Show host publishes debut novel

By Tsion Aklilu

‘Shay-Buna’ talk show host Solomon Shumie has published his first novel ‘Gemena’.
The book was officially launched on February 26, 2007 at the National Theater.
A crowd at the Theater is not new but on Monday it was extraordinary. The hall was packed to celebrate Solomon’s book launch.
Scholars and guests were part of the crowd extending their support to Solomon. President of Ethiopian Writers Association, Ato Getachew Belete (a.k.a Daglas Petros) and Executive of Language Unit at ECA, Ato Getaneh Anteneh, delivered speeches as guests of honor.
“This is a big gift for Ethiopian literature. The timing of the book is perfect,” said Getachew at the launch night. He also gave the crowd information about the authors view point in writing. “He knows his potential very well. This we can see on his settings for the book.”
Love, homosexuality and other social issues are raised. According to Getaneh, the topics touched by Solomon do exist in real life but were taboos it. “I want to see the book from three sides. First, about its theme. It is about inferiority and identity crisis in the community. Second, the style of writing. The characters are strong, the narrator is neutral and third, the writer’s approach to the center of the gravity. Minor and major characters play equal roles.”
Artist Shimels Bekele and Meseret were the respected artists at the night of the launching and presented readings from the book.
In 1995, Solomon published a book of poetry called ‘Mistire’ (secret). His first fiction. ‘Gemena’ was already finalized in 1992. What took Solomon this long to publish his book? He explains it honestly, “I was from an underprivileged family. Let alone publish a book, we could not afford to live a dignified life. I find that now is the best time because I have the capacity.” He added, “I did not change a word from the first draft. I read it and it was still good and I had a fear that if I changed a single word from it, the story will be a different story and I would not dare do that.’”
Pathfinder International and US Aid have taken 4000 copies to distribute to various libraries. According to Solomon, about 10 thousand copieshave been published.

Africa’s top film festival opens

Africa’s biggest film festival has opened in Ouagadougou, the capital of Burkina Faso, showcasing some of the best films from across the continent.
The Pan-African Film and Television Festival, Fespaco, is a biennial event that has been running since 1969.
Fespaco is vital for African directors because African films struggle to find a market, both in Africa and in the rest of the world, correspondents say.
More than 200 films were shown at the festival, which runs until 3 March.
Cinemas have been closing in many African countries, leading the monthly magazine Continental to describe the African film industry as “in crisis”.
For many involved in the film industry, Fespaco has become a hugely important event.
“It has succeeded because it is a necessity. It is the only cultural space for Africans,” Rasmane Ouedrago, an actor from Burkina Faso, told Reuters news agency.
“In Cannes, Venice, Berlin, you don’t see as many of our films,” he said.
Clash with West
This year’s Fespaco was opened with a lavish ceremony at which 40,000 people watched displays of horsemanship and traditional dancing, and listened to rap stars and boy bands dressed in green army fatigues.
Among the performers was Burkina Faso’s top rap group, Yelen.
The top prize, the Etalon d’Or de Yennenga, of the Golden Stallion of Yennenga, will be awarded to the best feature film.
This year, the vast majority of the films on show are in French, despite the recent rise of South African cinema.
Many of the films deal with issues of traditional values and modernity. Another emerging theme seems to be the clash between Africa and the West, says the BBC’s James Copnall in Ouagadougou.
Bad news however was that two visitors were killed in a stampede during the opening ceremony of the film festival. About 15 persons were reported injured during the stampede on Saturday. The accident has already cast a shadow on Africa’s leading film festival.
The deadly stampede occurred when officials opened the gates to the Ouagadougou open air stadium to let the large crowd into the Fespaco festival’s free opening celebrations on Saturday, which also featured the famous Malian singer Salif Keita. Thousands immediately started rushing to the most shaded parts of the stadium, to hide from the burning sun and heat.
In the chaos that followed, tens of persons fell below the quickly moving crowd. According to Ouagadougou authorities, at least two persons were killed in the stampede and between ten and twenty visitors suffered injuries. The two deaths were both reported to be young girls.
Few people believe Ouagadougou is a real place much less the capital of a West African country and the home of the world’s largest festival of African films. But the Pan-African Film and Television Festival (FESPACO) is held every other year in the very real and vibrant capital of Burkina Faso. One of the world’s great international cinema events, the festival attracts celebrities like Whoopi Goldberg and Danny Glover along with many
thousands of international film fanatics
FESPACO has had some economic difficulties over its 30-year history but it has never sold out to corporate or political investors and has retained its African leadership and original mission: “To distribute and develop African cinema as a means of expression, education, and awareness raising.” The festival electrifies Ouagadougou with a carnival-like energy; festival-goers are certain to be swept away by the contagious excitement which spills out of the cinemas into the busy streets in the form of dancing, food festivals, and general celebration. For more information, visit www.fespaco.bf.
Burkina Faso is usually overlooked as a travel destination simply because of its location. Yet it is precisely because of its land-locked situation that the country has preserved its heritage much better than some of its better-known and more modernized neighbors. A trip to this little Sahelian country shouldn’t be missed by anyone who wants to get in touch with Africa’s proudest past and brightest future.

