Nina Paley's ‘Seder-Masochism’ Film Explores Patriarchy in the Book of Exodus Through Animated Ancient Idols

Screenshot from the song sequence “You Gotta Believe” by Nina Paley on Vimeo.

Global Voices interviewed American free culture activist and filmmaker Nina Paley about her new animated film “Seder-Masochism.” It is loosely based on the Book of Exodus from the Torah/Bible and exposes the veiled patriarchy in the religious text.
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Paley is the director of the 2008 full-length animated film “Sita Sings the Blues” which she released to the public domain in 2013. The film narrated the Indian epic poem Ramayana by using the 1920s jazz songs of Annette Hanshaw. It brought Paley worldwide fame because of its feminist interpretation of the epic and her long battle against the copyright claims tied to the songs of Annette Hanshaw used in the movie. Paley had to pay a negotiated amount of at least US$50,000 by loaning the sum. She eventually reclassified the film’s license from Creative Commons Attribution-Share-alike 3.0 Unported (CC-BY-SA 3.0) to Creative Commons CC0 (equivalent to public domain).

In an interview with Jewish podcast station Judaism Unbound, Paley said that “Seder-Masochism” is her take on the Exodus, which she first learned during Passover Seders. The Passover Seder is a Jewish ritual that involves the retelling of the liberation of Israelites from slavery in ancient Egypt. She added in the interview that “she identifies herself as a “born-again atheist” and explains the ways in which her recent study of the Book of Exodus has left her uncomfortable.

Several songs and scenes from the film “Seder-Masochism” have been uploaded by Paley to the Internet including the song sequence “You Gotta Believe” which turns Minoan stone goddess idols into flash animation. It features Moses and “singing” ancient goddesses who find themselves about to be defeated by patriarchy.

Global Voices reached out to Paley to learn more about her second film.

Subhashish Panigrahi (SP): First of all, congratulations on your upcoming work. What are the roles you're playing in the entire production? What is the movie about?

Nina Paley (NP): Once again I'm producing, directing, writing, animating, everything-ing…I'm hoping the sound designer for “Sita Sings the Blues“, Greg Sextro, is able to do more sound design for Seder-Masochism. The music is all “found” and used without permission [at the moment]. Much or all of my use is Fair use, but ultimately that can only be determined in court.

Seder-Masochism is about the Book of Exodus from the Torah/Bible, and indirectly the Quran (Moses is a prophet of Islam). My interpretation of Exodus is that it's the establishment of complete patriarchy, the elimination of any remaining goddess-worship from older times.

Some of clips from the feature-in-progress are here.

SP: What inspired you to start this project?

NP: Sita Sings the Blues was denounced by fundamentalists who called my collaborators “self-hating Hindus.” As a Jew, that rhetoric was familiar to me – Jews *invented* that “self-hating” nonsense. Since I'm not a Zionist, I've been called a “self-hating Jew” too. Also, the Hindutvadis called me a “white Christian woman who hates Hindus”, and sent hate emails saying “how would you like it if someone made a film about YOUR religion?!” Of course I love it when someone makes a good film about Abrahamism - Monty Python's Life of Brian is the best I can think of. I was (am) also frequently accused of “cultural appropriation“, implying that only those of Hindu/Asian descent are qualified to work with Hindu/Asian stories. So it seemed that everyone, right and left, wanted me to make a film about “my” religion, Judaism! I figured if they're offended by Sita Sings the Blues, they'll be REALLY offended by that. I printed up a Jew Card so I could “play” it for this project.

Ancient goddess LILITH gif by Nina Paley. 

Source: Nina Paley/Wikimedia Commons

SP: The song is hilarious! How did you bring the thousand-year-old stone idols to life?


NP: There are already goddesses in the Flash sections of Seder-Masochism I animated a couple of years ago. I needed to put more “goddess” into the film, and was tediously redrawing the Flash goddesses in Moho, the software I'm using now. It occurred to me that instead of redrawing them I could use the source images they're based on, I spent a few days finding the highest resolution images I could, and a few more days manually removing the backgrounds in GIMP. Moho can do things Flash can't, such as this type of animation with raster images. Anyway, they looked cool so I'm using them in the remaining Seder-Masochism scenes.

The goddesses in flash animation can be downloaded on Wikimedia Commons.

As Paley is producing the film on her own, she is also working with other free culture activists like the United States-based nonprofit QuestionCopyright.org to raise funds, apart from launching a Kickstarter campaign. She is uploading segments of the film publicly on the Internet as the film is being developed.

A previous version of this article incorrectly identified the origin of the goddesses. They are Minoan, not Egyptian.

Posted 4 February 2018 

Written by Subhashish Panigrahi

Written by Qurratulain (Annie) Zaman

Post-crisis hackathon: Ecuadorian NGOs crowdsource for a world after COVID-19

Nearly 550 people registered and 16 ideas are receiving support

Translation posted 11 June 2020 14:43 GMT

Hackathon. Photo from Andrew Eland/Flickr, under CC BY-SA 2.0 license.

This story was initially published on the Ecuadorian site Ojo al Dato (Eye on Data) and then republished and edited by Global Voices. Here are the first and second articles in the original series.

Many countries are slowly starting to emerge from lockdown and they are being forced to confront the hard realities of a world with COVID-19. In Ecuador, a country hit hard by coronavirus, NGOs organized a hackathon in April to crowdsource project ideas that would address some of these realities. On May 30, the winners were announced via a live YouTube broadcast, bringing public exposure as well as funding prizes to the successful projects.

Crowdsourcing the fight against coronavirus

In late April, Ecuador had the third-highest number of registered cases in Latin America; and at the time of writing, official figures reported 3,642 deaths.


Launch image, photo from Estéfano Dávila, for free media use.

