Month: November 2011

28 Nov. 2011: Presidential Elections in DRC

On By Dr. Y.In Great MomentsLeave a comment
Map of the Democratic Republic of Congo
Map of the Democratic Republic of Congo

Today is election day in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). I would like to share with you this article by Antoine Roger Lokongo which I found quite interesting and deep, about the third presidential elections in the DRC after 51 years of independence, with a brief history of DRC since independence.  I have included some snippets from the article which I liked. You can read the full article on Panafrican Vision; it is entitled: D.R. Congo Democracy at crossroads – One election, two sources of legitimacy.

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‘Countries do not have permanent friends or allies, they have only permanent interests’

… when Joseph Kabila turned to the Western powers for assistance after the 2006 elections, they said they had other priorities.  Perhaps this was a wake-up call for Joseph Kabila.  This is how, in an interview given to Gettleman of the New York Times, Joseph Kabila himself explained why he turned to the Chinese for help after being disappointed with the West’s empty promises:
‘We said we had five priorities: infrastructure; health; education; water and electricity; and housing.  Now, how do we deal with these priorities?  We need money, a lot of money.  Not a 100 million U.S. dollars from the World Bank or 300 from the IMF [International Monetary Fund].  No, a lot of money, and especially that we’re still servicing a debt of close to 12 billion dollars, and it’s 50 to 60 million U.S. dollars per month, which is huge.  You give me 50 million dollars each month for the social sector and we move forward.  Anyway, that’s another chapter.  But we said: so, we have these priorities, and we talked to everybody.  Americans, do you have the money?  No!  Not for now!  The European Union, do you have three or four billion for these priorities?  No!  We have our own priorities.  Then we said: ‘why not talk to other people, the Chinese?’  So we said, [Chinese] do you have the money? And they [the Chinese] said, well, we can discuss.  So we discussed’.

Joseph Kabila, President of DRC
Joseph Kabila, President of DRC

This interview suggests that Joseph Kabila turned to the Chinese only after seeking help from Western powers.  That is exactly the dilemma Patrice Lumumba faced. Increasingly desperate, Patrice Lumumba went on an international trip to enlist Western support (including to Washington, London, Brussels…) to have Belgian troops who had orchestrated the secession of Katanga to leave immediately.  He did not get the support he expected and turned to the Russians for help.  He was immediately accused of being a communist and eventually assassinated.
Congolese leaders turn to other partners other than the ‘traditional Western partners’ because they are in need; and a friend in need is a friend indeed!  They do not mean necessarily to play of the West against the East and so on.  When Joseph Kabila turned to the West, the DRC was almost on the verge of bankruptcy. …

The question we want to deal with now therefore is: ‘What happened after Joseph Kabila turned to the Chinese in his country’s hours of needs?’ Continue reading “28 Nov. 2011: Presidential Elections in DRC” →

Alexandre Dumas: Greatest French writer was of… African descent

On By Dr. Y.In Great Literature, Great People20 Comments
Alexandre Dumas (source: Wikipedia)
Alexandre Dumas (source: Wikipedia)

Dear All, I was so surprised when I learned that Alexandre Dumas, yes… the writer of the “Three Musketeers” was just recently (2002) inducted into the Pantheon of Paris, you know… the place where the remains of the most famous/distinguished French citizens are buried. I wondered why?… because the Three Musketeers is the most acclaimed French book adapted to screen, movies, and theater. I wondered why?… because The Three Musketeers and The Count of Monte Cristo are among the most read books by a French author in the world… why only in 2002, 132 years after his death? when Victor Hugo had been indicted in 1885? why since Rousseau, Voltaire, Emile Zola, had all been indicted, while the most read French author, Alexandre Dumas’ remains were not? Well… you’ve guessed it right: Alexandre Dumas was Black! Yes… the great French writer was just like the Russian Father of modern literature Alexander Pushkin: Black! Yes… you can paint it all you want… he was of African descent: he was Black! Just look at his hair! He was actually Haitian, the grandson of a French nobleman and a Haitian slave. See… they hide this to you in the classroom.

