MUA25

HET DUO 24 MAGAZINE UNIVERSITEIT ANTWERPEN 25.2017 kinderarbeid. ‘Maar Johanna, waarom koop je zo iets?’, vroeg een medestudent me. Ten eerste vond ik dat mooi en ten tweede moest toch iemand dat kopen, anders verdienden ze daar helemaal niets aan. Dat is natuurlijk heel dubbel, maar het zijn dat soort discus- sies waar je heel erg van leert. Ben je trots op je dochter? Johanna: Tuurlijk. Ze mocht die kans niet laten liggen. Als wij terug kwamen, vond ik iedereen veel te materialistisch. Je geraakt er wel terug aan gewoon, hoor. Je kan ook niet anders. Dat is nu eenmaal onze maat- schappij. Maar daar denk ik nog vaak aan terug. Ik ben ook vertrokken onder impuls van de allereerste lichting, het jaar voor mij. Ik wilde de wereld ontdekken op mijn 22ste. Isabelle is er nu 24 en mijn twee andere kin- deren tonen niet echt interesse. Dat schept een mooie moeder-dochterband.” ONTROERING “Mijn gastouders schreven een brief maar mijn ouders”, vertelt Isabelle. “Mama krijgt nog tranen in de ogen.” Alumna follows in mother’s footsteps with USOS Like mother, like daughter. Thirty years after mum Johanna Soete (52) travelled to the north of India on an immersion trip with the University Foundation for Development Cooperation (USOS), her daughter Isabelle Wouters (24) – newly graduated fromUAntwerp as a social worker – fol- lowed in her footsteps and left for DR Congo. “It was an unforgettable trip”, says Isabelle. “I’m so grateful that I had this opportunity and I’d do it again immediately. Although I didn’t really know what I was getting into. But the reception I got – like a real queen. And the difference between there and here at home couldn’t have been bigger. Here I have two brothers, there it was eight brothers and five sisters. Homesick? No. I thought about home a lot, but mainly about how good we have it here. Africa has always had enormous appeal for me. I refused to think about the potential dangers. The organisation was very well informed about the situation. We also knew we could leave very quickly if that was really necessary. We were staying near the border with Rwanda, but I never felt unsafe.” Mum Johanna recognises her daughter’s experiences, but sees some differences too. “It was 30 years ago, after all ( laughs ). We didn’t stay with families, but in convents. Everyone agreed afterwards that if you really want to ‘immerse’ yourself in the local culture, you have to stay in people’s homes. I’ll never forget the orphanage, which was an initiative of Mother Teresa. On one side sat the healthy children, with no physical deformities. And they assured us that they would all have bright futures in Europe. But on the other side of the roomwere the disabled children, staring at us from their beds with big round eyes. And you know: they’ll never make it to a good family in Europe. Heart-breaking.” E