The African Women in Cinema Blog commemorates International Day of Victims of Enforced Disappearances : Annette Kouamba Matondo - Le devoir de mémoire et l’affaire des disparus du Beach

On International Day of Victims of Enforced Disappearances the African Women in Cinema Blog features Annette Kouamba Matondo : The Duty of Memory and the Case of the Beach Disappearances

 

Following are excerpts from the 20 June 2012 interview with Annette Kouamba Matondo by Beti Ellerson.

In your film, One does not forget one forgives, you begin by reading out loud to Sylvie Diclo Pomos, and of course, to the viewers, your intentions for making the film: to recall the Case of the Beach Disappearances in order to remember, because too often there is a tendency to forget. Sylvie Diclo Pomo’s play “Janus’s Madness” is the point of departure of the story and it is through her work and experiences that the film unfolds. At the end, the film plays a cathartic role for you. Why did you choose to focus on the Case of the Beach Disappearances and to tell the story in this way?

Initially it was to be a portrait of Sylvie the artist, and then the film changed dramatically. It was not intentional. At a point during the shooting I began to ask myself questions and I found the answer at the end of the film. I had not mourned my sister’s death. The Case of the Beach Disappearances is a tragedy that touched a lot of Congolese. Many have not yet mourned and even continue to hope for the return of their family members, others are completely devastated. But the most depressing of all is that there was a trial, and all of the accused were acquitted. Even now I cannot really say why I cried at that moment in the film. There were emotions that cannot be controlled. I thought I had forgotten, but no, there, all the past that I had buried away somewhere in my mind resurfaced. At first I did not want to put this part of my life in the documentary, it is a private part of life. But this moment expresses the real question of forgetting. Can one really forget or does one pretend to forget, thus the title, One does not forget one forgives. In this sense I fully agree with Sylvie, that it is necessary to talk, to question, in order not to make the same mistakes. One has the impression to have mourned but there are certain ghosts that are difficult to eliminate. The only therapy that remains is dialogue, sharing those fears, those problems. I think that it is a first step of a long therapy, and I am on the right path to healing. My narrative at the start of each sequence is for me, a travel diary, in order to seize those intense moments and share them with everyone.

What is the history of the Case of the Beach Disappearances and its impact on Congolese society?

In 1999, in an effort towards peace after the civil war, president Denis Sassou Nguesso announced a national reconciliation, signing accords with the Democratic Republic of the Congo and the UNHCR [The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees] for the return of refugees that had fled the civil war to take refuge in Kinshasa. Under the supervision of the UNHCR, the first return of families (adults, women and children) took place via the “Beach crossing” (the river ferry between Brazzaville and Kinshasa), which involved around 1,500 people. According to sources, the moment of their return to Brazzaville these people were arrested and dispatched by convoy to camps or to the presidential quarters. From that moment all traces of them have been lost. Some rumours tell of people being piled up alive in containers that were then sealed and dumped into the river. The number of those who disappeared has been estimated at more than 300 people. After the tragedy, there was a trial that did not establish any facts and to the disappointment of the families, the presumed guilty were acquitted, while other families received compensation. At the present the families are still unaware of what really happened during the crossing and continue to wait for justice: God’s. 

Read the entire interview: https://africanwomenincinema.blogspot.com/2012/06/annette-kouamba-matondo-le-devoir-de.html

Annette Kouamba Matondo: The Duty of Memory and the Case of the Beach Disappearances

Annette Kouamba Matondo’s portrait of artist Sylvie Diclo Pomos is also cathartic. Recalling the Case of the Beach Disappearances, the duty of memory is at the same time a means to liberate her from her ghosts.

Annette, could you talk a bit about how you came to filmmaking?

I think it was meant to be. When I first received Rufin Mbou’s email correspondence about the call for projects for the Talents of Congo, I did not respond immediately because I was already involved in a journalism workshop with the Syfia International agency. But thanks to Rufin’s encouragement, I embarked on this adventure drawing from an initial work that I had presented to AfricaDoc in 2008. So I wrote to François Fronty, the cameraman of the project, and since he was located in France, we started to work together via the Internet. I admit that at the beginning I struggled to follow. François reminded me whenever I was too deep into the skin of a journalist that I had to get rid of this hat in order to wear that of the director. A difficult stage, but I think that having worn both these hats enabled me to create two productions of which, though with some technical imperfections, I am rather proud.

