Churches have a huge amount of influence in Africa. Ndanda is like a 13th century mission, where the Abbey supplies all social services and acts as the only functioning government; for example the abbey bottles and sells its water, Ndanda Springs, and advertises that it is under church control.
This can lead to some awkward conversations. Moses, chairman of our health club, is also involved with the respect life organization and came to show me some papers fighting abortion, gay rights, condom use, and euthanasia. Apparently a (german) nun, sister Bridgette I think, had given a speech last year attacking all these issues – which is fine, but she grossly misrepresented most of them. I spent about an hour with Moses, trying to show him the other side of the issues, and since then a few other students have come to me with questions.
Along with the aid organizations and social services, the west also exports its problems, or at least skewers emphasis on local issues. No honest observer, either pro-choice or pro-life, can argue that abortion is one of Tanzania’s pressing issues. The government is corrupt or nonfunctioning, the schools and health systems are in tatters, transportation is a mess, some 10% of the population has HIV, and the majority of the population lives on less than 1$ a day. Set against all of these things, some of our problems fade into the background, and this is the first time I’ve heard an African mention abortion. Western ideologues come with money or information and try to spread opinions that have little relevance to local problems.
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