Africa Is a Country

In Search of Freedom

In Search of Freedom

By
Nganji Laeh

Belgian-Congolese filmmaker, Nganji Laeh, along with musician and composer Badi and filmmaker Monique Mbeka Phoba, explore present day DRC via film.

Photo: Nganji Laeh.

I’ve been filming a monthly video journal in the Democratic Republic of Congo, offering a glimpse of my quest in the motherland. The series is called “”in SEARCH of FREEDOM.”  I am working with other afro-european artists such as the musician and composer Badi and filmmaker Monique Mbeka Phoba.  (Monique’s output includes the 2007 documentary film, “Entre la coupe et l’élection” (Between the cup and the election), co-directed with Guy Kabeya Muya, on the Zaire national football team, the Leopards, in the 1974 World Cup. Zaire was the first sub-Saharan African team to play in the World Cup. Previously Egypt, in 1934, and Morocco had qualified for the World Cup.–Ed). Here are the  videos.

EDITION 01 : arriving in the capital Kinshasa and stunting on the road.

EDITION 02 : greeting the (he)art of a city to paint a better picture.

EDITION 03 : in the name of the mother, the daughters and holy grandma.

EDITION 04 : shooting a period film challenging colonial myths in Congo is not easy … but Monique did it.

NEXT EDITION: Coming up end of May 2014.

Further Reading

Beyond the headlines

Recent violence across the Eritrean diaspora is being instrumentalized by populists. But the violence is a desperate cry for attention and requires the Eritrean opposition to seize the moment for regime change.

Action required

Held in Nairobi this month, the inaugural Africa Climate Summit is an important step for the continent’s response to climate change. Still, the disasters in Libya and Morocco underscore that rhetoric and declarations are not enough.

The strange non-death of Bantustans

That South African political parties across the spectrum were quick to venerate the politician and Zulu prince Mangosutho Buthelezi, who died last week, demonstrates that the country is still attached to Bantustan ideology.

Shifting the guilt

Even though Israeli novelist Agur Schiff’s latest book is meant to be a satirical reflection on the legacy of slavery and stereotypes about Africa, it ends up reinforcing them.

Banana Republics

Western leftists are arguing among themselves about whether there will be bananas under socialism. In Africa, however, bananas do not necessarily represent the vagaries of capitalism.