My Hat Goes Off to the Burqa Avenger!

I know this has little to do with Ghana specifically (though there is a huge population of covering Muslims in Ghana!), but a friend brought this to my attention today and I think it has to be one of the most awesome initiatives I’ve read about in a long time: 

Click Here: Superhero 'Burka Avenger' divides Pakistan 

 See also: 'Burka Avenger' fights for Pakistani schools

Oh man! I love that she's a teacher! And that she's fighting crime with books :) And I also love that clearly sometimes she chooses to wear a burka and sometimes she chooses not to. 

My proverbial hat goes off to the producers of this show. What an awesome role model idea for young women and men who are a part of Muslim culture everywhere! Whether they are covering Muslims or non-covering, it is awesome for young girls who choose or are forced to wear Muslim coverings to be able to look up to a role model superhero who chooses to cover herself and still has purpose, goals, a career, strengths, uniqueness!

I get why some people feel there is unacceptable irony in the idea of promoting a woman who kicks butt in a burka. As the friend who shared this with me pointed out, many people see the burka as inherently a symbol of oppression. But I really feel its important to acknowledge that there there are so many women who wear Muslim coverings/Christian coverings/Jewish coverings/cultural coverings/personal coverings/etc. by choice  -- many Muslims out of a sense of modesty and not necessarily linked to male oppression. 

In my mind, the voluntary wearing of Muslim coverings specifically is often compared, by analogy, with bathing suits in the west. What I’ve learned from some Muslim women is that in many traditionally Muslim cultures a woman’s hair is looked at as an arousing part of the female anatomy. So those who voluntarily choose to wear hijab may be covering up for religious reason and/or may cover it up simply as part of their own personal sense of modesty. For some women, having their face or other parts of the body exposed for men to leer at violates her sense of personal modesty and privacy, thus the niqab, burqa, etc. Yes, its true that men aren't subjected to the same standard, but to me, that doesn’t make it inherently sexist logically speaking. What is sexist about the tradition is when it is used as a tool of oppression. And don’t get me wrong, it often IS used as such a tool. Almost anything can be used as a tool, and almost any tool can be creatively used as a weapon. But that doesn’t mean that those women who aren’t truly experiencing that oppression need to be liberated from what other people feel is oppressing them. To me, what they should have a right to is the choice. I have a choice to burn my bras and I value that choice, but that doesn’t mean I actually want to do it :)

In North America a woman’s breasts are commonly viewed as an arousing part of the female anatomy. In some cultures, they aren't! But in North America, they are. So those who choose to, cover them up as part of their own personal sense of modesty/social convention. People choose their own degree of modesty, some not being comfortable showing any cleavage, some showing everything possible without going nude. But nobody looks at me wearing my turtleneck sweater and full-coverage bra and tells me I’m being oppressed by some man. People may scoff at my choice of swimsuit as being overly modest, but no one, to my knowledge, feels that its oppressive that I don't feel comfortable publicly revealing the amount of my flesh that others might be comfortable with. That choice is a part of our culture. In our culture its largely acceptable for men and boys to walk around bare chested and its not largely accepted for women. Its legal (in Ontario!), but not acceptable in our culture. In Canada most little boys go to the beach in trunks, most little girls wear a full bathing suit or a two-piece. The closer girls get to puberty, the less you see their parents allowing them to run around topless at splash pads (as some toddlers often do without a problem) To me, this isn’t inherently some double standard. 

I’ll get off my soapboax now, I just really really enjoyed reading about this new superhero and I hope that she inspires girls in Pakistan and elsewhere to fight for their right to education and their right to equality, as long as that does not mean the elimination of their right to CHOOSE who they want to be in society and what aspects of their culture or religion they choose to accept.

Canada Under Review

I know I have spent a lot of time talking about the oddities that I have encountered during my short time in Accra. And I’ll tell ya right now, you can expect further stories on that front because finding the irony in life is sometimes all that keeps things amusing in an otherwise tragic and woefully violent world. But just to make sure that I keep this blog balanced, I thought I’d take an off-topic moment to share with you a report that I really enjoyed skimming.