In your film, One does not forget one forgives, you begin by reading out loud to Sylvie Diclo Pomos, and of course, to the viewers, your intentions for making the film: to recall the Case of the Beach Disappearances in order to remember, because too often there is a tendency to forget. Sylvie Diclo Pomo’s play “Janus’s Madness” is the point of departure of the story and it is through her work and experiences that the film unfolds. At the end, the film plays a cathartic role for you. Why did you choose to focus on the Case of the Beach Disappearances and to tell the story in this way?

Initially it was to be a portrait of Sylvie the artist, and then the film changed dramatically. It was not intentional. At a point during the shooting I began to ask myself questions and I found the answer at the end of the film. I had not mourned my sister’s death. The Case of the Beach Disappearances is a tragedy that touched a lot of Congolese. Many have not yet mourned and even continue to hope for the return of their family members, others are completely devastated. But the most depressing of all is that there was a trial, and all of the accused were acquitted. Even now I cannot really say why I cried at that moment in the film. There were emotions that cannot be controlled. I thought I had forgotten, but no, there, all the past that I had buried away somewhere in my mind resurfaced. At first I did not want to put this part of my life in the documentary, it is a private part of life. But this moment expresses the real question of forgetting. Can one really forget or does one pretend to forget, thus the title, One does not forget one forgives. In this sense I fully agree with Sylvie, that it is necessary to talk, to question, in order not to make the same mistakes. One has the impression to have mourned but there are certain ghosts that are difficult to eliminate. The only therapy that remains is dialogue, sharing those fears, those problems. I think that it is a first step of a long therapy, and I am on the right path to healing. My narrative at the start of each sequence is for me, a travel diary, in order to seize those intense moments and share them with everyone.

What is the history of the Case of the Beach Disappearances and its impact on Congolese society?

In 1999, in an effort towards peace after the civil war, president Denis Sassou Nguesso announced a national reconciliation, signing accords with the Democratic Republic of the Congo and the UNHCR [The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees] for the return of refugees that had fled the civil war to take refuge in Kinshasa. Under the supervision of the UNHCR, the first return of families (adults, women and children) took place via the “Beach crossing” (the river ferry between Brazzaville and Kinshasa), which involved around 1,500 people. According to sources, the moment of their return to Brazzaville these people were arrested and dispatched by convoy to camps or to the presidential quarters. From that moment all traces of them have been lost. Some rumours tell of people being piled up alive in containers that were then sealed and dumped into the river. The number of those who disappeared has been estimated at more than 300 people. After the tragedy, there was a trial that did not establish any facts and to the disappointment of the families, the presumed guilty were acquitted, while other families received compensation. At the present the families are still unaware of what really happened during the crossing and continue to wait for justice: God’s.

For Sylvie Diclo Pomos, every Congolese is family, and thus the importance of writing the play. In the film one witnesses the strength of Sylvie Diclo Pomos, who is at the same time very caring. Who is this woman that you portray in your film?

Saying very little at first contact, Sylvie bursts out on stage. Actress, author, director, she is one of the rare female artists in the Congo who dares denounce the ills that plague Congolese society, meeting the existing authorities head-on and laying open on the public square, taboo subjects such as the Case of the Beach Disappearances, which is the focus of “Janus’s Madness”, or challenging journalists in the “The Boss’s Griots”. In this piece, her alert and candid pen is a weapon. Sylvie lights up the stage, careful not to lock herself in simplistic roles. A free woman, thoughtful mother, brilliant actor, and politically committed writer, here is the image that I have of this artist who I admire immensely. To note, shortly she will be in France, in Avignon the 19 to 25 July and in Limoges the 27 September to 6 October.

The title of the film, in fact, is Sylvie Diclo Pomos’ response to you when in an unexpected moment at the end of the film you express the pain of remembering. This film allowed you to “liberate myself from my ghosts.” How have the Congolese public responded to the film? Has it been catharthic for them as well?

There have been two screenings in Brazzaville at the French Institute but it has never been broadcast on television as have the other documentaries produced in the Talents of Congo series. Yes, I think that the film has allowed several people to be able to mourn the deaths of their loved ones. Everyone who has seen it has been affected by it. I really do think that speaking liberates and this film has loosened the tongue, especially during organised discussions after the screenings.

Interview with Annette Kouamba Matondo and translation from French to English by Beti Ellerson, June 2012.


EN FRANÇAIS

Annette Kouamba Matondo : Le devoir de mémoire et l’affaire des disparus du Beach

Le portrait de Sylvie Diclo Pomos par Annette Kouamba Matondo est aussi cathartique. De se rappeler de l’Affaire du Beach, un devoir de mémoire est en même temps un moyen de se libérer de ses fantômes.

