Japanese Devices, Iraqi Devices

While implementing JEN’s school reconstruction projects, we make an attempt to take into consideration the opinion of the teaching staff. This is why there are small variations in each of the schools, such as the colors of the walls.

The faucet shown in this picture is one such example. I do not think this type of faucet can be seen in Japan. The handle of the faucet is at the bottom, with the tip facing upwards. In Japan, there are multi-purpose faucets where the tip of the faucet can rotate according to whether you want to drink the water, or wash your hands.

I was left wondering why we could not install what I believed was a more convenient faucet that faces up for drinking, and faces downwards for washing. I asked the local engineer about this. He explained that he is avoiding rotating faucets because they consist of more joining parts, and it is easier to break.

After the school reconstruction is complete and handed over to the Iraqi Ministry of Education, it is the responsibility of the teachers and staff to preserve and maintain the facilities. It is essential for us to accommodate our facilities to make repair as low cost as possible and strong to stand the wear and tear of the long-term use of these facilities by the school children.

The Appearance of Men ～ Key to a Happy Marriage

(Continued from previous entry)
　‘Men also make an effort to look attractive for their partners,’

The men talked about how they must always appear clean and tidy, and wear the cologne that their wife likes. They think that such efforts are necessary, that it is the key to a happy marriage! 

Men crowd the perfume stores in the shopping districts of Arab countries that are lined with a variety of perfumes. I hear from Muslims that in the Hadith (sayings by the Prophet Muhammad), which is considered just as important as the Koran, there are many references that express the need to respect your wife.

My friend showed me a picture of him and his wife taken at their home during their wedding anniversary. The picture showed a cheerful woman with light makeup and beautiful hair. What left an impression on me was the warm look that they were giving each other in the picture.

Just as with any religion or culture, there may be Muslim women that behave in a modest manner. However, it is limiting to make judgments based on biased information or generalizations. I think it is important to put ourselves into their shoes as we come into contact with all types of lifestyles and ideologies. This might be a roundabout way in order to pursue a project that suits the locals’ needs, but it is important as I am gaining new perspectives on culture on a daily basis.

The Appearance of Women

Local staff members not only have conversations about the progress of the project, or the Iraqi situation, sometimes daily conversation extends to cover topics such as Arab culture and the teachings of Islam.

The other day the topic of women’s fashion came up. Though Jordan consists largely of Muslim believers, it has a relatively liberal atmosphere. However, while some women stride through the city wearing fitted, glamorous clothes and makeup, the reality of the situation is that the majority of women cover themselves entirely wearing a headscarf and light makeup.

The wife of one of our staff is one such woman that seems to favour a more conservative and reserved dress sense. Following Islamic values, she dresses in a way that does not draw attention to her when she goes out. However, we learnt that when she returns home, she applies makeup before her husband comes home:  ‘This is normal!’ he answers and smiles, ‘of course, it’s only for me to see!’ he adds.

If this story ended here, modern opinion may have you thinking that ‘Islamic women are still living in the shadows of men…’ However, his story continues…

The Playful Hearts of a Construction Company?

Given the present security situation in Baghdad, international staff members are unable to go directly onto the project site. We monitor the progress of the construction and maintenance through pictures taken by our local staff members in Baghdad.

Amongst the pictures we received last week was one of a both beautiful drawing of a playful animal drawn as part of the construction. In the past, we have seen flower patterns and slogans, but this is the first time we have seen an actual drawing.

JEN covers the outer coating of school buildings in the construction, but it does not include pictures. The paint used to draw such pictures on the walls is at the personal expense of the local construction company. The local construction company that oversees the construction work for JEN projects is chosen through an appropriate bidding process.

The two schools shown in these pictures have both been given positive assessments in their past projects with JEN. The fact that the company purchased the paint at their own expense despite the ongoing competition amongst the contractors may have been a sign that they wanted to display the high quality of their reconstruction. Or perhaps they wanted to provide a modest gift to the children that live in the midst of such hard times.

In any case, it is incredibly wonderful that these delightful drawings are creating happiness for both the teachers and students alike.

The New Year: a Time for Happiness

Two weeks have passed quickly in the New Year.

There are relatively few national holidays in Iraq and Jordan. However, towards the end of last December, there was a rare streak of holidays including the Festival of Sacrifice, Christmas, and both the Christian and Muslim New Year. Kirieche, a homemade Iraqi sweet, was made and shared to celebrate the Festival of Sacrifice. 

As the holiday season continues, JEN, with the support of the Japan Platform, are continuing our project to provide renovation support to elementary and junior high schools in Baghdad.

