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Chinese Private Security Companies in Latin America.

The expanding presence of China-based companies in Latin America, and the security problems they have experienced there, create an inherent demand for Chinese private security companies.

The enormous expansion of global engagement by China and its companies over the past two decades has generated a corresponding need to protect Chinese operations and personnel in the dangerous environments where they sometimes operate.

The need to evacuate Chinese citizens from Libya in 2011 and Yemen in 2015 due to political turmoil in those countries, as well as recent attacks against Chinese nationals in Pakistan, highlighted the imperative for Beijing to protect its people, as well as its growing military and other capabilities for doing so.

China-based companies have responded to these risks to their overseas operations through a combination of working with local authorities and contracting private security companies (PSCs). In recent years, private security companies have begun to form in China to support operations both at home and abroad.

The proliferation of Chinese PSCs has arguably been based on the presumption that cultural familiarity, common language, and relationships with fellow Chinese will give such companies an inside track with Chinese companies in need of protection.

By 2022, there were an estimated 7,000 Chinese PSCs, with 20-40 such PSCs operating abroad in as many as 40 countries.

The scope of Chinese private security companies is broad, encompassing everything from firms selling principally electronic surveillance systems, to consulting, to providing armed personnel on the ground to physically defend Chinese persons and assets.

In general, Chinese deployment of private security companies has been most extensive in Asia, and to a lesser extent in Africa, where their familiarity with local cultural practices is strongest, and local governments are relatively malleable. In more developed countries and in Latin America and the Caribbean, PSCs have been more limited by their lack of experience, in competition with established and well-resourced companies with knowledge of working within (or around) local laws.

Despite such limitations, the expanding presence of China-based companies in Latin America, and the security problems they have experienced there creates an inherent demand for Chinese private security companies.

Since 2000, according to the respected Latin America-China academic network, Chinese companies have invested over $184 billion in Latin America and the Caribbean across 600 projects.

China-based companies operating in the petroleum, mining, construction, and other sectors have been continually beset by security problems. Protesters took control of a Chinese-operated oilfield in January 2007 in Tarapoa, Ecuador. Attacks against the Emerald Energy oilfield in Colombia in 2011 resulted in the taking of Chinese hostages.

In Peru, there has been regular violence linked to protests and criminal activity in Chinese-operated mines Shougang Hierro, Rio Blanco, and Las Bambas. Attacks forced Sinohydro to suspend construction on the Patuca III dam in Honduras; there have been numerous strikes against Chinese hydroelectric and road construction projects in Bolivia.

Most recently, violence this year in Colombia forced China-based Zijin to shut down operations in the Burtica gold mine and China-owned Emerald Energy to suspend its oil operations.

With the current deterioration of economic conditions, expanding violence and social protest across Latin America, on top of China’s expanding footprint there in the post-COVID-19 environment, security challenges to China-based operations in the region will likely continue to increase in the near future.

Official Chinese policy papers such as the 2016 China-Latin America Policy White Paper, the China-CELAC 2022-2024 plan, and the February 2023 white paper on China’s “Global Security Initiative” all acknowledge Beijing’s interest in multifaceted security cooperation with Latin America, but are notably silent on the issue of private security companies.

Although China-based private security companies have kept a low profile in Latin America and the Caribbean, a Chinese-language internet search on websites such as Baidu reveals multiple Chinese private security companies operating or seeking opportunities in the region.

In Peru, China Security Technology Group has a memorandum of cooperation with Grand Tai Peru, a company that provides security in the mining sector. Beijing Dujie Security Technology Company has an office in Argentina, and China Overseas Security Group claims to have conducted field research in search of opportunities in the country. Chinese security companies also operate in Uruguay and Venezuela, connected to the China-based conglomerate Tie Shen Bao Biao.

In Central America, Zhong Bao Hua An Security Company claims to have “strategic cooperation businesses” in Panama, El Salvador, and Costa Rica. Tie Shen Bao Biao advertises personal protection services in Panama. In Mexico, the “Mexico-Chinese Security Council,” formed in 2012 by former Chinese government official Feng Chengkang, has the mission of protecting Chinese business personnel based
in Mexico from gang violence.

Other Chinese-language materials on Baidu hint at a network of Chinese security activities, with possible links to the government, that may go much deeper. In addition to 14 Chinese “overseas police stations” operating in eight LAC countries, China advertises “Chinese Aid Centers” operating in the region with missions that include “urgent lifesaving, integration training, legal assistance, and helping the poor.”  A Chinese personnel recruiting website advertises security-related job opportunities in Latin America for projects in Guyana, Suriname, French Guiana, Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia, Paraguay, Brazil, Chile, Uruguay, and Argentina.

China-based companies have the right to contract Chinese nationals and entities, where consistent with local laws, to help protect their expanding operations in Latin America and the Caribbean. Still, the lack of knowledge of this phenomenon in the region, fuelled by Beijing’s efforts to keep a low profile and confine their interactions to Chinese-language media, demands more attention as a matter of public policy. Transparency is needed to ensure that such companies are properly registered and regulated, and that the sovereign interests of the host countries and the safety of their citizens are respected.

While China has published “Security Management Guidelines for Overseas Chinese Funded Companies, Institutions and Personnel,” China-based companies are notoriously lax in following government guidelines, and the Chinese state has little interest in enforcing them in the absence of compelling political or other self-interested
motivations for doing so.

As Chinese interests in the region continue to grow, more Chinese PSCs may continue to proliferate throughout LAC. Authoritarian regimes like Venezuela, Cuba, and Nicaragua would be most likely to host Chinese PSCs, along with countries with large Chinese diaspora populations, such as Peru and Panama. As has occurred in Africa and elsewhere, an increasing presence by armed Chinese nationals in the region prioritizing the interests of their operations and compatriots, and inexperienced in the nuances of social protests and criminal activity in Latin America, could easily lead to the death or injury of locals.

In addition, if more Chinese diaspora communities in LAC become victims of gang violence, extortion from local and Chinese criminal groups, or anti-Chinese hate crimes, they may push for Chinese PSCs to protect them. Jamaica is a case in point: In 2013, the Jamaican police increased protection for the local Chinese community after the Chinese government raised concerns to Jamaica about robberies and extortion occurring in the Chinese community.

Finally, China allegedly has 14 overseas police outposts in eight LAC countries, part of China’s global network of more than 100 police stations around the world. Several of them operate without local government approval. Since some of these Chinese PSCs already closely collaborate with Chinese police, the Chinese authorities could potentially task PSCs to capture fugitives as part of their global Fox Hunt and Sky Net anti-crime initiatives.

It is also important to note that many employees of China-based security companies have backgrounds in the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) or other security services. Surveillance system oriented companies are inherently tied to the proliferation of Chinese digital architectures in the region, with data accessible by the Chinese companies that deploy them, and by the Chinese state via China’s 2017 National Intelligence Law.

In an era in which Beijing has shown its increasing willingness to explicitly target the United States through intelligence and military operations in the Western Hemisphere – such as its “spy balloons,” upgraded electronic intelligence facility in Cuba, and negotiation of a “training base” there – the U.S. and the region must be sensitive to the opportunities that the proliferation of Chinese PSCs across the region provide for activities by Chinese intelligence operators and PLA special forces in the region. (Open Photo: 123rf.com)

Leland Lazarus – R. Evan Ellis/The Diplomat

 

Asante Traditional Wedding.

The Asantes, have a unique style of marriage ceremony. It is an important community engagement as it involves the couple,
the couple’s immediate and extended families, and
the community at large.

Each ethnic group in Ghana has its unique way of performing a marriage ceremony. However, for every group, there are similar processes involved. For instance, the Akans, Ga-Adangmes and the Ewes from Southern Ghana all accept money and special drinks for the first step of the marriage process known as ‘kookooko’ (knocking).
It is unique to Asante wedding traditions and a symbol of respect in unifying the two families.
Weddings in contemporary society come with themes to capture a certain elegance and inspire uniqueness. Aside from the bride and groom’s dresses as well as that of their parties, the Kente cloth dominates.

The Groom’s family presents the items requested by the bride’s family. CC BY 4.0/ Quami43

Traditionally, when an Asante man wants to marry, he is first expected to seek the approval of the woman he wants to marry, through a secret meeting called Kasasie (Courtship). If the woman agrees, the man then informs the members of his family who then begin investigations into the woman’s family background. If the man’s family is satisfied with their investigations, the man (groom) and his family members formally ask the bride’s family for the bride’s hand in marriage which is called ‘kookooko’ ceremony.
This ‘knocking’ ceremony is done to inform the lady’s family, officially, of the man’s intention to marry her. The head of the delegation would use flowery language to refer to their mission. “Our noble son here says he has seen a very beautiful flower in your garden, and he would like to ask permission to pluck this flower”. This is a clear indication that the groom is willing to do what is traditionally right by asking for the bride’s hand in marriage from her family. The ‘knocking’ ceremony again serves as a chance for both families to be introduced to each other.

The bride’s family is accepting the items requested from the family CC BY 4.0/ Quami43

The man’s family would take along ‘tri nsa’ (head drinks). This could be two or three bottles of Schnapps, palm wine, or cash. The man’s family then first knocks at the entrance of the home, then at the door. The bride’s male family members take their time to open the door. When they finally do so, the groom and his family present them with gifts of money, alcoholic beverages, and other special gifts for the bride.