The Three Musketeers, by Alexandre Dumas
The Three Musketeers, by Alexandre Dumas

Alexandre Dumas was born in 1802 in Picardy, France. His paternal grandparents were Marquis Alexandre-Antoine Davy de la Pailleterie, a French nobleman and Général commissaire in the Artillery in the colony of Saint Domingue (Haiti), and Marie-Cesette Dumas, an Afro-Carribean creole of mixed African and French ancestry. His father Thomas-Alexandre Dumas served in Napoleon’s army as general, and later fell out of favor. By the time Alexandre was born, his family was very poor.  His being of mixed race affected him all his life.  He once said to someone who had insulted his mixed-race background: “My father was a mulatto, my grandfather was a Negro, and my great-grandfather a monkey.  You see, Sir, my family starts where yours ends.”

The Count of Monte Cristo, by Alexandre Dumas
The Count of Monte Cristo, by Alexandre Dumas

In 2002, then French president Jacques Chirac had him exhumed from his original burial place and transported to the Pantheon of Paris. Chirac said: “With you, we were D’Artagnan, Monte Cristo, or Balsamo, riding along the roads of France, touring battlefields, visiting palaces and castles—with you, we dream.”  Chirac acknowledged the racism and injustice that had been done to one of the greatest French writers of all time. Imagine that, Dumas’ works have been translated into over 100 languages, and have inspired over 200 motion pictures.

Alexandre Dumas
Alexandre Dumas

Please check out some of these websites which give a detailed biography of Alexandre Dumas: the Alexandre Dumas pere website, and The Literature Network. In 2005, a lost novel by Dumas was found: it is titled The Chevalier de Sainte Hermine (The Knight of Sainte Hermine), was first serialized by Dumas in a French newspaper in 1869 but was never finished by the time of his passing a year later. Imagine if I had known in high school that Alexandre Dumas, the author of the Three Musketeers was black… Imagine how I would have delved further into his writings! Goodness Gracious…  Goodness Gracious! As Dumas would say himself, “One for all, all for one!“

The Baobab: Symbol of Power, Presence, Strength, and Grace

On By Dr. Y.In Great Art, Great Civilizations8 Comments
A baobab
A baobab

The symbol of my secondary school in Douala, Cameroon, was the Baobab tree.  In the old days, there were baobab trees everywhere in the school yard… by the time I arrived, there were only two left, and by the time I graduated, only one could be seen among all the mango trees that filled the school’s playground.  Found in African savannahs, the baobab is a tree which can grow as tall as 30 m, have a diameter as large as 15 m, and live for over several thousand years. I believe the ones in my school were at least a thousand years old. It is leafless during the dry season. A common description of the baobab is that it looks like it has been pulled from the ground, and re-planted upside down. It actually looks like this for a good reason: during the rainy season (wet months), the water is stored in the thick, corky, fire-resistant trunk to last throughout the dry and harsh season. The baobab flowers are white and luminous, and bloom for only a few hours, after which they fall to the ground leaving pods which are feasted on by baboons, monkeys, antelopes, and elephants. There is a tale about the rabbit and the baobab… which is very funny.

Fruit from baobab tree (source: Wikipedia)
Fruit from baobab tree (source: Wikipedia)

The baobab’s leaves, bark, fruits, and trunk, are all very useful. The bark is used for clothes (just like the obom tree) and ropes, the leaves as seasoning in food or medicine, while the fruit (also known as “monkey’s bread“) is eaten directly or in porridge, or sold in some parts of Africa in a sugary mix as a snack; It is very rich in vitamin C and its fruit pulp is used to make juice. Its trunk will provide shelter for people as well as animals.

Baobab forest in Madagascar
Baobab forest in Madagascar

In parts of Zambia and Zimbabwe, local traditions state that God was so displeased with the taste of the fruit of the baobab that it turned it upside down such that its roots were on top. I am not sure if I believe this, but in Cameroon, the baobab is a symbol of strength, power, grace, and presence! No wonder the Disney’s Lion King used the baobab as the tree of life… it is what it is: the tree of life, older than Christ and maybe even older or as old as the Egyptian pyramids! I think my school really embodied just that, it was the oldest secondary public school in the city of Douala, with the strongest records!