On January 11th, Baghdad saw it’s first snowfall in over ten years. To those who have never seen snow, it seemed to rouse a renewed hope for a brighter future. Since last fall, Iraq has been seeing slow improvements in the security situation.　More positively though, last December there was a law passed approving the return of former Ba’th party members back into public office. With this, the country took their very first steps towards national reconciliation. 

We hope that 2008 will bring fortune and happiness to the People of Iraq. This year, we are hoping for your continued unconditional support for the children of Iraq. 

Bougainvilleaes

Rain brings a look of delight to the faces of the Jordanian people after a long period of drought.

After the rain came and went for a few days, I was delighted to spot a small bud of green arising from the red dirt in the outskirts of Amman. In Jordan, although it is difficult to see any green outside of the spring season, it is possible to spot some Bougainvilleaes flowers from time to time.

This flower reminds me of a scene from my favorite television show that is set on a beautiful wharf covered in Bougainvilleaes.

I was surprised to find out that my special flower is called ‘The Disorderly Flower’ here in Jordan. Upon asking my friend where the Bougainvilleaes got such a name, my friend suggested that perhaps it is because the stems of the Bougainvilleaes grow in such random, disorderly directions. It is true; the stems of the Bougainvilleaes at our office grow in different directions. Then, from these disorderly branches, an orange flower will suddenly bloom from the light pink stems. Thinking about this, I understood the Jordanian interpretation of the Bougainvilleaes.

I was shocked when a local staff member later told me what the Bougainvilleae were called in Iraq – ‘The Hell Flower’. This negative name is puzzling to me, because contrary to the names they have been given, Bougainvilleaes seem to be appreciated in both countries!

Fixing pieces and getting ready

Contaminated foods and water hit the summer in Iraq by Cholera.  It is only recently that the government announced that the situation is getting better after the summer. 

Please see the photo taken at the washing-space of the girl’s elementary school in the slum area of the Baghdad we repaired. 

There was no water and swage system prior to our repairs and the washing-space without the water was used as storage. We also needed to repair electronic facilities to be able to use electronic devices. 

We made it clean and pink tiled washing-space for girls as well as for the bathrooms.  They can also enjoy the lights and fans. 

JEN is repairing the school infrastructures as described above for both elementary schools and junior high schools in Baghdad.

When you use a PC in an Arabic country

It is well known that the Arabic language is written from right to left.  Are you interested to know how it is handled when you type Arabic into a PC?  This photo is from the computer screen of our local staff.  It reads “Hello to the supporters of JEN’s activities!” in Arabic.  The PC needs to be set up so that the cursor moves from the right to left by clicking an icon, what is also interesting is that the numbers go from right to left as in Japanese while the words go vice versa.  When numbers are typed in, the order changes automatically as shown in the photo so that it shows “2007”.  You can select either Indian numbers or Arabic numbers.

  You have to handle two different keyboards when you make English materials, since the Arabic keyboard is specially designed and cannot type in Roman Characters.  To write in Roman Characters, you have to switch it the other way around.

Horns of Joy

The last Saturday of July in Anman was full of cheerful high school students leaning out of car windows.

The frenetic sound of horns announced that it was the last day of school exams, and that the grades had been released also.

The final exam scores not only serve as proof of the student's graduation, but they are also decisive for entering university.

Jordanians usually celebrate by ringing their car horn.In the beginning of July、the well known ruins of Petra were chosen as one of the "New Seven wonders of the world". The decision was announced at one o'clock in the morning, but the celebrating horns sounded until well past two a.m. and there was no sign of them stopping anytime soon.The same thing happens when Jordan's soccer team wins a match.

Last month the Asian cup was won by Iraq. Their team's winning brought the country a lot of happiness during difficult times.

However, 50 people who were celebrating the great result unfortunately fell victim to a suicide bombing attack, and others were killed by stray bullets from guns fired in celebration.

In Jordan, the once popular firing of guns in celebration seems to have been abolished by law.

I wish Iraq would also discontinue this tradition to prevent incidents occurring just when people are celebrating happy moments.

Water Supply System

In Iraq, it is possible to gain sufficient water from the Tigris and Euphrates rivers.  However, gaining water from these rivers has become extremely difficult due to the inability to conduct maintenance on the systems because of financial difficulties caused by the economic sanctions, and also as a result of the bombardment of the facilities during the war.

In its school reconstruction operations, JEN pays special attention to the construction of water supply facilities.  This is because many of the schools that JEN reconstructs have water supply facilities that are completely unusable.  Previously, these kinds of schools used to pump water with a hose from nearby neighborhoods.  Some schools did not even have tap outlets for hand washing, and we also had pictures of other schools, prior to their reconstruction, where sanitary conditions were terrible.

