Antillianen spelen De Zwarten

Antillianen spelen de Zwarten: The Antileans play The Blacks. The following piece is about a new intepretation of the famous play from Jean Genet. A play about the thoughs of whites about blacks and vice versa. The play is shown October 21 and 22 in Holland.

Antillianen spelen de Zwarten is een bijzonder stuk in de regie van Helene Pieter, waarin een groep Antilliaanse theaterspelers een absurdistisch stuk van Jean Genet op de planken zetten. Een stuk over zwarten over witten, en witten over zwarten. Ik heb het stuk kunnen zien april dit jaar en was aangenaam verrast. Niet alleen om de vaak aangrijpende spel van de (voor een deel) onervaren spelers, maar ook om de prachtige vormgever. De bekende beeldend kunstenaar Juan Carlos Tajes maakte voor deze voorstelling bijzondere maskers.

Onder de spelers zitten een paar bekenden. Mijn Tambú- collega Desiree Martis speelt erin, Sergio Belfor, de jongeman uit Rotterdam die zich kandidaat stelde voor het jongerenraad bij de Verenigde Naties en de beknde beeldend kunstenaar Rudy Martina.

De Antillianen spelen de Zwarten op vrijdag 21 oktober in Concordia in Den Haag.
Voor de voorstelling in Den Haag zijn er vanaf donderdag 13 oktober kaartjes à 13 Euro verkrijgbaar bij Toko Gouw, Rijswijkseweg 680, in Den Haag. Tel.: 070-4157755.

Op zaterdag 22 oktober spelen ze in Rasa in Utrecht.

U kunt luisteren naar een reportage van een repetitie, uitgezonden april 2005 bij de NPS Radio. Met dank aan journalist Mike Baal, die zijn site beschikbaar stelde, kunt u de reportage horen. Ga daarvoor naar http://www.mikebaal.nl/marlon.htm

Mike Baal werkt als journalist. Bezoek http://members.chello.nl/a.baal/index.html om meer over zijn journalistiek werk te zien.

To be a terrorist!

Wednesday I visited a debate on the treatment of minorities by the Chinese government.
Mrs Rebiya Kadeer (centre with picture) was one of the speakers that intrigued me a lot. This lady was a respected businesswomen in the autonomous region where the Uguir people lives. The Chinese government call her a terrorist. This because she stands for the right of her people to talk their own language, have their own religion, and educate their children the why they choose.

On August 22 we commemorated the Slave rebellion of the slaves in Curacao that started on August 17th, 1795. The main leader was known as Tula. One speaker at another commemoration stated that if Tula lived today, he would be called a terrorist. I'm sure that would happen. It happened to Mrs Kadir. The people in power decide which acts are terrorists ones, and which are official 'performance'. Mrs Kadeer was put into prison for her activities (as was Nelson Mandela, to mention just one). The Chinese rulers have the legal right to label her activities as terrorism, to judge her and they also imprisoned her. The same happened to the slave rebellion leader Tula. At the end he was killed. The Dutch colonial rulers in Curacao at that time had the right to call him a 'rioter', to judge him and his companions and to kill him, in a very cruel way.


I was impressed by Mrs Kadeer because of her stance. She stood there in De Balie in Amsterdam, using her own language (that had to be translated), made her statements and give examples of the things happening to her people back home. After she was released from prison this year she fleed to the US.
I hope I will have the strength and courage people like Mrs. Kadeer and Tula have, to stand for my the things I believe, even when the official rulers decide to call me a terrorist, which give them the right to punish, and at the end even kill me. Like they killed Tula.




China: The Next Generation - Forgotten minorities

Do China’s minorities celebrate? This evening you will be introduced to China's minorities. You will find out how Chinese authorities cope with minority-issues and will be informed first hand on the difficulties that these groups experience in their daily lifes.