The Post-Crisis Hackathon, which took place from April 29-30, was attended by 549 people who brainstormed solutions to the issues that would affect the economy and society in a post-COVID Ecuador. Hackathons are collaborative spaces that seek solutions to specific challenges and this one focused on challenges related to ten areas: environment, work and employment, daily life and social practices, cultural industries, education, health and well-being, economy and production, and government and citizenship.

The event was organized by developer and sociologist Iván Terceros along with his colleagues from MediaLab (connected to the NGO CIESPAL) as well as various organisations and business networks. In an interview with Ojo al Dato, Terceros spoke about the motivation behind the event:

Translation
Original Quote


It is not clear what will happen the day after the crisis […] It could be that those are the most critical moments [for society].
Hackathon projects making change

The participants shared 116 projects and organizations participating in the Hackathon helped choose 19 finalists.

There were two votes: one from the public — which elected WiyaPoint and ChasquiCheck as winners of the public's vote — and one of from the jury. Nearly all the finalists received prizes.


WiyaPoint's mobile app addresses the use of plastic bags — a contamination point for COVID-19 — by rewarding users every time they turn down a plastic bag when making a purchase. ChasquiCheck seeks to address misinformation around COVID-19 by setting up a digital platform to verify, identify and classify information to combat false news.

The WiyaPoint app will receive exposure, campaign launch, and social media advertising for a value of $1,000 provided by crowdfunding platform Green Crowds. ChasquiCheck will also receive the same amount of help to launch its virtual platform, thanks to the association of risk management professionals in Ecuador.

Fourteen other projects received some form of prize from the jury's vote. For example, participants thought of self-sustaining gardens as a response to a possible food shortage due to the pandemic. Both Grupo Faro and Incubadora La Libertad will offer them technical advice for a value of $1,000.

Todos Más Cerca is a digital platform connecting small and medium businesses to help them reactivate their economy. Through the platform, businesses can offer their products to users who are geographically nearby; the goal is to avoid agglomerations that could increase the number of COVID-19 infections. Todos Más Cerca already has agreements with Chambers of Commerce in parts of Ecuador, such as Zamora, Loja, Cuenca, among others.

The project will also receive a fund of $3,000 from the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the La Libertad Incubator. The economic promotion agency Conquito will provide them with accompaniment, advice and mentoring.

In the case of Ecuador, Terceros explained that MediaLab will continue to support the projects that have been brought to life, so that they can be incubated as start-ups throughout the year.


Written by Carlos Flores

Translated by Kitty Garden

Information warfare: COVID-19’s other battleground in the Middle East

The internet breeds and amplifies state-sponsored fake news and propaganda

Posted 10 June 2020

The Gate of Yemen in the capital Sana'a. Photo by Jialiang Gao, 

licensed under CC BY BY-SA 2.5

COVID-19 has exacerbated existing political tensions in the Middle East and North Africa, a region already marred by decades of conflict. Now, unscrupulous politicians blame their political enemies or neighboring governments for the spread of the novel coronavirus.

Director of the World Health Organisation (WHO), Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, sounded the alarm on the threat that mis- and disinformation poses to humanity:

“At the WHO, we’re not just battling the virus, we’re also battling the trolls and conspiracy theories that undermine our response,” he said, reiterating that false information can cause confusion and fear.

The MENA region is no stranger to conspiracy theories and disinformation practices. A 2019 Oxford University study revealed that the region is home to half of the top 12 countries identified as having a “high cyber troop activity” — including Egypt, Iran, Israel, Saudi Arabia, Syria, and the United Arab Emirates.

Those in positions of power use “information warfare” to frame narratives and control public opinion, and social media has become the main battlefield to employ influencers, trolls, bots, and commenter armies.

In Iran, Yemen and Syria, the so-called “axis of resistance” — whose legitimacy is often tied to virulent opposition to the West — leaders have seized on COVID-19 to reaffirm political positionality and channel hostile anti-Western ideologies.

Hezbollah, for example, has framed the coronavirus as a plot twist by their “enemies” — the West in general and the United States in particular. Hezbollah, a Shi’a political party based in Lebanon, and affiliated with Iran, is known for being a state within a state. It is considered a terrorist organization by most countries.

In March, Hezbollah Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah affirmed:


The corona is a highly threatening enemy. We have to confront this invasive enemy. We should not surrender or despair or feel helpless. The response must be confrontation, resistance, and fighting. We will win this battle. It is only a matter of time.
The Iranian-led ‘axis of resistance’

In the battle for hearts and minds, the Iranian regime’s ideological army — the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) — has led a counternarrative about the pandemic, portraying the virus as a conspiracy orchestrated by the regime’s traditional enemies — the United States and Israel.

The propaganda includes claims that the virus is an “American biological invasion” and a “Zionist biological terrorist attack,” leading some of the regime’s defenders to call for a retaliatory response.

Since its founding in 1979, the IRGC has been the “ruling clergy’s principal mechanism for enforcing its theocracy at home and exporting its Shi’ite Islamist ideology abroad, “according to Foreign Policy.

It collaborates with its allies in Arab capitals where it holds considerable influence — Iraq, Lebanon, Syria and Yemen. They share similar anti-Western, US and Israeli ideologies. The leaders of these nations often glorify fighting and martyrdom.

Hezbollah Secretary-General Nasrallah, for example, regularly preaches martyrdom messages to his base. In an interview, he explains: “Our fighter blows himself smiling and happy because he knows he is going to another world. Death for us is not the end but the beginning of real life.”
Houthi: Iranian proxy voice in Yemen

Yemen continues to grapple with the worst humanitarian crisis in the world, according to the UN, after plunging into a bloody proxy war in 2015, when a Saudi-led coalition intervened to remove Houthi leaders from power taken following a coup.

