現在当会スタッフの一人がアフリカのマラウイ共和国にて、
One of our staffs has worked as a Japan Overseas Cooperation Volunteer in Malawi since January 2015. Her task is to improve the quality of their lives. In June 2015, Sotto Ouensurukai founded Malawi fund for her program and the other supports.
Today we introduce the writing dealing with the staff's mother's travel in Malawi last year.
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【マラウイの旅 上柳より子】(English below)
娘の美生は昨年の１月にJICAの青年海外協力隊に参加し、アフリカのマラウィに派遣されボランティア活動を開始し１５か月が経過。今回、その任地への家族の視察の旅の募集があり参加。成田から香港を経由してエチオピアのアジスアベバで乗り換えであったがアジスアベバで機体の故障から６時間も待たされ成田を出発してから３１時間経過後にようやくマラウイのリロングウエイに到着。
アフリカの大地はどこまでも赤く大地の中に悠々と咲き誇るジャカランタの青い花を見たとき「アフリカに来たんだ！」と感動。背の高い幹の太い植物が多く、青い花のジャカランタ、赤い花のフランボヤンテ、たわわに実をつけたマンゴウなど亜熱帯の樹木がポツン、ポツンと立っている様が印象的であった。そんな中、走る車はほとんどが日本からの中古車で・・TOYOTAと大きく書かれた車や日本の車いすマークがついていたり中には○○福祉会とか名鉄宅配便等の日本語表示が残っている車ばかりで車自身もまさかアフリカの大地で走るとは思っていなかったのではと車の身になって考えてしまった。トラックの荷台に荷物と人が混ざり合って乗っていたり、自転車に山ほどの荷物を載せて移動する姿や水汲みのために頭の上にバケツをのせて井戸まで延々と歩く姿等の光景にマラウイの生活を感じ取ることができた。
娘の仕事先の事務所では笑顔で出迎えてくださり美生（娘）の母と会える日を待っていて下さった。ボスから「美生をマラウイに来させてくれてありがとう」との言葉をいただき、娘が皆と協働している姿を垣間見ることができた。優しい方ばかりで、助けられている娘を思い皆さまに感謝しその思いを伝えたかったが言葉が出ず、にっこり「ジコモ」を連発する。
美生の活動先までは日本の中古車のノアで日本の農道より狭いデコボコの道なき道を砂煙を上げながら到着する。普段は１時間ばかりかけてバイクで移動しているとか・・・集会所にチテンジをまとった村の方々と女性群が迎えて下さった。私たちもチテンジを巻き挨拶。娘たちの指導により村の収入向上のためにトウモロコシの粉を使ったドーナツ・プチケーキ・ビスケットを作るようになったとの事だが多くは作れず１日に２０個程度の製造販売のとの事・・私たちも購入し試食。おいしくできていた。その他、地元のチテンジの布を使ってベルトを作ったり古タイヤでバッグなどの小物を作るなど収入向上に向けて一村一品に向けて取り組んでいるとの事。皆の心を一つにして活動する苦労が伺えたが果敢に村人の中に入り込む娘のたくましさがあり頑張っている姿を見ることができ安心もした。
マラウイでは大自然の観光地があり私たちは娘の友人のKONDWANI夫婦と共に２日間ニイカ国立公園で過ごした。昼間は大自然の中をジープで走りシマウマやアンテロープの群れに大興奮！すごーい すごーいと連発。夜は南半球の夜空を眺め大きな星にうっとり・・星を眺めながらKONDWANI夫婦にいろいろ聞いてみたかったけど適当な単語も出てこずただにっこり。妻のLUSUWIROは主食であるトウモロコシの粉を使ったシマを作ってくれ私も挑戦しおいしく手でいただく。LUSUWIROは非常にできた嫁で食後の片づけを率先して行ったりこの旅行に備えてシフォンケーキを作ってくれたり・・聞けば妊娠４週目だと言う。揺れの激しいオフロードを何時間も走ったため流産しないかと心配したが大丈夫との事でホッとしている。私たちは日本食としてお好み焼きをごちそうしたが肉なしの為、さながらキャベツ焼きであった。マラウイの人でもなかなか行けないニイカの旅にKONDWANI夫婦も非常に喜んでくれて楽しい旅を体験し、一緒に過ごせた事は一番の思い出となった。ちなみにこの旅行は娘からの私の誕生日の祝いとの事。有難く思い楽しませていただいた。
もう一つの観光地リビングストニアには娘の居住地のルンピからひたすらM⑴号線を北に向かいマラウィ湖を右に見ながら進むと突然M⑴から畑道に入り最高のガタガタ道を１時間ばかりで山頂に到着。畑道入口付近では多くのおばさまたちやおじさまや小さな子供までがマラウィ湖で採れたきわめて大きな魚をかごで販売。青天にも関わらず手から手への売買であった。トラックの荷台に乗ったおじさんが１匹手につかんで持ち帰っていた。リビングストニアではマラウイ湖を眺めながら素晴らしい夕日と朝日を写真に収めることができた。
ルンピでは地元の小学校を視察。裸足の子供たちに“靴をはかしてやりたい。机も椅子もそろえてあげたい。ノートも鉛筆もあればもっと勉強できるのでは“と切ない気持ちになった。校長先生はしきりに支援をしてほしいと言われる。日本の教育とかけ離れた現実を目のあたりにして娘を通して少し援助する事とした。