Canada recently underwent its Universal Period Review (April 2013). This review is a chance for other countries to critique Canada on how it is doing with regard to International Human Rights and International Justice. All of the UN member states undergo this review every so often. Canada’s last one was in 2008 I believe. Eighty-two other countries have commented on Canada and it is really quite interesting to see how the rest of the world views the state of affairs in the homeland. And its also interesting to take note of some of the areas where Canada is often pointing the finger at other countries. For instance:

There were 162 recommendations relating to Human Rights issues in Canada. Some were general (“Continue to effectively address domestic violence, ensuring to victims operational access to means of protection and reinforcing prosecution of perpetrators” – Cyprus). But some were more pointed:

1. Canada hasn’t ratified certain international human rights documents, notably the Optional Protocol on the Convention Against Torture – OP-CAT (which gives an extra complaint mechanism to victims of Torture in Canada who go through the Canadian Court system unsuccessfully), the Optional Protocol for the Convention on Economic, Social, and Cultural Rights (another extra complain mechanism, for ESC Rights), and other treaties like the Convention Against Enforced Disappearances and the Convention on the Rights of Migrant Workers. Especially with the OP-CAT, the UK noted that Canada should establish a National Preventative Mechanism to set a precedent for other countries. Interesting, given Canada’s immigration policies and the ongoing ‘war on terror’.
2. Many countries think Canada should criminalize racialized violence (including, interestingly enough, Iran).
3. There are several calls for protection for economic, social, and cultural rights, particularly with addressing the disparity faced by Canadian Aboriginal and minority communities. Germany said “abolish all discriminatory implications of the Indian Act and grant women and men the same rights with regard to their Aboriginal status”.
4. Several countries (for instance, Iceland) are calling on Canada to prohibit the use of corporal punishment for children, and to increase Canada’s implementation of the Convention of the Rights of the Child. Others noted that Canada’s laws against the sexual exploitation of children is lacking.
5. There were considerable calls for national policies on poverty, affordable housing, employment, access to water, and food security. These were often linked to issues of disadvantaged groups, particularly the aboriginal communities.

I know some of you (especially you government folk) may already have read this ages ago. But for those of you who to whom it is new and if you are interested, you can read more of the report here:

http://www.upr-info.org/IMG/pdf/a_hrc_wg.6_16_l.9_canada.pdf

Interesting, eh?

Sickening News Story

I came across this story in the news today. The murder took place last week and the facts of the case are quite deplorable in and of themselves. But I also found the Judge's comments and the reaction of the accused and especially the court spectators quite disturbing as reported by this journalist:

Taken from:
http://graphic.com.gh/General-News/man-kills-wife-for-denying-him-sex.html

Man Kills Wife for Denying Him Sex

The Agona Swedru District Police Commander, Deputy Superintendent of Police, Mr Anthony Nana Ekow Yawson, told the Daily Graphic that the suspect and the deceased had been staying together for some years now and were blessed with two daughters.

He said as a result of a misunderstanding that rose between the couple about 10 months ago, Ayisha had since refused to have sex with Adam.

According to Mr Yawson, about 12:30 a.m. on July 14, 2013, the suspect had the desire for sex and, therefore, demanded to have sex with the wife, which was yet again turned down.

That, Mr Yawson said, infuriated the suspect picked a pinch bar and hit her head, leading to her death.

He said after perpetrating the dastardly act, the suspect rushed into the bush with the nylon rope to commit suicide.

He said the suicide mission failed when the rope the suspect used got torn and he fell to the ground.

According Mr Yawson, Tokuyagna became unconscious, paving the way for the army ants to prey on him.

He said some Muslim neighbours who were returning from morning prayers heard the cries of the suspect’s children and entered the house to inquire about what was happening.

When they entered the house, they found Ayisha lying on the floor in a pool of blood and they reported the matter to the police.

He said Adam, who regained consciousness after a while, got up and after realising that the ants had invaded his body, started running towards the house, but he was arrested by the residents and handed over to the police.

Meanwhile, the suspect has been arraigned before the Swedru Magistrate Court, presided over by Mr Kweku Baah Frempong, and been remanded in police custody to reappear on August 6, 2013.

The judge suggested to Adam that he could have found a girlfriend to satisfy his sexual desires when Afia was denying him sex, instead of killing her, because, after all, the two were not legally married.

Adam told the court that he initially had a lot of girlfriends he could have turned to but unfortunately the deceased had fought with them all, following which all of them had broken up with him.

His retort generated a lot of laughter in the courtroom.

A Visit to the Supreme Court

So even though taking pictures of government buildings here in Ghana is punishable with jailtime, I couldn't resist sneaking a few shots from the hip with my phone while I was at the Supreme Court this week.


You can't read this sign from the distance I photographed it from unfortunately, but it is the sign at the front of the courthouse and it reads:

Justice is NOT for sale!
Justice is your right
Play you role to ensure it
Desist from taking or offering bribes!