Annette, une petite biographie de toi pour élaborer comment tu es venue au cinéma.

Je pense que c’est un coup du destin. Quand j’ai reçu la première fois le mail de Rufin Mbou sur l’appel à projet des talents du Congo, je n’ai pas répondu immédiatement car j’avais une formation sur l’écriture journalistique avec l’agence Syfia International. Mais grâce aux exhortations de Rufin, je me suis lancée dans cette aventure, en m’inspirant d’un premier travail que j’avais présenté à AfricaDoc en 2008. J’ai donc écris à François Fronty l’encadreur du projet et on a commencé à travailler avec ce dernier via le net étant donné qu’il se trouvait en France. J’avoue que j’ai eu du mal au départ à suivre la marche. François me rappelait chaque fois que j’étais trop dans la peau du journaliste et qu’il fallait que je me débarrasse de cette casquette, pour porter celle de la réalisatrice. Une étape difficile, mais je pense que les deux casquettes ont donné naissance à ces deux réalisations qui techniquement ont des choses à revoir mais dont je suis assez fière.

Dans ton film, On n’oublie pas on pardonne tu commences en lisant à voix haute l’intentions pour la réalisation du film à Sylvie Diclo Pomos, et bien sûr, à tes spectateurs : se rappeler de l’Affaire du Beach pour s’en souvenir parce que l’on a trop souvent tendance à oublier. « La folie de Janus » de Sylvie Diclo Pomos est le point de départ de l’histoire du film qui se déroule à travers son œuvre et ses expériences. Pour toi à la fin, le film joue un rôle cathartique. Pourquoi l’Affaire du Beach ? Et pourquoi cette approche pour la raconter?

Au départ, il s’agit du portrait de l’artiste Sylvie, puis le film a basculé. Ce n’était pas intentionnel. À un moment du tournage, j’ai commencé à me poser des questions et j’ai trouvé la réponse à la fin de ce film. Je n’avais pas fait le deuil de ma sœur. Et l’Affaire du Beach est drame qui a touché plus d’un Congolais. Beaucoup n’ont pas encore fait le deuil et espèrent même le retour de certains membres de leurs familles, d’autres se sont affolés, mais le plus déprimant est qu’il y a eu procès, et tous les préjugés coupables ont été acquittés. Aujourd’hui encore je ne peux pas vous dire pourquoi j’ai pleuré à ce moment. Il  y a des émotions qu’on ne contrôle pas, je croyais avoir oublié et non, voilà que tout le passé que j’avais enfoui quelque part dans mon cerveau a rejailli. Au départ je ne voulais pas mettre cette partie de ma vie dans le documentaire, c’est une partie de vie privée. Mais cette partie exprime la véritable question de l’oubli. Peut-on réellement oublier ou fait-on exprès d’oublier. D’où ce titre, « on n’oublie pas on pardonne », en ce sens je suis entièrement d’accord avec Sylvie, qu’il faut parler, interpeller pour qu’on ne puisse plus tomber dans les mêmes erreurs. On croit avoir fait le deuil, mais il y a certains fantômes dont on a du mal à se débarrasser. La seule thérapie reste le dialogue, partager ses soucis, ses problèmes. Je pense que c’est une première étape d’une longue thérapie, et je suis sur la bonne voie vers la guérison. Les récits que je commente au début de chaque séquence sont pour moi comme un carnet de voyage pour me saisir des moments forts et les partager, ces instants, avec tous les gens.

Qu’est-ce c’est l’histoire de l’Affaire du Beach et ses conséquences dans la société congolaise ?

En 1999, dans un souci d'apaisement après la guerre civile, le président Denis Sassou Nguesso annonce la réconciliation nationale. Il signe des accords avec la République Démocratique du Congo et le HCR [Le Haut Commissariat des Nations unies pour les réfugiés] pour le retour des réfugiés qui avaient fui la guerre civile en se réfugiant à Kinshasa. Le premier retour de familles (adultes, femmes, enfants) a lieu par la « traversée du Beach » (navette fluviale qui effectue les liaisons Brazzaville et Kinshasa), et comprend environ 1500 personnes, sous le contrôle du HCR. Ces personnes sont interpellées dès leur arrivée à Brazzaville, et acheminées par convois dans des camps ou vers la Présidence selon les sources. À partir de ce moment, toute trace de ces personnes est perdue. Certaines rumeurs parlent de personnes entassées vivantes dans des containers, qui auraient été soudés et jetés dans le fleuve. Le nombre des disparus étant chiffré à plus de 300 personnes. Après ce drame, il y a eu procès qui n’a établi aucun fait au grand désespoir des familles qui ont vu les soi disant coupables être acquittés et certaines familles être indemnisées. Aujourd’hui, ces familles ignorent toujours ce qui s’est réellement passé lors de cette traversée, elles désormais attendent une justice, celle de dieu.

