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October 22, 2008
The ear does not have a lid
Dikko Husseyni and Sisse Mamadou are sitting on wicker chairs in front of a mud-brick house. Two vultures squint down at them from the rooftop above, scraggy and angular like broken umbrellas.
'Did you hear the news about Muusa Kuranga?' asks Husseyni.
'I certainly did,' says Mamadou. 'Nowru walaa omboode.'
Nowru walaa omboode - the ear does not have a lid. The Fulani proverb means that when something significant happens in the neighbourhood, no one can help but hear about it.
'When I heard the news,' says Husseyni, 'my heart stopped beating and it took a long time to start again. Such a thing has never happened before amongst the peoples of the north.'
'Is it true they ate everything?'
'In the name of God, every last grain.'
'And is it true the mayor posted people all around the field?'
'Not just people. State police with batons!'
The field under discussion is situated eight kilometres out of town and has been the subject of a recent land dispute. Muusa Kuranga and his ancestors have cultivated the land for as long as people can remember, but the local council want to turn it into a cattle grazing zone. Two years ago they informed Kuranga that he must forfeit the land. He refused, and the dispute rumbled on month after month. Until last Wednesday, when the council took decisive action in a form that no one can quite believe.
The councillors chose the day of the weekly market, when they knew Kuranga would leave his millet field and come to town. They waited until he was out of sight, then rounded up a huge herd of cows and drove the cows into the field. By the time Kuranga got back from the market, his crops had been completely destroyed.
'And only a week away from harvest, too,' adds Husseyni. 'What those men did was truly wicked.' He starts to laugh, but not because there is anything funny about the conversation. In a society where grief and anger are shameful, nervous laughter is often the only outlet for emotion.
The vultures shuffle sideways along their rooftop, eyes flickering in search of prey. Their hooked beaks are red the whole way up.
'How many councillors are there?' asks Mamadou.
'Fifty-three.'
'How could fifty-three men decide to do such a thing?'
'They voted,' says Husseyni. 'My cousin was in the meeting and he told me there were three proposals. Proposal one: let Kuranga harvest his millet and then settle the land dispute. Proposal two: send some young men to harvest the millet and distribute it to the poor. Proposal three: get a herd of cows do the job. Quicker and cheaper that way. The first proposal got ten votes, the second proposal got twelve and the third proposal got thirty-one.'
Mamadou sighs and shakes his head. 'Allahu akbar,' he whispers.
It is not the land dispute itself that people here care so deeply about. What they cannot stomach is the deliberate destruction of food in this region of perennial hunger. The ear does not have a lid, but sometimes one might wish that it did.
Posted by sahelsteve at 11:45 PM
October 21, 2008
Update on the Tuareg Rebellion
This is an extract from a newsletter I received recently from a friend in Niger. It contains an update on the current Tuareg rebellion, and some thoughts about the problem of corruption in Africa.
Despite the lull in action over the past month of Ramadan, the rebellion in the north of Niger continues unabated. Whilst we continue to pray for peace it seems very unikely that it will come anytime soon. Unfortunately it seems that this situation of unrest is to the advantage of everybody concerned, and so the poor and the innocent will continue to suffer at the hands of the corrupted system which prevails in the country. The rebels are unlikely to lay down their arms anytime soon unless their outrageous demands are met. (The newsflash from the BBC and Reuters in august was false, they have not laid down their arms). Apparently the fat cats who run this country do not want the situation to end, as every month that passes means another month of them filling their pockets with the money which they steal from the national defense budget; and with an army which is sent out drugged and drunk whenever they go out on missions, it seems that the insecurity is here to stay for another couple of years at least.
What is more, there are supposed to be national elections at the end of this year, and as the current president has served his two terms he is obliged to step down. So long as the insecurity remains however, the government can judge it too dangerous to run an election and he is able to remain in power (without having to change the constitution at the last minute which so many african leaders end up doing!).
It is a sad time for Niger, one of the world's poorest countries, to see how the poor are exploited and denied justice whilst the corrupt leaders fill their pockets. For example, when we drive to Agadez we have to do the last 350km in the military convoy, supposedly for our protection from rebels. I heard recently that, on paper, the daily convoy has an escort of twenty army vehicles accompanying it. In reality however I have never seen more than five or six. This means that the budget for the other fourteen vehicles, the fuel and salaries for the non-existent soldiers, is magically disappearing into thin air (aka someone's pocket). What is more, the last time we were with the convoy one of the army trucks broke down and they had to borrow a jack from one of the civilian vehicles, since they didnt have one of their own. Funny that, I bet that on paper each of the “twenty” trucks has its own jack and toolkit!
Whilst the world sends money to Africa in an effort borne of guilt, trying to 'eliminate poverty', they seem oblivious to the lies and outright corruption that exist in this continent. Every new aid initiative must fill the minds of the fat cats with glee, as they invent new ways to embezzle and steal as much as they possibly can, whilst the poor continue to die of malnutrition and lack of simple health care. Its quite normal here to go to the market and see sacks of rice or grain for sale, whilst clearly labeled 'Free gift from the People of Japan. NOT TO BE SOLD'.
Posted by sahelsteve at 07:27 PM
October 02, 2008
Hyena and Rabbit
The Fulani have a lot of folk tales about Rabbit (fulfulde: bojel). Small but wily, Rabbit exemplifies the Fulani ideals of intelligence and cunning and invariably triumphs over its larger neighbours. Rabbit's nemesis in these stories is usually Hyena (fulfulde: fowru), famed for her greediness and stupidity. It is easy to see the roots of the Brer Rabbit stories in these Fulani folk tales. Here is a taster:
One day Hyena gave birth to cubs and hid them in a narrow hole in the ground. Rabbit joined the cubs in the hole, and whenever Hyena dropped food into the hole, Rabbit ate it all up before the cubs could get to it.
The days passed until one morning Hyena arrived at the hole and told the cubs to come out so she could look at them. Out came the cubs and stood in a line.
'What's the matter?' exclaimed Hyena. 'You're all so skinny you look like death.'
'There's someone in the hole with us,' said the cubs. 'Whenever you bring food, he eats it all up before we can get to it.'
'RIGHT' said Hyena. 'Come on out of there, whoever you are!'
'Sure,' replied Rabbit, sticking his ears up out of the hole. 'But first take my sandals for me, would you?'
Furious, Hyena grabbed Rabbit's ears (thinking them sandals) and flung them over his shoulder.
'Now come out of there!' cried Hyena.
'He's already out,' cried the cubs. 'Look, there he is behind you!'
Hyena looked, and let out a cry of rage. Rabbit waved his hand, then ran off lippety-clippety into the thicket, laughing nineteen to the dozen.