Whitaker and Mirren crowned king, queen of Oscars

He was nominated just for the first time, but his portrayal as former Ugandan dictator Idi Amin Dada earned Forest Whitaker the Oscar in the best actor category. The former college football player had established a film career that wasn’t as glamorous as one would expect, but has participated in movies such as ‘Enemy from within’, ‘Consenting Adults’, ‘The Color of Money’, ‘Blown Away’, ‘Panic Room’ and others.
This would be the fourth time that an African American won the award for best actor following Sidney Poiter for ‘Lilies of the Field’, Denzel Washington for ‘Training Day’ and Jamie Foxx for ‘Ray’.
Whitaker then turned to directing and his debut - ‘Hope Floats’ starring Sandra Bullock, was a hit, encouraging him to continue in that field by directing Whitney Houston in ‘Waiting to Exhale’.
Whitaker’s role as Idi Amin however was a defining point in his career, as he not only displayed the savageness of the dictator, but also displayed the charming side of the now deceased Idi Amin.
Whitaker, who had to learn Swahili and speak the English accent with a serious African dent, was superb in the role and was a deserving winner, even though Will Smith, had a valid shot at the title. The win also comes with Whitakers first real role as a lead in a movie.
Ethiopian sentiment however, always goes with people they know and with both ‘Last King of Scotland’ and ‘Pursuit of Happyness’, and ‘Blood Diamond’, many believed that Will Smith deserved to win the Oscars. The charismatic and versatile actor missed out on the accolade when he was nominated for playing the legendary boxer Mohammed Ali, but lost to Denzel Washington.
“His performance as a struggling father who tries to make a career as a stockbroker should have made Smith the rightful winner of the Oscar,” said Dina Kiros, a chronic film addict in Piazza.
The Oscars however had something to celebrate about as Martin Scorsese, won his first Oscars for directing ‘The Departed’ after 27 years in the business. Scorsese, who according to many is the best director in the history of Hollywood, was nominated for directing ‘Raging Bull’ for ‘The Last Temptation of Christ’ – William Dafoe - for ‘Goodfellas’ – Robert De Niro - for ‘Gangs of New York’ – Leonardo Di Caprio - for ‘The Aviator’, again starring Leoardo Di Caprio.
Dina believes that though ‘The Departed’ was one of the best movies ever made, it shouldn’t have won the best picture award. “There were some better movies in the category and personally, I believe that Babel should have won the award. ‘The Departed’ is a remake of a Hong Kong movie – ‘Infernal Affairs’, it isn’t even original. Babel on the other hand, was skillfully directed, blending three different stories together,” she said.
The viewers at the Oscars must have been deeply disappointed not to see Eddie Murphy win the best supporting actor after loosing out to Alan Arkin (a 40-year career) for his role in ‘Little Miss Sunshine’. Arkin had been nominated in 1969 for Best Actor in a Lead for “The Heart is a Lonely Hunter” and in 1967 for his role in ‘The Russians are coming, the Russians are coming’.
“Eddie Murphy should have won the best actor in a supporting role as he proved that he is not just a comedian, but a serious actor as well. Alan Arkin was given the award as a consolation for all those years of acting,” says an enraged Dina.
Murphy played a singer in ‘Dreamgirls’, a twist from his usual comic roles, prompting many to believe that he was the front runner to win the accolade.
Dame Helen Mirren won the Oscar for best actress for playing Queen Elizabeth II in her latest movie ‘Queen’. Mirren, who was nominated for the award for the third time, faced stiff competition from three-time winner Meryl Streep and Dame Judi Dench who had won the award once before.
“Helen Mirren, I believe, is the right winner of this category, though I was not able to see Penelope Cruz in ‘Volver’,” says Dina.
Mirren was nominated in 1995 for playing in ‘The Madness of King George’ and in 2002 for ‘Gosford Park’. Mirren’s win came as no surprise as critics had stopped talking about that category ever since her Golden globe nomination and win in the same category. She was a sure thing for the night.
Jennifer Hudson, who played Effey White, a proud singer in ‘Dream girls’, showed how to step from success to success as she won the Oscars for the best Actress in a Supporting Role. Jennifer, who was seventh on American Idol last year, has simply stepped into stardom as s he beat a star studded category. What makes this award special is that this was Hudson’s first try.
With ‘Babel’ as the front runner to win the best picture award, ‘The Departed’ won the award to make up for some broken hearts a couple of years ago. Two years ago, ‘The Aviator’, starring Leonardo DiCaprio, directed by Martin Scorsese and produced by Graham King won zilch at the Oscars.
The ‘Aviator’ lost the award to Clint Eastwood’s ‘Million Dollar Baby’ while this time, ‘The Departed’ beat Eastwood’s ‘Letters from Iwo Jima’.

Adwa

As the thunder of the 21 gun salute boomed across Addis early in the morning of Friday, March 2, 2007, Ethiopia awoke to the 111th commemoration of the historic battle of Adwa.
ADWA is a word that evokes the most patriotic of feelings in the hearts of not only Ethiopians but also resonates throughout Africa and the black diaspora.

For Ethiopia, it is the penultimate battle that guaranteed its sovereignty and proved to the world that black men could defeat any would be colonialist power. Scores of independence struggles across Africa were inspired by this famous victory over the Kingdom of Italy, a victory that stands out as one of the finest moments of Ethiopian history.