Along with restoring the drainage systems through the replacement of the sewage pipes, JEN is also constructing water supply facilities such as water tanks to ensure that children and teachers are still able to access water despite disruptions to the water supply.

Home sweet home... but...

It is three years since Badwan, a Jordanian staff member, started working at JEN’s office in Amman. As he had previously worked as concierge at a high-class hotel, he is very considerate of and communicates well with people. As well as this, you can often see his sentimental side. For instance, when we reminisced about the international staff that used to work together in the office, he was moved to tears. In both of these ways, he is valuable for JEN.

He has a good wife who likes cooking and they have six children meaning he leads a full and happy daily life. However, when he talks about his home, Palestine, which he strongly longs to return to, his face is clouded. It will be a long time before this dream comes true.

Badwan says that he is happy to work as one of the members of JEN to support people, who are in vulnerable situations. In our small office in Amman, we work hard to try and contribute to developing the conditions of education in Iraq, with the co-operation of field staff like Badwan.

How children play.

Let’s have a look at how children play while they are at school.

Boys are big fans of playing soccer. There are lots of soccer fans in Iraq, and the Japanese animation “Captain Tsubasa” is a big hit. The story’s hero is Tsubasa, whose name translates into Majid in Arabic.

What girls enjoy the most is skipping. Playing tag and hide-and-seek are really enjoyed by both boys and girls.

There are other fun games that seem popular, such as “stand and sit” which is played in the classroom among all students. Similar to the Japanese “hata-age” (raising the banner) game - raise red, raise white, don’t raise white! - the teacher calls out “stand, sit, or don’t sit!” and doing the actions determines the winner.

We asked our field staff members about how Iraqi children play, and they feel that the children spend all their free time just as Japanese children do.

Safety inside schools is barely maintained, but with the security situation worsening and upsetting the children, this might be the only place where they can enjoy themselves.

Spring Picnic

  Spring has come in Jordan.  Families enjoy sunny weekends picnicking in the green spaces found here and there.  Although it is only a short spring, just a few months, during this season fresh flowers and grass fills Jordan’s fields and makes people happy.  Strangely, people picnic, not only in the green hills of the suburbs, but also on land alongside busy highways, wherever they can find grass growing!

People say that Iraqi people also used to picnic in this way before the war.  Families, relatives and friends enjoyed peaceful weekends in the green suburbs of Baghdad.  While military operations continue to intensify in Baghdad, zoos and amusement parks are supposed to be reopening in the city.  However, many people are still in fear of their lives and do not like to leave their homes.
    

Playing in the sun, children are full of cheerful smiles in Jordan.  We hope that one day, Iraqi children will also be able to play on a sunny day without any fear, as children do in Jordan.

Women in Jordan

In Jordan, a Japanese female is always mistaken for a Philippine at every corner around the town.  So is at JEN’s office in Amman, agents come to mistake a Japanese program officer for a Philippine servant.  One day an agent spoke to her at the door:

“I want to see your father or mother”. 

Sounds as if he came across a little girl, but he simply meant in broken English: “call your Master or Madam”. 

That happens because many female servants immigrate to Jordan from Philippine, Indonesia, and Sri Lanka. 

A woman from Sri Lanka has been working in Jordan for ten years.  She migrated after having worked for several years in a factory right after completing secondary school.  She got through her initial struggle to keep up with housework and Arabic language.  Now she speaks Arabic and English fluently.  She still studies English eagerly every day and night.  Meanwhile, she never forgets to send remittance to her family in Sri Lanka. 

Working in Jordan seems to make her stronger despite any difficulties.

Iraqi Passport

What is a big difference between a Japanese passport and an Iraqi one?  Scarcely any countries reject the Japanese one today for an entry or a visa permit.  How about the Iraqi one, how many States would welcome it on the border?

A mass exodus of refugees provoked from and within Iraq has already reached 50,000 per month.  An influx to contiguous Jordan and Syria climbed to the amount of 500 thousands to one million.  However, both asylum countries have been tightening the regulation of the Iraqi nationals on the border and on the issue of visas and residential permits. 

Still, a large number of Iraqi refugees remain in the two neighbouring countries after the expiry of their permits and hide themselves illegally. 

They are unable to receive any social services such as education.  Jordan, overloaded with the increase of refugees, has been appealing to the international society to share the burden.

A Special Day

Local staff is making a sneeze. 

“Bless you!  Have you got a cold?” 

“Thanks, but I must not catch a cold – at least today!” 

“Something special today then?” 

