Let's Get Mozambique Alive Started!!!!

For the past 6 weeks I have been on the road. I have been to S. Africa, Rwanda, Uganda and now have reached Mozambique where I will stay for the next month helping to produce Mozambique Alive.

I was in S. Africa for my roommate in college’s wedding, which was great.

I was in Rwanda to revisit Fawe Girls School and the students of La Columbiere. The main purpose of my visit was to share with Ingrid and her classmates Rwanda Alive, our documentary about Ingrids survival of the 1994 genocide http://www.gng.org/product/videos/rwanda_twl.html As always, Ingrid and her classmates made me feel at home and impressed me as the watched and validated the film.

In Uganda I met up with my old friend Peter Reid who agreed to join me to the north of the country to observe the 20-year-old conflict that has been using children as soldiers. You can learn more about the conflict and our adventure at www.ourcommon.com.

The real reason I am here and the reason I am writing is to share with you Mozambique. Having taken an 8-hour bus ride from Johannesburg, South Africa, Peter and I arrived in Maputo were Mark picked us up and gave us a brief tour of the town.

Mozambique was colonized by the Portuguese and has a very different feeling then other African countries I have been to. It is very tropical, with palm trees and short buildings many beautiful old colonial buildings. Maputo reminds me of a mix between Macau Island off of Hong Kong and Waikiki Beach in Hawaii.

Because Mark has been preparing for this program for the last several weeks I had little to do with the preproduction. Two days after we arrived we started our programs. We are working with youth from the International School and Josina Michelle here in Maputo. The International School is a private school and Josina Michelle is a public school representing Mozambique’s finest students.

The students from both schools are wonderful and have been working well together. The first two conferences, one from the rooftop of Josina Michelle school and the other hosted by the World Bank, were the “breaking the ice” conferences where the students got to know each other. The students in Mozambique did a traditional dance for the students in the US, it seemed like a combination of traditional Latin and African dances – very beautiful. The students in the US showed videos of their towns and described American way of life including their visits to Mc. Donalds and KFC.

We did an exercise with the students from Mozambique on how the rest of the world perceived them. Most students felt that most the world didn’t even know that Mozambique existed and if they did they thought of the flood several years ago or of the civil war that ravaged the country. I feel that the students definitely have an agenda over the course of this program of bringing light to Mozambique and especially the culture elements that make them unique and beautiful….I look forward to watch them do this….

-Chris

Comments

[Don Milam]

I am not sure if you will receive this but thought you might be interested in my story. I was a missionary in Mozambique for 1972-1976. I was there when the Portuguese were in power and ran a drug rehab program. I went through the time of transition when Frelimo was coming to power. It was my understanding that the new government wanted me to stay because of the work I was doing. I had discussed this with the new Secretary of Health for Frelimo. One week after independence I was arrested and placed in prison. I was never officially charged but some said that I was in prison for counter revolutionary activity because I was a missionary. I was incarcerated for 10 months and then expelled from the country. I love Mozambique and the people of Mozambique. I keep in touch with some of the missionaries who now have total freedom to work in Moz and who are doing a great job. This April it will make 30 years since I was expelled and in Jan. I plan to return to Moz for a visit. I still have such fond memories of Mozambique and pray that they will be able to emerge out of the many hardhships they have had to endure. I have no hard feelings towards those who put me in prison.

I trust that what you are doing will let the world know what a great place Mozambique is.

Sincerely,

Don Milam

[Ancient Clown]

Please visit and learn the Art of Wire-treemaking. Teach it to the children.
your humble servant,
Ancient Clown