汚い話をしようか。
***
バングラデシュの元大統領エルシャドは独裁政治・汚職などでダーティなイメージのある人だが、不思議なことに今でも一部の人には根強い人気がある。
これはエルシャド好き(?)の或る日本人が現地の人から聞いたことだが、
「(賄賂取らないけど仕事できない人より)賄賂は取るけど仕事もきっちりやるエルシャドの方がいい。(まあ賄賂取らないで仕事もできる人が一番いいのは言うまでもないけどさ。)」
バングラデシュにいる時に借金を申し込まれたことがある。
相手は活動先の学校の教員(インストラクター)で、職場で会ったらたまに世間話をするくらいの関係だ。
「夫がこのたび就職したのだが賄賂が足りないので2000タカほど貸して欲しい」
と言う。
その人のご主人が同じような学校のインストラクターとして採用されたらしい。
ここに出てくる「学校」は国立のもので、全国に10余りあった。インストラクターの採用はそれを統括する省庁が一括して行なっていた。
採用されたインストラクターは、その後給料が円滑にもらえるように「上」に賄賂を払うのが慣例だった。
噂には聞いていたけれど、
「賄賂っていったいいくら払うことになってるわけ?」
と聞いたら、12000タカだと言う。
当時、ヒラのインストラクターの給料は4500タカくらい。シニア・インストラクターは6000タカか、6500タカ。業後に塾などの副業を持っているインストラクターが多かった。ちなみに「学校」の「掃除のおばちゃん」は4000タカらしい、と私とは別の「学校」で活動していた夫が言っていた。(1タカは約2円。)
「今月の終わりには返せるから」
と言う。その日は月の半ばだった。
私は断った。
トラブルを恐れたためだ。貸せない額ではなかったし、正直仮に返ってこなくても痛い額ではなかったが、噂が広まりやすい環境のため、他にも借金を頼んでくる人がたくさん出てくるかもしれない。ただでさえ、「外国人でしょ?お金持ってんでしょ?」と思われているのだ。
これから先そういうことが続けばいつかはトラブルになることが目に見えていた。
「誰にも言わないで」と口止めしてみるほどには私は相手を信用していなかった。
フィンランドのNGOが経営する、近所の寄宿舎学校に新しく赴任した理事長が、地元の警察に挨拶に行った時、
「賄賂はないのか。賄賂を出さないなら守ってやらない」
と言われたらしい。彼は、
「僕たちはそういうお金を出せないから、自分たちのことは自分で守るしかない」
と私たちに話した。(*1)
(彼らは自分たちの敷地を高い塀で囲み、24時間警備で基本的に現地の人間を立ち入らせないようにしていた。)
バングラデシュに来る前に、バングラデシュ出身の人(ただし在日暦ウン十年)が、
「バングラデシュのGNPは統計上は低いけど、賄賂など表沙汰に出来ないお金を入れると膨れ上がる」
と憤慨しながら言っていた。
確かにバングラデシュの前にニジェールにいたことがある、と言う日本人が、
「GNPはほぼ同じなんだけど、見た感じだいぶこっちの人たちの方が裕福な気がする。だってここ裸足の人まずいないもんねえ」
そう言えば、私の活動の関係者は現地で言えば中流以上の生活を営む人ばかりであった。でもバングラデシュの話になるとほとんどの人が口を揃えて言う。
「僕たちは貧乏です」
まるで合言葉のように。ある時「貧乏って言うわりにはみんな家にテレビ持ってるよね。あなたん家、パソコンあるよね」と言ったら、そのまま黙ってしまった。
賄賂の話では、警察官が槍玉に挙がることが多い。
噂では、警察官の間では交通整理が大人気。排気ガスと砂埃にまみれる仕事である。「?」と思ったら取締りと称して賄賂を取ることができるからだそうだ。
市場で買い物中に大金を盗まれた人が、それを警察に届けたら、犯人が捕まってお金も丸々見つかったのはいいが、謝礼としてその3分の一だか半分だかを要求されたと言っていたのも聞いた。(*2)
2001年の総選挙(*3)で政権が交代した時、新政権は「クリーンな国にしよう」という目標を掲げた。その一環として検問による銃器の取り締まりが行なわれたが、これを実施したのは軍だった。現地の人で
「理想から言えば警察がやるべき仕事なんだろうけど、軍のほうが断然いい仕事するもんねえ・・・・・・」
と言っている人もいたが、たいていはそもそも不思議にさえ思っていなかった。
ただ前述の「憤慨していた在日バングラデシュ人」は、
「警察官は仕事が大変なわりにものすごく給料が少ないから・・・・・・」
