12/22/2019 • 5:00 pm Comments Off on A blessed time of Christmas
A blessed time of Christmas,
A blessed time of Peace,
A blessed time of Humanity
A blessed time to you and your family
Filed under: Africa, Catholic Church, chaplain, General, HOPE Cape Town Trust, HOPE Cape Town USA, HOPE Gala Dresden, Uncategorized, christmas
12/17/2019 • 6:35 am Comments Off on Share your Christmas joy (in German language)
Even if the blog is in English, for all my German friends a video spot to invite you considering to share the Christmas joy with some of our South African children battling to have a life
Wer die Weihnachtsfreude noch teilen moechte, dem empfehle ich nicht nur dieses Video, sondern danach auch den Besuch unserer Webseite: www.hopecapetown.com. Teilen erwuenscht. hopecapetown charityfundraising lovewins sharingiscaring africa kinder hiv ecd
More info: http://www.hopecapetown.com in German and English language. Be an ambassador for HOPE in this world.
Filed under: Africa, South Africa, Uncategorized, Africa, be a HOPE hero, children, children and AIDS, christmas, ECD, Fundraising, hiv, poverty, south africa
12/10/2019 • 5:10 pm Comments Off on South Africa on the edge – and why NGO’s are in this time so important
We have to be honest: Corruption, the inability of freedom fighters turned politicians, sheer greed and no time to develop proper political and social leadership under the pressure and expectations of the new dawn – all those factors have brought South Africa on the edge of disaster – painted nicely in very dark colors yesterday with declaring “Stage 6” of load shedding. A very nice word for mismanagement as well as non existing or minimal maintenance by Eskom officials and the result of a transformation policy kicking out institutional knowledge and beefing up manpower far more than the operations necessitate.
It is felt like a time of crisis, a time of anxiety and a time where people and society feels left alone fighting forces on a daily base they can’t influence – being at the mercy of irrational SOE’s and broken services deliveries and somehow a very bleak future.
In such times the power of NGO’s and civil society organizations are coming to the front: they are often the rescue net for many ordinary citizens – they are able to give hold and a perspective for those feeling powerless, they are passing on the small flame of hope – in the darkness of load shedding a small flame has indeed the power to light up and guide the way.
In such times it becomes clear that politics alone can’t solve a countries problems or cover all the missteps done in the past. Non-governmental organizations, volunteers and all those forces for good are the stabilizing factors making sure that the social fabric of society is not completely broken.
Such times may be a wake-up call for the future that politics recognize more than ever before the need to develop a culture of cooperation, of reliable partnerships to strengthen the service delivery people are deserving on a daily base. In South Africa this culture is still in its infancy – often one has the impression that NGO’s are gap-filler or paid cheap sub-contractors of state entities not living up to the promises of past elections. It is time to elevate those relationships onto an eye-to-eye level.
At the end state entities and NGO’s are serving the same people – they are called to support the dignity of every citizen and enable him / her to live life to fullest as guaranteed by the constitution and the Bills of Rights.
NGO’s can’t replace government run services, but they complement and at times like ours even cushion lack of service and soften the anxiety and fear attached to it. In doing so they also cushion and influence the picture, in this case South Africa is giving to the rest of the world. All a reason more to realize how important NGO’s are in our times.
Filed under: Africa, Politics and Society, Reflection, Society and living environment, South Africa, Uncategorized, Africa, anxiety, Bill of Rights, Civil society, constitution, dignity, Eskom, freedom fighter, NGO, partnership, politicians, service delivery, SOE, south africa
09/30/2019 • 4:57 pm Comments Off on Amnesty?!
There are a lot of foreigners in this country – South Africa is for most people fleeing violence and persecution in Africa a safe heaven of some sort – and obviously the borders are so porous that it is much easier to flee to South Africa than to Europe. This has not always been welcomed in the last years – the periodically xenophobic attacks, most recently in Pretoria and Johannesburg, show how sensitive the topic is and how fast the mood can change. Obviously there is a lot of politics involved – be it quite insensitive comments of the Executive Mayor Herman Mashaba, be it economic considerations because immigrants often work harder to achieve their dreams opposite the entitlement and despair of South Africans in the perspective neighborhoods; or be it simply jealousy and opportunism stretching to pure criminality.
There is definitely no question that a country has the right to control influx of foreigners and to secure the borders – but looking at the current situation where there is a mix of illegal immigrants, unwilling Home Affairs officials, corrupt border officials and so many small or bigger injustices in dealing with those knocking on South Africa’s door my solution would be besides looking in a fair manner at all sides of the story to give a period of grace, an amnesty to legalize all those who are now in the country.
It would not only remedy the situation but also would give those politically in charge and the administration a fair overview to know who is in the country. It would stop the hiding and the stress of those trying to make a living and it would undermine the often corrupt relationship between foreigner, refugee and those officially in charge of keeping them in or out for a good reason.
Flanked by a strengthening of the policing of the border and an effective system to avoid a further undocumented influx from the rest of Africa this would be the first step to calm down the situation and to be fair to all concerned. It would show grace and mercy, but also a clear cut line for the future. It would make the lives of hundred-thousands of human beings acknowledged and valued – and it would show the rest of the world that there is a way to show a mix of mercy and justice mitigating a difficult past in the last years.
Filed under: Africa, General, Politics and Society, Reflection, Society and living environment, South Africa, Uncategorized, #Imstaying, border, foreigner, immigrants, Mashaba, south africa, Xenophobia
09/18/2019 • 12:00 pm 1
Recently the news from South Africa and out of South Africa becoming more and more scary – the brutal murders of several girls and women, the new crime statistics with an increase of murders adding with the high unemployment rate and all the other social and economical uncertainties to the impression that is is wise to pack your bag and leave the country.
Having one of the most beautiful landscapes of the world, hosting mainly friendly and helpful people, having a floral and animal world which is so special seems not to count anymore much in this scenario. Add the racist rants of Julius Malema and other so called or want to be called politicians, the playing with the constitution regarding land reform and the sheer endless stories of corruption and missing shame for the wrongdoings on the part of those who are in charge of this country.
But nevertheless: I just signed up to the Facebook group #Imstaying – even with my privilege of double citizenship I have decided for now to put all my energy into the future of this country – one South Africa for all should become more than a slogan but a reality in our lifetime – at least the beginning of it – like Moses, before dying, seeing the promised land from far.
Giving up on this idea would kill the dreams of all the young people, born free and born even more free from the next generation – it would betray the millions of people who put their hope in a better future, it would curtail the dreams of a non-racist possibility to live not only for South Africa, but for the rest of the world. Let us not underestimate that indeed the mix of challenges here on the tip of Africa are a mirror for the world as such – even at times more complicated and intertwined than at other places. So there is the challenge of being not only the result of a peaceful Mandela moment in time but remaining the beacon of hope for the time to come.
For this to happen we have to acknowledge the dark of the past on all sides of society – history is never purely black and white and we have to find a new language to avoid the fiction of race for future generations. We have to square the circle – an almost Sisyphean task against the odds of hurt and pain, and feelings of revenge and all sorts of compensation in an infinite loop. Being hurt and being able to heal, being disappointed but able to produce hope, being human and at the same time outgrowing what we thought is possible in our lifetime and with our abilities.
Dreaming big – not letting go – focusing on what is really worth it – not giving into despair – that are the points of reference when it is said: #ImStaying
Filed under: Africa, General, Politics and Society, Reflection, Society and living environment, South Africa, Uncategorized, Africa, crime, history, Malema, murder, race, racism, sciety, south africa
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