地元の病院の視察では、病院の敷地には大きなマンゴーの木があり休息なのか木陰に多くの村人が群がっていた。病院内にはエイズ病棟もしっかり看板があり、村でのエイズ患者は誰もが知っているとの事。小児病棟でもプライバシーも何もなく金のベッドが狭く並べてテレビでみるかつての野戦病院のよう。
マラウイの人達は良く笑って人懐っこく親切である。そのため娘も地元の人の友人も多く随分助けられており有難く思う。ほとんどがクリスチャンで日曜礼拝には皆、着飾っていく姿が印象的であった。貧しいと思われるが女性は丸まって太った体格で、服もおしゃれでヘヤーはウィッグをつけており狭い家のどこにきれいな洋服をしまっているのだろうか、洋品店などないのにどこで購入しているのか等・・不思議がいっぱいでもあった。
日本大使館では大使夫妻が気持ちよく迎えてく下さり、ちらし寿しやお造り、焼き鳥等の久々の日本食に心がホッとしておもてなしに感謝。
娘の家では冷蔵庫や扇風機は置いているものの停電が多く不自由が多かった。旅行を終えて成田のホテルで水やお湯をたっぷり使えて電気も消えないことに「ああ幸せ 日本最高！」と安堵した。日本はいいなー今の生活を大事にしようと改めて思う日々…マラウイの旅から帰宅して１週間ばかりは目覚めるとトイレはどこだっけ？今日は何するんだっけ？この身体のだるさは何だろうとと戸惑う日々が続いた。が最近はマンションの上の階の子供の走り回る足音がうるさいなーと思う日々・ようやくマラウイの呪縛から解き放されて現実に戻れたようである。朝食にはニイカに行く途中の山奥で番人のおばさんから購入したはちみつを毎朝パンにつけて食べている。
マラウイで接した人々はみな明るく、黒い肌の中から目のぱっちりとした赤ちゃんはかわいくて仕方なかった。しかしマラウイは乳児死亡率４３・４%（日本では２%）HIVの感染率１０％↑南部では１７％↑平均寿命５５歳と日本と比較すると気の遠くなるような数値である。どこから手を付けたらいいのだろうと考えもしまう。
今回の旅には７家族が参加したが１組は母と妹さんで参加されており、なんでも娘さんの彼に会うのが目的だとの事・・・その娘さんは彼と仲良く手をつなぎ、いつでも２人で行動されている姿を見て、他のお母さんから「娘さんがこうなったらどうする？」と質問された。「娘はそんな気配はなさそうです」と答えておいた。皆周りは優しい方ばかりで心配ではあるが・・娘の家の敷地にはコスモスが咲いており、今回朝顔、ヒマワリ、菜の花，チュウリップなどの種や球根、エンドウの種等を蒔いてきた。警備のゴンドエさんが水やりを頑張ってくれているようなので花の便りを聞くのが楽しみである。
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“Trip to Malawi by Yoriko Kamiyanagi”
My daughter Mio participated Japan Overseas Cooperation Volunteers, and 15 months passed after she went to Malawi and started working as a volunteer. I was invited to visit Malawi and joined this program. The flight departed from Narita airport via Addis Ababa in Ethiopia. But when we landed in Addis Ababa the plane developed a fault and we had to wait for 6 hours. We finally arrived at Malawi over 31 hours after our departure from Japan.
African soil is extremely red and blue flower Jacaranda were full bloom there. That scene impressed me, “I came Africa at last!! “. It was memorable that many tall plants which have thick trunk, blue flower Jacaranda, red flower Flamboyant, infrequent subtropical trees like heavy mango tree. I saw a lot of Japanese used car running, some of them are written TOYOTA on those bodies, others have symbol of wheelchair, mark of welfare work or indication of Meitetu home-delivery service in Japanese language. I thought as if I were those cars that they should never have imagined they were used in Africa. I saw people boarding on car carrier with lots of luggage, others transferred with quite luggage on bicycle carrier, others walked putting water bucket on their heads. I felt Malawi lives through those scenes.
