In other news, I also have neglected to blog about the following activities:
On Thanksgiving night, we American volunteers were served a delicious Tanzanian-American T-day feast, complete with sweet potatoes, green beans, and cranberry sauce... and, most importantly, a turkey! The cooks truly out-did themselves, traveling all the way to Arusha the day before to find us that bird. Sitting around the dinner table, we cheered their names, counted our blessings, and gave thanks that we were all their together -- an adoptive, international family of volunteers.
Several weekends ago, I went on a day hike along the base of Kilimanjaro to a humongous and beautiful waterfall. Words cannot accurately describe how gorgeous an African waterfall in the rain forest is and can be... or what a good workout it is to get there, haha.
I was lucky enough to be led by a nice guy named Oscar, who also welcomed us into his home and showed us how his family harvests fresh organic coffee -- start to finish. We helped him pick the coffee berries, clean, peel, dry, roast, and grind them, and then -- most importantly -- drink several cups of it. I don't think I've ever tasted better. It was a great and much needed energy boost for the forthcoming waterfall hike, as well. Last Wednesday, the new volunteers and I also had the rare and unforgettable opportunity to visit the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda. Located in Arusha, the Tribunal continues to try high level government officials for their involvement in the 1994 genocide in Rwanda... and we got to sit in on one of the trials. I was particularly excited to visit the ICTR because I spent some time researching and reading about the genocide and Tribunal work while in University. To see it in action, however, was completely unreal.
The existence and impact of the Tribunal for Rwanda cannot be understated. It has served as a huge step in the administration of criminal justice, not just in Africa, but internationally. Since its creation, several other tribunals have been created around the world to try everyone from heads of state to top military generals, sending the powerful message that no one is above the law when it comes to war crimes, genocide, crimes of aggression or crimes against humanity. Further, in addition to promoting global justice, it has created an indispensable archive of the events of the '94 genocide, so that future generations may learn from what has come to pass and guarantee that history never repeats itself.
So far, the Tribunal has arrested 81 people and among those completed 53 trials. 11 people indited are still missing. On that particularly day, the former Minister of Planning was on trial, and we listened in as he was questioned about documents and cables he had received in 1994 concerning violent attacks, stolen weapons, and squelched protests. The courtroom was full of tension and frustration, as there were several disputes over the documents validity and who had said what -- the translators there having a hell of a time since the defendant spoke French while the judge and counsel spoke English. Wildly interesting stuff; my ears were glued to my translating head-set.
Okay... that's enough blogging about my various feasting and pursuits of knowledge for today, eh? Pole! Kwaheri, my friends!
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