Plastic bags [Archives:2008/1135/Community]

By: Mia Venster
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As a tourist traveling around your beautiful country last June, many times, I came upon the perfect scene for the perfect snapshot, only to abandon my enthusiasm because it often was near-impossible to take the photo without a rainbow of plastic bags cluttering up the view.

If a country such as Rwanda can impose a ban on plastic shopping bags, certainly Yemen would like to be next? While I was in your country, I used my small backpack when shopping and often refused the dreaded plastic bag, thereby indicating my dismay.

I'm glad your minister has made the correlation between the evils of qat and the plastic bag. I was appalled at the percentage of those who are addicted to this substance on a daily basis and the entire nation's loss of productivity as a result.

Yemen once was a paradise and a crossroads for those who brought richness to the area. Why not encourage the elimination of qat, weapons and dowries? Replace present-day billboards with messages that will encourage literacy, freedom of speech, respect for the environment, recycling and love for children.

Encourage tourists to become involved in the process! Award a local company some financial assistance if it can create an environmentally-safe packaging mode to replace plastic. For example, brown bags could be imprinted with motivational messages.

Yemen has all the attributes, ingredients, natural products and the right mix of beautiful people for it to become a shining star in the region. You don't need construction cranes, shopping malls or artificial beautification because your nation is naturally beautiful.

I'd like to return to your country in coming years, retrace my footprints and smile at the sameness, but also the difference. Good luck, Yemen!
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