Houthis forces, backed by Iran, control the most-populated northern region, as well as the media. Houthi leaders have used the pandemic — described by some analysts as a “gift for the Houthis,” to attack rivals and deflect attention from the ongoing crisis. Houthi leaders also promote the Iranian regime’s conspiracy theory that the virus is an American plot.

Houthi Minister of Health Dr. Taha Al-Mutawakkil said in a public sermon aired on TV: “We must ask the whole world, we must ask all of humanity: Who and what is behind the coronavirus?” He concludes with a Houthi slogan: “Death to America! Death to Israel! Curse be upon the Jews! Victory to Islam!”

As the virus sweeps through Yemen in recent weeks, activists report dozens of deaths. Houthis leadership has denied the scale of the outbreak and downplayed its severity. In a press conference, Mutawakkil said:


We should not do like the rest of the world who have terrorized the population. The recovery of the virus is very high, it is in Yemen of over 80 percent. The treatment of the coronavirus will come from Yemen.

Houthis often conform to an ideology rooted in victimization and showcase that all of Yemen’s problems are caused by external interventions that started in 2015 with the Saudi-led military campaign. As such, they often blame the Saudi-led intervention that absolves them responsibility for the current crisis.

Mohamed Ali al-Houthi, a member of the Houthi Supreme Political Council, tweeted on March 16, that the Saudi-led coalition is to blame for any spread of coronavirus in Yemen.


وتتعمددول العدوان في المناطق التي تحتلها على عدم اتخاذ أي إجراءات إحترازية ولا طارئة ولا حجر صحي ولا أي شيء
وكان لا وباءيجتاح العالم يسمى #كرونا
نحمل العدوان الأمريكي وحلفائه مسؤلية أي حالة باليمن_فهويسيطر على الأجواء والمنافذ البحرية البرية_
ومسؤلية عدم التأهيل واتخاذ الإجراءات

— محمد علي الحوثي (@Moh_Alhouthi) March 16, 2020


In the territories occupied by the aggressor countries [Saudi led coalition] no precautionary or emergency or quarantine measures have been taken or anything. There would not be an epidemic sweeping the world called corona. We hold the American aggressor and its allies responsible for every case in Yemen, as it controls the airspace, the land and ports.

Houthis leaders have also exploited the virus to push their base into action and boost military recruitment. On a Houthi affiliated TV channel, a speaker recommended the public to join the battlefield and die as martyrs instead of dying confined at home from the coronavirus.
The Saudi-UAE axis: Blame it on Qatar and Iran

The Gulf Council Countries (GCC) was formed in 1981 in the wake of the Islamic Revolution in Iran and the Iran-Iraq war, by Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, Qatar, Oman and Bahrain. Their union, from its inception, was to defend themselves against an Iranian threat.

However, the GCC has been in crisis since 2017, when a bloc of countries led by Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, came into conflict with Qatar over allegations of links with Iranian’s “terrorist groups.” A full blockade has been imposed since June 2017 against Qatar.

The coronavirus has been politicized against this backdrop. A widespread narrative in all GCC countries supports the story that the virus was imported from either Iran, the regional epicenter of the crisis, or Iraq, via Shi’a citizens returning from a pilgrimage in Iran.

The Saudi daily newspaper, Al Jazeera, accused Iran of “adding to its bloody terrorism health terrorism” for not having been transparent and allowing the virus to spread.

Saudi Arabia held Iran “directly responsible” for the spread of COVID-19 and Bahrain accused it of “biological aggression” by not stamping passports of Bahrainis who traveled to Iran.

In a region ruled by Sunni royal families over a large Shi’a minority, scrutinized for its perceived proximity with Iran, this scapegoating is likely to fuel sectarianism and tension.

The UAE and Saudi Arabia have launched social media campaigns to blame Qatar for the coronavirus using hashtags such as #Qatariscorona, claiming that Qatar manufactured the virus in China to jeopardize Saudi Vision 2030 and Dubai Expo 2020.

The internet has provided fertile ground for breeding and amplifying state-sponsored fake news and propaganda campaigns. In an era of social distancing and increased reliance on social media, allowing these narratives to spread unchallenged and unpunished undermines an effective pandemic response — and more widely — peace and democracy.


Written by Saoussen Ben Cheikh

Netflix picks up ‘Resgate,’ the first Mozambican film to appear on the platform

African productions are gaining traction on Netflix

Translation posted 29 June 2020


Resgate (Redemption) featured on Netflix (screenshot by Dércio Tsandzana).

For the first time, a Mozambique-made independent film will be shown on Netflix. The feature film “Resgate” (translated in English as “Redemption”) was written and directed by Mickey Fonseca, who is from Mozambique, and will premiere on the platform in July.

“Resgate” was partially financed via crowdfunding and was filmed in Mozambique in 2017. The film's plot was summarized by the Portuguese newspaper Público:

Translation
Original Quote


Resgate focuses on the story of Bruno. After spending four years in prison, Bruno wants to change his life and finally get to know the baby daughter he shares with Mia.

He tries to find work as a mechanic, a job he is familiar with, and is initially unsuccessful. Eventually his aunt, who is the sister of his recently-deceased mother, gets him a job in a garage.

But Bruno's new life is unexpectedly blown apart when the bank threatens to evict him from his mother's house if he does not pay back the loan that she, unbeknownst to him, took out before she died. He then returns to a life of crime.






Resgate had a commercial cinematic release in Mozambique, Angola, and Portugal in 2019. It was also shown at festivals in Burkina Faso and Zimbabwe.

In the same year, the film won the Africa Movie Academy Awards (AMA Awards) for Best Screenplay and Best Production Design. The awards are held annually in Nigeria and are the most prestigious in the world for African cinema. It was also awarded the Courageous Film Award at the Film Fest Zell in Austria.

Fonseca told the Mozambican Ministry of Culture that he feels honoured to see his film broadcast by one of the biggest online streaming services in the world:

Translation
Original Quote


Resgate was really well received on a national level, which was exciting for us because we sacrificed a lot and used our own means to make the film. We're bringing the film to the rest of the world in an accessible way.

