Day 365 - Strike, back again?

So, I have resurfaced again after being at my site for more than 2 months since the last time I was gone. It was time to figure out what I am going to do for the summer, talk to mom and dad, and enjoy some icy cold yogurt and some really authentic Chinese food.

But first of all, it has been a year! It's scary how time has flown by so fast. I have learned a lot and have all sorts of ideas for what I want to do next year. BUT, a big "but" I am writing here, is really how next year will play out. I know I am skipping some stuff that has happened in the past two months, but I want to talk about the latest social political crisis here in Guinea. For the second time, all the white-collar workers had a strike again 2 weeks ago, and this time it was for unlimited time rather than the 5-days strike we had back in February. The ever-increasing gas prices set by the government is making already high priced basic goods even more unaffordable. It's better to keep bottles and bottles of petrol than money that is devaluing rapidly daily. In the villages, where there is no gas station, gasoline is sold in wine bottle kind of bottles. A year ago, a dollar gives 4000 guinean francs, now it can give you 5000 guinean francs. The workers are finally tired of being told each time that situation will change, but all are just words without any real changes. So, it came to an unlimited strike until we can see real changes. The timing coincided with the week of national exams for graduating seniors in high school, an exam required before they can take the entrance exam for attending university. After a year of preparing themselves, the students of course were very pissed that their effort might be wasted. The students in various cities protested and had confrontations with the police; even secretary general Kofi Annan spoke up to the uncalled for death (11 dead, over 80 wounded in 2-days period) that came from these student protests.

We the volunteers were asked to stay at our villages as soon as the strike was announced, where things are quite and safer for us than in a city. It was peaceful in the village, but you can feel this somber mood looming in the air, no one knows whatï¿∏s going to happen. What happens if strike last for months on end, and rice which is imported in our village runs out, how are people going to survive; are the kids going to take their final exams, going to take the tests to enter next school level; so many unknowns. My radio was almost attached to my ear, so I can get some idea how things are going. Am I going to be evacuated? Is my Peace Corps service ending already? Am I not going to be able to help some of my favorite 9th graders next year to prepare them to go onto high school? Am I not going to realize all the ideas I have for next year? Are all the efforts of my friends gathering books for my library project going down the drain? Am I not going to be able to say proper goodbye to all the wonderful people I have came to know? Do I have to go back to U.S. already? Can I get transferred to another country? Uncertainty was eating inside of us, of course my problems were much smaller compare to my fellow villagers, who have to worry about their basic livelihood like feeding their family.

I was torn. On one hand, I supported the unlimited strike in hope that situation will improve for Guineans which will probably means that us volunteers are out of here; on the other hand, I canï¿∏t bear to leave what I came to love to do so much here.

The government and the union continued to talk during the strike, and after a little over a week, the union leaders decided to suspend the strike, give the government a chance to decrease their gain in the oil prices, so the transport costs will not be so high. The union will not fix the dates of the three major national exams: elementary school to middle school, middle school to high school, and high school to university, unless the prices are lowered. The deadline of re-programming all the national exams are this Friday, and if the union is not satisfied with the government's response, exams will not be held, we will have an "annee blanche", that means it was a year wasted, all grades have to repeat. Not just the seniors, but all grades. Can you imagine how pissed will the students be? The ball is in the government's court now. I can't imagine that the students will let this go easily. So, uncertainty again is looming in the air. In a country where it is so hard to push real quality education, I can't imagine having to teach the same kids the same program a second time around.

With this uncertainty I am heading back to my site tomorrow. I have a girls conference/summer camp scheduled with my kids next week, after that I am just going to hang out in my village for three weeks before coming back to Conakry to train the next group of volunteers. At one point two weeks ago, I was wondering if the new group is still coming. We are getting 30 new education volunteers compare to 16 of us that came last year, half of the 30 were originally headed to Chad, but got re-routed due to political instability there. I am still wondering if all these plans will realize, but I am glad I am getting back to my site before if there is another strike. Being in Conakry will mean being on house arrest in the Peace Corps house because stepping out of the compound can be unsafe. At my site, I can at least hang out with my family, friends and students, and watch the rest of World Cup games. Soccer players these days are so much bigger than twenty years ago.

Hope you are all well, and I will fill you in on all the holes in my time at site (hopefully) in a month time.

Bonnie