Kamila's story

by Kamila, a student from Prague

After having finished my studies at a language school in Prague I didn't want to spend other five years studying at a University. Instead I wanted to do a kind of "charity". At that time I found information about Travelling folk high schools in Denmark and Norway and about Humana people to people.

From Denmark I got further details about the program - and it sounded really marvelous. They promised perfect preparation for the solidarity work in Africa, including learning practical things and Portuguese (for the people going to the countries where Portuguese is spoken.).   After reading this newspaper I was enthusiastic and decided to join this organization.   The only problem I has was the money because I had to pay 2500DKK per each of the eight months spent at the school. Considering that at that time I'd just finished my studies I was completely broke. I refused my parents' offer to give me the money (now I am happy I didn't say yes!) because I wanted myself to make it through all the problems. I was determined to make the money and after go study to Denmark.

I intended to start the school in April 2000 but suddenly in September 1999 the people from the school contacted me and told me that I could join NetUp program (thanks to which people can make to money for the school fees.) right at that time and so I could join the October team. I made up my mind in one day, agreed and three days later I arrived to Denmark.

I enrolled in the program, paid 1700 DKK enrollment fee and was sent to Holland to work in a sorting center of second hand clothing in order to make the money to pay for my school fees. The work there was hard enough but I didn't care because I had my goal in front of my eyes: make the money to be able to study at the school and than go and do something useful to Africa.

There was another disappointment though. I realized the majority (I guess more than 95 per cent) of the clothes donated by the people had not the destination "Africa" or other poor countries of the world but the clothes of the best quality were sold in the second hand shops in Holland and Belgium instead. For Africa we were told to sort the worst clothing: T-shirts with holes and spots, shorts, shirts, skirts and other stuff people in Europe would never touch. As a Dutch friend of mine said: "We keep the best and the Africans get the garbage..." It was exactly the same as I thought and I felt so terribly ashamed for myself doing this.

It was the firs big disappointment for me and although their explanation was they earn the money for the projects in Africa in that way it did not convince me and the first doubts were born somewhere in my mind.

After the Holland period I went to the school. I was one month late and was a bit afraid that I had missed so much of the studies. But after a while they turned out to be useless fears. Instead of leaving for Africa after six months spent at the school I left after seven weeks but back home. It was not easy decision and I had to fight a lot with myself. but I felt it was the only way for me. There were several serious matters I couldn't overcome and that made me leave.

1.   The only way how to study is the computer. We had to read hundreds pages of useless text and write many essays on various topics. It meant sitting hours and hours in front of the computer screen and typing. We had to achieve 500 study points and 1 point was equal to one hour of studying. 250 point had to be achieved by experiences and 250 by courses. Considering that you could prepare a course about political situation in your country or about habits and traditions in your town, it seemed to me it had no sense. But we had to do it.

We all thought we needed something completely different to become good solidarity workers: talk to doctors, attending courses about tropical diseases, being told how to deal with children, try to teach ourselves, discuss methods of teaching, talking to doctors and nurses about child illnesses or AIDS, about the first aid, for people going to work in agriculture talking to experts in this field etc. But not for sure sitting the whole days at a computer and putting what we'd read into our own words.

2.   We'd never found out what happened to the money we had to pay. We asked about the money many times but never got convincing answer. The headmaster wasn't able to explain where was the money going. We had to pay 6000 DKK (2500 before and the rest by fundraising) but we didn't get almost nothing for it. We had 28 DKK per food per person for one day. We cooked, cleaned, repaired and run the school and did other stuff. They paid for the internet, water, electricity and heating (usually in a building there were around 15 degrees Celsius; there was constantly somebody cold or sick) but that was it. But what happened to the rest? We'd never found out.

3.    Fundraising was the worst experience of the school period for me. In total we had to fundraise 28000 DKK by selling our school newspaper in the Danish towns. It was hard to stay the whole days in cold and rain and try to convince people to buy the newspaper for 50DKK. We heard many negative reactions, many people disliked or hated Tvind saying that they would have never supported such an organization. But although it was not easy it was not the matter why I refused to fundraise anymore. I just couldn't ask people for their money if I wasn't sure what happened to it. If I had known for sure that the money went to Africa or helped us to become good solidarity workers I was determined to fundraise but not if the things weren't clear.

4.   I felt like a slave over there. Nobody really cared about us. To express own opinion, disagree with certain things happening at the school or even want a change of something meant having a kind of troubles. We spent hours and hours discussing useless things (e.g. discussion about a "day structure" ) and never reached any conclusion.

After several weeks I decide to quit the school because I didn't want to be part of this organization. It was ridiculous to spend 8 or 9 weeks of the "Africa preparation" in the streets selling the newspaper, earning money for a very obscure purpose.

Even if they sent me to Africa at the end I am not sure I would go. Without any real preparation I guess I would feel a bit useless as a solidarity worker that should be highly qualified after a 6 month course of intensive preparation. I left the school and felt a kind of "injured" inside. This my dream to help where the help is really needed failed and even though I knew I couldn't solve all the problems that should be solved I am still terribly disappointed. I knew the way to reach what I wanted wouldn't have been easy I expected at least the most possible support from the people at the school- teachers and headmaster. But here nobody cared abut us, nobody helped, they cared only about the money- at lest as I think.

I haven't written this as a revenge to the school, this is not my style. I only act in accordance with my conscience, I want the world be students to hear also experience of a former Tvind student who came with good intentions but in order not to lose her own face as a human had to leave. I am convinced that if you want to do "good" you shouldn't be a part of "bad" or more exactly you shouldn't do what you don't totally agree with. But this is up to everybody.

There must be some better organization and I will continue looking for it.