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AFRICA: DID YOU HEAR THE CALL?
Hadiza Isa Wada (DBA)
August 7, 2009.
Originally carried on the website AmanaOnline July, 2005
Keep in mind that the article was written immediately after a very successful concert by world famous musicians in Britain tagged live-8, with the aim of raising funds for developmental projects in Africa. Four years after that, despite Gleneagles commitment by the G8, not much has happened, and the article is still relevant.
The rally for a moral cause earlier this month by famous musicians – Live 8 – once again brought the much needed spotlight on the African continent, even if for just a day. A continent so neglected by the whole world, and when I say the world I mean everyone, including its own people. The point is, while not belittling the efforts of those who spent their precious time and resources to arrange and participate in live 8, in reality that was just one of the 365 days in every calendar year. Reality sets in for the remainder of the 364 days of the year, for every one of those miserable African children and adults you saw that day.
Every continent on planet earth today is the sibling of the rest of the continents, for as the evolutionary scientist will have us believe, they all came into existence when the ocean waters receded to reveal land. But how do the other continents today view their sister continent Africa? If the answer is revealed by such worldly events, like live 8 then we all know the general picture.
Whenever the spotlight shines the picture that stares us in the face are diseased, hungry and desolate people. Their glassy watery eyes speak to you, yet gazing past you in shear hopelessness. Their dry, frail, and fleshless skins clinging to their bones as if in fear of undeserved and untimely demise - begging and pleading at your spirit for mercy - without the need for them to even open their mouths
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Is that the African fate? Was it born among its sibling continents, like the “Black” sheep of the family to just lie desolate, wasted and occupied by equally desolate and wasted people? Or should we believe that some kids of the same mother should be fed less, cared for less or even be allowed to be abused and neglected? Is every member of the family equally responsible for the care of every other member, or should we really hold the child itself responsible for its own fate? These are seemingly simple, yet complex questions that need to be addressed comprehensively, if we are interested in finding ways that will help the child become self-sufficient, able to grow and support itself.
To share with you my own view of the African continent is to share an experience that was so touching. My first air flight into the African continent after spending some time in the United States was an unforgettable experience that continues to repeat itself whenever I travel to the continent. My first experience brought tears to my eyes. And to this day with repeated travel mere memories bring back those same tears.
When the plane takes off from the United States as always, all the open fields one views from the sky whether cultivated or not, look luscious and green, full of life, spirit and beauty. Its greenery and serpentine rivers meandering through the pines, oaks, shrubs and brushes - gripping your staring eyes in an entertaining and inviting way. Even the mountains are either vegetated with dark green foliage seemingly singing in delight, and like every other living thing ever calling up to the Gracious Lord above with the hope of being fed with rain and abundant sunshine. Other mountains yet stand firm and bold, like the spirited soldier at full attention, caped by snow, ice or pregnant clouds floating and gliding like cotton balls of sparkling white, brushing the mountain caps in soothing reassurances of continuous support for survival.
Then you move onto the blue sea for hours to, on most occasions a stop over somewhere in Europe. International travel from the United States usually begins in the evening crossing the Atlantic at night and arriving early morning mostly before sunrise in Europe. If arriving before twilight, you are immediately greeted by sparkling lights like dazzling diamonds in endless rows of different hues and patterns, a master jeweler’s artistic and priceless work. The residents of the city sleep undisturbed by the noise, heat or cold weather outside.
Uninterrupted electricity makes it possible to adjust the temperature of their homes to their comfort, while treated windows keep out all noises including that of the landing plane.
If arriving by sunrise in the early morning hours, you are immediately welcomed by the gentle sway of the bright green grass as the breeze moves glazing its back in a reassuring wake up call. Sometimes fields of grain ready for harvest lay near the airport as if to reassure landing visitors of the abundance of food. Few minutes later you are landing on the tarmac and after a leg stretch hoisted back into the belly of another plane for a much shorter flight to Africa. That is the dreading part.