The video below is about the alley of baobabs in Madagascar: Enjoy!!!

L’Araignée et le Poisson-Silure

On By Dr. Y.In Great Legends & Tales1 Comment
Kakou Ananzé
Kakou Ananzé

Il était une fois une araignée qui s’appelait Kakou Ananzè.  Il habitait dans un village complètement ruiné par la sécheresse qui sévissait dans le pays.  La famine était atroce et les gens mouraient comme des mouches.

Kakou à moitié mort de faim, décide de se traîner jusqu’à la rivière pour pecher.  Il n’y avait plus qu’un petit filet  d’eau.  Araignée s’assied sur une grosse pierre et surveille sa ligne.  Le flotteur ne bouge pas.  Les heures passent sans qu’il attrape le moindre petit poisson.  La faim le dechire.  Il va abandonner cette vaine recherche de nourriture quand tout d’un coup, la ligne bouge, le flotter s’enfonce.  Fort ! Kakou Ananzè d’un coup sec, tire et sort de l’eau un petit silure gros comme le doigt d’un nouveau-né.  Au moment ou il allait l’avaler tout cru, le poisson se, met à parler :  Compère Araignée, laisse-moi la vie sauve ! aie pitié de, moi ! si tu  à l’eau, je te donnerai un bon conseil et tu ne te repentiras pas de m’avoir écouté.

Araignée hésite.  Mais le silure est si petit qu’il n’apaisera pas sa faim.  Alors il le libère et le remet à l’eau.  Avant de s’en aller en frétillant, le silure remercie Kakou Ananzè en ces termes : Grand merci, comprend  Araignée ! Maintenant, grimpe jusqu’à la troisième branche de ce gros fromager.  Quand tu seras là haut, ferme les yeux et saute.  Tu verras que tu ne regretteras pas de m’avoir obéi.

Poisson-Silure
Poisson-Silure

Kakou fait tout ce que le silure lui a conseillé.  Une fois sur la branche, il ferme les yeux et saute dans le vide.  Quand il touche le sol, il regarde vite autour de lui et sa surprise est grande.  Il se trouve dans une ville magnifique aux maisons luxueuses, aux jardins pleins de fleurs et de fruits.  Les habitants, qui sont tous riches l’emmènent au palais de la reine de ce pays magique qui lui dit alors :  Ici tu peux faire tout ce que tu veux et vivre comme tu l’entends. Une seule chose t’est interdite.  Ne te regarde pas dans le miroir qui est accroché à ce mur.  Si tu respectes cet ordre ; tu seras désormais des nôtres.

Kakou Ananzè obéit pendant plusieurs mois et vit heureux dans le luxe et l’abondance.  Cependant la curiosité le tenaille et il pense toujours au miroir.  Pourrquoi ne puis-je me contempler dans cette glace, se dit-il.  Pourquoi me le défend-on ? Je voudrais bien essayer, une fois seulement pour savoir.

Un beau jour, il n’y tient plus.  Il va dans la grande salle, s’approche du mur ou est accroché le miroir et lève les yeux.  Frrrt ! Il se retrouve aussitôt sur les bords de la rivière de son pays natal, exactement à l’endroit ou il avait péché le petit silure.  Alors, dans son chagrin, il appelle : Poisson ! compère Poisson ! Reviens ! cher petit Silure ! aide-moi !

L’eau frémit et la tête du petit silure apparaît.  Il ouvre la bouche et lui dit : Je veux bien t’aider, araignée ! Alors kakou Ananzè se précipite vers le fromager, grimpe jusqu’à la troisième branche, ferme les yeux et sans hésiter une seconde, saute … Et son corps s’écrase  sur le sol au pied de l’arbre. 

C’est pourquoi l’on dit chez nous qu’il ne faut pas être curieux car la curiosité est souvent punie.

Conte tiré de “Contes des Lagunes et Savanes,” Collection ‘Fleuve et Flamme,’ édition Edicef, 1975