child labour and overworked fathers

dear reader/readers and world

another day passes by and i havent had an 8hr nap iyet, and i have had no coffee either. how am i surviving? u tell me???

toaday was another long day.. i woke up early and we did a bit of market shopping in gulshan with mum and dad. they left for the village today, it was nice to see them after so long and the next time i will see them is in another 11 week's time. im not sad, i quite like this independance i have but my parents are upset at it. they feel they have lost a son due to the education system of raising me in england. but what i have been trying to explain is that in order for me to learn about who i am, where i am from and for me to reach success, i feel i must do it away from stoke.

they left at 12pm, and i then headed off to the office and finally got the poster on the way to being made. madam was surprised by what i have done in summarising the independant evaluation and i am quite touched. its not often that one gets to be such close proximity to the head of an organisation, especially one like FPAB in bangladesh.

so i got back to the hotel for half 6, this was perfect timing because ESPN were showing the Man U game live on the telly. premiership football when so far away makes the world seem a lot smaller than what it really is. thank you rupert murdoch for being my football saviour.

this evening i went to visit my friend's parents. they had given me an invite which i was reluctant to accept because of the rest i need especially because of it being warm weather and also cause i am generally knackered!!! anyways, they sent their driver to collect me and i sat down to talk about the usual shenanigans people discuss. the couple are very interesting and both have highly respective jobs, but it still doesnt excuse some of the culturual aspects this country is still infested with.

the thing that has made me melancholic today, is the young not even a teenager who works as a made for them. its not right, child labour is not right. fine, she may be off the streets and away from the dangers of dhaka street life, but she has a right to dream and even working for this family means she has none.

i hate this concept of having servants and chauffeurs because i hate the institution of social class. this poor girl, has no basic education and all she knows is how to clean and follow orders. i can express how much anger i have in seeing such a beautiful young girl in this position. her eyes were beautiful and anyone who sees her would wish for a sister or daughter like her. i understand the positives and yes i know the argument is that my british upbringing clouds my view, but the people who employ are not backward members of society, they are successful and wealthy people. the irony is, my friend's mother is a school teacher at high school level, yet at home the girl who works for them receives none schooling.

the driver who dropped me off engaged me in conversation, we discussed england and what is the purpose for my visit to dhaka. but i then questioned him on his personal life. the driver has a wife and 2 year old baby that he works to feed. that i appreciate, he works to provide for his family and that is v.honourable. but this where the bitter taste started to be felt.

the driver only has 4 days off a month, and he starts work at half six in the morning and doesnt finish till close to midnight. the guy has a wife and child. he should be as fortunate as his boss to be in his family's life not his bosses literally all day and night. where is the justification and do his employers have any sense of guilt? i know we have servants in our village, but i know for a fact they do not live like that. at least in the village the family are kept together and my father also makes sure the daughter is educated. but what is the plight for my driver's life?

i apologised to him and said i will try my best somehow to change this in the future, so other people do not live like this. in return, the driver asked me if he could come work in england and be our chauffeur. the reality is, we all drive and the idea of having a maid or chauffeur is outrageous. this country makes me realise how lucky i am. but it also makes me realise what kind of people exist in this country and also the ones who export themselves to england to make a better life for themselves financially. people say bangladesh is improving, in my eyes it is still the same - culturally it is still the same and that is sad. i could have easily become the chauffeur i met today, but thanks to god, i was born in england and i have now become a doctor. but the most important thing that i have and that nobody will ever take away from me is the independance i have in looking after myself and i will never ever be dependant on anybody to literally wipe my arse for me.

not many pictures today, just one of a train but it isnt a good one.. also, as u know, nike do really cool adverts on tv, so on you tube, check out the nike indian cricket advert.. really cool

speak later
shuw