People working with my daughter welcomed me willingly at their office and they had looked forward to meet Mio’s (my daughter) mother. Her boss said to me “Thank you for launching Mio to Malawi”. I could see my daughter cooperating with them. Everyone was so kind and I wanted to express my gratitude to them for my daughter being assisted. But I couldn’t find words then I just said “Zikomo” many times with smile. [Zikomo means “thank you” in Malawian local language]
We went to Mio’s working place through winding dusty road by Japanese used car NOAH. She usually travels by a motorbike for over an hour to reach there. Many women wearing Chitenje from village welcomed me in their place of assembly. [Chitenje is Malawi’s traditional cloth]. We wore Chitenje too and greeted them. They cook donut, mini cake and biscuit made from maize flour for their income generating activity taught by Mio’s colleagues and other organizations. But they can’t cook more than 20 per a day. We bought and ate them. Those were delicious. The other local group produces belts from local Chitenje and make bags or small articles from old car tire for their income generating. I saw their effort and my daughter participating daringly. I was relieved to see her working actively.
There is a great nature tourist resort in Malawi. We spent two days with Kondwani couple, my daughter’s friends, in Nyika National Park. We drove by a jeep in great nature at daytime and we were excited to see zebras and antelope as saying “How great it is!!” many times. At night I gazed with the night sky in south hemisphere. I wanted to hear a lot from Kondwani couple, but no words came out and I just smiled. The wife Lusuwiro cooked Nsima which is staple food in Malawi made from maize flour for us. I tried it on hand and it tasted good. Lusuwiro is a very nice wife, so she put away the dishes willingly and had prepared chiffon cake for our trip in advance. She was pregnant for four weeks at that trip. Driving on off-road with big swing for a few hours made me worried about her condition, but she was alright. We treated Okonomiyaki as Japanese food, but there was no meat so it looked like cabbage pie. Kondwani couple was really pleased at Nyika trip because it is not easy to come there. We experienced pleasant trip and this was the best memory in Malawi. In addition this trip was my birthday present from my daughter, I really enjoyed it and appreciated it.
We also went to another tourist resort Livingstonia. We left my daughter’s residence Rumphi through road M1 (national highway in Malawi) to north admiring the Lake Malawi on the right hand side. Then we suddenly turned to off-road and reached top of mountain after driving extremely rough road for an hour. At the entrance of that off-road people from youths to adults sold big fishes caught in Lake Malawi. They sold those by hand although it was under sunny weather. A man boarding on carrier of a truck bought one and went back home. I took picture of wonderful sunset and sunrise as looking at Lake Malawi in Livingstonia.
I also visited a local elementally school in Rumphi. When I saw the kids wearing no shoes it made me feel sad and I felt “I want them to wear shoes and give them desks and chairs. If there are more notebooks and pencils they can study better”. The principle told us often they need help. I saw the real situation in Malawi which is completely different from japan and decided to support them through my daughter little by little.
When I visited a district hospital, there was a big mango tree and many villagers crowded in the shade of the tree and might rest there. There is a board indicating AIDS ward so I heard everybody knew who AIDS patient in the village were. They have no privacy there. Even in an infant ward there are iron beds put in small room. It looked like a field hospital I watched on TV before.
Malawian people are friendly, kind and smile often. So my daughter has many friends there who help her a lot. I really appreciate it. Most of them are Christians and they go to church every Sunday while well dressed up. Those looks gave me some mysteries. For example, why a lot of women have a big body though not all of them shouldn’t be rich? How can they be so fashionable and put wigs on their hair though I don’t know where they keep back beautiful clothes at their small houses and I don’t know where they buy clothes though there is no tailor shop?
At Japan embassy the ambassador and his wife welcomed us comfortably and treated Japanese foods like Chirashizusi, Otukuri, and Yakitori. Those reminded me of Japan and relieved me.
In my daughter’s house blackout happened often, so it’s not convenient enough though there are refrigerator and electric fan. After coming back to Narita airport it made me so happy that I could use a lot of hot water and there was no blackout in a hotel. This experience reformed myself so that I should take care of my present life day by day. I was confused around a week after coming back from Malawi. Every morning I thought where the bathroom is, I wondered what I would do today and I felt lazy sometimes. But I got to be dissatisfied with the sound of kids running on upper floor in my condominium these days. I felt as if I was released from the aftereffects of Malawi at last. I eat bread every day with the honey which I bought in the deep mountain on the way to Nyika national park.
Malawian people I met were all cheerful and the babies were so cute with big eyes. But death rate of babies and infants is 43.4% (2% in Japan). Infection rate of HIV is over 10%, 17% in southern parts in Malawi. The average life span is 55 years old, compared to Japan there is a quite different. These made me wonder which part we should start working on at first.
This time 7 family joined this Malawi trip program. One of these family is a mother and sister. Their purpose was to meet her daughter’s Malawian boyfriend. Her daughter was always with her boyfriend. Other participant asked me “What would you do if your daughter got boyfriend here?” I just answered “It might not happen to my daughter.” But everyone around her was very kind and it worried me a little----. Cosmos flowers bloom in my daughter’s garden and I planted seeds of morning glory, sunflower, rape blossoms, tulip and pea there. Mr. Gondwe, a guard for her watering properly so I am looking forward to hearing news about these flowers.
（写真はクリックすると拡大してご覧になれます。 / Click to enlarge the photo.）
