2 more inspiring days of PANUSP - a nice weekend

(please note that the official report of the conference still has to be made).

Yesterday, Saturday 15 October 2011, was another interesting day. It was the last day of the PANUSP conference. All day was mainly about the organisation of PANUSP. We started the morning with another very inspiring speech of Gabor Gombos, member of the UN CRPD Committee (the official report of the day still has to be made). And then Shuaib Chalklen, the UN Special Rapporteur on Disability, arrived and gave us the chance to ask questions to him. It was very interesting. Afterwards we proceeded with drafting a Constitution for PANUSP, to be able to register as an official international NGO (at the moment this conference is organized as a 6 months project by Ubuntu centre). Also strategies and priorities were discussed, and an Action Plan was made. I absolutely liked what was decided. At the end of the day the participants selected amongst themselves representatives from each country, to be board members of PANUSP. It has been a very long day.
In the evening we went to the Taj again, to have a kind of rubber steak with porridge, and ice cream for desert. And after that we had again very interesting conversations about user/survivor-issues all over the globe. Those conversations often go on till late in the night. It is so extremely nice to talk with peers, and so interesting to learn from each other. At a meeting like this I feel very much at home. We are all one big family. It is great to be part of this movement. And by this conference we are writing history. It is very inspiring.

In the evening I decided that NOUSPR Rwanda should receive the 150 euro we collected at a fund raise in the Netherlands. Rose told me how people with a breakdown are taken away, but the children are left behind (forgotten), and she takes them to the orphanage. This struck me. In the Netherlands those kids are also forgotten (such as myself, I’m glad the neighbours took care), and what NOUSPR does is a form of prevention. That is why I thought NOUSPR deserves this gift for support.

At Saturday night I was once again have very interesting conversations on the balcony (smoking zone), and then Mwape, Eyong and Ronald came to ask if anyone cared to go out. Of course I wanted that, so we went to Long Street to find a nice place to chill and dance. We went to Mama Africa, where a very nice young African live band (marimba vibrations) was playing, with two marimbas, drums, saxophone, and a woman who was really an amazing singer. I loved it! And then we went to the Space Bar, which was more like a popular place for teenagers, with music ranging from ‘90’s dance to Sean Paul, and it had an open air balcony where everybody was partying and having fun. It was very nice. We danced till 4 AM. And finally my body was flexible again, after so many days of sitting on chairs in airplanes and at the conference.

Today was a nice and sunny Sunday. I finally had a good night of sleep. I didn’t wake up from my alarm, set on 9.30, but housekeeping woke me up around 12.30. (I hadn’t planned to sleep so long). When I came down in the lobby of the hotel, there was nobody there. I guessed everyone went out to see Cape Town. And the weather was very nice, so I decided to go out for a stroll and find a meal somewhere first, and then go back to do some report-typing. I walked to Waterfront, which is near the harbour, and has a lot of bars, restaurants and things to do and to see. It’s the best place to go on Sundays they told me. It was quite nice, but I didn’t stay there very long. It was quite crowded and I was on my own, so I basically just walked through it, and then went to eat a sandwich somewhere.
At 16.30 I was back at the hotel, and then I wanted to start writing. But then I was asked to come downstairs to facilitate the first meeting of the new Board of PANUSP, because they needed to elect the executives from the country representatives (chair, secretary, treasurer and deputies) and I was needed as an independent election officer. So I went down to do so. At the meeting we also looked at the Cape Town Declaration, which is a statement of PANUSP which we will spread at the Global Summit tomorrow. He Global Summit is generally the first day of the World Mental Health Conference.

I had tears in my eyes when I read this declaration. I was so tremendously moved by the statement. It describes so clearly what we are longing for. It was so pure and true. I really got emotional. It was so beautiful and it moved my heart… I’m still emotional and thankful for being part of this. It really means something. It touched my dreams, and made them real. Like the new world is on her way for real now, and I saw her. She is coming. The suffering will end some day. And I long for it so deeply. Our mission is so real.
I will share and spread this Cape Town Declaration too (but I can’t do it right now). So be prepared for something beautifully moving!

After this meeting (around 19.00) I suggested that I wouldn’t join the group dinner, but instead would work on the report and grab something fast. But they convinced me that I should join them, and in fact I also didn’t want to miss on the networking and interesting conversations. So I joined dinner. We went to a fish restaurant at Waterfront, with a nice view over the harbour. Ronald told me there were seals and pinguins swimming in the water, and you could see them (during day time). Now I want to go back again, to see if I can spot them. But that won’t be a problem, because the Cape Town International Convention Centre (CTICC) where the conference tomorrow starts, is very close to Waterfront.
I’m considering to stay another 2 or 3 nights in the Holiday Inn hotel where I am now, for the duration of the World Mental Health Congress. I’m used to my room now, and it’s like a 25 minute walk from the CTICC, it’s affordable to take a few days here, and I will have the peace to prepare myself for my presentation at 19 October. Then after the 21st I can move on to other places. Then I’m not having conferences anymore, so I don’t need to schedule, rush and work anymore. That does make a difference. Next week I will be a tourist, but right now I need to be able to think things through, which goes quite well in a non distracting hotel room.
But originally this room was made to sleep in, and now it’s getting late again. So instead of using my bed as a desk, I will now lay myself down.

And PS, I’m very busy over here, and I only got 30MB free internet access per day (like 30 minutes), so I’m sorry if I don’t respond to emails and messages. I will try to keep up with important things. Love you all!