Post by diane9247 on Apr 19, 2015 7:46:52 GMT
Paris Congo.kmz (781 B)
A few years ago I was doing some research and a link caught my eye: "The Pygmies of Paris." Well, of course I had to read that. It turned out to be Paris, Congo: A Day in the Life of a Pygmy Girl Called Lundi.* That's the Republic of Congo (the other one, south of the Congo River, is the vast Democratic Republic of Congo). Both Congos' dense rainforests are inhabited by Pygmies in an environment that is increasingly logged, mined and farmed. Pygmies are famous for their diminutive stature and their endangered, prehistoric hunter-gatherer culture.
(Read more here)
The article is the story of Lundi Mohjembo, 12 years old, member of the indigenous Bambenga (Baka) Pygmy people who have lived in the northern Sangha Region of the Congo for centuries. Ouessa, the regional "big town" is east of Paris, and north of Ouessa is the country of Cameroon. The Sangha River forms the border which meanders between Congo, Cameroon and Central African Republic.
Pygmy regions in central Africa are shown below. The Baka and Aka predominate in the Republic of Congo. (Map adapted from Wikipedia entry on Pygmies.) Lundi says of the forest, "There's [...] lots of animals and no people here...but mostly I like the peace and quiet." The author says these are the only words she speaks in their 2.5 hour trip through the forest.
Orange = Paris Yellow = Ouessa
(Map adapted from Wikipedia entry on Pygmies.)
Source for all information below.
Lundi describes her daily life:
"'The first thing I have to do in the morning is to go to the water source and collect water for washing and cooking,' says Lundi. The water source is a 10 minute hike up and down small hills through the rainforest. [...] She carries the large, heavy containers of water needed for the morning chores on her back - assisted by a strap around her forehead that is attached to the water container."
They eat manioc every morning for breakfast. She sweeps the dirt floor of her hut with a bundle of twigs tied together. She, her sister and her parents sleep on one bed without pillows or blankets. Her grandfather has his own bamboo mat.
Lundi with her grandfather.
The forest provides whatever is for dinner.
She tells the author about each day of the week in the village, with each dedicated to specific chores. For example, Sunday is for church and for the men to check and re-set the traps. They don't return home with game until Tuesday morning. People travel from Ouesso to buy game from the Pygmies. Meanwhile, the women and children are working the manioc and maize fields. Lundi's favorite chore is dam-fishing with the other girls - it makes for a good social time. The author says, "Natural environmentalists, the girls only go fishing once a week and pick a different part of the creek each time."
Medical care is non-existent in this isolated region, few can afford the trip to Ouessa and the Pygmies are adept at using the surrounding forest as their pharmacy. Some of their traditional treatments suffice, many don't. A minor infection becomes a major one and can be deadly. There is much mistreatment of illness, also disabling or fatal. The Pygmies of Paris have been settled for the past 30 years and have developed closer ties with their Bantu neighbors, thanks to inter-dependence based on labor exploitation of Pygmies by the Bantu. They sometimes intermarry. Lundi herself will marry by 15 or 16 and bear a child shortly after, giving birth in the forest assisted by another Pygmy woman.
Late in the afternoon, the children meet at the water-hole to clean themselves and it's another chance to socialize before the evening meal. Paris is near the Equator, so sundown is between 5:30 and 6:30, dinner soon after and bedtime is about 8 or 9.
Washing for the evening meal.
Discrimination against Pygmies in Congo by the majority Bantu population is widespread and accepted by both peoples. Pygmies are rarely aware of their rights as defined in The Congo's Fundamental Act prohibiting discrimination based on ethnicity. Check the first link for more information about Pygmies and UNICEF Congo's Pygmy Project, which has as its main goal improving Pygmies' "access to basic health, education, water supply and food production ... to improve their living conditions." Lundi did not complain about poverty or hard work, though was aware that her life is one of heavy chores. Instead, she dreamed of sewing lessons.
*Unicef report via ReliefWeb.
A few years ago I was doing some research and a link caught my eye: "The Pygmies of Paris." Well, of course I had to read that. It turned out to be Paris, Congo: A Day in the Life of a Pygmy Girl Called Lundi.* That's the Republic of Congo (the other one, south of the Congo River, is the vast Democratic Republic of Congo). Both Congos' dense rainforests are inhabited by Pygmies in an environment that is increasingly logged, mined and farmed. Pygmies are famous for their diminutive stature and their endangered, prehistoric hunter-gatherer culture.
(Read more here)
The article is the story of Lundi Mohjembo, 12 years old, member of the indigenous Bambenga (Baka) Pygmy people who have lived in the northern Sangha Region of the Congo for centuries. Ouessa, the regional "big town" is east of Paris, and north of Ouessa is the country of Cameroon. The Sangha River forms the border which meanders between Congo, Cameroon and Central African Republic.
Pygmy regions in central Africa are shown below. The Baka and Aka predominate in the Republic of Congo. (Map adapted from Wikipedia entry on Pygmies.) Lundi says of the forest, "There's [...] lots of animals and no people here...but mostly I like the peace and quiet." The author says these are the only words she speaks in their 2.5 hour trip through the forest.
Orange = Paris Yellow = Ouessa
(Map adapted from Wikipedia entry on Pygmies.)
