“Darfur Plays” - Using Theatre To Build Bridges

Spotted on: Shadow and Act

A very inspiring documentary of a group of self-taught young actors in Dafur. They perform in the streets of their village and in the neighbouring refugee camp.

As someone from the 'West', Dafur is about war, human rights violation and ethnic cleansing. Dafur is chaos. It’s a place where Arabs are killing black people like sheep. It’s like a black planet without an ozone layer. So far my European view.

But in this documentary I saw artists who perform for their people, who spark the dialog and reach out to people who are perceived to be ‘the others’. So yes people also “live” there. They think about the future and make theatre plays. I saw artistic director Haythum Djalladien taking a cab in Darfur. (Small observation: the cab looked very new.)

There is still a war going on there! And it’s filthy. But it's also good to see change at work in Darfur.

Most interesting quote: Money runs out but ideas last.

Part 1


Part 2

Very creative Japanese video

Summer news. The Japanese band Sour made a very creative video with webcam shots of their fans. The video is great, but don't forget the music.

This music video was shot for Sour's 'Hibi no Neiro' (Tone of everyday) from their first mini album 'Water Flavor EP'. The cast were selected from the actual Sour fan base, from many countries around the world. Each person and scene was filmed purely via webcam. (youtube)

Saw it on Noah Sow blog

Stop aid to Africa! Why Bono hates Dambisa Moyo

Dambisa Moyo is a Zambian-born economist who says aid is killing Africa. She is to aid what Ayaan Hirsi Ali is to Islam.

In her new book, Dead Aid, she argues that official aid is easy money that fosters corruption and distorts economies, creating a culture of dependency and economic laziness.

Moyo is particularly dismissive of the ‘celebrity aid’ model popularised by international stars such as Bob Geldof and Bono and says many aid organisations and NGOs are more interested in perpetuating poverty in order to justify their own existence.

Controversially, she advocates turning off the aid taps within five years and claims this will result in more Africans being pulled out of poverty.

Moyo, who has a Doctorate in Economics from Oxford University, and a Masters from Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government, has been a consultant to the World Bank and recently worked for Goldman Sachs in London. Currently she is a member of the Board of Lundin Petroleum.

For those of us who have roots in the Caribbean, Africa, or South America this is an interesting view to pass on after dinner. Since Dambisa a is great fan of China, she argues that the Chinese contracts are a good alternative for western aid. But what about Darfur! we all know that the Chinese are not really trying to end the conflict, they are actually a part of the problem. But inspite of China, she presents a new vision.

I must admit I never heard of Dambisa Moyo until I read the interesting post of Lola Adesioye.

The Anti-Bono interview
Is Aid Killing Africa?

A short interview


A long interview