Wednesday, January 6, 2010 at 1:13pm
Doha, Qatar
The temperature outside is 25 degrees and the workers just finished yet another speed bump inside the compound we live in - Me, myself, and Niam.
A silly Lebanese man kept talking to me in English at the Doha Book Fair, after I selected few English books from a stand. I need to be reassured, I do not look like a foreigner, Heavens forbid. Do I?
I wished his English was good, at least.
A friend introduced two fine Palestinian gentlemen to me at work. One just finished his Masters Degree in Social Services, and the other is a journalist who is finishing his Music studies.
Both of them are physically blind.
In one moment, a prototype like that can set you back on the straight path to realize how much of a tiny nothing you are. And how great you could possibly be.
The ironing board stands alone in the corner of the room, looking me in the eye. It reminds me of my grandma, god bless her soul. When she died, my cousins did not go to school. I was sad.
Why did I have to go when they didn't?
The games we played during the war were all boy games. Girl games were usually to play "school". May used to hold a big yellow wooden block from our toys and use it as a ruler. She asked questions and graded us and all.
One day, Omar's new blue kite got stuck on the electricity lines in Ghazzeh. We used to look at it for years afterwards. There were always pieces of it on the lines.
When I look back there now, I can still see the blue kite. And our faces.
I left my heart once in an old house in Ghazzeh. And when I decided to go get it, it was gone.
Getting humiliated by the authorities in an Arab country is nothing new for an Arab. We are equally animals before the law. A moody officer asked that I be kicked out from a building once. Of course you cannot but collect yourself and get the heck out of the place:
"The officer is ANGRY"!
You are NOTHING in the attendance of an angry Arab officer. You are not anybody's daughter or sister. You are not anybody's employee. You are not a producer in a reputable institution. And you are certainly not a human being.
You. Are. An. Insect. (If you're lucky).
I am old school. I believe the pen is stronger than the weapon. I will WRITE the officer a scene. And I will never forgive him.
We will meet again. And on that day, I will not be the insect.
“Love is what we were born with. Fear is what we learned here.”
1 comment:
Dehumanization, using of force against women, children and unharmed civillian is now a common occurence in our society.
Using Nigeria as a case study; if you dare argue with an angry armed Policeman in Nigeria, you might ended up being shot even though you are right!. If the matter is taken to court, it will never see the light of day and the murderer/policeman will still remain in service. Though, he might probably be transfered to another state/region in Nigeria and the deceased family will not be catered for!.
Over the years, up-to, if not over a thousand innocent Nigerian Driver's and Bus-conductors have been killed by officers of the Nigerian Police Force mostly because of the refusal of the victims to part away with "BRIBES" ranging between Twenty Naira to sometimes, Thousand's of Naira.
Also, people are being un-constitutionally arrested, imprison without trial (not even an unfair one!), harrassed and exloitated (i.e. being forced to pay bail and all sorts of charges for an offence they never committed etc) yet, Nigerian Government looked the other way as innocent citizens are being de-humanized and murdered in cold blood.
Millions of Nigerians are living in un-imaginable fear in there own country and this is one of the reason why a lot of Nigerians are willing to work as SLAVES in foreign land so far they will be FREE!.
It's all insanity but the truth is, it's the reality!
Adewale Folarin
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