A Letter to My Supporters...

Hi all,

First of all, thank you again for your generosity in sponsoring me for this trip. Unfortunately, recently, there have been protests in Malawi over complaints of bad governance, fuel shortages, and other grievances. The government cracked down and the result was rioting and 19 deaths. See here for more. Our trip was scheduled for next week - which happens to overlap with a second round of scheduled protests.

In light of the risk associated with travelling to this area, our group has decided to cancel the trip. Unfortunately, there is some significant cancellation costs as this is a last minute decision. So, as contributors to the cost of the trip, you each have a choice to make:

1) Allow your donation to help cover some of the cancellation fess - with any remainder to be forwarded to a charity (a the moment, we are thinking the Red Cross to help with the drought and starvation in Africa).

2) A full refund of your donation. I will pay out of pocket if necessary to reimburse your contribution.

Please understand that we have done everything we can to make this trip happen but this unrest came as a surprise and we want to make sure our volunteers stay safe.

Please let me know your decision ASAP. If I don't hear from you by Friday, I will assume that you are OK with allowing the donation to go to another charity.

Thanks,

Mike Lau

Another Protest Planned

The recent protests in Malawi turned to riots with at least 18 killed. Another protest is planned August 17th (the day we would have to be in the city to fly back). The group is fairly split on whether we should postpone or cancel the trip - or whether we should brave the situation and try to leave one day earlier - hoping for the best.

Part of the concern is that it is not really clear to us what the riots are about anymore. They started as demonstrations against an oppressive, out-of-touch president whose policies are harming the population (http://alittlegirlintheworld.blogspot.com/2011/07/tension.html). But there are also indications (rumors) that the unrest is also being fueled by xenophobia (anti-Chinese) sentiments - feelings of being exploited, etc.

Not to mention Ethiopia, where we will be taking a layover, is suffering from starvation and drought right now. Not quite sure what to do here.

Unrest in Malawi

Recent protests turned into riots:

"The demonstrations were called to protest against rising fuel prices, a shortage of foreign exchange reserves, alleged bad governance and poor international relations.

Last week, the UK cut direct aid to Malawi after a diplomatic spat with Mr Mutharika's government.

The UK accused Malawi of mishandling the economy and failing to uphold human rights.

The government recently passed an austerity budget, raising taxes to reduce dependence on aid.

Malawi is one of the poorest countries in the world, with an estimated 75% of the population living on less than $1 (60p) a day."

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-14217148

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We are leaving for Malawi on August 6th and I am hoping, selfishly, that this doesn't adversely affect our trip. I'd very much like to observe/document the rioting for myself, since I question the quality of reporting from areas with known autocratic-type governments. I can imagine these recent events distracting from our goals but the government of Malawi is a main contributor to the reason it is one of the poorest nations in the world. (Of course my sole source for making this claim is the book, "Boy who harnessed the wind," which I will write a little bit about in another post.)

However it turns out, lets hope things change for the better.

-m

An Introduction: My Reasons

My Reasons:

"In the end, some action (even if it is not the perfect or most efficient path) is better than standing idle. I don’t want to continue to be ignorant of the struggles people endure. "

Perhaps it was a loss nativity and gaining some maturity, but in the years since the Tijuana experience, I have shifted views away from idealism and more towards utilitarianism. In short, it may be that people do good things from ‘unpure’ motivations, because it makes them feel better about themselves. But is this so wrong? The fact that we, as human beings, can derive such joy from helping each other really is something to be celebrated, not to be ashamed of. Even if the motivations of the group I had previously volunteered with could be construed as selfish, good work benefiting real people was still being done.

I concede that volunteer trips may not be the most cost-effective way of turning dollars into good. I have struggled with the amount of resources we are putting into the trip compared to the marginal benefit that may come of it. Again, more good might come if we simply donate the money in a lump sum. While I do not deny this truth, in reality, this is a false dichotomy. The volunteer trip and projects we are planning are the reason we have been able to fundraise the way we have. Donating to an anonymous cause, while cost-effective, is not inspiring. It doesn’t capture your heart or your imagination, it doesn’t show you the impact you can have, and it doesn’t encourage you to continue to make a difference. This is the purpose of our trip, and these are the reasons it will succeed.

I'm tired of finding excuses of why things won't work out. We have many important choices in life and we can't become frozen to inaction by indecision, striving for perfection. In the end, some action (even if it is not the perfect or most efficient path) is better than standing idle. (If you are reading this, you are probably a donor and have made a similar conclusion, deciding to contribute. Thank you for your support.)

Ultimately, I don’t want to continue to be ignorant of the struggles that less fortunate people endure. If nothing else, I am determined to make this a learning experience that I hope will become invaluable.

An Introduction: Preface

Preface:

"... I began to question the real value of our work and the true cause... We came here and did good things, not for the ‘right’ reasons, but to make ourselves feel good...."

When I was in eighth-grade, my parents took me and my younger brother to Tijuana as part of a volunteer effort to build houses and distribute shoes to the impoverished. The trip was organized by a well-intentioned Christian Missionary group, but the experience left a sour taste in my mouth about the nature of volunteer trips and the amount of good that could actually be derived from them.

I should probably start by mentioning that my family is not Christian. My dad grew up in Hong Kong and actually went to a Catholic School for a number of years, but came out experience of cynical about organized religion. My Mom was no less skeptical but in general, more ambivalent about Christianity. Still, my parents, wanting to expose me to religion and have me decide for myself, enrolled me in Catholic School from kindergarten and onwards. I took religion classes and participated in the sacraments that I was allowed to, but it never really made sense to me, and I eventually embraced atheism (though that discussion is for another time and place).

Back to the story, my non-Christian family decided to embark on this mission trip to TJ, partly to prove that good deeds need not be motivated by religion, and that (despite opinions to the contrary) good morals do exist in a secular world. This backdrop already paints us as tag-alongs and outsiders, which is true to an extent. But we did our best to fit and stay involved, attending Sunday service and nightly fellowship.

But because I was an outsider looking in, I began to question the real value of our work and the true cause. The goal was to build two houses in 4 days and looking back on it now, nothing went terribly wrong … (Except one incident on the second day when the brakes to the bus gave out, sending it rolling down a hill and into a house. Luckily, no one was injured and the family living in the house we destroyed was the same one we were going to give the newly built house to; so, no big deal right?)

What turned me off was the self-congratulatory attitudes of the volunteers at the conclusion of the trip. I hated the pats on the back, ‘job well-done’s, and general satisfaction with the work that was done because it seemed to me that this was the goal all along. We came here and did good things, not for the ‘right’ reasons, but to make ourselves feel good. I was disgusted that we as a group were celebrating our wonderful contribution while hundreds of families, just like the ones we helped, continued to suffer horrible living conditions.

I couldn’t help but imagine if we had donated the cost of the trip for 30 people ($2k per person in travel expenses, lodging, paid time off), we could have had 10 houses built and actually done more for the local economy by hiring local contractors to do the building. I started to feel that the entire trip was done for selfish reasons and, for fear of being a hypocrite, I refrained from participating in similar trips in the future.

So, you may be wondering …

Why am I going to Malawi this summer on a Volunteer Trip?