Pour Sylvie Diclo Pomos, tous les Congolais sont parents, donc, l’importance d’écrire cette pièce. Dans le film, on aperçoit la force de Sylvie Diclo Pomos une femme qui est aussi très généreuse, chaleureuse. Qui est Sylvie Diclo Pomos?

Peu bavarde au contacte, Sylvie explose sur scène. Comédienne, auteur et metteur en scène, elle est l’une des rares femmes artistes au Congo a osé dénoncer les maux qui minent la société congolaise, titille les autorités en place, et étale sur la place publique les sujets tabous comme l’Affaire du Beach dans la « Folie de Janus » ou en s’attaquant aux journalistes dans les « Les Griots du Boss ». Sa plume alerte et crue est une arme. Sylvie illumine les planches et fait attention à ne pas s’enfermer dans des rôles réducteurs. Femme libre, mère attentionnée, comédienne brillante et auteur engagé, voilà l’image que j’ai de cette artiste que j’admire énormément. D’ailleurs elle va se produire d’ici peu en France à Avignon du 19 au 25 juillet et à Limoges du 27 septembre au 6 octobre.

Le titre, On n’oublie pas on pardonne, vient de la réponse que Sylvie Diclo Pomos t’a faite à la fin du film quand tu exprimes avec émotion ce que la réalisation du film a provoqué dans toi-même : « de me libérer de mes fantômes, de ce passé-là ». Quelles sont les réactions des Congolais ? Est-il aussi cathartique pour eux ?

Il y a eu deux projections au niveau de Brazzaville à l’Institut français, mais il n’est jamais passé à la télévision comme les autres documentaires produits dans la série Talents du Congo. Oui, je pense que ce film a permis à plusieurs personnes de faire le deuil sur leurs morts. Ceux qui l’ont vu se sont tous sentis concernés et sincèrement je pense que la parole libère et ce film à délier les langues notamment lors des débats organisés à la suite des projections.

Entretien avec Annette Kouamba Matondo par Beti Ellerson, juin 2012. 

IN ENGLISH

Women prominently featured at the First Luxor African Film Festival 2012

Women prominently featured at the

First Luxor African Film Festival 2012

The pan-African vision of the first Luxor African Film Festival was omnipresent. Culturally separated from the continent for decades, Egypt’s desire to reunite with Africa was expressed throughout the festival.

Equally visible at the Festival were women in every aspect. On the organisational level, executive director Azza El Hosseiny provided exquisite leadership. Her hope is that the festival will play an important role in making the change that the revolution evoked. Also present in all corners of Luxor was the gaze of the beautifully brown woman featured on the Festival poster.

Thirty countries were represented, and of the forty-one films in competition, eleven were by women. Of the nine films out of competition, one film was woman-directed, The Agenda and I by Neveen Shalabi of Egypt. In the Afro-Cinema Pathway category, three of the fifteen films were made by women, featuring classics such as Senegalese Safi Faye’s 1975 film Peasant Letter, The Night of Truth (2004), the award-winning film by Burkinabè Fanta Nacro, who was also a jury member of the short films selection, and Ugandan Caroline Kamya’s highly-acclaimed Imani (2009), which had its world premiere at the Berlin International Film Festival in 2010. 

Spanning the continent, the films represented every region with a broad spectrum of themes. The selection of films by women, the majority of whom attended, included: 

Long films in competition

Taghreed Elsanhouri  (Sudan) Our Beloved Sudan

Hawa Essuman (Kenya) Soul Boy

Nada Mezni Hafaiedh (Tunisia) Tunisian Stories

Short films in competition

Yaba Badoe  (Ghana) The Witches of Gambaga

Tsitsi Dangarembga (Zimbabwe) Nyami Nyami and the Evil Eggs

Mona Iraki (Egypt) Somalia, the Land of the Evil Spirits

Rina Jooste (South Africa) Captor and Captive

Wanuri Kahiu (Kenya) Pumzi

Annette Kouamba Matondo (Congo-Brazzaville) We don't forget, we forgive

Zipporah Nyaruri (Uganda-Kenya) Zebu and the Photo Fish

Rungano Nyoni (Zambia) Mwanza the great

Other highlights of the festival were the “Main Seminar: Sub-Saharan Cinema” which featured a discussion by Beti Ellerson on African women in cinema, and at the opening and closing of the festival a presentation of students and their work--women students were also well represented.