Libation as a form of prayer
Libations are important in Asante wedding traditions, as they are used to consecrate the union. The alcoholic drink presented is used to pour libation as a traditional form of prayer to the ancestral spirits and God. The marriage process has begun. Food and drinks are made available for the groom’s family present at the knocking ceremony.
The groom’s family then demands a list of items for the traditional wedding proper which is set for another date. Akan include an Asante traditional marriage list of items (dowry/bride price) and include head drink, usually whiskey or wine, a new suitcase containing shoes, lady wears, headpieces, and other necessities the bride would need, a bottle of whiskey and money for the father of the bride, a pair of sandals and money for the mother of the bride.

A procession presenting the bride to the groom and his family. CC BY 4.0/ Quami43

Others are at least six pieces of African wax print clothes for the bride, a stool for the bride, money for the bride to start a business, an engagement ring, an engagement Bible, and money for the bride’s brothers (akonta sikan) as a thank you gift for protecting their sister (bride). If the bride doesn’t have brothers, it goes to her male cousins, with cooking utensils, and jewellery for the bride.
As preparations for the traditional marriage start, the bride’s family does background checks on the groom and his family. Enquiries are made whether the groom is from a good family? Is there any history of strange or life-threatening illnesses in the family? Is there any record of criminal behaviour on the part of the groom? Is the groom being truthful about his marital status? When positive answers are given for these enquiries, the marriage preparations proceed smoothly. A date is then fixed for the traditional wedding.
Usually, the traditional marriage takes place at the bride’s home. Where that is not suitable, any other nice venue is chosen. Even before the ceremony kicks off, music and dance fill the atmosphere, be it music from traditional ‘adowa’ dance groups or a live band, or music from a disc jockey that makes the atmosphere filled with good cheer and joy.

Dressed like royals
The bride wears her best dress adorned with gold ornaments. During the traditional marriage ceremony, the rich culture of the Asantes is displayed by the bride and groom who are dressed like royals in brightly coloured Kente and adorned with gold jewellery and regalia. This is to give the whole occasion a good and beautiful traditional look.
On the day of the traditional wedding ceremony, once the groom’s intentions are announced, both families sit on opposite sides of the room or under a canopy if it is an outdoor event.
Elders from both sides begin the ceremony with prayers and introductions. The bride is usually not in the room or the venue for the ceremony. The groom does not speak.
A spokesman from the groom’s delegation who are usually known as the ‘masters of ceremonies’ (MCs) announces their intention, saying that the groom has seen a beautiful flower in the grounds of the house and would like to uproot it. The use of ‘flower’ is usually used as a metaphor for the bride to express her purity and virginity.
The dowry is then presented in a procession from outside led by the groom’s representative as the MC. The dowry is carried by family members and friends of the groom accompanied by a chosen traditional song. The dowry carriers dance in a procession with the items either on their heads or hands.

Family of the groom greeting bride’s family on their arrival at the wedding. Photo DDDA

In a traditional way, the bride’s family, also represented by an MC, decides whether the dowry is plentiful, or not based on the marriage list given to them on the day of the knocking. After both sides reach an agreement, a few decoys are brought in to confuse the groom. The bride is also escorted in a procession led by her friends or family members, mostly her sisters or female cousins who are also traditionally dressed.
Amidst music and dancing, beautifully clad in rich Kente and adorned with beads, the bride is literally paraded for all to see and admire her beauty. Mostly, the groom and bride wear matching outfits. She goes around to shake hands with the groom’s family as a sign of welcoming them. She is then introduced to the groom’s family with a lot of accolades showered on her: “our pretty queen”, “our lovely lady”, “our well-groomed woman”, “the apple of our eye” and many others.
After that, she is asked three times by her father if she agrees to marry the groom, and whether they should accept the dowry and gifts, or not. Once she agrees with a loud yes, the bride is then presented to the abusuapanyin (head of family) of the groom’s family, asking that she is kept as good-looking as she has been on the day of the marriage ceremony. The bride moves to sit with her groom.
The groom wears a ring on the bride’s finger and a bible is presented to the couple as a symbol of the importance of religion in their marriage. Prayers are said, blessings given, and congratulations and pieces of advice are also given to the couple by selected elders. They focus on areas like household responsibilities, sex, finances, and communication; some are indeed humorous and some serious. The traditional marriage is customarily a complete marriage process on its own and the couple are declared husband and wife in the eyes of the community.

Wearing of the ring at the wedding. Photo DDDA

It is now a fun time where assorted dishes and drinks are served, including jollof rice. In addition, locally made Ghanaian foods like Fufu, Ampesi, Etor, Apeprensan are usually on the menu. Customised traditional wedding souvenirs (chocolates, pens, mugs, hand towels, bowls, and flasks) are distributed first to the groom’s family and audience.The bride and groom now have the opportunity to go around to greet their guests and thank them for being a part of their day of traditional marriage. Before the bride leaves her home or parents, drinks are poured out (libation) as a sign of respect. Her brothers may demand ‘akonta gye sika’, a protection fee to be paid before she leaves her parents’ home. After the groom pays this fee, he sends some delegates to escort the bride to his home. (D.D. D. A.)

 

The Forgotten Conflict/Kashmir. A Decades-Long Crisis in the Heart of Asia.

Kashmir, a small Himalayan region claimed by India and Pakistan, is the protagonist of a frozen conflict that arose between Islamabad and New Delhi. The rivalry gave birth to four wars interspersed with political tensions.

It all started in 1947, when the United Kingdom granted independence to the nations of the Indian subcontinent and each territory had to decide its own future. In the case of Kashmir, with a Muslim majority ruled by a Hindu ruler, the Maharaja opted for independence but then turned to India to subdue a tribal invasion from Pakistan.

Maharaja Gulab Singh Jamwal (1792–1857) was the founder of Dogra dynasty and the first Maharaja of the princely state of Jammu and Kashmir. (Historical Archive)

The choice was not recognized by Islamabad, which owns a third of the territory and claims the remainder.
An advisory referendum, proposed by the United Nations in 1947, never took place because the region was not demilitarized. A small part of Kashmir, which is called Aksai Chin, is occupied by the People’s Republic of China.
Since 1986, Indian Kashmir has been wracked by a civil war fought by militant groups and New Delhi’s security forces. A part of the local population had never abandoned the dream of independence and in an initial phase, the insurrection was fought by the Jammu and Kashmir Liberation Front (JKLF), an organization aimed at the self-determination of this territory.
Constant clashes with the Indian Army and a series of splits weakened the JKLF, which fell on hard times.
From the early 1990s, the fighting was carried on by the pro-Pakistani Hiz-bul Mujahideen (HM) and later also by radical Islamic groups such as Lashkar-e-Taiba, responsible for attacks in India. The bloodiest phase of the insurrection ended in the early 2000s but sporadic violence continues to be recorded.

Kashmir map. CC BY-SA 3.0/ University of Texas map library

According to an estimate, prepared by the Hindustan Times, the fighting in Kashmir caused at least 41,000 deaths in the period between 1990 and 2017, with 22,000 losses suffered by militants, 14,000 by civilians and 5,000 by the security forces. Hundreds of thousands of people have instead been forced to flee their homes as a result of the conflict.
The Indian-administered territory, called Jammu and Kashmir, enjoyed partial autonomy guaranteed by the Constitution until 2019 when the nationalist government in New Delhi revoked the region’s status. The poet Zareef Ahmad, interviewed by the National Public Broadcast portal, explained: “For five thousand years Kashmir was able to enjoy political sovereignty and an inclusive culture from a religious point of view” but everything fell apart “when India and Pakistan were divided on the basis of the creed practiced”.

Srinagar, the largest city of Kashmir. CC BY-SA 3.0/KennyOMG

In Srinagar, the capital of Indian Kashmir, Hindu temples and mosques stand next to each other, silent witnesses of a distant past. Tens of thousands of Indian soldiers have been deployed in Kashmir since August 2019 to quell any opposition to the reorganisation. The deployment was accompanied by reports of harassment and violence against civilians and the arrest of more than 5,000 people in the second half of 2019. Mass arrests of politicians, activists and demonstrators continued throughout 2020. That same year, a crackdown on freedom of the press was introduced and schools, universities and colleges were closed, firstly for safety reasons and the coronavirus pandemic. Freedom of association continues to be severely restricted and subject to intrusive controls by the authorities.
During 2021, attacks against the Indian military apparatus were replaced by violent actions committed against civilians, such as medical teachers or shopkeepers, guilty only of being Hindus, Sikhs, or recent immigrants. The elimination of Kashmir’s autonomy has prompted many young locals, despite Indian propaganda, to join groups linked to extremism. The self-styled Islamic State has attempted to expand its activities in the Indian subcontinent, taking advantage of the conditions of poverty and inequality experienced by the Muslim minority.
In Kashmir, this infiltration led to the birth of the Wilayah Islamic State of Jammu and Kashmir (ISJK), which, after several attacks, became the Wilayah al-Hind (ISH). The ISH, after a prolonged pause in its anti-Indian propaganda and violent activities in the second half of 2022, returned to being more active in 2023. The presence of a local network of the self-styled Islamic State is indicative of how the ideology of the group, despite the global efforts made to suppress it, has had and continues to have a following in some areas of the world.