The short ride across the tip of the European land mass is usually not for long, then you cross the Mediterranean Sea. The agony comes when you begin to view the land of Africa. Like the “black” sheep of the family it usually starts with a view of dark dry smoldering mountains crouching bare under intense heat that makes you begin to wonder how those mountains have patiently stood there for years with their bare backs under direct hundred degree Fahrenheit temperature almost all year long without crying out in pain.
In fact they are some of the most patient mountains, for they do not have a history of pouring out their hot melting guts in pain or rage. They are so jagged, rough and razor-back looking, probably from years of intense desert heat and chemical erosion. There appears no life around them, fauna or flora. So quiet, except may be for the roaring engine of the plane. Just like those faces from live-8, the mountains cry out to you without shedding their tears. They could not squeeze any even if they try. So in answer to their pain, I suddenly felt a burst of tears run down my cheeks. I wanted to pull the plane window shutters down, but just like the emotional yet curious child would, my hands were motionless. I had to share this painful moment with the voiceless mountains that are patiently standing tall, in intense pain and anguish.
Soon you move onto the sandy dunes of the Sahara. You immediately get some temporary relief looking at the sand. At least they seem to have some life I thought, compared to the Mediterranean mountain ranges. This is because, just like the sea, they are wavy. That tells you they do have some motion. But do they have life, I wonder. After all, the scientists say that movement alone though an important attribute of life, does not by itself prove life. As far as your eyes could see, thousands of feet above land, there is no vegetation to look up the heaven and make the plea for rain. There are no rivers or any sign of water. Not even the building clusters that you see once every few miles on other continents. No roads either, that would suggest the possibility of people going back and forth somewhere on the ground.
The picture is not much different across the Sahel, Sudan and Guinea Savanna region of Africa. Just minutes before the Nigerian border you begin to see negligible movement and some evidence of life but not much. As you land in Northern Nigeria, in the Guinea Savanna region, less than an hour flight to the shrinking rain forest by the southern Atlantic coast, all you see is some dotted green specks. The rain forest of Africa is just a small percentage of the total land mass. As you land in the Savanna region, the trees are so far apart they look like the knotted hair of an uncared for child, suffering from ringworm, who has had his head shaven not long ago and ended up taking a swim in the hard water a stagnant pit. Or else the head of the vulture, if there is much hair up there.
All along I was asking myself, what is wrong with this picture. What is wrong with the continent of Africa? Is the African physical land mass responsible for its condition or the inhabitants on its back? Who should begin to make an all year round effort to put a mother continent, cradle of human civilization back on its feet once again? Should the African inhabitants alone be the ones burdened with the responsibility, or else we should also rely on some of its most recent descendants in diaspora? Should we also call on those that were once its children that ran off onto other continents, or should we absolve the lost child of any responsibility? When I say the lost children I mean the whole of human race that were, according to some controversial, yet scientific study, genetically linked to the African mother? Is the continent, just as a typical caring mother acts, feeding all its children first while it endures hunger, but was ultimately forgotten by those same children?
What is hard to run away from is the reality that the human destiny is one. The earth is one, and all its continents are siblings. If as outsiders, we watch any human sibling treats its sister, or yet its mother like this, we will jump to judgment quickly. Some, as we see in the contemporary world, may even jump and volunteer to adopt the neglected and abused regardless of origin. Well Africa does struggle once in a while to speak out to the world, even if without a voice. But is anyone listening?
THE 13TH ANNUAL SUMMIT OF AFRICAN UNION
Africa Page
July 21, 2009
The 13th Annual Summit of African Union was concluded earlier this month in Sirte, Libya. 24 African leaders were reported to be in attendance at the three day summit which started July 1st.
According to a Press Release issued by the Union, one of the issues discussed and adopted was the "decision to transform the African Union Commission into an "Authority" as a first step toward continental integration. Also adopted was a position that affirms the body's decision not to cooperate with the issuance of an order to arrest the sitting President of Sudan by the International Criminal Court, the ICC.