The film will be available on Netflix with English dubbing, which was well-received on Mozambican Twitter:


💣 BOAS NOTÍCIAS! 💣
A NETFLIX decidiu avançar com a dobragem do RESGATE para língua inglesa, para que o filme tenha maior alcance mundial! 🤩🖤🎬
O lançamento do RESGATE na plataforma de streaming irá acontecer em Julho, mas não no dia 01.
Atentem às novidades! pic.twitter.com/UoKUTSsGUm

— Resgate (@Filme_resgate) June 23, 2020


GREAT NEWS! NETFLIX gave the go-ahead to dubbing RESGATE in English so the film can reach a wider global audience!

RESGATE will be released on the streaming platform in July, at some point after the 1st of the month. Look out for updates!

Todos estamos felizes por ter resgate no Netflix
Nós podemos fazer parte duma revolução artística, imaginem todas outras indústrias a crescer, música, artes visuais etc. Acreditem na nossa arte, temos muito a oferecer e vocês só tem de acreditar e dar UMA CHANCE. Não é difícil
— MICHALUK 🥑 (@Michaluk_) June 18, 2020


We are all happy that resgate is on Netflix.

It allows us to be part of an artistic revolution! Just imagine how other industries will evolve – music, visual arts etc. They believe in our art and we have a lot to offer, so all you have to do is believe in us too and give us A CHANCE. It's not hard.

African productions have recently been featuring more prominently on Netflix. The selection includes the South African series “Queen Sono”, which is the first Netflix original series to be produced entirely in Africa.

Other African highlights in the platform's catalogue are the cartoon “Mama K's Team 4“, which is also South African, and Nollywood classics such as “Lion Heart” and “Chief Daddy”.


Written by Dércio Tsandzana

Translated by Ayoola Alabi

Mozambicans take to social media to piece together the truth about the Cabo Delgado attacks

Attacks by armed groups started in 2017

Translation posted 11 June 2020


Cabo Delgado bridge, Mozambique. August 4, 2009. Photo by F. Mira via CC BY-SA 2.0.

Twitter users in Mozambique are mobilising to share information on the violence in the province of Cabo Delgado, which has been the site of attacks by armed groups since 2017.

Since the start of the attacks, more than 900 people have been killed. In February this year, a local government report revealed that over 150,000 people had been affected by the conflict. The reason for the attacks is not completely clear, but there is some evidence that they are linked to an Islamic extremist group.

Read more: New video gives clues about motives behind attacks in northern Mozambique


In mid-May, the Mozambican government joined other presidents from southern Africa at a high-level conference in an apparent attempt to generate external support for the fight against insurgency.

Days later, the president of Mozambique announced the death of two of the leaders behind the attacks in the north.

Many of the attacks have subsequently been revealed in videos and photos on social media, sometimes by the attackers themselves. In the absence of adequate information from the authorities, some users are trying to make sense of this content on social media:


#CaboDelgado as coisas pioram dia após dia, #massacres atrás de massacres, destruição de vilas umas das outras. Para quando o apoio militar da #SADC ?🤔

#CaboDelgado the situation is deterioriating day after day, #massacre [HYPERLINK] after massacre, destruction of one town after the next. How long until military assistance from the #SADC?

— Egídio João (@Egidio_E_Joao) June 3, 2020


Afinal o que está acontecer em Cabo Delgado (Moçambique)?

After all of this, what is happening in Cabo Delgado (Mozambique)?

A Thread pic.twitter.com/kcVVZDBiTp

— Withney Osvalda (@withneysabino) June 1, 2020


Okok
THREAD CABO DELGADO
Peço que deixem aqui em baixo toda informação que há disponivel sobre o que está a acontecer em Cabo Delgado, vamo nos ajudar a ajudar, invés de reclamarem só!!

Okok

CABO DELGADO THREAD

Please add below any information available on what is happening in Cabo Delgado, let’s help ourselves to help, instead of just complaining!!

— soh fee uh (@smaquile) June 1, 2020


Para podermos ajudar temos que ter informação, e isso o governo não está a publicar, temos que estar a basear-nos em mouth to mouth information e videos fora de contexto que nos mandam de lá…

So that we can help ourselves we need to have information, which our government isn’t publishing, we need to rely on mouth to mouth information and videos beyond what they are giving us…

— druegas, sole da (@Queen_Tassy1) June 1, 2020


Lembrei de ter lido nalgum lugar que a forma mais fácil de roubar terra é criando instabilidade ao ponto dos proprietários fugirem. Não há terra mais barata do que aquela em conflito e miséria. Agora pergunto… a quem interessa comprar Cabo-Delgado?

I remember reading somewhere that the easiest way to steal land is to create instability to the point that owners flee. There’s no land cheaper than where there’s conflict and misery. Now I wonder who would be interested in buying in Cabo Delgado?

— manteiga de karité, bebé (@Leocadeea) June 1, 2020

Some have noted the fact that events outside of Mozambique appear to be receiving less attention than those taking place inside:


Tenho visto em muitos Moçambicanos “Black life’s Matter” e menos “Pray for Cabo Delegado”…

I have seen many Mozambicans with more “Black Lives Matter” and less “Pray for Cabo Delgado”

— 𝗕𝗮𝘃𝘆 (@Djbavy) June 3, 2020

Also being shared are warnings about misinformation:


Mas muita atenção com a informação proliferada por este senhor, já várias vezes foi confrontado por mostrar imagens que não são de Cabo Delgado e ele tenta passar as images como “exclusivas”!

But beware the information shared by this man. He’s already been confronted for showing images that aren’t of Cabo Delgado and he is attempting to pass them off as exclusive!