Police in Kashmir confronting protestors. CC BY-SA 4.0/Seyyed Sajed Hassan Razavi

The Daily Sabah portal has indicated, in an article published online, that the United Nations is in a unique position to play a more active mediation role and bring about a peace process in Kashmir through talks between the nations involved and some large powers or by exploiting the new procedures and mechanisms of the organization. Among the most urgent needs is that of demilitarizing the conflict area with a coordinated withdrawal of the forces (including paramilitary ones) of India and Pakistan. Consideration of the rights of the parties may be considered after demilitarization is consolidated and after the peace process is on a solid track. Furthermore, the success of any initiative cannot ignore the implementation of a ceasefire and the abandonment of the inalienable claims by the parties involved.

Andrew Walton

 

 

 

 

 

Chad. Navigating into Political Storms.

The regional ramifications of the clash in Khartoum have important appendages in N’Djamena. In fact, the various attempts at coups always started from neighbouring Sudan, with protagonists belonging to the fragmented Zaghawa community as well as Arab and Gour groups. For this reason, the transitional president Mahamat Idriss Déby is forced to negotiate in the conflict on the doorstep
of his country.

In April 2021, the Chadian rebel group Front Pour L’Alternance et la Concorde au Tchad (FACT) set out on a raid in northern Chad, leaving its bases in Fezzan, Libya. A thousand militiamen launched a sortie in the regions of Borkou, Ennedi, and Tibesti armed with weapons and vehicles obtained by lending their services as mercenaries to Khalifa Haftar in Libya. The clash with the Chadian army was disastrous: hundreds of victims on both sides and the death, above all, of the ‘warrior-president’ Idriss Déby Itno (1952-2021), who had decided to go to the battlefront while waiting for the results of the elections which, for the sixth consecutive time, would have confirmed him on the highest
seat in the country.

Group of rebels from Libya in Chad. File: Swm

The Gourane rebels had, for the first time, been able to mount an attack on the heart of the state since Déby, indeed, embodied the Chadian state. In April 2023, the power struggle between the official army and the elite corps of the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) started a bloody civil war in neighbouring Sudan. General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, head of the regular army and de facto head of the Transitional Military Council, bore the brunt of the offensive of General Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo ‘Hemeti’, leader and guide of the RSF body, the former presidential guard of the ousted president Omar El-Bashir, for control of strategic sites in the country. While the crux of the dispute between the Sudanese military and the RSF is a purely domestic matter, situated in El-Bashir’s divide-and-rule strategy and the rivalries it engenders, its ramifications are also regional, especially for Chad, an attentive observer of the situation.

‘Kaka’ kingpin of power
Still mourning the loss of Déby, Chad is a character in search of an author. It seems to be seeking such a person, with lapidary resignation, in the figure of Mahamat Idriss Déby ‘Kaka’, the thirty-nine-year-old son of the late president, who rose to the highest office in the country with the typical rapidity of nepotistic military regimes.

General Mahamat Idriss Déby ‘Kaka’, president of Chad. He is today the central pivot of Chadian political power. Photo: Pres.Office

‘Kaka’ is today the central pivot of Chadian political power, between political institutions, the regular army and the dreaded presidential guard of which he was the commander. Not only that, ‘Kaka’ is now obliged, despite everything, to take on the role of mediator in the Sudanese crisis. Partly because he was solicited by his party and partly because one of the army chiefs of staff in Chad is Bichara Issa Djadallah, cousin of ‘Hemeti’. The latter’s family, like most of the RSF fighters, in fact, comes from the Darfur region, on the border between Chad and Sudan inhabited by Rizegait, Zaghawa and Gourane Arabs, communities at the centre of the intrigues in both countries and animators of the many rebel movements which, over the years, have tried several times to destabilize N’Djamena. So here are the reasons for concern: in the recent history of Chad, and of the Déby family, the overthrow attempts and coups all started from neighbouring Sudan, with well-known protagonists belonging to the fragmented Zaghawa community as well as Arab and Gourane groups. During the popular uprisings of October 2019 that led to the fall of El-Bashir, Déby senior had looked with concern at the events taking place in Khartoum, finally heaving a sigh of relief when, gradually but decisively, the process of confiscation of the institutions (and of the reasons for the revolt) by ‘Hemeti’ and the RSF had come about. However, N’Djamena’s relief was soon replaced by laborious negotiations and meetings to understand whether ‘Hemeti’, a candidate for the strongman post in Khartoum, had the skills to seize power, and bring with him the many former Chadian rebels now enlisted in the RSF.

General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, head of the regular army and head of the Transitional Military Council (R) and General Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo ‘Hemeti’, leader of the Rapid Support Forces (RSF). File: Swm

In this sense, after his father’s death, ‘Kaka’ Déby engaged in a delicate diplomatic operation to keep together the fragile cohabitation between al-Burhan and ‘Hemeti’.
For a long period of time, the influential Rizegait Arab community in Chad, led primarily by Djadallah, had given reassurances on the possibility of an understanding between the Déby and Dagalo families. Soon, however, the Zaghawa circle of generals, who had headed Chadian institutions for more than thirty years, began to worry about a rapid and unchecked consolidation of RSF power in Khartoum. Could the Arab community have formed a fifth column in Chad to threaten the excessive power of the Zaghawa?

What if ‘Hemeti’ returns to Darfur?
With the balance of the confrontation in Sudan still undecided, ‘Kaka’ and the Chadian generals are preparing today for the eventuality that ‘Hemeti’ is unable to take control of Khartoum and is forced
to withdraw to his rearguard bases in Darfur, dramatically close
to the Chadian border.

Sudanese Refugees in Chad. (UNHCR)

This, of all possible scenarios, is certainly the worst for Déby. If ‘Hemeti’ returns to ‘his’ Darfur, the possibility that former Chadian rebels serving in the RSF will flock to N’Djamena is far from imaginary. In fact, with the ceasefire in Libya in 2020, many Chadian mercenaries set out for the rich gold deposits of eastern Chad, in the hands of front companies controlled by the RSF whose thriving racket wends its way between the Sahara, Darfur, and Dubai.
Meanwhile, the Western allies of ‘Kaka’ (United States) have tried to force Chad’s hand to induce him to take a clear position against ‘Hemeti’ and his allegedly dangerous relations with the Wagner group and with General Haftar, leaking intelligence about a liaison between Chadian rebels and Wagner. The Déby clan, however, has been navigating the political storms of the Sahel for more than three decades and seems far from ready to hand over the reins of the game.

Alessio Iocchi

 

Mission. Living and Working Together.

Three young missionaries share with us their experience.

My name is Father Clement Kazaku Bosh Bebe.  After ten years in South Africa, I returned to the land of my ancestors – the Democratic Republic of the Congo, to continue being a missionary among my people. I thought everything would be easier and there wouldn’t be as many challenges as I had to face in South Africa but I found some new challenges in my native country.

I am in charge of the Comboni parish of Divine Mercy which, although it belongs to the diocese of Kisantu, is located in a suburb of the capital, Kinshasa. It is a booming area where many families from other parts of the country have settled.

In the parish, we have experienced this growth: whereas, in former times we used to celebrate two Masses on weekends, we now have to celebrate five and I think we will have to add more because the parish church is getting too small.

Although walking through the neighbourhood you can see some large houses where rich people live, most of the population lives in obvious poverty, a poverty that affects all levels of life. This is our big challenge.

When I arrived at the parish, the Christians did nothing particular apart from coming to church. Attending Sunday Mass is very important but it isn’t enough. The apostolic challenge of going out of oneself to meet the sick, the prisoners and all those who suffer, the least of our parish community, was missing. So, I decided to insist on this aspect of being an outgoing Church emphasized so much by Pope Francis.

Poverty affects the way our people live their faith. People suffer a lot and focus on meeting their temporal needs, so they turn to God to help them improve their situation, bless their marriages, give them a child, or find a job. If they receive any of these things, they immediately interpret it as a blessing from God and come to church.

This is a very superficial and dangerous view of faith because it poses the question of whether or not even those who don’t get a job are blessed by God. Faith is not a market where you give to me and I give you back. This is why a thorough evangelization that seeks Christ for who he is and not for what he does or doesn’t do is important. We are the ones who have to work to improve social conditions and get out of the structural poverty in which we live.

We recently organized three parish assemblies in which we made a general evaluation of our parish life. I was very pleased to see how the parishioners themselves realized that, in addition to prayer, the missionary aspect and social commitment were missing.

The ecclesial experience that is lived in the 14 basic ecclesial communities of the parish helps us to live the Gospel in daily life and, from there, many Christians who hear and share the Word of God have engaged in various evangelization services.

Both the leaders of the basic communities and we priests have renewed our commitment to all the parishioners to give ourselves totally and fully to the service of the people because we want to continue building an open and available community.

Sr Natingar. “The mission is shaping me”.

