South Africa

I am sitting on the bus from Durban to Johannesburg after some extremely soft vacation days at the coast. The landscape outside varies, half an hour ago it was almost rain forest, now there are far savannahs with lots of cows eating the grass and with a bit luck I can see Impalas, springboks or some other exotic animal. I can also see that about some kilometres we´ll be going into a mountain area. The landscape differs a lot, in the same way as the people, the language they talk and how their cultural traditions are. And is there something more beautiful than different people connecting with each other?

Since we now have been here for quite some time I feel that I starting to get pale on the country and a picture of how it is. It’s a lovely country, because it´s the rainbow nation with the 11 official languages and how they succeed to communicate with each another. In average, by the people I´ve asked, the most speak 5-6 languages. I speak three languages and I see that as quite good, but it´s the half compared with these. The willing to get to know each other is amazing, but like with everything there hidden something bad beyond it.

The jobs. That is what we always talk about in Sweden, and in Italy as well, the main problem is always the jobs. In Sweden the unemployment rate is 7.2 %. In Sekhukhune municipality (the municipality I stay within) the number is 42 %. Often you can add 15-20 % from the normal unemployment rate to see the unemployment rate among youngsters. And when the alcohol and the drugs are so cheep one can summarise one plus one.

Everyone talks about that here and one can really notice that walking around in the street as a white person, especially during this vacation when we only been Swedes. It took around ten seconds after arrival in Durban before the first beggar was over us. They are over one and keep following one sometimes hundreds metres and can be quite aggressive. Twice people have been trying to pocket rob us, quite bad attempts but still. And when one look into the robber´s eyes one can really see their everyday struggle. Some days ago Julian and I witnessed a dead man lying on the street with a bullet shot through his head and a puddle of blood around him. Some people watched him, some just passed by and when we asked our friends about it they told us that this was not a rare thing.

Sometimes I feel so sorry for the country, with this climate South Africa could be the best country in the world. The nature is beautiful, the different cultures & the mix of them are amazing and the hospitality of the people we meet in the church is five star class. The church is doing an amazing work what I´ve seen, keeping people from that terrible life with the abuse. And to remember, the country is 21 year old. It takes time to build a safe society and South Africa is on the way. I just beg that it continues like this, that I come back here and can walk on the streets without being on my guard and can enjoy all the fantastic things this country can offer.

I want to end with the beautiful finish of South Africa´s national anthem and hope that all of us can apply that in our homes, in our countries together for this world.
Sounds the call to come together
And united we shall stand
Let us live and strive for freedom
In South Africa our land