"Forgive them Father, for they Know not what they do"

---While Kaivon took care of some paper work Monday morning I sat outside the police station, remaining calm. Sitting next to me were two women and their young babies. They began wimpering to me in French (the official language of Togo) and I apologized for only speaking English. They kindly switched to the little English they knew, and began begging me to let their husbands out of jail. They were two of the wives of the men who had robbed me yesterday. My heart broke. They explained to me that if they're husbands weren't let out they would have no way to feed their children and they would be forced to beg in the streets. It was heartbreaking. I felt responsible.  These women's husbands were in jail and they were crying to me, of all people, to let them out.  Like I wanted them in there, or put them in there.  If only they knew.  My heart went out to them, it was practically breaking out of my ribcage.  Those men were doing whatever they could to get money to support their family.  Screw support, to feed their families. How can I blame them?  How can I blame someone trying to mug me when I am a student at an American university studying in Africa just for a little adventure?  Jeeze. 
---Now let me explain the punishment we gave Harmon. The police firstly told us that he was lucky, because if the police had found him on their own he would've been sent to a war camp for five years since he was an illegal immigrant. Then they told us that if we didn't want to choose the punishment they would, which would be beating him till he learned a lesson. We realized that community service was not a realistic option, and neither one of us had the conscious to allow him to be beaten. The police then informed us that we had the option to send him to trial. Great I thought!  But then I thought it out.  A trial?  Yeah right.  He would never get that far.  Somebody would pay the cops off, and that would be the end of it.  Its too expensive to go to trial and too much work for the middleman.  Cops don't want people going to trial, its too much work for them, and they can just get paid off instead.  We had the boy sent to jail for 5 days, but Isa later told us that his uncle would pay off the cops enough to let him go probably in a day or two. Isa also informed us that we had to request money from the uncle. We explained that Harmon was responsible, not his family, so we didn't want him to pay. But Isa told us it would be rude, and not nearly enough punishment. So when the uncle offered 50,000 CFA we told him 20,000 was plenty, and that Harmon should be held responsible for paying his uncle back. As for the other four men in jail Isa just wanted them to pay him a small fee, and then they could return to their families.
---Do I think they "learned their lesson"?  Nope.  I don't think there was a lesson for them to learn.  They have to steal to feed their kids, so they do.  And who am I to stop them really.  What other option do they have?  The boy who stole from me turns out comes from a rich family, ironically.  Why he's not in school is clueless to me, because that's why he's out running in the streets like this.  He's 21, with no family of his own, no school, nothing.  What else does he have to do besides try to live the big life by stealing and getting big money and becoming some big gang guy.  And funny thing is its probably Western ideas that got that idea into his head into the first place.  It's a terrible circle I do believe.  So many of the ideas the West has forced on Africa has turned so sour over time.  One of the main things I've realized while I am here is that modernization does NOT mean westernization.  It's something I wish more people realized earlier, but it's history, what can you do but look forward.