December 8, 2005

There is a market in Burundi that exclusively deals in articles that depict the life, culture, and history of Africa, indicating that creative activity has gone on despite decades of unrest, writes Rafique Jalal

Art may be like river water that keeps flowing no matter what course comes its way. And artists, at times, may be like birds that flutter their wings, even if they are in cage and unable to fly high. This is perhaps how one might comment upon finding excellent pieces of artwork in wood at a Burundian mall.

Burundi is a small, landlocked country in the heart of Africa. Once called the ‘Switzerland of Africa’ for its beautiful terrain, including a hilly region dropping into the eastern plateau, and its proximity to the picturesque Tanganyika Lake, Burundi, unfortunately, has remained in the grip of ethnic violence ever since it got its independence in July 1962.

At war are two ethnic groups, the Hutu and theTutsi. Though Hutus account for 85 per cent of Burundi’s 6.2 million plus population, the Tutsis with their 14 per cent demographic strength are politically powerful. That despite their absolute majority the Hutus have been effectively kept away from the corridor of power is perhaps the main reason for frequent clashes that have claimed hundreds of thousands of lives over the past decades.

The consequent political instability has never allowed the economic and social sectors to develop, leaving Burundi one of the poorest African countries and a victim of disease and malnutrition.

But human creativity continues to struggle against despair. In downtown Bujumbura, the capital of Burundi, there exists a market that exclusively deals in articles that depict the life, culture, and history of Africa — paintings, sculptures in wood, showpieces, souvenirs, wooden and metal ornaments. Their shops in the market may be rickety, but they are full to the brim, indicating that creative activity has gone on amidst gunfire, killings and curfews.

In both Burundi and the Congo — two countries recently visited by a group of journalists from Pakistan on a trip sponsored by Inter-Services Public Relations — women are seen side by side men whether in running a shop or performing various duties in offices. Rural women — many with their babies in a sort of basket tied to their backs — are particularly conspicuous for their role on farmlands.

During a journey from the Congolese towns of Walangu to Kamynola to Panzi to Uvira, a significant number of women were seen working in the fields — cutting, sowing, watering etc. In reply to a question why women seemed to be more active in practical life than men, an office assistant, Josette Doudou said that decades of violence and bloodshed had left more women behind than men.

A large Pakistan military contingent as part of the UN peacekeeping mission is in the two countries. Ms Doudou suggested that apart from carrying out its peacekeeping operation, the UN should also launch projects in which women breadwinners could get training in various trades so that they could look after their families in a better way.

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