Guns and Mini-Skirts: Jinja Day 2
On a casual stroll into town, I walked past a security guard with a gun slung over his shoulder. In Uganda it is normal for security guards to wield guns, something almost never seen in Kenya. The security guards here also have to be in a uniform that is gazetted and one that does not resemble that of any government security force.
Back to the armed guard I encountered. While still a few paces away from him, I could see he had his gaze fixed on me. I ran ideas in my head on how to greet this man who was well over 20 years my senior. Having not yet learnt any Luganda words and not enthusiastic about the Ugandan tradition of bowing to greet new people, I settled for a forced smile. The man beat me to any form of introduction with a sly “very nice, very nice”.
It took some moments to realize that his statement was in reference to my dress; a dress specifically curated with Jinja’s hot weather in mind. I generally find uninvited compliments from strangers rude but any animosity that may have been brimming must have been numbed by the shock. A feeling of grave paranoia enveloped me as I proceeded to walk down into the still town.
I was not ignorant of the mini-skirt law in Uganda. In fact I had joked about the same two days before the trip there. News of the Anti-Pornography Act had made headlines the world over last year. The thought of being shamed, and worse still, in a foreign town, near traumatized me but i walked on till i got to the shopping center. I began a head count of any skirts significantly shy of the knees I would come across. After five minutes I had counted only one and my fear grew.
The serenely calm town that is Jinja, a town where bodas are your best bet when it comes to travel and what you would call a matatu is a taxi, dispelled all the anxiety that had been roused by the mini-skirt law. Apart from the incident with the old guard, I encountered no street harassment. I had my rolex in peace, went round curio shops without being touted and walked unperturbed to The Office(One of Jinja’s fine joints that needs an entire post all to itself) where I witnessed a beautiful sunset.