I am Sister Natingar Liée, a Comboni from Chad. I was 12 when I was moved by a message that the bishops of Chad had addressed to the young people of the country. In that letter, the text of the Gospel in which Jesus says: “The harvest is abundant, but the workers are few; ask the Lord of the harvest to send workers to his harvest”. This passage from the Gospel of St Luke attracted me and I decided to join the vocational group that accompanied the Comboni Missionary Sisters.

One day, a Comboni Sister gave me a book entitled: ‘A Prophet for Africa’, which spoke of the love of St. Daniel Comboni for Africa. I liked it, so I opted for religious life as a Comboni missionary. As soon as I finished high school, I started my religious training. I did my postulancy in the nearby Central African Republic and my novitiate in the Democratic Republic of Congo.

After my religious profession, I was sent to Togo, where I worked as a catechist in schools and accompanied the children in collaboration with the faithful of our parish. Then I was sent to Benin, where I also worked in schools, but this time as a teacher.

I had the opportunity to continue my studies at the Institute of Philosophy and Educational Sciences of the Salesians of Lomé (Togo), where I graduated in Philosophy and gained a Master’s in Educational Sciences, with a specialization in Planning, Management and Evaluation of Educational Projects and Policies.

After Togo, I was sent to the Democratic Republic of the Congo to work in Butembo in the North Kivu region, about 2,000 kilometres from Kinshasa. I am the principal of the primary school of San Daniele Comboni and of the school rehabilitation centre of the same name. In my apostolate, I realize that in educational accompaniment it is perhaps not so important to learn to speak pertinently as to listen closely.

When I speak, I am the centre of my discourse, but when I listen, I learn to stop being the centre and try to put myself in the place of the young person or child in front of me. In my work as a teacher, I am learning a lot from children and young people who help me to deepen my faith too because when you are with them you have to be authentic, you have to be yourself; you can’t pretend.

The mission is shaping me. I feel that our simplicity in relationships and our discretion are greatly appreciated. The same goes for our communitarian way of life. Living and working together in the name of the Lord is an essential element of our vocation.

Fr. Paul. “To grow in faith and joy”

My name is Fr Paul Schneider. I am an American-born Spanish diocesan priest. My mission is in Lagarba which is located in the region of Oromia. The distance from Lagarba to Ethiopia’s capital Addis Ababa is approximately 215 km.

To be honest, I never thought that the mission would be so exciting. I am involved in social projects. Since we have finished the boreholes in the schools and the rains have started, my pace of work has slowed down in terms of construction and projects, but in terms of personal relations, these have intensified, with community members from many families in the area, both Christians and Muslims.

Together with the voluntary cooperation of the people, we are planting a lot of trees, it’s the right time for it; now it’s raining and the ground is not drying out. We have planted about five thousand plants, mostly conifers and Grevilleas. We have also planted many fruit trees
at the mission.

Sometimes, I think back to why I came here and evaluate all these years in the mission. Although hardships, the missionary experience during these years had been an opportunity to grow in faith and joy.
Faith gives us many gifts, it opens doors, hearts and people. The mission can only be lived from our faith. I didn’t come here to build houses, bridges, roads and boreholes, or to plant trees. I do all that but I don’t even consider myself the author of these works, much less boast about them, even if I enjoy working and I am passionate about them. I came here to share God’s love. That is evangelization.

My presence here is to live among the poor, to be their father and their shepherd, and to contribute whatever I can to the betterment of their lives, spiritually, materially, in everything.

When you live with the people, the poor share what they have, and they also ask you to share. They ask you often, sometimes they overwhelm you; sometimes you give and sometimes you refuse, but in either case, you know that Christ asks you to renew your generosity daily, and the mission demands that you overcome your selfishness, make sacrifices and live with austerity.

After five years, I have to say that I am very happy with this life. It is the dynamic of sacrifice that is repeated every day, like the Eucharist. You are consumed, and you know that the sacrifice has an eternal purpose, that God has prepared a reward and rest for you.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Literature. In Memory of Ama Ata Aidoo.

In novels and plays, in politics and in university classrooms. A lifetime of fighting for Pan-Africanism and women’s rights. A model artist and activist for multiple generations.

On May 31, Ama Ata Aidoo passed away; an African postcolonial writer, feminist and activist who played a very important role in the cultural history of the continent and was – in her native Ghana but also throughout Africa – an extraordinary reference figure for women.
She came from an aristocratic Fanti family from the central area of Ghana, where she was born in the 1940s; she was therefore in her eighties when she died.
She belonged to the first generation of independence which arrived in Ghana earlier than elsewhere in Africa, already in the fifties, and gradually, thanks to the leadership of Kwame N’Krumah who led the country until 1966, when he was deposed by a coup d’état.

Ama Ata Aidoo grew up in postcolonial Ghana shaped by N’Krumah where education was free and compulsory, and much was done to promote women’s rights and allow them to participate actively in political life. The strongly anti-colonialist cultural atmosphere of those years was nourished by the pan-Africanist dream of N’Krumah and was fervent with hopes and expectations. The young Ama studied and graduated in Ghana, then she went to specialise at Stanford, in the United States, with a Fulbright scholarship. The encounter with the Euro-American world was decisive for her formation and provided her with a fundamental interpretative key for creative writing both for the theatre and fiction, as is clear above all in her famous novel Our Sister Killjoy of 1977. After the American experience, she returned home and took up teaching literature first at the University of Accra and then at that of Cape Coast, where over time she became a professor.

From the outset, she stressed the need to study and teach African literature – similar in this to the Kenyan writer Ngugi wa Thiong’o – and championed the cause of the postcolonial discourse of which she was a passionate champion.
She devoted herself a lot to the theatre, for which she wrote from the very beginning, with The Dilemma of a Ghost in 1964 and Anowa in 1970; in fact, she was the first female playwright in Africa.
In the early 1980s, she entered active politics and was education minister from 1982 to 1983 when she resigned and left Ghana, moving to Harare in Zimbabwe, where she continued to write and publish.
In 1991, Changes, a distinctly original novel that achieved great success and is still relevant today, was published. Ama Ata Aidoo presents the story of some women who face change with determination and freedom, building new lifestyles and new ways of living outside the box. She was not new to the theme of change, which she had already addressed in Our Sister Killjoy by speaking openly of female homosexuality, a theme that seemed remote to the awareness of the time which denied the existence of the phenomenon in an African environment.

The direction that she gave to this theme, however, as well as to other themes treated in the novels and in the many very lively stories, allowed her to explore the reality of human experiences rather than to use them to create sensationalism or scenographical effects. The world of women, their feelings and their habits attracted her notice and seemed worthy of attention. The narration that she has left us remains very interesting and insightful even today, free from stereotypes and sparkling with humour and sympathy.
Ama Ata Aidoo was always a great friend of women; she helped the younger ones with constant generosity and intelligence and did her utmost to change society by making it more open and equal.
In 2000, together with her daughter Kinna Likimani, she established the Mbaasem Foundation, a non-governmental organization based in Accra, aimed at helping the development and sustainability of African women writers and their artistic production.

Ama Ata Aidoo was always a great friend of women. 123rf.com

In addition to the works cited, she published three volumes of short stories and three collections of poetry, plus children’s stories and anthologies. Among the various awards that were bestowed on her, the Commonwealth Writers’ Prize stands out, as an important international literary prize awarded to her in 1992 for the novel Changes and, before that, the significant Mbari Prize that came to her from Nigeria already in 1962 for a short story written at just twenty years old.
With the passing of Ama Ata Aidoo, an African artist and intellectual of great value and international resonance is lost. She was a woman of incomparable human and political depth who fought for herself and for other women in the public sphere, in the academic world and in the political arena, tracing an extraordinary example of life and style.

Itala Vivan

Ghana. A Journey into Asante’s Cultural Heritage.

The Asante are a group of people who form part of the Akan ethnic group in the central part of Ghana in the West African Sub-region.

The Asantes were one Akan-speaking people who settled in the forest region of modern Ghana between the 11th and 13th centuries. They are known to have migrated to present-day Ghana and other parts of West Africa from the Sahel and the Sahara Desert regions of Africa.
The name Asante, which means because of war, came to be in the year 1701. It was a time when the ruler of the ‘Ashanti’ Empire, Asantehene (Asante King) Osei Kofi Tutu I, subdued the surrounding states and defeated the Denkiyira Kingdom.
When the British invaded the ‘Ashanti’ Kingdom in the early 1800s, they had to transcribe the local language to English. In doing so, they transcribed the name Asante as as-hanti. The Brits later dropped the hyphenation and settled with the variant name, Ashanti.

The Ashanti flag has three horizontal stripes: gold for mineral wealth, black for the Ashanti people, and green for the forests. The emblem in the centre is the Golden Stool, a symbol of national unity and royal authority since the 18th century.

The separate Asante chiefdoms were united by Osei Tutu in the 1670s and in 1696 he took the title of Asantehene and founded the Asante Empire. His nation rapidly became more powerful by forming alliances with neighbouring peoples, leading to the formation of the ‘Ashanti’ Union around 1700. He built a capital, Kumasi, and created the legend of the Golden Stool to legitimize his rule. The throne became the symbol of Asante authority. By 1750, the Asante Empire was the largest and most powerful state in the region.
The empire’s wealth and prosperity were based on mining and trading in gold and trading in slaves. The Asante also became famous for woodcarvings, furniture, and their brightly coloured woven cloth, called Kente. The kingdom continued to expand until, under King Osei Bonsu (1801-1824), Asante territory covered nearly all of present-day Ghana.

