The following text may have been generated by Optical Character Recognition, with varying degrees of accuracy. Reader beware!

PAGE IO _ WATERLOO CHRONICLE, WEDNESDAY. NOVEMBER 30, 1994 last week m this column, I spoke about negative 1mages of Africa unfairly dominating western media coverage of the comment. This wtek I mpt to (am that Idea one step further. If, as I argued, the vast mapnty of Africa's 60+ countries are not being rav- agei by starvation, war and drought, then why should one be concerned with development Issues in Africa? What 15 1t fundamentally that Merendates our real- tty from therrs? 'tjiiiiiiiii'si- iiiiiie are far too "ci':;':',"';,""')"'?'?."""""""""""""""' few tor the people of Africa Scott ones 'For me, the answer IS opportumty. Or more specdi- cally. lack thereof, Almost everyone I encountered UI Sierra Leone and elsewhere had ther most basic needs met - adequate (and to eat, a shelter to sleep under and people around around them who cared about them. But for many of them. that 15 all they had, There was no "slack", Chouvs 1n life were few A young g1rl m a smaller wllage knows exactly what she will be domg for the rest of her life, Up until puberty. she will help her mother take care ofyounger roblmgs, fetch water and wood and help in the prepa- ration of fobd, If she 13 lucky. she may be able to attend pnmary school. After initiation Into womanhood, she will likely heu‘ome- pregnant within a couple of years. Subse. quently, her days will be filled land I mean iilltri) by work m the fields, cluld care, food preparation and eve tidvrss The, vhmco to attend secondary school 13 rarely Jumble- and only the very wealthiest need worry .mvut what eubjuts to pursue at university, There is rr,, punt m asking a little ml or young woman for "an miner what she wants to be when she grows 'h '5 "m md men. therv m- generally a few more "mu t _ 1.". 1:21: but not much slack, If they don't want 'st writ m thtt field, all day, thcn they must attempt at Gm Wm mark - fur dhnut $1 or perhaps $2 a day (' ”an m- nut chosen - they're mapped up, No dd, iurs A (in) )5 Just vnuugh In buy staple foods and basic Amhm: for the family and to _wnd one or two of the thldrvn asuaily boys to school 1 dnn't recall hmnng people asking each other "What do you want to do for dinner"", or "What do you w! " dmng tomght?" And the muons of travelling Mr xxxcutmn‘ are more or less meamngless. In the ntuaily mth caring for her and hier husband's of Waterioo’s issues over the past .16 years has contributed to the success of the Uptown ward area. I pledge to continue working with business, residents andstudentstoensuethesuccessandvibrancyof WatedooutsaptttertoumWoetttrandPuv. NOVEMBER 14th, VOTE . potxruerttrreteFxitteterr-witammist I feel that my “Action through Participation" in many Balanced Economic Development l Government that is responsible and 886-1 3 d accountable to its citizens A FAIR tax system with a 0% Target Increase Maintaining currerit safety standards in our community l HOLLOI'IAN, Terry majority of West African countries, the question of who to vote for to improve things is equally irrelevant. Most West Afneans I met were healthy and capable of physical work we would leave only to athletes But for those who did become ill, the "opportunity" to receive medical care often does not exist, either because the facilities are not there or they are not affordable. I met a man who had a cavity. The entire side ofhis face was swollen, he had not been able to eat for over a week and sleep was now difficult. He was a twoday walk from the nearest mad which was in turn a day's bus ride from the nearest medical centre, He couldn't afford the bus ride let alone the medical treatment.N be willing to bet my OHlP coverage that he 15 no longer alive. Because he had a canty. Now that I am back 1n Canada. I have several dm. cult' decsuons ahead of me, What lund of work do I want to look for" I'm not surr where I want to 11w I wonder if I'll need a car And where do I want to trawl to neat? He was a partunpant wrth ('amullan Crossroads International, a nonpartisan nvrrrrrlrguuss NGO which promotes cross-cultural understanding and educalumHe will be sharing some of his thoughts from his experiences in a series of articles m subse. quent Comment sections. Cumeron Doughu, (1 mm! gradscw /mm tlie ( 'm verstty of Waterloo, returned [an nmnthw ago after spending four months working In F n‘rtuu l Swrm Lone and four months trrwellmg thrrrugh nvzghhonng West Afruun mum-ms. Perhaps Ill go out for dinner mth a friend of mm have a few drinks and (imam It 886-1 320 Cameron Douglas 'omment PIATKOWSKI SCOTT City / Regional Councillor Call Tt6-8225 Barb Beatson VOTE 886-0179 Vote Kathryn Craig Sypport Quality Education qiraduch8udiAtaihkseree/ Public School Trustee Waterloo Public School Trustee / Waterloo 746-3l88 Autfmmau by the CFO tor me many» cm MrttpW9n Amman: I.» my PM) w lhr Sum Pununnlu (impugn COUNCILLOR WESTMOUNT WARD 5 Authorized by CFO for the Bumswin Campaign