Junior Matthew Benson sits at a table in Dewick as the dining hall staff finishes wiping down the post-lunch mess from the empty tables. At 2:30 p.m., Benson finally has time to grab a bite to eat, even though he has to conduct an interview while munching.
Benson, a peace and justice studies major, will be travelling to Uganda this summer with big goals in mind. He hopes to lay the foundation for what would become an official checks and balances system - modelled after one designed by the Humanitarian Accountability Partnership in Geneva - to monitor non-governmental organizations' (NGOs) efficacy in dealing with the country's internally displaced population (IDPs).
Currently, the number of IDPs in Uganda falls just short of two million and UN Undersecretary of Humanitarian Affairs, Jan Egeland, has declared the 20 year old humanitarian crisis as the "biggest neglected humanitarian emergency in the world."
Approximately 400 organizations have been established to address the IDP population's needs, but Benson stated that "despite the seemingly un-ebbing increase of NGOs in the country, many of [these] needs remain unaccounted for."
Though hesitant to blame Westerners for the failure of such a large and well-resourced network of NGOs, Benson does believe that western business attitudes have permeated the NGO community to promote what he refers to as "briefcase NGOs." Such NGOs, claimed Benson, act more as businesses than humanitarian agencies.
To Benson, the thought of humanitarian agencies profiteering from the critical situation of Uganda's IDPs is "deplorable and unacceptable." He expects that simply collecting the facts and figures from these NGOs and making them public knowledge will make a significant difference.
Benson also hopes that his background might give him an advantage over students from the region, ones that have not encountered much receptiveness from local NGOs.
"They've been looking at the situation and they haven't been successful," Benson said. "It's not that I'm by any means better or more prepared than these students - they were born more prepared. But the thing is, as a Westerner and these being Western organizations, perhaps I'll be able to approach them from a different angle."
Great expectations abound about Benson's involvement in the project. Professor James Tumwine, Benson's contact at University of Makerere Medical School in Kampala, Uganda, believes that Benson will bring a unique perspective not only as a western student, but also as one influenced by the standards of Tufts University's Institute for Global Leadership.
Benson also receives mentorship from his academic advisor, Tufts Professor Astier Almedom, who helped him find the internship and secure the financial support of the Luce Student Research Scholarship. Other financial supporters of the project are the Institute for Global Leadership and the University College for Citizenship and Public Service Summer Scholars Program.
As for Benson, his hopes are high, but he approaches the opportunity with humility and an open mind. Of the expectations for his research this summer he said, "What I hope to be doing is just laying the groundwork for something greater. Ultimately [my research] is for the region; it's for the people; it's not for Westerners or somebody like me. I just want to get my hands as dirty as possible - in a good way - to really experience what's going on."
Benson's humility is not the product of a lack of knowledge or capability. It is rather the effect of a profound sense of responsibility and a sincere lack of understanding of the world's indifference.
"I don't understand how anyone can carry on in their daily life knowing that other people in the world are suffering incredibly, and dying every day, every minute, every second. And you do nothing. And that thought... that's what ultimately pushes me into all this. The Western world could, if it really wanted, tackle these issues. But that's not the way the world works. The way the world is now, these people don't have a chance. And that's really, really frightening. It's disgusting," Benson said of his motivation to get involved with the Ugandan IDP humanitarian emergency.
Program Director for Hillel, Lauren Estes, knows Benson from working together on "Moral Voices for Genocide," a year-long Hillel initiative that created a committee to plan events and bring speakers to campus to address genocide. Estes expressed admiration of Benson's steadfastness.
"I could really see his passion for the topic whenever we had a discussion," she said. "He was a very vocal member of the committee and he is also incredibly educated about the topic, very advanced."
Almedom agreed that Benson's is a powerful and very personal brand of activism. "Matthew has a rich cultural heritage - British and African American - which may inform his deep sense of social justice," she said. "However, at the end of the day, Matthew is his own person making his own decisions as to what is important and how best to contribute to achieving that which is important in our world today: equity, social justice and concern for humanity, particularly the 'unheard' sections of humanity."
CORRECTION: In the print issue of the Daily, this article was incorrectly attributed to Liz Yates. The Daily regrets the error.