Otumfuo Osei Tutu II Asantehene is the King of the Asante Kingdom. (Photo: The Kingdom of Asante)

During the nineteenth century, the Asante fought several wars against British colonial power, but a series of defeats gradually weakened and reduced the territory. After the arrest and exile of Nana Prempeh I in 1896 and a final uprising in 1900, led by the Queen Mother Yaa Asantewaa, the Asantes were defeated. The British annexed their lands in 1902 and the empire was declared a Crown Colony. The exiled king, Nana Prempeh I, was allowed to return to Kumasi in 1924 and was reinstated as the occupant of the Golden Stool in 1926.
When he died in 1931, the Golden Stool passed to his nephew Nana Osei Agyeman Prempeh II. In 1970, the latter was succeeded by his nephew, Nana Opoku Ware II.
The present king, Osei Tutu II, is the nineteenth Asantehene.An oral tradition suggests that Chief Priest Komfo Anokye founded the Ashanti Kingdom after the Golden Stool miraculously descended from the sky and landed on the knees of Nana Osei Tutu. That is how Asantehene Osei Tutu I became the king of all the chiefdoms.

The Eight Clans
The Asantes live in Ashanti Region specifically in the capital of Kumasi metropolis. Getting to the end of the 17th century, three ‘Kum’ trees were planted at different places and only flourished and became a very big tree under which the King and his people often sat and so it became known as Kum-ase meaning ‘under Kum’.
The Ashanti Region is known for its major gold bar and cocoa production. The largest city and regional capital is Kumasi. As the largest tribe in Ghana and one of the few matrilineal societies in West Africa, they speak Twi, a language also spoken by many Ghanaians and the commonest dialect easily learned by children of other tribes in Ghana.

Many Asante people generally belong to the Asona clan. (Photo: The Kingdom of Asante)

In Asante tribe, the family line is matrilineal where inheritance passes from the mother to her children. The Golden Stool is also passed down matrilineally, to one of the king’s maternal nephews.
The Asantes have eight clans – Oyoko, Bretuo, Agona, Asona, Asenie, Aduana, Ekuona, and Asakyiri.
There is an Akan saying that the clan is not like a tune that you can change simply because you don’t like it. It falls on the people within the clan to improve it. These clans have towns founded by their ancestors so each of the clans exercises authority over towns. Chiefs for the towns are selected from the male members of the clans. One important thing to note is that the children of the female members of the clans are the royals of the town but the children of the male members are not members of the clan, so they are not royals of the town.

As the largest tribe in Ghana and one of the few matrilineal societies in West Africa, they speak Twi. (Photo: The Kingdom of Asante)

Many Asante people generally belong to the Asona clan than to any other clan. The symbol of Asona clan is the crow or wild boar and its characteristic is wisdom. The symbol of the Oyoko clan is falcon and its characteristic is patience. It is also the clan from which the Asantehene comes while the Bretuo clan has as its symbol the leopard and its characteristic is aggressiveness and exceptional bravery. The Agona clan has the symbol of the parrot and members of this clan are eloquent. As a tradition and custom, it is recommended never to pick a fight with a person from this clan because he or she is likely to have a clan member within the vicinity who will quickly come to his or her aid.
On the part of the Asenie clan, the symbol is the bat, and the characteristics of this clan are bravery and diplomacy. The Aduana clan believe that at the time of creation, their ancestors descended from the skies on a golden chain.
Others believe that they originally came from Asumanya and they were led by a duiker with a flame in his mouth and gold in his cheeks.
The Ekuona clan are not found in great numbers in Asante. The symbol of this clan is the buffalo, and its characteristic is uprightness. For the Asakyiri clan, the claim is that they were the first to be created by God. Their characteristics are beauty and patience.

Between Blood and Spirit
All the Akan tribes believe that they are made up of two elements, blood and spirit, both of which they obtain from their parents. To the Ashanti, the family and the mother’s clan are most important. A child is said to inherit the father’s soul or spirit and from the mother a child receives flesh and blood. This relates them more closely to the mother’s clan. The Ashanti live in an extended family.
Since Asantes are matrilineal, a child is what his or her mother is. Inheritance, succession, and status are lineally determined.

To the Ashanti, the family and the mother’s clan are most important. (Photo: The Kingdom of Asante)

They practice many ceremonies including birth, puberty, marriage, good harvests, and death. One of the oral traditions regarding the beliefs of the Asante is about the significance of the stool. Generally, it is customary for any lineage to have a stool. That is because it serves, among other things, as the symbol of authority.
Also, when children start crawling, their parents give them the stool as a gift. When young women reach puberty, they must sit on the stool, as per the dictates of the puberty rites. During a marriage ceremony, husbands present to their wives the stool. At death, the elders bathe the deceased on a ceremonial stool before burial. The stool is so significant to the beliefs and cultural practices of the Ashanti because it illustrates its ability to represent the soul of a person.
The Asantes traditionally have an abundance of food supplies and those they grow include plantains, cassava, maize, cocoa, vegetables,
cereals, legumes, and yams.
They eat different foods to celebrate their culture and bring people together. These foods include Fufu made from any of the starchy provisions that include plantains, yams, or cassava. Mpoto Mpoto is another food of the Asante people made from yams with the ingredients: onions, tomatoes, pepper, fish, and salt.

Kente, a prestigious piece of cloth
Asantes value their traditional clothing, especially the Kente, a prestigious piece of cloth that they have worn for many traditional occasions. Kings and Chiefs wear it because it serves as a form of authority. King Osei Tutu I, the first Asantehene reserved
the cloth for the royals.

The Kente is a prestigious piece of cloth that is worn by the Asante people on many traditional occasions. (Photo: The Kingdom of Asante)

Traditionally, the Kente cloth is a festival cloth worn mainly during the annual and seasonal festivals, which are happy occasions. Each colour on the Kente cloth has a symbolic meaning.
For example, yellow, which is typical on almost all Kentes, means beauty, fertility, preciousness, royalty, and wealth. Gold means glory, high status, royalty, spiritual purity, and wealth.
Asante oral tradition and spiritual values build on the feelings of profound respect for the land, traditions, and culture. The Asante religion, for example, combines supernatural and spiritual powers. As part of the Akan ethnic group, they believe that everything has a soul, especially animals, trees, and other plants.
They also believe in supernatural beings and other magical powers, including witches, forest monsters, and fairies. Although some Asantes of today have converted to Islam and Christian denominations, the people still believe in the traditional religion that paid respect to ancestors, higher gods, spirits, and supreme beings. (Photo: Courtesy of The Kingdom of Asante)
(D.D.D.A.)

 

Peru. The Time to the Asheninka.

What is the importance of time to the Asheninka, an Amazonian people of western Peru? Let’s find out.

In the Amazonian world, time is marked by elements that can be stars, plants, animals, and others. The day is marked by the sun. The sun is what largely determines the conception of time and consequently the organization of life in each culture. It marks the rhythm of life and affects the way of living of indigenous groups.
The concept of time appears to be rather irrelevant to Asheninka. Asked if time was important to his people, an elder Asheninka answered “Time is not very important to us, one can leave, go back home, or go to work at any time. We can decide to visit our neighbours at any moment of the day, and they are always ready to welcome visitors and drink oshtecon (masato or fermented cassava drink) with them.

The concept of time appears to be rather irrelevant to Asheninka.

If people have to work or if they intended to do something else, they decide that they can postpone it and enjoy the company of friends and neighbours. Being together, enjoying the company of friends and neighbours is important to us. We can go fishing and we may decide to spend the day at the river, eating what we have caught and then take sleep there. This is our rhythm of life”.
Basically, the Asheninka are not interested in establishing the right time to do something, but rather in being in harmony with the environment, giving value to those things that give meaning to their life.
Time is not the main element that marks the rhythm of their life, but rather the sun, and weather conditions. The Asheninka do not go fishing or hunting or cultivate crops in heavy rains. But this is not a problem for them, they can carry out their activities at any other moment. They can wait for good weather. They don’t go hunting during a full moon either. The moon also plays an important role in the lives of this indigenous group. By watching the moon, they can forecast the weather.

Parrot. The birds sing different melodies depending on the time. 123rf.com

An old man, Bonifacio explains: “On a night of full moon you don’t go hunting, because animals, on those nights, hide in dark places where it could be dangerous for people to go because of snakes. Furthermore, when a full moon occurs, you don’t need to go fishing in the open sea since the fish, on nights of the full moon, swim to the shore and can be caught with arrows”.
Stars also are prominent in the life of the Asheninka, who use them to tell the time. Another elder Asheninka says: “There is a small group of 7 little stars:  they are also used to tell the time. At dawn, one can see a big star, it is the dawn star, it rises just at 3 in the morning, and it is visible throughout dawn”.

