SCC / Return to Juba

Getting out of Nimule took some time. We stopped in the market for a few things before hitting the highway, not least of which was some smoked and dried fish that Gladys wanted. We kept the windows open all the way back to Juba.

We made better time heading north than we had the day before (going south), but still took over three hours without a stop. Piled along the side of the road are bundles of straw for thatching, bundles of large sticks, and sacks of charcoal. Occasionally you can see large smouldering earthen mounds where the charcoal is being made. Charcoal is made in the rural areas and is a major source of income. Today seems to be pick-up day, since the unattended sacks that were set up on the road yesterday today have people standing by them. They flag us down, mistaking us for one of the charcoal merchants. The charcoal is shipped into the city where it is the fuel of choice for cooking and heating. Simon tells me that a large sack (about four feet tall) fetches the maker about 5 Sudanese pounds, but will sell in the city for five to seven times that much. It’s also water day, as we see numerous water trucks on the road and lots more containers set out. It seems ironic that water is so scarce that it needs to be trucked in, and at the same time the road construction site is continuously being watered.

We get to Juba in time for me to interview Michael Benson – my nephew’s name sake, who is a participant in the SCC’s HIV-AIDS program. Michael has been positive for about 8 years. A trained carpenter, his employer sacked him after discovering Michael’s status. This isn't at all unusual. Michael connected twitho SCC’s program and got counseling and some financial support, as well as better access to meds. "I'm still positive, but healthy now, and would really like to work," he says. He's not been able to get work yet, because stigma is still strong, although that’s slowly becoming less of an issue. He gets some occasional carpentry work, and is now heavily involved as a volunteer himself in SCC’s programs.

I took a few pictures around the SCC offices as they are under reconstruction. Some of the workers are apprehensive, a cautious response given the government’s practice of documenting and harassing civilians. A few other workers are more receptive, and I capture them as they are building concrete block walls or parging the surfaces. The SCC offices are in rough shape in a few places, and they are now able to make some repairs.

Getting out of Juba is almost hysterical. There is no line up at the check-in counter, just a wild crush of people at the desk thrusting their documents at the clerk who randomly chooses one. Eventually ours get selected (thanks to Gladys’ pushiness), and we get checked in. It’s all manually done with pen and paper. Next we have to clear exit control, where we fill in a long form. Fee: $45.00. The form and our passports need to be photocopied, so we’re sent to the photocopy desk, where photocopies are made for us at the price of a few Sudanese pounds. Back to the exit desk where our passports are stamped, and we go to security check. A perfunctory glimpse in our carry-ons, and we’re into the departure lounge. It's hot and crowded, and there is no signs or boards that say what the flight status is. Eventually, someone hollers "Nairobi" and there's a dash for the door.

It's an easy flight back to Nairobi, where I have to purchase another visa: visas and immigration control seem to be a major source of revenue and employment. The drive into Nairobi from the airport takes longer than the flight from Sudan, as traffic is totally snarled. At the roundabouts the confluence of cars, trucks, buses, matatus, pedestrians, hawkers, grinds to a standstill. The air is thick with exhaust fumes – there seems to be no emission controls; cars and trucks alike belch big black clouds of diesel smoke. Some cars take to the shoulders, more aggressive drivers actually cross the median and go the wrong way in the almost-empty oncoming lanes.