The Rural Voice, 2002-12, Page 14Jeffrey
Carter is a
freelance
journalist
based in
Dresden,
Ontario.
Jeffrey Carter
We who are able, should act
"We must either let the Law of
Love rule us through and through or
not at all. Love among ourselves
based on hatred of others breaks
down under the slightest pressure.
The fact is such love is never real
love. It is an armed peace."
— Mahatma Gandhi
During the last famine in
Ethiopia, Peter Dalglish helped bury
dead children in emptied grain sacks.
Dalglish spoke about his
Ethiopian experience during an
interview for CBC Radio's The
Sunday Edition program on
November 17. Born in London,
Ontario and trained as a lawyer, he
worked in a remote area of the
country in 1984 and 1985.
He recalls a group of about 8,000
children arriving from Chad on foot,
their bodies dirty and emaciated.
"They were heroic children and
they were survivors ... We used to
bury the children who had died
during day just before sunset in
empty food grain sacks. The sacks
had written on them, `A gift from the
people of the United States of
America'. "
Dalglish left the law profession
following his Ethiopian experience to
work full time among some of the
world's poorest peoples. He says
famine has once again cast its shadow
over Ethiopia. As many as 15 million
people, nearly a quarter of the
population, may be at risk.
The host of The Sunday Edition,
Michael Enright, pointed out that the
United States has committed $100
million toward the current crisis in
Ethiopia. That is a sign of hope — if
it arrives in time to help avert the
coming crisis.
"sg[orp to gob in the
highegt, anti on earth peace,
gooDtni[l totuarb men"
ink. 2 :14
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10 THE RURAL VOICE
"Famine waits for no one,"
Dalglish says. "The world is
transfixed on the spectre of war in
Iraq but there are other issues. A lot
of these issues are interrelated. I work
with children who are destitute and
despairing. I often wonder, if these
kids are not provided with any hope,
will they be the next generation of
people who will do bad things —
(become) terrorists.
.. I hate being cynical but
maybe if there was oil in Ethiopia,
the country would have been rescued
a long time ago."
Dalglish is right to be cynical.
While a contribution of $100 million
isn't insignificant, neither is it
enough. Far more is being spent to
prepare for war with Iraq.
That said, there's a danger in
oversimplifying the world's ills. War
with Iraq may have far more to do
with the West's greed for oil than it
does with Iraq's "weapons of mass
destruction" or the rule of a tyrant.
Famine in Ethiopia may have as
much to do with corruption and
internal strife in the African country
as it does with drought.
Still, the image of dead children in
grain sacks is straight forward
enough. People are hungry. We who
are able should act.0
Thanks to the farmers who have supplied us
with excellent wool
and to all our
customers who
purchased yarn for
their knitting projects.
Merry Christmas.
The Philosopher's Wool Co.
Inverhuron, 519-368-5354
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