The moon plays an important role in the lives of this indigenous group. By watching the moon, they can forecast the weather. 123rf.com

The animals of the jungle are also important to mark the time, among the Asheninka. Who knows that the partridge and the toucan or pinsha, as it is also called, sing at noon?  The manakaracos, black birds living on the riverbanks, sing at six in the afternoon. The crickets and frogs sing when night falls. In this regard, an elder Asheninka said: “When darkness covers the mountain, crickets start their “day”.  You can hear a cricket, which must have a watch since it chirps exactly at 6 in the evening, then it remains silent for a little while and then starts chirping again and again at regular intervals, until its battery runs out”.
It is also interesting to know that birds sing different melodies depending on the time and indigenous people are able to recognize their different songs. The plants also, especially when they flower and bear fruit, indicate the best time of the day for hunting and fishing. The small plant, commonly known as the 12 o’clock-flower, starts to open at 11, at noon it is wide open and remains so until 1 in the afternoon, then closes again. “The shimashiro trees flower during the right period for hunting when animals are healthy and fat. While the blooming of the ocuera indicates that parrots have just had their chicks, and when its fruits are ripe the little parrots have already begun to fly and at that moment farmers must be careful to keep them from eating corn seeds”, an Asheninka man warns.

Jhonny Mancilla Pérez

Iraq. A Book to Live Again.

The young Yazidi Janan Shaker Elias has opened a bookshop in a village on the Nineveh Plain that suffered the invasion of Isis: “When we returned, I decided that reading was among the essential necessities”.

On the white shelves are volumes of fiction and nonfiction, history books and biographies of famous people, philosophical texts, and children’s publications. In the middle of the room, some young people are sitting at a large table intent on reading and studying.It would be a bookshop like many others, were it not for the fact that the Janan Bookshop is located in Sreshka, a village in the Nineveh Plain, the ancient Mosul, which in the summer of 2014 suffered the devastating invasion by the cutthroats of the ‘Islamic State’ who wanted to erase any sign of pluralism and establish a society under the banner of the most obscurantist and distorted vision of the Shari’a. In this area in Northern Iraq, historically home to different communities including many Eastern Christians, after the liberation and the slow re-securing of the area, it is still struggling to return even to a difficult sort of normality.

“We often organize reading groups” Photo Chiara Zappa

“But although many things are missing here, books are essential to return to life”: there is no doubt in the mind of Janan Shaker Elias, a young teacher in a village school – about 5,000 inhabitants in the Tall Kayff district – who, faced with the arrival of Isis, was forced to flee with her family, along with hundreds of thousands of other Iraqis, abandoning everything.
Yazidis like her, members of an ancient community considered heretical by fundamentalists, were the ones who paid the highest price for the invasion: massacres, kidnappings, and enslavement.
“My family managed to survive by fleeing to Turkey and then to Iraqi Kurdistan”, says Janan, now 29. “For years we stayed away from home, taken in by refugee camps. But despite the fatigue, both physical and emotional, in Duhok I continued my university studies and I graduated in physics; a success of which I am proud”.
Meanwhile, the Iraqi army and Kurdish militias fought to oust the terrorists from the Nineveh Plain; in the autumn of 2016 several centres were liberated, although the terrible battle to reconquer Mosul would last until the following summer. “When we finally returned to the village – recalls the girl, who lives with her father after her mother died and her brothers got married and emigrated – the main concern was to ensure safety and restore essential services, such as electricity and
access to potable water”.

Yazidis children celebrating a Yazidi ceremony called Tawwaf in the town of Bashiqa in Iraq. CC BY-SA 4.0/ Ammar Doghat

But she, like many fellow citizens, especially young people, also lacked something else: “In the whole district there was no place to consult or buy books, we were practically cut off from knowledge”. To the fury of the anti-culture fundamentalists – in the Mosul area there were countless cases of closed bookshops, libraries of historical value destroyed and collections of ancient manuscripts bravely rescued to save them from looting and devastation – in Sreshka there was the added isolation which already before the war had prompted Janan to obtain some volumes with some difficulty by ordering them via the internet (and waiting a very long time for deliveries). So, four years ago the young woman started right from there, setting up a system for selling books through the web, which proved very successful.
“For me, it was just one more confirmation that, even in our small villages, there was a public eager to have access to reading. An audience that I wanted to increase, to create a new generation open to diversity”. This is how the Janan Bookshop was born, when the enterprising girl, one year ago, decided to move from the virtual world to the real one, opening the first and only bookshop in the districts of Tall Kayff and Shaykh Han in the centre of the village. A small place but with attention to detail: from the volumes that hang from the ceiling like ‘lamps of knowledge’ to the posters on the walls that carry the history of the area and the biographies of intellectuals from all over the world who inspired the young owner. A sign that even from this remote corner of Iraq it is possible to keep an open mind on universal wisdom.

Yazidi New Year festival at Lalish. A corner of the Janan Bookshop is reserved for titles that tell the story and religion of the Yazidis, CC BY-SA 4.0/ Levi Clancy

“In the bookshop, customers have almost two thousand titles available, divided by genres and discipline, but they can also book others”, explains Janan, showing the corner dedicated to fiction, in which George Orwell’s 1984, The Little Prince by Saint-Exupéry, but also various works by the Egyptian feminist Nawal al-Sa’dawi and of course many texts by Iraqi and Arab novelists, are displayed. She goes on to say “People really appreciated my initiative, especially students and young people. Here they can not only buy books but also come and read them freely, or borrow them. We often organize reading groups, presentations with authors, and seminars held by writers and researchers on literature, philosophy, and culture in general”.
For the Sreshka bookseller, the project also represents a contribution to the re-composition of the local community fabric, torn apart by conflicts and sectarian impulses: “Whoever reads develops greater awareness and can have the tools to build a more mature society, prepared to face our difficult social and economic situation”, she says.
For her part, Janan is personally involved in a series of initiatives which, at the local and national level, deal with the great issue of reconciliation, starting with her commitment to the NGO Peace and Freedom Organization, based in Erbil, which works for conflict resolution and the promotion of pluralism, tolerance and active citizenship, including through the publication of books.

Yazidis wearing traditional clothes. CC BY-SA 4.0/ Hamdi Hamad

“Isis has caused not only material but also social destruction and I, as a citizen who has experienced this tragedy first-hand, want to take part in the movement under way to recreate integration”.
The young entrepreneur, especially, does not forget the genocide suffered by her community, the Yazidis, accused by fundamentalists of being ‘devil worshippers’. For this reason, while she is active in the mobilization that demands recognition of sectarian violence even with adequate compensation and forms of social reintegration, she is committed in her own way to combating stereotypes and encouraging the awareness of her coreligionists of their traditions; a corner of the Janan Bookshop is reserved for titles that tell the story and religion of the Yazidis, and authoritative community leaders often speak at meetings organized in the bookstore.
“In Sreshka we are all Yazidis, but there are Christians and Sunni Muslims living in the surrounding villages – she says -. Today we live in peace in this area and when Pope Francis came here to visit, we welcomed him with joy”. The difficult socio-economic situation, however, represents a constant element of instability: “Above all, young people are victims of unemployment and lack of opportunities while those who can do so emigrate. Iraq will not change until the political class makes a change”.
Meanwhile, from this small village in the Nineveh Plain, Janan has started her personal, small revolution, which begins with reading and knowledge. And given the success of the project, with so many customers who visit her bookshop every day and the recent proposal to open a branch in Tall Kayff as well, the young woman’s motto is to be believed: “Books can change lives”. (Open Photo: Janan Shaker Elias in her Bookshop. Photo C.Z.)

Chiara Zappa/MM

Africa. Democracy and Human Rights: the EU offers a weak response to violations.

Over the last months, democracy and human rights have been endangered in several African countries. But Western countries either turn a blind eye or offer weak responses, based on the quest for natural resources or the wish to reduce the Chinese
and Russian influence.

Over the last months, democratic principles and human rights have been violated in several African countries. In Senegal which was long considered the paragon of Democracy on the continent, young protesters clashed with security forces, resulting in at least 30 deaths and hundreds of arrests in early June, after the young and charismatic opposition leader Ousmane Sonko was sentenced to two years prison.

Senegal’s main opposition leader Ousmane Sonko. Photo: Nova News

Sonko was sentenced on charges of ‘corrupting’ youth after he was acquitted of rape charges, for which he had been indicted. His lawyer, Bamba Cissé, like the supporters of Sonko’s African Patriots of Senegal for Work, Ethics and Fraternity (PASTEF) party, claims that the arrest and the judgement were part of a government’s plan to prevent him from participating in the presidential elections scheduled in 2024. In addition, the government restricted access to social media and suspended mobile phone data. For many observers, Sonko is a potential winner of the upcoming election, since the young support his anti-authoritarian stance. This is not the first time that the judiciary is used to eliminate president Macky Sall’s rivals. In 2015, the son of his predecessor, Karim Wade was given a sentence for illegal enrichment which prevented him to run for the presidency. Two years later, the popular mayor of Dakar, Khalifa Sall was condemned for alleged embezzlements of public funds and could not run at the 2019 presidential election, raising suspicions of a political bias. On the last 4 July, eventually, Sall announced in a speech to the Nation that he would not run. It is unclear whether the decision was inspired by his sense of ethics, local or international pressures but for many Senegalese, the damage is done. The riots have taken place and the main opponent risks not being allowed to run for the February 2024 elections.

