TIMOTHY ATUHAIRE: Far From Home

Home is where the heart is. No matter how far one strays from the proverbial nest, there is something about the familiarity of one’s birthplace that simply outdoes anywhere else. On the other hand, there are those who find their place of origin to be antagonistic and, subsequently, search for this sense of comfort elsewhere. Whether it be delicious food, rich culture, safety from conflict, a lavish lifestyle, good weather or great people, a destination that provides you with comfort in these aspects and more is a place that you hold most dear to you. Therefore, home does not necessarily have to be where you were born because circumstances may require you to abandon it, whether temporarily or permanently, in order to enjoy the aforementioned experiences, due to the fact that the environment you’re used to does not facilitate enough wiggle room to attain them. The willing migration of human beings is a practice that has been around for thousands of years, whether it be in search of greener pastures or born out of the curiosity to explore our vast world. People love to travel and see things beyond the environment they are accustomed to, as it introduces them to different perspectives. However, we sometimes find that the pursuit of creating a new home or leaving a preexisting one, can have some dire consequences.

In the African households that can afford them, it is not rare to find a househelp or two, and Uganda is no exception in this regard. They are working class individuals who are hired by families to come in and assist with various chores around the home, such as cooking, cleaning, washing, ironing and so forth. This is done usually because the domestic work is overwhelming for the people living at home or they are too preoccupied with their daily routine to incorporate the fulfilment of these tasks into their busy schedule. In many instances, it is women who play this role.

They play a pivotal role in making sure that houses are neat, tidy, presentable and that the occupants are well fed with nutritious meals. It cannot be emphasised enough just how important they are. However, men are also sought after to take care of other activities around the premises such as cleaning cars, watering the garden, as well as running to the shops for errands and attending to any small, basic needs or breakages that may occur. Individuals who take part in this type of work are frequently met with challenges on the job such as low wages and mistreatment, which at times leads to them considering whether they should leave the country so as to receive adequate remuneration and more humane conditions under which to work. When the unfair treatment takes place multiple times or has a profound emotional and physical impact on the worker, this is when they seriously start to contemplate the possibility of emigration. Furthermore, it is frequently the case that those seeking to go abroad are struggling to find employment or sustain a decent life in the country. A situation such as this could be caused by a lack of tuition available for completing school or, as is the case for some young people, the result of losing one or both parents, leaving them to hustle to survive. It can also be attributed to a society in Uganda that operates in such a way that employment is about who you know as opposed to what you know or how much value you can add to an organization.
If you’ve ever been to the departure area of Entebbe International Airport, you might have seen a number of young women dressed in matching attire, wearing head scarfs and preparing to leave the country aboard one of the aircraft. You would be forgiven in thinking they are all school girls heading for studies because I myself thought this was the case before I discovered the harsh truth behind this phenomenon. Currently, the most common destinations for Ugandans seeking employment abroad are Saudi Arabia, Jordan and UAE. Previously, Afghanistan and Iraq were the most popular destinations.

Following a 2017 lift on the ban of citizens to work in the first two countries, people have continued to flock to these areas, making up part of the 12,000 Ugandans who travel to the East annually for job related reasons. Since 2010, according to the Ministry of Gender, Labour and Social Development, over 140,000 migrant workers have swapped the hills of Kampala to venture into the unknown territories waiting for them out there. In order to start the process of leaving the country, the majority of individuals get in touch with overseas recruitment agencies who are supposed to act as middlemen, so as to link prospective employees with employers. A fee is paid to these agencies to facilitate the resettlement and, if the person does not have a passport at the time, one must be paid for out of their own pocket. Once a job is identified, a contract is then signed that is intended to outline what exact work the person will be engaging in and the duration of their services in the country. Roughly 98% of those who head east are employed as casual labourers, with 1.8% earning their keep in semi professional occupations, whilst the remaining 0.2% have professional jobs. Some of the Ugandans who go abroad and have families to provide for back home, make the trip by themselves as this is the best their financial position can allow at the time being. They then periodically send money back to their loved ones for support and visit once every blue moon.

It is unfortunate that Africans simply looking to improve their well-being by settling abroad are met with hostile environments, where they are antagonised and treated as second class citizens, while trying to create and provide for a home. Over the years, countless instances have been reported in which both men and women have met with tragic conclusions or been flown back in caskets, with missing organs and violated bodies to the dismay and horror of their families and friends. Others have not been as fortunate. Some of them have gone missing and their bodies have not been recovered up to now. Women have described situations whereby as soon as they have landed in the new countries, their passports have been confiscated by their new employers and, once the job has started, they’ve suffered abuse, both verbal and physical, not to mention sexual exploitation and in extreme cases, rape. In addition to this, house-helps have been forcibly isolated and intentionally starved almost to death.

They have also found themselves working in jobs or doing activities that were not agreed upon in the contract they signed prior to departure. Ugandan women have described being forced into the sex trade. This happens when they are misled by the recruitment agencies who take advantage of their desperate need to secure employment and subsequently sell them lies that they are going abroad to do a certain non-sexual related job when, in reality, they find themselves selling their bodies to make money. In the same vein, harvesting of organs has been brought into the limelight in recent times, as seen by the horrific stories of four women who were found to have been subjected to unlawful organ transplants. They were employed in domestic service in Saudi Arabia and Oman. Two of the women lost their lives while a third has been receiving treatment back in Uganda.

