Dibussi Tande: Scribbles from the Den

[Video] On the Frontline of Cameroon's War With Boko Haram

“Since the beginning of this year, the Cameroonian army has brought a modicum of peace; kidnappings and killings have decreased, but, until Nigerian forces take full control of Boko Haram areas, people in Cameroon's Far North will never feel safe from the men in caves across the border.”

Government forces in Nigeria have been on the front foot in recent weeks, winning back a series of villages from the Islamist militant group, Boko Haram. But their advance has not been without cost to their neighbours. Here is a Channel 4 News (UK) report from Northern Cameroon.

 

Click here for an article based on the Channel 4 News report in Northern Cameroon.

[Video] Fotokol: Boko Haram Massacre Survivors Share their Ordeal

 

Click here for a selection of live tweets and Twitter commentary during the attack on Fotokol.

Daring to Invent the Future of Africa: Kah Walla at TEDxWarwick

 

Kah Walla is the first woman to ever run for the Presidency of Cameroon. At 47, this entrepreneur, activist and political leader is internationally recognized for her expertise in management and her strong stance on Africa, its women and its youth. In 2008, Kah was featured by the World Bank among 7 women entrepreneurs working to improve the business environment in Africa. In 2011, Newsweek & The Daily Beast as well as New African, respectively cited her as one of 150 women and one of the 100 Africans who shake the world.

Over 17 years, Kah Walla has developed STRATEGIES!, an African consulting firm which offers services in leadership and strategy respecting the highest international norms. For 22 years, Kah has developed solutions and policies with business, governments and civil society throughout Africa to foster sustainable economic growth and democratic governance.

New TV Campaign Celebrates the "Sapeurs" of Congo Brazaville

A new Guinness TV campaign launched today in the UK pays tribute to the "Sapeurs" (Society of Tastemakers and Elegant People) of the Congo whom Daniele Tamagni describes in Gentlemen of Bacongo as "elegant and immaculately dressed dandies" who "dress to impress, whilst also being ambassadors of etiquette, peace and music, as well as the essence of style."

Enjoy the colorful advert along with the five-minute documentary on this trailblazing sartorial subculture.

Watch the short documentary below for more information on the Sapeurs:

[Interactive Map] Transparency International Corruption Perceptions Index 2013

The Corruption Perceptions Index 2013 serves as a reminder that the abuse of power, secret dealings and bribery continue to ravage societies around the world.

The Index scores 177 countries and territories on a scale from 0 (highly corrupt) to 100 (very clean). No country has a perfect score, and two-thirds of countries score below 50. This indicates a serious, worldwide corruption problem.

Hover on the map below to see how your country fares.

 

Click  here for additional information about the 2013 CPI.

Tourism: Saddle Hill Ranch, Bafut,Cameroon

Hidden treasure in the Northwest region of Cameroon

 

Click here to visit the website of the Saddle Hill Ranch.

Trailer of Film Adaptation of "Half Of A Yellow Sun"

The film adaptation of Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie's Orange Prize-winning novel, Half Of A Yellow Sun, starring Chiwetel Ejiofor and Thandie Newton, will make its World Premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival. Here is the first trailer from the movie.  Click here to read my 2007 review of the novel which is set in Nigeria before and during the secession of Biafra.

 

[Video] Update on the Bamenda-Mamfe-Ekok-Abakaliki-Enugu Highway

The benefits of the nearly completed Enugu-Bamenda Multinational Highway are already being felt by populations on both sides of the Cameroon-Nigeria border.

The 443 km long Bamenda–Enugu corridor comprises the Cameroonian Bamenda-Mamfe-Ekok road sections (203 km), the Nigerian road sections (240 km), the bridge over the Munaya River in Cameroon (100 m) and the border bridge over the Cross River (280 m).

Click here for additional details about the project.

[Video] Land Grab: The Herakles Debacle in Cameroon

A documentary by Franck Bieleu whose feature length documentary, Big Banana, was nominated for the jury's prize at the 2012 Al Jazeera International Documentary Film Festival.

"Environment groups are accusing a New York-based agricultural company, Herakles Farms, of going forward with plans for a 73,000-hectare palm-oil plantation and refinery in southwest Cameroon... in the face of significant community opposition." Inter Press Service.

 

"Given the terms of a 99-year agreement under which Herakles Farms is allowed to establish a plantation of about 70,000 hectares [in Ndian division], it’s not difficult to see why Cameroonian NGOs fear the worst for local people. The agreement does not clarify to what extent – if at all – Cameroonian labour laws will apply, it exempts Herakles Farms from paying any taxes for the first 10 years, and it enables Herakles to rent the land from as little as US $0.5 per hectare, increasing by 2 % per year, contributing almost nothing to the state budget...

Under the agreement, Herakles is even given the right to organize its own protection of the zone using a private police force with the power to “search, apprehend, detain, exclude and evict unauthorized persons”. Click here to read the rest of this article by Greenpeace.