と彼らの待遇には理解を示していたことを書いておいた方がいいだろう。
ところで、私はコンピュータ科に配属されていたのだが、その科の同僚には1年近く給料が支払われていなかった。他の「学校」のコンピュータ科も同じである。
「学校」には電気科、溶接科などいろいろな科があって、インストラクターは正規雇いである。給料は毎月滞りなく支払われていた。
コンピュータ科は、私が派遣される(バングラデシュに行く)2年前に、限定付きプロジェクトとして始まった。(*4)コンピュータ科のインストラクターも元々2年の限定付きで採用されたのだった。
つまり、私が配属された時点ではもう期限が切れていたのだ。
それでも期限が切れて最初の数ヶ月は何とか「給料」が支給されていたらしい。いよいよ給料が払われなくなってから、全国のコンピュータ科インストラクターたちが集まって話し合いをする機会が多くなった。「上」に直談判するために、仲間内から代表者を選び、ああでもないこうでもないと要件をまとめるためである。
もちろんそうやってみんなで集まるためにもお金が必要で、みんなからお金を集めて会計担当が管理していたのだが、そこでも横領が問題となっていた。
それにしても1年近く(10ヶ月余り)も給料がもらえなくてどうやって暮らしているの?と訪ねてみたら
「ローン。いろいろなところから借りて工面している」
と言う。
一族に一人稼ぎ手がいて、とか裕福な実家の土地を売ってというケースをいくつか話に聞いていた(*5)ので、お金の貸し借りは親戚関係が主かなと思っていたが、裕福な親戚がいない場合や、親戚関係が良好でない場合も少なくないだろうし、そうなると銀行から借りることになるんだろうか。
バングラデシュできちんと稼げる職を得て、得た職をキープし続けるのは大変なことのようだった。稼ごうと思えばリキシャワラ(リキシャを運転する人)でも稼げるが、「やっぱり大学出てリキシャワラはねえ・・・・・・」みたいな考えは日本よりもよっぽど強い。(それにリキシャワラは仕事自体が重労働なだけでなく、仕事を得るのも意外に大変なのである。)(*6)
ある先輩隊員が帰る時に、
「えー、日本の会社で働くの?大変じゃない?日本だとやりにくくて」
と私に言ったが、私は、働ける場所があるのはとてもありがたいことだから、絶対に日本に帰って復職しようと心に決めていた。(*7)
*1
ちなみに、私は英語が話せなかったのでこの理事長氏(フィンランド人)とはベンガル語で会話していたのである。子供の頃7年ほど日本に住んでいた奥さんとは日本語で。ご主人も数年前、20代半ばに日本に2~3年住んでいたらしいが、日本語は忘れてしまったと言っていた。
*2
私が、ある件でもう一人の女性隊員と一緒に警察に行こうとしていた時に言われたこと。ちなみにその「もう一人の女性隊員」も懇意にしているお店の人から、行くことを止められた。
ちなみに、これは賄賂とは関係ないが、『旅行人ウルトラガイド バングラデシュ 黄金のベンガル』には「(女性は)警察署には一人で行かない方がよい」とある。
*3
そういえば選挙の時、世界各国から選挙監視委員が来ていることに驚いた。
*4
他の科はそれぞれ生徒(2年間)を抱えいるが、コンピュータ科は一般教養の一つとして、専属の生徒はいなかった。外部から3ヶ月の短期コースに通ってくる受講生はいた。
*5
そういう話を聞くたびに、沖縄出身の友人が「昔から『沖縄には乞食がいない』って言われてるんだよね」と話していたのを思い出した。(一族の結びつきが強く、誰かがお金や職に困っていたら親族が世話するかららしい。)
で、ある時、沖縄出身の隊員に「バングラデシュと沖縄って結構似てるところあるよね」と言ったら、
「確かにそうかも。でも同じ似ているなら沖縄の方が・・・・・・。気候もいいし」
という答えが返ってきた。
まあそうだよね。
*6
ただし、ダッカには「大学出のリキシャワラ」がいるとの噂だった。他で聞いた話だと、リキシャワラの稼ぎは月3000~4000タカとのことだったが、稼げる人はもっと稼いでいたのかもしれない。
*7
ちなみに彼女は日本に帰る途中に、東南アジアのある国で就職活動して仕事を決めて帰った剛の者である。凡人はそんなことできませんって。
ただ会社を辞めてまっさらな身になった今、もし就職するなら日本じゃない方がやっていきやすいかもしれない、とたまに思うことはある。
It's so-called "Dirty Pretty Things".