The Festival closed with a delightful surprise as the two top awards went to women. The Greater Nile Award for Best Film: the Golden Mask of Tutankhamen was awarded to Ghanaian-Kenyan Hawa Essuman for her film Soul Boy and The Special Jury Award: the Silver Mask of Tutankhamen to Taghreed Elsanhouri of Sudan for her film Our Beloved Sudan.

Taghreed Elsanhouri and Hawa Essuman expressed delight in this high honour:

Taghreed Elsanhouri: I am really happy because Egypt is like a second home. I do think that it is a sign that we in North Africa are beginning to recognise our Africanness. We are at the forefront of a paradigm shift.

Hawa Essuman: I feel very humbled and it fortifies my resolve to continue with my work. The festival was very inclusive from the beginning, and was interested in fusing the north-south-west-east divide that plagues our cinema. I hope it will succeed in changing that.


Report by Beti Ellerson


EN FRANÇAIS

A Glance at Cannes: Short Film Corner

A GLANCE AT CANNES: SHORT FILM CORNER

Organized by the Cannes Festival, the Short Film Corner is the essential rendez-vous for filmmakers. Since its inception in 2004 it has been a meeting place for producers and directors to present their films, network, and discuss strategies regarding their future plans. At the 64th edition, several films by African women are screened in this important venue.

Ayten Amin (Egypt)

Spring 89 (25 mn) Camelia and Sarah in the last spring of the eighties…Their last days of innocence, a story told twice by 2 different girls or rather 2 similar girls.

Chika Anadu (Nigeria)

Ava (9 mn)  A woman, a few hours away from her wedding, is pondering on her relationship with her husband to-be.

Epilogue (6 mn) A couple reach the last chapter of their troubled relationship history.

Nadège Batou (Congo)

Dissuasion (8 mn) These girls don't leave any chance to boys with bad intentions.

Inès Ben Othman (Tunisia)

D'amour et d'eau fraîche (7 mn) A couple escapes its financial problems  and decides to live by love and fresh water.

Annette Kouamba Matondo (Congo)

We don't forget, we forgive (26 mn)  By portraying Sylvie Diclos Pomos, a Congolese artist who is an actor, a director and also a writer, the film director questions the issue of writing. Writing  to remember a reality that may be cruel. These issues all relate to the "Beach case" that had extensive press coverage in Congo.




Shana Mongwanga (Congo)

A Common Cause - From London to Bukavu (16 mn) A film by Congolese-British Women about their journey to express express concrete solidarity with Women in Congo, during the World March of Women in October 2010. Follow their journey and hear their voices.

Elisabeth Bello Oseini (Cote d'Ivoire)

Un père indigne (34 mn) Ahou goes in search of the father she has never known. Sadly, he refuses to acknowledge her as his daughter. Down and out many years later, this unworthy father looks for Ahou, the daughter that he had disowned.

Rania Tazi (Morocco)

Open Sesame (21 mn) Locked behind an apartment door, a young Moroccan named Leina is held captive by her oppressive husband. When imprisonment becomes too much to bear, Leina attempts an escape with the help of a sympathetic neighbor.

Annette Kouamba Matondo: On n'oublie pas, on pardonne/We don't Forget, We Forgive

FESPACO 2011 WATCH: Official Competition - Documentary

Annette Kouamba Matondo, from the Republic of the Congo (Brazzaville) is a journalist and avid blogger. She has directed two documentaries, De quoi avons-nous peur?/What Do We Have to Be Afraid Of? and On n'oublie pas, on pardonne/We Don't Forget, We Forgive.

Synopsis of the Film, On n'oublie pas, on pardonne (2010)

By portraying Sylvie Diclos Pomos, a Congolese artist who is an actor, a director and also a writer, the film director questions the issue of writing. To write so that one may remember, since people have a tendency to forget, to write as a devoir de mémoire. And also, writing as a way of escaping into a better world, escaping from a reality that is sometimes cruel. These issues all relate to the "Beach case" that had extensive press coverage in Congo, after a trial ending with all alleged culprits being acquitted.