Elections in DRC
Democracy is also in danger in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. In June, two important opposition leaders called for a boycott of the forthcoming election, scheduled for next December. The former President, Joseph Kabila urged his supporters not to register on the electoral lists and accused the Supreme Court whose judges were appointed by President Felix Tshisekedi in violation of the constitution to be “partial and corrupt”.

Martin Fayulu, leading opposition candidate in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, has threatened to pull his party out of December’s elections (DRC). Photo: ECIDE Office.

Martin Fayulu, who appeared as the landslide winner of the 2018 presidential winner according to the monitoring teams of the roman catholic national bishops conference (CENCO), said shortly afterwards that his party ECIDE (Engagement for Citizenship and Development), would not participate in the upcoming elections if the voters list was not redone and audited. Accordingly, voter identification and registration were organized in total opacity, which is proof of the planning of fraud. CENCO and the main protestant churches also reported for months of delays and issues with the registration of voters.
Earlier, on 20 May, a demonstration called by Fayulu, the popular former governor of Katanga, Moise Katumbi and former Prime Minister, Augustin Matata Ponyo was banned by the Kinshasa authorities. Besides a massive mobilization of the police, militias of Tshisekedi’s party, the Union for Democracy and Social Progress (UDPS) were displayed around the streets where the march was supposed to take place, armed with machetes, to intimidate demonstrators.

The military intelligence accused Salomon Kalonda of spying on behalf of Rwanda and of the M23 Congolese Tutsi rebels. Twitter

The arrest of Katumbi’s adviser, Salomon Kalonda, on 30 May, at the Kinshasa airport came as a shock for the opposition. The military intelligence accused Kalonda of spying on behalf of Rwanda and of the M23 Congolese Tutsi rebels. But this justification is considered as a pretext by Katumbi supporters who blame an attempt to involve their leader in a fake plot against Tshisekedi to prevent him to run in December. Tensions are also rising between the President and the churches. In a speech at the stadium of Mbuji-Mayi, on 25 June, President Tshisekedi attacked the roman catholic church, which calls for free, fair and transparent elections, blaming its “dangerous drift”. During the speech, Tshisekedi stated: “I will attack without hesitation or remorse any Congolese who poses a threat to the security and stability of the country. No matter what people say about human rights violations, deprivation of liberty”.
In Burundi, the main opposition party, the National Council for Liberty (CNL) led by Agathon Rwasa was suspended on 7 June by the Minister of Interior, Martin Niteretse who took the pretext of an internal dispute within the CNL to order a ban of its activities.  The CNL called the decision a “serious violation of the constitution” which prohibits interference of the government into the functioning of political parties. Such decision could ruin the conditions for free and fair legislative elections in 2025.

Agathon Rwasa, the leader of the National Liberation Forces. Photo : FNL Office

Previously, on 21 April, the government announced the arrest at Kabezi, in the Bujumbura province, of the former Prime Minister, Alain-Guillaume Bunyoni, who had been sacked in September 2022 by President Evariste Ndayishimiye. Simultaneously, the government is continuing its persecution of the gay community. Since 2009, homosexual relations are considered a crime punishable which deserve imprisonment.
On the last 23 February, 24 people accused of “homosexual behaviour” were arrested and jailed in the political capital, Gitega. According to Yves Niyonkuru, one of the prominent figures of the “Rainbow Candle Light” association which defends gay and lesbian rights in the country, tortures, murders and imprisonment of gays and lesbians are commonplace in Burundi. This is not surprising since the President urged his compatriots to ban homosexuals who must allegedly be “damned”, in a public speech, on the 1st of March 2023.

Human Rights, the weak response by the EU
In front of all these violations of human rights and democratic principles, the response of the West has been mere lip service. France and the European Union expressed “concern” in front of the deterioration of the situation in Senegal and called for “restraint”.
The French Foreign Ministry urged all sides “to stop violence and solve the crisis in the spirit of the long democratic tradition of Senegal”. While expressing similar concern, the EU said it was confident that the Senegalese democracy was solid and that political forces would prepare the forthcoming elections in an inclusive and peaceful way.

Kinshasa CENI Headquarters. Photo: Monusco

Concerning the DRC, the US, the EU and other Western powers said in a joint statement that an audit of the electoral lists set by DRC’s Independent National Electoral Commission  (CENI), by international experts in May had not “fostered the public perception of independent and transparent oversight”. But in contrast with the International Organization of Francophonie which refused to approve the preparation of the ballots by CENI, the EU took in June a much softer approach. The leader of a team of the European External Action Service said after talks with CENI’s chairman Denis Kadima, that Brussels would announce in September if the conditions were met to send an EU mission of observers. No real pressure is exerted on the Congolese authorities to correct the situation.

The EU chargé d’affaires Martina Borovac. Photo: EU Press

During a meeting with the local authorities, on 22 June, the EU chargé d’affaires Martina Borovac, deplored Burundi’s abstention at the UN during the votes against the Russian attack of Ukraine and the attacks against gays and lesbians. She also expressed the wish that UN special rapporteur on human rights should be allowed to come to Burundi and reminded that the EU was asking its partner to open the political space in order to “improve the quality of democracy”. But overall, her tone was quite soft. Despite the persecutions of opponents and journalists who fled in exile and the exodus of 400,000 refugees in neighbouring countries, Borovac expressed the EU’s “appreciation” of the improvement of the bilateral relations over the recent years. She added that the EU was considering the resumption of budgetary support to Burundi.  Already, in October 2022, the EU lifted sanctions on three Burundian officials including Prime Minister Gervais Ndirakobuca
Obviously, the times have changed since the EU introduced the Cotonou Agreement, signed in 2000, an article which envisaged the suspension of cooperation with countries which do not respect human rights, democracy and the rule of law. Since then, a new context has emerged, characterized by the erosion of the Western influence in Africa. China has become Africa’s first economic partner while Russia has emerged as a key partner in the security sector. Simultaneously, the EU behaved as if it realized it cannot raise the tone too much if it wants access to strategic natural resources coveted by its rivals.
Senegal’s potential role in cooperating with the EU on the migration front seems today more important to Eurocrats than the bias of the national judiciary against opposition leaders. Since early 2022, the EU has lobbied in order to obtain Dakar’s agreement for the deployment of its anti-migration force Frontex on the Senegalese coasts. The EU is planning indeed to deploy a fleet of vessels and drones, in Senegalese ports to track the migrants and deter them to reach the Canary Islands.

Coltan Mine in DRC. Photo: Pexels.

The DRC is emerging as a strategic partner for the European automotive industry, at a time when most of its cobalt, copper and lithium resources used for the production of batteries for electric cars, are in the hands of the Chinese. In June, the EU and the DRC were holding talks to set up a partnership for the exploitation of rare and strategic minerals. The EU is indeed eager to reduce its dependency from Chinese batteries, while Kinshasa is willing to benefit from the bonanza and the opportunities to set up a value chain including the beneficiation of its minerals locally. The stakes are considerable for both sides, which might explain why the EU, as the US which also promised to help the DRC to build its own batteries plants, is not so keen to spoil the atmosphere by lecturing Tshisekedi on human rights and democracy.
The attitude with Burundi is quite similar. The country boasts from sizeable nickel resources which may be used for the production of batteries and also from rare earth elements. The main company on the ground Rainbow Mining Burundi used to sell its rare earth concentrates to the German company ThyssenKrupp before it put a halt on mining exploitation to improve the terms of the contracts in 2021. Another reason for the EU’s relative leniency towards Burundi is the role plaid in the fight against jihadists by Burundian peacekeepers in Somalia, whose salaries are financed by the European taxpayer.

François Misser

Hakuna Movement. Changes nothing, changes everything.

Hakuna is setting the lives of many young people ablaze, inside and outside the confines of the Church, through prayer, music, formation and service to those in need.

The name Hakuna which means ‘there is not’, in Swahili, came as a shortened form of Hakuna matata (no problem). Chosen by chance, it ended up embodying the spirit of those who believe that there is nothing done without God and there are no problems beyond His reach; of those who make no plans or strategies but put their trust in Him.
It is also difficult to date its origin.
If we talk with some of the young people who were present at the primordial event, they probably agree that around 2012 something different was beginning to happen in Madrid.

Youth pilgrimage in Jerusalem,2022. Ascent to the city of Masada. Photo: Hakuna.

Father José Pedro Manglano (Josepe) was stationed in the parish of San Josemaría in Madrid and one of his duties was to accompany the parish’s young people – and so he did; they set their sights on World Youth Day (WYD) in 2013, which was going to be held in Brazil, and they began to prepare for it. At first, the trip was organised for 20 people, but in the end, almost 100 went.
The trip consisted of a compartiriado (which is what they call a voluntary service in Hakuna), in Nueva Friburgo, Brazil, with children and elderly people. They celebrated Mass and Holy Hour every day.
Afterwards, they joined the WYD with the Pope, in which Pope Francis pronounced that famous speech to the youth inviting them to “make a fuss”. That simple phrase began to light the fuse for something new in the lives of these young people, although they were not yet aware of it.
That is how Hakuna came into being; without planning it, without any roadmap or anything pre-established. It was born out of Life, out of those Holy Hours, out of those moments kneeling before Christ in the Holy Eucharist, shared as a family. Pope Francis himself describes them as a great Eucharistic family.