***
Elshad is a former president of People's Republic of Bangladesh, in whose administration he did some works like dictatorship and corruption which are supposed to give people the dirty image of his. Strangely speaking, however, he still has some native fans in the country.
A JOCV member who liked him had asked one of such fans.
"Elshad also did much greater works (than a unbribable person who can't do his work well). (And I would love the best a person who never take a bribe and do his work well if he existed.)
Once in Bangladesh, I was asked to loan money by a Bangladeshi woman who was one of the instructors who were working at the same school where I was assigned.
We had sometimes happened to have a small talk in a corridor of the school, but I had not known her much. At the time, she asked me,
"My husband has just been employed as a instructor by our superior people. To make them pay a salary punctually, we have to give a bribe to them, but my money is 2000 taka short."
I use here a word "school" for a kind of government school, which "school" was one of about 11 "school"s all over Bangladesh. A ministry controlled all of them including employing instructors.
And instructors who were employed were supposed to give a bribe when before starting his job.
I had known some about such a bribe, and I asked,
"How much must you pay totally?"
According to her answer, it was 12000 taka.
In those days, a salary for a common instructor was 4500 taka. That for a senior instructor was 6000 or 6500 taka. Many instructors had a side job like managing a private school or teaching there after school. My husband who was assigned to another "school" told me a cleaning lady for such a "school" was paid 4000 taka. (1 taka = about 2 yens, in those days)
"I can give the money back by the end of this month"
said she. It was the middle of the month.
I rejected her finally. I was afraid it would be a trouble. In fact, I could lend her the money. And besides, It would give me no pain even if she gave it back to me, but I was afraid of the society around there. A rumor did run so far in some minutes. And there were people who said to me "You are a foreigner. So you have much money". Once I loan her, how many people will come ask me for such a loan? It must bring me a trouble soon.
I didn't trust her so much as to try forbidding her to say anything to anyone.
I've heard another story. When he new director of Finish NGO's institution there, he went to greet the chief of the police station of the city. The chief said first "Did you give me a bribe? I'm not protecting you without any bribe".
The director said to us "We couldn't pay such a kind of money. We must protect ourselves on our own". (*1)
(They were living inside tall walls on all sides. Basically, they had guards keep local people away from the inside for 24 hours.)
Before I went to Bangladesh on a JOCV servise, a Bangladeshi who had been living in Japan for decades told us with anger "Bangladesh is one of the countries whose GNPs are the lowest in the world, but it is only statistics on a report. If the dirty money of Bangladesh is taken into consideration, their GNP will get much higher".
A Japanese who worked in Niger before Bangladesh once said,
"These two countries have almost the same GNPs, but Bangladesh looks rather different from Niger, where much less people wear shoes".
Almost all the people at my JOCV service were a person from a rich or middle class family. Instructors and students there usually belonged to a middle class one, but when they talked about their country with me, almost all of them said to me "We are poor". It was like a kind of "Open sesame!". Once I said to them "But many people have a TV in their house. And you have a computer, don't you?", they couldn't answer me.
In respect of a bribe, the police officers tends to be accused of it.
I heard in a rumor traffic work was a popular work among them. I couldn't believe it first, because it looked very hard. How much dust and exhaust gas on the road! In fact, however, many of them wanted to get on the duty of traffic control because they easily made people give them a small bribe on the name of law on the duty.