The problems associated with seeking employment are not exclusive to those who travel East but are also evident in regards to Africans who make the trip to the West. There is a misconception that life in the West is smooth sailing, simply because this area of the globe is considered to be technologically advanced and far more developed than the rest of the world. However, the mere fact that a country or a region is more modernised than another does not mean that there are no societal problems present. People who travel abroad are faced with new challenges that they might not have encountered back home, or at least not of the same magnitude, and can therefore be ill equipped to face these predicaments. For starters, racism is a major problem in the Western world.

The presence of conservative groups who have the misguided view that foreigners are taking over their country, infiltrating their culture and stealing their jobs is commonplace. The irony of this is that it is in fact their forefathers who exhibited such heinous behaviour when they went to Africa, colonised the continent and instilled themselves as the masters of black and brown people, due to the apparent need to civilise the alleged beast-like and backwards Africans, through what is comically known as the “white man’s burden”. We must not forget to mention what America and her allies did with their uncalled for intervention in Libya. They went into the country under the guise of restoring freedom and democracy, to a country that at the time had the longest life expectancy and lowest infant mortality rate on the African continent. Under Qaddafi, the North African state was ranked 56 on the UN Human Development index out of 169 countries, which is classified as high human development. Since his death, Libya has dropped to 105 on the list, there has been constant civil war, food is hard to find and life expectancy has dropped. The aftermath of this is migrants are risking death trying to cross the Mediterranean sea in search of a better life away from war, in the same countries that were and still are complicit in the destruction of their homes. Those who are unable to make it to Europe end up losing their lives due to their boats sinking and the starvation and disease that happens in migrant detention centres. Anti migrant policies in Europe combined with control of the region by armed groups has created the world’s deadliest migrant route.

All this because they just want to flee from a war torn area and salvage what they have left of their lives.
Mental health is another cause for concern that troubles individuals who attempt to kick-start their lives in a foreign land. It is not a straightforward responsibility to drop everything, travel to a brand new place and leave your family behind with the knowledge that you do not know anybody there. It takes a considerably strong individual with significant mental toughness to weather the environment, in more ways than one, because the climate in the West during winter is not for the faint of heart. That being said, even the bravest and most diligent soul can be a victim. Those who take on this herculean task struggle with alienation, loneliness and adapting to their unfamiliar surroundings and this can often manifest itself in depression, anxiety and in worst case scenarios, suicide attempts. Recently, a video was circulating on social media of a person jumping off the seventh floor window of the Al Fahad building in Dubai. It was later confirmed that the woman was 23 year old Monica Karungi, a Ugandan who was studying and working part time in the informal sector. Rumours have been flying around as to why she chose to take her life, with some claiming that it was due to her boyfriend back in Uganda marrying someone else, but it is unconfirmed. Many have pointed to her Instagram page, which was filled with images and videos of her partying and enjoying herself, and are wondering why someone who was seemingly so happy would leap to her demise. Her story is just one of many. Nevertheless, this is one of several issues that plague discussions surrounding mental health.

There is a mistaken belief that how someone appears on the outside or the way in which they present themselves on social media or the wealth they have is a true reflection of how they feel internally. Folks think that the presence of money is the absence of problems. This could not be more wrong. I try to refrain from using celebrity centred analysis, but I shall give myself the liberty of doing so here. Late, lauded rapper ‘The Notorious B.I.G.‘ has a song called ‘Mo money, Mo problems.’ Look at celebrities such as Robin Williams, Kate Spade, Anthony Bourdain, Kurt Cobain, Chester Bennington and Avicii, to name a few. These were all highly successful and celebrated people at the top of their respective fields, living and working in the so called developed region of the world, who still succumbed to suicide brought on by various mental health and personal challenges.

Our task is to build a society where everybody feels at home, regardless of where on the planet they find themselves. It is imperative that we create conditions that are favourable and conducive to live and thrive in, where profit is not the motive and exploitation is not the means of arriving at success. We must put people over monetary gain because if we continue to head down the path we are on, we shall see an unprecedented increase in the number of Africans desperate to leave the continent in search of peace and prosperity, who ultimately find themselves the victims of exploitation, harassment, abuse, torture and rape. So much effort is put into designing our personal homes to make them look beautiful, not just for ourselves but for any guests we intend to entertain. We love to watch in awe as we are shown around luxurious, extravagant abodes and enjoy the positive feedback we receive from our loved ones for the thought that goes into our own personal residences.

In the larger sense, we have the necessary resources and tools at our disposal to make the homes that are our countries fit for sustainable living. What we lack is a proper mindset and love for our surroundings that goes beyond our immediate selves and encompasses the community around us. There is nothing wrong with leaving your country to go on vacation or even to settle down abroad, but this decision should be one that is made willingly, instead of being one where you are forced to do so because of inhospitable conditions back home.