Don’t Lose Your Life Volunteering Abroad
Volunteering abroad is a worthy goal. Being willing to give up your time and energy to help others, or improve the environment is laudable. No matter where you are though, care needs to be taken at all times, to make sure that you are able to have plenty more fun experiences. Over the years, unfortunately, there have been quite a few instances where aid workers and volunteers have lost their lives. Almost always, these deaths could have been avoided if the people volunteering abroad had taken some precautions and thought about the situations they were going into before hand.
At any one time, there are multiple danger spots in the world. Some places have been dangerous for quite some time—Iran and Iraq for instance. Other areas were once dangerous, but now the immediate danger is gone, only to be left with a deadly legacy— like land mines in Burma.
An absolutely steadfast rule of thumb to stick by is to thoroughly research the area you are going to be working in. By doing this, you can build up a full picture of what you are going into. Reading information on the web can be a good idea, and is easily accessible. Make sure that you don’t get information overload though.
Terrorism
Terrorism can be a big concern in many parts of the world where volunteers are needed. Recently, 23 South Korean volunteers were killed by terrorists in Afghanistan, simply because the gun men did not like these workers in their country. Other workers were killed while trying to provide medical aid to injured villagers, again in Afghanistan, because of their religious faith. It is examples like these that indicate how dangerous some destinations can be for volunteering abroad. Serious consideration needs to be given when thinking of a destination that is embroiled in war, or conflict.
Insurance
Another issue to take notice of is the subject of insurance. Namely, travel and life insurance. There are insurers who will not look at you if they are aware that you intend going into a danger zone. This might not be of much concern to you, but what happens if you are injured? Medical costs and repatriation costs (where you are flown home for continuing medical care) can run into the millions of dollars. Without insurance, unless you have a large amount of money at your disposal, getting help in these circumstances can be almost impossible.
Survival
Before you set off on your journey, make sure that you have a good survival pack to take with you. Survival pack sounds very severe, when in actual fact it can just be a small box containing a few items that can come in handy when needed. Items like a mirror (for signaling), a needle and thread (for making repairs to clothes), plasters, aspirin or other pain medication and sanitary items can all fit together quite snugly. A good idea is to put a polythene wrapper over your survival tin, so that should it rain, everything is kept dry.
Different Customs & Culture
When in a different country, unwanted sexual advances can be a problem, especially for women. To ward of any unwanted advances, sometimes more than a stern look and a request to stop is needed. Self-defense classes can teach just enough to be effective in spurning aggressive people. The best option though, is always to try and run if possible. That way you can get out of any situation without possibly facing charges of assault, or being embarrassed by a lack of understanding of a different culture.
Deadly Parasites
In a lot of areas that are potential places for volunteering, hygiene is found wanting. Whether this means unsanitary conditions such as lack of adequate sewage provision, or unsafe water to drink, serious care and attention needs to be given as to how these challenges are going to be surmounted. There have been occasions where aid workers have ingested dirty water and come down with various diseases from water borne parasites. Sometimes the symptoms are almost immediately apparent. Diarrhea and vomiting will certainly indicate that something is wrong with you, and medical help should be enlisted as soon as possible. Other problems are less easy to diagnose. Parasitic infestation can happen when tiny eggs are ingested and then set up home in the intestines. Over time, these eggs hatch and can grow into organisms that can end up taking all of the nutrients out of the food that you are consuming before your body can. In extreme cases, volunteers can die from malnutrition, even though they are eating as much as a healthy adult should be.
Deadly Aftermath
There are many parts of the world where land mines are still a serious risk to both humans and live stock. a lot of the time, land mines were seeded indiscriminately across huge areas in order to impede enemy progress. Warring sides made peace decades ago, but the mines still lay dormant just below the surface, waiting silently to maim or kill. These mines are not sign posted, and often entire fields will be no go areas because there is just a faint possibility that the area is still potentially dangerous. Locals may know this information, but you may not. It is very important to stay to areas that other people are in, if you find yourself in an area that is known to have been mined in the past. The consequences of not doing so can range from having a limb blown off, to losing your life. A trick to use in these areas is that if there is a worn path which has been used by people previously, land mines will not be present. The reason is there will be craters, or at the least, grass or other vegetation around with no trace of a path to be seen, if mines were present.
In this article about the dangers present when volunteering or studying abroad, a range of potential threats has been covered that has included terrorism, being attacked, water borne disease, sanitary issues and the dangers of land mines. Carrying a survival kit has also been covered. It is hope that, by being made aware of the pitfalls that can occur, you will know what to look for when planning your journey.
