Amputee Camps and An Unseen Diamond Mine, Wednesday, July 21

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Ali took me around on the motorbike for a bit of a tour before heading to UN since I have not had a chance to see much. We did not have a lot of time but we could drive around a bit.

The amputees are innocent civilians who did not run fast enough from the rebel forces during the civil war and ended up getting their limbs randomly and brutally hacked off. Many died form bleeding and infections, but some reached humanity ( hospitals or refugee camps) and survived. The camps are clusters of small houses built by Norwegians some years ago to house the amputees and their families. The houses are falling apart at places but the Norwegians aren't around to fix them up anymore. Most amputees face financial hardship, disability and other health issues, not to mention the ghastly memories of the war.

The first amputee camp was kind of quiet, just a few kids and an old woman in the first house. She reached out to shake my hand with her hand which only had a thumb left. She was all smiles when she heard I was Michael's mom and wanted her photo taken with the kids.

The second camp was further away but similar to the first. A few kids were cooking around a three stone stove on the ground with a good fire going, and two old women came out to see us. They also smiled warmly when they heard I was Michael' mom, they knew and liked all the interns well as Ali explained. One woman had lost both forearms. She gestured for me to be in the photo with them, then the other woman said I should stay to eat with them. She had a broad smile on her face showing her toothless gums. This was overwhelming hospitality that made my eyes hot for a few seconds.

Next we went to a nearby mine after going through a check point. The roads were wider and better near the mine, no doubt to accommodate the 4x4's. Several guards shouted for us to get away, no looking around or taking photos. All I could see was the gate and the walls. Riding away I was not surprised by this treatment which was consistent with a policy to cover up the government sanctioned international exploitation.

I said good bye to Ali at the UN gate, told him to wear one of his two helmets and not to scare any more kids. It was quiet in the conference room and after sitting a while by myself I decided to go home.

The bike driver first wanted a higher price, then agreed to the usual price. As he started driving he said, "You are the only responsible people". I said,"Excuse me?" He said " you are the only responsible one, people here are terrible, terrible". He must be referring to the UN workers but I thanked him anyway.

We went to "Sunshine" for dinner. It was a little place in an actual house, not a stand made by sticks, frequented by the the interns. It has actual tables. Kulani hasn't eaten all day so she took a bike over and we walked. Michael and I shared a plate of rice with soup on top and literally two bites of beef. On our way back BJ bought bread drizzled with sweetened condensed milk which he liked. We also bought two papayas which turned out to be rock hard-- a great disappointment because we were expecting the same juicy sweet fruit like the one we had Sunday night.

I wondered out aloud: why did the they take both her arms, Kulani said why did they take any one's arm. Raphi said usually the victims were asked to choose "long sleeve or short sleeve".

This is not an easy internship.