[Video] Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie Speaks at 2012 Commonwealth Lecture

Nigerian author Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie speaks on Connecting Cultures at 2012 Commonwealth Lecture

 

"I knew the basic facts of Nigerian history when I first read Chinua Achebe’s novels “Things Fall Apart” and “Arrow of God,” but it was those novels that made me realize that while I may very well know the facts, I did not really know the truths. Bloodless words like ‘pacification’ and ‘amalgamation’ and ‘indirect rule’ were the facts, but the truths were in the human stories. A respected man being flogged publicly by agents of the colonial government. A priest, once resplendent in his pride and stubbornness, now reduced to sitting on a cold prison floor because he had dared to reject an offer from a British district officer. And in images such as these, I learned a great truth which the history books said nothing about: the loss of dignity."

(Full text of lecture available for download here)

[Video] Kah Walla's "Fiery Call to Arms" at the Women in the World Summit

Kah Walla, president of Cameroon's People's Party, talks about her call to action – women have to help elect other women to government.

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

 Click here for more on Kah Walla's declaration at the Women in the World Summit.

(Video) Breathtaking Aerial View of Cameroon

Dazzling aerial view of Cameroon from a camera-equipped hexacopter 

 

February 23 Protests: Rapid Intervention Unit & Anti Riot Police Brutalize Demonstrators

Presidential aspirant Kah Walla and others attacked by police during peaceful protest in Douala.

 
Update on presidential aspirant Kah Walla after Police attack

According to a reliable source who has spoken with here, "she is shaken up but okay." This is how she was attacked:

The march was in process and when police approached, protesters sat down on the ground in the street in a non-violent posture .

Police immediately proceeded to beat the crowd with batons and when Kah stood up to say it was not necessary since the protesters were peaceful, the police commissioner yelled out directions to have her brought to him saying he would "teach her a lesson."

 She was dragged out and made to stand on the median in the middle of the street. The police commissioner then asked the truck containing water to turn around and focus on her. With the high-powered hoses directed at her, she was hosed down brutally for minutes and when she managed to escape she was grabbed, beaten on the back of her legs and dragged to a police detention truck. She had difficulty seeing and breathing due to the chemicals in the water. When she finally gained composure she was released. Many protesters with her were savagely beaten all over their bodies including the head with batons.

 More images of police brutality on presidential aspirant Kah Walla available on The Chia Report.

(Video ) Mola Njoh Litumbe on the Southern Cameroons Issue

Mola Njoh Litumbe's interesting perspective on the union between the British Southern Cameroons and the French Cameroons in this interview with Equinoxe TV (Douala, Cameroon).

 

Bill Zimmerman: "Africa is at the cutting edge of mobile technology innovation"

Bill Zimmerman, founder of Limbe Labs, a Limbe-based startup incubator and outsourcing outfit, talks a about a new generation of IT entrepreneurs in Cameroon, the changing African ICT scene and cutting-edge mobile technology innovations from the continent. (Note: The intro is in Dutch but the actual interview in English)

(Video) La Republique Du Cameroun - The Birth of a Nation (January 1, 1960)

A brief report and rare archival footage on the independence of the French Cameroons (La Republique du Cameroun) on January 1, 1960 (including Ahamadou Ahidjo's historic speech announcing independence (in French). 
 

 

(Music) "Independance Cha Cha" - The African Independence Anthem

Composed in 1960 by Joseph Kabasele Tshamala (Grand Kalle), the father of Congolese music, Independance Cha cha, became the anthem of not only the nationalist movement in the Belgian Congo, but also the newly independent states of Africa. The song was was first played at the Hotel Plaza in Brussels on January 27 1960 during the round table talks that set the date for Congolose independence.

 Today we can opnly look back wistfully and that golden age of buoyant optimism and hope of a better future for Africa...

Indépendance cha cha tozui e
Oh! Kimpuanza cha cha tubakidi
Oh! Table Ronde cha cha ba gagné o
Oh! Dipanda cha cha tozui e

(Independence cha cha, we've won it
Oh! Independence cha cha, we've achieved it
Oh! The round table cha cha, we've pulled it off
Oh! Independence cha cha, we've won it)

Memory Lane Video (November 6, 1982): Ahidjo-Biya, the Final Goodbyes

In a rare video footage which I posted on youtube earlier this year, we watched Paul Biya being sworn in as president of Cameroon on November 6, 1982. In this new footage, we see rare images of Paul Biya entering Unity Palace for the first time as Head of State, and Ahmadou Ahidjo leaving the palace for good. The accompanying audio is however about Ahidjo's alleged attempt to return to power less than a year later.

Daily Show Interview: William Kamkwamba "The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind"

"Where was this Google all this time?"

The Daily Show With Jon Stewart	Mon - Thurs 11p / 10c
William Kamkwamba
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Chimamanda Adichie: The danger of a single story

In this fascinating talk, Nigerian Novelist Chimamanda Adichie tells the story of how she found her authentic cultural voice -- and warns that if we hear only a single story about another person or country, we risk a critical misunderstanding.

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