— Micah Dunduro (@Donduro88) June 2, 2020

A movement has also resurfaced with the aim of organizing solidarity campaign in support of those affected by the escalating violence in Cabo Delgado:


Estamos a preparar a 4a Fase da campanha de solidariedade nacional por Cabo Delgado. Precisamos de voluntários para pré-organização
Por favor partilhem com os vossos amigos que possam ajudar-nos com cartazes e vídeos da convocatória✌🏽#CaboDelgado_também_é_Moçambique#CaboDelgado

We are preparing the 4th phase of the national campaign for solidarity for Cabo Delgado. We need volunteers for the pre-organisation phase. Please share with your friends who are able to help us with poster and video calls to actions #CaboDelgado_também_é_Moçambique#CaboDelgado

— Cídia Chissungo (@Cidiachissungo) June 3, 2020


Quem puder ajudar de alguma forma:#CaboDelgado #CABODELGADOIMPORTA pic.twitter.com/Itnq9V507K

If anybody can help in any way: #CaboDelgado #CABODELGADOIMPORTA pic.twitter.com/Itnq9V507K

— Alícia Cossa (@alicia_cossa) June 3, 2020


Written byDércio Tsandzana

Translated byAyoola Alabi

Tanzanian women’s savings and loan groups in flux during COVID-19

Members struggle to pay back loans and restore group capital

Posted 11 June 2020


A skills training for current and prospective members of vicoba in Dunga, Zanzibar. Photo by Jessica Ott, used with permission.

Editor’s note: Jessica Ott studied women’s civil society organizing in Tanzania. This article is informed by research and fieldwork for her dissertation, “Women's rights in repetition: Nation-building, solidarity and Islam in Zanzibar.”

Vicoba, which stands for “village community banks,” are ubiquitous microfinance savings and loan institutions across Tanzania.

The majority of members are women who rely on vicoba to provide access to credit for business and other living expenses. Women widely describe these groups as a way to reduce their economic dependence on men and enable social solidarity.

Vicoba provide members with credit access during times of financial hardship, but they are not structured to support members during a societal level crisis — such as a drought or a pandemic — when everyone needs to borrow at the same time.

When Tanzania issued a stay-at-home order in March 2020 to prevent the spread of COVID-19 — essentially closing its economy for several months — most vicoba ceased to meet.

The World Bank issued a press release on June 8 that predicts a sharp slowdown of economic growth in 2020 due to COVID-19. Tourism operators forecasted revenue losses of 80 percent or more in 2020, and the crisis could push 500,000 more citizens below the poverty line.

Now, many women members are unable to contribute toward group savings or to pay back loans, which has raised concerns about how vicoba will cope with the long-term financial effects of the coronavirus.

As vicoba members struggle to pay back loans, a decline in group capital has limited the ability of members to borrow, according to a news report in The Citizen.

Women’s participation in vicoba has shifted gender norms and enabled women’s economic agency — to varying degrees — but as groups experience the financial strain of COVID-19, vicoba are in limbo.
An overview of vicoba

Vicoba have operated in Tanzania since the early 2000s. They were inspired in part by a Village Savings and Loan Association (VSLA) model that was first implemented by the Cooperative for Assistance and Relief Everywhere (CARE) in Niger in 1991.

Before vicoba, women participated in rotating credit associations and informal economic activities in Dar es Salaam at an unprecedented level in the late 1980s and early 90s, according to political scientist Aili Mari Tripp. At that time, Tanzania was transitioning from first President Julius Nyerere’s socialist project of Ujamaa (Swahili: “Familyhood”) and enacting structural reforms to liberalize its economy.

Established during a subsequent era of rapid global microfinance expansion, vicoba have been adapted to Tanzanian cultural contexts. They are usually self-initiated and self-sustaining, unlike borrower groups who acquire credit and accrue debt through formal microfinance banks. Women often establish vicoba with family members, neighbors, friends, and/or work colleagues.

In Zanzibar, the semi-autonomous archipelago off the coast of mainland Tanzania, where the majority are Muslim, many women give their savings groups names that allude to the socialist past or to Islam, like Umoja ni Maendeleo (Unity is Development) and Tunaomba Mungu (We Humbly Ask for God’s Support) groups — both on the island of Pemba.

Individual members buy into vicoba with shares, which enables them to take out loans to support their own business ventures or other living expenses, like health care costs or school fees.

Group members collaboratively determine the amount and terms of individual loans, such as the interest rate and length of repayment. When groups have excess funds, they instigate collaborative income-generating projects with earnings going back to the group.
Vicoba and unity

Vicoba help women meet their own financial needs, but they also enable and strengthen the notion of umoja or “unity,” which embodies ideas of community and mutual support.

A recent Twitter poll highlights the ubiquity of vicoba in Tanzania. Twitter user habimana playfully asked her 18,300 followers:


Mpira – unawaleta wanaume pamoja

Cartoon – zinawaleta watoto pamoja

Nini kinawaleta wanawake pamoja??

— habimana (@uwimano) June 3, 2020


If football brings men together, and cartoons bring children together, then what brings women together?

Over 850 people — mostly men — responded to the poll. The most common, somewhat disparaging response was umbea (“gossip”), closely followed by vicoba and hair salons.

Twitter user Abdulraheem cheekily tweeted:


Wazamani umbea, wasasa vikoba na vikundi vya ushirika

— Abdulraheem (@ibn_sayid) June 3, 2020


For women in the past, it was gossip, but for women today, it's vicoba and other savings groups.
Shifting ideas about gender and household finances

Twitter commentary about vicoba also sheds light on shifting gender norms and household economics in Tanzania.

Twitter user Myra complained to her more than 5,900 followers about the propensity of men to force their wives to wash laundry by hand rather than buying washing machines:


Sema watoto wa kiume mnapenda tu kuwatesa wake zenu na hizi issue za kufua. Washing machine hadi laki 5 zipo. Nasema mke coz kama hujaolewa ukajifanya we dobi utakuwa umeamua.

