JUST A QUICK SCRIBBLE

Fifteen minutes before I go home and I have just finished the 2010 staff listings for all 78 schools in my district (except for bloody MUGANZA ESI whose file turned out to be a pupil list from 2008 - must remember to actually open all files when they are delivered on flash). Not the most exciting work in the world but kinda important. It means we now have the list of how many teachers the schools claim they need for next year based on projected pupil numbers, as well as the actual number of teachers MINEDUC is willing to give us (Alfred: guess which list is longer). This is going to be fun - luckily Alexis' fun rather than mine!

Also, today the REAP training was supposed to start for all teachers in the district but we haven't heard a word from MINEDUC or the Teacher Services Commission yet so I have no idea what is going on. Judging from the rumours that the start of the next school year (January 11th) may be postponed as late as early February to allow for English training, you get the feling they already figure things are going to get seriously postponed. Sarah went up to Kigali to train mentors for the programme and half of them didn't turn up. Not a good omen generally.

What else? Finished downloading the last part of the Murphy Commission Report. Why exactly I want to depress myself even further after having already read the early sections I have no idea. The day it was published I was listening to the evening news at 1900 our time and the very first item on the news began: 'The Government of the Republic of Ireland has announced ....'. Had NO idea what was going to come next except to wonder what in the hell could possibly have moved Ireland to the top of the news (unless we had declared war on France over the Main de Dieu incident). I can tell that many of my work colleagues want to ask me about it but aren't sure how to go about it and, to be honest, I really don't want to get into it. How in the name of God do I explain that such a thing could go on for such a long time, though at least Rwandans would appreciate the fact that bishops are all-powerful and untouchable and, if they wanted to, could actually get away with such a thing for a long period of time. In fact, given the level of clerical involvement in the events of 1994, maybe they would be harder to shock than I imagine ......

Spent the weekend in Kibuye at a farewell party for Bruce Upton, one of the longest-serving volunteers here who is finally ehading back to the UK. Nice weekend and I will be heading back to the same place for four days over the Christmas holidays. Some pictures in the next blog. My copine Martine is more-or-less recovered from the typhoid and somehow or other I managed to avoid catching it from her!

What else (I can see the maintenance guy heading towards the generator!)? Chelsea hammered Arsenal 3-0 on Saturday but that's too long a story for the next three minutes so more of that anon. I have been invited to a wedding in Kigali next Saturday and given that I have not attended any of the other ones I was invited to, maybe I should go this time if only to see if they are actually as long as people say they are! And that's it for now - gotta post this while there is still power!! Murabeho