UN Induction

Well we’re here. Stuck in Khartoum. The last five days are a good indication of what the next two weeks are going to be like. We are basically to be at the UN base daily at 8:00am regardless if there is anything for us to do. That includes weekends because we are working 7 days a week for 30 days. At the end of 30 days, and if we can be released, we get our first 6 days off.

We spend the day doing administrative tasks which I’m not going to try to bore you with. Yesterday pretty much all we did was open a bank account. The UN is a big international machine with people from all over the world, many without the work ethic or standards of service that we are used to at home. An example is the fact that we are being given an english exam on Saturday. I’m not kidding. It sounds ridiculous, but they have to treat everyone the same and thus, they have to cater to the lowest denominator. Nothing worse than being told that someone speaks english and they get here and can’t speak a word. This has apparently happened in the past. I sure hope I pass my english test. We also have a driving test some time within the next week and a half.

Today was a bonus. We were given our postings. One of my colleagues and I are going to Torit which is located in the Eastern Equatoria state of southern Sudan bordering Kenya and Uganda. Our initial duties will be to do community policing. I will also be involved with investigations when and my partner will be involved with training. Our duties, however, could change at the last second and will likely involve a little bit of everything. Feels good to finally know where we are going though. The rainy season has started there so it should be interesting. It is apparently malaria central due to the mosquito population. We will be leaving the desert and entering the jungle.

We were told soon after getting our postings that if stopped by rebels, we should just give up everything to avoid any confrontation. I think we will stick to that. The main rebel group in the area has been the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) which has attacked small villages in the outskirts of Torit and Juba in the past. They have abducted the women and children to be used as slaves, soldiers and sex slaves. Their rebellion is against the Ugandan government, however they have settled across the border in Sudan. In addition, most of the regions former population has become internally displaced by the violence of the Second Sudanese Civil War which adds to the turmoil in the area. It is also the region with one of the larger landmine zones. 41% being declared a landmine zone and 51% still unknown. Sudan is a big country and there is so much conflict going on in so many different places for so many different reasons it is difficult to comprehend how people can actually make a life here.

I have been able to snag a few photographs of Khartoum in a covert manner, but I don’t see this happening much in the future so I apologize for the lack of photos. I have been warned that my ass is not covered if I get arrested by the Sudan Police or the Sudan Armed Forces. This is understandable as I’ve been warned.

Salaam Alykum,

Gonzo.



The Rwandan military does all of the
security at the UN base. They are highly
respected here.