— 𝓜𝓨𝓡𝓐 (@alwaysmyra) May 29, 2020


Hey, you young men just enjoy persecuting your wives with this issue of hand washing clothes. Even if you have the 500,000 [Tanzanian shillings or $250 United States dollars] for a washing machine. I say ‘wife’ because if you haven't gotten married yet and you do, you will have decided to become a laundry woman.

In response, Twitter user Mgwabi Mwambi challenged Myra for putting too much financial responsibility on men:


Hata watoto wa kike waliiolewa, wanapenda tu kujitesa kufua kwa mikono, washing machine hadi lako 5, wanaweza tu kujibana kwa pesa za VICOBA wakanunua na wala sio kusubiria mume anunue kila kitu.

— Mgwabi Mwambi (@JakaMgwabi) May 29, 2020


Even young women who are married, they enjoy persecuting themselves by hand washing clothes. If a washing machine is about 500,000 [$250 USD], which they can reach with their vicoba savings, then they can buy their own rather than waiting for their husbands to pay for everything.

The Twitter exchange highlights changing ideas and social norms related to the division of household labor and finances in Tanzania — and how vicoba play a role.
Microfinance during COVID-19

The situation in Tanzania points to the vulnerability of microfinance savings and loan groups worldwide when faced with large-scale crises.

During the Ebola outbreak in West Africa, restrictions on movement limited women’s economic activities, which drastically reduced the capital of savings and loan groups in Liberia and Guinea, according to a report by the United Nations Development Group.

Several humanitarian agencies have issued emergency measures and guidelines to mitigate the health and economic effects of the coronavirus on microfinance initiatives. CARE, with 357,000 VSLA groups in 51 countries, issued emergency guidelines for supporting savings and loan groups.
The future of vicoba in Tanzania

Some vicoba leaders on Tanzania’s mainland have considered emergency measures like extending loan repayment terms and reducing the interest rates on existing loans, according to The Citizen.

One possible emergency measure may be a government bailout. The Citizen reported that the Ministry of Finance and Planning was conducting a COVID-19 economic impact assessment and would provide recommendations for vicoba and other savings and loan groups. Its emphasis on recommendations, however, suggests that governmental financial assistance may not be forthcoming.

If women default on their loans, group members may decide to liquidate their assets to recoup group debts, which could potentially devastate vicoba and strain social relationships. Members may also decide to accept their COVID-19 related losses.

Vicoba — which provide community, mutual support and human connection — may help women mitigate the financial pangs of the coronavirus.


Written byJessica Ott

Fish prices spike as Cameroon’s mangroves face total depletion 

Cameroon's mangroves could 'vanish without action'

Posted 20 June 2020


A man walks through the mangroves in a wildlife reserve in Manoka, a town and commune in the Littoral Region of Cameroon, Manoka island, south of the Wouri estuary, within the Douala Edéa Wildlife Reserve, Cameroon. Photo via Piqsel, public domain.

In Cameroon, extensive mangrove systems provide an abundance to the communities that surround them. From firewood to fish, communities have depended on mangroves, locally known as matanda, for years.

These low-lying, tide-resistant shrubs grow in salty water and cover nearly 60 percent of the southwest region alone, but also spread across three regions: Rio de Ray, Wouri Estuary Douala and Ntem South, according to Ekwadi Songe, southwest regional delegate of environment, nature protection and sustainable development.

Due to overfishing and overharvesting its wood, mangroves have seriously depleted in recent years. Sea level rise due to climate change also threatens the mangrove ecosystem. Now, during the COVID-19 pandemic, a spike in the price of fish is largely blamed on mangrove depletion.

Jocien Siyir Kinyuy, a student living in Buea, the southwest regional capital, told Global Voices that the price of fish has definitely increased in the market during the pandemic. “I used to buy a kilogram of fish for 650 francs [$1.11 United States dollars] but now I get it at 750 francs [$1.28 USD], sometimes 800 [$1.37 USD],” she said.

Kinyuy notes that most fish at the market is now imported, driving the prices up even higher. “From my experience, it’s even more expensive to buy from the petit traders down at Limbe beach who buy from the fishermen,” adding that foreign companies dominate the market and pay high taxes. However, Cameroon placed a temporary ban on importing fish from China due to the coronavirus in February.

As of 2010, Cameroon’s mangroves were nearly 75 percent depleted, but today’s figures are likely much higher, according to the Andalou Agency.

“If mangroves go extinct, fish will finish in Cameroon,” said Songe, the southwest regional delegate.
Fish supply and demand

Mangroves offer a variety of benefits to surrounding communities, providing a favorable environment for most fish species — including crabs — to reproduce, according to Chechua Manzo, a master’s student in natural resource management in Cameroon. They are also home to many migratory birds.

Mangrove roots act as good speed brakes for waves, providing calmer waters for toddler fish and crabs to lay eggs. In 2009, over 5,000 tons of fish were sourced from the mangroves, according to a study reported in BusinessCameroon. “Bossu, bar, mulet, machoiron are some of the types fished in these mangroves — the most sought after by consumers,” the report said.

This year, the Ministry of Livestock, Fisheries and Animal Industries reported that it imports 200,000 tons of fish yearly to make up for its low national production and a national demand estimated at about 400,000 tons of fish per year.

Over the years, fishing communities have placed immense pressure on mangroves, where over 80 percent of the population relies on mangrove wood to smoke and preserve their fish.

“Passing along the village streets of Yoyo [Littoral coastal Sanaga-Maritime area], one can see hips of harvested mangroves … and the people say it’s comfortable … to use [the wood] as fuel to smoke their fish,” Manzo explained.