Young people of Hakuna Group. “Our message for everything is always how much love we put into what we do”. Photo Hakuna

When they returned from the WYD, these young people continued to meet every week for talks and Holy Hours. They also began to do volunteer services in Madrid. They did not want what they had experienced to remain just a summer experience and so they started organising getaway trips to Tangier, Morocco, during Easter and to India during the summer. Friends from other cities began to join them – and so it has gone on until today.
One of the most important moments for the group is the “Holy Hours”.  It is a time of silence and contemplation.  Every week, thousands of young people gather in groups all over the world to celebrate these Holy Hours. First, there is a formative session and then, a time of silence interspersed with songs of Hakuna Group Music, the reading of the Gospel and a brief reflection.

Hakuna Group Music
It defines itself as “a music group of the 21st century, composed of young people who, through their passion for music, wish to tell the world the truth which they live and carry deep inside.”
Each of their songs is a world in itself, as they each tell a different story, offer a different dedication and present a different composer.
That’s why it is said that Hakuna Group Music is the world’s biggest music group, because every member, in every city where Hakuna is present, is part of Hakuna Group Music.
The history of the group began at the WYD in Rio in 2013, and in those first Holy Hours at the return from that world youth gathering.
Some of the members of the group, with great musical zeal, wanted to help others to pray through music. Soon, the first ideas and original songs began to emerge.

QAOS album presentation concert in Madrid. Photo: Hakuna

In the summer of 2014, the idea of recording a studio album came up. There was a great desire to bring something new to the Spanish music scene. Religious music, yes but, apart from being proudly addressed to God, it brought a very youthful, joyful and professional touch.
The first album finally saw the light in 2015, a new stage in the group’s career, in which they began to give concerts in different cities in Spain. From that moment on, it has been developing non-stop. In 2017 they presented their second studio album, Mi pobre loco (my poor crazy), and in 2018 the third, Pasión (Passion). Sencillamente (Simply) came out at the time of the full Covid-19 lockdown and was presented at Palacio Vistalegre in Madrid in September 2021, in front of 2 500 spectators. Their latest album Qaos (chaos) was also presented at Vistalegre, in front of more than 8 000 people. The echo of this concert unexpectedly reached the media and social networks.

Sharing
The compartiriado (Sharing) is a social action initiative developed in Hakuna: “We believe that these are experiences in which we share and grow together, preserving the beauty and truth of each way and style of life”. It is a medium that “changes nothing and changes everything, offers no immediate material solution, but makes a great spiritual impact – breaking down barriers and judgements, getting perspective, to order priorities, returning to the Centre, to discover our own needs, to preserve the Beauty and the Truth present in each way of life…” There are situations which affect the human dignity, which we want to change. Our measure for everything is always how much love we put into what we do.”There are currently 14 teams around the world carrying out compartiriados in various projects such as: Forofos (occasional support to NGOs, foundations, parishes, municipalities), “helping those who help others,” from food deliveries, cleaning of spaces, accompanying the elderly, excursions with children); Hablemos (let’s talk): visitation and accompaniment of people living on the streets, sharing and enjoying moments of conversation.

South Korea. Holy Hour in Seoul. “It is a time of silence and contemplation”. Photo: Hakuna

In the mid-term, initiatives such as excursions, workshops are proposed to them; Re.play: music with children living in less privileged neighbourhoods such as Torreblanca in Seville or Aluche in Madrid, (workshops on guitar, singing, composition, musical games, talks, excursions, concerts, recordings); Mano a mano (hand-to-hand): artistic workshops to work with crafts and promote creativity among women or families with few resources. These are combined with dynamics of spiritual content, ‘Soul’, where topics such as affectivity, wounds, are dealt with; or Between the Lines: sharing of perspectives and life experiences of older and younger people based on the reading of certain texts (from novels, essays, poems, fables), creating bonds of family and helping to take care of each other.
In addition, every July, groups of university students travel to different parts of the world in order to initiate these experiences of compartiriado in those places. Last year, they travelled to Ecuador, Mexico, Argentina, Romania and also within Spain.

Soul College
The latest adventure that Hakuna has embarked on is Soul College, a training centre that aims to provide responses to the questions that every person asks in life: Who am I? What am I called to?
Soul College was born out of the thirst of many young and not-so-young people of Hakuna, to be educated, to know more and to go to the source. “At Soul College we are not looking for scholars, only people who want to be transformed by knowledge, who want to enjoy being people”. This training has already launched several courses in theology – with the help of university professors – theology of the body, anthropology,
art and so on.

“We believe that there are experiences in which we share and grow together, preserving the beauty and truth of each way and style of life”. Photo: Carlos González

The most surprising thing about this initiative is that it has built bridges, and on courses such as Genesis or the Synoptic Gospels, students from 20, 30 or 50 years of age coincide, which greatly enriches the sessions. All of them end with a round of questions and a brief ‘snack’ with the teacher. There are also many other initiatives at Hakuna, such as the pre-matrimonial course, the revolcaderos (faith groups of 8-10 people that meet every two weeks around a formative theme). There are also what we call God Stops, Pit Stops, which can be found in Spain, the rest of Europe, America and Asia, for those who let themselves go and ‘make a fuss’ wherever Life takes them. (Open Photo: Hakuna)

Maca Torres

Zimbabwe. Towards the General Elections.

Years of protests and violent repression. The results of the Motlanthe Commission, which called for accountability for the violence, have been disregarded. In August, the country will go to the polls
to elect its president.

On 23 August 2023, Zimbabweans will vote to elect new leaders in general and local elections. Octogenarian President Emmerson Mnangagwa of the Patriotic Front of the African Union of Zimbabwe (Zanu-PF), the political party in power since independence in 1980, faces challenger Nelson Chamisa, 45, of the newly formed Citizens Coalition for Change (CCC). In the last general elections in 2018, Chamisa narrowly lost the presidential election to Mnangagwa when he led a coalition of opposition political parties, the Movement for Democratic Change-Alliance (MDC-A).

A history of violent elections
After founding president Robert Mugabe’s mandate was abruptly terminated following a 2017 military coup that ended his 37-year rule and brought Mnangagwa to power, the 2018 elections failed to advance the democratic transition. While the pre-election period and election day itself were relatively peaceful compared to previous election rounds, thanks in part to Mnangagwa’s promises that the Second Republic would get a fresh start, the delays in counting the votes raised fears of manipulation. Protests erupted in the capital Harare on August 1 of that year and were violently repressed by the security forces, killing six civilians, and injuring many others.

Zimbabwean President Emmerson Mnangagwa and his wife campaigning for the next general elections. (Photo: president Twitter)

Following these incidents, a commission of inquiry led by former South African president Kgalema Motlanthe was set up to investigate the facts and make recommendations. In December 2018, the commission released its report, with recommendations to the government of Zimbabwe to hold the perpetrators accountable and to prevent further human rights violations and similar abuses from recurring.
The Motlanthe Commission’s recommendations echo what many civil society activists and other observers have been saying since 2000 when Zanu-PF began resorting to the use of violence and other forms of repression as its political fortunes began to decline.
After losing a constitutional referendum in February 2000 against the fledgling Movement for Democratic Change (MDC), Mugabe and his liberation war veterans embarked on the Fast Track land reform program with the intent of violently dispossessing white farmers owning
commercial businesses.

The Commission of Inquiry in Zimbabwe was led by South Africa’s former President Kgalema Motlanthe. Photo: SABC

In the subsequent parliamentary elections in June 2000, Zanu-PF lost control of the majority, and the 2002 presidential elections were marked by gross human rights violations against members of the opposition. The climax of election-related violence was reached in 2008 when Mugabe, after losing the first round of elections to the then MDC leader, the late Morgan Tsvangirai, was forced into a second round of elections. The killing of more than 400 opposition members prompted Tsvangirai to withdraw, thus prompting South Africa to facilitate a national unity government (2009-2013), comprising the ruling party and the opposition, under the auspices of the Community Development of Southern Africa (SADC) and the African Union.

Elections and economic crisis
Meanwhile, Zimbabwe’s much-acclaimed land reform has not led to food security. The World Bank ranked Zimbabwe third out of 177 countries for food price inflation between January and April 2023. In August 2022, the World Food Programme estimated that between 30 and 38 percent of the rural population suffered from food insecurity.

The World Food Programme has estimated that between 30 and 38 percent of the rural population suffers from food insecurity. Photo: Swm

Today, a combination of bad policies and corruption has already strangled the economy: commodity prices have skyrocketed while wages remain stagnant; the black-market exchange rate is almost 10 times the official rate; and the country has the highest level of inflation in the world with the local currency losing value day by day. Unemployment is rampant, even among young college graduates.
The 2023 election offers another opportunity to change the future for Zimbabweans – something the 2017 coup failed to do. (Open Photo. Flag of Zimbabwe. 123rf.com)

Webster Zambara

Photo Gallery – Jubilee 2025. Pilgrims of Hope

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