The gate in front of the Supreme Court

Ghana Supreme Court 

I went to the Supreme Court on this day in order to try and find some caselaw from the court library. It was ALMOST as frustrating as at the Law Library at the University.

I had to record this conversation for my own amusement. Feel free, though, to skip it as it went on for some time...

I went up to the desk of the Supreme Court Law Library (its a closed library meaning that you can't browse at all, you have to go up to the library office and ask for what you are looking for) and asked the Librarian there if I could see the most recent three volumes of the Ghana Law Reports. He asked me what I was trying to find. I said I needed to read all the most recent family law cases. He said Ah! Yes, I have it right here.

"It?" I asked.

"Yes, I have the family law case" he told me, looking quite pleased with himself.

"Okay, I realise there aren't a lot of family law cases going through the courts, but my understanding is that there are a few reported each year in the Ghana Law Reports, how do I find those?"

"You don't need those. I have the one that you need. Here."

And he proceeded to download it onto my laptop once he realised, with exasperation, that I hadn't brought a flash drive with me.

"Thanks... this is great, really. But just so I'm clear... are you saying there is no other way to get the family law cases other than this one?"

"That's the only one you need. Its the authoritative one. But the rest are all on the database".

"Ah! The database! Yes, that's what I need. Where can I find the database?"

"Oh its privately compiled. Users have to pay for it. But its an excellent service"

"I see... and how much does it cost to get the database?"

"Its quite reasonably priced at only 400 Ghana Cedis"

"And for 400 Cedis we would have access to the database of caselaw for how long?"

"Oh once its put on you computer you have it for good!"

"But what about when new cases come out?"

Blank stare.

"Okay... just out of curiosity, do you know who we would call in order to look into getting the database?"

"Oh that would be me!"




Ah. I shoulda seen that coming.

The Inside of My Home

Both Jenn and Mom have pointed out that it would be nice to have a visual of what my house actually looks like beyond the gate at the end of my walk home from work :)

Well, on Monday I couldn't go to work because I got locked inside my house... that's right. My landlady left early and locked the door from the outside and for some reason my key would not unlock the door from the inside.... so I had a whole morning free to photograph the house! :)

here it is.

This is the outside of the house. 

The front door (has no less than 9 locking mechanisms which are all employed each night)

The sitting room

The dining room table

The hallway

This the kitchen. You can see the kettle on the stove which is what I use to boil water every morning so that I can have a hot "shower" (aka a bucket shower. One kettle of boiling water added to one bucket of freezing water = bucket of warm water with which to wash. Takes some getting used to)....

 
This is the bathroom area where I do battle with all manner of insects from time to time

These are the two buckets with which one has a "bucket shower"

This is my beloved bedroom.

See? Its not bad at all :)

Lights Out

Last night, the power went out across the entire country of Ghana! (known, fondly, as "lights out" around here)

One minute my entire neighbourhood was hopping with someone's mega speakers in their front yard playing Bob Marley's greatest hits at top volume, and the next minute you could actually hear the collective "Awwww!" of the entire neighbourhood as we were all blanketed in profound darkness.

I, unfortunately, still had to do my French homework... (I'm taking a French class at Alliance Francaise in the mornings) so I busted out this candle and the Hannah Montana notebook I recently bought from a hawker on the street.

As I finished my homework by candlelight I briefly recalled that one story from Little House on the Prarie where Mary starts a fire in the barn while studying by candlelight late at night...

A couple hours later when the power came back on and the speakers restarted their ode to Bob, the cheers of children and adults alike all across Labadi were heard far and wide. It was priceless

My Walk Home

I thought I would try to photo-document how I get to and from work on a typical day here in Accra.

I leave WiLDAF in the afternoon and head down to the street

Most of my walking has to happen on the road with the cars, but in some spots there are paths like this to walk on for pedestrians (they are also used frequently for urination, so one avoids the damp areas).

I walk along looking for one of these vehicles with at least one empty seat that I might be able to squeeze into.

I often have to stand in line, though lines here are difficult to comprehend. One will never actually get on a trotro if one actually stays in line. Its quite frustrating at times.

This here is a picture of by far the most spacious trotro I've ever been on. Quite luxurious actually. At some point I will try to put a picture up of the more typical ones I ride in.

Once I get to my stop, I have to cross 4 lanes of this ridiculously busy highway along with all the other adventurous pedestrians, to get to my street.

These are some snapshots of my street.

I live here at this house with my landlady, Mrs. Kyei, and, up until this week, my housemate, Isabelle.

They have pomegranites growing on their property! But Ms. Kyei says they are not eaten in Ghana!

There are also giant snails...