Africa 2000

Republic of Zambia

The most lasting memory one returns from interacting with Zambians is their good cheer. Zambians are friendly, understanding and great hosts. The nation also enjoys remarkable stability in which there has never been great disparity of viewpoint and Zambia’s great diversity has become its pillar of peace and stability.
To many Ethiopians- not so young now, Zambia is synonymous with elder statesman Dr.Kenneth Kaunda. It was good to see the great man is still in public life when he visited Addis Ababa a few months ago.
Kenneth Kaunda with that ever present white handkerchief and our very own Haile Sellasie with fingers in royal canopy pose, were a familiar pair as the two Pan-africanists worked together to promote African unity.

Relative to its size, Zambia is under populated and has a density of only 15 people for each square kilometer. There are over seventy distinct ethnic groups in this diverse nation making for a total population of just under 12 million. Roughly a third of all Zambians live in urban areas including the capital Lusaka which has 1,260,000 residents.
The early colonial record of the region shows that present day Zambia was known as northern Rhodesia. Southern Rhodesia was the name of present day Zimbabwe. Zambia became independent from the British on October 24, 1964. The first president Kenneth Kaunda governed up to 1991. His long administration was a form of African socialism so popular at that time, including in Tanzania.
Zambia is Africa’s largest source of copper and the mineral has accounted for a large-portion of its economy for decades. This reliance on a single community, so prevalent among African nations, has brought boom times in periods of high prices and painful slumps in lean years. The 1980’s and 90’s were probably the most difficult for Zambia as global copper prices fell to record lows.
The economic crisis led in 1990 to the first instance of domestic unrest. Elections were called in October 1991 and Fredrik Chiluba was elected as only the second president in nearly thirty years of independence.
The new administration was more market economy oriented and quickly instituted privatization measures including to the strategic copper industry. In 1996, election results were contested as Chiluba claimed another term as president. Political unrest followed and a coup attempt was foiled on October 28, 1997. chiluba supported the candidacy of Levy Patrick Mwanawasa who won elections on December 27, 2001 and again in 2006.

Facts and Figures

Location- South central Africa, Congo on north, Tanzania, Malawi and Mozambique on east, Namibia on south, Angola on west
Area- 752, 614 sq km
Topography- Mostly high plateau, thick forests, crisscrossed by several large rivers including the Zambezi
Population- 11,477,477
Distribution –35% urban
Ethnic Make-up- Bemba, Tonga, Ngoni, Lozi and over 70 others
Languages – English (official), Bemba, Lozi, Kaonda, Lunda, Luvale, Ivanga – over 70 others
Religions –Christian 50%-75%, Muslim and Hindu (24%-49%)
Other cities- Kitwe, Livingstone, Mbala, Ndola
Capital City – Lusaka, pop- 1,260,000
Government Type – Republic
Head of State–President Levy Patric Mwanawasa, since 2002
Currency- Kwacha (ZMK) 3, 965 = $1 US
Gross Domestic Product - $ 11.6 bln
Per Capita GDP -$ 1000
Economy –Corn, soughum, rice, copper mining and processing, emeralds, zinc, gold
Electricity Production – 8.9 bln kwh
Life Expectancy – 38.3 male, 38.5 female
AIDS Rate – 17 %
Airports – 10
Literacy rate- 68 %
Ports- Mupungu
Rail Roads – 2173 kms
Vehicles –12,000 units
Telephones –93,400 lines
Radios – 145 per 1000 people
TV sets – 145 per 1000 people
Daily newspaper circulation – 21.9 per 1000 people
Internet –500,000 users

Facts and figures are the latest available at time of publication and may not necessarily be the most accurate.

‘The Monster’s Doves’

By Kirubel Tadesse

Directed by: Yafet Zewide
Written by: Tesfaye Abebe
Producer: New Generation University College
Type: Suspense
Duration: 128 min.

There was no way for 'Yodit' to draw customers to the bar her 'Mom' owns, as she rejects what customers usually demand of her. The woman she knows as mom who later proved to be an enemy, is pushing her to a life style Yodit is trying to run away from with the help of her boyfriend, who also happens to be a detective.
Two sisters that arrive in Addis Ababa after years of living in Cuba face calamity as one of Yodit's customers, 'Awurew' (the monster), made them his targets. He killed one of the girls and robbed the other with the help of the taxi driver who works for the girls.
As you witness the brutal murders in the new Amharic film, 'Ye-Awurew Ergeboch' (the Monster Doves) scares you out of your wits as the wonderful acting of the fresh faces shines.
This new Amharic film starts offering a very weak follow up scenes as its plot gets stronger, looking for a smart end, which surprisingly the story teller missed. Everything becomes a matter of chance in 'Ye-Awurew Ergeboch'; the main character, Awurew, kills one of his daughters, tries to rape another, shoots his son and gives away a key lead to the police all by very weak circumstances.
The sergeant character, who is funny, may keep the audience entertained as the film wanders around trying to figure out where to go and when to end.
The author didn't only look amateurish but portrays Ethiopian police officers as unprofessional and totally inexpert, as the police characters had no real plan of conducting the investigation, which was the juncture for all related back stories and upcoming events to run into each other. Even if the 'detective' says that he represents a well trained police force who closely work with Interpol, the fact that he confuses suspects with convicts leads one to believe otherwise. The officers has no clue on how to interrogate witnesses and only suspects, with the exception of the detective in charge who couldn't even save his girl friend from getting beat up in his own office.
The time line of the events also confuses audiences as one scene shows you the detective spending days in hospital and visited by friends, and the next scene shows a character hurt in the same incident going to hospital claiming that it is the next morning after the accident.
Even if the theme of the film says wars cause severe damage to a society which was highlighted by the pain it causes to one family and is inarguably right, the director failed to show any strong connection with his theme and realities observed in this movie. As far as the unfortunate family in Ye-Awurew Ergeboch is concerned, it is the cruelty of one woman that caused the family's suffering even if it is true that the man left his family due to the Ethio-Somali war. But he returned safe and sound to claim his family which was lost not in the war but because of a 'friend's' cruelty. Why the main character of the film decides to become serial killer afterwards, especially with no way of finding out the crime committed against his family and turns around so quickly at the end is also unexplained.
The wonderful acting which includes a college professor couldn't save Ye-Awurew Ergeboch from being a total failure. The film is too weak for the screen and it could serve as a good example of what not to do when making a film.

Marley Film For Festival

‘Africa Unite’, a film highlighting the music of international reggae star, Robert ‘Bob’ Marley will be featured at the 25th annual Miami International Film Festival, which will be staged from February 28 to March 9. The film will be screened on Tuesday (March 4), at the Gusman Theatre in downtown Miami.
Almost two hours long, the documentary film captures footage of the 12-hour concert in Ethiopia in 2005, that celebrated Bob Marley’s 60th birthday and features performances by several international stars, including reggae greats, Rita Marley, Marcia Griffiths, Bob Andy and several of the Marley children.
Directed by US film director, Stephanie Black, the film also features musical renditions from the varied selections by the international recording artiste and depicts the coming together of people from across the globe to share ideas and cultures to unite Africa.
‘Africa Unite’ is among the 169 films selected for this year’s anniversary event from more than 60 countries, and include a wide range of features and short movies, world premieres and international films.
Last year’s screenings included ‘No Place Like Home’, a film produced by the late Jamaican director, Perry Henzell, who also produced the famous Jamaican movie ‘The Harder They Come’.