On Twitter, Regina Fonjia Leke explained how this crisis plays out in the town of Mouanko, Sanaga-Maritime area:


2500 cubic metres of #Mangroves are lost everyday in #Mouanko #Cameroon. They are harvested to smoke fish n this pressure has led to a drastic reduction in the pop of this vital https://t.co/dX4mGIydMI local NGO,CWCS is trying to turn the tides. Watch how https://t.co/vXFsxI1utc

— Regina Fonjia Leke (@ReginaLeke) December 28, 2018

“The main threat to mangroves is the Nipa palm [variety],” Manzo told Global Voices, adding that extensive construction in Cameroon’s Littoral region has seriously threatened its extinction in this region.

Meanwhile, Cameroon’s Ministry of Forests and Wildlife sells mangrove timber used for construction on destroyed mangrove areas for less than one dollar, according to the Andalou Agency.
Mangrove conservation

The government has made several efforts to safeguard Cameroon’s mangrove ecosystems. In 2006, Cameroon signed the Ramsar Convention, the only international legislation that focuses specifically on wetlands conservation. In March 2007, Cameroon created its own National Ramsar Committee on Wetlands.

At that time, the Ministry of Environment decreed that 30 percent of Cameroon’s land should be preserved for natural resources, including mangroves, and “this 30 percent … is divided across five agroecological zones,” explained Songe, the southwest regional environment delegate.

In 2006, the government worked with the Food and Agriculture Organization to encourage local communities to find alternate ways to smoke fish instead of harvesting mangrove wood.

These efforts continue in various ways:


Visit to Manoka island with @CIFOR, where the #Cameroon team is working with a local women association to develop a more efficient technology to smoke fish using less wood to protect the mangroves! pic.twitter.com/81fuc4Csyz

— Ahtziri Gonzalez (@ahtzirigonzalez) March 4, 2020


Fishing (for men) and fish smoking (for women) are the only livelihoods in the island. This is why @CIFOR and its partners are helping the community to better manage natural resources. pic.twitter.com/wvuOwRRgL6

— Ahtziri Gonzalez (@ahtzirigonzalez) March 4, 2020

In 2011, the government invested in reforestation efforts, “but the wood is often cut down in less than three years and with the government’s permission,” explained Langmi Moses, who heads a mangrove conservation agency, to Andalou Agency. He continued:


By cutting down mangrove trees that have been planted in less than three years and with the government's permission, operators are destroying the mangroves and preventing their regeneration. … We can't reforest all the time when our work is destroyed after two years.

In 2013, Cameroon spent 3 billion francs or $5,123,043 USD on mangrove conservation and managed to preserve over 195,000 hectares.

However, overexploitation continues to be the main cause of mangrove depletion, according to Jean Marie Tchouala Wabo, a Cameroonian forest manager.

“These mangroves are being vandalized under the watchful eye of the government,” he told Anadolu Agency.

Netizen Magdalene Ngeve laments that “Cameroon's mangroves could vanish without action”:


What a sad reality about the mangroves of my home country! I have been studying these mangroves for a while now and I must say something urgent needs to be done to turn the tides around.
Cameroon's mangroves could vanish without action https://t.co/ROdAczQbR1

— Magdalene Ngeve (@MagdaleneNgeve) January 25, 2020


Written byBoris-Karloff Batata

The rise of artemisia in Cameroon in the fight against COVID-19

'Shouldn't Africa take a deeper look at natural medicines?'

THE STAR CALLED WORMWOOD

The Bible

Posted 8 June 2020

The artemisia plant has long been used as a medicinal herb to cure malaria and other ailments in Cameroon and throughout Africa. Screenshot from “The malaria business: Big pharma vs natural medicine,” a documentary by Franc24 via YouTube.

When Cameroon recorded its first COVID-19 case on March 6 in Yaounde, the capital, public health officials reassured citizens that the government would take swift measures to contain the spread of the virus, including compulsory face masks in public areas.

But the virus rapidly spread and also wreaked havoc on its economy.

By March 17, when Prime Minister Joseph Dione Ngute announced 13 guidelines to stem the spread, 10 people had tested positive. Since March, Cameroon has recorded 8,060 cases, with over to 200 dead and over 4,700 recovered cases since June 8.

Yet, on April 30, Ngute eased various COVID-19 measures, following an inter-ministerial committee meeting aimed at restoring the economy and local markets.

As the coronavirus cases continue to soar in Cameroon, many who believe in local herbs have turned to the artemisia plant as the government plans to reopen the country. Most Cameroonians believe in the efficacy of the artemisia plant to treat malaria and other illnesses.

Conglad Ngwa, a plant scientist and fungi researcher at the University of Buea, told Global Voices that the edible artemisia plant can treat headaches and stomach disorders, in addition to many other ailments.

On April 25, Archbishop of the Douala Metropolitan Diocese, Samuel Kleda announced over the national broadcaster CRTV that he has come up with an herbal treatment for COVID-19 that features the artemisia plant. Archbishop Kelda said:

Given that I already knew the plants according to the symptoms of the coronavirus, I have simply put together these combinations, prepared them and given to persons with the symptoms and they were relieved.

Kleda has about 30 years of research experience with medicinal plants, with a focus on herbal treatment for ailments affecting the respiratory system.

The government of Cameroon took some time to react to the clergy’s treatment of the coronavirus, raising questions among Cameroonians. Surprisingly, on May 19, President Paul Biya encouraged the use of homemade treatments to beat the dreaded coronavirus in a televised address to the nation.

The president’s call prompted Cameroonians to further rely on the local herbal combination to treat COVID-19 symptoms. The potency of artemisia — also known as wormwood or absinthe — has caused an upsurge in its cultivation in Cameroon.

The common recipe includes lime, lemon, pineapple, fever grass — and the artemisia plant, boiled and drunk as a tea.

When I flew to Cameroon few months ago, I was given this ‘Artemesia’ tea to drink, as a preventive shield against malaria.