“Eh well… my wedding anniversary,” he replied with a shy smile.

“A husband forgets such anniversaries while his wife is looking forward to – that always happens not only in a soap opera – still you are a perfect mate, lucky your wife!”  “Oh no, my PC helps.  Important anniversaries pop up automatically on my desktop a week before each – our wedding, our first date, and our engagement… quite a good number to input.”

Love grows after marriage – an Arabic saying that he strongly believes in.  He married one of his relatives.  Without having asked her out before, he directly asked her father for a permit to propose to her. 

He has been happy at home for ten years with his wife, her handmade cooking and their children.  Here is a sweet wedding, love, and happiness in Arabic style!

Before After

We are repairing three primary schools and one junior high school in Baghdad. After the repayment has finished, schools become amazingly beautiful as if it was reborn, bathroom especially.

In Iraq, water line and sewage treatment equipment has been destructed and some schools do not have bathrooms available. Muslim has a passion for cleanliness; they have to pray with their body clean. It must be hard for them to co-op with dirty bathrooms.

One of the schools JEN had recovered, bathrooms for teachers had been destructed because of war, therefore teachers had to go to the neighbours to use bathroom and felt inconvenient. Some girls were reluctant to go to school because of dirty bathrooms. When JEN recover these bathrooms, we use tile that easy to clean up.

Our desire is make children can concentrate on study without quibbling.

Cooperation without Boundaries

Here is a letter from Jordan, signed Nami Uesugi, a Japanese staff appointed to JEN’s Office in Amman in May:

“It is a great pleasure for me to interact with people from different background from my own.  Still, as it is the first time for me to get involved closely in a Muslim society, I had a slight fear before coming to Amman if I could make it in such a new working environment.  However, my fear disappeared as soon as my arrival thanks to kind help of local staff in Iraq and in Jordan.  I would like to write about one of them, a program assistant in Baghdad.  She is such an attractive Venus - it is a pity that I am unable to show her fantastic picture for her security, as unfortunately in Iraq international workers like her have been targeted by militia groups.  When I timidly called her for a work on a holiday, she willingly came to office adding that she even enjoyed a different face of the city from clouded weekdays.  I was impressed by her kindness and passion for work which, despite very difficult situation in Iraq, made me believe again that people could work together without any boundaries.” 

Blackout

    The biggest problem in Baghdad today, is electricity.

    Electricity often goes off for long spans of time during the hot of the day; just as you think it has been on for 2 hours, it is followed by a sudden 4 hour blackout. Many houses have generators of their own, and those who don't rent them from others, usually paying them worth 7 hours of electricity per day.

    The current temperatures in Baghdad hover around 45 degrees, but in August, the hottest month of the year, they hit as high as 60. Needless to say, an air conditioner-or fan at the very least-is absolutely necessary to get by. Most households within Baghdad have one or the other of the two, but during blackouts they have no choice but to rely on generators.

    The sweltering summer is approaching, yet again.

Living Side by Side with Death

     Terrorist attacks are all the talk in Baghdad.

    Whenever or wherever you may be, including your own house, death is always lurking around the corner. If a family member is just a few minutes late in coming back, you cannot but help call them on their cell phones to make sure of their safety.

    Not only adults but many children as well own cell phones, so that should something happen, they can contact their family immediately.

    Although there still are children who go to school on foot, there are others who go by car, or have monthly contracts with shared taxis. Schools are basically open throughout the school term, however, parents decide daily whether they should send their children to school or not based on daily security reports. Teachers understand and respect this circumstance.

    The marketplace, a place where many people gather, is a typical target for bombings. Therefore, locals avoid the market as much as possible, and instead try to get their shopping done at nearby grocery stores.

    Even when living side by side with many such dangers, people go shopping, children go to school...Peoples' lives go on.

Security Training

A security training program, organized by the IOM-IRAQ (International Organization for Migration Iraq Mission), was held at Amman. The program was constituted of 2 parts; during the first 2 days, participants were intensively taught about wireless radios and mines, as well as how to behave when one is kidnapped, and the latter 2 days involved practical training setting an ambush in the desert, or being taken under confinement, as the assumed scenarios.

During the training, explosives were set up by the road, and the trainees’ cars were “attacked” with colored bullets, as well as threatened by armed staff at a fake checkpoint. Even though participants knew it was only training, long sessions under strained conditions proved stressful.

Obviously, it does not mean that one’s safety is assured by simply undergoing such training. It is possible, however, to decrease the risk of oneself or one’s colleague from being exposed to danger, from learning the ways to react in the case of an emergency. Through such programs, we hope to always be prepared for work in unstable areas.