Freedom of expression and religion continue to be a sensitive topic in China. The global war on terror has made the problems of minorities only harder. Besides Uighur human rights activists and exile community representatives, ITC (International Campaign for Tibet) and the UNPO (Organization of non Represented Peoples) will participate in this program.
Since the september 11 attacks in the United States, the Chinese authorities have used the global 'war on terrorism' to justify their crackdown on ethnic minorities who are pressing for greater autonomy over there historic regions. Arrests of so-called 'seperatists, terrorists and religious extremists' continue. Many of those charged with 'seperatist' or 'terrorist' offences face questionable trials and are reportedly sentenced to death.
One of the largest minorities - the Uighurs - live in Xinjiang Uighur Autonomous Region (XUAR), located in the Northwest of China. The region once made up the central portion of the legendary Silk Road. The Uighurs are Turkish speaking people and primarily Muslim. At the moment, millions of Chinese immigrants control the region politically, economically and culturally. The Uighurs are suffering unemployment, discrimination and restrictions on their religious and cultural freedoms. A problem similar to the situation Tibetans increasingly face.
Speakers:Uighur speaker:Mrs. Rebiya Kadeer, a prominent Uighur human rights activist.
ITC (International Campaign for Tibet) speaker:Tsering Jampa Executive Director ITC Europe
UNPO (Unrepresented Nations and Peoples Organization) speaker:Mr. Marino Busdachin General Secretary of the UNPO

In cooperation with:Amnesty Internationalprotest together with Amnesty on: http://www.amnesty.nl/
ITC (International Campaign for Tibet) http://www.savetibet.org/UNPO (Unrepresented Nations and Peoples Organization) http://www.unpo.org/
Wednesday October 5th 20:30hrs 10 euro discount 8 euro 4 euro Int. Student Discount

In the following piece I talk about my visit to my island Curacao, the same week of a Cultural week, in which I saw a very nice performance by Grupo Kara. They turned the story of a very known traditional poem into a modern theatre performance. Culture is alive!


Mi a bai Kòrsou. Tabata un bishita basta kòrtiku. Mi a bai solamente un siman pa hasi un investigashon pa mi trabou. Un kolega a kompaña mi i nos a kombersá ku diferente hende. Mi isla ta keda algu bunita i tabata un eksperensha nobo di eksperensha Kòrsou dor di wowo di mi kolega ku ta Ulandes. E siman ku nos tabata na Kòrsou tabatin e tremendo Siman di Kultura, ku Kas di Kultura a organisá http://www.simandikultura.com/.

Den kuadro di e siman aki mi a bishita e obra Buchi Fil di Grupo Kara. Esaki ta un grupo di hóbennan aktor ku ta aktua den nan tempu liber bou di guia di Giovanni Abbath. Algun aña promé mi a mira e poesia konosí aki di Pierre Lauffer hibá esenario na Den Haag. Grupo Kara a hasi algu impreshonante ku e historia aki. Nan a trese na un manera nobo, ku masha tiki teksto i hopi moveshon, ku músika, ritmo i baile. Na un manera rítmiko Grupo Kara a presentá por ehèmpel e esena ora Buchi Fil mester a ‘rosa e mondi’ den un koreografía masha bunita. Mi kolega ku no ta komprondé Papiamentu por a sigui henter e obra. Ta bon pa ora bo bishita Kòrsou eksperensha e tipo di kosnan aki tambe.

Den Siman di kultura Kòrsou ta mustra orguyoso ku su tradishon i kustumbernan. Tin un enfoke basta grandi si riba folklor i arte tradishonal. Mi ta komprondé hopi bon tambe ku esaki ta importante. Di e manera aki henter e pueblo ta partisipá. Pero tabata un ‘eye opener’ di mira na ki manera moderno Grupo Kara a trese nan obra. Esaki tambe ta kultura. E kultura bibu. Giovanni Abbath a skohe tambe pa enrikesé e historia. Den e vershon aki Mosa Nena ta bira un individuo ku su mes pensamentu. Nos ta mira Mosa Nena ninga, i despues aseptá e amor di Fil. Mosa Nena no tabata solamente un muhé deseá dor di hòmbernan i despues bendé. E biaha aki nos ta mira tambe un idea di kiko Nena lo por a hasi despues ku nan a bend’é.
Tabata bon di a mira e kosnan aki ku mi mes wowonan.

From www.lunablou.org
Buchi Fil

This is a play based on the poem by Pierre Lauffer. It is the tragic story of a slave, Buchi Fil, who lived and worked on the plantation of Knip. He was known as a strong person; in body and in mind. He falls in love with his negrita Mosa Nena. The plantation owner and a man called Bomba, plan to sell Mosa Nena to an overseas buyer. Tey think that selling and sending Mosa Nena away will break Buchi Fil's heart and make him lose all his strength.



Un siman ta muchu tiki. Ta solamente un dia nos tabata tin chèns pa bai laman i mi a skohe pa kore bai Banda abou, kome na un snèk na Barber i bai landa na Kenepa, e playa faborito di mi hubentut.

Visit to Curacao