A man who had just stolen his money in a market reported it to the police. They captured a suspect with the whole money soon, and required him one third or a half of it as a reward. (*2)
After the change of government in 2001 (*3), the new administration held up to get the country clean in some meanings one of which was a crackdown against irregular arms. They had the army search a car at a checkpoint.
Some people there knew the police should have done the work on the ideal point of view, but also thought it was better to keep them away from the work. And many other people had no doubt to have the army do the work.
I think they have an excuse for it, though.
The Bangladeshi who had been living in Japan for decades also said "They earn little money for their hard work". He understood their conditions.
My colleagues who were working at the computer trade of the "schoo"l had been paid no salary for nearly one year. So the instructors of the other "school"s had.
A "school" had various trades like the electrical trade, the welding trade and so on. They were paid a salary punctually.
All the computer trades started as a project in the "school"s by their ministry's decision about two years before I went to Bangladesh as a JOCV member. In the first place, they decided to keep the project on for two years and employ the instructors during the term.
So it all entirely finished when I started to went "school" on service.
The ministry paid the instructors a salary for the first several months, though. Finally, after the instructors knew the ministry couldn't any more, they all started to have a meeting. they very often went to such a meeting. They elected some representative and discussed about important matters to make a direct appeal to the ministry.
Of course, they needed money even for such meetings. All of them gave some money and one of them have be in charge of accounts for the money. And they would have another money matter "usurpation".
I didn't understood how they lived without being paid for more than eight months which were nearly a year. I asked one of them. He answered,
"A loan. We have borrowed money from many places"
In some cases concerning money, I heard they borrowed it from their relatives or made money with selling a few estates of their parents'. Many of them had a supportive man among their relatives. But some people didn't have such a relative, nor have a good relationship with their relatives. How could they manage their life? Could they take a loan for it?
Both getting a stable job and keeping it in Bangladesh was much more difficult. A rikisha driver earned enough money but middle class people didn't become a rikisha driver. It would change their social status. (And even it is also difficult to keep the job of rikisha driver. Above all, it is a quite hard work.) (*6)
A JOCV member who was finishing her service in the middle of my term said to me,
"Are you sure that you will go back to the job in Japan? I think it must be hard on you. Don't you think so?" (*7)
I, however, determined my mind to be back to my job in Japan because I think I was very lucky to have the job.
*1
I talked with this man who was a Finish in Bengali because I could speak little English. I talked with his wife in Japanese. She had lived in Japan for about 7 years in her childhood. The husband also had lived in Japan for a few years in the middle of his twenties a few years before, but he didn't remember Japanese.
*2
He told me this when I was about to go to the police with another JOCV member on some business, who was a woman and was also told not to go to the police by a storekeeper who was a Bangladeshi friend of hers.
A woman may have one more problem with the police. According to a Japanese guide book "Ryokoujin Ultraguide: Bangladesh (The Golden Bengal)", "(A woman) had better not to go to the police alone".
*3
During the general election, many foreigners from various nations came to Bangladesh to monitor it.
*4
Each trade usually had their students who learnt there for two years, but a computer trade didn't have such students. They teach the student of the other trades basic computer skills and also had the trainees of three month course from the outside.
*5
Such a thing reminded me of a friend of mine who is from Okinawa. He said "We said 'There are no homeless in Okinawa'", and "it is because if they need monay or a job, their relatives support them".
One day in Bangladesh, I talked about it to a member who was also from Okinawa. I wondered if Bangladesh and Okinawa had some similarities.
"So they have, but it makes me love Okinawa more than Bangladesh. It is supposed to be more comfortable"
said he.
*6
I heard a graduate of a university become a rikisha driver in Dhaka.
Some JOCV members asked a few rikisha drivers how much they earned a month. They said it was about 3000-4000 taka. Some other rikisha drivers might earn more.
*7
On her way to Japan, she found a job in a country of south east Asia. She was not a ordinary person. Anyway, I couldn't have done like that.
Now, I am free from working outside and have got to sometimes think working outside Japan may be more comfortable than working in Japan.