Hemsidan för Salome

Brevet som kom till Brån 2008-01-02

First of all I would like to apologise for taking so long for not writing to you. The thing is since I’ve arrived nothing seems to be going right in my own country, the crime is high, and the HIV/AIDS infections are increasing rapidly and the abuse of women and children is increasing. All this things make me depressed. The politicians are corrupted and the police are incompetent. Those are the things that make me feel down. How can I be proud of the country where women are treated as the lowest class, where the voices of children are not heard and where the youth don’t care if the die from HIV/AIDS?

Last month I went to check on my old Organisation to see if I can join again especially when the time comes for a HIV/Aids campaign. But this year they were not getting involved with it. Since I didn’t have an organisation and no other organisation would take me at such short notice, I had to find something else to do. I heard about a campaign against the abuse of women and children so I decided thatb this was the best thing to do so I joined in. What I liked about this organisation or campaign was that anyone can do it, you didn’t have to belong to any non-governmental organisation. It was called 16 days of activism against women and children abuse. It started on the 25^th of November and ended on the tenth of December. Our main aim was to make people (especially men) about the abuse children and women were faced off. It was very hard and challenging but at the end it was fulfilling because we had a lot of men pledging not to hit women and children or abuse them in anyway and also teach their sons not to abuse women as well. But something happened during those days of activism against the abuse of women. One of my friend was assaulted on Friday night of the 30^th while we were on our way to town. One of the guys started calling us and telling us the want us. When we didn’t respond they started calling us sluts! That’s when I lost my temper and told them they were good for nothing and all sorts of horrible things you can think of. Then one of them followed us, I saw that and warn my friends about him but one of my friend was too stubborn that she stood her ground. That’s when the guy slapped her hard on her left cheek. Then he ran away with his friends. I was so chocked and I blamed myself ever since. If only I was quiet and didn’t talk back to them none of this won’t have happened. We decided to go to the police and report the matter. Since it was dark and didn’t know those guys the police couldn’t help us. So our case wasn’t followed. I was never so mad in my entire life! Since that incident me and my friends have left the whole thing to “Karma”. What goes around comes around, one day they will pay for that.

Besides the crime and abuse, a lot of good things have happened as well. Like for instance in my own township I’m a celebrity and everybody respects med. I guess I’ve earned their respects. Nobody laughs at me anymore and I haven’t heard somebody calling me a coconut as well. People are astonished at the fact that I went on a plane to Scandinavia an my own. Everybody asks me about the snow and how it feels like. I speak about my Sweden all the time and I’ve lost some of my friends for that. The thing is I can’t help it automatically something will remind me of Sweden and in that case I get a lot of attention from the opposite sex and my friends think I dop it intentionally. I’ve went to a lot of places and met a lot of amazing people as well. Last week I met the guy who is a star on the Oscar winner movie Tsotsi! I’ve met a lot of celebrities on a restaurant that I love hanging with my friends. So I’m having a ball before school starts. Finally I’ve met someone cute, shy and charming (my type of guy) who’s a Mozambican national. He works at the embassy and loves children. I simply adore him, hope it works.

I would like to thank everybody in Sweden, Holland and Spain and other parts of the world for helping me and making a difference in my life. To those who wrote letters to me: Tack så mycket! I will try and answer all your letters because theres so many of them but keep them coming. To my Swedish family thank you for being so patient with me, I miss and love you with all my heart. My life is not the same without you. As for me I’m trying to live life to the fullest. Since I’ve arrived my mom keeps on saying that I’m a strange young woman. She doesn’t know but glad that I’m all grown up and independent (did you hear that Gunilla, I’m independent). Since then I’ll keep you posted.

Have a Merry Xmas and a Happy New Year!!

From me and my family Selamolela