American expat Matthew 'Hezzy' Smith in Bangladesh, where he is working to improve disabled people's rights.
It took some time for American expat Matthew Smith to get adjusted to the constant power cuts in Dhaka, Bangladesh - that, and its "crazy" traffic rules. But despite life in Bangladesh being vastly different to the life he knew in the US, Mr Smith can't help but find it attractive.
“The people in Bangladesh just invite you into their lives. Of course I miss America but the Bangladeshi people offer immense hospitality. They make your stay worthwhile,” he says.
Mr Smith has been living in Bangladesh since early 2009. Knowing the language of the locals well has made a major difference to his stay, because it has helped him get to know the people of Dhaka better and not restrict himself only to the expat community.
“I learnt reading, writing and speaking in Bengali from the South Asia Summer Language Institute at the University of Wisconsin, while completing my Bachelors in English Literature from Harvard University. It was a two-month intensive course. Knowing Bengali has really helped me understand the Bangladeshi culture well. A lot of foreigners do crash courses in spoken Bengali once they get to Bangladesh but knowing how to read and write too makes you far more competent,” he says.
Having visited Calcutta in India for six months as an "extern" for the Harvard Law School Disability Project in 2008, Mr Smith had planned to move on to Dhaka in Bangladesh with the project for four months and then return to the US to join law school. But instead, he decided to stay in Dhaka, after realising realised that his work on disability laws could actually help bring about constitutional changes for people with disabilities in Bangladesh.
“I was advocating the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) in Bangladesh. It has already been ratified in India. There is only one law for people with disabilities in Bangladesh and that is quite toothless. There is no procedure punishment for discrimination, no mechanism to deliver legal remedies.
“Towards the end of my first trip to Bangladesh, I ended up working with a group of people who were trying to develop a new disability law and they were keen on using my inputs. When I came back to the US after that I was so excited about the work I was doing that I had to return soon,” says Mr Smith.
Currently back home in New Jersey while he is renewing his visa, Mr Smith plans to return to Dhaka for another spell of nine months on October 11. He has now the director of the Disability Project and has pushed back his plans of joining law school till autumn next year.
“A lot of changes are needed in Bangladesh when it comes to propagating awareness about the rights of people with disabilities and the laws that are needed for them. In March I formed a group that has 10 to 12 lawyers and an assistant professor from Dhaka University. We have been meeting every month to discuss disability issues and a lot of effective work has been happening since,” says Mr Smith.
“The people that work with me do it on a voluntary basis. There is no funding. The natural curiosity and openness among people is what makes these collaborations possible. I don’t think it would be possible in the US,” he adds.
Though there are times when that “curiosity and openness” can invade one’s personal space, Mr Smith says he finds life in Bangladesh enjoyable. “I only get too much attention when I’m sitting at a tea stall and speaking in fluent Bengali with the locals because people just don’t expect that from a white guy,” he says.
Before he makes his way back to the US next July, Mr Smith hopes to formalise the group he has formed so that it can continue running in Bangladesh even in his absence.
“Important issues are being taken up by this group and the members are extremely dedicated," he says. "Even when I join law school, I will be involved with every project I am part of now - and I’ll be spending all my holidays in Dhaka!"
No comments:
Post a Comment