Source for all information below.
The rainforest [...] is truly another world. The density of the tall trees and their leaves block out any light from the sun. It’s a mystical place in which things not only grow up, but they also grow down - creepers, vines and branches sweep down from the trees in a drowning cascade of natural canopy. Any perception of up and down is lost in this world that explodes with various shades of green, black and brown of the rainforest’s leaves, tree trunks and mud. One has the feeling of being swept along a current through an underwater reef of forest. The green, black and brown scenery is shattered occasionally by small blasts of brilliant red from the tiny fruits that Lundi nonchalantly picks, peels and eats while she continues to float effortlessly along the jungle footpaths.
Lundi describes her daily life:
"'The first thing I have to do in the morning is to go to the water source and collect water for washing and cooking,' says Lundi. The water source is a 10 minute hike up and down small hills through the rainforest. [...] She carries the large, heavy containers of water needed for the morning chores on her back - assisted by a strap around her forehead that is attached to the water container."
They eat manioc every morning for breakfast. She sweeps the dirt floor of her hut with a bundle of twigs tied together. She, her sister and her parents sleep on one bed without pillows or blankets. Her grandfather has his own bamboo mat.
Lundi with her grandfather.
The forest provides whatever is for dinner.
“We are on vacation from school right now”, says Lundi. “There’s no school in July, August and September. But it is hard for me to go to school because my parents have to pay my tuition and my family is poor. And, when I do go to class, sometimes the Bantu children make fun of Pygmy children like me and they hit us and I start to cry. I also have to work in the fields to help my family so I don’t always go to school, but I have completed level 2.” Lundi speaks very little French, Congo’s official language. Classes are taught in the afternoon in Lingala, the main national language of Congo’s northern region in Paris’ only school: a mudbrick hut. The only teacher in the village is Bantu. An older Pygmy man tells me that he thinks that Lundi hasn’t actually been able to go to school for the past 2 years because her family can’t afford it and because the Bantus don’t like to have the Pygmy children in the same school as their children. Lundi remains silent when asked if it’s true, looking far away into the rainforest. C’est la loi de silence – the law of silence – a means the Pygmies have used throughout the centuries to protect themselves and to keep their secrets safe.
She tells the author about each day of the week in the village, with each dedicated to specific chores. For example, Sunday is for church and for the men to check and re-set the traps. They don't return home with game until Tuesday morning. People travel from Ouesso to buy game from the Pygmies. Meanwhile, the women and children are working the manioc and maize fields. Lundi's favorite chore is dam-fishing with the other girls - it makes for a good social time. The author says, "Natural environmentalists, the girls only go fishing once a week and pick a different part of the creek each time."
Medical care is non-existent in this isolated region, few can afford the trip to Ouessa and the Pygmies are adept at using the surrounding forest as their pharmacy. Some of their traditional treatments suffice, many don't. A minor infection becomes a major one and can be deadly. There is much mistreatment of illness, also disabling or fatal. The Pygmies of Paris have been settled for the past 30 years and have developed closer ties with their Bantu neighbors, thanks to inter-dependence based on labor exploitation of Pygmies by the Bantu. They sometimes intermarry. Lundi herself will marry by 15 or 16 and bear a child shortly after, giving birth in the forest assisted by another Pygmy woman.
Late in the afternoon, the children meet at the water-hole to clean themselves and it's another chance to socialize before the evening meal. Paris is near the Equator, so sundown is between 5:30 and 6:30, dinner soon after and bedtime is about 8 or 9.
Washing for the evening meal.
Lundi finally lays down on her hard, uneven bed with her sister, joined later by her mother and father. “Sometimes we all talk together in bed”, says Lundi. “And other times, I like to play a joke by stealing the [bark] cover from my mom and
dad before they sleep … sometimes they laugh and sometimes they get mad.”
Then, she closes her eyes, tries to ignore the insects and falls to sleep. But unlike most girls her age, she doesn’t dream of one day visiting the original, romantic city of Paris, France. She’s never even been to Ouesso and doesn’t know where France is. No, Lundi’s dreams are much simpler than that. “At night I dream that one day I’ll be able to learn to sew so I can make clothes for me and my little sister.”
dad before they sleep … sometimes they laugh and sometimes they get mad.”
Then, she closes her eyes, tries to ignore the insects and falls to sleep. But unlike most girls her age, she doesn’t dream of one day visiting the original, romantic city of Paris, France. She’s never even been to Ouesso and doesn’t know where France is. No, Lundi’s dreams are much simpler than that. “At night I dream that one day I’ll be able to learn to sew so I can make clothes for me and my little sister.”
Discrimination against Pygmies in Congo by the majority Bantu population is widespread and accepted by both peoples. Pygmies are rarely aware of their rights as defined in The Congo's Fundamental Act prohibiting discrimination based on ethnicity. Check the first link for more information about Pygmies and UNICEF Congo's Pygmy Project, which has as its main goal improving Pygmies' "access to basic health, education, water supply and food production ... to improve their living conditions." Lundi did not complain about poverty or hard work, though was aware that her life is one of heavy chores. Instead, she dreamed of sewing lessons.
*Unicef report via ReliefWeb.