Interesting to learn it may offer some level of immunity against CoronaVirus too, should be further studies on this plant's properties vs. Covid-19 👁️👁️ https://t.co/LYF5RY0qbY

— FLOЯIΛN 🏁 (@Florianaire) May 1, 2020

Atoh Mercy Acca, an accountant working in Doula, Cameroon, told Global Voices that her parents sent her pre-prepared traditional herbs for her to boil and drink after she complained that her boss’ family were exhibiting coronavirus symptoms:

As soon as I informed my parents about my boss whose child died of an alleged COVID-19, my parents did not hesitate to send my bottles of traditional herbs for me to boil and drink.

Bekondo Nestorine, a printing press clerk in Limbe, Cameroon, told Global Voices that he and his colleagues boil and drink the artemisia plant nearly three times a day in his office, including ginger to fortify their immune systems.

A return to growing artemisia plants

Asaba Lynda, an environmental enthusiast working with the southwest regional delegation of environmental nature protection and sustainable development, told Global Voices that “it is thanks to the coronavirus that lots of persons have turned back to growing plants — especially those they think help in the treatment of the virus.”

Set Ekwadi Songe, another regional delegate, expressed concern about a possible shortage of the artemisia plant due to its surge in popularity as an essential ingredient in herbal home remedies:

As people want to protect themselves from COVID-19, many herbalists, many traditional practitioners, are now going to nature to look at all types of species to produce cures, hence tampering with the existence of such species. Like the artemisia plant, it’s going to be difficult for us to get the plant because everybody wants it to treat COVID-19.

Delegate Songe added, however, that he is happy because the plant is there to help the population.

Respecting traditional medicine

The rise of artemisia as a respected plant is not a surprise in Cameroon, where traditional healers have used the plant for centuries to cure a host of ailments including malaria.

Now that the pharmaceutical world has recognized the efficacy of the plant in potential cures for contagious diseases, there's been an increase in artemisia plantations, both large and small. This may be perceived as an affront to big pharmaceutical companies who attempt to control its production, according to Irene Teis, in her blog for Malaria World. Last year, she wrote:

Artemisia plantations are spreading like a bushfire all over Cameroon, under the vigilant eye of universities and local organizations who avoid that the plant is improperly cultivated, handled and used.

Teis claims that the lives of traditional healers have been threatened and local artemisia plantations have been destroyed by police:

Several cases of murder or attempted murder have become known recently. It is also discouraging for them that their research and numerous clinical trials are ignored or depreciated by the medical neocolonialism, mostly by French experts.

The artemisia plant recently made headline news when Madasgar President Andry Rajoelina put forth the claim that COVID organics, a locally-produced herbal concoction featuring artemisia, could cure symptoms caused by the virus.

The World Health Organization quickly dismissed the efficacy of COVID organics, insisting there is no known cure for COVID-19, but the leaders of several African nations signed on to the product, including Tanzania and Comoros.

Netizen Kathleen Ndongmo made a plea on Twitter for further research on the power of traditional plants and herbs to cure contagious viruses.

Madagascar's recently released #COVID19 drug is largely artemesia based.

Now, shouldn't #Africa have a council of experts taking a deeper look at the natural medicines we've used for years?

How many of us “swear” by lemongrass, pineapple skin tea, hibiscus, paw-paw leaves?

— Kathleen Ndongmo (@KathleenNdongmo) April 30, 2020


Written by Boris-Karloff Batata

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Bioactive Compounds and Health Benefits of Artemisia Species

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Manisha Nigam, Maria Atanassova, Abhay P. Mishra, ...

First Published July 24, 2019 Review Article

https://doi.org/10.1177/1934578X19850354

Article information

 

Abstract

Artemisia L. is a genus of small herbs and shrubs found in northern temperate regions. It belongs to the important family Asteraceae, one of the most numerous plant groupings, which comprises about 1000 genera and over 20000 species. Artemisia has a broad spectrum of bioactivity, owing to the presence of several active ingredients or secondary metabolites, which work through various modes of action. It has widespread pharmacological activities and has been used as traditional medicine since ancient times as an anthelmintic, antispasmodic, antirheumatic, and antibacterial agent and for the treatment of malaria, hepatitis, cancer, inflammation, and menstrual-related disorders. This review comprises the updated information about the ethnomedical uses and health benefits of various Artemisia spp. and general information about bioactive compounds and free radicals.

Traditional and Current Uses

One of the most known plants of the genus Artemisia is A. absinthium L., commonly known as “wormwood,” a yellow-flowering perennial plant distributed throughout various parts of Europe, the Middle East, North Africa, and Asia, and several chemotypes have been recognized.¹³ The plant is used for its antiparasitic effects and to treat gastrointestinal problems, anorexia, and indigestion.¹⁴ The aerial parts are present in many gastric herbal preparations, in dietary supplements, and in alcoholic beverages, for example, absinthe products, which enjoy a resurgence of popularity all over the world.^2,15 Moreover A. absinthium and other plants of this genus were used to control pain in childbirth and to induce abortions.^5-17

In North African and Middle Eastern countries, A. abyssinica Sch. Bip. ex A. Rich. is used in folk medicine as an anthelmintic, antispasmodic, antirheumatic, and antibacterial agent.¹⁸ This plant grows abundantly in various parts of the Arabian peninsula and is locally known as “ather” (Saudi Arabia) and “boitheran” (Yemen).^2,19,20

AS DOC SPICE LOCAL ALCHYMIST I PRODUCED ABSINTHE IN THE 1980'S USING WORMWOOD AND PERNOD. IN FACT ABSINTHE WAS MADE BY PERNOD IN THE 19TH CENTURY, AND THE WORMWOOD WAS SIMPLY REMOVED FROM THE RECIPE ONCE ABSINTHE WAS BANNED IN EUROPE.