get rich. Some of them have private jets, big mansions, expensive cars – some of them are con artists and people still donate money to them. People are convinced that god will take care of them if they keep praying and believe enough.

Supported by christian missionaries some priests preach people should get many children – even though they cannot support them or pay their education (education is not free in most countries). The churches are also against contraception and family planning – supported by donator countries like the US, who has a policy of not supporting organisations where abortion is included as a possibility when they are advising families.

This means HIV infected and the population is growing in number in countries where contraception’s are not promoted. The infrastructure, educational system and the labour market cannot keep up with the growth of the population – many young people gets a college degree but there are no jobs for them.  Unemployment rates are high amongst the youth, so many would of cause want to travel abroad to find a proper job. And climate changes are not doing anything good either. It seems like being so religious work against solving a lot of the problems here. The African countries have not been christian for a long time – only a few hundred years. I’m wondering if that’s the reason they are so conservative and extremely religious. And maybe their belief will loosen in the coming generations, I don’t know. The question is whether or not it will be in time for them to be able to solve the challenges they face, and where their belief stands in the way of the best solutions.